War of the Limburg Succession
conflict between Brabant, Guelre, Luxemburg, Loon and Cologne in 1283-1289
The War of the Limburg Succession was a conflict between 1283 and 1289 for the succession in the Duchy of Limburg. The war was fought between Reginald I of Guelders, who married the daughter and heiress of the last Duke of Limburg, and the Duke of Brabant.
Causes
The cause of the War of the Limburg Succession was the death of Waleran IV, Duke of Limburg in 1280, and his only daughter Ermengarde of Limburg in 1283. Waleran IV had no sons and Ermengarde had no children. Ermergarde had married Reginald I of Guelders, who now claimed the Duchy of Limburg. However, Waleran's nephew Adolf VIII of Berg, son of his elder brother Adolf VII of Berg, also claimed the Duchy. Unable to assert his claims, he sold them in 1283 to the mighty John I, Duke of Brabant.
Course of war
Between 1283 and 1288, several smaller confrontations occurred between both sides, none of them decisive. Meanwhile, most of the other local powers chose sides. Siegfried II of Westerburg, the Archbishop of Cologne and ruler of the Electorate of Cologne, traditional enemy of the Duke of Brabant, forged an alliance with Reginald I, joined by Henry VI, Count of Luxembourg, and his brother Waleran I of Luxembourg, Lord of Ligny, as well as by Adolf, King of Germany.
The public source identifies “War of the Limburg Succession” as conflict between Brabant, Guelre, Luxemburg, Loon and Cologne in 1283-1289. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Limburg, Succession and conflict.
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