William VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel
William VI | |
---|---|
Calvinism |
Wilhelm VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel (23 May 1629 – 16 July 1663), known as William the Just, was Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel from 1637 to 1663.
Life
Philip Louis II of Hanau-Münzenberg and his wife Countess Catharina Belgica of Nassau). His mother remained his guardian until he came of age. Despite Hesse-Kassel's defeat in the Thirty Years' War, William's mother did not wish to acknowledge the accord of 1627. This required that the unmarried Marburger heir and the Landgraves of Hessen-Darmstadt
should fall, but Amalie Elisabeth had other ideas and led Hesse-Kessel in 1645 into the "Hessenkrieg", ruling as Landgräfin on her son's behalf. This war began when Hesse-Kassel's troops began to besiege the city of Marburg. Three years later, in 1648, the war ended with a victory for Kassel, although the citizens of Darmstadt also gained from it. Domination over the Marburger territories went over to the landgrave of Hesse-Kassel after the accord was dissolved and a new agreement was reached. William VI succeeded in what his ancestors had tried to do in vain since 1604, that is, to end the Hesse-Marburg landgraviate, and to annex the Marburger lands to Hesse-Kassel.
After these wars, William attended above all to the extension of the universities within his domains and the foundation of more new
Ämtern by Biedenkopf
.
Shortly before his death, William joined the
Reformed subjects, or at least to lessen their mutual hatred. In 1661 he had a colloquy held in Kassel between the Lutheran theologians of the University of Rinteln and the Reformed theologians of the University of Marburg
.
William VI died at Haina in 1663. Control of his Landgraviate went to his eldest son William VII, though - not yet of age - he remained under the guardianship of his mother Hedwig Sophie of Brandenburg until his early death in 1670.
Marriage and issue
He married
Elizabeth Charlotte of the Palantine
. Their children were:
- Charlotte Amalie of Hesse-Kassel (1650–1714), married Christian V of Denmark
- William VII (1651–1670), his successor, Landgraf 1663–1670.
- Luise (11 September 1652 - 23 October 1652)
- Charles (3 August 1654 – 23 March 1730), Landgraf 1670-1730
- Hesse-Philippsthal, married Countess Katharina Amalia von Solms-Laubach
- George of Hesse-Kassel (1658–1675);
- Elisabeth Henriëtte (8 November 1661 – 27 June 1683), married Frederick I of Prussia
Ancestors
Ancestors of William VI, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Literature
- Hans Philippi: Die Landgrafschaft Hessen-Kassel 1648–1806 = Veröffentlichungen der Historischen Kommission für Hessen 46 = Kleine Schriften 8, Marburg 2007. ISBN 978-3-7708-1303-2.
- Pauline Puppel: Die Regentin. Vormundschaftliche Herrschaft in Hessen 1500–1700. Frankfurt/Main 2004.