| Stephan II | |
|---|---|
| Duke of Bavaria | |
%2c_Herzog_von_Bayern_-_4544_-_Bavarian_State_Painting_Collections.jpg) Stephen II, Duke of Bavaria (painting byJulius Zimmermann, c. 1851) | |
| Born | 1319 |
| Died | 13 May 1375(1375-05-13) (aged 55–56) Landshut orMunich |
| Spouses | Elisabeth of Sicily Margarete of Nuremberg |
| Issue |
|
| House | Wittelsbach |
| Father | Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor |
| Mother | Beatrix of Świdnica |
Stephen II (1319 – 13 May 1375,Landshut;German:Stephan) wasDuke of Bavaria from 1347 until his death. He was the second son ofEmperor Louis IV the Bavarian by his first wifeBeatrice of Silesia and a member of theWittelsbach dynasty.[1]
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During the reign of Emperor Louis IV his son Stephen served asvogt ofSwabia andAlsace. The Emperor had acquiredBrandenburg,Tyrol,Holland andHainaut for his House but he had also released theUpper Palatinate for the Palatinate branch of the Wittelsbach in 1329. When his father died in 1347, Stephen succeeded him as Duke of Bavaria and Count ofHolland andHainaut together with his five brothers. Louis IV had reunited Bavaria in 1340 but in 1349 the country was divided for the emperor's sons again intoUpper Bavaria,Lower Bavaria-Landshut andBavaria-Straubing. Stephen II ruled from 1349 to 1353 together with his brothersWilliam I andAlbert I inHolland and Lower Bavaria-Landshut, since 1353 only in Lower Bavaria-Landshut.[citation needed]
After the temporary reconciliation of the Wittelsbach withCharles IV, Holy Roman Emperor, who had finally confirmed all Wittelsbach possessions, Stephen joined Charles' expedition to Italy in 1354. But soon theGolden Bull of 1356 caused a new conflict since only the Palatinate branch of the Wittelsbach and his brotherLouis VI the Roman as margrave of Brandenburg were invested with theelectoral dignity. Stephen II was the last son of Emperor Louis IV who was in 1362 absolved from excommunication.
When DukeMeinhard, the son of his older brotherLouis V the Brandenburger died in 1363, Stephen II succeeded also in Upper Bavaria and invadedTyrol. To strengthen his position againstRudolf IV, Duke of Austria he confederated withBernabò Visconti. Stephen finally renounced Tyrol to theHabsburgs with the Peace of Schärding for a huge financial compensation after the death ofMargarete Maultasch in 1369.
His conflict with his brother Louis VI the Roman on the Bavarian heritage of Meinhard finally caused also the loss ofBrandenburg by theWittelsbach dynasty since Louis then made Charles IV his contracted heir. However, Stephen accepted his brotherOtto, the last Wittelsbach regent of Brandenburg, as his nominal co-regent when he returned to Bavaria in 1373. Due to the loss of Brandenburg the Bavarian dukes received a financial compensation one more time. Stephen was succeeded by his three sons.
He is buried in theFrauenkirche inMunich.
Stephen was married twice. First, 27 June 1328 toElisabetta of Sicily,[1] daughter of KingFrederick III of Sicily andEleanor of Anjou. Second, he was married 14 February 1359 toMargarete of Nuremberg, daughter ofJohn II of Nuremberg andElisabeth of Henneberg. All his children were from his first marriage, including three sons, who finally divided Bavaria among themselves in 1392 and one daughter:
Two of Stephen's sons (Stephen III and Frederick) and one grandson (John's sonErnest) were married to daughters of his ally Bernabò Visconti.
In 1447 Bavaria-Ingolstadt was united with Bavaria-Landshut, which was seized by Bavaria-Munich in 1503.
| Ancestors of Stephen II, Duke of Bavaria |
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Stephen II, Duke of Bavaria Born: 1319 Died: 13 May 1375 | ||
| Regnal titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Duke of Bavaria 1347–49 withLouis V,Louis VI, William I,Albert I andOtto V | Partitioned into Upper and Lower Bavaria |
| Created fromBavaria | Duke of Lower Bavaria 1349–53 withWilliam I andAlbert I | Partitioned intoBavaria-Landshut andBavaria-Straubing |
| Created fromLower Bavaria | Duke of Bavaria-Landshut 1353–75 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Duke of Upper Bavaria 1363 | Reunion withBavaria-Landshut |
| International | |
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| People | |
