Frederick III Saxony
Name: Frederick III of Saxony
Nickname/Alias: Frederick the Wise
Achievement: Protector of Martin Luther.
Born: January 17, 1463; Torgau, Saxony, Germany
Died: May 5, 1525; Lochau, near Torgau, Germany (Aged 62)
Field & Discipline: Royalty; Elector
Language: German; Latin; French.
Father: The Elector Ernst
Mother: Unknown
Siblings: 2 brothers: Ernst (Archbishop of Magdeburg); John (father of the future Elector Johann Friedrich)
Spouse: None
Children: Three or four, whose mother was Anna Weller of Molsdorf. Two sons: Sebastian; Fritz
Education: Private tutors in Grimma (Magister Ulrich Kemmerlin, later deacon of Aschaffenburg)
Life & Times:
In his youth Frederick completed his education by travelling abroad where, in the late 1480s, he visited the court of the Elector of Mainz, Diether von Isenburg, to improve his knowledge of French. He then moved to the sophisticated court of Maximilian in Vienna. This provided an excellent opportunity to polish his manners and to introduce him to some of the great art of his generation.
Perhaps the most valuable experience, however, came from his journey to the Holy Land in 1493. Frederick's travelling companions included [employed] Cranach*.
In 1494 Frederick travelled to the Netherlands, to celebrate the transfer of rule of the province from Emperor Maximilian to his son Philip. Having travelled from Torgau to Weimar and Frankfurt, and then by boat down the Rhine to Cologne, Frederick met the Emperor and his entourage near the city of Maastricht.
For the very first time, Frederick saw the prosperous and culturally-advanced Netherlands, the cities of Louvain, Mecheln and Antwerp, where his days were filled with tournaments, banquets and entertainment by local actors and dancers.
Subsequent journeys made by Frederick in his later years were almost solely in the interest of his rule. One such journey took him to the Diet of Worms in 1495. The Diets were frequently called to discuss the emperor's continuous requests for support in money and men. Frederick placed high value on the Diets and consequently attended almost every one held in the empire until his death.
In April 1496 Frederick travelled to a Diet at Nuremberg, and it was here that he met [commissioned] Durer*. Greatly impressed by his genius, Frederick immediately commissioned an altarpiece for the castle church in Wittenberg and a portrait, and he continued to commission works from the artist.
In 1500, Frederick became president of the Imperial Governing Council, the Reichsregiment, the agenda of which included such matters as the imperial reforms.
One of the most significant events of Frederick's rule was the founding of the University of Wittenberg in 1502. The university immediately became significant because, although it was organised along old conservative lines from the beginning, there was no hostility to the new ideology of humanism.
First rector at the university was Martin Polich von Mellerstadt, Frederick's physician. A renowned scholar and humanist, Hermann von dem Busche, was first lecturer in the humanities and Johann von Staupitz became the first dean of the faculty of theology. Staupitz brought Martin [protected] Luther* to the university and made him his successor to the theological chair in 1511.
It was the principles of these men that laid the foundations of reformation in Germany, when Luther and his colleague [protected] Melanchthon* became the driving force behind the establishment of Protestantism.
At the Diet of Worms, Pope Leo X continually condemned propositions put forward by Luther. Rome’s bid to retain power culminated in Leo X excommunication of Luther on January 21st 1521.
When Frederick III received notice of the excommunication he refused to take any action and vowed to protect his own religious freedom. Frederick took action and approached [discussed Luther with] Charles V*, to ensure that Luther was given the opportunity to appear as defendant at the Diet, without jeopardizing his safety.
Consequently, Luther went before the Diet on April 17th in that same year. The members of the Diet deliberated and in May they issued the Edict of Worms, forbidding the writings of Luther and demanding his capture as an outlaw.
Luther turned to Frederick III who, once again, protected Luther by sheltering him at Wartburg Castle, overlooking the town of Eisenach. Herman I of Thuringia, who died in 1217, had rebuilt the castle and made it the seat of a lively court frequented by vagrant poets and musicians, including Walther von der Vogelweide and Wolfram von Eschenbach.
Aside from politics, Frederick took an active interest in architecture, painting and book illustration. Frederick continually gave Albrecht Durer large commissions, Lucas Cranach became his court painter and records show that he also ordered and acquired works from many others.
Our picture of Frederick comes mainly from the account of his devoted friend and ally, the humanist scholar George Spalatin who gives an idealized portrait of a kind, intelligent, honest, peace-loving ruler, unselfishly concerned with the good of his people as well as of the empire. Frederick was very fond of music and he maintained at court an orchestra.
Frederick's health, which was poor even in early life, worsened after 1519. At Imperial Diets he had to be carried, and during the Diet of Worms he couldn’t leave his residence for weeks. He suffered most from 'Stein', probably gallstones, as the autopsy later showed, and died on May 5, 1525, at his beloved castle at Lochau.
Assessment: Frederick III did more than any other ruler to encourage the flowering of the humanities and to reward those in scholarly and artistic pursuits.
Oneliner: Frederich III of Saxony, protector of Luther
Bibliography:
- Grossmann, Maria, Humanism in Wittenberg, B. de Graaf: Nieuwkoop, 1975.