LifeAlbert III of
Austria (September 9, 1349–August 29, 1395), known as Albert with the
Pigtail (German: Herzog Albrecht III "mit dem Copfe"), was a duke of
Austria and a member of the House of Habsburg. He was born in Vienna,
the 3rd son of Duke Albert II of Austria. Even though his father had
determined that the eldest son should be the sole successor, after his
father's death in 1358, Albert later inherited the rule from his two
older brothers Rudolf IV and Frederick III and later shared it with his
younger brother Leopold III. In 1377, Albert went on a crusade against
the pagan Lithuanians and Samogitians.
After Rudolf's and Frederick's death without an
heir, Albert and his remaining brother, Leopold III, entered, in 1379,
into the Treaty of Neuberg to divide the Habsburg territories. Albert
received Austria proper while Leopold ruled over Styria, Carinthia,
Tyrol and Further Austria. His government was beneficial to the realm,
as he supported the arts and sciences. Albert was an apt scholar
himself, particularly as a mathematician. He expanded the University of
Vienna and attempted to refurbish Vienna.
Albert died in 1395 at the castle Schloss
Laxenburg. He is buried in the Ducal Crypt in the Stephansdom cathedral
in Vienna.
Family and children
Albert III was married twice. The first marriage,
after 19 March 1366, was with Elisabeth of Bohemia (1358-1373), daughter
of Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor. This marriage was childless; his wife
died at fifteen. Secondly, he married Beatrix of Nuremberg, daughter of
Frederick V of Nuremberg and Elisabeth of Meissen who gave him his only
son, Albert IV, who succeeded him. Elisabeth of Meissen was descended
from the Babenberg dukes of Austria.
Text source: Wikipedia
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