Jean de Ligne


Jean de Ligne, Baron of Barbançon and later Count of Arenberg, was a military commander in the Habsburg Netherlands and a member of the House of Ligne. He was the stadtholder of the Dutch provinces of Friesland, Groningen, Drenthe and Overijssel until his death at the Battle of Heiligerlee. In 1547, he married Margaret de La Marck-Arenberg, who had become the ruling Countess of Arenberg after her brother died without children.

Life and career

Jean was the son of Louis de Ligne, Baron of Barbançon, and his wife Marie of Glymes, Lady of Zevenbergen, daughter of Cornelis of Glymes.
Jean belonged to a close circle around Charles V. In 1546, he was made a knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece. He subsequently became the stadtholder of the northern provinces of Friesland, Groningen, Drenthe and Overijssel. By his marriage to Margaret de La Marck-Arenberg, sister of Robert III de La Marck-Arenberg, who died without children, Jean became the founder of the third House of Arenberg.
Jean participated in the campaign in France and distinguished himself in the Battle of St. Quentin, where he – together with Henry V, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg – led the left wing of the infantry in the final attack against the French.
At the start of the rebellion, he distanced himself from his good friend William the Silent, Lamoral, Count of Egmont, and Philip de Montmorency, Count of Hoorn, and he remained loyal to King Philip II of Spain.
He was unable to stop the spread of Protestantism in his northern provinces, but he succeeded in 1567 to keep them loyal to the Crown without bloodshed. Back south, he joined the army under the Duke of Alva, but he objected to the arrests of Egmont and Hoorn. When Louis and Adolf of Nassau invaded Groningen, he was sent back by Alva to repulse this army.
Jean was killed in the Battle of Heiligerlee on 23 May 1568. Cardinal Granvelle described his death as a great loss for the Catholic faith and the king. Jean was buried in Saint Catherine Church in Zevenbergen, but his remains were moved in 1614 to the family vault in Enghien.

Marriage and issue

In 1547, Jean married Margaret de La Marck-Arenberg, and their children included the following: