John II, Duke of Cleves

John II, "The Babymaker", Duke of Cleves, Count of Mark, (German: Johann II. "der Kindermacher", Herzog von Kleve, Graf von Mark) (13 April 1458 – 15 March 1521) was a son of John I, Duke of Cleves and Elizabeth of Nevers.[1] He ruled Cleves from 1481 to his death in 1521. He was called "The Babymaker" as he had fathered sixty-three illegitimate children[2] prior to his marriage with Mathilde of Hesse in 1489.

John's daughter, Anna.
John II, Duke of Cleves
John II, Duke of Cleves
Born(1458-04-13)13 April 1458
Cleves
Died15 March 1521(1521-03-15) (aged 62)
Cleves
Noble familyLa Marck
Spouse(s)Mathilde of Hesse
IssueJohn III, Duke of Cleves

illegitimate

63 others
FatherJohn I, Duke of Cleves
MotherElizabeth of Nevers

Pope Innocent VIII awarded John the Golden Rose of Virtue on 15 April 1489. This is remarkable in light of the fact that John, with his alleged 63 illegitimate children, had the dubious reputation of being a "child maker". From then on, John called himself "Johann von Kleve, Count of La Marck and Katzenelnbogen".

Marriage and issue

John married Matilda of Hesse,[3] daughter of Henry III, Landgrave of Upper Hesse and Anna of Katzenelnbogen,[4] on 3 November 1489 in Soest. They had:

  • Coat-of-arms ofLa Mark
    Coat-of-arms of
    La Mark
  • Coat-of-arms ofCleves
    Coat-of-arms of
    Cleves

Ancestry

References
  1. Boltanski 2006, p. 501.
  2. La Societe Numismatique, Revue de la numismatique belge, Brussels, 1863, page 234
  3. Guenther 1985, p. 315.
  4. Morby 1989, p. 135.
  5. Ward, Prothero & Leathes 1934, p. table 38.

Sources
  • Boltanski, Ariane (2006). Les ducs de Nevers et l'État royal: genèse d'un compromis (ca 1550 - ca 1600) (in French). Librairie Droz S.A.
  • Guenther, Ilse (1985). "John II, Duke of Cleves and Mark". In Bietenholz, Peter G.; Deutscher, Thomas Brian (eds.). Contemporaries of Erasmus: A Biographical Register of the. Vol. 1-3: A-Z. University of Toronto Press.
  • Morby, John (1989). Dynasties of the World: A chronological and genealogical handbook. Oxford University Press.
  • Ward, A.W.; Prothero, G.W.; Leathes, Stanley, eds. (1934). The Cambridge Modern History. Vol. XIII. Cambridge at the University Press.
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