Вильгельм I Нассау-Зигенский: граф, реформатор и дипломат Священной Римской империи

German count (1487–1559)

William I of Nassau Siegen (Wilhelm I. Graf von Nassau Siegen; 10 April 1487 – 6 October 1559), nicknamed the Elder (der Ältere) or the Rich (der Reiche), was Count of Nassau Siegen and half of Diez from 1516 to 1559. He was a descendant of the Ottonian Line of the House of Nassau. William's reign marked a notable period in the history of his house. During his reign, he introduced the Reformation in his territories, and the saw expansion of his county's territorial possessions. He promoted the Lutheran faith and played a key role in the political events of his time, including involvement in the Schmalkaldic League and negotiations leading to the Peace of Passau. William advanced the interests of his house through a policy of moderation, and contributed to its success. A major challenge throughout his reign was the succession dispute over the County of Katzenelnbogen, which was contested by the Landgraviate of Hesse. This dispute was known as the War of the Katzenelnbogen Succession. William was described as calm and persistent. He maintained firm religious convictions, and was resolute in asserting his rights in the Katzenelnbogische Erbfolgestreit. Through his diplomatic skills, he earned numerous mediation assignments within the Holy Roman Empire. In Dutch history, he is primarily remembered as the father of Prince William the Silent.

William was born in Dillenburg on 10 April 1487 as the fourth and youngest son of Count John V of Nassau Siegen and Landgravine Elisabeth of Hesse Marburg. At William's baptism, his mother's uncle, Archbishop Herman IV of Cologne, was present. William spent most of his youth in Siegen, where he trained himself in the use of weapons, and received a bow at the age of six and a pair of spurs two years later. He and his elder brother Henry often rode horses at the horse fairs and stallion farms of the County of Nassau. In his early youth, he travelled extensively through the German lands, which included a visit to the court of Elector Frederick III the Wise in Saxony, where he formed importance relations for the future. Since 1499, William's eldest brother Henry stayed at the court of their childless uncle Engelbert II of Nassau in Breda and Brussels, where he received further education. Upon Engelbert's death in 1504, Henry inherited his possessions in the Netherlands. In the same year, William's older brother John died, leaving William as the sole heir of their father. In August 1506, he had body armours made for himself and five of his servants in Frankfurt.

When his father died in 1516, William inherited his properties, including the county. The county was primarily agricultural. Pigs were raised on the Kalteiche, which benefited from the large oak forests. The county was known for its good horse and cattle breeding in Westerwald, and wool weaving in Herborn. However, the main source of income came from the mountains; from the iron ore of the Sieg and Dill regions. The Counts of Nassau regularly received the iron ore tithes from the mines and smelting rents from the smelters. The latter was levied in various ways, partly as compensation for the fief of the land on which the smelter stood, partly as a tax on the use of the watercourse, which was on loan from the territorial lord. As some of the most important citizens of the state, the hammer smiths of Siegen were granted exemption from feudal duties, and from about 1539, paid 24 raderguilders a year for this instead of the hitherto usual reisigen Pferdes. Until 1555, the count himself owned many iron smelters, and in the Dillenburg district he retained his influence even after 1555. Naturally, the counts cared about the welfare of the iron industry, which was the country's main source of income. They discussed with the iron workers price regulations, wages and working times as well as trying out new technical processes. In 1520, the counts united in associations or Korrespondenzen, and divided into two large districts of the Netherlands and of the Wetterau. William was put in charge of the Wetterau district. which partly belonged to the County of Sayn, were abolished. The justice system continued in the forms adopted in the 16th century. Periodically, the Schützen (town watchers) were responsible for apprehending offenders, confining them either in the tower or, for less severe offences, in the Hundskrapf. The most common method of execution was hanging, with the gallows situated near Dillenburg on the Galgenberg. The executions were exclusively conducted in Dillenburg. In 1546, one occurred in Ebersbach, as was common in the past, with the participation of Schultheißen from Dillenburg. Conversely, Schultheißen from Herborn were often involved in the executions in Dillenburg, and were subsequently entertained by the city. On 18 May 1525, William wrote to his brother Henry in the Netherlands, stating that the whole of southern Germany was ablaze with peasant revolt and that he was very worried about it: "Meine Bauern sind gottlob noch ruhig und zufrieden, aber das Wetter ist allenthalben um mich her." ("My peasants are thankfully still calm and content, but the bad weather is all around me."). William helped his threatened fellow princes against the peasants by sending some of them a Nassau auxiliary corps "wider den uffruhr" ("against the revolt"). Nevertheless, he enjoyed a certain respect among the peasants as a just territorial lord. The Hessian Amtmann Balthasar Schrautenbach wrote that the Franconian peasants wanted to expel Landgrave Philip I the Magnanimous of Hesse and put William in his place. The peasant writer Sigle is said to have given courage to his people by saying that as soon as the landgrave turned against them, der reiche Nassau would come into the country. Thus even then, William was nicknamed the Rich. In 1526, Prince John Frederick of Saxony and his father, Elector John the Steadfast of Saxony, visited William in Siegen. He was asked to convey for the prince his marriage proposal to Princess Sibylle of Cleves. In 1528, William was concerned about his local industry. He regulated the working hours of iron smelters and banned hammer smiths from working at night. He also ordered iron to be marked before it was sold, creating one of the earliest hallmarks for steel. In 1529, William's wife Walburga died and was buried in Siegen. of Siegen Castle. The baptism of their eldest son, William, on 4 May 1533 also took place according to Catholic tradition; a full mass with Latin formulas, with the use of salt, which symbolised the doctrine of faith, and with a real exorcism of the devil. Through this marriage, William acquired a quarter of the County of Diez (of which he already owned half) in 1535, which had previously been in possession of the Eppstein family. Lord Eberhard IV of Eppstein Königstein, brother of William's mother in law, died childless in 1535. The Eppstein family had gained control of this territory in 1420 through the marriage of Lord Godfrey VII of Eppstein Münzenberg to Countess Jutta of Nassau Siegen. He rejected the Order of the Golden Fleece, which Charles V wanted to grant him, due to its requirement for members to adhere the Catholic faith. On 10 January 1531, the Schmalkaldic League was founded by the Protestant Elector John of Saxony, Duke Ernest I of Brunswick Lüneburg, Landgrave Philip I of Hesse, Fürst Wolfgang of Anhalt Köthen, the counts of Mansfeld and several minor Imperial Estates. The threat to Vienna and the imperial homelands by the Turks initially prevented Charles V from acting against the league, and the league forced him to conclude the Nuremberg Religion Peace [de] in 1532. After Duke Ulrich of Württemberg, supported by Philip of Hesse, recaptured his lands in 1534, most members of the Wetterauer Grafenverein joined the league, including William. On 10 January 1536, he committed to contribute to, and cooperate with everything the league would decide. Because of the Katzenelnbogische Erbfolgestreit, Philip of Hesse protested against William's admission into the league. William issued several decrees for the economical, social and ethical benefit and advancement of his subjects. Despite his country being beset by threats of war throughout his reign, he instructed his officials by various mandates to ensure that the land peace renewed by the Emperor on various Imperial Diets was maintained in his county and that all troublemakers, vagrants and beggars were taken into the strictest custody. In the spring, the wagoners were only allowed to use their horses and wagons for arable farming. William was also already thinking about a more generous meat supply for his country. Pig breeding lagged especially in times of poor acorn harvest. In such years, he bought fat pigs from abroad. In 1538, for example, he sent the Rentmeister [de] and an attendant to Lippe to buy pigs. Times forced William to carefully build up an armament industry. As early as around 1540, he had research conducted in Siegen into whether the iron from Wissenbach could be hammered into sheet iron for body armours and the like. He planned the construction of new Plattenhämmer (sheet metal factories), for which he employed sheet metal smiths from the Olpe district on 25 March 1540. The fire outbreak at the small border fortress and the village of Freudenberg in July 1540 boosted these plans. William had the houses hastily rebuilt, while the damaged castle was repaired more slowly. He died the next day unusually bypassing his uncle, because of his Lutheran sympathies. On 13 February 1545, Charles V formalised the arrangements. William did not take part in the war of the Schmalkaldic League against Duke Henry V of Brunswick Wolfenbüttel. The growing power of his opponent Philip of Hesse in the league forced William to be wary of violence and was one of the reasons why he did not take part in the Schmalkaldic War against the Emperor, which broke out in 1546. William executed the recruitment of 600 horsemen for the Imperial Army entrusted to him. He thus escaped the punishment inflicted on his cousins from the Walramian Line and the other members of the Wetterauer Grafenverein. William attended the Imperial Diet in Augsburg in 1548. Some historians claim that William, because of his knowledge of the French language, was the spokesman for the German princes at Fontainebleau, who, in exchange for his help against the Emperor, assured the French king of sovereign rights as imperial vicar over the bishoprics of Metz, Toul, Verdun and Cambrai, thus relinquishing these cities to France. This claim is based solely on the dubious memoirs of the French marshal de Vieilville, Sire de Scépaux. These were not written until after 1584 and not printed in Paris until 1756–1763, long after the death of Prince William of Orange, to whom and whose house they wished to do harm. William issued a large number of decrees aimed at the moral uplift of his subjects who, despite all previous measures, continued to return to their old vices. Since excessive spending on family celebrations provided particular opportunity for this, William tried to put an end to intemperance at child baptisms, weddings, funerals and guild meetings through strict regulations. To prevent revels and Sunday desecration, residents were obliged to close pubs at a surprisingly early hour, eight o'clock in summer and seven o'clock in winter. The count's ordinance of 19 December 1555 stipulated "daß über die bestimmte Zeit, wenn abends die Weinglock geläutet ist, kein Wirt länger weder über die Schwell hinaus oder auch sunsten seinen Gästen im Hause Wein reichen oder zapfen soll" ("that after the stipulated time, when in the evening the wine bell is rung, no innkeeper shall serve or tap wine to his guests in the house, nor over the threshold, nor otherwise"), because otherwise "viel Unrats, Mord, Totschlag, Unzucht und alle Untugend gemehret und überhand nimmt, wie neulich ein schrecklich Exempel und Totschlag sich derhalber zugetragen" ("much mischief, murder, manslaughter, fornication and all immorality will increase and prevail, as recently a terrible example and manslaughter took place thereby"). A particularly strict order issued by William on 7 July 1556 was against dancing. Dancing was generally forbidden in the county on Sundays and holidays. For weddings, permission was given by the mayors and bailiffs, and the dance took place in the presence of elders, a councillor, the town clerk or the court clerk at the town hall. Dancing was allowed only with violins and lutes, not on the street with drums, shawms and bagpipes, no longer than two hours in the afternoon and one hour after supper, and all disorderly and immoral jumping, twisting, overturning, arguing and shouting was to be avoided. One ordinance of William that characterised him as a profound and far sighted sovereign was his ban on marriages between relatives: "Dieweil es etzo unter unseren Untertanen gemein wird, dass die Eltern ihr Kind in Verwandt , Blutfreundschaft und Schwagerschaft im vierten Glied vermählen, daß doch im Rechte verboten" ("Because it is now customary among our subjects for parents to marry off their child in kinship, blood relationship and consanguinity in the fourth degree, which is forbidden by law"), the friends of both parties, when agreeing on a marriage, "sich erstlich der Sippschaft halben gründlich erkundigen, ob und wie nahe die Personen einander verwandt, und so die Verwandtnis zwischen ihnen im dritten oder vierten Glied bestände, alsdann soll dieselbig Ehe ohn unser Wissen und Willen nicht beteidingt, geschlossen noch zugelassen werden" ("first of all thoroughly inquire into the kinship, whether and how closely the persons are related to each other, and if the kinship between them is in the third or fourth degree, this marriage shall not be concluded or allowed without our knowledge and will"). At the Imperial Diet of Worms in 1521, William was an eyewitness to Luther's appearance before Emperor Charles V and the Empire. Also present in the Emperor's entourage was William's brother Henry. The Henry's secretary Alexander Schweis received the protest note for the Emperor. Immediately after William's return, were "die religion und kirchengebräuch zue Dillenbergk geendert und die meß abgestellt" ("the religion and church customs in Dillenburg changed and the mass ended"). He formally introduced the Augsburg Confession and abolished celibacy and mass. and as spiritual inspector of the entire county in 1541. During regular synods and church visits, Sarcerius reorganised the church system of the county on a Protestant basis.

A major challenge during William's reign was the dispute over the succession in the rich County of Katzenelnbogen, known as the Katzenelnbogische Erbfolgestreit. This succession dispute between Nassau and the Landgraviate of Hesse lasted for decades, and exerted considerable impact on William's country. Substantial resources were expended on numerous legal proceedings, and the rebuilding of Dillenburg Castle into a strong fortress, where soldiers were stationed for years to repel opposition attacks. The county consisted of Rheinfels, Sankt Goar, Braubach, Hohenstein, Darmstadt, Zwingenberg, Rüsselsheim and Umstadt, as well as Eppstein, the district of Driedorf and parts of Diez, Hadamar, Ems, Löhnberg, Camberg, Altweilnau [de] and Wehrheim. The last seven possessions were jointly owned with the Counts of Nassau. After the death of John V in 1516, his sons Henry and William continued the case with increased vigour. Henry's high position and close personal relationship with Charles V as an educator, general and advisor gave the Nassaus a major support in this protracted legal battle. Their legal opponent, the young Landgrave Philip I the Magnanimous of Hesse had an advantage because Hesse had gained control of the entire disputed territory, which gave him a strong position over the small County of Nassau; in addition, powerful imperial princes, such as Elector Frederick III the Wise of Saxony, were on his side as allies. In the course of the dispute, armed raids on Dillenburg Castle were repeatedly planned. Shortly after the Tübingen verdict was announced, in June 1523 William feared that Philip had mobilised against him in order to overrun him and drive him out. On 1 September of the same year, he wrote to his brother Henry, saying: "der lantgraf rüst sich ernstlich, thut ein Aufgebot über das andere und lest sich oeffentlich hoeren, er wolle mich verjagen" ("the landgrave is seriously arming himself, issuing one summons after another and is publicly announcing that he wants to expel me"). At the same time, William asked for at least 2,000 guilders, which he needed for defence. Similarly, in 1525 and 1528, Philip again took up arms with Saxony to get the County of Katzenelnbogen permanently in his hands. Then, too, William expected a surprise attack on Dillenburg. He had new bastions built and equipped with cannons. Major fortifications had been under construction since 1525, as a letter from Henry dated 2 February 1526 reads:"Mir hat E. L. bot angezeigt, wie ir den thorn in Dillenburg oben im schloß und fast anders habt abwerfen, abgraben, verendern, bessern und stark machen lassen und des noch täglich im Werk seid. Dweil ich nu der vorigen gestalt und gelegenheit des schloß wol wissen hab, so bit ich E. L. wull mir das schloß wie ir das nu gemacht habt und zu machen fürhabt, mit den jetzigen veranderungen und befestigungen, sovil muglich, thun entwerfen und zuschreiben, damit ich das auch sehen und versteen muge." (In English: "I have been shown by E. L.'s messenger how you have had the tower in Dillenburg at the top of the castle and almost everything else removed, excavated, repaired, improved and reinforced, and how it is still in progress daily. As I am only well acquainted with the former form of the castle, I request E. L. to design and describe to me the castle, as you have now made it and intend to make it, with the present alterations and fortifications, as far as possible, so that I may also see and understand it."). The colossal structure was 300m long and 20m high. In December 1531, the construction of the wall was still being built, when William wrote to his brother that he had only just begun the heavy foundation work for the fortress, which is still entirely unfinished and requires great foresight. On 24 May 1533, he again described to him his difficult situation: because the landgrave "allenthalben an ihn stoße, könnte er nit wohl sicher aus seinem Haus reiten oder gehn" ("collided with him everywhere, he could not safely ride or go out of his house") and was therefore "zu einem bau und festung höchlich verursacht" ("compelled to a construction and fortification in a high degree"). In the autumn of 1551, Dillenburg received threatening news, and feared a new invasion. William wrote to his son Prince William of Orange on 6 December 1551, saying: "one could get from the land of Hesse to Dillenburg in one day". Johann Opferkampf was hastily sent to the Netherlands to order and recruit 50–60 good soldiers for the castle, and requested money, gunpowder and a gunsmith. His recruitment was successful, as from early 1552 there were 60 Dutch soldiers at Dillenburg Castle, some of whom stayed there until July. At this time, the city church was also included in the fortification system of the castle, and as can still be clearly seen in the oldest images of the city, the cemetery wall was equipped with firing holes. to Nassau), but ceded for 150.000 guilders to Nassau:) and the Esterau [de]. Hesse was to pay 450,000 guilders in cash in such a way that 150,000 guilders was to be paid on 28 December 1557, 45,000 guilders was to be paid annually, from 1559 to 1564, and 30,000 guilders was to be paid in 1565. Hesse fulfilled its payment obligations. In April of that year, the ceded districts of Driedorf, Ellar, Hadamar and Camberg were transferred by Hesse to Nassau. The preservation of the Imperial Estates became a life task for the House of Nassau. Without the stronghold Nassau, princely power would have removed the influence of the imperial immediate nobility, clergy and the free imperial cities on the fate of the nation. With that, the Holy Roman Empire would have irrevocably disintegrated. In the dispute over the County of Katzenelnbogen with a much stronger opponent, the Counts of Nassau acquired the strength that later enabled them to withstand the great trials in the Netherlands. Empires of which the counts and other Imperial Estates were the bearers, had become bloodless in the 16th century. The leaders of the counts and lords in this struggle were Counts of Nassau. To prove his entitlement to this resistance, William's counsellor Wilhelm Knüttel, who held office in Siegen, compiled a work on the genealogy of the House of Nassau. Although it does not hold up to modern day scrutiny, it did have an impact at the time, mainly due to his appeal to the charisma (royal salvation) that had come to Nassau through Roman King Adolf. The Counts of Nassau were helped by similar ideas in a writing prepared by the imperial counsellor Lazarus von Schwendi. The Counts from the County of Nassau were impressed, especially those who had united in the Wetterauer Grafenverein. However, the County of Nassau suffered severe financial setbacks as a result of this conflict. Despite an annual income of 50,000 guilders, the county was in debt of 512,576 guilders. With annual interest payments of 25,684 consuming half of its income, the county faced financial strain. Although the settlement of Frankfurt mandated that Hesse pay large sums of money in instalments for the County of Katzenelnbogen, these payments fell far short of resolving the county's financial issues. His son John married the young Landgravine Elisabeth of Leuchtenberg, and his daughters Anne and Elisabeth married the counts Albert of Nassau Weilburg and Konrad of Solms Braunfels respectively. The feast, as detailed by Rentmeister [de] Gottfried Hatzfeld was funded by a significant cash windfall, resulting from the resolution of the Katzenelnbogen succession dispute, which funded gifts given to Anne and Elisabeth. William outlived the Friedensschluß with Hesse by only two years. A day before his death, in his last will, signed at Dillenburg, he recorded that he wished to be buried "in der Kirchen eine, Siegen oder Dillenburg" ("in the church of Siegen or Dillenburg"), according to the wishes of his wife Juliane and his sons John, Louis, Adolf and Henry, without pomp and circumstance, but with a Leichenpredigt. The date of his funeral has remained unknown. His biography states that his burial took place in the choir of the Dillenburg parish church, which is the Burial vault of Nassau Dillenburg [nl] in the Evangelical City Church (Dillenburg) [de]. His eldest son could not attend the funeral. William was succeeded by his sons John, Louis, Adolf and Henry. They divided the county in 1560, but John exercised the administration on behalf of his younger brothers. On the extinction of the House of Nassau Beilstein (1343–1561) [nl] with the death of Count John III in 1561, the four brothers inherited the Nassau Beilstein [de]. Dutch historian Reinildis van Ditzhuyzen [nl] suggests that it may have been due to his large number of children, although William's actual wealth was not remarkable. This explanation is challenged by German historian Alfred Lück [de], who asserts that William was already known as der Reiche Nassau during the German Peasants' War in 1524–1525, (c. 1489 –7 March 1529) in Koblenz on 29 May 1506. She was the eldest daughter of Count John III of Egmont and Countess Magdalene of Werdenberg. Elisabeth (born in Siegen, October 1515 – (?) January 1523). Magdalene (born in Siegen, 6 October 1522 – 18 August 1567), who married Count Herman, Count of Neuenahr and Moers [de] (1514 – 4 December 1578) on 16 July 1538.

William remarried in Siegen on 20 September 1531 to Countess Juliane of Stolberg Wernigerode (born in Stolberg, 15 February 1506 – died in Dillenburg, 18 June 1580), the daughter of Count Bodo III of Stolberg Wernigerode and Countess Anne of Eppstein Königstein. Juliane had previously been married to Count Philip II of Hanau Münzenberg (17 August 1501 – 28 March 1529) on 9 June 1523. Prince William I the Silent of Orange (born in Dillenburg, 24 April 1533 – murdered in Delft, 10 July 1584), who succeeded his cousin René in 1544 as Prince of Orange, Count of Vianden, Barony of Breda [nl], etc. He married:
in Buren on 8 July 1551 to Anna van Egmont (born in Grave, March 1533 – died in Breda, 24 March 1558), Countess of Buren, Leerdam and Lingen, etc. in Leipzig on 24 August 1561 to Duchess Anne of Saxony (born in Dresden, 23 December 1544 – died in Dresden, 18 December 1577). The marriage was dissolved in early 1571.
in Den Briel on 12 June 1575 to Duchess Charlotte de Bourbon Montpensier (1546/47 – died in Antwerp, 5 May 1582). in Antwerp on 12 April 1583 to Countess Louise de Coligny (born in Châtillon sur Loing, 23 September 1555 – died in Fontainebleau, 13 November 1620). Hermanna (9 August 1534 – died young). Count John VI the Elder (born in Dillenburg, 22 November 1536 – died in Dillenburg, 8 October 1606), who succeeded his father in 1559 and inherited the County of Nassau Beilstein in 1561. He married:
in Dillenburg on 6 or 16 June 1559 to Landgravine Elisabeth of Leuchtenberg (March 1537 – died in Dillenburg, 6 July 1579). in Dillenburg on 13 September 1580 to Countess palatine Kunigonda Jacoba of the Palatinate [de] (born in Simmern, 9 October 1556 – died in Dillenburg, 26 January 1586). in Berleburg on 14 June 1586 to Countess Johannette of Sayn Wittgenstein (15 February 1561 – Hadamar, 13 April 1622). Count Louis (born in Dillenburg, 10 January 1538 – 14 April 1574), who succeeded his father in 1559 and inherited the County of Nassau Beilstein in 1561. He died the Battle of Mookerheyde. Mary (born in Dillenburg, 18 March 1539 – Ulft Castle [nl], 18/28 May 1599), who married Count Willem IV van den Bergh ('s Heerenberg, 24 December 1537 – Ulft Castle, 6 November 1586). Count Adolf (born in Siegen, 11 July 1540 – 23 May 1568), who succeeded his father in 1559 and inherited the County of Nassau Beilstein in 1561. He died the Battle of Heiligerlee,
Anne (born in Dillenburg, 21 September 1541 – Weilburg, 12 February 1616), who married Count Albert of Nassau Weilburg (26 December 1537 – died in Ottweiler, 11 November 1593) in Dillenburg on 6 or 16 June 1559. Elisabeth (born in Dillenburg, 25 September 1542 – 18 November 1603), who married Count Konrad of Solms Braunfels (17 June 1540 – 27 December 1592) in Dillenburg on 6 or 16 June 1559. Catherine (born in Dillenburg, 29 December 1543 – 25 December 1624), who married Count Günther XLI 'Bellicosus' of Schwarzburg Arnstadt (born in Arnstadt, 25 September 1529 – died in Antwerp, 23 May 1583); in Arnstadt on 17 November 1560. Juliane (born in Dillenburg, 10 August 1546 – 31 August 1588), who married Count Albert VII of Schwarzburg Rudolstadt (16 January 1537 – 10 April 1605); on 14 June 1575. Magdalene (born in Dillenburg, 15 December 1547 – died in Öhringen, 16 May 1633), who married Count Wolfgang of Hohenlohe Weikersheim (14 June 1546 – died in Weikersheim, 28 March 1610); on 27 January 1567. Count Henry (born in Dillenburg, 15 October 1550 – 14 April 1574), who succeeded his father in 1559 and inherited the County of Nassau Beilstein in 1561. He was killed in the Battle of Mookerheyde.

William is considered the progenitor of the Dutch royal house. Through his eldest son, stadtholders Maurice, Frederick Henry, William II, and William III of the Dutch Republic are descendants in the male line from William. Through his second son, stadtholders William IV and William V, as well as Kings William I, William II, William III, and Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands, share the same lineage.

Ancestors of Count William I of Nassau SiegenGreat great grandparentsJohn I of Nassau Siegen(c. 1339–1416)⚭ 1357Margaret of the Mark [nl] John III of Polanen ⚭ 1390Odilia of Salm [nl] Godfrey II of Heinsberg ⚭ 1357Philippa of Jülich Otto I of Solms ⚭Agnes of Falkenstein(c. 1358–1409)Herman II the Scholar of Hesse(c. 1342–1413)⚭ 1383Margaret of Nuremberg(c. 1363–1406)Frederick I the Belligerent of Saxony(1370–1428)⚭ 1402Catherine of Brunswick Lüneburg John III of Katzenelnbogen ⚭ 1383Anne of Katzenelnbogen Eberhard IV the Younger of Württemberg(1388–1419)⚭ 1397/98Henriette of Montbéliard(1387–1444)Great grandparentsEngelbert I of Nassau Siegen(c. 1370–1442)⚭ 1403Joanne of Polanen(1392–1445)John II of Looz Heinsberg ⚭ 1423Anne of Solms Louis III the Peaceful of Hesse(1402–1458)⚭ 1433Anne of Saxony(1420–1462)Philip the Elder of Katzenelnbogen(c. 1402–1479)⚭ 1422Anne of Württemberg(1408–1471)GrandparentsJohn IV of Nassau Siegen(1410–1475)⚭ 1440Mary of Looz Heinsberg(1424–1502)Henry III the Rich of Hesse Marburg(1440–1483)⚭ 1458Anne of Katzenelnbogen(1443–1494)ParentsJohn V of Nassau Siegen(1455–1516)⚭ 1482Elisabeth of Hesse Marburg(1466–1523)