William I, Count of Schwarzburg-Frankenhausen (4 October 1534 in
Sondershausen
Sondershausen () is a town in Thuringia, central Germany, capital of the Kyffhäuserkreis district, situated about 50 km (30 mi) north of Erfurt. On 1 December 2007, the former municipality Schernberg was merged with Sondershausen.
Until 1918 i ...
– 30 September 1597 in Straußberg, which is today part of Sondershausen), was the ruling Count of
Schwarzburg-Frankenhausen from 1571 until his death. He was the founder of the Schwarzburg-Frankenhausen line.
Life
He was the son of Count
Günther XL of Schwarzburg (1490–1552), nicknamed ''the Rich'' or ''Günther with the fat mouth'', and his wife, Countess Elisabeth (d. 14 May 1572), a daughter of Count Philip of Isenburg-Büdingen-Ronneburg. He was raised as a Christian and became a pious, God-fearing, strictly Lutheran man.
After the death of Günther XL in 1552, his four sons initially ruled the land jointly. Before he took up government, he studied for several years, in
Erfurt
Erfurt () is the capital (political), capital and largest city of the Central Germany (cultural area), Central German state of Thuringia, with a population of around 216,000. It lies in the wide valley of the Gera (river), River Gera, in the so ...
,
Jena
Jena (; ) is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in Germany and the second largest city in Thuringia. Together with the nearby cities of Erfurt and Weimar, it forms the central metropolitan area of Thuringia with approximately 500,000 in ...
,
Leuven
Leuven (, , ), also called Louvain (, , ), is the capital and largest City status in Belgium, city of the Provinces of Belgium, province of Flemish Brabant in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is located about east of Brussels. The municipalit ...
, and
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 ...
. From 1563 to 1565, he served in the Danish army; in 1566 he fought against the Turks.
In 1571 the brothers decided to divide their county. William's part of the county included the city of Frankenhausen, which he chose as his residence, and the districts of Straußberg, Heringen and Kelbra. He later received the district of Schernberg as well. His part of the count was named Schwarzburg-Frankenhausen, after his residence.
After William I and his elder brother
Günther XLI both died childless, the two remaining brothers,
John Günther I and
Albrecht VII divided their possessions. John Günther I received Arnstadt and Sondershausen and founded the Schwarzburg-Sondershausen line. Albrecht VII (1537–1605) received Rudolstadt and Frankenhausen and founded the Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt line.
William I signed both the
Formula of Concord
Formula of Concord (1577) (; ; also the "''Bergic Book''" or the "''Bergen Book''") is an authoritative Lutheran statement of faith (called a confession, creed, or "symbol") that, in its two parts (''Epitome'' and ''Solid Declaration''), makes up ...
of 1577 and the
Book of Concord
''The Book of Concord'' (1580) or ''Concordia'' (often referred to as the ''Lutheran Confessions'') is the historic doctrinal standard recognized as authoritative by many Lutheran church bodies since the 16th century. It consists of ten creeda ...
of 1580.
[See the ]Book of Concord
''The Book of Concord'' (1580) or ''Concordia'' (often referred to as the ''Lutheran Confessions'') is the historic doctrinal standard recognized as authoritative by many Lutheran church bodies since the 16th century. It consists of ten creeda ...
, pages 16 and 764
Marriages and issue
William's first marriage was on 6 April 1567 with Elisabeth (d. 23 November 1590), the daughter of Count Joachim of Schlick. His second marriage was on 7 March 1593 with Clara (1571–1658), the daughter of Duke
William the Younger of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Both marriages remained childless.
See also
*
House of Schwarzburg
The House of Schwarzburg was one of the oldest noble families of Thuringia, which is in modern-day central Germany. Upon the death of Prince Friedrich Günther in 1971, a claim to the headship of the house passed under Semi-Salic primogeniture t ...
References
* Friedrich Apfelstedt: ''Das Haus Kevernburg-Schwarzburg von seinem Ursprunge bis auf unsere Zeit'', Arnstadt, 1890
* Johann Christian August Junghans: ''Geschichte der schwarzburgischen Regenten'', Leipzig, 1821
Online* Dr. Kamill von Behr: ''Genealogie der in Europa regierenden Fürstenhäuser'', Leipzig, 1870
Footnotes
{{DEFAULTSORT:William 01 Schwarzburg Frankenhausen
Counts of Schwarzburg
House of Schwarzburg
People from Sondershausen
16th-century German nobility
1534 births
1597 deaths