Before regency Born at
Wolfenbüttel, he was a son of Duke
Francis II and his second wife
Maria (1566–1626), daughter of Duke
Julius of Brunswick and Lunenburg (Wolfenbüttel). Julius Henry studied at the
University of Tübingen and entered into the service of King
Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden afterwards. In expectation of becoming appointed
Prince-Bishop of Osnabrück he converted to Roman Catholicism as a young man. In imperial service Julius Henry commanded a regiment in the
Uskok War against the
Republic of Venice in 1617, later a regiment in Hungary. Julius Henry fought in the
Battle of the White Mountain. As
chamberlain of Emperor
Ferdinands II the latter sent him as
envoy to King
Christian IV of Denmark and Norway. In 1619 Julius Henry, a certain Count of Altheim, and
Charles Gonzaga founded the
Order of the Conception (), papally confirmed in 1624. In 1623 the emperor conveyanced the lordship in Schlackenwerth (today
Ostrov), which he had deprived from the Schlick family disgraced after participating in the insurgency defeated at the White Mountain, to Julius Henry. He prompted the construction of the "White Palace" (
Weißes Schloss / Bílý zámek) next to the old palace of the Schlicks. Julius Henry made the White Palace his domicile. In 1629 Julius Henry was given supreme command over the imperial troops in Poland and in this function he negotiated a peace with
John George I, Elector of Saxony in 1632, after the latter had refused to join a Lutheran wart coalition under Gustavus Adolphus. Julius Henry was considered a confidant and close friend of
Albrecht von Wallenstein. Thus Julius Henry was suspected to be involved in Wallenstein's assaults against the emperor. After Ferdinand had successfully instigated Wallenstein's murder the latter's friends were arrested including Julius Henry and incarcerated in Vienna. Julius Henry successfully denied the competence of the imperial juridical commission which inquired against him, insisting on his status of immediate prince of the empire only to be judged by a college of his like. After the
Peace of Prague in 1635 Ferdinand II released Julius Henry from imprisonment. After the accession of
Emperor Ferdinand III in 1637 Julius Henry was again envoyed in several diplomatic missions.
Ruling Saxe-Lauenburg In 1656 Julius Henry succeeded his elder half-brother
Augustus as Duke of Saxe-Lauenburg. When ascending he confirmed the existing privileges of the nobility and the
estates of the realm. In 1658 he forbade his
vassals to
pledge or else alienate
fiefs, thus fighting the integration of manor estates in Saxe-Lauenburg into the monetary economies of the neighbouring
city-states of
Hamburg and
Lübeck. He entered with both city-states into frontier disputes on manor estates which were in the process of evading Saxe-Lauenburgian overlordship into the competence of the city-states. In 1659 Duke Julius Henry decreed in his
general disposition (guide-lines for his government) "to also esteem
the woodlands as heart and dwell [of revenues] of the Monarchy of Lower Saxony." The Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg also used to be called simply Lower Saxony. From 1659 on Julius Henry employed
Johannes Kunckel as head of the ducal pharmacy. In 1663 Julius Henry bought the castle in
Hauenstein (
Bohemia) from the von Schlick family, making it part of the ducal
Schlackenwerth domain. He further acquired the lordship of
Ploschkowitz. Julius Henry died of age in
Prague in 1665 and was buried in Schlackenwerth.
Marriages and issue Julius Henry married three times: He married in
Grabow (1) Countess
Anna of East Frisia on 7 March 1617. They had no children. On 27 February 1628 he married in
Theusing (2)
Elisabeth Sophia of Brandenburg (
Berlin, *13 July 1589 – 24 December 1629*,
Frankfurt an der Oder), daughter of
John George, Elector of Brandenburg and widow of
Reichsfürst Janusz Radziwiłł. Julius Henry and Elisabeth Sophia had one son: •
Francis Erdmann of Saxony, Angria and Westphalia (Lauenburg) (Theusing, *25 February 1629 – 30 July 1666*,
Schwarzenbek), duke of Saxe-Lauenburg between 1665 and 1666 Julius Henry's last wedding took place in
Vienna on 18 August 1632 with (3) Anna Magdalena of
Lobkowicz (*20 July 1606 – 7 September 1668*), daughter of Baron William
the Younger Popel von Lobkowitz (Popel z Lobkowicz). Anna Magdalena was the only wife to officiate as
Duchess of Saxe-Lauenburg, after her husband had ascended the throne on 18 January 1656. They had six children, however, only two survived infancy: • Julius Henry (1633–1634) • Francisca (d./b. 1634) •
Maria Benigna Francisca (
Ratisbon, *10 July 1635 – 1 December 1701*, Vienna); ∞ on 4 June 1651
Ottavio Piccolomini. • Francis William (d./b. 1639) • Francisca Elisabeth (d./b. 1640) •
Julius Francis (
Prague, *16 September 1641 – 30 September 1689*,
Reichstadt), duke between 1666 and 1689 == References ==