Nikolaus Georg von Reigersberg (1598 – 7 June 1651) was an

imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texas ...

official, Chancellor in the

Electorate of Mainz The Electorate of Mainz (german: Kurfürstentum Mainz or ', la, Electoratus Moguntinus), previously known in English as Mentz and by its French name Mayence, was one of the most prestigious and influential states of the Holy Roman Empire. In the ...

and Mayor of

Aschaffenburg Aschaffenburg (; South Franconian: ''Aschebersch'') is a town in northwest Bavaria, Germany. The town of Aschaffenburg is not part of the district of Aschaffenburg, but is its administrative seat. Aschaffenburg belonged to the Archbishopric ...

. He came to wider prominence as a delegate from

Mainz Mainz () is the capital and largest city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Mainz is on the left bank of the Rhine, opposite to the place that the Main joins the Rhine. Downstream of the confluence, the Rhine flows to the north-west, with Ma ...

to the

negotiations Negotiation is a dialogue between two or more people or parties to reach the desired outcome regarding one or more issues of conflict. It is an interaction between entities who aspire to agree on matters of mutual interest. The agreement c ...

Münster Münster (; nds, Mönster) is an independent city (''Kreisfreie Stadt'') in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is in the northern part of the state and is considered to be the cultural centre of the Westphalia region. It is also a state d ...

that eventually ended the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battl ...

Life

Provenance, early years and family

Born in 1598, Nikolaus Georg von Reigersberg was the son of a

butcher A butcher is a person who may slaughter animals, dress their flesh, sell their meat, or participate within any combination of these three tasks. They may prepare standard cuts of meat and poultry for sale in retail or wholesale food establishm ...

, also called Georg von Reigersberg, in

Diedenhofen Thionville (; ; german: Diedenhofen ) is a city in the northeastern French department of Moselle. The city is located on the left bank of the river Moselle, opposite its suburb Yutz. History Thionville was settled as early as the time of t ...

and his wife Anna Gudnacht. The younger Georg von Reigersberg studied

Jurisprudence Jurisprudence, or legal theory, is the theoretical study of the propriety of law. Scholars of jurisprudence seek to explain the nature of law in its most general form and they also seek to achieve a deeper understanding of legal reasoning ...

Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...

and

, concluding his studies with a double doctorate in canon and

civil law Civil law may refer to: * Civil law (common law), the part of law that concerns private citizens and legal persons * Civil law (legal system), or continental law, a legal system originating in continental Europe and based on Roman law ** Private la ...

. His first marriage, which took place on 24 August 1624, was to Maria Salome von Faber, the daughter of the

cup-bearer A cup-bearer was historically an officer of high rank in royal courts, whose duty was to pour and serve the drinks at the royal table. On account of the constant fear of plots and intrigues (such as poisoning), a person must have been regarded as ...

Nikolaus Faber. She died in 1639, by which point the marriage had produced four recorded sons and one daughter. His second marriage was to the heiress Eva Maria von Münster, who brought the Collenburg into the family. The Collenburg (hill), and a century later the Schloss Fechenbach, would become the family seat for their heirs.

Career

His professional career began in 1622 with a court appointment as secretary in the electoral chancelry of

. From 1624 till 1651 he also served as

Schultheiß In medieval Germany, the ''Schultheiß'' () was the head of a municipality (akin to today's office of mayor), a ''Vogt'' or an executive official of the ruler. As official (''villicus'') it was his duty to order his assigned village or county (' ...

.Carsten Pollnick: ''Aschaffenburger Stadtoberhäupter'' Würzburg: Volksblatt Verlagsgesellschaft mbH 1983, He also presided as

inquisitor An inquisitor was an official (usually with judicial or investigative functions) in an inquisition – an organization or program intended to eliminate heresy and other things contrary to the doctrine or teachings of the Catholic faith. Lit ...

witch trial A witch-hunt, or a witch purge, is a search for people who have been labeled witches or a search for evidence of witchcraft. The classical period of witch-hunts in Early Modern Europe and Colonial America took place in the Early Modern peri ...

s at

, Großkrotzenburg, Wörth und Mönchberg. However, he was relieved of his inquisitorial responsibilities in 1628 following allegations that he was using the office to enrich himself. In 1635 Elector-Archbishop Anselm Casimir Wambold von Umstadt appointed him to the nobility. Between 1640 and 1643 he was a member of the Elector-Archbishop's privy council, and Chancellor of the Archbishopric of Mainz. The size of von Reigersberg's footprint on history results not merely from a succession of court appointments and meetings with princes, but also from his participation in the peace negotiations at

and

Osnabrück Osnabrück (; wep, Ossenbrügge; archaic ''Osnaburg'') is a city in the German state of Lower Saxony. It is situated on the river Hase in a valley penned between the Wiehen Hills and the northern tip of the Teutoburg Forest. With a populat ...

in March 1648 which led to the

Peace of Westphalia The Peace of Westphalia (german: Westfälischer Friede, ) is the collective name for two peace treaties signed in October 1648 in the Westphalian cities of Osnabrück and Münster. They ended the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648) and brought pe ...

and the end of thirty years of exceptionally destructive warfare. As the representative of Johann Philipp von Schönborn, who had taken over as Elector-Archbishop of Mainz in 1647, on 24 October 1648 von Reigersberg placed his signature on the treaty document. His was the first of the signatures placed by or on behalf of 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 Holy Roman Emperor, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. From the 13th century ...

s. His contribution was prominently acknowledged by Emperor Ferdinand. In 1651, his politics being no longer in tune with the times, he requested to be released from his chancellorship. He died in 1652 and was buried in The Church of Our Lady in Aaschafenburg.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Reigersberg, Nikolaus Georg von German people of the Thirty Years' War 17th-century German politicians History of Münster 17th-century German judges Law of the Holy Roman Empire Jurists from Rhineland-Palatinate Mayors of places in Bavaria 1651 deaths 1598 births