Albert III, Duke of Austria
| Albert III | |
|---|---|
Albert III, 16th century portrait
|
|
| Duke of Austria | |
| Reign | 1365 - 1395 |
| Predecessor | Rudolf IV the Founder |
| Successor | Albert IV the Patient |
| Spouse(s) |
Elisabeth of Bohemia Beatrice of Nuremberg |
| Issue | |
| Father | Albert II of Austria |
| Mother | Joanna of Pfirt |
| Born |
9 September 1349 Vienna, Austria |
| Died | 29 August 1395 (aged 45) Laxenburg Castle |
| Buried | St. Stephen's Cathedral, Vienna |
Albert III of Austria (9 September 1349 – 29 August 1395), known as Albert with the Braid (Pigtail) (German: Albrecht mit dem Zopf), a member of the House of Habsburg, was Duke of Austria from 1365 until his death.
Albert III was born in the ducal residence of Vienna, the third son of the Habsburg duke Albert II of Austria and his wife Joanna of Pfirt. Even though his father had determined a house law, whereby the four sons were obliged to rule jointly and equally, the eldest brother Rudolf IV assumed the reins of government after his father's death in 1358. He reaffirmed his supremacy issuing the Privilegium Maius, however, as his marriage remained childless he again had to share his power with his younger brothers. In 1365 Rudolf IV, Albert III, and Leopold III together signed the foundation certificate of the Vienna University (Alma Mater Rudolphina Vindobonensis); Rudolf died a few months later at the age of 25.
Albert, then the eldest surviving brother (the second-born son Frederick III had already died in 1362), inherited the rule and shared it with his younger brother Leopold III. Both were formally enfeoffed with the Duchy of Austria, Duchy of Styria, Duchy of Carinthia, and Duchy of Carniola by Emperor Charles IV. In 1369 the Habsburg dukes succeeded the late Meinhard III, Count of Gorizia-Tyrol in the County of Tyrol, when after a drawn-out conflict the Wittelsbach Duke Stephen II of Bavaria finally renounced his rights.
...
Wikipedia