Philip of Hesse is the son of…
1521 CE
Philip of Hesse is the son of Landgrave William II of Hesse and his second wife Anna of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
His father had died when Philip was five years old, and in 1514 his mother, after a series of struggles with the Estates of Hesse, had succeeded in becoming regent on his behalf.
The struggles over authority still continued, however.
To put an end to them, Philip had been declared of age in 1518, his actual assumption of power beginning the following year.
The power of the Estates has been broken by his mother, but he owes her little else.
His education has been very imperfect, and his moral and religious training has been neglected.
Despite all this, he develops rapidly as a statesman, and soon begins to take steps to increase his personal authority as a ruler.