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House of Wittelsbach

The House of Wittelsbach (German: Haus Wittelsbach) is a former Bavarian dynasty, with branches that have ruled over territories including the Electorate of Bavaria, the Electoral Palatinate, the Electorate of Cologne, Holland, Zeeland, Sweden (with Swedish-ruled Finland), Denmark, Norway, Hungary, Bohemia, and Greece. Their ancestral lands of Bavaria and the Palatinate were prince-electorates, and the family had three of its members elected emperors and kings of the Holy Roman Empire. They ruled over the Kingdom of Bavaria which was created in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918.

House of Wittelsbach
Parent houseLuitpoldings(?)
CountryBavaria, Cologne, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Kalmar Union, Sweden, Palatinate, Lusatia
Founded11th century
FounderOtto I
Current headFranz, Duke of Bavaria
Final rulerLudwig III
Titles
Deposition13 November 1918
Cadet branches
Coat of arms (13th to 14th century). The white-and-blue lozenges came to the family when Otto II Wittelsbach, Duke of Bavaria acquired the county of Bogen in 1240
Coat of arms (15th century), the Wittelsbach (Bogen) lozenges quartered with the lion of the Palatinate.

The House of Windsor, the reigning royal house of the British monarchy, are descendants of Sophia of Hanover (1630-1714), a Wittelsbach Princess of the Palatinate by birth and Electress of Hanover by marriage, who had inherited the succession rights of the House of Stuart and passed them on to the House of Hanover.[1][2]

History edit

When Otto I, Count of Scheyern died in 1072, his third son Otto II, Count of Scheyern acquired Wittelsbach Castle (near Aichach). The Counts of Scheyern left Scheyern Castle (constructed around 940) in 1119 for Wittelsbach Castle and the former was given to monks to establish Scheyern Abbey. The origins of the Counts of Scheyern are unclear. Some speculative theories link them to Margrave Henry of Schweinfurt and his father Berthold, whose background is also disputed. Some speculate that the Schweinfurters may be descendants of the Luitpolding dynasty, the Bavarian dukes of the 10th century.

The Wittelsbach Conrad of Scheyern-Dachau, a great-grandson of Otto I, Count of Scheyern, became Duke of Merania in 1153 and was succeeded by his son Conrad II. It was the first duchy held by the Wittelsbach family (until 1180/82).

Otto I's eldest son Eckhard I, Count of Scheyern was father of the count palatine of Bavaria, Otto IV (died 1156), who was the first Count of Wittelsbach and whose son Otto was invested with the Duchy of Bavaria in 1180 after the fall of Henry the Lion and hence the first Bavarian ruler from the House of Wittelsbach. Duke Otto's son Louis I, Duke of Bavaria acquired the Electorate of the Palatinate in 1214.

Throughout history, members of the royal house have reigned as Dukes of Merania (1153–1180/82); Dukes, Electors, and Kings of Bavaria (1180–1918); Counts Palatine of the Rhine (1214–1803 and 1816–1918); Margraves of Brandenburg (1323–1373); Counts of Holland, Hainaut, and Zeeland (1345–1433); Elector-Archbishops of Cologne (1583–1761); Dukes of Jülich and Berg (1614–1794/1806); Kings of Sweden (1441–1448 and 1654–1720); and Dukes of Bremen-Verden (1654–1719).

The family also provided two Holy Roman Emperors (1328–1347/1742–1745), one King of the Romans (1400–1410), two Anti-Kings of Bohemia (1619–20/1742–43), one King of Hungary (1305–1308), one King of Denmark and Norway (1440–1448), and one King of Greece (1832–1862).

Bavaria and Palatinate within the Holy Roman Empire edit

 
The Wittelsbach dominions within the Holy Roman Empire (Bavaria, The Netherlands and Palatinate) 1373 are shown as      Wittelsbach, among the houses of      Luxembourg which acquired Brandenburg that year and      Habsburg which had acquired Tyrol in 1369

The Wittelsbach dynasty ruled the German territories of Bavaria from 1180 to 1918 and the Electorate of the Palatinate from 1214 until 1805. In both countries they had succeeded rulers from the House of Welf. The Duchy of Bavaria was elevated to the Electorate of Bavaria in 1623, and in 1806, Napoleon elevated it to the Kingdom of Bavaria. In 1815, the majority of the Palatinate was annexed by the Grand Duchy of Baden, with the remainder becoming the Circle of the Rhine.

On Duke Otto II's death in 1253, his sons divided the Wittelsbach possessions between them: Henry became Duke of Lower Bavaria, and Louis II Duke of Upper Bavaria and Count Palatine of the Rhine. When Henry's branch died out in 1340 the Emperor Louis IV, a son of Duke Louis II, reunited the duchy.

The family provided two Holy Roman Emperors: Louis IV (1314–1347) and Charles VII (1742–1745), both members of the Bavarian branch of the family, and one German King with Rupert of Germany (1400–1410), a member of the Palatinate branch.

The House of Wittelsbach split into these two branches in 1329: Under the Treaty of Pavia, Emperor Louis IV granted the Palatinate including the Bavarian Upper Palatinate to his brother Duke Rudolf's descendants, Rudolf II, Rupert I and Rupert II. Rudolf I in this way became the ancestor of the older (Palatinate) line of the Wittelsbach dynasty, which returned to power also in Bavaria in 1777 after the extinction of the younger (Bavarian) line, the descendants of Louis IV.

Through the efforts of Louis IV, the Wittelsbachs controlled the Duchy of Bavaria, the Electorate of the Palatine, the County of Tyrol, the Margraviate of Brandenburg, the County of Holland, County of Zeeland and the County of Hainault. This gave them a chance to dominate the Empire as the previous imperial houses of Hohenstaufen, Salians, Ottonians and Carolingians had. However, in the next generation they were outmaneuvered in Imperial politics by the Habsburgs and the most importantly by the Luxemburgs who both held compact and large possessions in the Duchy of Austria for the former and the Kingdom of Bohemia for the latter that allowed them to expand eastward.

Bavarian branch edit

The Bavarian branch kept the Duchy of Bavaria until its extinction in 1777.

 
The Electorate of Bavaria highlighted on a map of the Holy Roman Empire in 1648

The Wittelsbach Emperor Louis IV acquired Brandenburg (1323), Tyrol (1342), Holland, Zeeland and Hainaut (1345) for his House but he had also released the Upper Palatinate for the Palatinate branch of the Wittelsbach in 1329. His six sons succeeded him as Duke of Bavaria and Count of Holland and Hainaut in 1347. The Wittelsbachs lost the Tyrol with the death of Duke Meinhard and the following Peace of Schärding – the Tyrol was finally renounced to the Habsburgs in 1369. In 1373 Otto, the last Wittelsbach regent of Brandenburg, released the country to the House of Luxembourg. On Duke Albert's death in 1404, he was succeeded in the Netherlands by his eldest son, William. A younger son, John III, became Prince-Bishop of Liège. However, on William's death in 1417, a war of succession broke out between John and William's daughter Jacqueline of Hainaut. This last episode of the Hook and Cod wars finally left the counties in Burgundian hands in 1433. Emperor Louis IV had reunited Bavaria in 1340 but from 1349 onwards Bavaria was split among the descendants of Louis IV, who created the branches Bavaria-Landshut, Bavaria-Straubing, Bavaria-Ingolstadt and Bavaria-Munich. With the Landshut War of Succession Bavaria was reunited in 1505 against the claim of the Palatinate branch under the Bavarian branch Bavaria-Munich.

From 1549 to 1567 the Wittelsbach owned the County of Kladsko in Bohemia.

Strictly Catholic by upbringing, the Bavarian dukes became leaders of the German Counter-Reformation. From 1583 to 1761, the Bavarian branch of the dynasty provided the Prince-electors and Archbishops of Cologne and many other bishops of the Holy Roman Empire, namely Liège (1581–1763). Wittelsbach princes served at times as Bishops of Regensburg, Freising, Münster, Hildesheim, Paderborn and Osnabrück, and as Grand Master of the Teutonic Order.

In 1623 under Maximilian I the Bavarian dukes were invested with the electoral dignity and the duchy became the Electorate of Bavaria. His grandson Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria served also as Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands (1692–1706) and as Duke of Luxembourg (1712–1714). His son Emperor Charles VII also claimed the throne of Bohemia (1741–1743). With the death of Charles' son Maximilian III Joseph, Elector of Bavaria the Bavarian branch died out in 1777.

Palatinate branch edit

 
The Electorate of the Palatinate (red) which lost the yellow territories in 1505, after the War of the Succession of Landshut

The Palatinate branch kept the Palatinate until 1918, having succeeded also to Bavaria in 1777. With the Golden Bull of 1356 the Counts Palatine were invested with the electoral dignity, their county became the Electorate of the Palatinate. Princes of the Palatinate branch served as bishops of the Empire and also as Elector-Archbishop-Electors of Mainz and Archbishop-Electors of Trier.

After the death of the Wittelsbach king Rupert of Germany in 1410 the Palatinate lands began to split under numerous branches of the family such as Neumarkt, Simmern, Zweibrücken, Birkenfeld, Neuburg and Sulzbach. When the senior branch of the Palatinate branch died out in 1559, the electorate passed to Frederick III of Simmern, a staunch Calvinist, and the Palatinate became one of the major centers of Calvinism in Europe, supporting Calvinist rebellions in both the Netherlands and France.

The Neuburg cadet branch of the Palatinate branch also held the Duchy of Jülich and Berg from 1614 onwards: When the last duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg died without direct heirs in 1609, the War of the Jülich succession broke out, ended by the 1614 Treaty of Xanten, which divided the separate duchies between Palatinate-Neuburg and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. Jülich and Berg fell to the Wittelsbach Count Palatine Wolfgang William of Neuburg.

In 1619, the Protestant Frederick V, Elector Palatine became King of Bohemia but was defeated by the Catholic Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria, a member of the Bavarian branch. As a result, the Upper Palatinate had to be ceded to the Bavarian branch in 1623, along with the Imperial office of Arch-Steward. When the Thirty Years' War concluded with the Treaty of Münster (also called the Peace of Westphalia) in 1648, a new additional electorate was created for the Count Palatine of the Rhine, along with the new office of Imperial Arch-Treasurer. During their exile Frederick's sons, especially Prince Rupert of the Rhine, gained fame in England.

 
Heidelberg Castle, the seat of the Electors of Palatinate until destroyed by the French in March 1689.

The house of Palatinate of Zweibrücken-Kleeburg as heir to the Swedish throne ruled simultaneously the Duchy of Bremen-Verden (1654–1719).

In 1685, the Simmern line died out, and the Catholic Philip William, Count Palatine of Neuburg inherited the Palatinate (and also Duke of Jülich and Berg). During the reign of Johann Wilhelm (1690–1716) the Electoral residence moved to Düsseldorf in Berg. His brother and successor Charles III Philip, Elector Palatine moved the Palatinate's capital back to Heidelberg in 1718 and then to Mannheim in 1720. To strengthen the union of all lines of the Wittelsbach dynasty Charles Philip organized a wedding on 17 January 1742 when his granddaughters were married to Charles Theodore of Palatinate-Sulzbach and to the Bavarian prince Clement. In the imperial election a few days later Charles III Philip voted for his Bavarian cousin Prince-Elector Charles Albert. After extinction of the Neuburg branch in 1742, the Palatinate was inherited by Duke Charles Theodore of the branch Palatinate-Sulzbach.

After the extinction of the Bavarian branch in 1777, a succession dispute and the brief War of the Bavarian Succession, the Palatinate-Sulzbach branch under Elector Charles Theodore succeeded also in Bavaria.

With the death of Charles Theodore in 1799 all Wittelsbach land in Bavaria and the Palatinate was reunited under Maximilian IV Joseph, a member of the branch Palatinate-Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld. At the time there were two surviving branches of the Wittelsbach family: Palatinate-Zweibrücken (headed by Maximilian Joseph) and Palatinate-Birkenfeld (headed by Count Palatine William). Maximilian Joseph inherited Charles Thedore's title of Elector of Bavaria, while William was compensated with the title of Duke in Bavaria. The form Duke in Bavaria was selected because in 1506 primogeniture had been established in the House of Wittelsbach resulting in there being only one reigning Duke of Bavaria at any given time. Maximillian Joseph assumed the title of king as Maximilian I Joseph on 1 January 1806. The new king still served as a Prince-elector until the Kingdom of Bavaria left the Holy Roman Empire (1 August 1806).

Kingdom of Bavaria, 1806–1918 edit

The Bavarian Army was involved in the Austrian defeat at Hohenlinden, and General Jean Victor Marie Moreau once more occupied Munich. By the Treaty of Lunéville (9 February 1801), Bavaria lost the Palatinate and the duchies of Zweibrücken and Jülich. In view of the scarcely disguised ambitions and intrigues of the Austrian court, prime minister Montgelas now believed that the interests of Bavaria lay in a frank alliance with the French Republic; he succeeded in overcoming the reluctance of Maximilian Joseph; and, on 24 August, a separate treaty of peace and alliance with France was signed at Paris, which allied Bavaria with France.

The 1805 Peace of Pressburg (now Bratislava) between Emperor Napoleon of France and Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor, as a consequence of the French victory over the Russians and Austrians at the Battle of Austerlitz (2 December), allowed Maximilian to raise Bavaria to the status of a kingdom. Accordingly, Maximilian proclaimed himself king on 1 January 1806. The King still served as an elector until Bavaria seceded from the Holy Roman Empire on 1 August 1806, joining the Confederation of the Rhine. The Duchy of Berg was ceded to Napoleon only in 1806.

 
Royal Bavarian coat of arms
 
The Electorate of Bavaria including the Electorate of Palatinate (light green, in the old borders around 1800); the new Kingdom of Bavaria (1816, dark green line, with slightly shifted and rounded Palatinate territory and after the loss of the areas of the Duchy of Berg further north on the Rhine, but expanded to include previously ecclesiastical territories, i.e. Franconia and areas of Swabia, as well as small areas on the border with Austria in the south); and today's state of Bavaria (black line border).

The Congress of Vienna 1814−15 led to the establishment of significant territorial gains for the Kingdom of Bavaria. Although the Duchy of Berg remained lost, almost all of Franconia, previously ruled by a number of Prince-bishops, as well as parts of Swabia, which had belonged to various mediatised secular and ecclesiastic princes, came under Bavarian rule. In both areas a number of formerly free imperial cities were also integrated into the kingdom. The previously heavily fragmented Palatinate territory was rounded off and partially moved. Smaller, mostly ecclesiastical territories on the southern border with Austria were also added. In this way, the border of Bavaria, which largely still exists today, was redefined and the state grew by more than a third in size.

Under Maximilian's descendants, Bavaria became the third most powerful German state, behind only Prussia and Austria. When the German Empire was formed in 1871, Bavaria became the new empire's second most powerful state after Prussia. The Wittelsbachs reigned as kings of Bavaria until the German Revolution of 1918–1919. On 12 November 1918 Ludwig III issued the Anif declaration (German: Anifer Erklärung) at Anif Palace in Austria,[3] in which he released his soldiers and officials from their oath of loyalty to him and ended the 738-year rule of the House of Wittelsbach in Bavaria.[4] The republican movement thereupon declared a republic.

Activities during the Nazi regime, 1933–1945 edit

Before and during the Second World War, the Wittelsbachs were anti-Nazi. Crown Prince Rupert had earned Hitler's eternal enmity by opposing the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923. In 1933, shortly after Hitler's rise to power, he protested against the appointment of governors at the head of the federal states and thus the de facto abolition of German federalism. In 1938, he emigrated to Italy and, after the German Army occupied Italy in September 1943, went into hiding in Florence.

His son, Albrecht, Duke of Bavaria, initially left Germany for Hungary with his family, but was eventually arrested by the Gestapo in October 1944, after Germany had occupied Hungary in March. With his wife, four children and three half-sisters, he was sent to a series of Nazi concentration camps, including Oranienburg, Flossenbürg and Dachau.[5][6] Badly hit by hunger and disease, the family barely survived.[7] At the end of April 1945, they were liberated by the United States Third Army.

Current position of the head of the house edit

Albrecht's eldest son, Franz von Bayern (Francis of Bavaria) is the current head of the house.

In the course of the division of state and house assets after the end of the kingdom, the Wittelsbach Compensation Fund (Wittelsbacher Ausgleichsfonds) was established through a compromise in 1923 and the Wittelsbach State Foundation for Art and Science was established by the former Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria. The Wittelsbach State Foundation received the Wittelsbach family's art treasures acquired before 1804 and has since been the owner, although not the manager, of a large part of the holdings of the ancient and classical art museums in Munich, while more recent art collections came into the possession of the compensation fund, into which most of the possessions from the former Wittelsbach House Property Fund were transferred in 1923, including art treasures and collections (in particular the art collection of King Ludwig I, today mostly in the museums Alte Pinakothek and Neue Pinakothek and in the Glyptothek in Munich), the Secret House Archives (today a department of the Bavarian State Archives) and the former royal castles of Berg, Hohenschwangau (including the Museum of the Bavarian Kings), Berchtesgaden and Grünau hunting lodge.[8]

The respective head of the House of Wittelsbach appoints a board of up to 8 directors of the foundation Wittelsbach Compensation Fund. He also appoints one of the 3 board members of the Wittelsbach State Foundation for Art and Science, while the other two are a representative of the Bavarian Ministry of Culture and a museum specialist appointed by the latter.[9] There are around 13,500 cultural items belonging to the Wittelsbach State Foundation while another 43,000 are owned by the Wittelsbach Compensation Fund, mainly shown in museums and collections such as the Pinakotheken.[10]

 
Nymphenburg Palace

The former Bavarian Royal Family receives around 14 million Euros in payments annually from the proceeds of the Wittelsbach Compensation Fund which also owns agricultural and forestry lands, while its main source of income is urban real estate in Munich.[11] The respective head of the family decides on their distribution and use.[12] He has the right to live in the castles mentioned. While Albrecht lived in Berg Palace from 1949 until the end of his life in 1996, his son and successor Franz primarily uses the side wing of the Nymphenburg Palace that is available to him. The administration of the House of Wittelsbach is also based there.

The private assets of the House of Wittelsbach include the castles of Tegernsee Abbey, Wildenwart (near Frasdorf), Leutstetten (near Starnberg) and Kaltenberg as well as agricultural lands and forestry with an area of 12,500 hectares, real estate and industrial shares. These include two breweries that only became significant after the Second World War: the Ducal Bavarian Brewery of Tegernsee and the König Ludwig Schlossbrauerei. Since 2011, the Nymphenburg Porcelain Manufactory is also owned by a member of the family.

The head of the house is also Grand Master of the Wittelsbach House Orders, the Royal Order of Saint George for the Defense of the Immaculate Conception, the Order of Saint Hubert and the Order of Theresa.

Duke Franz maintained the tradition founded by his father of holding a large annual reception with a sit-down dinner at Nymphenburg Palace. Around 1,500 mostly changing guests from state politics, municipalities, churches and sciences, art and medicine as well as friends and relatives are invited.[13] He also invites smaller groups of changing guests to Berchtesgaden Castle to discuss specific topics that are important to him. His 80th birthday party, in 2013, was held at the Schleissheim Palace near Munich. The party was attended by 2,500 guests including the then-incumbent Minister-President of Bavaria, Horst Seehofer.

In addition to numerous honorary positions in Bavaria, including many cultural and scientific institutions, Franz was also a member of the European Foundation for the Imperial Cathedral of Speyer in the State of Rhineland-Palatinate for many years, a position that his younger brother Duke Max Emanuel in Bavaria, has since taken over,[14] through which the House of Wittelsbach still maintains a connection to one of its former main territories, the Electoral Palatinate.

Reign outside the Holy Roman Empire edit

With Duke Otto III of Lower Bavaria, who was a maternal grandson of Béla IV of Hungary and was elected anti-king of Hungary and Croatia as Bela V (1305–1308) the Wittelsbach dynasty came to power outside the Holy Roman Empire for the first time. Otto had abdicated the Hungarian throne by 1308.

Palatinate branch edit

United Kingdom edit

The Bill of Rights 1689 and the Act of Settlement 1701 excluded non-Protestants from inheriting the throne of Great Britain, making Sophia of Hanover, a born princess of the House of Palatinate-Simmern, the heir presumptive upon Anne's death. Sophia died two months before Anne, however, and Sophia's eldest son George I of Great Britain succeeded the throne in 1714.[15][16] In this way, the House of Hanover inherited the British crown. It remained on the throne until the death of Queen Victoria in 1901.

The line of Jacobite succession, which recognises the right for a Catholic monarch from the House of Stuart, acknowledges Franz, Hereditary Prince of Bavaria to be the rightful heir as "Francis II". However, no individual since Henry Benedict Stuart has publicly taken up the claim.

Kingdom of Sweden edit

 
The Swedish Empire following the Treaty of Roskilde of 1658

Christopher III of the House of Palatinate-Neumarkt was king of Denmark, Sweden, and Norway in 1440/1442–1448, but left no descendants.

The House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken succeeded to the monarchy of Sweden again 1654–1720 when Queen Christina of Sweden abdicated her throne on 5 June 1654 in favour of her cousin Charles X Gustav. Under Charles X, Charles XI, Charles XII, Sweden reached its greatest power (see Swedish Empire). Charles XII was succeeded by his sister Ulrika Eleonora.

Sweden reached its largest territorial extent under the rule of Charles X after the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658. Charles's son Charles XI rebuilt the economy and refitted the army. His legacy to his son Charles XII was one of the finest arsenals in the world, a large standing army, and a large fleet. Charles XII was a skilled military leader and tactician. However, although he was also skilled as a politician, he was reluctant in making peace. While Sweden achieved several large scale military successes early on, and won the most battles, the Great Northern War eventually ended in Sweden's defeat and the end of the Swedish Empire. Charles was succeeded to the Swedish throne by his sister, Ulrika Eleonora. Her abdication in favour of her husband Frederick I in 1720 marked the end of Wittelsbach rule in Sweden.

Kingdom of Greece edit

 
The Kingdom of Greece in 1861.


Prince Otto of Bavaria was chosen by the London Conference of 1832 to be king of newly independent Greece. This was confirmed by the Treaty of Constantinople, whereby Greece became a new independent kingdom under the protection of the Great Powers (the United Kingdom, France and the Russian Empire).

Throughout his reign, Otto faced political challenges concerning Greece's financial weakness and the role of the government in the affairs of the Church. The politics of Greece of this era was based on affiliations with the three Great Powers, and Otto's ability to maintain the support of the powers was key to his remaining in power. To remain strong, Otto had to play the interests of each of the Great Powers’ Greek adherents against the others, while not aggravating the Great Powers. Otto's standing amongst Greeks suffered when Greece was blockaded by the British Royal Navy in 1850 and 1853 to stop Greece from attacking the Ottoman Empire during the Crimean War. As a result, there was an assassination attempt on his wife Queen Amalia in 1861. In 1862, Otto was deposed while in the countryside, and in 1863, the Greek National Assembly elected George I of the House of Glücksburg, aged only 17, King of the Hellenes, marking the end of Wittelsbach rule in Greece.

Bavarian branch edit

Joseph Ferdinand, a son of Maximilian II Emanuel, was the favored choice of England and the Netherlands to succeed as the ruler of Spain, and Charles II of Spain chose him as his heir. Due to the unexpected death of Joseph Ferdinand in 1699 the Wittelsbachs did not come to power in Spain, leaving the Spanish Succession uncertain again.

Major members of the family edit

Patrilineal descent edit

Duke Franz's patriline is the line from which he is descended father to son. Patrilineal descent is the principle behind membership in royal houses, as it can be traced back through the generations.

  1. Heinrich I, Count of Pegnitz, 1000–1043
  2. Otto I, Count of Scheyern, 1020–1072
  3. Eckhard I, Count of Scheyern, 1044-1088
  4. Otto IV, Count of Wittelsbach, 1083–1156
  5. Otto I, Duke of Bavaria, 1117–1183
  6. Louis I, Duke of Bavaria, 1173–1231
  7. Otto II Wittelsbach, Duke of Bavaria, 1206–1253
  8. Louis II, Duke of Bavaria, 1229–1294
  9. Rudolf I, Duke of Bavaria, 1274–1319
  10. Adolf, Count Palatine of the Rhine, 1300–1327
  11. Rupert II, Elector Palatine, 1325–1398
  12. Rupert of Germany, 1352–1410
  13. Stephen, Count Palatine of Simmern-Zweibrücken, 1385–1459
  14. Louis I, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken, 1424–1489
  15. Alexander, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken, 1462–1514
  16. Louis II, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken, 1502–1532
  17. Wolfgang, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken, 1526–1569
  18. Charles I, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld, 1560–1600
  19. Christian I, Count Palatine of Birkenfeld-Bischweiler, 1598–1654
  20. Christian II, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken, 1637–1717
  21. Christian III, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken, 1674–1735
  22. Count Palatine Frederick Michael of Zweibrücken, 1724–1767
  23. Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria, 1756–1825
  24. Ludwig I of Bavaria, 1786–1868
  25. Luitpold, Prince Regent of Bavaria, 1821–1912
  26. Ludwig III of Bavaria, 1845–1921
  27. Rupprecht, Crown Prince of Bavaria, 1869–1955
  28. Albrecht, Duke of Bavaria, 1905–1996
  29. Franz, Duke of Bavaria, b. 1933

Bavarian branch edit

Palatinate branch edit

Scandinavian kings edit

Royal House of Sweden edit

Family tree edit

Antecedents of the Wittelsbachs and Early Dukes of Bavaria edit



The Palatine/Elder Branch edit



The Bavarian/Younger Branch edit

The Royal House of the Kingdom of Bavaria edit

Complete Genealogy of the Wittelsbach Dynasty edit

 

Living legitimate members of the House of Wittlesbach edit

Bold signifies heads of the house and numbers shown indicate the pretense to the kingship of Bavaria:

Gallery of the Bavarian Kings edit


Castles and palaces edit

Bavaria edit

Some of the most important Bavarian castles and palaces that were built by Wittelsbach rulers, or served as seats of ruling branch lines, are the following:

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Wittelsbach redirects here For other uses see Wittelsbach disambiguation This article has multiple issues Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page Learn how and when to remove these template messages This article needs additional citations for verification Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources Unsourced material may be challenged and removed Find sources House of Wittelsbach news newspapers books scholar JSTOR May 2015 Learn how and when to remove this template message This article possibly contains original research Please improve it by verifying the claims made and adding inline citations Statements consisting only of original research should be removed June 2020 Learn how and when to remove this template message Learn how and when to remove this template message The House of Wittelsbach German Haus Wittelsbach is a former Bavarian dynasty with branches that have ruled over territories including the Electorate of Bavaria the Electoral Palatinate the Electorate of Cologne Holland Zeeland Sweden with Swedish ruled Finland Denmark Norway Hungary Bohemia and Greece Their ancestral lands of Bavaria and the Palatinate were prince electorates and the family had three of its members elected emperors and kings of the Holy Roman Empire They ruled over the Kingdom of Bavaria which was created in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918 House of WittelsbachParent houseLuitpoldings CountryBavaria Cologne Germany Greece Hungary Kalmar Union Sweden Palatinate LusatiaFounded11th centuryFounderOtto ICurrent headFranz Duke of BavariaFinal rulerLudwig IIITitlesHoly Roman EmperorKing of the RomansKing of HungaryKing of DenmarkKing of SwedenKing of NorwayKing of GreeceKing of BavariaDuke of BavariaElector of BavariaElector of the PalatinateElector of CologneCount of HollandDeposition13 November 1918Cadet branchesBavaria branch extinct Bavaria Landshut Bavaria Straubing Bavaria Ingolstadt Bavaria Munich Palatinate branch extant Palatinate Simmern Palatinate Sulzbach Palatinate Neumarkt Palatinate Zweibrucken Palatinate Birkenfeld Lowenstein morganatic extant Lowenstein Scharffeneck Lowenstein Wertheim Rosenberg Lowenstein Wertheim Freudenberg Coat of arms 13th to 14th century The white and blue lozenges came to the family when Otto II Wittelsbach Duke of Bavaria acquired the county of Bogen in 1240 Coat of arms 15th century the Wittelsbach Bogen lozenges quartered with the lion of the Palatinate The House of Windsor the reigning royal house of the British monarchy are descendants of Sophia of Hanover 1630 1714 a Wittelsbach Princess of the Palatinate by birth and Electress of Hanover by marriage who had inherited the succession rights of the House of Stuart and passed them on to the House of Hanover 1 2 Contents 1 History 2 Bavaria and Palatinate within the Holy Roman Empire 2 1 Bavarian branch 2 2 Palatinate branch 3 Kingdom of Bavaria 1806 1918 4 Activities during the Nazi regime 1933 1945 5 Current position of the head of the house 6 Reign outside the Holy Roman Empire 6 1 Palatinate branch 6 1 1 United Kingdom 6 1 2 Kingdom of Sweden 6 1 3 Kingdom of Greece 6 2 Bavarian branch 7 Major members of the family 7 1 Patrilineal descent 7 2 Bavarian branch 7 3 Palatinate branch 7 4 Scandinavian kings 7 4 1 Royal House of Sweden 8 Family tree 8 1 Antecedents of the Wittelsbachs and Early Dukes of Bavaria 8 2 The Palatine Elder Branch 8 3 The Bavarian Younger Branch 8 4 The Royal House of the Kingdom of Bavaria 8 5 Complete Genealogy of the Wittelsbach Dynasty 8 6 Living legitimate members of the House of Wittlesbach 9 Gallery of the Bavarian Kings 10 Castles and palaces 10 1 Bavaria 10 2 Palatinate branch 10 3 Electorate of Cologne 11 Coats of arms 11 1 Origins 11 2 Grand Offices of the Prince Electors of the House of Wittelsbach Erzamter 11 3 Palatinate branch senior line issue of Rudolph I of the Palatinate and Bavaria 11 4 Bavarian branch junior branch issue of Louis of Bavaria extinct by 1777 12 See also 13 Notes 14 References 15 External linksHistory editWhen Otto I Count of Scheyern died in 1072 his third son Otto II Count of Scheyern acquired Wittelsbach Castle near Aichach The Counts of Scheyern left Scheyern Castle constructed around 940 in 1119 for Wittelsbach Castle and the former was given to monks to establish Scheyern Abbey The origins of the Counts of Scheyern are unclear Some speculative theories link them to Margrave Henry of Schweinfurt and his father Berthold whose background is also disputed Some speculate that the Schweinfurters may be descendants of the Luitpolding dynasty the Bavarian dukes of the 10th century The Wittelsbach Conrad of Scheyern Dachau a great grandson of Otto I Count of Scheyern became Duke of Merania in 1153 and was succeeded by his son Conrad II It was the first duchy held by the Wittelsbach family until 1180 82 Otto I s eldest son Eckhard I Count of Scheyern was father of the count palatine of Bavaria Otto IV died 1156 who was the first Count of Wittelsbach and whose son Otto was invested with the Duchy of Bavaria in 1180 after the fall of Henry the Lion and hence the first Bavarian ruler from the House of Wittelsbach Duke Otto s son Louis I Duke of Bavaria acquired the Electorate of the Palatinate in 1214 Throughout history members of the royal house have reigned as Dukes of Merania 1153 1180 82 Dukes Electors and Kings of Bavaria 1180 1918 Counts Palatine of the Rhine 1214 1803 and 1816 1918 Margraves of Brandenburg 1323 1373 Counts of Holland Hainaut and Zeeland 1345 1433 Elector Archbishops of Cologne 1583 1761 Dukes of Julich and Berg 1614 1794 1806 Kings of Sweden 1441 1448 and 1654 1720 and Dukes of Bremen Verden 1654 1719 The family also provided two Holy Roman Emperors 1328 1347 1742 1745 one King of the Romans 1400 1410 two Anti Kings of Bohemia 1619 20 1742 43 one King of Hungary 1305 1308 one King of Denmark and Norway 1440 1448 and one King of Greece 1832 1862 Bavaria and Palatinate within the Holy Roman Empire edit nbsp The Wittelsbach dominions within the Holy Roman Empire Bavaria The Netherlands and Palatinate 1373 are shown as Wittelsbach among the houses of Luxembourg which acquired Brandenburg that year and Habsburg which had acquired Tyrol in 1369 The Wittelsbach dynasty ruled the German territories of Bavaria from 1180 to 1918 and the Electorate of the Palatinate from 1214 until 1805 In both countries they had succeeded rulers from the House of Welf The Duchy of Bavaria was elevated to the Electorate of Bavaria in 1623 and in 1806 Napoleon elevated it to the Kingdom of Bavaria In 1815 the majority of the Palatinate was annexed by the Grand Duchy of Baden with the remainder becoming the Circle of the Rhine On Duke Otto II s death in 1253 his sons divided the Wittelsbach possessions between them Henry became Duke of Lower Bavaria and Louis II Duke of Upper Bavaria and Count Palatine of the Rhine When Henry s branch died out in 1340 the Emperor Louis IV a son of Duke Louis II reunited the duchy The family provided two Holy Roman Emperors Louis IV 1314 1347 and Charles VII 1742 1745 both members of the Bavarian branch of the family and one German King with Rupert of Germany 1400 1410 a member of the Palatinate branch The House of Wittelsbach split into these two branches in 1329 Under the Treaty of Pavia Emperor Louis IV granted the Palatinate including the Bavarian Upper Palatinate to his brother Duke Rudolf s descendants Rudolf II Rupert I and Rupert II Rudolf I in this way became the ancestor of the older Palatinate line of the Wittelsbach dynasty which returned to power also in Bavaria in 1777 after the extinction of the younger Bavarian line the descendants of Louis IV Through the efforts of Louis IV the Wittelsbachs controlled the Duchy of Bavaria the Electorate of the Palatine the County of Tyrol the Margraviate of Brandenburg the County of Holland County of Zeeland and the County of Hainault This gave them a chance to dominate the Empire as the previous imperial houses of Hohenstaufen Salians Ottonians and Carolingians had However in the next generation they were outmaneuvered in Imperial politics by the Habsburgs and the most importantly by the Luxemburgs who both held compact and large possessions in the Duchy of Austria for the former and the Kingdom of Bohemia for the latter that allowed them to expand eastward Bavarian branch edit The Bavarian branch kept the Duchy of Bavaria until its extinction in 1777 nbsp The Electorate of Bavaria highlighted on a map of the Holy Roman Empire in 1648 The Wittelsbach Emperor Louis IV acquired Brandenburg 1323 Tyrol 1342 Holland Zeeland and Hainaut 1345 for his House but he had also released the Upper Palatinate for the Palatinate branch of the Wittelsbach in 1329 His six sons succeeded him as Duke of Bavaria and Count of Holland and Hainaut in 1347 The Wittelsbachs lost the Tyrol with the death of Duke Meinhard and the following Peace of Scharding the Tyrol was finally renounced to the Habsburgs in 1369 In 1373 Otto the last Wittelsbach regent of Brandenburg released the country to the House of Luxembourg On Duke Albert s death in 1404 he was succeeded in the Netherlands by his eldest son William A younger son John III became Prince Bishop of Liege However on William s death in 1417 a war of succession broke out between John and William s daughter Jacqueline of Hainaut This last episode of the Hook and Cod wars finally left the counties in Burgundian hands in 1433 Emperor Louis IV had reunited Bavaria in 1340 but from 1349 onwards Bavaria was split among the descendants of Louis IV who created the branches Bavaria Landshut Bavaria Straubing Bavaria Ingolstadt and Bavaria Munich With the Landshut War of Succession Bavaria was reunited in 1505 against the claim of the Palatinate branch under the Bavarian branch Bavaria Munich From 1549 to 1567 the Wittelsbach owned the County of Kladsko in Bohemia Strictly Catholic by upbringing the Bavarian dukes became leaders of the German Counter Reformation From 1583 to 1761 the Bavarian branch of the dynasty provided the Prince electors and Archbishops of Cologne and many other bishops of the Holy Roman Empire namely Liege 1581 1763 Wittelsbach princes served at times as Bishops of Regensburg Freising Munster Hildesheim Paderborn and Osnabruck and as Grand Master of the Teutonic Order In 1623 under Maximilian I the Bavarian dukes were invested with the electoral dignity and the duchy became the Electorate of Bavaria His grandson Maximilian II Emanuel Elector of Bavaria served also as Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands 1692 1706 and as Duke of Luxembourg 1712 1714 His son Emperor Charles VII also claimed the throne of Bohemia 1741 1743 With the death of Charles son Maximilian III Joseph Elector of Bavaria the Bavarian branch died out in 1777 Palatinate branch edit nbsp The Electorate of the Palatinate red which lost the yellow territories in 1505 after the War of the Succession of Landshut The Palatinate branch kept the Palatinate until 1918 having succeeded also to Bavaria in 1777 With the Golden Bull of 1356 the Counts Palatine were invested with the electoral dignity their county became the Electorate of the Palatinate Princes of the Palatinate branch served as bishops of the Empire and also as Elector Archbishop Electors of Mainz and Archbishop Electors of Trier After the death of the Wittelsbach king Rupert of Germany in 1410 the Palatinate lands began to split under numerous branches of the family such as Neumarkt Simmern Zweibrucken Birkenfeld Neuburg and Sulzbach When the senior branch of the Palatinate branch died out in 1559 the electorate passed to Frederick III of Simmern a staunch Calvinist and the Palatinate became one of the major centers of Calvinism in Europe supporting Calvinist rebellions in both the Netherlands and France The Neuburg cadet branch of the Palatinate branch also held the Duchy of Julich and Berg from 1614 onwards When the last duke of Julich Cleves Berg died without direct heirs in 1609 the War of the Julich succession broke out ended by the 1614 Treaty of Xanten which divided the separate duchies between Palatinate Neuburg and the Margraviate of Brandenburg Julich and Berg fell to the Wittelsbach Count Palatine Wolfgang William of Neuburg In 1619 the Protestant Frederick V Elector Palatine became King of Bohemia but was defeated by the Catholic Maximilian I Elector of Bavaria a member of the Bavarian branch As a result the Upper Palatinate had to be ceded to the Bavarian branch in 1623 along with the Imperial office of Arch Steward When the Thirty Years War concluded with the Treaty of Munster also called the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 a new additional electorate was created for the Count Palatine of the Rhine along with the new office of Imperial Arch Treasurer During their exile Frederick s sons especially Prince Rupert of the Rhine gained fame in England nbsp Heidelberg Castle the seat of the Electors of Palatinate until destroyed by the French in March 1689 The house of Palatinate of Zweibrucken Kleeburg as heir to the Swedish throne ruled simultaneously the Duchy of Bremen Verden 1654 1719 In 1685 the Simmern line died out and the Catholic Philip William Count Palatine of Neuburg inherited the Palatinate and also Duke of Julich and Berg During the reign of Johann Wilhelm 1690 1716 the Electoral residence moved to Dusseldorf in Berg His brother and successor Charles III Philip Elector Palatine moved the Palatinate s capital back to Heidelberg in 1718 and then to Mannheim in 1720 To strengthen the union of all lines of the Wittelsbach dynasty Charles Philip organized a wedding on 17 January 1742 when his granddaughters were married to Charles Theodore of Palatinate Sulzbach and to the Bavarian prince Clement In the imperial election a few days later Charles III Philip voted for his Bavarian cousin Prince Elector Charles Albert After extinction of the Neuburg branch in 1742 the Palatinate was inherited by Duke Charles Theodore of the branch Palatinate Sulzbach After the extinction of the Bavarian branch in 1777 a succession dispute and the brief War of the Bavarian Succession the Palatinate Sulzbach branch under Elector Charles Theodore succeeded also in Bavaria With the death of Charles Theodore in 1799 all Wittelsbach land in Bavaria and the Palatinate was reunited under Maximilian IV Joseph a member of the branch Palatinate Zweibrucken Birkenfeld At the time there were two surviving branches of the Wittelsbach family Palatinate Zweibrucken headed by Maximilian Joseph and Palatinate Birkenfeld headed by Count Palatine William Maximilian Joseph inherited Charles Thedore s title of Elector of Bavaria while William was compensated with the title of Duke in Bavaria The form Duke in Bavaria was selected because in 1506 primogeniture had been established in the House of Wittelsbach resulting in there being only one reigning Duke of Bavaria at any given time Maximillian Joseph assumed the title of king as Maximilian I Joseph on 1 January 1806 The new king still served as a Prince elector until the Kingdom of Bavaria left the Holy Roman Empire 1 August 1806 Kingdom of Bavaria 1806 1918 editThe Bavarian Army was involved in the Austrian defeat at Hohenlinden and General Jean Victor Marie Moreau once more occupied Munich By the Treaty of Luneville 9 February 1801 Bavaria lost the Palatinate and the duchies of Zweibrucken and Julich In view of the scarcely disguised ambitions and intrigues of the Austrian court prime minister Montgelas now believed that the interests of Bavaria lay in a frank alliance with the French Republic he succeeded in overcoming the reluctance of Maximilian Joseph and on 24 August a separate treaty of peace and alliance with France was signed at Paris which allied Bavaria with France The 1805 Peace of Pressburg now Bratislava between Emperor Napoleon of France and Francis II Holy Roman Emperor as a consequence of the French victory over the Russians and Austrians at the Battle of Austerlitz 2 December allowed Maximilian to raise Bavaria to the status of a kingdom Accordingly Maximilian proclaimed himself king on 1 January 1806 The King still served as an elector until Bavaria seceded from the Holy Roman Empire on 1 August 1806 joining the Confederation of the Rhine The Duchy of Berg was ceded to Napoleon only in 1806 nbsp Royal Bavarian coat of arms nbsp The Electorate of Bavaria including the Electorate of Palatinate light green in the old borders around 1800 the new Kingdom of Bavaria 1816 dark green line with slightly shifted and rounded Palatinate territory and after the loss of the areas of the Duchy of Berg further north on the Rhine but expanded to include previously ecclesiastical territories i e Franconia and areas of Swabia as well as small areas on the border with Austria in the south and today s state of Bavaria black line border The Congress of Vienna 1814 15 led to the establishment of significant territorial gains for the Kingdom of Bavaria Although the Duchy of Berg remained lost almost all of Franconia previously ruled by a number of Prince bishops as well as parts of Swabia which had belonged to various mediatised secular and ecclesiastic princes came under Bavarian rule In both areas a number of formerly free imperial cities were also integrated into the kingdom The previously heavily fragmented Palatinate territory was rounded off and partially moved Smaller mostly ecclesiastical territories on the southern border with Austria were also added In this way the border of Bavaria which largely still exists today was redefined and the state grew by more than a third in size Under Maximilian s descendants Bavaria became the third most powerful German state behind only Prussia and Austria When the German Empire was formed in 1871 Bavaria became the new empire s second most powerful state after Prussia The Wittelsbachs reigned as kings of Bavaria until the German Revolution of 1918 1919 On 12 November 1918 Ludwig III issued the Anif declaration German Anifer Erklarung at Anif Palace in Austria 3 in which he released his soldiers and officials from their oath of loyalty to him and ended the 738 year rule of the House of Wittelsbach in Bavaria 4 The republican movement thereupon declared a republic Activities during the Nazi regime 1933 1945 editBefore and during the Second World War the Wittelsbachs were anti Nazi Crown Prince Rupert had earned Hitler s eternal enmity by opposing the Beer Hall Putsch in 1923 In 1933 shortly after Hitler s rise to power he protested against the appointment of governors at the head of the federal states and thus the de facto abolition of German federalism In 1938 he emigrated to Italy and after the German Army occupied Italy in September 1943 went into hiding in Florence His son Albrecht Duke of Bavaria initially left Germany for Hungary with his family but was eventually arrested by the Gestapo in October 1944 after Germany had occupied Hungary in March With his wife four children and three half sisters he was sent to a series of Nazi concentration camps including Oranienburg Flossenburg and Dachau 5 6 Badly hit by hunger and disease the family barely survived 7 At the end of April 1945 they were liberated by the United States Third Army Current position of the head of the house editAlbrecht s eldest son Franz von Bayern Francis of Bavaria is the current head of the house In the course of the division of state and house assets after the end of the kingdom the Wittelsbach Compensation Fund Wittelsbacher Ausgleichsfonds was established through a compromise in 1923 and the Wittelsbach State Foundation for Art and Science was established by the former Crown Prince Rupprecht of Bavaria The Wittelsbach State Foundation received the Wittelsbach family s art treasures acquired before 1804 and has since been the owner although not the manager of a large part of the holdings of the ancient and classical art museums in Munich while more recent art collections came into the possession of the compensation fund into which most of the possessions from the former Wittelsbach House Property Fund were transferred in 1923 including art treasures and collections in particular the art collection of King Ludwig I today mostly in the museums Alte Pinakothek and Neue Pinakothek and in the Glyptothek in Munich the Secret House Archives today a department of the Bavarian State Archives and the former royal castles of Berg Hohenschwangau including the Museum of the Bavarian Kings Berchtesgaden and Grunau hunting lodge 8 The respective head of the House of Wittelsbach appoints a board of up to 8 directors of the foundation Wittelsbach Compensation Fund He also appoints one of the 3 board members of the Wittelsbach State Foundation for Art and Science while the other two are a representative of the Bavarian Ministry of Culture and a museum specialist appointed by the latter 9 There are around 13 500 cultural items belonging to the Wittelsbach State Foundation while another 43 000 are owned by the Wittelsbach Compensation Fund mainly shown in museums and collections such as the Pinakotheken 10 nbsp Nymphenburg Palace The former Bavarian Royal Family receives around 14 million Euros in payments annually from the proceeds of the Wittelsbach Compensation Fund which also owns agricultural and forestry lands while its main source of income is urban real estate in Munich 11 The respective head of the family decides on their distribution and use 12 He has the right to live in the castles mentioned While Albrecht lived in Berg Palace from 1949 until the end of his life in 1996 his son and successor Franz primarily uses the side wing of the Nymphenburg Palace that is available to him The administration of the House of Wittelsbach is also based there The private assets of the House of Wittelsbach include the castles of Tegernsee Abbey Wildenwart near Frasdorf Leutstetten near Starnberg and Kaltenberg as well as agricultural lands and forestry with an area of 12 500 hectares real estate and industrial shares These include two breweries that only became significant after the Second World War the Ducal Bavarian Brewery of Tegernsee and the Konig Ludwig Schlossbrauerei Since 2011 the Nymphenburg Porcelain Manufactory is also owned by a member of the family The head of the house is also Grand Master of the Wittelsbach House Orders the Royal Order of Saint George for the Defense of the Immaculate Conception the Order of Saint Hubert and the Order of Theresa Duke Franz maintained the tradition founded by his father of holding a large annual reception with a sit down dinner at Nymphenburg Palace Around 1 500 mostly changing guests from state politics municipalities churches and sciences art and medicine as well as friends and relatives are invited 13 He also invites smaller groups of changing guests to Berchtesgaden Castle to discuss specific topics that are important to him His 80th birthday party in 2013 was held at the Schleissheim Palace near Munich The party was attended by 2 500 guests including the then incumbent Minister President of Bavaria Horst Seehofer In addition to numerous honorary positions in Bavaria including many cultural and scientific institutions Franz was also a member of the European Foundation for the Imperial Cathedral of Speyer in the State of Rhineland Palatinate for many years a position that his younger brother Duke Max Emanuel in Bavaria has since taken over 14 through which the House of Wittelsbach still maintains a connection to one of its former main territories the Electoral Palatinate Reign outside the Holy Roman Empire editWith Duke Otto III of Lower Bavaria who was a maternal grandson of Bela IV of Hungary and was elected anti king of Hungary and Croatia as Bela V 1305 1308 the Wittelsbach dynasty came to power outside the Holy Roman Empire for the first time Otto had abdicated the Hungarian throne by 1308 Palatinate branch edit United Kingdom edit The Bill of Rights 1689 and the Act of Settlement 1701 excluded non Protestants from inheriting the throne of Great Britain making Sophia of Hanover a born princess of the House of Palatinate Simmern the heir presumptive upon Anne s death Sophia died two months before Anne however and Sophia s eldest son George I of Great Britain succeeded the throne in 1714 15 16 In this way the House of Hanover inherited the British crown It remained on the throne until the death of Queen Victoria in 1901 The line of Jacobite succession which recognises the right for a Catholic monarch from the House of Stuart acknowledges Franz Hereditary Prince of Bavaria to be the rightful heir as Francis II However no individual since Henry Benedict Stuart has publicly taken up the claim Kingdom of Sweden edit nbsp The Swedish Empire following the Treaty of Roskilde of 1658 Christopher III of the House of Palatinate Neumarkt was king of Denmark Sweden and Norway in 1440 1442 1448 but left no descendants The House of Palatinate Zweibrucken succeeded to the monarchy of Sweden again 1654 1720 when Queen Christina of Sweden abdicated her throne on 5 June 1654 in favour of her cousin Charles X Gustav Under Charles X Charles XI Charles XII Sweden reached its greatest power see Swedish Empire Charles XII was succeeded by his sister Ulrika Eleonora Sweden reached its largest territorial extent under the rule of Charles X after the Treaty of Roskilde in 1658 Charles s son Charles XI rebuilt the economy and refitted the army His legacy to his son Charles XII was one of the finest arsenals in the world a large standing army and a large fleet Charles XII was a skilled military leader and tactician However although he was also skilled as a politician he was reluctant in making peace While Sweden achieved several large scale military successes early on and won the most battles the Great Northern War eventually ended in Sweden s defeat and the end of the Swedish Empire Charles was succeeded to the Swedish throne by his sister Ulrika Eleonora Her abdication in favour of her husband Frederick I in 1720 marked the end of Wittelsbach rule in Sweden Kingdom of Greece edit nbsp The Kingdom of Greece in 1861 Prince Otto of Bavaria was chosen by the London Conference of 1832 to be king of newly independent Greece This was confirmed by the Treaty of Constantinople whereby Greece became a new independent kingdom under the protection of the Great Powers the United Kingdom France and the Russian Empire Throughout his reign Otto faced political challenges concerning Greece s financial weakness and the role of the government in the affairs of the Church The politics of Greece of this era was based on affiliations with the three Great Powers and Otto s ability to maintain the support of the powers was key to his remaining in power To remain strong Otto had to play the interests of each of the Great Powers Greek adherents against the others while not aggravating the Great Powers Otto s standing amongst Greeks suffered when Greece was blockaded by the British Royal Navy in 1850 and 1853 to stop Greece from attacking the Ottoman Empire during the Crimean War As a result there was an assassination attempt on his wife Queen Amalia in 1861 In 1862 Otto was deposed while in the countryside and in 1863 the Greek National Assembly elected George I of the House of Glucksburg aged only 17 King of the Hellenes marking the end of Wittelsbach rule in Greece nbsp The Old Royal Palace in Athens built for King Otto I by Friedrich von Gartner 1841 nbsp Propylaea in Munich monument for the secundogeniture of the Wittelsbach in Greece Bavarian branch edit Joseph Ferdinand a son of Maximilian II Emanuel was the favored choice of England and the Netherlands to succeed as the ruler of Spain and Charles II of Spain chose him as his heir Due to the unexpected death of Joseph Ferdinand in 1699 the Wittelsbachs did not come to power in Spain leaving the Spanish Succession uncertain again Major members of the family edit nbsp Louis IV Holy Roman Emperor 1314 1347 nbsp Isabeau of Bavaria Queen of France 1370 1435 nbsp Frederick V Elector Palatine King of Bohemia 1596 1632 nbsp Maximilian II Emanuel Elector of Bavaria 1662 1726 nbsp Charles XII King of Sweden 1682 1718 nbsp Charles VII Holy Roman Emperor 1742 1745 nbsp Otto King of Greece 1815 1867 nbsp Ludwig II King of Bavaria 1845 1886 Patrilineal descent edit Duke Franz s patriline is the line from which he is descended father to son Patrilineal descent is the principle behind membership in royal houses as it can be traced back through the generations Heinrich I Count of Pegnitz 1000 1043 Otto I Count of Scheyern 1020 1072 Eckhard I Count of Scheyern 1044 1088 Otto IV Count of Wittelsbach 1083 1156 Otto I Duke of Bavaria 1117 1183 Louis I Duke of Bavaria 1173 1231 Otto II Wittelsbach Duke of Bavaria 1206 1253 Louis II Duke of Bavaria 1229 1294 Rudolf I Duke of Bavaria 1274 1319 Adolf Count Palatine of the Rhine 1300 1327 Rupert II Elector Palatine 1325 1398 Rupert of Germany 1352 1410 Stephen Count Palatine of Simmern Zweibrucken 1385 1459 Louis I Count Palatine of Zweibrucken 1424 1489 Alexander Count Palatine of Zweibrucken 1462 1514 Louis II Count Palatine of Zweibrucken 1502 1532 Wolfgang Count Palatine of Zweibrucken 1526 1569 Charles I Count Palatine of Zweibrucken Birkenfeld 1560 1600 Christian I Count Palatine of Birkenfeld Bischweiler 1598 1654 Christian II Count Palatine of Zweibrucken 1637 1717 Christian III Count Palatine of Zweibrucken 1674 1735 Count Palatine Frederick Michael of Zweibrucken 1724 1767 Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria 1756 1825 Ludwig I of Bavaria 1786 1868 Luitpold Prince Regent of Bavaria 1821 1912 Ludwig III of Bavaria 1845 1921 Rupprecht Crown Prince of Bavaria 1869 1955 Albrecht Duke of Bavaria 1905 1996 Franz Duke of Bavaria b 1933 Bavarian branch edit Louis V Margrave of Brandenburg Duke of Bavaria and Count of Tyrol 1323 1361 Albert I Duke of Bavaria Count of Holland and Hainaut 1347 1404 Isabeau de Baviere 1371 1435 queen consort of France Ernest Duke of Bavaria 1397 1438 duke of Bavaria Munich Albert III Duke of Bavaria 1438 1460 duke of Bavaria Munich Jacqueline Countess of Hainaut and Holland 1417 1432 Albert IV Duke of Bavaria 1465 1508 William IV Duke of Bavaria 1508 1550 co regent Louis X from 1516 to 1545 Louis X Duke of Bavaria 1516 1545 Albert V Duke of Bavaria 1550 1579 Maximilian I Elector of Bavaria 1597 1651 Maria Anna Dauphine of France 1660 1690 Maximilian II Emanuel Elector of Bavaria 1662 1726 Duchess Violante Beatrice of Bavaria 1673 1731 Hereditary Princess of Tuscany and Governess of Siena Clemens August of Bavaria 1700 1761 Maria Antonia of Bavaria 1724 1780 Palatinate branch edit Frederick I Elector Palatine 1451 1476 Frederick III Elector Palatine 1559 1576 Frederick V Elector Palatine 1610 1623 King of Bohemia the Winter King Charles I Louis Elector Palatine 1648 1680 Prince Rupert of the Rhine 1619 1682 Sophia of the Palatine 1630 1714 daughter of Frederick V Heiress to the British throne mother of King George I of Great Britain Elizabeth Charlotte Princess Palatine 1652 1722 Johann Wilhelm Elector Palatine 1690 1718 his wife Anna Maria Luisa de Medici being the last scion of the House of Medici King Ludwig I of Bavaria 1825 1848 Princess Sophie of Bavaria 1805 1872 Archduchess of Austria Elisabeth in Bavaria 1837 1898 Sisi Empress of Austria Ludwig II of Bavaria 1864 1886 Marie Sophie 1841 1925 last queen of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies Elisabeth of Bavaria 1876 1965 queen consort of Albert I of Belgium Sophie Hereditary Princess of Liechtenstein b 1967 Scandinavian kings edit Christopher of Denmark Norway and Sweden reigned 1440 1448 Royal House of Sweden edit Charles X Gustav of Sweden reigned 1654 1660 Charles XI of Sweden reigned 1660 1697 Charles XII of Sweden reigned 1697 1718 Ulrika Eleonora of Sweden reigned 1718 1720Family tree editAntecedents of the Wittelsbachs and Early Dukes of Bavaria edit House of Wittelsbach Luitpold Founder of the LuitpoldingsMargrave of Carinthia and Upper Pannonia Count in the Nordgau 907 Arnulf the Bad 17 18 b Duke of Bavariar 907 937 937 Count Henry von Schweinfurt 19 Margrave of the Nordgaur 994 1017c 970 1017 or Count Berthold of Schweinfurt citation needed 980Leopold I 20 Margrave of Ostmarkr 976 994c 940 994 Heinrich ICount of Pegnitzc 1008 c 1043 nbsp House of Babenberg de Margraves amp Dukes of Austria to 1246 Otto I 21 Count of ScheyernVogt of Frieslingc 1020 1072 Eckhard I 22 Count of Scheyernc 1044 1091Bernard I 22 Count of Scheyern d abt 1102Otto II 22 23 Count of Scheyern Vogt of Frieslingand Weihenstephan 1120Arnold I 24 Count of Scheyern in Dachaud c 1123 Udalrich I also Ulrich Count of Scheyern and Vogt of Freising 1130Otto IV 25 Count of ScheyernCount of Wittelsbach 1116Count Palatine of Bavariar 1120 1156c 1083 1156Ekkehard II1116 Vogt von Ebersberg after 1135Otto IIId 1130Eckhard III d 1183Bernard II d c 1135 Conrad ICount of Scheyern Dachau 1130Arnold IICount of Scheyern Dachau 1124Otto ICount of Scheyern in Dachau Valley 1130 nbsp 26 27 House of Wittelsbach Otto I the RedheadCount Palatine of Bavaria Count of Wittelsbach amp Scheyern Otto VI r 1156 1180Duke of Bavariar 1180 11831117 1183 Conrad of Wittelsbach CardinalArchbishop of Mainz r 1161 1165 1183 1200c 1120 1125 1200Otto VIICount Palatine of Bavariad 1189Conrad IDuke of Meraniar 1152 1159d 1159Conrad ICount of Scheyern in Dachau Valley 1175 Louis I the KelheimerDuke of Bavariar 1183 12311173 1231Otto VIIICount Palatine of Bavaria r 1189 1209bef 1180 1209killed Philip of SwabiaConrad IIDuke of Meraniar 1159 1182d 1182Otto IICount of Scheyern in Dachau Valley 1166Conrad IICount of Scheyern in Dachau Valley 1200 nbsp 28 29 House of WittelsbachOtto IIICount of Scheyern in Dachau Valley 1268 Otto IIDuke of Bavariar 1231 1253 1206 1253 m Agnes of the Palatinate grdd of Duke Henry the Lionand Conrad of Hohenstaufenby which the Wittelsbach inheritedthe Palatinate Louis IIDuke of Bavaria amp Count Palatine of the Rhiner 1253 1294 1229 1294 Henry XIIIDuke of Lower Bavariar 1255 1290 1235 1290 m Elizabeth d Bela IV of Hungary Rudolf I the StammererElector Palatine 1274 1319 Louis IVHoly Roman Emperor 1314Duke of Upper Bavaria 1294 1282 1347 nbsp Otto IIIDuke of Lower Bavariar 1290 1312King of Hungaryr 1305 1307 1261 1312 Louis IIIDuke of Lower Bavariar 1290 1296 1269 1296 Stephen IDuke of Lower Bavariar 1290 1310 1271 1310 nbsp House of Wittelsbach in the Palatine and BavariaHenry XVDuke of Lower Bavariar 1312 1333 1312 1333 Henry XIVDuke of Lower Bavariar 1310 1339 1305 1339 Otto IVDuke of Lower Bavariar 1310 1334 1307 1334 John IDuke of Lower Bavariar 1339 1340 1329 1340 lower Bavaria passed to Emperor Louis IV The Palatine Elder Branch edit House of Wittelsbach in the Palatine House of Wittelsbach nbsp Rudolf I the StammererElector Palatine 1274 1319 Louis IVHoly Roman Emperor 1314Duke of Upper Bavaria 1294 1282 1347 nbsp Adolf Count Palatine of the Rhine 1300 1327 Rudolf II Count Palatine of the RhineElector Palatine 1306 1353 Rupert I Elector PalatineElector Palatine 1353 1356 1309 1390 Rupert II Elector PalatineElector Palatine 1325 1398 Rupert King of Germany 1352 1410 m Elisabeth of Nuremberg nbsp nbsp Rupert 1375 1397 Frederick 1377 1401 Louis III Elector Palatine 1378 1436 John Count Palatine of Neumarkt 1383 1443 m Catherine of PomeraniaStephen Count Palatine of Simmern Zweibrucken 1385 1459 m Anna of VeldenzOtto Count Palatine of Mosbach 1390 1461 Louis IV Elector PalatineElector Palatine 1424 1449 Frederick I Elector PalatineElector Palatine 1425 1476 RuprectElector and Archbishop of Cologne 1427 1480 ChristopherKing of Sweden Denmark and Norway 1416 1448 Frederickthe HunsruckerCount Palatine of Simmern 1417 1480 RupertBishop of Strasbourg 1420 1478 Stephen 1421 1485 Louisthe Black 1424 1489 m Johanna de CroyJohnArchbishop of Magdeburg 1429 1475 Counts of Mosbach Neumarkt Philip Elector PalatineElector Palatine 1448 1508 nbsp John I Count Palatine of Simmern 1459 1509 KasparCount Palatine of Zweibrucken 1458 1527 Alexanderthe Lame 1462 1514 m Margaret of Hohenlohe Neuenstein Louis VElector Palatine 1478 1544 Lutheran 1530sRuprecht of the Palatinatelay Bishop of Friesing 1481 1504 Frederick II the WiseElector Palatine 1482 1556 Lutheran 1540sJohn II Count Palatine of Simmern 1492 1557 Louisthe Younger 1502 1532 m Elisabeth of HesseRupertCount Palatine of Veldenz 1506 1544 Otto Henry Elector PalatineElector Palatine 1502 1559 Lutheran 1540sPhilip Duke of Palatinate Neuburg 1503 1548 Frederick IIIthe PiousCount Palatine of SimmernElector Palatine 1559 1515 1576 made the Palatine CalvinistWolfgangCount Palatine of Zweibrucken 1526 1569 n Anna of HesseCounts of Veldenz Louis VI Elector Palatine 1539 1583 LutheranJohn CasimirCount Palatine of Lautern 1543 1592 Calvinist generalPhilip LouisCount Palatine of Neuburg 1547 1614 Lutheranm Anna of Julich Cleves BergJohnthe Lame 1550 1604 m Magdalene of Julich Cleves BergOtto HenryCount Palatine of Sulzbach 1556 1604 FrederickCount Palatine of Zweibrucken Vohenstrauss Parkstein 1557 1597 CharlesCount Palatine of Zweibrucken Birkenfeld 1560 1600 Frederick IV Elector Palatine 1574 1610 CalvinistWolfgang Wilhelm Count Palatine of Neuburg 1578 1653 Duke of Julich amp Berg 1614Lutheran to 1613 CatholicAugustus Count Palatine of Sulzbach 1582 1632 CatholicJohnthe YoungerCount Palatine of Zweibrucken 1584 1635 Frederick CasimirCount Palatine of Zweibrucken Landsberg 1585 1645 John CasimirCount Palatine of Kleeburg 1589 1652 m Catherine of SwedenGeorge William Count Palatine of Zweibrucken Birkenfeld 1591 1669 Christian I Count Palatine of Birkenfeld Bischweiler 1598 1654 Princess Elizabeth of England Scotland and Ireland 1596 1662 Frederick V Elector Palatine 1596 1632 r 1610 1623 King of Bohemia 1619 1620 Calvinist nbsp Philip William 1615 1690 C Pal of Neuburg r 1653 1690 D Julich amp Berg r 1653 1679 Elector Palatine r 1685 1690 CatholicChristian Augustus Count Palatine of Sulzbach 1622 1708 CatholicFrederickCount Palatine of Zweibrucken amp Duke of Zweibrucken 1616 1661 Frederick LouisCount Palatine of Zweibrucken 1619 1681 Charles X GustavKing of Sweden 1622 1660 m Hedwig Eleonora of Holstein GottorpAdolf JohnCount Palatine of Kleeburg 1629 1689 Charles II Otto Count Palatine of Zweibrucken Birkenfeld 1625 1671 Christian II Count Palatine of Zweibrucken Birkenfeld 1637 1717 John Charles Count Palatine of Gelnhausen 1638 1704 Charles I Louis Elector Palatine 1617 1680 r 1648 1680 CalvinistPrince Rupert of the Rhine 1619 1682 English General and AdmiralLord High Admiral of EnglandDuke of CumberlandSophia 1630 1714 Her son became King George I of Great Britain in 1714 Johann Wilhelm Elector Palatine D of Julich amp Berg 1658 1716 CatholicCharles III Philip Elector Palatine D of Julich amp Berg 1661 1742 CatholicTheodore Eustace Count Palatine of Sulzbach 1659 1732 Fredrick LouisCount Palatine of Zweibrucken amp Duke of Zweibrucken 1619 1681 nbsp Charles XIKing of Sweden 1655 1697 m Ulrika Eleonora of DenmarkCounts of Kleeburg ext 1731Duke of Zweibrucken 1718Christian III Count Palatine of ZweibruckenD of Zweibrucken 1674 1735 Frederick Bernard Count Palatine of Gelnhausen 1697 1739 John Count Palatine of Gelnhausen 1698 1780 Charles II Elector Palatine 1651 1685 r 1680 1685 Calvinist nbsp House of Hanover Kings of Great BritainJohn Christian Count Palatine of Sulzbach 1700 1733 Charles XIIKing of Sweden 1682 1718 Ulrika Eleonora Queen of Sweden 1688 1741 m Frederick I of SwedenChristian IV Count Palatine of ZweibruckenD Zweibrucken 1722 1775 Frederick Michael Count Palatine of ZweibruckenD ZweibruckenImp Field Marshal 1724 1767 nbsp Charles Theodore 1724 1799 Elector Palatine r 1742 1777 Palatine Electorate merged with BavarianElector of Bavaria r 1777 1799 CatholicCharles II August Duke of Zweibrucken 1746 1795 nbsp Maximilian I JosephD Zweibrucken 1795El Palatine 1799 1806El Bavaria 1799 1806King of Bavaria 1806 1756 1825 WilliamDuke in Bavaria 1752 1837 nbsp Kings of Bavaria nbsp Dukes in Bavaria The Bavarian Younger Branch edit House of Wittelsbach in Bavaria The colours denote the Dukes Counts and Electors over the following regions of Bavaria and under the following circumstances Holy Roman EmperorName of Duke Dukes of Bavaria united Name of Elector Elector and Duke of Bavaria ArchSenechal of the Empire 1623 1777 Name of Elector Elector Palatine of the RhineName of Count Count of Holland Zealand and Hainaut Duke of Bavaria in Bavaria Straubing Lower Bavaria Name of Count Count of Holland Zealand and Hainaut Duke of Bavaria Straubing Lower Bavaria disputedName of Margrave Margrave of Brandenburg Elector by Emperor Charles IV with Golden Bull of 1356 Name of Archbishop Cardinal and Elector Prince Elector and Archbishop of Cologne CardinalName of Duke Dukes of Bavaria in Upper Bavaria Oberbayern Name of Duke Dukes of Bavaria in Lower Bavaria Niederbayern Name of Duke Dukes of Bavaria in Bavaria Landshut Lower Bavaria Name of Duke Dukes of Bavaria in Bavaria Ingolstadt Upper Bavaria Name of Duke Dukes of Bavaria in Bavaria Munich Upper Bavaria Name of Duke Dukes of Bavaria Munich Dachau Upper Bavaria Name of Duke Duke in Bavaria used since 1506 when primogeniture was established in Bavaria by all other members of the house of Wittelsbach House of Wittelsbach nbsp Rudolf I the StammererElector Palatine 1274 1319 Louis IVHoly Roman Emperor 1314Duke of Upper Bavaria 1294 1282 1347 nbsp Louis V the BrandenburgerMargrave of Brandenburgr 1323 1351 Duke of Upper Bavariar 1347 1361 1319 1375 Stephen IIDuke of Bavaria Landshutr 1349 1363 Duke of Upper Bavariar 1363 1375 1319 1375 Louis VI the RomanDuke of Upper Bavariar 1347 1365 El Margrave of Brandenburgr 1356 1365 raised to El 1356 1328 1365 William IDuke of Lower Bavariar 1349 1353 Duke of Bavaria Straubing r 1353 1398 Count of Holland Zealand and Hainautr 1345 1389 1330 1389 Albrecht IDuke of Lower Bavariar 1349 1353 Duke of Bavaria Straubing r 1353 1404 Count of Holland Zealand and Hainautr 1389 1404 1336 1404 Otto V the BavarianDuke of Upper Bavariar 1349 1351 El Margrave of Brandenburgr 1351 1373 raised to El 1356 dep 1373 by Emp Charles IV for his son Wenceslaus 1340 1379 nbsp nbsp nbsp Meinhard IIICount of Tyrolr 1361 1363 Duke of Upper Bavariar 1361 1363 1344 1363 Stephen III of IngolstadtDuke of Bavaria Ingolstadtr 1375 1413 1337 1413 Frederick of LandshutDuke of Bavaria Landshutr 1375 1393 1339 1393 John II of MunichDuke of Bavaria Munichr 1375 1397 1341 1397 William IIDuke of Bavaria Straubing r 1404 1417 Count of Holland Zealand and Hainautr 1404 1417 1365 1417 Albrecht IIDuke of Bavaria Straubing admin for Will IIr 1389 1397 1368 1397 John III the Pitiless Prince Bp of Liege resignedr 1374 1425 Count of Holland Zealand de factor 1420 1425 Duke of Bavaria Straubing r 1417 1425 Duke of Luxembourg w wife Eliz of Gorlitzr 1418 1425 1374 1425 Louis VIIDuke of Bavaria Ingolstadtr 1413 1443 1368 1447 Henry XVIDuke of Bavaria Landshutr 1393 1450 Ingolstadt merged r 1447 1450 1386 1450 ErnestDuke of Bavaria Munichr 1397 1438 absorbed Straubing 1429 1373 1438 William IIIco Duke of Bavaria Munichr 1397 1435 1375 1435 JacquelineCount of Holland Zealand and HainautHoll amp Zea r 1417 1420 r 1425 1432 Hain r 1417 1432 1401 1436 Louis VIIIDuke of Bavaria Ingolstadtr 1443 1445 1403 1445 Louis IXDuke of Bavaria Landshut amp Ingolstadtr 1450 1479 1417 1479 Albrecht III the PiousDuke of Bavaria Munich amp Straubingr 1438 1460 1401 1460 John IV of MunichDuke of Bavaria Munich amp Straubingr 1460 1463 1437 1463 of plague Sigismund of Dachauco Duke of Bavaria Munich amp Straubingr 1460 1467 Duke of Bavaria Munich Dachau r 1467 1501 1439 1501 Albrect IV the WiseDuke of Bavaria Munich amp Straubingr 1467 1508 Landshut r 1503 1508 amp Ingolstadt 1447 1508 Male Primogeniture est 1506Christopher 1449 1493 Rhodes Wolfgang 1451 1514 a canon in Passau Augsburg and Koln William IVDuke of Bavaria Munich amp Straubing amp Ingolstadtr 1508 1550 1493 1550 Louis X of LandshutDuke of Bavaria Landshutr 1516 1545 1495 1545 ErnestAdministrator of Diocese of Passau r 1516 1540 Administrator of Diocese of Salzburg r 1540 1554 1500 1560 Albrecht VDuke of Bavariar 1550 1579 1528 1579 United Bavaria William VDuke of Bavariar 1579 1597 1548 1626 FerdinandDuke in Bavaria general 1550 1608 ErnestDuke in BavariaElector and Abp of Cologne r 1583 1612 amp Pr Bishop of Liege 1581 amp Hildesheim 1573 Freising r 1566 1612 1554 1612 Maximilian I the GreatDuke of Bavariar 1597 1651 Elector amp Arch Seneschal repl Palatine conf 1648 r 1623 1648 Elector of Bavaria amp Arch Seneschalr 1648 1651 1573 1651 PhilipDuke in BavariaBp of Regensburgr 1579 1598 Cardinal 1596 1576 1598 FerdinandDuke in BavariaElector and Abp of Cologne amp etc r 1612 1650 1577 1650 Albrecht VIDuke in BavariaLandgrave of Leuchtenberg to 1650 Reichsgraf of Haag in OberbayernRegent of Bavaria r 1651 1654 1584 1666 nbsp Ferdinand Elector and Duke of Bavariar 1651 1679 1636 1679 Maximilian Duke in BavariaLandgrave of LeuchtenbergPrince Administrator Kuradministrator of Bavariar 1679 1680 1638 1705 Maximilian Henry Duke in BavariaElector and Abp of Cologne amp etc r 1650 1688 1621 1688 Sigmund Albrecht Duke in Bavaria Bishop of Freising and Regensburg 1668 1623 1685 Maria Antonia of Austriaeldest d amp only surviving child of Emp Leopold I amp Margaret Theresa of Spain heir to the Spanish throne 1669 1692 Maximilian II EmanuelElector and Duke of Bavariar 1679 1726 Governor of Spanish Netherlandsr 1692 1706 1662 1726 Joseph Clemens Duke in BavariaElector and Abp of Cologne amp etc r 1688 1723 1671 1723 Joseph FerdinandDuke in Bavariaheir of Spain 1692 1699 Charles VII Elector and Duke of Bavariar 1726 1745 King of Bohemiar 1741 1743 Holy Roman Emperorr 1742 1745 1697 1745 nbsp Philipp Moritz MariaDuke in Bavariaelected bishop of Paderborn and Munster 1698 1719 Ferdinand Maria InnocenzDuke in BavariaImperial General 1699 1738 Clemens AugustusDuke in BavariaElector and Abp of Cologne amp etc r 1723 1761 1700 1761 Johann TheodoreDuke in Bavaria Prince Bishop of Regensburg Prince Bishop of Freising and the Prince Bishop of LiegeCardinal 1703 1763 Maximilian III JosephElector and Duke of Bavariar 1745 1777 1727 1777 by the Treaty of Pavia 1329 Bavaria was inherited by the elder branch of the PalatineClemens FranicsDuke in BavariaCrown Prince of Bavaria 1722 1770 The Royal House of the Kingdom of Bavaria edit Royal House of Bavaria Wittelsbach The colors denote the Kings Prince Dukes in Bavaria during the kingdom of Bavaria All the male and female descendants were Princes of Bavaria and Princesses of Bavaria even the younger line of the Dukes in Bavaria Name of King King of Bavaria Name of Duke Duke in Bavaria Name of Prince Head of Royal House nbsp nbsp 2 Carolineof Baden1776 1841Maximilian I IV JosephD Zweibrucken 1795El Palatine amp Bavaria 1799 1806King of Bavaria r 1806 1825 1756 1825 1 Princess Augusta Wilhelmine of Hesse Darmstadt1765 1796WilliamDuke in Bavaria 1752 1837 Countess Palatine Maria Anna of Zweibrucken Birkenfeldsister of King Max I of Bavaria Fr Wm IV of Prussia1795 1861ElisabethLudovikaof Bavaria1801 1873Ludwig IKing of Bavaria r 1825 1848 1786 1868 Theresaof Saxe Hildburghausen1792 1854Karl TheodorFld Mar amp Insp Gen 1795 1875 PiusD in Bavaria 1786 1837 nbsp Maximilian II VKing of Bavaria r 1848 1864 1811 1864 Marie ofPrussia1825 1889OttoKing of Greecer 1832 1862 1815 1867 LuitpoldPrinz Regentr 1886 1912 1821 1912 AugustaFerdinandeof Austria1825 1864AdalbertP of Bavaria 1828 1875 m Inf Amalia s K Cnsrt Francis of SpainMaximilian JosephDuke in Bavaria 1808 1888 Ludwig IIKing of Bavaria r 1864 1886 the Swan King or der Marchenkonig 1845 1886 Otto I VIII King of Bavaria r 1886 1913 deposed 1848 1916 Ludwig IIIPrince Regent r 1912 1913 King of Bavariar 1913 1918 abd in pretence1918 1921 1845 1921 MariaTheresa ofAustria Este1849 1919Leopold Fld Mar 1846 1930 Arnulf 1852 1907 Louis Ferdinand 1859 1949 m Infanta Maria de la Paz of SpainAlphonso 1862 1933 Louis William Gen CavalryDuke in Bavaria 1831 1920 Charles Theodore OphthalmologistDuke in Bavaria 1839 1909 Maximilian 2nd Lt Duke in Bavaria 1849 1893 Rupert 1869 1955 in pretence1921 1955MarieGabrielleof Bavaria d Charles Theordore 1876 1912 Charles 1874 1927 Francis Gen 1875 1957 George Col Priest 1921 Mnsgr 1880 1943 Conrad Maj 1883 1969 Henry Maj 1884 1916 k in action WWIFerdinand 1884 1958 m Inf Maria Teresa of SpainAdalbert 1886 1970 Joseph Clemens 1902 1990 Luis William Lt 1884 1968 Siegfried 1876 1952 Christoph Maj 1879 1963 Luitpold 1890 1973 LuitpoldHereditary Prince of Bavaria 1901 1914 Albert VI Duke of Bavaria 1905 1996in pretence1955 1996MariaDraskovichof Trakostjan1904 1969Henry 1922 1958 Louis 1913 2008 Rasso 1926 2011 Eugen 1925 1997 Princes of Spain nbsp Franz Duke of Bavaria 1933 in pretence 1996 Maximilian EmmanuelDuke in Bavaria 1937 Luitpold 1951 Father Florianborn Francis Joseph 1957 2022 Wolfgang 1960 Christopher 1962 Complete Genealogy of the Wittelsbach Dynasty edit nbsp Living legitimate members of the House of Wittlesbach edit Bold signifies heads of the house and numbers shown indicate the pretense to the kingship of Bavaria nbsp Ludwig I of Bavaria 1786 1868 nbsp Maximilian II of Bavaria 1811 1864 nbsp Ludwig II of Bavaria 1845 1886 nbsp Otto of Bavaria 1848 1916 Princess Mathilde Caroline of Bavaria 1813 1863 married Louis III Grand Duke of Hesse 1806 1877 without issue Prince Otto of Bavaria later King of Greece 1815 1867 married Princess Amalia of Oldenburg 1818 1875 without issue Princess Theodelinde of Bavaria 1816 1817 nbsp Luitpold Prince Regent of Bavaria 1821 1912 nbsp Ludwig III of Bavaria 1845 1921 nbsp Rupprecht Crown Prince of Bavaria 1869 1955 Prince Luitpold of Bavaria 1901 1914 Princess Irmingard of Bavaria 1902 1903 nbsp Albrecht Duke of Bavaria 1905 1996 Princess Marie Gabrielle of Bavaria born 1931 married Georg Prince of Waldburg zu Zeil und Trauchburg 1928 2015 and has issue Princess Marie Charlotte of Bavaria 1931 2018 married Paul Prince of Quadt zu Wykradt und Isny 1930 2011 and issue nbsp Franz Duke of Bavaria born 1933 head of the House of Wittelsbach 1996 present 1 Prince Max Emanuel Duke in Bavaria born 1937 Princess Sophie of Bavaria born 1967 married Alois Hereditary Prince of Liechtenstein born 1968 and has issue Princess Marie Caroline of Bavaria born 1969 married Duke Philipp of Wurttemberg born 1964 and has issue Princess Helene of Bavaria born 1972 Princess Elisabeth of Bavaria born 1973 married Daniel Terberger born 1967 and has issue Princess Maria Anna of Bavaria born 1975 married twice and has issue Prince Rudolf of Bavaria 1909 1912 Prince Heinrich of Bavaria 1922 1958 married Anne Marie de Lustrac 1927 1999 without issue Princess Irmingard of Bavaria 1923 2010 married Prince Ludwig of Bavaria 1913 2008 see issue below Princess Editha of Bavaria 1924 2013 married twice and has issue Princess Hilda of Bavaria 1926 2002 married Juan Bradstock Edgar Lockett de Loayza 1912 1987 and had issue Princess Gabriele of Bavaria 1927 2019 married Carl Emmanuel 14th Duke of Croy 1914 2011 and had issue Princess Sophie of Bavaria born 1935 married Jean 12th Duke of Arenberg 1921 2011 and has issue Princess Adelgunde of Bavaria 1870 1958 married William Prince of Hohenzollern 1864 1927 without issue Princess Maria Ludwiga Theresia of Bavaria 1872 1954 married Prince Ferdinand Pius Duke of Castro 1869 1960 and had issue Prince Karl of Bavaria 1874 1927 Prince Franz of Bavaria 1875 1957 Prince Ludwig of Bavaria 1913 2008 2 Prince Luitpold of Bavaria born 1951 Princess Auguste of Bavaria born 1979 married Hereditary Prince Ferdinand of Lippe Weissenfeld born 1976 and has issue Princess Alice of Bavaria born 1981 married Prince Lukas of Auersperg born 1981 and has issue 3 Prince Ludwig of Bavaria born 1982 4 Prince Heinrich of Bavaria born 1986 5 Prince Maximilian of Bavaria born 2021 6 Prince Luitpold of Bavaria born 2023 7 Prince Karl of Bavaria born 10 March 1987 Princess Maria of Bavaria 1953 1953 Princess Philippa of Bavaria 1954 1953 Princess Maria Elisabeth of Bavaria 1914 2011 married Prince Pedro Henrique of Orleans Braganza 1909 1981 and had issue including the current Head of the Imperial House of Brazil Princess Adelgunde of Bavaria 1917 2004 married Baron Zdenko von Hoenning O Caroll 1906 1996 and had issue Princess Eleonore of Bavaria 1918 2009 married Count Konstantin of Waldburg Zeil 1909 1972 and had issue Princess Dorothea of Bavaria 1920 2015 married Archduke Gottfried of Austria 1902 1984 and had issue Prince Rasso of Bavaria 1926 2011 Princess Maria Theresa of Bavaria born 1956 married Count Tambs Kornis de Gcncz Ruszka born 1949 and has issue Prince Franz Josef of Bavaria 1957 2022 Princess Elisabeth of Bavaria born 1959 married Count Andreas von Kuefstein born 1954 and has issue 8 Prince Wolfgang of Bavaria born 1960 9 Prince Tassilo of Bavaria born 1992 10 Prince Richard of Bavara born 1993 11 Prince Philip of Bavaria born 1996 Princess Flavia of Bavaria born 2011 Princess Benedikta of Bavaria born 1961 married Count Rudolf von Freyberg Eisenberg born 1958 and has issue 12 Prince Christoph of Bavaria born 1962 13 Prince Corbinian of Bavaria born 1996 14 Prince Stanislaus of Bavaria born 1997 15 Prince Marcello of Bavaria born 1998 Princess Odilia of Bavaria born 2002 Princess Gisela of Bavaria born 1964 married Prince Alexander of Saxony born 1954 and has issue Princess Mathilde of Bavaria 1877 1906 married Prince Ludwig Gaston of Saxe Coburg and Gotha 1870 1942 and had issue Prince Wolfgang of Bavaria 1879 1895 Princess Hildegard of Bavaria 1881 1948 Princess Notburga of Bavaria 1883 1883 Princess Wiltrud of Bavaria 1884 1975 married Wilhelm Karl Duke of Urach 1864 1928 without issue Princess Helmtrud of Bavaria 1886 1977 Princess Dietlinde of Bavaria 1888 1889 Princess Gundelinde of Bavaria 1891 1983 married Count Johann Georg of Preysing Lichtenegg Moos 1887 1924 and had issue Prince Leopold of Bavaria 1846 1930 Princess Elisabeth Marie of Bavaria 1874 1957 married Count Otto of Seefried and Buttenheim 1870 1951 and had issue Princess Auguste of Bavaria 1875 1964 married Archduke Joseph August of Austria 1872 1962 and had issue Prince Georg of Bavaria 1880 1943 married Archduchess Isabella of Austria 1888 1973 without issue Prince Konrad of Bavaria 1883 1969 Princess Amalie Isabella of Bavaria 1921 1985 married Count Umberto Poletti Galimberti Count di Assandri 1921 1995 and had issue Prince Eugen of Bavaria 1925 1997 married Countess Helene von Khevenhuller Metsch 1921 2017 without issue Princess Therese of Bavaria 1850 1925 Prince Arnulf of Bavaria 1852 1907 Prince Heinrich of Bavaria 1884 1916 Princess Adelgunde of Bavaria 1823 1914 married Francis V Duke of Modena 1819 1875 and had issue Princess Hildegard of Bavaria 1825 1864 married Archduke Albrecht Duke of Teschen 1817 1895 and had issue Princess Alexandra of Bavaria 1826 1875 Prince Adalbert of Bavaria 1828 1875 Prince Ludwig Ferdinand of Bavaria 1859 1949 Prince Ferdinand of Bavaria 1884 1958 married twice and renounced his rights to the Bavarian throne in 1914 Prince Adalbert of Bavaria 1886 1970 Prince Konstantin of Bavaria 1920 1969 16 Prince Leopold of Bavaria born 1943 17 Prince Manuel of Bavaria born 1972 18 Prince Leopold of Bavaria born 2007 Princess Alva of Bavaria born 2010 19 Prince Gabriel of Bavaria born 2014 20 Prince Joseph of Bavaria born 2019 Princess Maria del Pilar of Bavaria born 1978 Princess Maria Felipa of Bavaria born 1981 married Christian Dienst born 1978 and has issue 21 Prince Konstantin of Bavaria born 1986 22 Prince Alexis of Bavaria born 2020 23 Prince Nikolaus of Bavaria born 2023 24 Prince Adalbert of Bavaria born 1944 Princess Bernadette of Bavaria born 1986 married Carmelo Milici born 1987 and has issue 25 Prince Hubertus of Bavaria born 1989 Princess Ysabel of Bavaria born 1954 married Count Alfred Hoyos born 1951 and has issue Prince Alexander of Bavaria 1923 2001 Prince Alfons of Bavaria 1862 1933 Prince Joseph Clemens of Bavaria 1902 1990 Princess Elisabeth of Bavaria 1913 2005 married twice and had issue Princess Isabella of Bavaria 1863 1924 married Prince Tommaso Duke of Genoa 1854 1931 and had issue Princess Elvira of Bavaria 1868 1943 married Count Rudolf von Wrbna Kaunitz Rietberg Questenberg und Freudenthal 1864 1927 and had issue Princess Clara of Bavaria 1874 1941 Gallery of the Bavarian Kings edit nbsp Max I Joseph 1806 1825 nbsp Ludwig I 1825 1848 nbsp Maximilian II 1848 1864 nbsp Ludwig II 1864 1886 nbsp Prinzregent Luitpold 1886 1912 nbsp Ludwig III 1913 1918 Castles and palaces editBavaria edit Some of the most important Bavarian castles and palaces that were built by Wittelsbach rulers or served as seats of ruling branch lines are the following nbsp The Old Court in Munich nbsp Munich Residenz by Michael Wening nbsp Nymphenburg Palace in Munich nbsp Schleissheim Palace in Munich nbsp Trausnitz Castle in Landshut nbsp Ingolstadt Castle nbsp Straubing Castle span, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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