Births on February 15

Juliana of Stolberg, German countess (d. 1580)

Juliana, Countess of Stolberg-Wernigerode (15 February 1506 in Stolberg, Saxony-Anhalt – 18 June 1580) was the mother of William the Silent, the leader of the successful Dutch Revolt against the Spanish in the 16th century.

Juliana was born in Stolberg as the daughter of Bodo VIII, Count of Stolberg-Wernigerode and Anna of Eppstein-Königstein. She was raised a Roman Catholic but changed her religion twice, first to Lutheranism and later to Calvinism. She, along with her second husband, was a convinced Protestant and raised their children in the Protestant ways. After the death of her second husband in 1559 she remained living at Dillenburg castle, now belonging to her second son John, where she died in 1580.

Her entire life, she kept close to her children, especially William. When William began his rebellion against Philip II of Spain she supported her son morally and financially. Because of this financial support, William was able to campaign against Spain in the Netherlands.

A fictionalized account of her life is found in Ethel Herr, Dr. Oma: The Healing Wisdom of Countess Juliana Von Stolberg (P&R Publishing, 2006).