Otto III. Weimar-Orlamünde, sometimes called ''Otto IV'' (1244 – June 1285) was a German nobleman. He was a member 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 a titular Count of Weimar-Orlamünde. He was the ruling Count of

Weimar Weimar is a city in the state (Germany), German state of Thuringia, in Central Germany (cultural area), Central Germany between Erfurt to the west and Jena to the east, southwest of Leipzig, north of Nuremberg and west of Dresden. Together w ...

and Lord of Rudolstadt and

Plassenburg Plassenburg is a castle in the city of Kulmbach in Bavaria. It is one of the most impressive castles in Germany and a symbol of the city. It was first mentioned in 1135. The Plassenberg family were Ministerialis, ministerial of the counts of And ...

Life

He was the son of Count Herman II and his wife, Beatrix of Andechs-Merania. In 1248, Otto III and his elder brother Herman III inherited the

Franconia Franconia ( ; ; ) is a geographical region of Germany, characterised by its culture and East Franconian dialect (). Franconia is made up of the three (governmental districts) of Lower Franconia, Lower, Middle Franconia, Middle and Upper Franco ...

n possessions of their maternal uncle

Otto II Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy. Otto II was ...

. They divided their possessions, with Otto receiving

, Rudolstadt and

and Herman receiving Orlamünde. On 29 December 1279, Otto III founded Himmelskron Abbey. He died in June 1285, and was buried in the collegiate church of the abbey.

Marriage and issue

Otto III was married to Agnes of Truhendingen (d. 13 May 1285). Together, they had the following children: * Otto "the Younger" (d. before September 1318) * Otto V (d. 1315) * Herman (d. 1319) * Agnes (d. 1354) Abbess at Himmelkron monastery File: HimmelkronOtto013.JPG , Sculpture on his grave File:BASA-3K-7-354-13-The sarcophagus of count Otto III of Orlamünde.jpg , The sarcophagus of count Otto III of Weimar-Orlamünde File: HimmelkronOtto012.JPG , His coat of arms

References

* Helmuth Meißner: ''Stiftskirche, ehemaliges Kloster und Schloss Himmelkron'', Munichen and Berlin, 1998 * C. Chl. Freiherr von Reitzenstein: ''Regesten der Grafen von Orlamuende aus Babenberger und Ascanischem Stamm'', Historischer Verein für Oberfranken, Bayreuth, 1871 * Theodor Zinck: ''Himmelkron — Beschreibung seiner Vergangenheit und Gegenwart'', Bayreuth, 1925, pp. IV and 4 House of Ascania Counts of Weimar-Orlamünde 1244 births 1285 deaths 13th-century German nobility {{Germany-hist-stub