George John I, Count Palatine of Veldenz
| George John I, Count Palatine of Veldenz | |
|---|---|
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| Spouse(s) | Anna Maria of Sweden |
| Noble family | House of Wittelsbach |
| Father | Rupert, Count Palatine of Veldenz |
| Mother | Ursula of Salm-Kyrburg |
| Born | 11 April 1543 |
| Died | 18 April 1592 (aged 49) Lützelstein |
George John I (German: Georg Johann I.; sometimes called George Hans) (11 April 1543 – 18 April 1592) was the Duke of Veldenz from 1544 until 1592.
George John was born in 1543 as the only son of Rupert, Count Palatine of Veldenz. By the Marburg Contract in 1443 his father obtained the County of Veldenz from the line of Palatinate-Zweibrücken. The following year his father died and the one-year-old George John succeeded him. In 1563 he married Anne of Sweden, the daughter of King Gustav I of Sweden, beginning a long-running connection between the Electorate of the Palatinate and Sweden. In 1553 after the Heidelberg War of Succession which regulated the mutual inheritance of all the lines of the House of Wittelsbach, George John obtained the County of Lützelstein. He attempted to develop his Alsatian territories to be the focus of his state, which led to him building the city of Phalsbourg (Pfalzburg) in 1570 and populating it with Protestant refugees from the Duchy of Lorraine. The project was so grand and unaffordable that in 1583 he was forced to sell the city and half the County of Lützelstein to Lorraine.
George John died in Lützelstein in 1592 and was buried in the cities' church.
George John married Anne Maria of Sweden (1545–1610), daughter of King Gustavus I, in 1563 and had the following children:
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