Siegfried I, Count of Sponheim
Encyclopedia
Siegfried I, Count of Sponheim (b. ca. 1010 at Castle Sponheim
; d. 7 February 1065 at Bulgaria
) is considered the patriarch of the House of Sponheim
and all of its lateral branches, the Counts of Lebenau and the Counts of Ortenburg. Originally he came from Rhenish Franconia
, where he was born at Castle Sponheim
.
, patriarch of the Rhenish branch of the House of Sponheim, which survives as the present-day Princes of Sayn and Wittgenstein
. Siegfried was married with Richgard, the heiress of Count Engelbert IV of Pustertal from the Carinthian family of the Sieghardinger and Aribonians. From this marriage several children were born:
In the year 1064 Siegfried took part in the pilgrimage
of the Archbishop Siegfried I of Mainz towards Jerusalem. On the way back, one year later, he died in Bulgaria
. There he was also buried, before his widow Richgard released the corpse and let him be buried in the church St. Paul im Lavanttal he had planned and constructed.
marched against Duke Adalbero of Eppenstein towards Carinthia. In the company of Conrad was Siegfried as his close companion. He thus arrived from the Rhineland
on the Southeast of the Empire of then. Through marriage with Richgard from the family of the Sieghardinger, he obtained large possessions in Tirol and also in Carinthia
, for example the Lavanttal valley (in modern Austria) and probably also Laško
and some other parts of modern Slovenia
like the territories around Ljubljana
.
In the year 1044 he documents as ruling Count to Sponheim
. In 1045 Siegfried was granted the Margraviate Hungarian March
in the eastern Lower Austria by Kaiser Henry III
as fiefdom
. He kept and managed this land until the end of his life. Thereafter the Hungarian March fell to the Babenberger.
In 1048 he documents as Gaugraf in the Pustertal
and Count in the Lavanttal, Siegfried must therefore have already succeeded to his father-in-law Engelbert IV as heir to this territory by then. He overtook likewise the possessions of his father-in-law in Upper Bavaria. Besides he was soon Vogt
of the Bistums Brixen and Salzburg. Siegfried received likewise possessions in Lower Carinthia and in the eastern Upper Bavaria.
In the year 1909 the Siegfriedstrasse in Vienna Floridsdorf
was named after him.
Castle Sponheim
Castle Sponheim is a medieval ruin in Burgsponheim on the edge of the Hunsrück in Rhineland-Palatinate and original residence of the Counts of Sponheim. Significant portions of the castle remain standing.-Site:...
; d. 7 February 1065 at Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
) is considered the patriarch of the House of Sponheim
House of Sponheim
The House of Sponheim or Spanheim was a noble family of the Holy Roman Empire in the High Middle Ages. They were Dukes of Carinthia from 1122 until 1269 and Counts of Sponheim until 1437...
and all of its lateral branches, the Counts of Lebenau and the Counts of Ortenburg. Originally he came from Rhenish Franconia
Rhenish Franconia
Rhenish Franconia or Western Franconia denotes the western half of the central German stem duchy of Franconia in the 10th and 11th century, with its residence at the city of Worms...
, where he was born at Castle Sponheim
Castle Sponheim
Castle Sponheim is a medieval ruin in Burgsponheim on the edge of the Hunsrück in Rhineland-Palatinate and original residence of the Counts of Sponheim. Significant portions of the castle remain standing.-Site:...
.
Family life
About his parents little is known. It has been noticed however, that his father was Eberhard I of Sponheim (d. 1044) and that he therefore had brothers named Friedrich of Sponheim (1022–1058) and Eberhard II of Sponheim. Likewise Siegfried had a relationship of unknown degree with Stephan I, Count of SponheimStephan I, Count of Sponheim
Stephan I, Count of Sponheim is the patriarch of the Rhenish branch of the House of Sponheim, which ruled over the County of Sponheim. He was closely related to Siegfried I, Count of Sponheim, patriarch of the Carinthian Sponheimish branch, but the exact relationship between the two dynasts is...
, patriarch of the Rhenish branch of the House of Sponheim, which survives as the present-day Princes of Sayn and Wittgenstein
Sayn-Wittgenstein
Sayn-Wittgenstein was a county of mediæval Germany, located in the Sauerland of eastern North Rhine-Westphalia. Sayn-Wittgenstein was created when Count Salentin of Sayn-Homburg married the heiress Countess Adelaide of Wittgenstein in 1345...
. Siegfried was married with Richgard, the heiress of Count Engelbert IV of Pustertal from the Carinthian family of the Sieghardinger and Aribonians. From this marriage several children were born:
- Engelbert I. († 1096), Margrave of Istrien, Count to Spanheim, Count im Pustertal, ∞ Hadwig
- Siegfried († 1070) ∞ NN, supposedly not of equal birth, since there is no direct relationship of the descendants to further Sponheimern.
- Hartwig († 1102), Archbishop of Magdeburg
- Hermann († 1118), Burggraf to Magdeburg
In the year 1064 Siegfried took part in the pilgrimage
Pilgrimage
A pilgrimage is a journey or search of great moral or spiritual significance. Typically, it is a journey to a shrine or other location of importance to a person's beliefs and faith...
of the Archbishop Siegfried I of Mainz towards Jerusalem. On the way back, one year later, he died in Bulgaria
Bulgaria
Bulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
. There he was also buried, before his widow Richgard released the corpse and let him be buried in the church St. Paul im Lavanttal he had planned and constructed.
Career
In the year 1035 Kaiser Conrad IIConrad II, Holy Roman Emperor
Conrad II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1027 until his death.The son of a mid-level nobleman in Franconia, Count Henry of Speyer and Adelaide of Alsace, he inherited the titles of count of Speyer and of Worms as an infant when Henry died at age twenty...
marched against Duke Adalbero of Eppenstein towards Carinthia. In the company of Conrad was Siegfried as his close companion. He thus arrived from the Rhineland
Rhineland
Historically, the Rhinelands refers to a loosely-defined region embracing the land on either bank of the River Rhine in central Europe....
on the Southeast of the Empire of then. Through marriage with Richgard from the family of the Sieghardinger, he obtained large possessions in Tirol and also in Carinthia
Duchy of Carinthia
The Duchy of Carinthia was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, then the first newly created Imperial State beside the original German stem duchies....
, for example the Lavanttal valley (in modern Austria) and probably also Laško
Laško
Laško is a spa town and municipality in eastern Slovenia. Traditionally the area was part of the Lower Styria region. The municipality is now included in the Savinja statistical region. The town is located at the foothills of the Hum hill on the Savinja River. It is first mentioned in written...
and some other parts of modern Slovenia
Slovenia
Slovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
like the territories around Ljubljana
Ljubljana
Ljubljana is the capital of Slovenia and its largest city. It is the centre of the City Municipality of Ljubljana. It is located in the centre of the country in the Ljubljana Basin, and is a mid-sized city of some 270,000 inhabitants...
.
In the year 1044 he documents as ruling Count to Sponheim
County of Sponheim
The County of Sponheim was an independent territory in the Holy Roman Empire which lasted from the 11th century until the early 19th century...
. In 1045 Siegfried was granted the Margraviate Hungarian March
Hungarian March
The Hungarian March or Neumark was a brief frontier march established in the mid-eleventh century by the Emperor Henry III as a defence against the Kingdom of Hungary...
in the eastern Lower Austria by Kaiser Henry III
Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry III , called the Black or the Pious, was a member of the Salian Dynasty of Holy Roman Emperors...
as fiefdom
Fiefdom
A fee was the central element of feudalism and consisted of heritable lands granted under one of several varieties of feudal tenure by an overlord to a vassal who held it in fealty in return for a form of feudal allegiance and service, usually given by the...
. He kept and managed this land until the end of his life. Thereafter the Hungarian March fell to the Babenberger.
In 1048 he documents as Gaugraf in the Pustertal
Pustertal
The Puster Valley is a valley in the Alps that runs in an east-west direction between Lienz in Tyrol, Austria and Mühlbach near Brixen in South Tyrol, Italy...
and Count in the Lavanttal, Siegfried must therefore have already succeeded to his father-in-law Engelbert IV as heir to this territory by then. He overtook likewise the possessions of his father-in-law in Upper Bavaria. Besides he was soon Vogt
Vogt
A Vogt ; plural Vögte; Dutch voogd; Danish foged; ; ultimately from Latin [ad]vocatus) in the Holy Roman Empire was the German title of a reeve or advocate, an overlord exerting guardianship or military protection as well as secular justice...
of the Bistums Brixen and Salzburg. Siegfried received likewise possessions in Lower Carinthia and in the eastern Upper Bavaria.
In the year 1909 the Siegfriedstrasse in Vienna Floridsdorf
Floridsdorf
Floridsdorf is the 21st district of Vienna, Austria .Floridsdorf is located in the northern part of Vienna.The District Office and the centre of Floridsdorf are located round Am Spitz, at the junction of Prager Straße and Brünner Straße .Since 2004, Floridsdorf has had its own tower: the...
was named after him.
External links
genealogie-mittelalter.de Source at site of the Gemeinde Ortenburg Source for Eberhard ISources
Preceded by: |
Siegfried I |
Succeeded by: |
|---|---|---|
| Luitpold | Margrave of the Hungarian March Hungarian March The Hungarian March or Neumark was a brief frontier march established in the mid-eleventh century by the Emperor Henry III as a defence against the Kingdom of Hungary... 1045–1065 |
Ernst der Streitbare Ernest, Margrave of Austria Ernest the Brave was the Babenberg margrave of Austria from 1055 to his death, following his father Adalbert.He increased the territory of Austria by amalgamating the Bohemian and Hungarian marches into Austria. In his time, the colonisation of the Waldviertel was begun by his ministeriales, the... |
| Eberhard I | Count of Sponheim 1045–1065 |
Engelbert I |
| Engelbert IV | Count im Pustertal and Lavanttal 1045–1065 |
Engelbert I |