Theodoric of Landsberg

Theodoric of Landsberg (, nicknamed the Wise or the Fat; 1242 – 8 February 1285), a member of the House of Wettin was Margrave of Landsberg from 1265 until his death. Life Theodoric was the second son of Henry the Illustrious, margrave of Meissen and Lusatia, and his wife Constance of Babenberg, a daughter of Duke Leopold VI of Austria. In 1261, his father split the Margraviate of Landsberg off from his Lusatian territory, which after the War of the Thuringian Succession in 1265 he transferred to Theodoric, thereby creating a cadet branch of the Wettin dynasty. The territory comprised the westernmost part of Lusatia between the Saale and Mulde rivers, centered around Landsberg Castle. Theoderic's march included the towns of Delitzsch, Leipzig and Groitzsch, his estates stretched down to Zwickau and Grimma with the residence at Weißenfels. The creation of an Imperial State without consent by the Holy Roman Emperor was against legal provisions, nevertheless it had no penalty effects as a central Imperial authority did not exist during the years of the interregnum. Moreover, the division entailed fierce inheritance conflicts with Theoderic's elder brother Albert the Degenerate and his sons. Upon the election of Rudolf of Habsburg as King of the Romans in 1273, Theoderic initially sided with his rival King Ottokar II of Bohemia, but later chose to remain neutral. He vested the Leipzig citizens with significant town privileges and also joined a Prussian Crusade of the Teutonic Knights.