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OriginBerthold, Margrave in Bavaria (died 980), was the ancestor of Otto I, Count of Scheyern (died 1072), whose 3rd son Otto II, Count of Dachau acquired the castle of Wittelsbach (near Aichach). The Counts of Scheyern left Burg Scheyern ("Scheyern Castle", constructed in about 940), in 1119 for Burg Wittelsbach ("Wittelsbach Castle"). Count Otto II was the ancestor of Otto IV, Count Palatine in Bavaria (died 1156), whose son Otto was invested with the Duchy of Bavaria in 1180 after the fall of Henry the Lion. Duke Otto's son Louis I, Duke of Bavaria acquired also the Palatinate in 1214. The Wittelsbach Castle itself was destroyed in 1209 after Count Otto of Wittelsbach, a nephew of Duke Otto, had murdered king Philip of Swabia. It has never been reconstructed. Reign in the Holy Roman EmpireImage:Wappen wittelsbacher.jpg Wittelsbach Coat of Arms: With the Palatinate the Wittelsbach acquired also the lion as heraldic symbol, with the county of Bogen the white and blue coloured lozenge flag was acquired in 1240
The family provided two Holy Roman Emperors: Louis IV (1314-1347) and Charles VII (1742-1745), both members of the Bavarian branch of the family, and one German King with Rupert of the Palatinate (1400-1410), a member of the other branch. The House of Wittelsbach split into these two branches in 1329: Under the Treaty of Pavia, Emperor Louis IV granted the Palatinate including the Bavarian Upper Palatinate to his brother Duke Rudolph's descendants, Rudolph II, Rupert I and Rupert II. Rudolph I this way became the ancestor of the older (Palatinate) line of the Wittelsbach dynasty, which returned to power also in Bavaria in 1777 after the extinction of the younger (Bavarian) line, the descendants of Louis IV. Bavarian branchThe Bavarian branch kept the duchy of Bavaria until its extinction in 1777. In 1623 the dukes were invested with the electoral dignity.
Maximilian II Emanuel, Elector of Bavaria served also as Governors of the Habsburg Netherlands (1692-1706) and as Duke of Luxemburg (1712-1714). Palatinate branchThe Palatinate branch kept the Palatinate until 1918 and succeeded also in Bavaria in 1777. With the Golden Bull of 1356 the Counts Palatinate were invested with the electoral dignity. In 1619, the Protestant Frederick V of the older branch of the family was King of Bohemia but was defeated by the Catholic Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria, a member of the younger branch. As a result the Upper Palatinate had to be returned to the Bavarian branch in 1623. The Palatinate branch kept also the Duchy of Jülich and Berg from 1614 onwards. Reign outside the Holy Roman EmpireWith Duke Otto III, who was elected anti-king of Hungary as Bela 1305-1308 the Wittelsbach dynasty came to power outside the Holy Roman Empire for the first time. Palatinate branchChristopher III of the Palatinate branch was king of Denmark, Sweden and Norway 1440/1442-1448. The House of Palatinate-Zweibrücken contributed to the monarchy of Sweden again 1654-1720 under Charles X, Charles XI, Charles XII and Ulrika Eleonora. Finally the Wittelsbach prince Otto was king of Greece 1832-1862. The line of Jacobite succession is currently within the House of Wittelsbach. Franz, Hereditary Prince of Bavaria is recognised by the Jacobites as Francis II. Bavarian branchJoseph Ferdinand of Bavaria, Prince of Asturias was the favored choice of England and the Netherlands to succeed as the ruler of Spain, young Charles II of Spain chose him as his heir. Due to the unexpected death of Joseph Ferdinand in 1699 the Wittelsbach did not come to power in Spain. Other major members of the familyBavarian branch
Palatinate branch
Several other women in the family are known as Elisabeth von Wittelsbach. Family Tree Early DukesSee also
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