Wenceslaus I, Duke of Luxembourg

Wenceslaus I (also Wenceslas, Venceslas, Wenzel, or Václav, often called Wenceslaus of Bohemia in chronicles) (25 February 1337 – 7 December 1383) was the first Duke of Luxembourg from 1354. He was the son of John the Blind, King of Bohemia, and Beatrice of Bourbon.

Life

The marriage contract stipulated that if a son was born from the marriage, the County of Luxembourg (King John's paternal heritage), as well as lands belonging to it, would go to the child. Beatrice of Bourbon, gave birth to her only child, Duke Wenceslaus I, on February 25, 1337, in Prague. In 1353 Charles IV King of Bohemia, Count of Luxembourg and elected Holy Roman King, entrusted the county, their father's inheritance, to his half-brother Wenceslaus. In 1352, Wenceslaus married Joanna (1322 – 1406), daughter of John III, Duke of Brabant and Limburg, and Marie d'Évreux. In 1354 Charles raised Luxembourg to the status of a duchy. In 1355, Joanna inherited Brabant and Limburg. In order to guarantee the indivisibility of Brabant, Wenceslaus signed the Joyous Entry, but had to fight against his brother-in-law Louis II of Flanders, who asserted his share of the duchy. He failed to prevent the seizure of Brussels by the Flemings, but a certain Everard 't Serclaes succeeded by an audacious coup in driving them out of the city. Thereafter, Wenceslaus had to face primarily internal disorders. In 1371, he overestimated his military capacities and waged war with William II, Duke of Jülich, resulting in humiliating defeat at the Baesweiler, losing a part of his army, and several noblemen. He was captured and suffered 11 months of captivity.

Wenceslaus died in Luxembourg, leaving Joanna as sole ruler of Brabant, and was succeeded by Wenceslaus II (Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia) as duke of Luxembourg. There are speculations that he might have died of leprosy. His last wish was his heart to be displaced from his dead body and sent to his wife (Joanna stayed in Brussels). He is buried in a crypt at Orval Abbey in Belgium.

Wenceslaus I of Luxembourg wrote the lyric poetry interpolated in Jean Froissart's Méliador, which was identified as his by Auguste Longnon in the 1890s (Wenceslas was a patron of this chronicler). His lyric output comprises 79 poems (11 ballades, 16 virelais, 52 rondeaux).

Ancestors

References

Sources

• Boehm, Barbara Drake; Fajt, Jiri, eds. (2005). Prague: The Crown of Bohemia, 1347-1437. Yale University Press.
• Vaughan, Richard (2009). Philip the Bold. The Boydell Press.

Further reading

• Killgrove, Kristina (13 December 2016), "Historians Question Medieval C-Section 'Breakthrough,' Criticize New York Times Coverage", Forbes, retrieved 30 May 2017

1. Wenceslaus
2. Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia
3. Wenceslaus I
4. John of Bohemia
5. John III, Duke of Brabant
6. William II, Duke of Jülich
7. William I of Guelders and Jülich
8. County of Luxembourg
9. Edward, Duke of Guelders
10. House of Luxembourg
11. Agnel (coin)
12. Wenceslaus II of Bohemia
13. Playing card
14. Jobst of Moravia
15. Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor
16. 1337
17. Luxembourg
18. Reginarids
19. List of monarchs of Luxembourg
20. Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor