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| Augustus | |
|---|---|
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| Elector of Saxony | |
| Reign | 9 July 1553 – 11 February 1586 |
| Predecessor | Maurice |
| Successor | Christian I |
| Born | 31 July 1526 Freiberg,Electorate of Saxony,Holy Roman Empire |
| Died | 11 February 1586(1586-02-11) (aged 59) Dresden, Electorate of Saxony, Holy Roman Empire |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | Anne of Denmark Agnes Hedwig of Anhalt |
| Issue among others... | Christian I, Elector of Saxony Elisabeth, Countess Palatine of Simmern Dorothea, Duchess of Brunswick-Lüneburg Anna, Duchess of Saxe-Coburg-Eisenach |
| House | House of Wettin Albertine Line |
| Father | Henry IV, Duke of Saxony |
| Mother | Catherine of Mecklenburg |
| Religion | Lutheran |
| Signature | .PNG) |
Augustus (31 July 1526 – 11 February 1586) wasElector of Saxony from 1553 to 1586.
Augustus was born inFreiberg, the youngest child and third (but second surviving) son ofHenry IV, Duke of Saxony, andCatherine of Mecklenburg. He consequently belonged to theAlbertine branch of theHouse of Wettin. Brought up as aLutheran, he received a good education and studied atLeipzig University.[1]
When Duke Henry IV died in 1541, he decreed that his lands should be divided equally between his two sons; but as his bequest was contrary to the Albertine Law, it was not carried out, and the dukedom passed almost intact to his elder son,Maurice.
Augustus, however, remained on friendly terms with his brother, and to further his policy spent some time at the court ofFerdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, inVienna.[1]
In 1544, Maurice secured the appointment of his brother as administrator of thebishopric of Merseburg; but Augustus was very extravagant and was soon compelled to return to the Saxon court atDresden. Augustus supported his brother during the war of theSchmalkaldic League, and in the policy which culminated in the transfer of the Saxon electorate fromJohn Frederick I, the head of theErnestine branch of the Wettin family, to Maurice, head of the Albertine branch.[2]
InTorgau on 7 October 1548 Augustus was married toAnna, daughter of KingChristian III of Denmark andDorothea of Saxe-Lauenburg. They took up residence atWeissenfels. The couple had fifteen children:
Soon after his marriage, Augustus desired a more imposing establishment. The result was that Maurice made more generous provision for his brother, who acted asRegent of Saxony in 1552 during the absence of the elector. Augustus was on a visit toDenmark when by Maurice's death in July 1553 he became elector ofSaxony.[3]
The first care of the new elector was to come to terms with John Frederick, and to strengthen his own hold upon the electoral position. This object was secured by a treaty made atNaumburg in February 1554, when, in return for the grant ofAltenburg and other lands, John Frederick recognized Augustus as elector of Saxony.
The elector, however, was continually haunted by the fear that the Ernestines would attempt to deprive him of the coveted dignity, and his policy both in Saxony and the widerHoly Roman Empire was coloured by this fear. In imperial politics Augustus acted upon two main principles: to cultivate the friendship of theHabsburgs, and to maintain peace between the contending religious parties. To this policy may be traced his share in bringing about the religiousPeace of Augsburg treaty in 1555, his tortuous conduct at thediet of Augsburg eleven years later, and his reluctance to break entirely with theCalvinists.[3] His policy of religious peace was also promoted by the marriage he negotiated between his nieceAnna and the then-CatholicPrince of Orange, at the time one of the chief Habsburg vassals in theNetherlands, in 1561.[citation needed]
On one occasion only did he waver in his allegiance to the Habsburgs. In 1568 a marriage was arranged betweenJohann Casimir, son ofFrederick III, Elector Palatine, andElisabeth, Augustus' own daughter. For a time it seemed possible that the Saxon elector would support his son-in-law in his attempts to aid the revolting inhabitants of theSpanish Netherlands. Augustus also entered into communication with theHuguenots; however, his aversion to foreign complications prevailed, and the incipient friendship with the elector Palatine soon gave way to serious dislike. Although a sturdy Lutheran, the elector hoped at one time to unite the Protestants. He continually urged them to consider the necessity of giving no cause of offence to their opponents, and he favoured the movement to get rid of the clause in the Peace of Augsburg concerning ecclesiastical reservation, which was offensive to many Protestants. His moderation, however, prevented him from joining those who were prepared to take strong measures to attain this end, and he refused to jeopardize the concessions already won.[3]
The hostility between the Albertines and the Ernestines gave Augustus serious trouble. A preacher namedMatthias Flacius held an influential position in ducal Saxony, and taught a form of Lutheranism different from that taught in theElectorate of Saxony. This breach was widened when Flacius began to make personal attacks on Augustus, to prophesy his speedy downfall, and to incite Duke John Frederick to make an effort to recover his rightful position. Associated with Flacius was a knight,Wilhelm von Grumbach, who, not satisfied with words only, made inroads into theElectorate of Saxony and sought the aid of foreign powers in his plan to depose Augustus. After some delay Grumbach and his protector, John Frederick, were placed under theimperial ban, and Augustus was entrusted with itsexecution. His campaign in 1567 was short and successful.
John Frederick surrendered, and passed his time in prison until his death in 1595; Grumbach was taken and executed; and the position of the elector was made quite secure. The form of Lutheranism taught in the Electorate of Saxony was that ofMelanchthon, and many of its teachers and adherents, such asCaspar Peucer andJohann Stössel, afterwards calledCrypto-Calvinists, were favoured by the elector.[3]
The Crypto-Calvinists were confident that they would be able to bring Augustus over to their Calvinizing positions by convincing Augustus that they were in fact merely loyal Lutherans, when in fact they were working to introduce Calvinist views of theLord's Supper, and the doctrine of predestination at theUniversity of Wittenberg.[citation needed]
Augustus at first was deceived. Spurred on by his wife the matter reached a climax in 1574, when letters were discovered, which, while revealing a hope to bring over Augustus to Calvinism, cast some aspersions upon the elector and his wife. Augustus ordered the leaders of the Crypto-Calvinists to be seized, and they were tortured and imprisoned.[3] He restored genuine Lutheranism to Saxony and began to work on a way to bring unity among Lutherans by commencing a process that would lead to the publication, in 1580, of the LutheranBook of Concord. Augustus personally sponsored the publication of the Book of Concord, a book containing the various Lutheran Confessions of faith, which was signed by over 8,100 ministers and professors and nearly 30 territories, states and cities in Germany.[citation needed]
This strict form of Lutheranism was declared binding upon all the inhabitants of Saxony, and many persons were banished from the country. The change in Saxony, however, made no difference to the attitude of Augustus on imperial questions. In 1576 he opposed the proposal of the Protestant princes to make a grant for theWar against theOttoman Empire conditional upon the abolition of the clause concerning ecclesiastical reservation, and he continued to support the Habsburgs.[3]
Much of the elector's time was devoted to extending his territories. In 1573 he became guardian to the two sons of John William, duke ofSaxe-Weimar, and in this capacity was able to add part of theCounty of Henneberg to theElectorate of Saxony. His command of money enabled him to take advantage of the poverty of his neighbours, and in this way he securedVogtland and the County ofMansfeld. In 1555 he had appointed one of his nominees to thebishopric of Meissen, in 1561 he had secured the election of his son Alexander asbishop of Merseburg, and three years later asbishop of Naumburg; and when this prince died in 1565 these bishoprics came under the direct rule of Augustus.[3]
On 1 October 1585 the Electress Anna died. Three months later, on 3 January 1586, in the city ofDessau, Augustus married secondly withAgnes Hedwig, a daughter ofJoachim Ernest, Prince of Anhalt.[3] The bride was only 12 years of age; the groom, almost 60. August died one month after his new marriage, and was buried atFreiberg Cathedral. His only surviving son,Christian I, was his successor.
Augustus wrote a small work on agriculture entitledKünstlich Obstund Gartenbüchlein.[3] He was famous for his various museum collections, including the finest collection of arms and weapons in Northern Europe, paintings, and an extensive collection of tools. In 1560 he founded the Dresden Kunstkammer, the predecessor of the present dayState Collections. One of his possessions, a clockwork automaton called theMechanical Galleon is now in theBritish Museum. This table decoration played music, told the time and showed Augustus and the other six electors parading before the Roman Emperor.[4]
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This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Augustus I.".Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 2 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 914–915. This cites:
Augustus, Elector of Saxony Born: 31 July 1526 Died: 11 February 1586 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
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| Preceded by | Elector of Saxony 1553–1586 | Succeeded by |
