Elisabeth II, Abbess of Quedlinburg

Countess Elisabeth of Regenstein-Blankenburg (1542 – 20 July 1584) was Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg. As such, she is numbered Elisabeth II.

Elisabeth II
Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg
Reign1574 – 1584
PredecessorAnna II
SuccessorAnna III
Born1542
Died20 July 1584(1584-07-20) (aged 41–42)
Quedlinburg Abbey
HouseRegenstein
FatherCount Ulrich of Regenstein-Blankenburg [de]
MotherMagdalene of Stolberg
ReligionLutheran

Elisabeth was the daughter of Count Ulrich of Regenstein-Blankenburg [de], and his second wife, Magdalene of Stolberg.[1]

Reign edit

In 1565, with the consent of both the Holy Roman Emperor and the Pope,[2] she was elected coadjutor to Anna II, the first Protestant Abbess of Quedlinburg. Abbess Anna II died on 4 March 1574;[3] a day after Anna II's death, Elisabeth was consecrated Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg,[4] and as such she was also Princess of the Holy Roman Empire. Elisabeth II was the second Protestant Abbess of Quedlinburg and the first one to be Protestant at the moment of her election.

Augustus, Elector of Saxony, was initially against her election. He eventually agreed to recognize her as abbess, on condition that he approves all the future candidates for the office of Abbess of Quedlinburg. Elisabeth II had to agree to impose taxes together with Augustus.

Abbess Elisabeth II hosted a theological conference in 1583, a year before her death.[5] Elisabeth II died on 20 July 1584. Countess Anna of Stolberg-Wernigerode succeeded Elisabeth as Anna III.

References edit

  1. ^ "Princess-Abbess Elisabeth II zu Regenstein of Quedlinburg (Germany)". guide2womenleaders.com. Retrieved 2009-07-03.
  2. ^ Tatlock, Lynne (1994). The Graph of Sex and the German Text: Gendered Culture in Early Modern Germany 1500-1700. Editions Rodopi. ISBN 978-90-5183-470-3.
  3. ^ Voigt, Gottfried C. (1761). Geschichte des Stifts Quedlinburg (in German).
  4. ^ Fritsch, Johann H. (1828). Geschichte des vormaligen Reichsstifts und der Stadt Quedlinburg (in German). Quedlinburg.
  5. ^ Herzog; Bomberger, Johan Jakob; John Henry Augustus (1860). The Protestant Theological and Ecclesiastical Encyclopedia. USA: Lindsay & Blakiston.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
Elisabeth II
Regnal titles
Preceded by Princess-Abbess of Quedlinburg
5 March 1574 – 20 July 1584
Succeeded by