Welf Dynasty

Dynasty of German nobles and rulers, who were the chief rivals of the Hohenstaufens in Italy and central Europe in the Middle Ages and who later included the Hanoverian Welfs, who, with the accession of Georg Ludwig (1660-1727) to the British throne, became rulers of Great Britain.

The origin of the "Elder House" of Welf is a matter of controversy, since Welf in the Carolingian period seems to have been rather widespread as a baptismal name. The best analyses of the evidence trace the Burgundian and the Swabian Welfs to Welf I (d. before 876), the son of Count Conrad of Paris and Auxerre, whose grandson Rudolf I became the King of Burgundy

One of Welf's descendent, also Known as Welf I, became the duke of Bavaria in 1070. He abandoned his alliance with the Holy Roman emperor Heinrich IV to become an important supporter of the papal party in Italy. His 17-year-old son, Welf V. (later Welf II. of Bavaria), married the 43-year-old countess Matilda of Tuscany in 1089; the marriage ended in separation. The elder Welf thereupon appealed to Heirnich IV. for help against Matilda. Heinrich attacked Matilda's castle in Nogara, south of Verona, but abandoned the siege when Matilda's army counterattacked. The Este family tried, in Welf V.'s name, to claim Matilda's lands after her death but were unsuccessful. .... more

Duke Welf IV of Bavaria

• A1 = Graf Welf I im Argengau und Linzgau;  ==>  Burgundy
  • B1 = Graf Eticho im Ammergau, m. Judith of Wessex;  ==>  Wessex
    • C1 = Heinrich, m. Atha von Hohenwart;
      • D1 = Graf Rudolf I;
        • E1 = Graf Rudolf II von Altdorf;
          • F1 = Graf Welf II von Altdorf, d:1030, m.Irmtrud of Luxemburg;  ==>  Luxembourg
            • G1 = Kunigunde, m. Count Azzo II, Marchese d'Este  <==  House of Este
              • H1 = Duke Welf IV of Bavaria, d:1120, m.Judit of Flanders;  ==>  Flanders
                <==========
  • I1 = Duke Heinrich "der Schwarze" of Bavaria, d:1126, m.Wulfhild of Saxony;  ==>  Billung Dynasty
    • J1 ~ Judith Welf, m. Duke Friedrich II of Swabia;  <==  Hohenstaufen
    • J2 = Duke Heinrich "der Stolze" of Bavaria, d:1139, m.Gertrud von Supplingenburg;
      • K1 = Duke Heinrich "der Löwe" of Bavaria, lvd:1129/1195, m.Matilda of England;  ==>  Plantagenet
        • L1 = Henry I, Palatine of the Rhine, d:1227, m.Agnes of Staufen;
          • M1 = Agnes of the Rhine, d:1267, m. Duke Otto II of Bavaria;  <==  Wittelsbach
        • L2 ~ Duke Wilhelm of Lüneburg, lvd:1184/1213, m.Helene of Denmark;  ==>  Denmark
          • M1 ~ Duke Otto I "das Kind" of Braunschweig and Lüneburg, lvd:1201/1252, m. Matilda of Brandenburg;  ==>  Markgrafs of Brandenburg
            • N1 ~ Duke Johann of Lüneburg, d:1277, m.Liutgard of Holstein;
              • O1 ~ Elizabeth of Lüneburg, m. Graf Johann II von Oldenburg;  <==  Oldenburg
            • N2 ~ Albrecht I, Herzog von Braunschweig, lvd:1237/1279, m.Alessina di Montferrato;  ==>  House of Aleramici
              • O1 ~ Albrecht II, Herzog von Braunschweig, d:1318, m. Richsa von Werle;
                <=======
      • P1 ~ Magnus I, Herzog von Braunschweig, d:1369, m. Sophie von Brandenburg;  ==>  Brandenburg
        • Q1 ~ Magnus II, Herzog von Braunschweig, d:1371, m. Katharina von Anhalt;
          • R1 ~ agnus II von Braunschweig, m. Garf Gerhard VI von Holstein;  <==  Holstein