Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine

Henry (born 1173, died 28 April 1227) was count palatine of the Rhine from 6 August 1195 to 1213.

Henry was the eldest son of Duke Henry the Lion, from his marriage to Matilda of England. He grew up in England and became count palatine of the Rhine through his 1193 marriage to Agnes, heir to the Staufen count. When his younger brother Otto became one of two rival kings of the Holy Roman Empire in 1198, Henry at first supported him, but switched sides to Philip of Staufen in 1203. After he inherited significant properties in northern Germany from his brother William in 1213, he ceded the Palatinate to his son Henry, and moved north. He left his northern German properties to William's son, Otto. Henry died in 1227 and is entombed in Brunswick Cathedral.

Family

In 1193, Henry married Agnes (died 1204), daughter of Conrad, Count Palatine of the Rhine. Around 1209, he married Agnes (died 1248), daughter of Conrad II, Margrave of Lower Lusatia. He had the following children, all from the first marriage:

• Henry (1197–1214)
• Irmgard (died 1260), married Herman V, Margrave of Baden-Baden
• Agnes (died 1267), married Otto II Wittelsbach, Duke of Bavaria