The House of Fürstenberg is the name of a German noble family of

Westphalia Westphalia (; german: Westfalen ; nds, Westfalen ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the regio ...

, which descended from Hermannus de Vorstenberg. He was a liegeman of the Archbishop of Cologne, who was among the

prince elector The prince-electors (german: Kurfürst pl. , cz, Kurfiřt, la, Princeps Elector), or electors for short, were the members of the electoral college that elected the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. From the 13th century onwards, the prince ...

s of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

. Hermannus held a castle for his lord called

Fürstenberg Fürstenberg (also Fuerstenberg and Furstenberg) may refer to: Historical states * Fürstenberg-Baar, county (1441–1559) * Fürstenberg-Blumberg, county (1559–1614) * Fürstenberg-Donaueschingen, county (1617–1698) * Fürstenberg-Fürsten ...

("Prince's Hill") at

Ense Ense () is a municipality in the district of Soest, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Ense is situated on the river Möhne, approx. 12 km north-west of Arnsberg and 12 km south-west of Soest. Ense lies at the northside of ...

-Höingen in Soest; this castle would give the family its name. His son was Wilhelm von Vorstenberg, the Justiciar and Castellan of

Werl Werl (; Westphalian: ''Wiärl'') is a town located in the district of Soest in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Werl is easily accessible because it is located between the Sauerland, Münsterland, and the Ruhr Area. The Hellweg road ...

History

Klärung - Wappen der Adelsfamilie Fürstenberg

Already

Imperial Knight The Free Imperial knights (german: link=no, Reichsritter la, Eques imperii) were free nobles of the Holy Roman Empire, whose direct overlord was the Emperor. They were the remnants of the medieval free nobility ('' edelfrei'') and the minister ...

s, the family members were created Imperial Barons ('' Reichsfreiherren'') on 26 April 1660. Matriculation to the baronial class in the

Kingdom of Bavaria The Kingdom of Bavaria (german: Königreich Bayern; ; spelled ''Baiern'' until 1825) was a German state that succeeded the former Electorate of Bavaria in 1805 and continued to exist until 1918. With the unification of Germany into the German ...

occurred on 22 August 1891 for Friedrich Freiherr von Fürstenberg, ''

Rittmeister __NOTOC__ (German and Scandinavian for "riding master" or "cavalry master") is or was a military rank of a commissioned cavalry officer in the armies of Germany, Austria-Hungary, Scandinavia, and some other countries. A ''Rittmeister'' is typic ...

à la suite À la suite (, ''in the entourage f') was a military title given to those who were allotted to the army or a particular unit for honour's sake, and entitled to wear a regimental uniform but otherwise had no official position. In Prussia, these w ...

'' in the

Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt The Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt (german: Landgrafschaft Hessen-Darmstadt) was a State of the Holy Roman Empire, ruled by a younger branch of the House of Hesse. It was formed in 1567 following the division of the Landgraviate of Hesse bet ...

and Freeholder of Egenburg by

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 ...

. The baronial Fürstenberg family of Westphalia should not be confused with the princely family of Fürstenberg from Swabia. Some members of the family were elevated to

comital Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

dignities during German Mediatization for their services to the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918. Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. ...

, or given honorific titles for their twentieth-century achievements: *'' Herdringen Line'': a

Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...

n '' graviate''; the title was ''Graf von Fürstenberg-Herdringen'', and an ''estate in tail'', Besitz Herdringen, was given on 16 January 1843 to Franz Egon Freiherr von Fürstenberg of Herdringen (1818–1902), a member of the

Prussian House of Lords The Prussian House of Lords (german: Preußisches Herrenhaus) in Berlin was the upper house of the Landtag of Prussia (german: Preußischer Landtag), the parliament of Prussia from 1850 to 1918. Together with the lower house, the House of Re ...

and Seneschal in the Duchy of Westphalia. *''Stammheim Line'': a Prussian graviate; the title of ''Graf von Fürstenberg-Stammheim'', in the Demesne of Stammheim, was given on 15 October 1840 to the Royal Prussian

Chamberlain Chamberlain may refer to: Profession *Chamberlain (office), the officer in charge of managing the household of a sovereign or other noble figure People *Chamberlain (surname) **Houston Stewart Chamberlain (1855–1927), German-British philosop ...

, Franz Egon Freiherr von Fürstenberg of Stammheim, and the

heirs Inheritance is the practice of receiving private property, titles, debts, entitlements, privileges, rights, and obligations upon the death of an individual. The rules of inheritance differ among societies and have changed over time. Officia ...

of his body. This line died out in 1925. *''

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

naturalisation Naturalization (or naturalisation) is the legal act or process by which a non-citizen of a country may acquire citizenship or nationality of that country. It may be done automatically by a statute, i.e., without any effort on the part of the in ...

'' as ''Baron de Furstenberg'' was granted on 18 April 1887 to Clemens Freiherr von Fürstenberg. A Belgian '' comté'' was created with the title of ''Comte de Furstenberg'' on 3 January 1964 for Wenemar Freiherr von Furstenberg, an

agricultural scientist An agriculturist, agriculturalist, agrologist, or agronomist (abbreviated as agr.), is a professional in the science, practice, and management of agriculture and agribusiness. It is a regulated profession in Canada, India, the Philippines, the U ...

Former holdings

The family's ancestral seat is Schloss Herdringen near

Arnsberg Arnsberg (; wep, Arensperg) is a town in the Hochsauerland county, in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It is the location of the Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg administration and one of the three local administration offices of the Hoch ...

. In the nineteenth century, the family also owned the following castles: *Eggeringhausen *Gimborn *Hugenpoet-Borbeck *Körtlinghausen * Köln-Stammheim

Notable members

* Kaspar of Fürstenberg, Drost of

(1545–1618) * Dietrich of Fürstenberg, prince bishop of Paderborn (1546–1618) * Ferdinand Freiherr von Fürstenberg, prince bishop of Paderborn, prince bishop of Münster (1626–1683) *

Franz Friedrich Wilhelm von Fürstenberg Franz Friedrich Wilhelm von Fürstenberg (7 August 1729 in Schloss Herdringen16 September 1810 in Münster) was a German politician and the most important statesman in the Principality of Münster in the second half of the 18th century. Fürste ...

, statesman and educator (1729–1810) * Franz Egon Freiherr von Fürstenberg, prince bishop of Paderborn, prince bishop of Hildesheim (1737–1825) * Franz Egon Graf von Fürstenberg-Stammheim (1797–1859) * Maximilien de Furstenberg-Stammheim (1904–1988), a cardinal of the Catholic Church and prefect of the

Congregation for the Oriental Churches The Dicastery for the Eastern Churches (also called Dicastery for the Oriental Churches), previously named Congregation for the Oriental Churches or Congregation for the Eastern Churches ( la, Congregatio pro Ecclesiis Orientalibus), is a dicaste ...

* Elimar Freiherr von Fürstenberg (1910–1981)

Fürstenberg-Herdringen

* Franz Egon Freiherr von Fürstenberg-Herdringen (1818–1902) * Engelbert Egon Graf von Fürstenberg-Herdringen (1850–1918) * Franz-Egon Graf von Fürstenberg-Herdringen (1896–1975), married to Gloria Guinness (1912–1980) * Wenemar von Fürstenberg-Herdringen (1897–1972) *

Betsy von Furstenberg Countess Elizabeth Caroline Maria Agatha Felicitas Therese von Fürstenberg-Herdringen (August 16, 1931 – April 21, 2015), known as Betsy von Furstenberg, was a German-born American actress who starred in several Broadway plays, films and tele ...

-Herdringen (1931–2015), a German-born American radio, television, film, and Broadway actress *

Dolores Guinness Dolores Guinness (31 July 1936 – 20 January 2012) was a German-born "Freiin" (Baroness), socialite, fashion icon and jet set member of the 1950s and 1960s. She has been a member of the International Best Dressed List since 1970. Her mother was ...

''née'' von Fürstenberg-Herdringen (1936–2012) * Franz-Egon von Fürstenberg-Herdringen (born 1939) * Adelina von Fürstenberg, married to Franz-Egon von Fürstenberg-Herdringen

References

Bibliography

* Andernach, Norbert/Keinemann, Friedrich et al. (rev.): ''Fürstenbergsche Geschichte, 4th vol., Die Geschichte des Geschlechtes von Fürstenberg im 18. Jahrhundert'', Münster, 1979. * * Gosmann, Michael (ed.): ''Fürstenberger Skizzen. Streifzug durch 700 Jahre westfälische Familien- und Landesgeschichte'', Arnsberg, 1995. * v. Klocke, Friedrich (rev.): ''Fürstenbergsche Geschichte, 1st vol., Die Geschichte des Geschlechtes von Fürstenberg bis um 1400'', 2nd edn., Münster, 1971. * v. Klocke, Friedrich und Theuerkauf, Gerhard: ''Fürstenbergsche Geschichte, 2nd vol., Die Geschichte des Geschlechtes von Fürstenberg von 1400 bis um 1600'', Münster, 1971. * Lahrkamp, Helmut/Richtering, Helmut et al. (rev.): ''Fürstenbergsche Geschichte, 3rd vol., Die Geschichte des Geschlechtes von Fürstenberg im 17. Jahrhundert'', Münster, 1971. *

Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels The ''Almanach de Gotha'' (german: Gothaischer Hofkalender) is a directory of Europe's royalty and higher nobility, also including the major governmental, military and diplomatic corps, as well as statistical data by country. First published ...

, Freiherrliche Häuser, Vol.XV, pp. 135–177, Vol. 69 of the series, C. A. Starke Verlag, Limburg (Lahn), 1989. *Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Adelslexikon Vol. III, p. 420, Vol. 61 of the series, C. A. Starke Verlag, Limburg (Lahn), 1975. {{DEFAULTSORT:Furstenberg (Baronial Family) German noble families People from former German states in North Rhine-Westphalia Duchy of Westphalia