Henry, known as the Proud (c. 1108 – October 20 1139), was Duke of Bavaria (Henry X, 1126–1139), Duke of Saxony (Henry II, 1138–1139), and Margrave of Tuscany (1137–1139).
He was the son of Henry the Black, Duke of Bavaria, and Wulfhild, daughter of Magnus Billung, Duke of Saxony, and thus a member of the Welf family. His father and mother both died in 1126, and as his elder brother Conrad had entered the church and died before their parents, Henry became duke of Bavaria. He shared the family possessions in Saxony, Bavaria and Swabia with his younger brother, Welf.
In 1127 he was married to Gertrude, the only child of Lothair III, Holy Roman Emperor. Gertrude was heir of the properties of three Saxon dynasties: the House of Supplinburg, the Brunones, and the House of Northeim. The couple had only one son, Henry the Lion. After the marriage, Henry took part in the warfare between the king and the Hohenstaufen brothers, Frederick II, Duke of Swabia, and Conrad, afterwards the German king Conrad III. While engaged in this struggle Henry was also occupied in suppressing a rising in Bavaria, led by Frederick, Count of Bogen, during which both duke and count sought to establish their own candidates in the Bishopric of Regensburg. After a war of devastation, Frederick submitted in 1133, and two years later the Hohenstaufen brothers made their peace with Lothair. In 1136 Henry accompanied his father-in-law to Italy, and taking command of one division of the imperial army marched into southern Italy, devastating the land as he went. Having distinguished himself by his military abilities during this campaign, Henry was appointed as margrave of Tuscany and as Lothair's successor in the Duchy of Saxony. He was also given the former properties of Matilda of Tuscany.
When Lothair died in December 1137, Henry's wealth and position made him a formidable candidate for the German crown, but the same qualities which earned him the surname of Proud, aroused the jealousy of the princes and so prevented his election. The new king, Conrad III, demanded the imperial insignia which were in Henry's possession, and the duke in return asked for his investiture with the Saxon duchy. But Conrad, who feared his power, refused to assent to this on the pretext that it was unlawful for two duchies to be in one hand. Attempts at a settlement failed, and in July 1138 the duke was placed under arrest. He died in the next year, in the Abbey of Quedlinburg. Henry was buried in the Collegiate Church of Königslutter next to his parents-in-law.
References
- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press.
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