Otto, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen (1320 – 1 December 1398) was the fourth and last husband of

Joanna I of Naples Joanna I, also known as Johanna I ( it, Giovanna I; December 1325 – 27 July 1382), was Queen of Naples, and Countess of Provence and Forcalquier from 1343 to 1382; she was also Princess of Achaea from 1373 to 1381. Joanna was the eldest daug ...

. He also held the title of

Prince of Taranto The Principality of Taranto was a state in southern Italy created in 1088 for Bohemond I of Antioch, Bohemond I, eldest son of Robert Guiscard, as part of the peace between him and his younger brother Roger Borsa after a dispute over the success ...

. His nickname was Otto the Tarantine.

Biography

Otto was the eldest son of

Henry II, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen Henry II, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, (before 1296 – after 1351), also called ''de Graecia'' ("of Greece"), was the eldest son of Henry I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and Agnes of Meissen. On their father's death in 1322, his sons agreed ...

(c. 1289 – 1351) and

Jutta of Brandenburg The feminine name Jutta (pronounced "yutta") is the German form of Judith. There is also an alternative theory that it could be derived from the Germanic name ''Eutha'', meaning "mankind, child, descendant", or from a short form of ''Henrietta'' ...

. In 1353, he married Violante of Vilaragut, a daughter of Berengar de Vilaragut and widow of

James III of Majorca James III ( – ), known as James the Rash (or the Unfortunate), was King of Majorca from 1324 to 1344. He was the son of Ferdinand of Majorca and Isabella of Sabran. Life James was born in Catania, Sicily. Margaret of Villehardouin, James's ...

. There were no children from this marriage. By 1372, Otto was a widower. On 25 September 1376, Otto married his second wife, the three times widowed Queen

. The groom was fifty-six years old and the bride about forty-eight. The marriage was childless. The so-called

Western Schism The Western Schism, also known as the Papal Schism, the Vatican Standoff, the Great Occidental Schism, or the Schism of 1378 (), was a split within the Catholic Church lasting from 1378 to 1417 in which bishops residing in Rome and Avignon bo ...

started in 1378 with the election of two rival

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

Urban VI Pope Urban VI ( la, Urbanus VI; it, Urbano VI; c. 1318 – 15 October 1389), born Bartolomeo Prignano (), was head of the Catholic Church from 8 April 1378 to his death in October 1389. He was the most recent pope to be elected from outside the ...

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

and

Clement VII Pope Clement VII ( la, Clemens VII; it, Clemente VII; born Giulio de' Medici; 26 May 1478 – 25 September 1534) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 November 1523 to his death on 25 September 1534. Deemed "the ...

Avignon Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label=Provençal dialect, Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region of So ...

. Joanna supported Clement VII and allied herself with his main supporter

Charles V of France Charles V (21 January 1338 – 16 September 1380), called the Wise (french: le Sage; la, Sapiens), was King of France from 1364 to his death in 1380. His reign marked an early high point for France during the Hundred Years' War, with his armi ...

. With no hope of having further children of her own, Joanna chose to strengthen her alliance with France by adopting Louis of Anjou, younger brother of Charles V, as her heir. Urban VI proclaimed Joanna deposed in 1381. He named her second cousin Charles of Durazzo as his candidate for the supposedly vacant throne. Charles spent the following months gathering his army within the

Kingdom of Hungary The Kingdom of Hungary was a monarchy in Central Europe that existed for nearly a millennium, from the Middle Ages into the 20th century. The Principality of Hungary emerged as a Christian kingdom upon the coronation of the first king Stephen ...

and then marched against the

Kingdom of Naples The Kingdom of Naples ( la, Regnum Neapolitanum; it, Regno di Napoli; nap, Regno 'e Napule), also known as the Kingdom of Sicily, was a state that ruled the part of the Italian Peninsula south of the Papal States between 1282 and 1816. It was ...

. Otto led the Neapolitan army in battle but was defeated. Otto was exiled from Naples by the new king and never returned. Joanna was strangled in prison in the Castle of

San Fele San Fele ( nap, Sandə Fèlə) is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Potenza in the Basilicata region of southern Italy. Geography San Fele is a picturesque stone village located at the saddle between two mountain peaks, Monte Toretta an ...

on 12 May 1382. Otto survived Joanna by at least sixteen years but never remarried. He died childless at

Foggia Foggia (, , ; nap, label= Foggiano, Fògge ) is a city and former ''comune'' of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere, also known ...

and was succeeded by his first cousin, once removed

Eric I, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen Eric I, Duke of Brunswick-Grubenhagen nicknamed ''the winner'' (german: Erich I., Herzog von Braunschweig-Grubenhagen; – 28 May 1427), ruled the Principality of Grubenhagen, a part of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Life Eric was th ...

, previously Duke of

Einbeck Einbeck (; Eastphalian: ''Aimbeck'') is a town in the district Northeim, in southern Lower Saxony, Germany, on the German Timber-Frame Road. History Prehistory The area of the current city of Einbeck is inhabited since prehistoric times. Vario ...

External links

*
His profile in Peerage.com
{{Authority control 1320 births 1398 deaths Kings consort Princes of Grubenhagen Royal consorts of Naples Old House of Brunswick Husbands of Joanna I of Naples