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74-445: The castle was established by Čeněk of Wartenberg in the second half of the 14th century. Two towers were constructed, one on top of each rock, and various residential buildings and outhouses were erected between them. Three rings of fortified walls protected the complex. After Čeněk's death the castle came into the possession of King Wenceslaus IV , from whom it was acquired by Otto III of Bergau . Otto IV of Bergau although posing as

148-562: A combined state of Berlin and Brandenburg is different from other state fusion proposals. Normally, Article 29 of the Basic Law stipulates that states may only merge after a specific federal Act of Parliament is enacted. However, a clause added to the Basic Law in 1994, Article 118a, allows Berlin and Brandenburg to unify without federal approval, requiring a referendum and a ratification by both state parliaments. In 1996, an attempt of unifying

222-723: A federal level, the Social Democratic Party has also been the strongest party in most federal elections , their strongholds being the northwestern part of the state and Potsdam and its surrounding areas . However, the Christian Democratic Union won the most votes in 1990 , their 2013 landslide and in 2017 . In 2009 , The Left won the most votes in a year where, like in 2017, the Social Democratic collapsed. Prominent politicians from Brandenburg include Social Democrats Frank-Walter Steinmeier , who served in

296-679: A part of the eastern border, the Elbe river a portion of the western border. The main rivers in the state itself are the Spree and the Havel . In the southeast, there is a wetlands region called the Spreewald ; it is the northernmost part of Lusatia . Brandenburg is known for its well-preserved natural environment and its ambitious natural protection policies which began in the 1990s. 15 large protected areas were designated following Germany's reunification . Each of them

370-738: A truce in 1396, and for his efforts, he was recognized as heir to Wenceslaus. In the Papal Schism , Wenceslaus supported the Roman Pope Urban ;VI . As Bohemian king he sought to protect the religious reformer Jan Hus and his followers against the demands of the Catholic Church for their suppression as heretics . Hus and his followers drove German academics from the University of Prague , who then set up their own university at Leipzig . He then met Charles VI of France at Reims , where

444-581: A year. Due to increasing air traffic in Berlin and Brandenburg, plans for airport expansions were in the making. Berlin Brandenburg Airport receives over sixty combined passenger, charter and cargo airlines. In 2016, around 49,000 students were enrolled in Brandenburg universities and higher education facilities. The largest institution is the University of Potsdam , located southwest of Berlin . In 2019

518-577: A zealous Catholic , raided the monastery in Opatovice and stole its famous treasure, which he is said to have hidden in Trosky Castle, supposedly in an underground cellar blocked by a huge boulder. No one could move the boulder, which was eventually covered by scree , permanently cutting off the way to the precious objects. During the Hussite Wars Trosky was a centre of the pro-Catholic sides. It

592-506: Is provided with state-financed administration and a park ranger staff, who guide visitors and work to ensure nature conservation. Most protected areas have visitor centers. National parks Biosphere reserves Nature parks Brandenburg has the second lowest population density among the German states, after Mecklenburg-Vorpommern. 17.1% of the Brandenburgers are registered members of

666-520: Is situated in territory known in antiquity as Magna Germania , which reached to the Vistula river. By the 7th century, Slavic peoples are believed to have settled in the Brandenburg area. The Slavs expanded from the east, possibly driven from their homelands in present-day Ukraine and perhaps Belarus by the invasions of the Huns and Avars . They relied heavily on river transport. The two principal Slavic groups in

740-531: Is therefore not surprising that in all probability the castle was never completely conquered by the Hussites or any other enemies. As late as 1428, shortly after the castle burned down, it was under siege by Jan Královec, captain of the Taborites Army. From 1438 onwards the robber knight Kryštov Šov of Helfenburg and his companion Švejkar settled in it to tyrannize the villagers in the surrounding countryside, before

814-501: Is unclear but it is thought to derive from the Slavic branyi ('marshy/boggy') or Germanic branda ('fire'). Other theories have included West Slavic branný bor ('defensive forest') and brani-bor ('pine forest'). Burg in German means 'castle'. In the extinct local language Polabian , Brandenburg was Branibor . In the modern local languages, Brandenburg and

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888-760: The Berlin/Brandenburg Metropolitan Region , the third-largest metropolitan area in Germany . There was an unsuccessful attempt to unify both states in 1996 and the states still cooperate on many matters. Brandenburg originated in the Northern March in the 900s AD, from areas conquered from the Wends . It later became the Margraviate of Brandenburg , a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire . In

962-634: The Bundestag for Brandenburg before being elected President of Germany , and likely Chancellor of Germany Olaf Scholz , who sits in the Bundestag for Potsdam . Like in all other New states of Germany , the populist parties The Left and, more recently, the Alternative for Germany are especially strong in Brandenburg. Brandenburg has 4 out of 69 votes in the Bundesrat and, as of 2021, 25 seats out of 736 in

1036-465: The Bundestag . Brandenburg is divided into 14 rural districts ( Landkreise ) and four urban districts ( kreisfreie Städte ), shown with their population in 2011: The most recent election took place on 1 September 2019. A coalition government was formed by the Social Democrats , The Greens , and the Christian Democratic Union led by incumbent Minister-President Dietmar Woidke (SPD), replacing

1110-847: The Council of Constance in 1414. The goal of the council was to reform the church in head and members. In 1417, the council deposed all three popes and elected a new one. By resolving the schism, Sigismund restored the honour of the imperial title and made himself the most influential monarch in the West. Wenceslaus was married twice, first to Joanna of Bavaria , a scion of the Wittelsbach dynasty , on 29 September 1370. Following her death on 31 December 1386 (according to an unproven legend "mangled by one of Wenceslaus' beloved deer-hounds"), he married her first cousin once removed, Sofia of Bavaria , on 2 May 1389. He had no children by either wife. Wenceslaus

1184-569: The Duchy of Prussia were combined to form Brandenburg-Prussia , which was ruled by the same branch of the House of Hohenzollern . In 1701 the state was elevated as the Kingdom of Prussia . Franconian Nuremberg and Ansbach , Swabian Hohenzollern , the eastern European connections of Berlin, and the status of Brandenburg's ruler as prince-elector together were instrumental in the rise of that state. Brandenburg

1258-581: The Hussite Wars , which were centred on greater calls for religious reform by Jan Hus and spurred by popular outrage provoked by his execution. The 2018 video game Kingdom Come: Deliverance is set in Bohemia under the rule of King Wenceslaus IV in 1403. Brandenburg Brandenburg , officially the State of Brandenburg (see Names ), is a state in northeastern Germany . Brandenburg borders Poland and

1332-592: The Peace of Westphalia , his envoy Joachim Friedrich von Blumenthal negotiated the acquisition of several important territories such as Halberstadt . Under the Treaty of Oliva Christoph Caspar von Blumenthal (son of the above) negotiated the incorporation of the Duchy of Prussia into the Hohenzollern inheritance. When Frederick William died in 1688, he was followed by his son Frederick , third of that name in Brandenburg. As

1406-510: The Schwerin , Neubrandenburg and Magdeburg districts (town Havelberg ). East Germany relied heavily on lignite (the lowest grade of coal) as an energy source, and lignite strip mines marred areas of south-eastern Brandenburg. The industrial towns surrounding Berlin were important to the East German economy, while rural Brandenburg remained mainly agricultural. The present State of Brandenburg

1480-541: The State of Brandenburg are named: In late medieval and early modern times, Brandenburg was, with varying borders, one of seven electoral states of the Holy Roman Empire , and, along with Prussia , formed the original core of the German Empire , the first unified German state. Governed by the Hohenzollern dynasty from 1415, it contained the future German capital Berlin. After 1618 the Margraviate of Brandenburg and

1554-485: The church tax . Politically, Brandenburg is a stronghold of the Social Democratic Party , which won the largest share of the vote and seats in every state election. All three Minister-Presidents of Brandenburg have come from the Social Democratic Party (unlike any other state except Bremen ) and they even won an absolute majority of seats and every single-member constituency in the 1994 state election . On

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1628-619: The death marches of prisoners of various nationalities from various dissolved camps passed through the region. In the final stages of the war, it was the place of heavy fights, including the Battle of the Seelow Heights and Battle of Berlin , won by the Allied Soviet and Polish armies. After Germany's defeat, the part of Brandenburg east of the Oder–Neisse line , which formed part of Poland in

1702-571: The 15th century, it came under the rule of the House of Hohenzollern , which later established Brandenburg-Prussia , the core of the later Kingdom of Prussia . From 1815 to 1947, Brandenburg was a province of Prussia . Following the abolition of Prussia after World War II , Brandenburg was established as a state by the Soviet Military Administration in Germany . In 1952, the German Democratic Republic dissolved

1776-601: The Berlin-Brandenburg metropolitan region and was located 18 km (11 mi) southeast of central Berlin in Schönefeld . The airport was a base for Condor , easyJet and Ryanair . In 2016, Schönefeld handled 11,652,922 passengers (an increase of 36.7%). Schönefeld's existing infrastructure and terminals were incorporated into the new Berlin Brandenburg Airport (BER), which opened in 2020. Berlin Brandenburg Airport had an initial capacity of 35–40 million passengers

1850-589: The Bohemian nobles and even from his chancellor , the Prague archbishop Jan of Jenštejn . In a conflict surrounding the investiture of the abbot of Kladruby , the torture and murder of the archbishop's vicar-general John of Nepomuk by royal officials in 1393 sparked a noble rebellion . In 1394 Wenceslaus' cousin Jobst of Moravia was named regent, while Wenceslaus was arrested at Králův Dvůr . King Sigismund of Hungary arranged

1924-613: The City of Berlin was separated from the Province of Brandenburg. However, industrial towns ringing Berlin lay within Brandenburg, and the growth of the region's industrial economy brought an increase in the population of the province. The Province of Brandenburg had an area of 39,039 km (15,073 sq mi) and a population of 2.6 million (1925). Under the Nazi government and during World War II , repressions of Poles , especially autochthones in

1998-476: The Dukes of Austria. In exchange, the conditions of his imprisonment were relaxed. In early 1403, Rupert made diplomatic overtures to Sigismund, attempting to get him to forgo his attempt to secure the imperial crown, but Sigismund invaded Bohemia with Hungarian forces, looting, imposing heavy taxes, and persecuting the supporters of Wenceslaus. He also plundered the royal treasury to pay for his military campaigns against

2072-589: The EU average. The GDP per capita was the third lowest of all states in Germany. The unemployment rate stood at 5.6% in November 2022 and was higher than the German average but lower than the average of Eastern Germany. Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg is located in Brandenburg. Berlin Schönefeld Airport (IATA code: SXF) was the largest airport in Brandenburg. It was the second largest international airport of

2146-569: The Empire. Wenceslaus took some part in government during his father's lifetime, and on Charles' death in 1378, he inherited the Crown of Bohemia and as king assumed the government of the Holy Roman Empire . In the cathedral of Monza there is preserved a series of reliefs depicting the coronations of the kings of Italy with the Iron Crown of Lombardy . The seventh of these depicts Wenceslaus being crowned in

2220-621: The Middle Ages and partly also in the early modern period, became again part of Poland. The entire population of former East Brandenburg was expelled en masse in accordance with the Potsdam Agreement . The remainder of the province became a state in the Soviet Zone of occupation in Germany when Prussia was dissolved in 1947. After the foundation of East Germany in 1949, Brandenburg formed one of its component states. The State of Brandenburg

2294-903: The Oder from Poland ( Lubusz Land and north-western Greater Poland ), later known as the Neumark , in contrast to the Altmark , the cradle of the March of Brandenburg. In 1320, the Brandenburg Ascanian line came to an end, and from 1323 up until 1415 Brandenburg was under the control of the Wittelsbachs of Bavaria , followed by the Luxembourg Dynasties. Under the Luxembourgs, the Margrave of Brandenburg gained

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2368-689: The Panna tower. Work has begun in 1841–43, but was not completed. A recreation of the castle as it existed in 1403 will be featured in the Czech role-playing game Kingdom Come: Deliverance II . 50°30′59″N 15°13′51″E  /  50.51639°N 15.23083°E  / 50.51639; 15.23083 Wenceslaus IV of Bohemia Wenceslaus IV (also Wenceslas ; Czech : Václav ; German : Wenzel , nicknamed "the Idle"; 26 February 1361 – 16 August 1419), also known as Wenceslaus of Luxembourg ,

2442-521: The Romans. Wenceslaus himself had never recognized his deposition and hence still claimed the kingship. Jobst died in 1411, and Wenceslaus agreed to give up the crown, so long as he could keep Bohemia. This settled the issue, and after 1411, Sigismund reigned as king and later also became Holy Roman Emperor. The bishops and secular leaders, tired of the Great Schism, supported Sigismund when he called

2516-584: The Slav-inhabited lands of present-day Brandenburg, excluding Polish-controlled Lubusz Land, although some Slavs like the Sorbs in Lusatia adapted to Germanization while retaining their distinctiveness. The Roman Catholic Church brought bishoprics which, with their walled towns, afforded protection from attacks for the townspeople. With the monks and bishops, the history of the town of Brandenburg an der Havel , which

2590-601: The charges raised by Rupert as the basis for his predecessor's deposition was the Papal Schism. King Rupert called the Council of Pisa in 1409, attended by defectors from both papal parties. They elected Antipope Alexander V , worsening the situation because he was not acknowledged by his two rivals, and from 1409 to 1417 there were three popes. After the death of Rupert in 1410, his succession at first proved difficult since both Wenceslaus's cousin Jobst of Moravia and Wenceslaus's brother Sigismund of Hungary were elected King of

2664-425: The cities into leagues, he had made it possible for them to cooperate in large-scale endeavors. Indeed, on 4 July 1376, fourteen Swabian cities bound together into the independent Swabian League of Cities to defend their rights against the newly elected King, attacking the lands of Eberhard II, Count of Württemberg . The city league soon attracted other members and until 1389 acted as an autonomous state within

2738-553: The control of Slavic leaders. The eastern parts of current Brandenburg, i.e. the Lubusz Land and Lower Lusatia , became part of Poland in the 10th-11th centuries. In the early 12th century, the Slavic Duchy of Kopanica was established in the central part of present-day Brandenburg, whereas the Lubusz Land in the east remained part of medieval Poland. During the 12th century, the German kings and emperors re-established control over

2812-589: The core of the Kingdom of Prussia, and it was the site of the kingdom's capitals, Berlin and Potsdam. When Prussia was subdivided into provinces in 1815, the territory of the Margraviate of Brandenburg became the Province of Brandenburg , again subdivided into the government region of Frankfurt and Potsdam. It also included Lower Lusatia , previously ruled at various times by Poland, Bohemia , Hungary and Saxony . In 1881,

2886-398: The eastern part of the province, intensified with expulsions of Poles , censorship of Polish newspapers, invigilation, arrests and assassinations of Polish leaders, activists, teachers, entrepreneurs, editors, etc., deportations to concentration camps and closure of Polish organizations, enterprises, schools and libraries. The Sachsenhausen concentration camp with a network of subcamps

2960-443: The election of Rupert as King of the Romans. As a coronation of Wenceslaus was now no longer a possibility, and while he was nominally still prisoner in Vienna, he was no longer under strict guard, and he managed to escape on 11 November. He crossed the Danube and was escorted by John II of Liechtenstein via Mikulov back to Bohemia, meeting his supporters in Kutná Hora before moving on Prague, which he entered on Christmas. Among

3034-439: The emperor and his son themselves. Wenceslaus was crowned at Aix-la-Chapelle on 6 July. In order to secure the election of his son, Charles IV revoked the privileges of many Imperial Cities that he had earlier granted and mortgaged them to various nobles. The cities, however, were not powerless, and as executors of the public peace, they had developed into a potent military force. Moreover, as Charles IV had organized

Trosky Castle - Misplaced Pages Continue

3108-406: The forces of Eberhard II, Count of Württemberg, at Döffingen, near Grafenau , on 24 August 1388. The cities were taken severally and devastated. Most of them quietly acquiesced when King Wenceslaus proclaimed an ambivalent arrangement at Cheb ( Eger ) in 1389 that prohibited all leagues between cities while confirming their political autonomy. This settlement provided a modicum of stability for

3182-414: The fusion by a large margin. It failed largely due to Brandenburg voters not wanting to take on Berlin's large and growing public debt and fearing losing identity and influence to the capital. Brandenburg is bordered by Mecklenburg-Vorpommern in the north, Poland in the east, the Freistaat Sachsen in the south, Saxony-Anhalt in the west, and Lower Saxony in the northwest. The Oder river forms

3256-423: The lands that had been acquired in Prussia were outside the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire, Frederick assumed (as Frederick I) the title of " King in Prussia " (1701). Although his self-promotion from margrave to king relied on his title to the Duchy of Prussia, Brandenburg was still the most important portion of the kingdom. However, this combined state is known as the Kingdom of Prussia . Brandenburg remained

3330-444: The local, regional Protestant church (mostly the Evangelical Church in Berlin, Brandenburg and Silesian Upper Lusatia ), while 3.1% are registered with the Roman Catholic Church (mostly the Archdiocese of Berlin , and a minority in the Diocese of Görlitz ). The majority (79.8%) of Brandenburgers, whether of Christian or other beliefs, choose not to register with the government as members of these churches, and therefore do not pay

3404-502: The newly established Duchy of Görlitz in Upper Lusatia . The March of Moravia was divided between his cousins Jobst and Procopius , and his uncle Wenceslaus I had already been made Duke of Luxembourg . Hence the young king was left without the resources his father had enjoyed, although he inherited the duchy of Luxembourg from his uncle in 1383. In 1386, Sigismund became king of Hungary and became involved in affairs further east. Wenceslaus also faced serious opposition from

3478-649: The next several decades, however, the cities dropped out as a basis of the central Imperial authority. During his long reign, Wenceslaus held a tenuous grip on power at best, as he came into repeated conflicts with the Bohemian nobility led by the House of Rosenberg . On two occasions he was even imprisoned for lengthy spells by rebellious nobles. But the greatest liability for Wenceslaus proved to be his own family. Charles IV had divided his holdings among his sons and other relatives. Although Wenceslaus upon his father's death retained Bohemia, his younger half brother Sigismund inherited Brandenburg, while John received

3552-425: The people of Görlitz and Zittau , members of the Lusatian League , banded together to capture them. Margareth of Bergau, the widow of the original owner Otto of Bergau, made Trosky into her residence by 1444. In 1468 the castle was property of William of Hasenburg who kept it until 1497. After that several noble families owned the castle, although its significance declined. In 1648, during the Thirty Years' War , it

3626-491: The presence of six electors, he himself being the seventh. The depiction is probably not accurate and was likely made solely to reinforce the claims of the cathedral on the custody of the Iron Crown. In 1387 a quarrel between Frederick, Duke of Bavaria , and the cities of the Swabian League allied with the Archbishop of Salzburg gave the signal for a general war in Swabia, in which the cities, weakened by their isolation, mutual jealousies, and internal conflicts, were defeated by

3700-421: The present-day area of Brandenburg were the Hevelli in the west and the Sprevane in the east. Beginning in the early 10th century, Henry the Fowler and his successors conquered territory up to the Oder River . Slavic settlements such as Brenna ( Brandenburg an der Havel ), Budusin ( Bautzen ), and Chośebuz ( Cottbus ) came under imperial control through the installation of margraves. Their main function

3774-404: The previous coalition between the Social Democrats and The Left . The next ordinary state election will likely occur in autumn 2024. The Gross domestic product (GDP) of the state was 72.9 billion euros in 2018, accounting for 2.2% of German economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 26,700 euros or 88% of the EU27 average in the same year. The GDP per employee was 91% of

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3848-577: The public peace or to resolve the Schism. They demanded that Wenceslaus appear before them to answer to the charges in June 1400. Wenceslaus demurred, in large part because of renewed hostilities in Bohemia. When he failed to appear, the electors meeting at Lahneck Castle declared him deposed on 20 August 1400 on account of "futility, idleness, negligence and ignobility". The next day they chose Rupert as their king at Rhens . Although Wenceslaus refused to acknowledge this successor's decade-long reign, he made no move against Rupert. On 29 June 1402, Wenceslaus

3922-467: The rest of Wenceslaus' reign in Bohemia featured precursors of the Hussite Wars that would follow his death. In view of his troubles in Bohemia, Wenceslaus did not seek a coronation ceremony as Holy Roman Emperor . Consequently, he faced anger at the Reichstag diets of Nuremberg (1397) and Frankfurt (1398). The four Rhenish electors, Count Palatine Rupert III and the archbishops of Mainz , Cologne and Trier , accused him of failing to maintain

3996-455: The state and broke it up into multiple regional districts . After German reunification , Brandenburg was re-established in 1990 as one of the five new states of the Federal Republic. Southeastern Brandenburg contains part of the historical Lower Lusatia , and most of these localities have two official languages, German and Lower Sorbian (of the Sorbs/Wends ). Brandenburg takes its name from Brandenburg an der Havel . The name's origin

4070-531: The state of Brandenburg adopted an Open Access strategy calling on universities to develop transformation strategies to make knowledge from Brandenburg freely accessible to all. Universities in Brandenburg: The Brandenburg Concertos by Johann Sebastian Bach (original title: Six Concerts à plusieurs instruments ) are a collection of six instrumental works presented by Bach to Christian Ludwig , Margrave of Brandenburg- Schwedt , in 1721 (though probably composed earlier). They are widely regarded as among

4144-427: The states of Berlin , Mecklenburg-Vorpommern , Lower Saxony , Saxony-Anhalt , and Saxony . It is the fifth-largest German state by area and the tenth-most populous , with 2.5 million residents. Potsdam is the state capital and largest city. Other major towns are Cottbus , Brandenburg an der Havel and Frankfurt (Oder) . Brandenburg surrounds the national capital and city-state of Berlin . Together they form

4218-483: The states of Berlin and Brandenburg was rejected at referendum. Both share a common history, dialect and culture and in 2020, over 225,000 residents of Brandenburg commute to Berlin. The fusion had the near-unanimous support by a broad coalition of both state governments, political parties, media, business associations, trade unions and churches. Though Berlin voted in favor by a small margin, largely based on support in former West Berlin , Brandenburg voters disapproved of

4292-435: The status of a prince-elector of the Holy Roman Empire. In the period 1373–1415, Brandenburg was a part of the Bohemian Crown . In 1415, the Electorate of Brandenburg was granted by Emperor Sigismund to the House of Hohenzollern , which would rule until the end of World War I. The Hohenzollerns established their capital in Berlin, by then the economic center of Brandenburg. Brandenburg converted to Protestantism in 1539 in

4366-425: The supporters of Rupert and of Jobst of Moravia . An armistice between Sigismund and Jobst was agreed to be in effect from 14 April until 20 May. This gave Sigismund's opponents time to prepare, and after the end of the armistice, Sigismund could make no further gains and retreated from Bohemia, reaching Bratislava on 24 July. On 1 October 1403, Pope Boniface IX finally acknowledged the deposition of Wenceslaus and

4440-435: The town of Brandenburg in the 1150s, Albert proclaimed himself ruler of the new Margraviate of Brandenburg . Albert, and his descendants the Ascanians , then made considerable progress in conquering, colonizing, Christianizing, and cultivating lands as far east as the Oder. Within this region, Slavic and German residents intermarried. During the 13th century, the Ascanians began acquiring and seizing territory around and east of

4514-446: The two monarchs decided to persuade the rival popes, now Benedict XIII and Boniface IX , to resign, and to end the papal schisms by the election of a new pontiff. Many of the princes were angry at this abandonment of Boniface by Wenceslaus, who had also aroused much indignation by his long absence from Germany and by selling the title of duke of Milan to Gian Galeazzo Visconti . Hus was eventually executed in Konstanz in 1415, and

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4588-443: The wake of the Protestant Reformation , and generally did quite well in the 16th century, with the expansion of trade along the Elbe, Havel, and Spree rivers. The Hohenzollerns expanded their territory by co-rulership since 1577 and acquiring the Duchy of Prussia in 1618, the Duchy of Cleves (1614) in the Rhineland , and territories in Westphalia . The result was a sprawling, disconnected country known as Brandenburg-Prussia that

4662-427: Was King of Bohemia from 1378 until his death and King of Germany from 1376 until he was deposed in 1400. As he belonged to the House of Luxembourg , he was also Duke of Luxembourg from 1383 to 1388. Wenceslaus was born in the Imperial city of Nuremberg , the son of Emperor Charles IV by his third wife Anna von Schweidnitz , a scion of the Silesian Piasts , and baptized at St. Sebaldus Church . He

4736-418: Was brought to light in 1398 when he was unable to accept an invitation by King Charles VI of France for a reception at Reims due to his drunkenness. Wenceslaus died in 1419 of a heart attack during a hunt in the woods surrounding his castle Nový Hrad at Kunratice (today a part of Prague ), leaving the country in a deep political crisis. His death was followed by almost two decades of conflict called

4810-419: Was burned down completely by the Imperial Army and left in ruins. In 1681 the enlightened Jesuit Bohuslav Balbín visited it; possibly the first documented example of a trip, the sole purpose of which was to research a historical site or area. In the 19th century a greater degree of interest was shown and romantic modifications were made to the ruins of the castle. It was decided to create a staircase leading to

4884-413: Was captured by Sigismund , who at first intended to escort him to Rome to have him crowned emperor, but Rupert heard of this plan and tried to prevent the passage to Italy, so Sigismund had Wenceslaus imprisoned, at first in Schaumberg and from 16 August in Vienna, in the charge of William, Duke of Austria . On 20 November, Wenceslaus was forced to sign his renunciation of all his powers to Sigismund and

4958-401: Was completely dissolved in 1952 by the Socialist government of East Germany , doing away with all component states. The East German government then divided Brandenburg among several Bezirke or districts. (See Administrative division of the German Democratic Republic ). Most of Brandenburg lay within the Bezirke of Cottbus , Frankfurt , or Potsdam , but parts of the former province passed to

5032-460: Was described as a man of great knowledge and is known for the Wenceslas Bible , a richly illuminated manuscript he had drawn up between 1390 and 1400. However, his rule remained uncertain, varying between idleness and cruel measures as in the case of John of Nepomuk . Unlike his father, Wenceslaus relied on favouritism, which made him abhorrent to many nobles and led to increasing isolation. Moreover, he probably suffered from alcoholism , which

5106-410: Was in poor shape to defend itself during the Thirty Years' War . Beginning near the end of that devastating conflict, however, Brandenburg enjoyed a string of talented rulers who expanded their territory and power in Europe. The first of these was Frederick William , the so-called "Great Elector", who worked tirelessly to rebuild and consolidate the nation. He moved the royal residence to Potsdam . At

5180-418: Was located in Brandenburg, and several prisoner-of-war camps , including Stalag III-A , Stalag III-B, Stalag III-C , Stalag III-D , Oflag II-A , Oflag III-A, Oflag III-B, Oflag III-C , Oflag 8 and Oflag 80 for Polish, Belgian, British, Dutch, French , Serbian, Italian , American, Czechoslovak, Soviet, Romanian, Greek, Bulgarian and other Allied POWs with numerous forced labour subcamps. In early 1945,

5254-421: Was raised by the Prague Archbishops Arnošt of Pardubice and Jan Očko of Vlašim . His father had the two-year-old crowned King of Bohemia in June 1363 and in 1373 also obtained for him the Electoral Margraviate of Brandenburg . When on 10 June 1376 Charles IV asserted Wenceslaus' election as King of the Romans by the prince-electors , two of seven votes, those of Brandenburg and Bohemia , were held by

5328-468: Was re-established on 3 October 1990 upon German reunification . The newly elected Landtag of Brandenburg first met on 26 October 1990. As in other former parts of East Germany, the lack of modern infrastructure and exposure to West Germany's competitive market economy brought widespread unemployment and economic difficulty. In the recent years, however, Brandenburg's infrastructure has been modernized and unemployment has slowly declined. The legal basis for

5402-557: Was the first center of the state of Brandenburg, began. In 1134, in the wake of a German crusade against the Wends , the German magnate, Albert the Bear , was granted the Northern March by the Emperor Lothar III . He formally inherited the town of Brandenburg and the lands of the Hevelli from their last Wendish ruler, Pribislav , in 1150. After crushing a force of Sprevane who occupied

5476-565: Was to defend and protect the eastern marches . In 948 Emperor Otto I established margraves to exert imperial control over the pagan Slavs west of the Oder River. Otto founded the Bishoprics of Brandenburg and Havelberg . The Northern March was founded as a northeastern border territory of the Holy Roman Empire . However, a great uprising of Wends drove imperial forces from the territory of present-day Brandenburg in 983. The region returned to

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