Landgraf Philipp von Hessen

Philipp von Hessen, Landgraf (Marburg, 1504-67, Kassel), also known as Philipp I and Philipp der Großmütige, acceded to the Landgravate of Hesse in 1509. He adopted the new ideas of the Reformation on the persuasion of Melanchthon in 1524 and became, with the Elector Johann Friedrich of Saxony, the principal defender of the new religion. Philipp was the leader of the Schmalkaldischer Bund (see Schmalkaldischer Krieg), of which he was co-founder with the Elector of Saxony, and in 1534 secured the return of the banished Protestant Duke Ulrich of Württemberg to his dukedom. In 1541 the threat of prosecution for bigamy induced him for a time to forsake the Protestant cause. In the Schmalkaldic War Philipp was defeated by the Emperor Karl V at Mühlberg (1547), was taken prisoner, and was not released until 1552. In 1527 Philipp founded the University of Marburg, the first Protestant university in Germany.