Louis IV, Landgrave of Hesse-Marburg
Ludwig IV of Hesse - Marburg ( born May 27, 1537 Kassel, † October 9, 1604 in Marburg ), called the Elder or the testator, was the founder and sole Landgrave of Hesse - Marburg.
Life
Louis was the son of Landgrave Philipp I of Hesse (1504-1567) from his marriage to Christine (1505-1549), daughter of Duke George of Saxony. Ludwig was educated at the court of Duke Christoph of Württemberg. He married on 10 May 1563 Stuttgart Hedwig von Württemberg ( 1547-1590 ), daughter of Duke Christopher, and in his second marriage on July 4, 1591 in Marburg Countess Maria von Mansfeld- Hinterort ( * after March 3, 1567; † between 1625 and 1635 ), daughter of the Earl (Hans) Johann I von Mansfeld- Hinterort ( -1567 ) and Margaret of Brunswick- Lüneburg- Celle ( 1534-1596 ).
After the death of his father, there was a division of an estate between his four sons. Ludwig inherited Hesse - Marburg, ie Upper Hesse with Marburg and Giessen fortress. This corresponded to approximately one quarter of the previous land county Hessen.
Ludwig was a good housekeeper, the finances of his inheritance, and reorganized the schools and the University of Marburg. Marburg castle was renovated by its architect Ebert Baldewein. He tried his territory to increase peacefully; so he bought by the Count of Nassau -Saarbrücken in 1570 parts of the Fuldischen Mark and the rest in 1583 by the Count of Nassau -Weilburg. After the childless death of his brother Philip, he received in 1583 the offices Lißberg, Ulrich and Stone in Itter.
When Louis died in 1604 he left no descendants entitled to inherit. In 1597 he had in his will that his nephew, the Landgrave Moritz of Hesse- Kassel ( son of his brother William ), and Ludwig inherit from him of Hesse- Darmstadt ( son of his brother George), while respecting the confessional Lutheran state in Hesse- Marburg should. So Hesse - Marburg was divided. He was buried in the Lutheran parish church in Marburg.
Landgrave Moritz yet tried subsequently to enforce the Reformed confession in which he inherited from part of the former Hesse- Marburg. 1605 he took action against the University of Marburg with violence. Many professors fled to the Lutheran Landgrave Louis V of Hesse-Darmstadt, who first founded a school in Giessen with them, which was raised to the University of Giessen by Emperor Rudolf II on May 19, 1607.