Wolfgang Wilhelm von Pfalz-Neuburg (4 November 1578 in

Neuburg an der Donau Neuburg an der Donau (Central Bavarian: ''Neiburg an da Donau'') is a town which is the capital of the Neuburg-Schrobenhausen district in the state of Bavaria in Germany. Divisions The municipality has 16 divisions: * Altmannstetten * Bergen, N ...

– 14 September 1653 in

Düsseldorf Düsseldorf is the capital city of North Rhine-Westphalia, the most populous state of Germany. It is the second-largest city in the state after Cologne and the List of cities in Germany with more than 100,000 inhabitants, seventh-largest city ...

) was a German Prince. He was

Count Palatine of Neuburg Palatinate-Neuburg () was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire, founded in 1505 by a branch of the House of Wittelsbach. Its capital was Neuburg an der Donau. Its area was about 2,750 km2, with a population of some 100,000. History The Duc ...

and Duke of

Jülich Jülich (; in old spellings also known as ''Guelich'' or ''Gülich'', , , Ripuarian: ''Jöllesch'') is a town in the district of Düren, in the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia, in western Germany. As a border region between the competin ...

and

Berg Berg may refer to: People *Berg (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) * General Berg (disambiguation) * Berg Ng (born 1960), Hong Kong actor * Berg (footballer, born 1963), Ninimbergue dos Santos Guerra, Brazilian footba ...

Life

Wolfgang Wilhelm's parents were

Philip Louis, Count Palatine of Neuburg Philipp Ludwig of Neuburg (2 October 1547 – 22 August 1614) was Count Palatine of Neuburg from 1569 until 1614. Life Philipp Ludwig was born in Zweibrücken in 1547 as the eldest son of Wolfgang, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken. After his fat ...

, and Anna of Jülich-Cleves-Berg, a daughter of

William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg William of Jülich-Cleves-Berge (William I of Cleves, William V of Jülich-Berg), known as William the Rich (; 28 July 1516 – 5 January 1592), was a Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg (1539–1592). William was born in and died in Düsseldorf. He wa ...

. His uncle, John William, Duke Julich-Cleves-Berg had no heirs, so Wolfgang Wilhelm rushed to secure the duchies for himself. Neuburg was small and weak, surrounded by stronger powers like

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

and the

Electoral Palatinate The Electoral Palatinate was a 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 Roman Empero ...

. Acquiring the Jülich succession would not only provide more land but also enrich the Neuburg economy. Despite his

Lutheran 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 ...

religious status, Wolfgang Wilhelm personally traveled to

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

to seek the Emperor's support. Neuburg also tried to gain the support of

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 ...

and

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, but these efforts were unsuccessful. He eventually entered negotiations with his main rival over the succession, Johann Sigismund of Brandenburg, and agreed to the Treaty of Dortmund in 1609. However, this treaty would break down when he converted to

Catholicism 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 ...

in 1613. He eventually agreed settle the

War of the Jülich Succession The War of the Jülich Succession, also known as the Jülich War or the Jülich-Cleves Succession Crises (German language, German: ''Jülich-Klevischer Erbfolgestreit''), was a war of succession in the United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg. The fi ...

with his rival claimant, and thus became the first ruler of

Palatinate-Neuburg Palatinate-Neuburg () was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire, founded in 1505 by a branch of the House of Wittelsbach. Its capital was Neuburg an der Donau. Its area was about 2,750 km2, with a population of some 100,000. History The Du ...

who was also Duke of

and Duke of

. In 1615, he was made a Knight in the

Order of the Golden Fleece The Distinguished Order of the Golden Fleece (, ) is a Catholic order of chivalry founded in 1430 in Brugge by Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, to celebrate his marriage to Isabella of Portugal, Duchess of Burgundy, Isabella of Portugal. T ...

. Because he converted to Catholicism and practiced a strict policy of neutrality in the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...

, his territories escaped widespread destruction. Wolfgang Wilhelm moved his residence to

in 1636. Wolfgang Wilhelm attempted to stabilize and spread Catholicism in his lands. In 1651, disputes over church property led to the short

Düsseldorf Cow War The Düsseldorf Cow War () was a military conflict over the status of church property in the duchies Jülich and Berg. It lasted between June and December 1651, pitting the Catholic Palatinate-Neuburg against the Protestant Margraviate of Brande ...

. When he died, his son, Phillip William, inherited his lands.

Marriage and issue

Wolfgang Wilhelm married three times: * In 1613 to

Magdalene of Bavaria Magdalene of Bavaria () (4 July 1587 – 25 September 1628) was a German princess of the House of Wittelsbach who became Countess Palatine of Neuburg and Duchess of Jülich-Berg by marriage. She was born in Munich, Bavaria, the tenth and young ...

, who gave birth to ** Philip William, his successor. * In 1631 to , daughter of

John II, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken John II the Younger () (26 March 1584 – 9 August 1635) was the Duke of Zweibrücken from 1604 until 1635. Biography John was born in Bergzabern in 1584 as the eldest son of John I, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken and his wife, Magdalene of ...

, who gave birth to Ferdinand Philip and Eleonore Franziska. Both children died young. *In 1651 to Countess , daughter of

Egon VIII of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg Egon VIII of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (Ernst Egon; 21 March 1588 in Speyer – 24 August 1635 in Constance) was Imperial Count of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg (1618–1635) and Bavarian Field-marshal, and an important military leader in the Thirty ...

, they had no children.

Ancestry

References

External links

* *
Biography and Portrait of Count palatine Wolfgang Wilhelm von Neuburg
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Wolfgang William, Count Palatine of Neuburg 1578 births 1653 deaths Converts to Roman Catholicism from Lutheranism German Roman Catholics House of Wittelsbach Counts Palatine of Neuburg Dukes of Berg Knights of the Golden Fleece Hereditary princes of Neuburg People from Neuburg an der Donau