The House of Starhemberg is the name of an old and distinguished Austrian noble family originating from

Upper Austria Upper Austria (german: Oberösterreich ; bar, Obaöstareich) is one of the nine states or of Austria. Its capital is Linz. Upper Austria borders Germany and the Czech Republic, as well as the other Austrian states of Lower Austria, Styria, a ...

, specifically

Steyr Steyr (; Central Bavarian: ''Steia'') is a statutory city, located in the Austrian federal state of Upper Austria. It is the administrative capital, though not part of Steyr-Land District. Steyr is Austria's 12th most populated town and the 3rd l ...

and Steinbach. Members of the family played important political role within the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

and later in the

Austro-Hungarian Empire Austria-Hungary, often referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire,, the Dual Monarchy, or Austria, was a constitutional monarchy and great power in Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. It was formed with the Austro-Hungarian Compromise of ...

History

The first known member Gundaker I von Steyr was mentioned in the 12th century. In 1150 he married Richezza von Steinbach (''Richezza nobilis matrona de Steinpach'') and through her he inherited Steinbach in 1160. They were made by

imperial count Imperial Count (german: Reichsgraf) was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. In the medieval era, it was used exclusively to designate the holder of an imperial county, that is, a fief held directly ( immediately) from the emperor, rather than from ...

s (''Reichsgrafen'') in 1643 by

Emperor Ferdinand III Ferdinand III (Ferdinand Ernest; 13 July 1608, in Graz – 2 April 1657, in Vienna) was from 1621 Archduke of Austria, King of Hungary from 1625, King of Croatia and Bohemia from 1627 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1637 until his death in 1657. Fe ...

and were later raised to princely rank (''

Reichsfürsten Prince of the Holy Roman Empire ( la, princeps imperii, german: Reichsfürst, cf. ''Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised as such by the Holy Roman Emperor. Definition Originally, possessors o ...

'') in 1765 by

Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II (German: Josef Benedikt Anton Michael Adam; English: ''Joseph Benedict Anthony Michael Adam''; 13 March 1741 – 20 February 1790) was Holy Roman Emperor from August 1765 and sole ruler of the Habsburg lands from November 29, 1780 unt ...

. In 1806 the Princes of Starhemberg lost their independence through

mediatisation Mediatization or mediatisation may refer to: * German mediatisation, German historical territorial restructuring * Mediatization (media) Mediatization (or medialization) is a process whereby the mass media influence other sectors of society, includ ...

initialized by

Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

and lost its sovereign rights, but allowed to retain equality of birth with other reigning families, which was an important fact for marriage purposes. The family belongs to the small circle of

high nobility Traditional rank amongst European royalty, peers, and nobility is rooted in Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages. Although they vary over time and among geographic regions (for example, one region's prince might be equal to another's grand duke) ...

, and their Starhemberg Palace (German: ''Schloss Starhemberg'') in

Eferding Eferding () is the capital of the Eferding district in the Austrian state of Upper Austria. Geography Eferding is the center of the Eferding basin. The city is 2 km away from the Danube River. It has in Upper Austria. History Eferding w ...

, Upper Austria, includes a museum about the family's history.

Mediatized Princes of Starhemberg

* Camillo, 4th Prince (1804-1872) ** Camillo, 5th Prince 1872-1900 (1835-1900) *** Ernst Rüdiger, 6th Prince 1900-1927 (1861-1927) **** Ernst Rüdiger, 7th Prince 1927-1956 (1899-1956) *****

Heinrich Heinrich may refer to: People * Heinrich (given name), a given name (including a list of people with the name) * Heinrich (surname), a surname (including a list of people with the name) *Hetty (given name), a given name (including a list of peo ...

, 8th Prince 1956-1997 (1934-1997) **** ''Prince Georg (1904-1978)'' ***** ''Prince Franz (1933-1995)'' ****** Georg Adam, 6th Prince 1997–present (b.1961) ******* Constantin,

Hereditary Prince A crown prince or hereditary prince is the heir apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The female form of the title is crown princess, which may refer either to an heiress apparent or, especially in earlier times, to the wife ...

of Starhemberg (b.1992) ******* Prince Ernst (b.1995) ****** Prince Franz (b.1963) ******* Prince Nicolaus (b.2001)

Notable family members

Eberhard IV of Starhemberg Eberhard is an old Germanic name meaning the strength or courage of a wild boar. People First name *Eberhard of Friuli (815–866), Duke and key figure in the Carolingian Empire *Eberhard of Béthune (died 1212), Flemish grammarian *Eberhard I, Du ...

(''ca'' 1370–1429),

Archbishop of Salzburg The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Salzburg ( la, Archidioecesis Salisburgensis) is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in Austria. The archdiocese is one of two Austrian archdioceses, serving alongside the Archdiocese of ...

from 1427 until his death * Erasmus of Starhemberg (1503-1560), Austrian noble * Bohunka Starhemberg (died 1530), wife of the Bohemian noble Jost III of Rosenberg, who died at the birth of their daughter * Count

Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg Count Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg (12 January 1638 – 4 January 1701) was military governor of Vienna from 1680, the city's defender during the Battle of Vienna in 1683, Imperial general during the Great Turkish War, and President of the ...

(1638–1701), Austrian politician, field marshal, the defender of Vienna against the Turks in 1683, commander of the Vienna city defence *

Maximilian Lorenz Starhemberg Maximilian, Maximillian or Maximiliaan (Maximilien in French) is a male given name. The name " Max" is considered a shortening of "Maximilian" as well as of several other names. List of people Monarchs *Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (1459� ...

(''ca'' 1640–89), Imperial field marshal and commander of the fortress of

Philippsburg Philippsburg () is a town in the district of Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. History Before 1632, Philippsburg was known as "Udenheim". The city was a possession of the Bishop of Speyer from 1371–1718. The town is named after ...

, brother of Ernst Rüdiger *

Gundaker Thomas Starhemberg Gundaker Thomas Starhemberg (Vienna, December 14, 1663 – Prague, July 8, 1745) was an Austrian economist and politician. Early life His parents were Konrad Balthasar von Starhemberg (1612–1687) and Countess Franziska Katharina Cavria ...

(1663–1745), half-brother of Ernst Rüdiger, financial expert *

Guido Starhemberg Guido Wald Rüdiger, count of Starhemberg (11 November 1657 – 7 March 1737) was an Austrian military officer (commander-in-chief) and by birth member of the House of Starhemberg. He was a cousin of Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg (1638–170 ...

(1657–1737), Austrian commander during the

War of the Spanish Succession The War of the Spanish Succession was a European great power conflict that took place from 1701 to 1714. The death of childless Charles II of Spain in November 1700 led to a struggle for control of the Spanish Empire between his heirs, Phil ...

Maximilian Adam Graf Starhemberg Maximilian, Maximillian or Maximiliaan (Maximilien in French) is a male given name. The name "Max (given name), Max" is considered a shortening of "Maximilian" as well as of several other names. List of people Monarchs *Maximilian I, Holy Roma ...

(1669-1741), brother of Guido and also Austrian field Marshal. * Maria Eva Sophia of Starhemberg (1722–73), married

William Hyacinth, Prince of Nassau-Siegen Prince William Hyacinth of Nassau-Siegen (3 April 1667 in Brussels – 18 February 1743 in Hadamar) was a Prince of Nassau-Siegen. He also claimed the Principality of Orange. Early life William Hyacinth was born as the eldest surviving son ...

and

Constantine, Landgrave of Hesse-Rotenburg Constantine of Hessen-Rotenburg (May 24, 1716 in Rotenburg – December 30, 1778 in Schloss Wildeck) was Landgrave of Hesse-Rotenburg from 1749 until his death. Early life Constantine was the son of Landgrave Ernest Leopold, Landgrave of ...

Georg Adam, Prince of Starhemberg Johann Georg Adam Graf von Starhemberg, since 1765 Fürst von Starhemberg (''prince of Starhemberg'') (10 August 1724 in London – 19 April 1807 in Vienna) was an Austrian diplomat, minister, chief chamberlain and close confidant of Empres ...

(1724-1807), Austrian Ambassador in France *

Ludwig, Prince of Starhemberg Prince Ludwig Joseph Maximilian von Starhemberg (Paris, 12 March 1762 – Dürnstein, Lower Austria, 2 September 1833) was an Austrian diplomat and since 1802 Knight of the Order of the Golden Fleece. Early life Ludwig von Starhemberg was the s ...

(1762-1833), Austrian Ambassador in the United Kingdom * Ernst Rüdiger von Starhemberg (1861–1927), Austrian politician and landowner *

Fanny von Starhemberg Princess Franziska von Starhemberg (german: Franziska Fürstin von Starhemberg, also known as Fanny Starhemberg or Princess Fanny Starhemberg; 24 October 1875 - 27 April 1943), was an Austrian politician of the Christian Social Party. She was the ...

(1875–1943), Austrian politician for the Christian Social Party *

Ernst Rüdiger Starhemberg Prince Ernst Rüdiger Camillo von Starhemberg, often known simply as Prince Starhemberg, (Eferding, 10 May 1899 – Schruns, 15 March 1956) was an Austrian nationalist and politician who helped introduce austrofascism and install a clerical fas ...

(1899–1956), Austrian politician,

Vice-Chancellor of Austria The vice-chancellor of Austria is a member of the Government of Austria and is the deputy to the Chancellor of Austria, Chancellor. It is functionally equivalent to a deputy prime minister in other countries with parliamentary systems. Descripti ...

and

Heimwehr The Heimwehr (, ) or Heimatschutz (, ) was a nationalist, initially paramilitary group operating in Austria during the 1920s and 1930s that was similar in methods, organization, and ideology to the Freikorps in Germany. It was opposed to parliam ...

* Heinrich Starhemberg (1934–97), son of Ernst Rüdiger and

Nora Gregor Nora Gregor (3 February 1901 – 20 January 1949) was an Austrian stage and film actress. Biography She was born Eleonora Hermina Gregor in Görz, a town which then belonged to Austria-Hungary, but is now part of Italy, to Austrian-Jewish paren ...

, actor and writer using the

pseudonym A pseudonym (; ) or alias () is a fictitious name that a person or group assumes for a particular purpose, which differs from their original or true name (orthonym). This also differs from a new name that entirely or legally replaces an individua ...

''Henry Gregor''

References

External links

Official website of the Starhemberg family
(in German)
Starhemberg Castle website
(in German) States and territories established in 1643 * History of Upper Austria 1603 establishments in Austria 1806 disestablishments in Austria {{surname-stub

History

Mediatized Princes of Starhemberg

Notable family members

References

Further reading

External links