William, Duke of Austria

William, Duke of Austria
Seal of William of Austria
Spouse(s)	Joanna II of Naples
Noble family	House of Habsburg
Father	Leopold III, Duke of Austria
Mother	Viridis Visconti
Born	c. 1370 Vienna
Died	15 July 1406 Vienna
Buried	Ducal Crypt in the Stephansdom in Vienna

William of Austria (c. 1370 – 15 July 1406),^[1] also known as William the Courteous was a scion of the House of Habsburg, Duke of Carinthia, Styria and Carniola.

Life

Born in Vienna, he was the oldest son of Duke Leopold the Just and his wife, Viridis Visconti.

At the age of 14, he was betrothed to Hedwig (Jadwiga), youngest daughter of King Louis I of Hungary, who was also king of Poland. This was one of the first attempts of the Habsburgs to extend their dominion by marrying heiresses, as Louis intended his elder daughter Mary and her fiancé Sigismund of Luxembourg to inherit Poland, while Jadwiga inherited Hungary.

When Louis died in 1382, Mary succeeded in Hungary. The Poles then rejected Mary and Sigismund, and instead chose Jadwiga as queen regnant. They also repudiated the betrothal to William.

In 1386, his father Leopold died, and William succeeded as head of the Leopoldian Line and ruler of the three duchies.

In 1401, William married another presumptive heiress, Joanna of Naples. She was Jadwiga's cousin, and also of Angevin descent. The marriage did not produce any offspring and William did not live to see his wife succeed her brother as Queen Joanna II.

In 1404, his first cousin Duke Albert the Patient died, leaving the lands of the Albertinian line of the Habsburgs to his seven-year-old son Albert the Magnanimous. William tried to take the Albertinian territories from the child Albert, but did not succeed before his death.

Death

William died in 1406 in Vienna. He is buried in the Dukes' Catacomb in Vienna's Cathedral of Saint Stephan.

Ancestors

Ancestors of William, Duke of Austria

16. Rudolph I of Germany               8. Albert I of Germany                       17. Gertrude of Hohenburg               4. Albert II, Duke of Austria                             18. Meinhard, Duke of Carinthia               9. Elisabeth of Gorizia-Tyrol                       19. Elisabeth of Bavaria               2. Leopold III, Duke of Austria                                   20. Theobald II of Pfirt               10. Ulrich III of Pfirt                       21. Catherine of Klingen               5. Joanna of Pfirt                             22. Reginald of Burgundy               11. Joanna of Burgundy                       23. Guillemette of Neufchâtel               1. William, Duke of Austria                                         24. Matteo I Visconti               12. Stefano Visconti                       25. Violante Bonacosa Borri               6. Bernabò Visconti                             26. Barnabo Doria               13. Valentina Doria                       27. Eliana Fieschi               3. Viridis Visconti                                   28. Alboino I della Scala               14. Mastino II della Scala                       29. Beatrice da Correggio               7. Beatrice Regina della Scala                             30. Jacopo I da Carrara               15. Taddea da Carrara                       31. Anna Gradenigo

References

1. "Early Habsburg". European Heraldry. Retrieved 26 April 2011.

Media related to William of Austria at Wikimedia Commons