Diether of Nassau

Diether III
Archbishop and Elector of Trier
Church	Catholic Church
Diocese	Archdiocese of Trier
In office	1300–1307
Predecessor	Bohemond I of Warnesberg
Successor	Baldwin of Luxembourg
Personal details
Born	c. 1250
Died	23 November 1307 Trier

Diether of Nassau,German:Diether von Nassau(c. 1250–Trier,23 November 1307)was a clergyman from the Walramian branch of theHouse of Nassau.From 1300 to 1307 he wasArchbishopandElector of TrierasDiether III.

Life

Diether was the eldest son of CountWalram II of Nassauand Adelheid ofKatzenelnbogen.It is believed that after his father died in 1276, Diether's mother and sister led a very devout life atKlarenthal AbbeyinWiesbaden.His younger brother, CountAdolf of Nassau,was electedKing of Germanyin 1292 and died in 1298 in theBattle of Göllheim.

Diether was a dominican atMainzsince 1292, and aDoctorofTheology.Later, as archbishop, he supported theDominican Orderenergetically.

From 1295 Diether was in the service ofPope Boniface VIII.Not only did Boniface VIII occasionally use Diether to influence King Adolf; Diether was also sent by Adolf as a negotiator to KingPhilip IV "the Fair" of Francein 1297 when Adolf, in exploring the state of his alliance with KingEdward I of England,thought he could achieve political double play.

Archbishop-Elector of Trier

Coat of Arms of the Archdiocese of Trier

Although thechapterof theCathedral of Trierhad electedHenry II of Virneburg,theprovostof theCathedral of Cologne,for political reasons the Pope elevated Diether to Archbishop of Trier on 18 January 1300. It was the intention of the Pope to appoint an irreconcilable opponent, due to the death of Diethers brother Adolf, to KingAlbert I.Diether had to sacrifice himself for this policy.

Diether hadRamstein Castlebuilt in 1300 and fortified castles in other places. In the same year he grantedtown privilegestoWittlich.In 1302 he founded thecollegiate churchLiebfrauenkircheinOberwesel.

The so-called Toll War led by King Albert I, against the alliance of the four electors from theRhineland,in 1301, first requiredCount PalatineRudolf I of the Rhine,and then the archbishops Gerhard II ofMainzandWigbold IofCologneto submit. In November 1302, Albert also advanced to Trier and forced Diether, who was abandoned by his country, to a humble peace.

Diether's government was characterized by conflicts with the cathedral chapter, the clergy, and the subjects. The city of Trier suffered from financial difficulties, and there was a power struggle between theestates of the realmin other cities of the Electorate. In the spring of 1303, after an uprising of theguilds,Diether had to allow the city of Trier complete freedom of the municipal administration.From 1276 the inhabitants ofKoblenzsought more independence, even established a city council and in 1280 prevented further construction of the city walls andcastle.In 1304 Diether subdued the city after fierce fighting and Koblenz had to give up the city council from then on.
As a result of the war with King Albert I, the financial situation of Diether was already very bad, now it became considerably worse.

Diether also made enemies in the church. After all the possessions and income of the Archdiocese had beenpledged,heconfiscatedproperty and income fromparish churchesand, in 1303, had himself paid by the cathedral chapter for concessions. In 1306, after he also began to takerelicsin private possession, the chapters of the Cathedral,St. Simeon'sandSt. Paulinus',as well asSt. Maximin's Abbey,complained toPope Clement V.The Pope ordered Diether to defend himself against the allegations, which he however did not. He also treated thepapal legatebadly, which was followed byexcommunicationand latersuspension.

Diether died at Trier on 23 November 1307, before he could fulfill further requests to account for himself to the Pope. He left his country in great confusion and burdened with debts.He was buried in the church of the dominican abbey.That church was destroyed in 1812.

• 
  The Cathedral of Trier
• 
  Ramstein Castle
• 
  TheLiebfrauenkirchein Oberwesel
• 
  The Old Castle in Koblenz

Sources

• Conrad, Joachim.Nassau Dieter vonin:Saarland Biografien(in German).
• Dek, A.W.E. (1970).Genealogie van het Vorstenhuis Nassau(in Dutch).Zaltbommel:Europese Bibliotheek.OCLC27365371.
• von Eltester, Leopold (1877).Diether von Nassauin:Allgemeine Deutsche BiographieBand 5(in German).Leipzig:Duncker & Humblot, p. 170-171.
• Gauert, Adolf (1957).Dieterin:Neue Deutsche BiographieBand 3(in German).Berlin:Duncker & Humblot, p. 668-669.ISBN3-428-00184-2.
• Ost, Sandra (2006).Diether von Nassauin:Biographisch-Bibliographisches KirchenlexikonBand 26(in German), Nordhausen: Bautz, p. 267–271.ISBN3-88309-354-8.
• Vorsterman van Oyen, A.A. (1882).Het vorstenhuis Oranje-Nassau. Van de vroegste tijden tot heden(in Dutch).Leiden&Utrecht:A.W. Sijthoff & J.L. Beijers.