Ottokar III (1124 – December 31, 1164) was

Margrave Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the Emp ...

Styria Styria (german: Steiermark ; Serbo-Croatian and sl, ; hu, Stájerország) is a state (''Bundesland'') in the southeast of Austria. With an area of , Styria is the second largest state of Austria, after Lower Austria. Styria is bordered to ...

from 1129 until 1164.

Biography

He was the son of Leopold the Strong and Sophia of Bavaria, and father of Ottokar IV, the last of the dynasty of the

Otakars The Otakars (or von Traungaus) were a medieval dynasty ruling the Imperial March of Styria (later the Duchy of Styria) from 1056 to 1192. History The dynasty began with Otakar I, probably a son or son-in-law of Aribo (c. 850909), margrave in Pan ...

. His wife was Kunigunde of Chamb-Vohburg. From the

Marburg Marburg ( or ) is a university town in the German federal state (''Bundesland'') of Hesse, capital of the Marburg-Biedenkopf district (''Landkreis''). The town area spreads along the valley of the river Lahn and has a population of approximate ...

line of the Counts of Sponheim, he inherited parts of

Lower Styria Styria ( sl, Štajerska), also Slovenian Styria (''Slovenska Štajerska'') or Lower Styria (''Spodnja Štajerska''; german: Untersteiermark), is a traditional region in northeastern Slovenia, comprising the southern third of the former Duchy o ...

between the

Drave The Drava or Drave''Utrata Fachwörterbuch ...

and Save rivers in what is today

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

. From his uncle, the last Count of Formbach, he inherited the

County of Pitten A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

in 1158, which is today in

Lower Austria Lower Austria (german: Niederösterreich; Austro-Bavarian: ''Niedaöstareich'', ''Niedaestareich'') is one of the nine states of Austria, located in the northeastern corner of the country. Since 1986, the capital of Lower Austria has been Sankt P ...

, but remained part of Styria until the 16th century. To improve connection to that territory, he improved the roads across the

Semmering Pass Semmering () is a mountain pass in the Eastern Northern Limestone Alps connecting Lower Austria and Styria, between which it forms a natural border. Location Semmering Pass is located west of Sonnwendstein and Hirschenkogel and east of the P ...

, and he also erected a hospital in

Spital am Semmering Spital am Semmering, in the Semmering Pass, is a municipality in the district of Bruck-Mürzzuschlag in Styria, Austria. It is home to the Stuhleck ski hill. Spital was largely endowed in 1160 by seven of the Margrave of Styria's ministeriales ...

in 1160 as well as completing the colonization of the area around the Traisen and

Gölsen The Gölsen is a river in Lower Austria, in the Mostviertel. It is a right tributary of the Traisen. Its drainage basin is . The river begins in Hainfeld with the confluence of the Fliedersbach and the Ramsaubach (also called the ''Innere Gölse ...

rivers. Ottokar exercised

seigniorage Seigniorage , also spelled seignorage or seigneurage (from the Old French ''seigneuriage'', "right of the lord (''seigneur'') to mint money"), is the difference between the value of money and the cost to produce and distribute it. The term can be ...

over

natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. O ...

of his realm, extended territorial rule and minted his own coins. He also founded the

Augustinian Augustinian may refer to: *Augustinians, members of religious orders following the Rule of St Augustine *Augustinianism, the teachings of Augustine of Hippo and his intellectual heirs *Someone who follows Augustine of Hippo * Canons Regular of Sain ...

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer which ...

Vorau Abbey Vorau Abbey is an abbey of the Austrian Congregation of Canons Regular located in Vorau, Styria, Austria. Founded in 1163, it contains an ornate Viennese High Baroque collegiate church and library that date to the 18th century. History Vo ...

and founded and supported the

Carthusian The Carthusians, also known as the Order of Carthusians ( la, Ordo Cartusiensis), are a Latin enclosed religious order of the Catholic Church. The order was founded by Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns. The order has its ...

monastery of Seitz. From the

Second Crusade The Second Crusade (1145–1149) was the second major crusade launched from Europe. The Second Crusade was started in response to the fall of the County of Edessa in 1144 to the forces of Zengi. The county had been founded during the First Crusa ...

, he brought

Byzantine The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...

craftsmen to Styria. He was buried in his foundation at Seitz, but his body was later transferred to Rein Abbey in Styria.

External links

{{Authority control 1124 births 1164 deaths Margraves of Styria 12th-century people of the Holy Roman Empire Christians of the Second Crusade Burials at Rein Abbey, Austria