Philip the Contentious (German: Philipp der Streitbare) (12 November 1503, Heidelberg – 4 July 1548, Heidelberg), a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty, was a titular Count Palatine of the Rhine and ruling Duke of Palatinate-Neuburg from 1505 to 1541.
Philip was the youngest son of Elizabeth of Bavaria-Landshut, daughter of George, Duke of Bavaria-Landshut, and Ruprecht, Count Palatine of the Rhine, himself third son of Philip, Elector Palatine.
Conflicting with imperial law and the inheritance treaty with the dukes of Bavaria-Munich, Duke George had attempted to pass his lands of Bavaria-Landshut to his daughter Elizabeth. This led to the Landshut War of Succession in 1503, in which the forces of Elizabeth and her husband Rupert were defeated. Elizabeth and Rupert died in quick succession in the fall of 1504. In the Arbitration of Cologne in 1505, Emperor Maximilian I awarded as compensation for the territorial losses, a small state known as Palatinate-Neuburg (from the territories of Lower Bavaria) to the two sons of Elizabeth. Philip ruled this territory along his older brother Duke Otto Henry.
In 1529 he successfully fought the Turks during the Siege of Vienna at the head of two regiments and was made a Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece two years later.
On 8 December 1539, Philip visited the court of King Henry VIII of England with the hope of obtaining the hand of the King's daughter, Mary. This potential match was part of King Henry's plans of an alliance with the Protestant German Princes against the Emperor. For all his intents and purposes Phillip does seem to have been genuinely drawn to Mary for herself. They met on 17 December in Hertford Castle where he presented her with a gift and kissed her. Such familiarity gave rise to the belief that the two would wed and the majority of the English court expected a wedding within the coming months. But Henry did not allow this because the Duke was related to Anne of Cleves. Mary showed affection towards the Duke, as she kissed him out of court. The duke was later sent back to his land.[1] The plan did not come to fruition. Phillip however was not deterred and he visited England three more times, but only once more did he get to see Mary.
Philip, Count Palatine is portrayed as Duke Philip of Bavaria by Colin O'Donoghue in the third season of Showtime's The Tudors.
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Philip, Duke of Palatinate-Neuburg
Born: 1503 Died: 1548 |
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| German royalty | ||
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| Regnal titles | ||
| Preceded by new creation |
Duke of Palatinate-Neuburg 1505–1541 |
Succeeded by Otto Henry |