Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine

Johann Wilhelm II, Elector Palatine ("Jan Wellem" in Low German, English: "John William"; 19 April 1658 – 8 June 1716) of the Wittelsbach dynasty was Elector Palatine (1690–1716), Duke of Neuburg (1690–1716), Duke of Jülich and Berg (1679–1716), and Duke of Upper Palatinate and Cham (1707–1714). From 1697 onwards Johann Wilhelm was also Count of Megen.

Johann Wilhelm II
Portrait by Jan Frans van Douven, c. 1715
Elector Palatine Count Palatine of Neuburg
Reign	2 September 1690 – 8 June 1716
Predecessor	Philip William
Successor	Charles III Philip
Born	19 April 1658 Düsseldorf
Died	8 June 1716 (aged 58) Düsseldorf
Burial	St. Andreas, Düsseldorf
Spouse	Archduchess Maria Anna Josepha of Austria ​ ​ (m. 1678; died 1689)​ Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici ​ ​ (m. 1691)​
House	Wittelsbach
Father	Philip William, Elector Palatine
Mother	Landgravine Elisabeth Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt
Religion	Roman Catholicism

Early life and background

He was the son of Count Palatine Philip William of Neuburg and Elisabeth Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt and was born in Düsseldorf, where he resided, rather than in Heidelberg, which had been largely destroyed by French troops during the Nine Years' War. He was educated by the Jesuits and in 1674 he made a grand tour to Italy.

Equestrian portrait of Johann Wilhelm by Anthoni Schoonjans, 1702

His brother was Franz Ludwig, Count Palatine of Neuburg, his sisters were married to Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I, Peter II of Portugal, and Charles II of Spain.

Succession

As a gift to Johann Wilhelm and his new bride, Archduchess Maria Anna Josepha of Austria, Johann Wilhelm's father ceded to them the Duchies of Jülich and Berg in 1679.[1]

Johann Wilhelm later also succeeded his father as Elector Palatine in 1690. In the Peace of Rijswijk (1697), he was restored to many of the possessions which had been taken by the French, with the provision that the Electorate of the Palatinate not revert to Protestantism. This provision did not make him popular in the Palatinate and with Protestants.

During the War of the Spanish succession Johann Wilhelm received also the Bavarian Upper Palatinate, which was returned to Bavaria in 1714. He died in Düsseldorf and was buried in the St. Andreas Church. Having no son, Johann Wilhelm was succeeded by his brother Charles III Philip, Elector Palatine.

Double portrait of Johann Wilhelm von der Pfalz and Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici

Marriages

On 25 October 1678, in Wiener Neustadt, Johann Wilhelm married Archduchess Maria Anna Josepha of Austria. She was a daughter of Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor, and his third wife, Eleanor of Mantua. The wedding ceremony was performed by Archbishop Leopold Karl von Kollonitsch.

The couple settled in Düsseldorf, where they led an elaborate royal household.[2] During their marriage, Maria Anna Josepha gave birth to two children, but neither survived infancy:[3][4]

• A son (b. and d. Düsseldorf, 6 February 1683).
• A son (b. and d. Düsseldorf, 5 February 1686).

Maria Anna Josepha died in 1689 of tuberculosis. A couple of years later, on 29 April 1691, Johann Wilhelm married by proxy Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici, daughter of Cosimo III de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany. She departed for Düsseldorf on 6 May 1691, accompanied by her younger brother, Gian Gastone. Johann Wilhelm surprised her at Innsbruck, where they officially married.

Anna Maria Luisa became pregnant in 1692; however, she miscarried.[5] It is believed that shortly after her arrival, she contracted syphilis from the John Wilhelm, which would explain why Anna Maria Luisa and Johann Wilhelm failed to produce any children.[6][7][8]

Art collections

He was more popular in Jülich-Berg, where he erected impressive buildings such as the Schloss Bensberg and led a lavish court which gave work to many artists and artisans, including the court painters Johannes Spilberg, his daughter Adriana, her later husband Eglon van der Neer, Adriaen van der Werff, Jan Frans van Douven, Herman van der Mijn, Jan van Nickelen, his daughter Jacoba Maria van Nickelen, her husband Willem Troost, Anthoni Schoonjans, Rachel Ruysch, Godfried Schalcken and Jan Weenix with his daughter Maria Weenix.[9][10] His enormous collection of paintings by Rubens can still be seen in the Alte Pinakothek in Munich.

His widow Anna Maria Luisa was the last scion of the House of Medici. A patron of the arts, she bequeathed the Medici's large art collection, including the contents of the Uffizi, Palazzo Pitti and the Medicean villas, which she inherited upon her brother Gian Gastone's death in 1737, and her Palatine treasures to the Tuscan state, on the condition that no part of it could be removed from the capital Florence. Therefore, these treasures are still to be visited in Florence today.

In Düsseldorf, the Jan-Wellem Square is named after Johann Wilhelm.

Ancestry

Ancestors of Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine

16. Wolfgang, Count Palatine of Zweibrücken 8. Philip Louis, Count Palatine of Neuburg 17. Landgravine Anna of Hesse 4. Wolfgang Wilhelm, Count Palatine of Neuburg 18. William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg 9. Anna of Cleves 19. Archduchess Maria of Austria 2. Philipp Wilhelm, Elector Palatine 20. Albert V, Duke of Bavaria 10. William V, Duke of Bavaria 21. Archduchess Anna of Austria 5. Duchess Magdalene of Bavaria 22. Francis I, Duke of Lorraine 11. Duchess Renata of Lorraine 23. Princess Christina of Denmark and Norway 1. Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine 24. George I, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt 12. Louis V, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt 25. Countess Magdalene of Lippe 6. George II, Landgrave of Hesse-Darmstadt 26. John George, Elector of Brandenburg 13. Margravine Magdalena of Brandenburg 27. Princess Elisabeth of Anhalt-Zerbst 3. Landgravine Elisabeth Amalie of Hesse-Darmstadt 28. Christian I, Elector of Saxony 14. John George I, Elector of Saxony 29. Margravine Sophie of Brandenburg 7. Princess Sophia Eleonore of Saxony 30. Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia 15. Duchess Magdalene Sibylle of Prussia 31. Duchess Marie Eleonore of Cleves

Bibliography

• Alessandro Cont, La Chiesa dei principi. Le relazioni tra Reichskirche, dinastie sovrane tedesche e stati italiani (1688-1763), preface of Elisabeth Garms-Cornides, Trento, Provincia autonoma di Trento, 2018, pp. 103–138.

References

1. "Kurfürst Jan Wellem". www.geschichtswerkstatt-duesseldorf.de. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
2. K. Strauven: About Artistic life and work in Dusseldorf to Düsseldorf school of painting under Director Schadow, H. Voss, 1862, p. 12.
3. Gustav Prümm: A win for life, Books on Demand, 2009, p. 54.
4. "Complete Genealogy of the House of Wittelsbach". genealogy.euweb.cz. Retrieved 6 June 2014.
5. Galleria Palatina (2006). "Anna Maria Luisa de' Medici – Biografia" (in Italian). www.polomuseale.firenze.it. Archived from the original on 17 July 2011. Retrieved 16 November 2009.
6. Hale, J.R. (John Rigby), 1923-1999 (2001). Florence and the Medici (Pbk. ed.). London: Phoenix. p. 189. ISBN 1-84212-456-0. OCLC 47036968.
7. Hale, p. 188–189
8. Hibbert, Christopher (1979). The rise and fall of the House of Medici. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books. p. 304. ISBN 0-14-005090-6. OCLC 6389386.
9. (German) court painters Archived 2014-01-07 at the Wayback Machine who worked for Johan Wilhelm, according to the Dusseldorf museum website
10. Anthon Schoonjans at the Netherlands Institute for Art History (in Dutch)

External links

Media related to Johann Wilhelm, Elector Palatine at Wikimedia Commons