John II, Duke of Bavaria

Duke John II of Bavaria-Munich (1341 – 1397), (German: Johann II, Herzog von Bayern-München), since 1375 Duke of Bavaria-Munich. He was the third son of Stephen II and Elizabeth of Sicily.

John II, Duke of Bavaria
Born	1341
Died	1397
Noble family	House of Wittelsbach
Spouse(s)	Catherine of Gorizia
Issue	Ernest I of Bavaria-Munich William III of Bavaria-Munich Sophia, Queen of Germany
Father	Stephen II
Mother	Elisabeth of Sicily

Family

His maternal grandparents were Frederick III of Sicily and Eleanor of Anjou. Her parents were Charles II of Naples and Maria Arpad of Hungary.

Maria was a daughter of Stephen V of Hungary and his wife, queen Elisabeth, who was daughter of Zayhan of Kuni, a chief of the Cuman tribe and had been a pagan before her marriage.

Stephen V was a son of Béla IV of Hungary and Maria Laskarina. Maria Laskarina was a daughter of Theodore I Lascaris and Anna Angelina. Anna was a daughter of Eastern Roman Emperor Alexius III and Euphrosyne Doukaina Kamaterina.

Memorial plaque to the Wittelsbacher buried in the crypt of Frauenkirche.

Duke of Bavaria

From 1375 to 1392 John ruled in Bavaria-Landshut with his brothers Stephen III and Frederick. In 1385 John II and his wife inherited a third of County of Gorizia with Lienz, but already in 1392 he sold his part to the Habsburgs. In 1392 John initiated a new partition of Bavaria since he refused to finance the Italian adventures of his brothers who were both married with daughters of Bernabò Visconti but also Stephen's expensive holding of court. The duchy of Bavaria-Landshut then was reduced since Bavaria-Ingolstadt and Bavaria-Munich were created. Frederick kept Bavaria-Landshut while Stephen received Bavaria-Ingolstadt which he soon treated as a disadvantage. Therefore, John ruled Bavaria-Munich for three years only until 1395, then he shared his power again with Stephen after an armed conflict between both brothers.

John II was succeeded by his sons Ernest and William III who finally managed to enforce their sole rule over Bavaria-Munich against Stephen III. John is buried in the Frauenkirche in Munich.

Marriage and children

John married in 1372 Catherine of Gorizia, a daughter of Count Meinhard VI of Gorizia and Catharina of Pfannberg. Their children were:

1. Ernest I of Bavaria-Munich (1373–2 July 1438, Munich)
2. William III of Bavaria-Munich (1375, Munich–1435, Munich).
3. Sofia of Bavaria (1376–26 September 1425, Pressburg), married in Prague 2 May 1389 King Wenceslaus.

He also had an illegitimate son, Johann Grünwalder (1393–1452), who was Cardinal and Bishop of Freising.

Ancestors

Ancestors of John II, Duke of Bavaria

16. Otto II, Duke of Bavaria 8. Louis II, Duke of Bavaria 17. Agnes of the Palatinate 4. Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor 18. Rudolf I of Germany 9. Matilda of Habsburg 19. Gertrude of Hohenberg 2. Stephen II, Duke of Bavaria 20. Bolesław II Rogatka 10. Bolko I the Strict 21. Hedwig of Anhalt 5. Beatrice of Silesia 22. Otto V, Margrave of Brandenburg-Salzwedel 11. Beatrice of Brandenburg 23. Judith of Henneberg 1. John II, Duke of Bavaria 24. James I of Aragon 12. Peter III of Aragon 25. Violant of Hungary 6. Frederick III of Sicily 26. Manfred of Sicily 13. Constance of Sicily 27. Beatrice of Savoy 3. Elisabeth of Sicily 28. Charles I of Naples 14. Charles II of Naples 29. Beatrice of Provence 7. Eleanor of Anjou 30. Stephen V of Hungary 15. Mary of Hungary 31. Elizabeth the Cuman

Sources

• Thomas, Andrew L. (2010). A House Divided: Wittelsbach Confessional Court Cultures in the Holy Roman Empire, c. 1550-1650. Brill.