Ernest, Duke of Bavaria

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Ernest, Duke of Bavaria (tomb monument of Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor, Frauenkirche Munich)

Ernest of Bavaria-Munich (German: Ernst, Herzog von Bayern-München), (Munich, 1373 – 2 July 1438 in Munich), since 1397 Duke of Bavaria-Munich.

[edit] Life

Ernest was a son of John II and ruled the duchy of Bavaria-Munich together with his brother William III.

He restrained uprisings of the citizenry of Munich in 1396 and 1410 and forced his uncle Stephen III to confine his reign to Bavaria-Ingolstadt in 1402. Afterwards Ernest still struggled several times successfully against the dukes of Bavaria-Ingolstadt Stephen III and his son Louis VII the Bearded as ally of Henry XVI of Bavaria-Landshut. He was a member of the Parakeet Society and of the League of Constance.

After the extinction of the Wittelsbach dukes of Bavaria-Straubing, counts of Holland and Hainaut, Ernest and his brother William struggled with Henry and Louis but finally received half of Bavaria-Straubing including the city of Straubing in 1429.

He supported his deposed brother in law Wenceslaus against the new king Rupert of the older line of his Wittelsbach dynasty as well as Wenceslaus' brother Sigismund in his wars against the supporters of Jan Hus. This led to devastations in Northern Bavaria until 1434.

When his son Albert III married secretly the maid Agnes Bernauer in 1432, Ernest ordered to murder her. She was accused of witchcraft and thrown into the River Danube and drowned. The civil war with his son finally ended with a reconciliation. He is buried in the Frauenkirche in Munich.

[edit] Family and children

He was married in Pfaffenhofen 26 January 1395 with Elisabetta Visconti, daughter of Bernabò Visconti and had the following children:

1. Albert III, Duke of Bavaria (23 March 1401, Munich–29 February 1460, Munich).
2. Beatrix (ca. 1403–12 March 1447, Neumarkt), married to:
   1. 1424 in Ortenburg Count Hermann III of Cilli;
   2. 1428 in Riedenburg Pfalzgraf Johann of Neuburg.
3. Elisabeth (ca. 1406–5 March 1468, Heidelberg), married to:
   1. 1430 in Mainz Duke Adolf II of Berg;
   2. 1440 in Worms Count Hesso of Leiningen.
4. Amalie (1408–1432), a nun in St.Klara Cloister in Munich.

Also he had at least three illegitimate children.

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