Conrad

von Bibra The House of Bibra () was one of the leading '' Uradel'' (ancient noble) families in Franconia (northern part of Bavaria) and present day Thuringia from the mid-15th century to about 1600. Later on the family rose from ''Reichsri ...

(or Konrad III von Bibra), Duke in

Franconia Franconia (german: Franken, ; Franconian dialect: ''Franggn'' ; bar, Frankn) is a region of Germany, characterised by its culture and Franconian dialect (German: ''Fränkisch''). The three administrative regions of Lower, Middle and Upper Fr ...

(1490–1544) was Prince-Bishop of Würzburg from 1540 to 1544. Born in 1490, he studied at the universities of

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 m ...

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...

Erfurt Erfurt () is the capital and largest city in the Central German state of Thuringia. It is located in the wide valley of the Gera river (progression: ), in the southern part of the Thuringian Basin, north of the Thuringian Forest. It sits i ...

and

Ingolstadt Ingolstadt (, Austro-Bavarian: ) is an independent city on the Danube in Upper Bavaria with 139,553 inhabitants (as of June 30, 2022). Around half a million people live in the metropolitan area. Ingolstadt is the second largest city in Upper Bav ...

. His whole life Conrad seemed to have had a hard time making up his mind about being a priest. Three times between 1520 and 1532 he entered a priestly position and then resigned. In 1525 during the German Peasants' War, Conrad was among the defenders of the

Fortress Marienberg Marienberg Fortress (German: ''Festung Marienberg'') is a prominent landmark on the left bank of the Main river in Würzburg, in the Franconia region of Bavaria, Germany. The mighty Fortress Marienberg is a symbol of Würzburg and served as a ...

Würzburg Würzburg (; Main-Franconian: ) is a city in the region of Franconia in the north of the German state of Bavaria. Würzburg is the administrative seat of the ''Regierungsbezirk'' Lower Franconia. It spans the banks of the Main River. Würzburg is ...

which was under siege. Afterwards he served on the commission determining damages. Finally in February 1539 he entered a priestly position again. On 28 April 1540 he became Provost of Neu Münster in Würzburg. Already on 1 July 1540, he was surprisingly elected Prince Bishop. Afterwards he showed an independent even uncooperative attitude. Seven times he put off his ordination as a priest and bishop. Also despite the Emperor's admonitions, he gave excuses and refused to personally attend meetings of the Imperial Diet. In 1542 when the plague broke out in Würzburg, he moved his court to Aschach and Neustadt. In August 1544 after reigning only four years he died which apparently solved the problem of his never having completed his ordination vows or formal installation as bishop. Conrad is also known for the

Bishopric of Würzburg In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop. History In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...

exchanging

Meiningen Meiningen () is a town in the southern part of the state of Thuringia, Germany. It is located in the region of Franconia and has a population of around 25,000 (2021).

in 1542 to the

House of Henneberg The House of Henneberg was a medieval German comital family (''Grafen'') which from the 11th century onwards held large territories in the Duchy of Franconia. Their county was raised to a princely county (''Gefürstete Grafschaft'') in 1310. Upo ...

in exchange for the administrative district (''Amt'') of Mainberg.

Grumbach-Zobel Affair

Melchior Zobel von Giebelstadt death marker

Just before dying, Conrad gave

Wilhelm von Grumbach Wilhelm von Grumbach (1 June 150318 April 1567) was a German adventurer, chiefly known through his connection with the so-called "Grumbach Feud" (german: Grumbachsche Händel), the last attempt of the Imperial Knights to prevail against the power ...

10,000 gold florins as a gift, without obtaining the consent of the

Cathedral Chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...

. When, after the death of Conrad, Melchior Zobel of Giebelstadt, the new Prince Bishop asked for the money back from Grumbach. Grumbach paid, but the harmonious relationship between lord and vassal were destroyed. Conrad left behind two natural children named Conrad and Katherine Biber. Katherine married a Christoph Kretzen. Kretzen later murdered the next prince bishop, Meichior von Zobel (as well as

Florian Geyer Florian Geyer von Giebelstadt (also spelled ''Geier''; ''c''. 1490 – 10 June 1525) was a German nobleman, diplomat, and knight. He became widely known for leading peasants during the German Peasants' War. Early life Florian Geyer was born ...

) on behalf of his employer Wilhelm von Grumbach. Grumbach's adventures including this incident made him famous. The spot was marked next to the All Saints Bridge in Würzburg on the fortress side. Grumbach declared he was innocent of this crime, but his story was not believed, and he fled to France. Kretzer was captured on the French border in Schaumburg Castle in what was then Lorraine, confessed to the act in 1558, but hanged himself before he could be tried.

Family

Conrad was a member of the aristocratic Franconian

family which among its members were

Lorenz von Bibra Lorenz von Bibra, Duke in Franconia (1459, Mellrichstadt – 6 February 1519, Würzburg) was Prince-Bishop of the Bishopric of Würzburg from 1495 to 1519. His life paralleled that of Maximilian I (1459–1519), who ruled the Holy Roman ...

, Prince-Bishop of

, Duke in

(1459–1519), Lorenz’ half brother,

Wilhelm von Bibra Wilhelm von Bibra (1442–1490) (''Eques auratus'') was a Papal emissary. Papal emissary Wilhelm functioned as a Papal Emissary for both the archbishop of Cologne and Kaiser Friedrich. Wilhelm’s half brother, Prince Bishop Lorenz von Bibra ...

Papal emissary,

Heinrich von Bibra Heinrich von Bibra (Heinrich VIII of Fulda), Prince-Bishop, Prince-Abbot of Fulda (1711–1788) was Prince-Bishop and Prince-Abbot from 1759 to 1788. As part his role as Prince-Abbot of Fulda, he had the additional role as Archchancellor (' ...

, Prince-Bishop, Prince-Abbot of Fulda (1711–1788) and

Ernst von Bibra Ernst von Bibra (9 June 1806 in Schwebheim – 5 June 1878 in Nuremberg) was a German Naturalist ( Natural history scientist) and author. Ernst was a botanist, zoologist, metallurgist, chemist, geographer, travel writer, novelist, duelli ...

(*1806 ; † 1878), naturalist and author.

Grave

The main part of his body was buried at the

Würzburg Cathedral Würzburg Cathedral (german: Würzburger Dom) is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Würzburg in Bavaria, Germany, dedicated to Saint Kilian. It is the seat of the Bishop of Würzburg and has served as the burial place for the Prince-Bishops of Wür ...

(see diagram below). His tomb monument (#32) by Peter Dell the Elder and the bronze plate (#37) are both on display. The bronze plate was apparently damaged in World War II. Photo of undamaged bronze plate is linked.

References

*THEOBALD FREUDENBERGER, ''Die Fürstbischöfe von Würzburg und das Konzil von Trent'', Reformationsgeschichtliche Studien und Texte, 128. Münster: Aschendorffsche Verlagsbuchhandlung,, , 1989; *WERNER WAGENHÖFER, ''Die Bibra: Studien und Materialien zur Genealogie und zur Besitzgeschichte einer fränkischen Niederadelsfamilie im Spätmittelalter'', Verlag Degener & Co, 1998, 699 pages, ; *WILHELM FRHR. VON BIBRA, ''Geschicte der Familie der Freiherrn von Bibra'', 1870; *WILHELM FRHR. VON BIBRA, ''Beiträge zur Familien Geschichte der Reichsfreiherrn von Bibra, Zweiter Band'' (vol. 2), 1882; *ALFRED WENDEHORST, ''Das Bistum Würzburg: Teil 3. Die Bischofsreihe von 1455 -1617'', 1978, , pp. 100–109;

External links

German BiographyConrad von Bibra Page on vonbibra.net include photo of bronze grave plate prior to WWII damage
Wuerzburg Dom enlargednumbers

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bibra, Conrad von 1490 births 1544 deaths 16th-century Roman Catholic bishops in Bavaria Prince-Bishops of Würzburg Dukes of Germany Conrad University of Cologne alumni University of Bologna alumni University of Erfurt alumni University of Ingolstadt alumni Burials at Würzburg Cathedral Dukes of Franconia