Raugraves
Encyclopedia
The Raugraves were a German noble family, which had its center of influence in the former Nahegau
. They descended from the Emichones
(Counts of Nahegau).
south of Bad Münster am Stein, which was built before 1146.
The sons of Raugrave Emich II divided their possessions in a Stolzenberger and Baumburger line. In 1253 the New Baumburg (Neubamberg) rose as the seat of a further line and the Stolzenberg line had died out by 1358. In the same year disagreements in arms took place about the Stolzenburg. The Lords of Bolanden inherited the vanished Stolzenberg line and sold Simmern
to the Counts Palatine of the Rhine in 1359. In 1385 the line Altenbaumburg died out and n 1457 the last raugravlish line Neuenbaumburg vanished. The major part of the estate went to the Electoral Palatinate.
who purchased the estates. From 1667 it was owned by the thirteen children from the Elector's bigamous (morganatic) second marriage in 1658 to Karl's wife, Marie Luise von Degenfeld
, a Raugravin, in 1667.
, near Alzey
, where they were seneschal
s of the Palatine counts, as well as in Simmern. Their castles were the Altenbaumburg
, the Ebernburg, the Stolzenburg, the Naumburg
, the Neu Baumburg (new Baumburg) and a castle in Simmern/Hunsrück.
Nahegau
The Nahegau was in the Middle Ages a county, which covered the environs of the Nahe and large parts of present-day Rhenish Hesse, after a successful expansion of the narrow territory, which did not reach the Rhine, to the disadvantage of the Wormsgau...
. They descended from the Emichones
Emichones
The Emichones family is a precursor to several noble families in the southwestern German region. Its members were -- perhaps as undercounts of the Salian dynasty -- gau counts in the Nahegau. The name is due to the prevailing first name "Emich."- History :The Nahegau was next to the Wormsgau and...
(Counts of Nahegau).
First family in the 12th until 15th centuries
The family of the Raugraves descended from a division of the Wildgraves around 1148 (heirs of the Emichones). The first Raugrave was Emich I (ca. 1128-1172), second son of the Wildgrave Emich VI and brother of Wildgrave Konrad. Perhaps on account of the rough and mountainous quality of his lordships Emich named himself Raugrave ; (the precise meaning is unknown). The second line originating from a first heritage division of the county in Nahegau in 1113 was that of the Counts of Veldenz. The family seat (Stammburg) of the Raugraves was the Baumburg near the present-day village of AltenbambergAltenbamberg
Altenbamberg is a municipality in the district of Bad Kreuznach in Rhineland-Palatinate, in western Germany.-References:...
south of Bad Münster am Stein, which was built before 1146.
The sons of Raugrave Emich II divided their possessions in a Stolzenberger and Baumburger line. In 1253 the New Baumburg (Neubamberg) rose as the seat of a further line and the Stolzenberg line had died out by 1358. In the same year disagreements in arms took place about the Stolzenburg. The Lords of Bolanden inherited the vanished Stolzenberg line and sold Simmern
Simmern
Simmern is a town of 8,000 inhabitants in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, the district seat of the Rhein-Hunsrück-Kreis, and the seat of the like-named Verbandsgemeinde...
to the Counts Palatine of the Rhine in 1359. In 1385 the line Altenbaumburg died out and n 1457 the last raugravlish line Neuenbaumburg vanished. The major part of the estate went to the Electoral Palatinate.
Second family in the 17th century
When the Raugrave possessions passed to the Electoral Palatinate, the Raugrave title was taken over by Charles I Louis, Elector PalatineCharles I Louis, Elector Palatine
Charles Louis, , Elector Palatine KG was the second son of Frederick V of the Palatinate, the "Winter King" of Bohemia, and his wife, Princess Elizabeth, daughter of King James I of England ....
who purchased the estates. From 1667 it was owned by the thirteen children from the Elector's bigamous (morganatic) second marriage in 1658 to Karl's wife, Marie Luise von Degenfeld
Marie Luise von Degenfeld
Luise von Degenfeld was the morganatic second wife of Charles I Louis, Elector Palatine. Created Raugräfin von der Pfalz in 1667, she had thirteen children with Charles Louis, all of whom were known as the "Raugraves" of the Palatinate.Born Maria Susanne Luise von Degenfeld in Strasbourg,...
, a Raugravin, in 1667.
Property
The main properties of the Raugraves lie south of the Nahe in the Alsenz, south of Kirn, where the seat of the BecherbachBecherbach
Becherbach refers to two villages in the district of Bad Kreuznach, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The distance between the two villages is about 16 kilometres bee-line....
, near Alzey
Alzey
Alzey is a Verband-free town – one belonging to no Verbandsgemeinde – in the Alzey-Worms district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the fourth-largest town in Rhenish Hesse, after Mainz, Worms, and Bingen....
, where they were seneschal
Seneschal
A seneschal was an officer in the houses of important nobles in the Middle Ages. In the French administrative system of the Middle Ages, the sénéchal was also a royal officer in charge of justice and control of the administration in southern provinces, equivalent to the northern French bailli...
s of the Palatine counts, as well as in Simmern. Their castles were the Altenbaumburg
Altenbaumburg
The Burg Altenbaumburg , is a ruined castle above the town of Altenbamberg in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.- External links :*...
, the Ebernburg, the Stolzenburg, the Naumburg
Naumburg
Naumburg is a town in Germany, on the Saale River. It is in the district Burgenlandkreis in the Bundesland of Saxony-Anhalt. It is approximately southwest of Leipzig, south-southwest of Halle, and north-northeast of Jena....
, the Neu Baumburg (new Baumburg) and a castle in Simmern/Hunsrück.