Otto I, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben (died 25 June 1304) was a German prince of the

House of Ascania The House of Ascania () was a dynasty of German rulers. It is also known as the House of Anhalt, which refers to its longest-held possession, Principality of Anhalt, Anhalt. The Ascanians are named after Ascania (or Ascaria) Castle, known as ' ...

and ruler of the principality of

Anhalt-Aschersleben Anhalt-Aschersleben was a short-lived principality of the Holy Roman Empire ruled by the House of Ascania with its residence at Aschersleben in present-day Saxony-Anhalt. It emerged as a subdivision from the Principality of Anhalt from 1252 to 131 ...

. He was the eldest son of

Henry II, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben Henry II, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben (1215 – 12 June 1266) was a German prince of the House of Ascania and ruler of the principality of Anhalt-Aschersleben. He was the eldest son of Henry I, Count of Anhalt (who was raised to the rank of ...

, by his wife Matilda, daughter of

Otto the Child, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg Otto is a masculine German given name and a surname. It originates as an Old High German short form (variants '' Audo'', '' Odo'', '' Udo'') of Germanic names beginning in ''aud-'', an element meaning "wealth, prosperity". The name is recorded fr ...

. Otto was named after his maternal grandfather.

Life

After the death of his father in 1266, Otto and his younger brother

Henry Henry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Henry (given name), including lists of people and fictional characters * Henry (surname) * Henry, a stage name of François-Louis Henry (1786–1855), French baritone Arts and entertainmen ...

inherited the principality of Anhalt-Aschersleben as co-rulers; but because they were still underage, their mother Matilda assumed the regency of Aschersleben until 1270, when both brothers were declared adults. Otto continued to rule jointly with his brother until 1283, when Henry (already a provost) renounced his rights. From that time, Otto ruled alone until his own death.

Marriage and issue

In 1283 Otto married Hedwig (b. ca. 1256 - d. aft. 14 December 1300), daughter of Henry III the White, Duke of

Wrocław Wrocław is a city in southwestern Poland, and the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. It is the largest city and historical capital of the region of Silesia. It lies on the banks of the Oder River in the Silesian Lowlands of Central Eu ...

, and widow of Henry, Lord of Pleissnerland, eldest son of

Albert II, Margrave of Meissen Albert II, the Degenerate (de: ''Albrecht II der Entartete'') (1240 – 20 November 1314) was a Margrave of Meissen, Landgrave of Thuringia and Count Palatine of Saxony. He was a member of the House of Wettin. He was the eldest son of Henry III, ...

. They had three children: # Otto II, Prince of Anhalt-Aschersleben (d. 24 July 1315). #Sophie, married bef. 1308 to Count Ulrich III of Regenstein-Heimburg. #Elisabeth, married ca. 1300 to Count Frederick of Beichlingen-Rotenburg. 1304 deaths Princes of Anhalt-Aschersleben Year of birth unknown {{Europe-royal-stub