Bernhard, Count of Anhalt

Bernhard (c. 1140–1212), youngest son of Albert the Bear, inherited in 1170 the Ascanian estates that formed the nucleus of Anhalt. After Henry the Lion was outlawed in 1180, Emperor Frederick Barbarossa granted him the Duchy of Saxony, though only reduced lands around Wittenberg and Lauenburg remained.

He destroyed rebellious Lauenburg and moved his court to Wittenberg. He died on 2 February 1212; his sons Henry and Albert founded the Anhalt and Saxon lines of the Ascanians.