Conrad II, Margrave of Lusatia

Conrad II, Margrave of Lusatia
Spouse(s)	Elisabeth of Poland
Noble family	House of Wettin
Father	Dedi III, Margrave of Lusatia
Mother	Matilda of Heinsberg
Born	before 1159
Died	6 May 1210
Buried	Wechselburg Priory

Margrave Conrad II of Lusatia, also known as Margrave Konrad II of Landsberg (before 1159 – 6 May 1210), was a member of the House of Wettin. He was Count of Eilenburg and Margrave of Lusatia from 1190 until his death. From 1207, he was also Count of Groitz and Count of Sommerschenburg. He was a son of Margrave Dedi III and his wife, Matilda of Heinsberg, the heiress of Sommerschenburg.

Life

Conrad inherited the March of Lusatia and the County of Eilenburg when his father died in 1190. In 1207, he inherited the Counties of Groitz and Sommerschenburg from his brother Dietrich.

In 1195, Emperor Henry VI dissolved the March of Meissen after the death of Margrave Albert I. This made Conrad the highest-ranking nobleman in the area, and the most senior member of the House of Wettin.^[1]

In 1196, Conrad travelled via Italy to the Holy Land to participate in the Crusade of Emperor Henry VI. In 1198, he returned home, again via Italy. In 1207, he organized a Landtag at Delitzsch Castle.

Conrad died on 6 May 1210 and was buried in the Wechselburg Priory. His wife Elisabeth was buried in Dobrilugk Abbey. Since he had no male heirs, his territory passed to his cousin Theodoric I, who had been appointed Margrave of Meissen when the March of Meissen was reinstated by Emperor Otto IV in 1198. After 1210, there no longer was a separate Margrave of Lusatia. Instead, Lusatia was held by the Margraves of Meissen, then the Margraves of Landsberg, then divided between Bohemia and Brandenburg.

Marriage and issue

He married Elisabeth (Elżbieta) of Poland (c. 1152 – 2 April 1209), who was a daughter of Mieszko III the Old, the High Duke of Poland, and widow of Soběslav II, Duke of Bohemia (d. 1180). He had three children with her:^[2]

• Conrad (documented as alive in 1207; died before 6 May 1210)
• Matilda (died in 1225 in Salzwedel, buried in Lehnin Abbey), married in August 1205 to Margrave Albert II of Brandenburg (d. 25 February 1220)
• Agnes (d. 1266), founder of Wienhausen Abbey and buried there; married in 1211 to Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (d. 28 April 1227)

Ancestors

Ancestors of Conrad II, Margrave of Lusatia

16. Dietrich II of Wettin               8. Thimo the Brave, Count of Wettin                       17. Mathilde of Meissen               4. Conrad, Margrave of Meissen                             18. Otto of Nordheim               9. Ida of Nordheim                       19. Richenza of Swabia               2. Dedi III, Margrave of Lusatia                                   20. Adalbert of Elchingen               10. Adalbert of Ravenstein                       21. Ne of Achalm               5. Luitgard of Ravenstein                             22. Frederick I, Duke of Swabia               11. Bertha of Hohenstaufen                       23. Agnes of Germany               1. Conrad II, Margrave of Lusatia                                         24. Gerhard of Heinsberg               12. Goswin I of Heinsberg                       6. Goswin II of Heinsberg                             26. Siegfried I of Walbeck               13. Oda of Walbeck                       27. Kunigunde of Stade               3. Matilda of Heinsberg                                   28. Adalbert of Sommerschenburg               14. Frederick V of Sommerschenburg                       29. Uda of Goseck               7. Adeladie of Sommerschenburg                             30. Henry II of Laufen               15. Adelaide of Lauffen                       31. Ida of Hövel

References

• Heinrich Theodor Flathe (1882), "Konrad von Landsberg", Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB) (in German), 16, Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot, pp. 587–588
• Holger Kunde: Das Zisterzienserkloster Pforte — Die Urkundenfälschungen und die frühe Geschichte bis 1236, in the series Quellen und Forschungen zur Geschichte Sachsen-Anhalts, vol. 4, Böhlau, Cologne, 2003, ISBN 3-412-14601-3, p. 99
• Ferdinand Wachter: Geschichte Sachsens bis auf die neuesten Zeiten, part 2, August Lehnhold, Leipzig, 1830, p. 225

Footnotes

1. Timeline on page 32 of Jürgen M. Pietsch and Uwe Grüning: Doppelkapelle St. Crucis Landsberg, Edition Schwarz-Weiß, Leipzig, 2002, p. 32. ISBN 3-00-009297-8
2. The yearbook of Lower Saxon History, vol. 43-44, Hildesheim, 1971, p. 167, disagrees. It mentions only Matilda and Agnes.