Siegfried I of Ballenstedt ( – 9 March 1113), was the son of Adalbert II of Ballenstedt, and a member of the

House of Ascania The House of Ascania (german: Askanier) was a dynasty of German rulers. It is also known as the House of Anhalt, which refers to its longest-held possession, Anhalt. The Ascanians are named after Ascania (or Ascaria) Castle, known as ''Schlo ...

. He was

count palatine A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an or ...

of the

Rhineland The Rhineland (german: Rheinland; french: Rhénanie; nl, Rijnland; ksh, Rhingland; Latinised name: ''Rhenania'') is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. Term Historically, the Rhinelands ...

(r.1095/7-1113), and

count 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: ...

of Weimar-Orlamünde (r.1112-1113).

Life

Siegfried was born around 1075. He was the son of Adalbert II of Ballenstedt and Adelaide of Weimar-Orlamünde, daughter of Otto I of Meissen and his wife, Adela of Louvain. Siegfried's father, Adalbert, was murdered by Egeno II of Konradsburg in 1080, and Siegfried's brother, Otto the Rich, succeeded him as count of Ballenstedt. Siegfried inherited his father's property in Nordthüringengau. After Adalbert's death, Siegfried's mother remarried twice, to two successive

counts palatine A count palatine (Latin ''comes palatinus''), also count of the palace or palsgrave (from German ''Pfalzgraf''), was originally an official attached to a royal or imperial palace or household and later a nobleman of a rank above that of an ord ...

of the

: first, Hermann II (d.1085), and then

Henry of Laach Henry of Laach (in German: ''Heinrich von Laach'') was the first count palatine of the Rhine (1085/1087–1095). Henry was the son of Herman I, count of Gleiberg. Henry was a follower of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor. He had lands in the southeast ...

(d.1095). After Henry's death, Siegfried claimed his title of

of the Rhineland (r.1095/7-1113). Influenced by the

First Crusade The First Crusade (1096–1099) was the first of a series of religious wars, or Crusades, initiated, supported and at times directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The objective was the recovery of the Holy Land from Islamic r ...

, Siegfried is thought to have travelled to

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. In 1112 he is also said to have completed the foundation of

Maria Laach Abbey Maria Laach Abbey (in German: ''Abtei Maria Laach'', in Latin: ''Abbatia Maria Lacensis'' or ''Abbatia Maria ad Lacum'') is a Benedictine abbey situated on the southwestern shore of the Laacher See (Lake Laach), near Andernach, in the Eifel ...

, begun in 1093 by his mother, Adelaide, and his stepfather, Henry of Laach. In 1112 Ulric II of Weimar-Orlamünde died without heirs. By virtue of his mother, Adelaide's, kinship, Siegfried then claimed Ulric's title. This led Siegfried into conflict with Emperor

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1 ...

. Imperial partisans attacked Siegfried at the Teufelsmauer in the Harz on 21 February 1113. Siegfried survived the attack, but died of his injuries on 9 March 1113.

Marriage and children

Siegfried married Gertrude, a daughter of Henry, Margrave of Frisia, with whom he had three children:Dendorfer, 'Si(e)gfrid,' p. 345. * Siegfried II of Weimar-Orlamünde (1107-1124) * Adela of Weimar-Orlamünde, married Conrad I of Peilstein * William of Weimar-Orlamünde (1112-1140)

References

* Gerold Meyer von Knonau, 'Sigfrid (Graf von Ballenstedt), Pfalzgraf von Lothringen,' in ''Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie'', vol. 34 (Leipzig, 1892), pp. 257f.
J. Dendorfer, ‘Si(e)gfrid (Graf von Ballenstedt, Pfalzgraf von Lothringen),’
in ''Neue Deutsche Biographie'', vol 24 (Berlin, 2010), , pp. 345f. * A. Thiele, ''Erzählende genealogische Stammtafeln zur europäischen Geschichte Band I, Teilband 1 Deutsche Kaiser-, Königs-, Herzogs- und Grafenhäuser I'' * L. Partenheimer, ''Albrecht der Bär. Gründer der Mark Brandenburg und des Fürstentums Anhalt'' * Loud, Graham A.; Schenk, Jochen, eds. (2017). ''The Origins of the German Principalities, 1100-1350: Essays by German Historians''. Routledge. *

Notes

{{Authority control 11th-century deaths People from Ballenstedt House of Ascania Counts of Germany Counts of Weimar-Orlamünde Counts Palatine of the Rhine