Henry Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg
| Henry Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel | |
|---|---|
Henry Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel
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| Spouse(s) |
Dorothea of Saxony Elizabeth of Denmark |
| Issue | |
| Noble family | House of Guelph |
| Father | Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg |
| Mother | Hedwig of Brandenburg |
| Born |
15 October 1564 Hessen am Fallstein |
| Died | 30 July 1613 (aged 48) Prague, Kingdom of Bohemia |
Henry Julius (German: Heinrich Julius) (15 October 1564 – 30 July 1613) was duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and prince of Wolfenbüttel from 1589 until his death. In 1576 he had become the first rector of the Protestant University of Helmstedt.
Henry Julius was born in Hessen am Fallstein as the eldest son of Julius, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg and his wife, Hedwig of Brandenburg. Already in 1566, at the age of two, he had been elected bishop of Halberstadt by the cathedral chapter; however, a condition of his election was an agreement that the cathedral chapter would lead the Bishopric under its own authority until Henry Julius reached the age of 14. Hence he took over administration of the Bishopric in 1578, and became active as a temporal as well as spiritual ruler. He improved general education in the Bishopric, and completed the Protestant Reformation, although he allowed Catholic office holders to keep their privileges — except that he strictly prohibited priests from having mistresses.
Even though he was only twelve years old, he participated in theological debates among the faculty that were held in Latin. After finishing his study in law, he was employed by his father as a court judge. In 1589, when Henry Julius succeeded his father as ruler of Wolfenbüttel, he replaced Saxon Law by Roman Law, and instead of local nobles, lawyers with academic degrees now served as judges.
Henry Julius is not only known for the persecution of Jews and witches. In the years 1593 and 1594, he wrote eleven plays and invited Robert Browne (Jacobean actor) and his theatre company, who staged a shortened version of his "Susanna". Also the other plays, five comedies, four tragedies, were not very successful; however, one was a basis for the tall tales of Baron Munchausen. He was also versed in architecture, and designed several important buildings, among them the Juleum novum, the main building of the University of Helmstedt, and the cathedral Beatae Mariae Virginis in Wolfenbüttel. He invited Hans Vredeman de Vries to develop ramparts and had a canal built through a swampland between Hornburg and Oschersleben. He invited John Dowland to come and see Michael Praetorius, the city's organ player.
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