John III, Duke of Bavaria-Straubing
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John III the Pitiless, Duke of Bavaria-Straubing (died 1425) of the House of Wittelsbach was first bishop of Liège 1389-1418 and then duke of Bavaria-Straubing and count of Holland and Hainaut 1418-1425. John was the youngest son of Albert I.
In 1408 a Burgundian army led by his brother-in-law John the Fearless of Burgundy supported John III against the citizens of Liège, who were in open revolt. On the field of Othée, on Sept. 23, 1408, the men of Liège were decisively defeated, and Burgundian influence was extended over the city and over the bishopric of Liège. The following executions of leading insurgents led to John's nickname "the Pitiless".
John III, who already had rejected his holy orders before, gave up his bishopric when his niece Jacqueline became countess of Holland and Hainaut and duchess of Bavaria-Straubing in 1417. With the aid of Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor John III immediately started a civil war against Jacqueline and her husband duke John IV of Brabant. John III was also supported by the city of Dordrecht and by duke Philip the Good of Burgundy. A siege of Dordrecht was no success in 1419, so John IV of Brabant agreed to start a joint administration with John III. Jacqueline herself as a woman, did not get a share in the political responsibility. John IV of Brabant finally gave up Holland and Hainaut and left the rule to John III of Bavaria. But then John of Bavaria was poisoned already in 1425.
His niece Jacqueline, who went to England in 1420 and married to Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester could finally not keep Holland and Hainaut for longer also after John's death and Bavaria-Straubing was divided between the dukes of Bavaria, the major portion went to Bavaria-Munich.
John of Bavaria was known for his rich cultural holding of court, among the artists he engaged was also Jan van Eyck.
In 1418, John III married Elisabeth, Duchess of Luxembourg, who was then the widow of Antoine, Duke of Brabant. No children came from this marriage.
[edit] See also
| Preceded by William II |
Duke of Bavaria-Straubing 1417–1425 |
Succeeded by Ernest |
| Count of Hainaut, Holland and Zeeland 1417–1425 |
Succeeded by Jacqueline |
