Rudolf III ( – 11 June 1419), 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 ' ...

, was Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg and

Elector of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...

from 1388 until his death.

Life

He was probably born at the Saxon

Wittenberg Wittenberg, officially Lutherstadt Wittenberg, is the fourth-largest town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, in the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. It is situated on the River Elbe, north of Leipzig and south-west of the reunified German ...

residence, the eldest son of Duke Wenceslaus I of Saxe-Wittenberg and his wife Cecilia, daughter of

Francesco I da Carrara Francesco I da Carrara (29 September 1325, in Padua – 6 October 1393, in Monza), called il Vecchio, was Lord of Padua from 1350 to 1388. The son of the assassinated Giacomo II da Carrara, he succeeded him as lord of Padua by popular acclamation ...

, Lord of

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

. Rudolf III took up government after his father's sudden death on 15 May 1388. Rudolf was involved in a long-running dispute with the

Archbishopric of Magdeburg The Archbishopric of Magdeburg was a Catholic Church, Latin Catholic archdiocese (969–1552) and Prince-Bishopric, Prince-Archbishopric (1180–1680) of the Holy Roman Empire centered on the city of Magdeburg on the Elbe River. Planned since 95 ...

. He donated numerous gifts to the Wittenberg All Saints' Church. Like his father, Rudolf was a loyal supporter of the Imperial

House of Luxembourg The House of Luxembourg (; ; ) or Luxembourg dynasty was a royal family of the Holy Roman Empire in the Late Middle Ages, whose members between 1308 and 1437 ruled as kings of Germany and Holy Roman emperors as well as kings of Bohemia, List of r ...

. In 1419, Emperor

Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it ''Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...

sent him to

Bohemia Bohemia ( ; ; ) is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech Republic. In a narrow, geographic sense, it roughly encompasses the territories of present-day Czechia that fall within the Elbe River's drainage basin, but historic ...

, in order to quash the Hussite uprising that had begun with the Defenestration of Prague. He died on his way there, probably after being poisoned. Rudolf was buried in the

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

monastery in Wittenberg. His coffin was moved to the crypt of the Wittenberg All Saints' Church in the 19th century, and to the family grave during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. As he had outlived his male heirs, he was succeeded by his younger brother Albert III.

Marriage and issue

About 1387/89 Rudolf married with Anna of Meissen (d. 4 July 1395), a daughter of the Wettin landgrave Balthasar of Thuringia and secondly in March 1396 with Barbara (d. 17 May 1435), daughter of the

Piast The House of Piast was the first historical ruling dynasty of Poland. The first documented Polish monarch was Duke Mieszko I (–992). The Piasts' royal rule in Poland ended in 1370 with the death of King Casimir III the Great. Branches of ...

duke Rupert I of Legnica. He had five children: * Scholastica (1393–1463), married Duke Jan I of Żagań * Rudolph (d. 1406), * Wenceslas (d. 1407), * Siegmund (d. 1407), * Barbara (1405–1465), married Margrave John of Brandenburg-Kulmbach

Ancestors

References

* *

External links

genealogie-mittelalter.de
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rudolf 03 Saxe Wittenberg Prince-electors of Saxony Dukes of Saxe-Wittenberg House of Ascania 1370s births Year of birth uncertain 1419 deaths 14th-century German nobility 15th-century German nobility