WELSER, the name of a famous extinct patrician family in Augsburg. Janus WELskit was knighted by the emperor Otto I. for his services in the war against the Hungarians. His son, OCTAVIAN WELSER, settled in Augsburg, and from him descended the patrician family, which always held important posts in the council of that town lisnrnoLosiEw WELSER, privy councilor of the emperor Charles V , was so wealthy that he could vie with the Fuggers (q.v.) in munificence. With the emperor's permis sion, in 1326, lie fitted out three ships in Spain, which, under the command of Ambrose Dalfinger of Ulm, sailed for America, and took possession of the province of Caracas, which the emperor gave Weiser in pledge. Twenty years after this, the Welsers gave up their possession voluntarily, and it reverted to Spain.—The most famous of the family was the niece of Bartholomew Weiser, PHILIPPINE WELSER, a daughter of his brother, Franz born about 1530. She had received an excellent education from her clever mother, and was exceedingly beautiful. On the occasion of a diet of the empire at Augsburg in 1547, she was seen by the archduke Ferdinand, the second son of the subsequent emperor, Ferdinand I., who fell in love with her. The young girl firmly
rejected all the advances of this fiery youth of 19, and refused to have any relation with him excepting by marriage. They were therefore married in 1550, without the knowl edge of his father, or of his uncle, Charles V. His father, on hearing the news, was exceedingly angry, and for a long time his son did not venture to appear before him. Even in other countries, this misalliance made a great noise. In the meanwhile, the loving couple enjoyed the greatest domestic happiness, and Philippine enchanted every one that knew her by her intelligence and kindness of heart. It was only after eight years that his father was reconciled. Philippine, in disguise, herself banded him a petition, and by her deportment on the occasion, as well as her beauty, disarmed the angry father. He forgave his son, declared his children legitimate, and raised their mother to be markgraven von Burgau. This happy marriage lasted 30 years. Philip pine died at InnsbriIck in 1580. In the palace at Schonhrunn the portrait of the lovely Philippine is still pointed out.