Philipp Ludwig I, Count of Hanau-Münzenberg (21 November 1553 – 4 February 1580) succeeded his father in the government of the County of

Hanau-Münzenberg The County of Hanau-Münzenberg was a territory within the Holy Roman Empire. It emerged when the County of Hanau was divided in 1458, the other part being the county of Hanau-Lichtenberg. Due to common heirs, both counties were merged from 1642 t ...

in 1561.

Background

Philipp Ludwig I, was the son of Count Philipp III of Hanau-Münzenberg and

Countess Palatine Helena of Simmern Countess Palatine Helena of Simmern (13 June 1532 – 5 February 1579 at Burg Schwarzenfels, Schwarzenfels Castle in Sinntal ) was the daughter of Count Palatine and Duke John II, Count Palatine of Simmern, John II of Palatinate-Simmern, Sim ...

. His

godparents Within Christianity, a godparent or sponsor is someone who bears witness to a child's baptism (christening) and later is willing to help in their catechesis, as well as their lifelong spiritual formation. In both religious and civil views, ...

were: * Duchess Palatinate Maria of Simmern (1519–1567), daughter of the Margrave Casimir of Brandenburg-Kulmbach, married to

Elector Elector may refer to: * Prince-elector or elector, a member of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Holy Roman Emperors * Elector, a member of an electoral college ** Confederate elector, a member of t ...

Friedrich III Frederick III may refer to: * Frederick III, Duke of Upper Lorraine (died 1033) * Frederick III, Duke of Swabia (1122–1190) * Friedrich III, Burgrave of Nuremberg (1220–1297) * Frederick III, Duke of Lorraine (1240–1302) * Frederick III o ...

* Count Philipp of Solms-Braunfels * Count Ludwig of Stolberg-Königstein His hobby was collecting coins and medals.

Youth

Childhood

Nothing is known about his early years. In 1560, when he was seven years old, his father appointed him as bailiff of the

district A district is a type of administrative division that in some countries is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or county, counties, several municipality, municip ...

of Steinau. Presumably, this was a

sinecure A sinecure ( or ; from the Latin , 'without', and , 'care') is a position with a salary or otherwise generating income that requires or involves little or no responsibility, labour, or active service. The term originated in the medieval church, ...

. Just one year later, his father died and he inherited the county of Hanau-Münzenberg. A committee of regents was appointed to rule on his behalf.

Regency

The regency was established by the

Reichskammergericht The ; ; ) was one of the two highest judicial institutions in the Holy Roman Empire, the other one being the Aulic Council in Vienna. It was founded in 1495 by the Imperial Diet in Worms. All legal proceedings in the Holy Roman Empire could be ...

("Imperial Supreme Court") at the request of his mother. Three regents were appointed, as requested: * Count Johann VI of

Nassau-Dillenburg The County of Nassau was a German state within the Holy Roman Empire from the period of the formal recognition of the countly title in 1159 (though "de facto" sovereignty began in 1125) until the declaration of the Duchy of Nassau in 1806 with ...

, a step-great-uncle of the ward, who was also related directly to his ward * Count Philipp IV of Hanau-Lichtenberg, the reigning Count of Hanau in the other line, and thus—very distantly—related to his ward. * Elector Palatine Friedrich III is mentioned in the literature as the chief regent. There is, however, no documentary evidence that he acted as such. Count Reinhard I of Solms, who had already acted as a guardian for Philipp Ludwig's father and who was more closely related to Philipp Ludwig, was apparently ignored when the regency was established. He had expected to be regent and had already accepted the homage of the subjects, whom he now had to release. The reason may have been that Reinhard was a

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and Hanau-Münzenberg had joined to

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

religiously as well as politically. On the other hand, the contrast between

Calvinism Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Christian, Presbyteri ...

(as practised in the

Electorate of the Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate was a Imperial State, constituent state of the Holy Roman Empire until it was annexed by the Electorate of Baden in 1803. From the end of the 13th century, its ruler was one of the Prince-electors who elected the Holy ...

) and

Lutheranism Lutheranism is a major branch of Protestantism that emerged under the work of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German friar and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practices of the Catholic Church launched ...

(in Hanau-Lichtenberg) was not as pronounced at this time as it was a generation later, when again the Count of Hanau-Lichtenberg acted as regent for Hanau-Münzenberg and the difference it caused violent clashes within the regency. Under the regency for Philipp Ludwig I this was limited to discussions which education he should receive. In the end, the guardians reached an agreement.

Education

The young Count Philipp Ludwig I was described by his teachers as highly intelligent and eager to learn. From 1563 onwards, his guardians looked into the possibility of him being educated abroad. As this led to nothing, he stayed for three years at the court of his guardian in

Dillenburg Dillenburg, officially Oranienstadt Dillenburg, is a town in Hesse's Gießen region in Germany. The town was formerly the seat of the old Dillkreis district, which is now part of the Lahn-Dill-Kreis. The town lies on the German- Dutch holiday roa ...

, where he was educated together with his guardian's youngest brother,

Henry of Nassau-Dillenburg Henry of Nassau, Count of Nassau-Dillenburg (Dillenburg, 15 October 1550 – Mook, 14 April 1574), was the youngest brother of William I of Orange-Nassau. He was the twelfth and last child of William the Rich and Juliana of Stolberg-Wern ...

(1550–1574). From 1567 to 1569, they studied together at the

University of Strasbourg The University of Strasbourg (, Unistra) is a public research university located in Strasbourg, France, with over 52,000 students and 3,300 researchers. Founded in the 16th century by Johannes Sturm, it was a center of intellectual life during ...

and after 1569 at the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (; ), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The University of Tübingen is one of eleven German Excellenc ...

. Here, count Philipp Ludwig I came into contact with the fiercely unfolding

theological Theology is the study of religious belief from a religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of an ...

controversy within the Protestant movement. After a stay in Tübingen, the education continued in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Count Philipp Ludwig I arrived in Paris in 1572. Here, he came into contact with Admiral

Gaspard II de Coligny Gaspard de Coligny, seigneur de Châtillon (; 16 February 1519 – 24 August 1572), was a French nobleman, Admiral of France, and Huguenot leader during the French Wars of Religion. He served under kings Francis I and Henry II during the ...

, the leader of

Huguenots The Huguenots ( , ; ) are a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed (Calvinist) tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss political leader, ...

. He narrowly escaped the

Saint Bartholomew's Day massacre The Saint Bartholomew's Day massacre () in 1572 was a targeted group of assassinations and a wave of Catholic mob violence directed against the Huguenots (French Calvinist Protestants) during the French Wars of Religion. Traditionally believed ...

and returned to Buchsweiler (now called Bouxwiller), the capital of the county of Hanau-Lichtenberg. He continued his studies at the

University of Basel The University of Basel (Latin: ''Universitas Basiliensis''; German: ''Universität Basel'') is a public research university in Basel, Switzerland. Founded on 4 April 1460, it is Switzerland's oldest university and among the world's oldest univ ...

, from where he also took excursions further into Switzerland. In 1573, he travelled to Italy and visited in the numerous places in northern Italy before reaching his destination, the

University of Padua The University of Padua (, UNIPD) is an Italian public research university in Padua, Italy. It was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from the University of Bologna, who previously settled in Vicenza; thus, it is the second-oldest ...

. He then continued to study in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

. The return journey took him to

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

in 1574. This educational program was quite extraordinary for a count.

Family

Count Philipp Ludwig I married Countess

Magdalene of Waldeck-Wildungen Countess Magdalene of Waldeck-Wildungen (1558 – 9 September 1599), , was a countess from the House of Waldeck and through marriage successively Countess of Hanau-Münzenberg and Countess of Nassau-Siegen. Biography Magdalene was born ...

(1558–1599). Sources differ on the exact date of the wedding: 2, 5 or 6 February 1576. His guardian opposed the marriage, because Magdalena was of lower rank than the Counts of Hanau,see Menk, p. 154 ff, and G. Schmidt, p. 548 and her family held lands in

Hesse Hesse or Hessen ( ), officially the State of Hesse (), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt, which is also the country's principal financial centre. Two other major hist ...

and

Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...

. He would have preferred a bride from a family closer to Hanau. He may have married her out of true love, or to counter the political dominance of Nassau over Hanau. Philipp and Magdalena had four children together: # Philipp Ludwig II (18 November 1576 – 9 August 1612). # Juliane (13 October 1577 – 2 December 1577), buried in the choir of the St. Mary's Church in

Hanau Hanau () is a city in the Main-Kinzig-Kreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is 25 km east of Frankfurt, Frankfurt am Main and part of the Frankfurt Rhine-Main, Frankfurt Rhine-Main Metropolitan Region. Its railway Hanau Hauptbahnhof, station is a ma ...

. # William (26 August 1578 – 14 June 1579), also buried in the choir of St. Mary's Church in Hanau. #

Albert of Hanau-Münzenberg Albert may refer to: Companies * Albert Computers, Inc., a computer manufacturer in the 1980s * Albert Czech Republic, a supermarket chain in the Czech Republic * Albert Heijn, a supermarket chain in the Netherlands * Albert Market, a street mar ...

-Schwarzenfels (12 November 1579 – 19 December 1635).

Government

On 13 November 1562 Emperor Ferdinand I passed the residence of Hanau on his way to the

coronation A coronation ceremony marks the formal investiture of a monarch with regal power using a crown. In addition to the crowning, this ceremony may include the presentation of other items of regalia, and other rituals such as the taking of special v ...

of his son Maximilian II on 24 November 1562 in

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

. Ferdinand was welcomed at court and Philipp Ludwig and Ferdinand went hunting together. In 1563, a

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church *Consistor ...

was founded in Hanau, so that the

was institutionalized administratively. The consistory was initially a department of the count's

Chancery Chancery may refer to: Offices and administration * Court of Chancery, the chief court of equity in England and Wales until 1873 ** Equity (law), also called chancery, the body of jurisprudence originating in the Court of Chancery ** Courts of e ...

. Under his son, count Philipp Ludwig II, however, the authority of the church was legally separated as an independent institution in 1612. In 1571, the

Statutes A statute is a law or formal written enactment of a legislature. Statutes typically declare, command or prohibit something. Statutes are distinguished from court law and unwritten law (also known as common law) in that they are the expressed wil ...

Solms Solms () is a town west of Wetzlar in the Lahn-Dill-Kreis, Hessen, Germany with around 13,500 inhabitants. In the constituent community of Burgsolms once stood the ancestral castle of the Counts and Princes of House of Solms, Solms. Geography Lo ...

were published, codifying the law as it stood in the

County of Solms Solms () is a town west of Wetzlar in the Lahn-Dill-Kreis, Hessen, Germany with around 13,500 inhabitants. In the constituent community of Burgsolms once stood the ancestral castle of the Counts and Princes of Solms. Geography Location Solms lie ...

. This work had been commissioned by the Counts of Solms. Since the law in neighbouring territories was very similar, the work spread quickly in the area of the

Wetterau Association of Imperial Counts 400px, Map of the Wetterau by Matthäus Merian Wetterau Association of Imperial Counts was an association of comital families in the Wetterau and surrounding areas. It originated in the late Middle Ages and was formally disbanded when the Holy R ...

. Local differences from the Solms statute were published as local notices. In the county of Hanau-Münzenberg this law code collection was used from 1581 (if not earlier) until the introduction of the

Civil Code A civil code is a codification of private law relating to property law, property, family law, family, and law of obligations, obligations. A jurisdiction that has a civil code generally also has a code of civil procedure. In some jurisdiction ...

on 1 January 1900. Count Philipp Ludwig I ruled the county autonomously from 1575. His government is characterized by careful maneuvering among the various confessions and the imperial territories in pursuit of consolidation and the web of political relations in the

Empire An empire is a political unit made up of several territories, military outpost (military), outposts, and peoples, "usually created by conquest, and divided between a hegemony, dominant center and subordinate peripheries". The center of the ...

and in the

Wetterau The Wetterau (, ) is a fertile undulating tract, watered by the Wetter (river), Wetter, a tributary of the Nidda (river), Nidda River, in the western German state of Hesse, between the hilly province Oberhessen and the north-western Taunus mounta ...

region. In 1578 the Lutheran Church Order of Hanau-Lichtenberg was introduced in Hanau-Münzenberg as well. In this issue, Count Philipp Ludwig acted very carefully and did not follow, probably against his personal conviction, the more radical

Calvinist Reformed Christianity, also called Calvinism, is a major branch of Protestantism that began during the 16th-century Protestant Reformation. In the modern day, it is largely represented by the Continental Reformed Protestantism, Continenta ...

model. His son and successor, Count Philipp Ludwig II, later carried through the so-called "second Reformation", the turn towards Calvinism. MK innen 2

During Count Philipp Ludwig I's reign, Hanau could finally definitively purchase the villages of Dorheim, Schwalheim and Rödgen and the former monasteries Konradsdorf and

Hirzenhain Hirzenhain is a municipality in the Wetteraukreis, in Hesse, Germany. It is located approximately 45 kilometers northeast of Frankfurt am Main. It has a population of around 2,800. History From 1943 to 1945 the area was the site of '' :de:Arbeitse ...

and one third of the

of Ortenberg from the Count of Stolberg. These areas had previously been pledged to Hanau. He also purchased Ober-Eschbach, Nieder-Eschbach, Steinbach and Holzhausen.

Death

Count Philipp Ludwig I died quite suddenly. He had complained about weakness and nausea for three or four days before his death, but even Philipp Ludwig himself had not taken it very seriously. He fainted unexpectedly between 4 and 5 PM while gambling and died soon after. He was buried in the choir of the St. Mary's Church in

, on the right side, hence near the south wall of the choir, in the immediate vicinity of his father. A funeral sermon was published.Melchior Weissenberger: ''Leichenpredigt'', Frankfurt am Main, 1580, listed in: ''Titelblattkatalog der Leichenpredigten und sonstigen Trauerschriften in der Universitätsbibliothek Breslau'', item #325365 in the database of the ''Forschungsstelle für Personalschriften'' at the

University of Marburg The Philipps University of Marburg () is a public research university located in Marburg, Germany. It was founded in 1527 by Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse, which makes it one of Germany's oldest universities and the oldest still operating Prote ...

An epitaph was mounted above his grave, which was considered a major example of High Renaissance art. The epitaph was destroyed during World War II, a few surviving fragments are kept in the Historical Museum of Hanau. The location of the epitaph on the south wall is indicated by four empty brackets. His widow, Countess Magdalene, née of Waldeck, remarried in 1581, with

John VII, Count of Nassau-Siegen Count John VII the Middle of Nassau-Siegen (7 June 1561 – 27 September 1623), , official titles: ''Graf zu Nassau, Katzenelnbogen, Vianden und Diez, Herr zu Beilstein'', was since 1606 Count of Nassau-Siegen, a part of the Count ...

Ancestors

References and sources

* Adrian Willem Eliza Dek: ''De afstammelingen van Juliana van Stolberg tot aan het jaar van de vrede van Munster'', Zaltbommel, 1968. * Reinhard Dietrich: ''Die Landesverfassung in dem Hanauischen'', in: ''Hanauer Geschichtsblätter'' issue 34, Hanau 1996, . * Rolf Glawischnig: ''Niederlande, Kalvinismus und Reichsgrafenstand 1559–1584. Nassau-Dillenburg unter Graf Johann VI'', in: ''Schriften des Landesamtes für geschichtliche Landeskunde'' issue 36, Marburg, 1973. * ''Hatstein'', handwritten chronicle in the archives of the ''Hanauer Geschichtsverein''. * Carl Heiler: ''Johann Adam Bernhard's Bericht von der Jugendzeit des Grafen Philipp Ludwig I. von Hanau'', in: ''Hanauisches Magazin'' issue 11, 1932, pp. 25–31. * Heinrich Neumann: ''Eine gräfliche Reise vor mehr als 350 Jahren'', in: ''Hanauisches Magazin'' issue 11, 1932, p. 92. * ''Reinhards von Isenburg, Grafen zu Büdingen, an den jungen Grafen Philipp Ludwig in Anno 1563 den 6. Dec. selbst verfertigtes Consilium, sich vor und in der Regierung zu verhalten'', partially in: ''Hanauisches Magazin'' issue 8, 1785, pp. 32–34. * Hermann Kersting: ''Die Sonderrechte im Kurfürstenthume Hessen. Sammlung des Fuldaer, Hanauer, Isenburger, Kurmainzer und Schaumburger Rechts, einschließlich der Normen für das Buchische Quartier und für die Cent Mittelsinn, sowie der im Fürstenthume Hanau recipirten Hülfsrechte'', Fulda, 1857. * Gerhard Menk: ''Philipp Ludwig I. von Hanau-Münzenberg (1553–1580). Bildungsgeschichte und Politik eines Reichsgrafen in der zweiten Hälfte des 16. Jahrhunderts'', in: ''Hessisches Jahrbuch für Landesgeschichte'' vol. 32, 1982, pp. 127–163. * Georg Schmidt: ''Der Wetterauer Grafenverein'', in: ''Veröffentlichungen der Historischen Kommission für Hessen'', vol. 52, Marburg, 1989, . * Reinhard Suchier: ''Genealogie des Hanauer Grafenhauses'', in: ''Festschrift des Hanauer Geschichtsvereins zu seiner fünfzigjährigen Jubelfeier am 27. August 1894'', Hanau, 1894. * Johann Adolf Theodor Ludwig Varnhagen: ''Grundlage der Waldeckischen Landes- und Regentengeschichte'', Arolsen 1853. * K. Wolf: ''Die vormundschaftliche Regierung des Grafen Johann des Älteren von Nassau-Dillenburg'', in: ''Hanauisches Magazin'', issue 15, p. 81 and issue 16, p. 1. * Ernst J. Zimmermann: ''Hanau Stadt und Land'', third edition, Hanau, 1919, reprinted 1978.

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Philipp Ludwig 01 Hanau Munzenberg Counts of Hanau-Münzenberg 1553 births 1580 deaths 16th-century German nobility