Welf, Duke of Carinthia

Who was Welf, Duke of Carinthia?

Welf III, as he is numbered in the genealogy of the Swabian line of the Elder House of Welf, was the duke of Carinthia and margrave of Verona from 1047. He was the only son of Welf II, Count of Altdorf, and Imiza of Luxembourg.

Through the intervention of his aunt, Richlind of Altdorf, Welf inherited property in Ebersberg. Probably through his mother, Imiza's, intervention Emperor Henry II granted the duchy of Carinthia to Welf.

Welf III never married and had no children when he died at his castle on Lake Constance in 1055. He bequeathed his property to the monastery of Altdorf, where his mother was abbess. She in turn gave the property to Welf IV, the son of Welf III's sister Chuniza and Albert Azzo II, Margrave of Milan. Welf was the last of the Elder Welfs, his lands went to the senior branch of the House of Este, which is called the Younger House of Welf. His duchy went to Conrad III.

Welf was buried at Altdorf.