William of Rosenberg

William of Rosenberg (; 10 March 1535 – 31 August 1592), was a Bohemian nobleman. He served as High Treasurer and High Burgrave of Bohemia. Life William of Rosenberg was a member of the influential noble House of Rosenberg. He was the son of Jošt III of Rosenberg and his second wife Anna of Roggendorf (d. 1562). His father died when William was four years old. William and his younger brother Peter Vok then stood under the guardianship of their uncle Peter V. From age seven, he studied at the Protestant private school of Arnošt Kraiger von Kraigk in Mladá Boleslav. In 1544, at the age of nine, he switched to a Catholic school for young nobles at the court of Bishop Wolfgang of Passau. On 23 April 1551, at the age of sixteen, William was declared an adult by a decree of Emperor Ferdinand I. He took up the administration of the family's possessions and chose as his residence Český Krumlov Castle, which he remodeled in the Renaissance style. From 1552 to 1556, he fought a court case against Henry IV of Plauen, the High Chancellor of Bohemia, about their precedence in Bohemian society. In 1560, he was appointed High Treasurer by King Ferdinand. In 1566, he was appointed commander of the Bohemian army and on 10 June 1566, he began forming an army at Znojmo to fight a war against the Ottoman Empire. Their aim was to recapture Szigetvár, which William's brother-in-law Nikola Šubić Zrinski had lost to the Turks. The Habsburg armies were to meet at Győr. However, the Turks retreated south after the death of Suleiman the Magnificent and no battle ensued. On 26 May 1570, William was appointed High Burgrave of Bohemia, the highest office in the Kingdom. In this position, he was repeatedly given diplomatic duties, for example, he was sent to Germany twice. In 1572, he negotiated with Emperor Maximilian II, the leader of the Holy League about the next step to take in the ongoing war with then Ottoman Empire. In 1574, he was involved in the negotiations about electing King Rudolf II of Bohemia as the new emperor. In Poland, he represented the interests of Archduke Ernest of Austria, who aimed to be elected King of Poland. His efforts were in vain, although he gained so much sympathy that when King Henry fled, he was considered as a candidate to be the next king. As it happened, King Rudolf was also interested and out of loyalty, William withdrew. Eventually Stephen Bathory, a Transylvanian prince, was elected. However, he died shortly after his election.