View source for Albert, Duke of Prussia

{{Short description|Duke of Prussia from 1525 to 1568}}
{{Redirect|Albert of Prussia|other people|Albert of Hohenzollern (disambiguation){{!}}Albert of Hohenzollern}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=December 2020}}
{{Infobox royalty
| name = Albert
| image = Lucas Cranach d.Ä. - Bildnis des Markgrafen Albrecht von Brandenburg-Ansbach (Herzog Anton Ulrich-Museum).jpg
| caption = Albert of Prussia, painting by [[Lucas Cranach the Elder]], dated 1528
| succession = [[Grand Masters of the Teutonic Knights|Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights]]
| reign = 1510{{snd}}1525
| predecessor = [[Duke Frederick of Saxony]]
| successor = [[Walter von Cronberg]]
| succession1 = [[Duke of Prussia]]
| reign1 = 10 April 1525{{snd}}20 March 1568
| successor1 = [[Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia|Albert Frederick of Prussia]]
| house = [[House of Hohenzollern]]
| father = [[Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach|Frederick I of Brandenburg-Ansbach]]
| mother = [[Sophia of Poland]]
| spouse = {{marriage|[[Dorothea of Denmark, Duchess of Prussia|Dorothea of Denmark]]|1526|1547|end=died}} <br /> {{marriage|[[Anna Marie of Brunswick-Lüneburg]]|1550}}
| issue  = [[Anna Sophia of Prussia|Anna Sophia]]<br />[[Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia|Albert Frederick]]
| issue-link = #Spouse and issue
| issue-pipe = among others...
| religion = [[Catholicism]] ''(until 1525)''<br />[[Lutheranism]] ''(from 1525)''
| birth_date = 17 May 1490<ref>[http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/12674/Albert Albert (duke of Prussia)]. ''Encyclopædia Britannica''.</ref>
| birth_place = [[Ansbach]], [[Margraviate of Brandenburg-Ansbach|Brandenburg-Ansbach]], [[Holy Roman Empire]]<br /><small>(now [[Bavaria]], [[Germany]])</small>
| death_date = {{death date and age|1568|3|20|1490|7|8|df=yes}}
| death_place = Tapiau Castle, [[Tapiau]], [[Duchy of Prussia|Prussia]]<br /><small>(now [[Gvardeysk]], [[Russia]])</small>
}}
'''Albert of Prussia''' ({{langx|de|Albrecht von Preussen}}; 17 May 1490{{snd}}20 March 1568) was a German prince who was the 37th [[Grand Masters of the Teutonic Knights|grand master]] of the [[Teutonic Knights]] and, after converting to [[Lutheranism]], became the first ruler of the [[Duchy of Prussia]], the secularized state that emerged from the former [[Monastic State of the Teutonic Knights]]. Albert was the first European ruler to establish Lutheranism, and thus [[Protestantism]], as the official [[state religion]] of his lands. He proved instrumental in the political spread of Protestantism in its early stage, ruling the Prussian lands for nearly six decades (1510–1568).

Albert was great-grandson of the converted pagan ruler [[Jogaila]] of Poland and Lithuania, vanquisher of the Teutonic Knights at the [[Battle of Grunwald]]. He was also a member of the [[Principality of Ansbach|Brandenburg-Ansbach]] branch of the [[House of Hohenzollern]]. He became grand master of the Teutonic Knights in their attempt to diplomatically win over the Polish-Lithuanian union. His skill in political administration and leadership ultimately succeeded in reversing the decline of the Teutonic Order. But Albert was sympathetic to the demands of [[Martin Luther]], whose teachings had become popular in his lands. So he rebelled against the [[Roman Catholic Church]] and the [[Holy Roman Empire]] by converting the Teutonic state into a Protestant and hereditary realm, the Duchy of Prussia, for which he paid homage to his uncle, [[Sigismund I the Old|Sigismund I, king of Poland]]. That arrangement was confirmed by the [[Treaty of Kraków]] in 1525. Albert pledged a personal oath to the king and in return was invested with the duchy for himself and his heirs.

Albert's rule in Prussia was fairly prosperous. Although he had some trouble with the peasantry, the confiscation of the lands and treasures of the Catholic Church enabled him to propitiate the nobles and provide for the expenses of the newly established Prussian court. He was active in imperial politics, joining the [[League of Torgau]] in 1526, and acted in unison with the Protestants in plotting to overthrow Emperor [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]] after the issue of the [[Augsburg Interim]] in May 1548. Albert established schools in every town and founded the [[University of Königsberg]] in 1544.<ref name="EB1911">{{Cite EB1911|wstitle=Albert (grand master)|display=Albert|volume=1|page=497}}</ref> He promoted culture and arts, patronising the works of [[Erasmus Reinhold]] and [[Caspar Hennenberger]]. During the final years of his rule, Albert was forced to raise taxes instead of further confiscating now-depleted church lands, causing peasant rebellion. The intrigues of the court favourites [[Johann Funck]] and [[Paul Skalić]] also led to various religious and political disputes. Albert spent his final years virtually deprived of power, and died at [[Tapiau]] on 20 March 1568. His son, [[Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia|Albert Frederick]], succeeded him as Duke of Prussia.

==Early life==
Albert was born in [[Ansbach]] in [[Franconia]] as the third son of [[Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach]].{{sfn|Ward|Prothero|Leathes|1934|p=table 37}} His mother was [[Sophia of Poland|Sophia]], daughter of [[Casimir IV Jagiellon]],{{sfn|Ward|Prothero|Leathes|1934|p=table 37}} Grand Duke of [[Grand Duchy of Lithuania|Lithuania]] and king of [[Kingdom of Poland (1385–1569)|Poland]], and his wife [[Elisabeth of Austria (d. 1505)|Elisabeth of Austria]]. His great-grandfather was [[Władysław II Jagiełło]], the last pagan ruler in Europe, who, after converting to Christianity, defeated the Teutonic Knights at the [[Battle of Grunwald]] in 1410. He was raised for a career in the [[Roman Catholic Church|Church]] and spent some time at the court of [[Hermann IV of Hesse]], [[Electorate of Cologne|Elector of Cologne]], who appointed him canon of the [[Cologne Cathedral]].<ref name="EB1911"/>
Not only was he quite religious; he was also interested in mathematics and science and sometimes is claimed to have contradicted the teachings of the Church in favour of scientific theories. His career was forwarded by the Church, however, and institutions of the Catholic clerics supported his early advancement.

Turning to a more active life, Albert accompanied Emperor [[Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor|Maximilian I]] to [[Italy]] in 1508 and after his return spent some time in the [[Kingdom of Hungary]].<ref name="EB1911"/>

==Grand Master==
[[File:Albrecht von Hohenzollern.jpg|thumb|upright|left|As grand master of the Teutonic Order, painting from 1522]]
[[File:Arms of Albert of Brandenburg-Ansbach, Grand Master of the Teutonic Order.svg|thumb|upright|Coat of arms as grand master of the Teutonic Order]]
[[Duke Frederick of Saxony]], grand master of the [[Teutonic Order]], died in December 1510. Albert was chosen as his successor early in 1511 in the hope that his relationship to his maternal uncle, [[Sigismund I the Old]], Grand Duke of Lithuania and king of Poland, would facilitate a settlement of the disputes over eastern [[Prussia (region)|Prussia]], which had been held by the order under Polish [[suzerainty]] since the [[Second Peace of Thorn (1466)]].<ref name="EB1911"/>

The new grand master, aware of his duties to the empire and to the papacy, refused to submit to the crown of Poland. As war over the order's existence appeared inevitable, Albert made strenuous efforts to secure allies and carried on protracted negotiations with Emperor Maximilian I. The ill-feeling, influenced by the ravages of members of the Order in Poland, culminated in [[Polish–Teutonic War (1519–1521)|a war]] which began in December 1519 and devastated Prussia. Albert was granted a four-year truce early in 1521.<ref name="EB1911"/>

The dispute was referred to Emperor [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor|Charles V]] and other princes, but as no settlement was reached Albert continued his efforts to obtain help in view of a renewal of the war. For this purpose, he visited the [[Diet of Nuremberg]] in 1522, where he made the acquaintance of the [[Protestant Reformation|Reformer]] [[Andreas Osiander]], by whose influence Albert was won over to [[Protestantism]].<ref name="EB1911"/>

The grand master then journeyed to [[Wittenberg]], where he was advised by [[Martin Luther]] to abandon the rules of his order, to marry, and to convert Prussia into a hereditary duchy for himself. This proposal, which was understandably appealing to Albert, had already been discussed by some of his relatives; but it was necessary to proceed cautiously, and he assured [[Pope Adrian VI]] that he was anxious to reform the order and punish the knights who had adopted [[Lutheranism|Lutheran]] doctrines. Luther for his part did not stop at the suggestion, but in order to facilitate the change made special efforts to spread his teaching among the Prussians, while Albert's brother, Margrave [[George, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach|George of Brandenburg-Ansbach]], laid the scheme before their uncle, [[Sigismund I the Old]] of Poland.<ref name="EB1911"/>

==Duke in Prussia==
[[File:Gallery of 19th-Century Polish Art in the Sukiennice, 2022, 07.jpg|350px|thumb|''[[Prussian Homage (painting)|Prussian Homage]]'': Albert and his brothers receive the [[Duchy of Prussia]] as a [[fief]] from  Polish King [[Sigismund I the Old]], 1525. [[History painting|Painting]] by [[Jan Matejko|Matejko]], 1882.]]
After some delay Sigismund assented to the offer, with the provision that Prussia should be treated as a Polish fiefdom; and after this arrangement had been confirmed by a [[Treaty of Kraków|treaty concluded at Kraków]], Albert pledged a [[Prussian Homage|personal oath]] to Sigismund I and was invested with the duchy for himself and his heirs on 10 February 1525.<ref name="EB1911"/>

The [[Estates of the realm|Estates]] of the land then met at [[Königsberg]] and took the oath of allegiance to the new duke, who used his full powers to promote the doctrines of Luther. This transition did not, however, take place without protest. Summoned before the imperial court of justice, Albert refused to appear and was proscribed, while the order elected a new grand master, [[Walter von Cronberg]], who received Prussia as a fief at the imperial [[Diet of Augsburg]]. As the German princes were experiencing the tumult of the Reformation, the [[German Peasants' War]], and the [[Ottoman wars in Europe|wars against the Ottoman Turks]], they did not enforce the ban on the duke, and agitation against him soon died away.<ref name="EB1911"/>

In imperial politics, Albert was fairly active. Joining the [[League of Torgau]] in 1526, he acted in unison with the Protestants, and was among the princes who banded and plotted together to overthrow Charles V after the issue of the [[Augsburg Interim]] in May 1548. For various reasons, however, poverty and personal inclination among others, he did not take a prominent part in the military operations of this period.<ref name="EB1911"/>
[[File:Albrecht von Brandenburg-Preußen Groschen.jpg|thumb|upright|left|One [[Groschen]] coin, 1534, ''[[Epistle to the Galatians|Iustus ex fide vivit]] — The Just lives on Faith'']]

The early years of Albert's rule in Prussia were fairly prosperous. Although he had some trouble with the peasantry, the lands and treasures of the church enabled him to propitiate the nobles and for a time to provide for the expenses of the court. He did something for the furtherance of learning by establishing schools in every town and by freeing serfs who adopted a scholastic life. In 1544, in spite of some opposition, he founded [[Königsberg University]], where he appointed his friend Andreas Osiander to a professorship in 1549.<ref name="EB1911"/> Albert also paid for the printing of the Astronomical "[[Prutenic Tables]]" compiled by [[Erasmus Reinhold]] and the first maps of Prussia by [[Caspar Hennenberger]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://dictionary.obspm.fr/index.php/index.php?showAll=1&formSearchTextfield=Prutenic+Tables|title=An Etymological Dictionary of Astronomy and Astrophysics - 1|website=dictionary.obspm.fr|access-date=1 February 2019}}</ref>

Osiander's appointment was the beginning of the troubles which clouded the closing years of Albert's reign. Osiander's divergence from Luther's doctrine of [[justification by faith]] involved him in a violent quarrel with [[Philip Melanchthon]], who had adherents in Königsberg, and these theological disputes soon created an uproar in the town. The duke strenuously supported Osiander, and the area of the quarrel soon broadened. There were no longer church lands available with which to conciliate the nobles, the burden of taxation was heavy, and Albert's rule became unpopular.<ref name="EB1911"/>

After Osiander's death in 1552, Albert favoured a preacher named [[Johann Funck]], who, with an adventurer named [[Paul Skalić]], exercised great influence over him and obtained considerable wealth at public expense. The state of turmoil caused by these religious and political disputes was increased by the possibility of Albert's early death and the need, should that happen, to appoint a [[regent]], as his only son, [[Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia|Albert Frederick]] was still a mere youth. The duke was forced to consent to a condemnation of the teaching of Osiander, and the climax came in 1566 when the [[Estates of the realm|Estates]] appealed to King [[Sigismund II Augustus]] of Poland, Albert's cousin, who sent a commission to Königsberg. Skalić saved his life by flight, but Funck was executed. The question of the regency was settled, and a form of Lutheranism was adopted and declared binding on all teachers and preachers.<ref name="EB1911"/>
[[File:Paulus Scalichius (Scaligius, c.1534-1575).png|thumb|170px|Portrait of [[Pavao Skalić]], an [[encyclopedist]], [[Renaissance humanist]] and adventurer from [[Croatia]], who strongly influenced the Duke in the closing years of his reign]]

Virtually deprived of power, the duke lived for two more years, and died at [[Gvardeysk|Tapiau]] on 20 March 1568<ref name="EB1911"/> of the plague, along with his wife. [[Cornelis Floris de Vriendt]] designed his tomb within [[Königsberg Cathedral]].<ref>Mühlpfordt, p. 73</ref>

Albert was a voluminous letter writer, and corresponded with many of the leading personages of the time.<ref name="EB1911"/>

==Legacy==
[[File:Dom Fuerstengruft.jpg|thumb|Tomb of Albert by [[Cornelis Floris de Vriendt]] in [[Königsberg Cathedral]]]]
[[File:Albertus-Schild.jpg|thumb|"Albertus" with sword from the [[Silberbibliothek]]]]

Albert was the first German noble to support Luther's ideas {{Citation needed|date=January 2020}} and in 1544 founded the [[University of Königsberg]], the Albertina, as a rival to the Roman Catholic [[Krakow Academy]]. It was the second Lutheran university in the German states, after the [[University of Marburg]].

A [[relief]] of Albert over the Renaissance-era portal of [[Königsberg Castle]]'s southern wing was created by Andreas Hess in 1551 according to plans by Christoph Römer.<ref name="M90">Mühlpfordt, p. 90</ref> Another relief by an unknown artist was included in the wall of the Albertina's original campus. This depiction, which showed the duke with his sword over his shoulder, was the popular "Albertus", the symbol of the university. The original was moved to [[Königsberg Public Library]] to protect it from the elements, while the sculptor [[Paul Kimritz]] created a duplicate for the wall.<ref name="M90"/> Another version of the "Albertus" by Lothar Sauer was included at the entrance of the [[Königsberg State and Royal Library]].<ref name="M90"/>

In 1880 [[Friedrich Reusch]] created a sandstone bust of Albert at the Regierungsgebäude, the administrative building for [[Regierungsbezirk Königsberg]]. On 19 May 1891 Reusch premiered a famous statue of Albert at [[Königsberg Castle]] with the inscription: "Albert of Brandenburg, Last Grand Master, First Duke in Prussia".<ref>Mühlpfordt, p. 82</ref> [[Albert Wolff (sculptor)|Albert Wolff]] also designed an equestrian statue of Albert located at the new campus of the Albertina. [[King's Gate (Kaliningrad)|King's Gate]] contains a statue of Albert.

Albert was oft-honored in the quarter [[Maraunenhof]] in northern Königsberg. Its main street was named Herzog-Albrecht-Allee in 1906. Its town square, König-Ottokar-Platz, was renamed Herzog-Albrecht-Platz in 1934 to match its church, the [[Herzog-Albrecht-Gedächtniskirche]].<ref>Mühlpfordt, p. 133</ref>

==Spouse and issue==
[[File:Dorothea of Denmark, Duchess of Prussia by Cornelis II Floris de Vriendt (Pushkin museum) by shakko 02.jpg|thumb|Dorothea of Denmark, Duchess of Prussia by [[Cornelis Floris de Vriendt]]]]
Albert married first, to [[Dorothea of Denmark, Duchess of Prussia|Dorothea]] (1 August 1504{{snd}}11 April 1547), daughter of King [[Frederick I of Denmark]], in 1526. They had six children:
* [[Anna Sophia of Prussia|Anna Sophia]] (11 June 1527{{snd}}6 February 1591),{{sfn|Ward|Prothero|Leathes|1934|p=table 37}} married [[John Albert I, Duke of Mecklenburg|John Albert I, Duke of Mecklenburg-Güstrow]].
* Katharina (b. and d. 24 February 1528) died at birth.
* Frederick Albert (5 December 1529{{snd}}1 January 1530).{{sfn|Ward|Prothero|Leathes|1934|p=table 37}} died young.
* Lucia Dorothea (8 April 1531{{snd}}1 February 1532) died in infancy.
* Lucia (3 February 1537{{snd}} 1 May 1539) died young.
* Albert (b. and d. 1 March 1539) died at birth.

He married secondly to [[Anna Marie of Brunswick-Lüneburg|Anna Maria]] (1532–20 March 1568), daughter of [[Eric I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg|Eric I]], Duke of [[Brunswick-Lüneburg]], in 1550. The couple had two children:
* Elisabeth (20 May 1551{{snd}}19 February 1596) died unmarried and without issue.
* [[Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia|Albert Frederick]] (29 April 1553{{snd}}18 August 1618), [[Duke of Prussia]].

==Ancestors==
{{ahnentafel
|align=center
|boxstyle_1=background-color: #fcc;
|boxstyle_2=background-color: #fb9;
|boxstyle_3=background-color: #ffc;
|boxstyle_4=background-color: #bfc;
|boxstyle_5=background-color: #9fe;
|1= 1. '''Albert, Duke of Prussia ''' (1490–1568)
|2= 2. [[Frederick I, Margrave of Brandenburg-Ansbach]] (1460–1536)
|3= 3. [[Zofia Jagiellonka]] (1464–1512)
|4= 4. [[Albrecht III, Elector of Brandenburg]] (1414–1486)
|5= 5. [[Anna of Saxony (d. 1512)|Anna of Saxony]] (1437–1512)
|6= 6. [[Casimir IV Jagiellon]] (1427–1492)
|7= 7. [[Elisabeth of Austria (d. 1505)|Elisabeth of Austria]] (1435–1505)
|8= 8. [[Frederick I, Elector of Brandenburg]] (1371–1440)
|9= 9. [[Elisabeth of Bavaria-Landshut]] (1383–1442)
|10= 10. [[Frederick II, Elector of Saxony]] (1412–1464)
|11= 11. [[Margaret of Austria (1416–1486)|Margaret of Austria]] (1416–1486)
|12= 12. [[Jogaila]] (1362–1434)
|13= 13. [[Sophia of Halshany]] (1405–1461)
|14= 14. [[Albert II of Germany]] (1397–1439)
|15= 15. [[Elizabeth of Luxembourg]] (1409–1442)
}}

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==References==
* {{cite book|last=Albinus|first=Robert|title=Lexikon der Stadt Königsberg Pr. und Umgebung|year=1985|publisher=Verlag Gerhard Rautenberg|location=Leer|pages=371|isbn=3-7921-0320-6|language=de}}
* {{cite book|last=Mühlpfordt|first=Herbert Meinhard|author-link=Herbert Meinhard Mühlpfordt|title=Welche Mitbürger hat Königsberg öffentlich geehrt?|year=1963|publisher=Holzner Verlag|location=Würzburg|language=de}}
* {{cite book |title=The Cambridge Modern History |volume=XIII |editor1-first=A.W. |editor1-last=Ward |editor2-first=G.W. |editor2-last=Prothero |editor3-first=Stanley |editor3-last=Leathes |publisher=Cambridge at the University Press |year=1934 }}

==External links==
{{Commons}}
* {{DNB portal|118637673}}
* [https://web.archive.org/web/20010703023705/http://department.monm.edu/history/urban/articles/State_of_the_grandmasters.htm William Urban on the situation in Prussia]
* [http://zs.thulb.uni-jena.de/receive/jportal_jparticle_00054867 K. P. Faber: Briefe Luthers an Herzog Albrecht (1811)] letters of [[Martin Luther]] to Albrecht {{in lang|de}}

{{S-start}}
{{S-hou| [[Principality of Ansbach|House of Brandenburg-Ansbach]] |16 May|1490|20 March|1568| [[House of Hohenzollern]] }}
{{S-reg}}
{{S-bef| before=[[Duke Frederick of Saxony]] }}
{{S-ttl| title=[[Grand Masters of the Teutonic Knights|Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights]] | years=1510–1525 }}
{{S-aft| after=[[Walter von Cronberg]] }}
|-
{{S-new| creation|reason=[[Secularisation]] of the [[Monastic state of the Teutonic Knights|Monastic<br>state of the Teutonic Knights]]}}
{{S-ttl| title=[[Duke of Prussia]] | years=1525–1568}}
{{S-aft| after=[[Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia|Albert Frederick]] }}
{{s-end}}

{{Rulers of Prussia}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Protestant monarchs]]
[[Category:1490 births]]
[[Category:1568 deaths]]
[[Category:16th-century dukes of Prussia]]
[[Category:Converts to Lutheranism from Roman Catholicism]]
[[Category:German people of Polish descent]]
[[Category:German Lutherans]]
[[Category:Grand masters of the Teutonic Order]]
[[Category:House of Hohenzollern]]
[[Category:People excommunicated by the Catholic Church]]
[[Category:People from Ansbach]]
[[Category:People from the Principality of Ansbach]]
[[Category:People of the Polish–Teutonic War (1519–1521)]]
[[Category:University of Königsberg]]
[[Category:People of the Count's Feud]]
[[Category:16th-century Lutheran theologians]]
[[Category:German Lutheran hymnwriters]]
[[Category:German people of Lithuanian descent]]