William Egon of Fürstenberg
| William Egon of Fürstenberg | |
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Portrait of William Egon of Fürstenberg by Nicolas II. de Larmessin
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| Noble family | Fürstenberg |
| Father | Egon VIII of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg |
| Mother | Anna Maria of Hohenzollern-Hechingen |
| Born | 2 December 1629 |
| Died | 10 April 1704 (aged 74) |
William Egon of Fürstenberg (2 December 1629 – 10 April 1704) was a German count and later prince of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg in the Holy Roman Empire. He was a clergyman who became bishop of Strasbourg, and was heavily involved in European politics after the Thirty Years' War. He worked for the Archbishop-Elector of Cologne and Louis XIV of France at the same time, and was arrested and tried for treason for convincing the Elector to fight on the opposite side of a war from the Empire.
William was a younger son of Egon VIII of Fürstenberg-Heiligenberg and Anna Maria of Hohenzollern-Hechingen. His father died in the Thirty Years' War in 1635, when William was young. Starting in 1637, William attended the Gymnasium Tricoronatum with his elder brother, Franz Egon. There they met Maximilian Henry of Bavaria and formed friendships that would shape all their careers. William then went on to study in Louvain in 1643, and then to study theology in Rome in 1646. While there, he was presented to Pope Innocent X and made a favourable impression.
In 1648, William was made subdeacon in the cathedral chapter at Cologne, and the following year joined Franz as a member of the Archbishop-Elector's privy council. In 1650, when their friend Maximilian inherited the role of Archbishop-Elector, William and Franz gained significant influence in the court. In 1651, Cardinal Mazarin stayed in Cologne as a safe haven during the Fronde. During that time, he got to know Franz and William, and to see the influence they had in Cologne and other lands within the Empire. He began to cultivate them as supporters of French aims within the Empire, supporting their interest in developing Rhineland defensive alliances. In 1656, the Cardinal gave William control of the Abbey of St. Michel en Thiérache near Soissons.
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