Ulrich I, Count of Württemberg (1226 – 25 February 1265), also known as Ulrich the Founder (), was count of

Württemberg Württemberg ( ; ) is a historical German territory roughly corresponding to the cultural and linguistic region of Swabia. The main town of the region is Stuttgart. Together with Baden and Hohenzollern, two other historical territories, Würt ...

from about 1241 until 1265.

Life

W Dieterlin - Graf Ulrich mit dem Daumen Zeichnung ca1592 (MiSLH315)

Ulrich's relation to his predecessors is uncertain. The historian Hansmartin Decker Hauff labelled Ulrich as a son of Hermann of Württemberg and Irmengard of Ulten. Hermann, of which very little is known, is probably a son of

Hartmann, Count of Württemberg Hartmann I (1160–1240) was the Count of Württemberg. Hartmann I and his brother Ludwig III both called themselves “Count of Württemberg” at the time, so it is assumed that they administered the county together. They were both sons of Cou ...

. Ulrich is believed to have been a cousin to Hartmann II, Count of Grüningen, and to have a paternal relation with Albert IV, Count of Dillingen. He was twice married. From his marriage to Mechthild of Baden, daughter of

Hermann V Hermann V may refer to: * Hermann V, Margrave of Baden-Baden Herman V, Margrave of Baden (c. 1180 – 17 January 1243) ruled Verona and Baden from 1190 until his death. He was the son of Herman IV and his wife Bertha of Tübingen. He married ...

, he had two daughters, and a son, who succeeded him as Ulrich II. From his second marriage to Agnes of Schlesien-Liegnitz, he had another son, Eberhard I, and possibly another daughter.

Count of Württemberg

The argument between

Emperor Frederick II Frederick II (German: ''Friedrich''; Italian: ''Federico''; Latin: ''Federicus''; 26 December 1194 – 13 December 1250) was King of Sicily from 1198, King of Germany from 1212, King of Italy and Holy Roman Emperor from 1220 and King of Jerusa ...

and the Popes

Gregory IX Pope Gregory IX ( la, Gregorius IX; born Ugolino di Conti; c. 1145 or before 1170 – 22 August 1241) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 March 1227 until his death in 1241. He is known for issuing the '' Decre ...

and

Innocent IV Pope Innocent IV ( la, Innocentius IV; – 7 December 1254), born Sinibaldo Fieschi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 25 June 1243 to his death in 1254. Fieschi was born in Genoa and studied at the universitie ...

had effects on conditions in the duchy of

Swabia Swabia ; german: Schwaben , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of ...

, of which Württemberg was a part. After Frederick's

excommunication Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...

and deposition by the

Council of Lyon The Council of Lyon may refer to a number of synods or councils of the Roman Catholic Church, held in Lyon, France or in nearby Anse. Previous to 1313, a certain Abbé Martin counted twenty-eight synods or councils held at Lyons or at Anse. Some ...

, Ulrich joined Anti-king

Henry Raspe Henry Raspe (; – 16 February 1247) was the Landgrave of Thuringia from 1231 until 1239 and again from 1241 until his death. In 1246, with the support of the Papacy, he was elected King of the Romans, King of Germany in Anti-king, opposition t ...

and William of Holland, against Frederick's son

Conrad IV Conrad (25 April 1228 – 21 May 1254), a member of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, was the only son of Emperor Frederick II from his second marriage with Queen Isabella II of Jerusalem. He inherited the title of King of Jerusalem (as Conrad II) up ...

. With Ulrich's support, Conrad IV was defeated. Ulrich used the situation, to develop his power within Swabia. After the death of Conrad IV in 1254, however, his two-year-old son

Conradin Conrad III (25 March 1252 – 29 October 1268), called ''the Younger'' or ''the Boy'', but usually known by the diminutive Conradin (german: link=no, Konradin, it, Corradino), was the last direct heir of the House of Hohenstaufen. He was Duke ...

was recognized as Duke of Swabia. Conradin's guardian,

Louis II, Duke of Bavaria Louis the Strict (german: Ludwig der Strenge) (13 April 1229 – 2 February 1294) was Duke of Upper Bavaria and Count Palatine of the Rhine from 1253. He is known as Louis II or Louis VI following an alternative numbering. Born in Heidelberg, h ...

, annexed the territories that Ulrich had gained from defeating Conrad IV, to Swabia. Ulrich was forced to concentrate on the middle

Neckar The Neckar () is a river in Germany, mainly flowing through the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, with a short section through Hesse. The Neckar is a major right tributary of the Rhine. Rising in the Schwarzwald-Baar-Kreis near Schwenn ...

valley as the basis of the

county of Württemberg The County of Württemberg was a historical territory with origins in the realm of the House of Württemberg, the heart of the old Duchy of Swabia. Its capital was Stuttgart. From the 12th century until 1495, it was a county within the Holy Roman ...

. His marriage to Mechthild of Baden allowed him to gain control of the region from the

Margravate of Baden The Margraviate of Baden (german: Markgrafschaft Baden) was a historical territory of the Holy Roman Empire. Spread along the east side of the Upper Rhine River in southwestern Germany, it was named a margraviate in 1112 and existed until 1535, ...

Stuttgart Stuttgart (; Swabian: ; ) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg. It is located on the Neckar river in a fertile valley known as the ''Stuttgarter Kessel'' (Stuttgart Cauldron) and lies an hour from the ...

, future capital of Württemberg was given to Württemberg by Baden as a wedding gift.

Issue

with Mechthild of Baden, daughter of Hermann V of Baden * Agnes of Württemberg * Mechthild of Württemberg * Ulrich II with Agnes of Schlesien-Liegnitz, daughter of

Bolesław II the Horned Bolesław II the Horned ( pl, Bolesław II Rogatka), known also as Bolesław II the Bald ( pl, Bolesław II Łysy) (c. 1220/5 – 26/31 December 1278), a member of the Silesian Piasts, was High Duke of Poland briefly in 1241 and Duke of Silesia at ...

* Eberhard I * Irmengard of Württemberg {{DEFAULTSORT:Ulrich I, Count of WArttemberg 1226 births 1265 deaths 13th-century counts of Württemberg Burials at Stiftskirche, Stuttgart Royal reburials