Count Christoph of Hohenzollern-Haigerloch (20 March 1552 in

Haigerloch Haigerloch is a town in the north-western part of the Swabian Alb in Germany. Geography Geographical location Haigerloch lies at between 430 and 550 metres elevation in the valley of the Eyach river, which forms two loops in a steep shelly limes ...

– 21 April 1592, Haigerloch) was the first Count of

Hohenzollern-Haigerloch (Nothing without God) , national_anthem = , common_languages = German , religion = Roman Catholic , currency = , demonym=, area_km2=, area_rank=, GDP_PPP=, GDP_PPP_year=, HDI=, HDI_year=, today= Hohenzollern-Haigerloch was a small county in southwe ...

Life

Christoph was the third surviving son of Count

Karl I Charles I or Karl I (german: Karl Franz Josef Ludwig Hubert Georg Otto Maria, hu, Károly Ferenc József Lajos Hubert György Ottó Mária; 17 August 18871 April 1922) was Emperor of Austria, King of Hungary (as Charles IV, ), King of Croatia, ...

of Hohenzollern (1516-1576) from his marriage to Anna (1512-1579), daughter of

Ernst, Margrave of Baden-Durlach Margrave Ernest I of Baden-Durlach (7 October 1482, Pforzheim – 6 February 1553, Sulzburg) was the founder of the so-called "Ernestine" line of the House of Baden, the line from which the later Grand Dukes descended. He was the ruling Ma ...

. Christoph studied law together with his brother Karl II (1547-1606) studied in

Freiburg im Breisgau Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic German, Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population o ...

and Bourges. When Karl I died in 1576, the County of Hohenzollern was divided into

Hohenzollern-Hechingen Hohenzollern-Hechingen was a small principality in southwestern Germany. Its rulers belonged to the Swabian branch of the Hohenzollern dynasty. History The County of Hohenzollern-Hechingen was created in 1576, upon the partition of the Coun ...

Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen ( en, Nothing without God) , national_anthem = , common_languages = German , religion = Roman Catholic , currency = , title_leader = Prince , leader1 ...

and

. Christoph, the youngest son, received the Lordship of Haigerloch, which had been acquired in 1497. It included Enisheim Castle and the towns of Imnau and Stetten. His eldest brother Eitel Friedrich IV received Hechingen, his other brother Karl II received Sigmaringen. Christoph's part had 10000 inhabitants at the time and was substantially smaller than the parts of his brothers. Christoph founded the elder Haigerloch line, which died out with his younger son. Christoph cared intensely about the administration of his country. He soon began an extensive reconstruction of his

Haigerloch Castle Haigerloch is a town in the north-western part of the Swabian Alb in Germany. Geography Geographical location Haigerloch lies at between 430 and 550 metres elevation in the valley of the Eyach river, which forms two loops in a steep shelly limest ...

; he felt that the medieval castle was not representative for a ruler of his era. However, he died before the work could be completed. Christoph and his wife together founded the Holy Trinity Church in Haigerloch. When Count Christoph Stanislaus of Nellenburg died in 1591, Christoph inherited the Lordship of Wehrstein with the castle of the same name and the village of Dettensee. Christoph inherited because Christoph Stanislaus's brother had been married to a countess of Hohenzollern. The other claimant was Anna Maria of Wolfentein, who had had a failed marriage with a citizen of

Bregenz Bregenz (; gsw, label= Vorarlbergian, Breagaz ) is the capital of Vorarlberg, the westernmost state of Austria. The city lies on the east and southeast shores of Lake Constance, the third-largest freshwater lake in Central Europe, between Switze ...

named Fezenn. Christoph and his brothers discredited her by claiming she had been a prostitute.

Marriage and issue

Christoph married Catherine (died after 1608), a daughter of Baron Christoph of Welsperg, in Sigmaringen in 1577. Christoph and Catherine had the following children: * Johann Christoph (1586-1620), Count of Hohenzollern-Haigerloch : married in 1608 to Countess Marie Elisabeth of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1592-1659) *

Karl Karl may refer to: People * Karl (given name), including a list of people and characters with the name * Karl der Große, commonly known in English as Charlemagne * Karl Marx, German philosopher and political writer * Karl of Austria, last Austria ...

(1588-1634), Count of Hohenzollern-Haigerloch : married in 1618 to Countess Rosamunde of Ortenburg (d. 1636) * Gwendolyn Marie Salome (1578-1647), a nun in the

Inzigkofen Abbey Inzigkofen is a municipality in the district of Sigmaringen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. Historically, it is part of the Swabian north Alpine foreland basin. It consists of three districts: Within Engelswies is the now-abandoned Talsbe ...

* Anna Dorothea († 1647), Prioress at Inzigkofen Abbey * Marie Sidonia, a nun at

Söflingen Abbey Söflingen Abbey was a nunnery of the Order of Poor Ladies, also known as the Poor Clares, the Poor Clare Sisters, the Clarisse, the Minoresses, or the Second Order of St. Francis. It was situated in the village of Söflingen, now part of U ...

* Jakobe (died after 1607)

References

* ''Württembergische Jahrbücher für vaterländische Geschichte, Geographie, Statistik und Topographie'', Aue, 1837, p. 115
Online
* Gustav Schilling: ''Geschichte des Hauses Hohenzollern, in genealogisch fortlaufenden Biographien aller seiner Regenten von den ältesten bis auf die neuesten Zeiten, nach Urkunden und andern authentischen Quellen'', F. Fleischer, 1843, p. 309 ff * Fidelis Baur: ''Geschichte der hohenzollernschen Staaten Hechingen und Sigmaringen'', Bucher und Liener, 1834, p. 7 ff

External links

*
Family tree
' at the site of the Group Prince of Hohenzollern {{DEFAULTSORT:Christoph, Count of Hohenzollern-Haigerloch Counts of Hohenzollern-Haigerloch 1552 births 1592 deaths 16th-century German people House of Hohenzollern-Haigerloch