Franz von Hatzfeld (1596–1642) was the Prince-Bishop of Würzburg from 1631 to 1642 and the Prince-Bishop of Bamberg from 1633 to 1642.
Franz von Hatzfeld was born in Crottorf, near Friesenhagen, on September 13, 1596, the third son of Freiherr Sebastian von Hatzfeld-Wildenburg (1566-1631) and his wife Lucia von Sickingen (1569–1605), a granddaughter of Franz von Sickingen.[1] His father had been raised a Protestant, but converted to Roman Catholicism.[2]
In 1615, he became a canon of Würzburg Cathedral and, two years later, of Bamberg Cathedral.[3] At age thirty, he became head cantor of Bamberg Cathedral, and the next year, became diocesan administrator of Würzburg.[4] He then served as provost of the Gangolfskirche in Bamberg.[5]
The cathedral chapter of Würzburg Cathedral elected him Prince-Bishop of Würzburg on August 7, 1631, with Pope Urban VIII confirming his appointment on January 3, 1632.[6]
With the Thirty Years' War raging, Swedish troops occupied the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg and Franz von Hatzfeld fled to Cologne as a protective measure.[7] On June 20, 1633, Lord High Chancellor of Sweden Axel Oxenstierna declared that the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg and the Prince-Bishopric of Würzburg would henceforth be combined as the "Duchy of Franconia" and enfeoffed to Bernard of Saxe-Weimar.[8]
On August 4, 1633, the cathedral chapter of Bamberg Cathedral (which had escaped to the Duchy of Carinthia) elected Franz von Hatzfeld Prince-Bishop of Bamberg, with Pope Urban VIII confirming this appointment on October 31, 1633.[9] This created a personal union between the Prince-Bishopric of Würzburg and the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg.
Following the Battle of Nördlingen of September 5-6, 1634, Franz von Hatzfeld ended his Cologne exile, returning to Würzburg in November 1634, accompanied by the troops of Philipp von Mansfeld.[10]
He died of a stroke in Würzburg on July 30, 1642.[11]
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Philipp Adolf von Ehrenberg |
Prince-Bishop of Würzburg 1631–1642 |
Succeeded by Johann Philipp von Schönborn |
| Preceded by Johann Georg Fuchs von Dornheim |
Prince-Bishop of Bamberg 1633–1642 |
Succeeded by Melchior Otto von Voit von Salzburg |