Konrad von Altstetten ( 1320–1327) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

petty nobleman and

Middle High German Middle High German (MHG; german: Mittelhochdeutsch (Mhd.)) is the term for the form of German spoken in the High Middle Ages. It is conventionally dated between 1050 and 1350, developing from Old High German and into Early New High German. High ...

lyric poet Modern lyric poetry is a formal type of poetry which expresses personal emotions or feelings, typically spoken in the first person. It is not equivalent to song lyrics, though song lyrics are often in the lyric mode, and it is also ''not'' equi ...

in the '' Minnesang'' (

courtly love Courtly love ( oc, fin'amor ; french: amour courtois ) was a medieval European literary conception of love that emphasized nobility and chivalry. Medieval literature is filled with examples of knights setting out on adventures and performing vari ...

) tradition. He belonged to a family of

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerain. W ...

s of the Abbey of Saint Gall, based in Altstätten. His poetry, light in style, was influenced by

Gottfried von Neifen Gottfried von Neifen ( fl. 1234–1255) was a German ''Minnesänger'' (lyric poet). Gottfried was born to an ''Edelfrei'' famly of Swabia. He was associated with the court of King Henry VII of Germany (1220–1235) and is mentioned in documents be ...

. Three of his songs are preserved in the Codex Manesse.

Life

Konrad von Altstetten belonged to a family of '' ministeriales'' (or ''

Dienstmann A ''Dienstmann'' (plural: ''Dienstleute'' or, in Austria, ''Dienstmänner'') was a medieval retainer or vassal and, later, a hired man, in German-speaking countries, particularly in Austria until the first half of the 20th century. Usage The t ...

en'', that is, unfree vassals) of the Abbey of Saint Gall. The centre of the family was the old castle of Altstätten in the

Oberrheintal Oberrheintal District (german: Bezirk Oberrheintal) is a former district of the canton of St. Gallen in Switzerland. Former districts of the canton of St. Gallen {{StGallen-geo-stub ...

(today part of Switzerland). The family is attested between 1166 and 1436. The younger line that held the '' Meieramt'' (stewardship) of Altstätten after 1279. There are several known Konrads in the family. A

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

named Konrad von Altstetten is attested in 1235 and a priest in 1268, but it is generally accepted that the poet is the ''Meier'' (steward) mentioned in a few documents.. Konrad's father was named Walther (fl. 1280–1316). He had younger brothers named Rudolf, Dietrich and Walther. The exact dates of Konrad's stewardship are not known. In 1320, he and Rudolf witnessed a document issued by Abbot Hiltbold. In 1327, the abbot pledged to him the profits of justice (income from

court fees Court costs (also called law costs in English procedure) are the costs of handling a case, which, depending on legal rules, may or may not include the costs of the various parties in a lawsuit in addition to the costs of the court itself. In the ...

) from the ecclesiastical court in Altstätten. In a document of 1334, Konrad's brother Walther is mentioned as steward, meaning that Konrad had probably died. In 1338, the castle of Altstätten was destroyed in a conflict between the steward and the city of

Konstanz Konstanz (, , locally: ; also written as Constance in English) is a university city with approximately 83,000 inhabitants located at the western end of Lake Constance in the south of Germany. The city houses the University of Konstanz and was th ...

and its allies. On 30 January 1341, Walther met with representatives of the cities to secure a peace. In 1372, Konrad's three nephews, Christoffel, Rudolf and Hermann, the sons of his brother Rudolf, made a pious endowment to Saint Gall in his memory.Placid Bütler (1919)
"Die Edeln und Meier von Altstätten"
''Anzeiger für schweizerische Geschichte'' 17, pp. 112–127.

Works

Konrad's poetry is light in style and shows the influence of

. His language, however, belongs to the later generation of

Johannes Hadlaub Johannes Hadlaub ( fl. 1300, d. before 1340) is one of the Minnesingers whose works are recorded in ''Codex Manesse''. He was a citizen of Zürich, and is on record as buying a house there in 1302. There are 51 songs by Hadlaub in the Codex Man ...

, active in the early 14th century.. Three of his songs, a total of thirteen stanzas, are preserved in a single manuscript, the Codex Manesse. All three seem to be dances: *''Ich hân mîn herze''

Karl Bartsch Karl Friedrich Adolf Konrad Bartsch (25 February 1832, in Sprottau – 19 February 1888, in Heidelberg) was a German medievalist. He studied philology at the universities of Breslau (from 1848) and Berlin (1851/52), where he was a pupil of Wilhe ...

(1886)
''Die Schweizer Minnesänger''
(Frauenfeld, Huber), s.v. XXIV. Konrad (Kuonrât) von Altsteten, pp. clii–clv with text at pp. 265–269. *''Wol dem meien, wol der wunne'' *''Der sumer hât den meien'' In the Codex Manesse, there is an illustration of Konrad holding a hunting falcon and reclining in his lover's arms beneath a rose bush."Konrad von Altstetten"
''Feminae: Medieval Women and Gender Index'' (University of Iowa Libraries, 2014). The tied falcon suggests that "his sexual aggression has been tamed". The scene may depict the woman distracting Konrad from feeding his falcon. It represents the most intimate pose in the illustrations of the codex, and is certainly reflective of the intimacy of the lyrics.Adam Oberlin (2012)
''The Style and Structure of Minnesang''
PhD diss., University of Minnesota, p. 191. Above and to the left is a depiction of Konrad's

coat-of-arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its w ...

. Unlike other members of his family, Konrad did not use his coat-of-arms on his seal. Surviving examples of his seal show a helmet with three hackles, which is depicted in the top right of the illustration in the Codex Manesse.

Notes

External links

*
Burg Alt Altstätten
the old castle of Altstätten {{DEFAULTSORT:Konrad Von Altstetten 14th-century German poets People from Altstätten German male poets Minnesingers Ministeriales