The House of Sponheim or Spanheim was a medieval

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

noble family, which originated in

Rhenish Franconia Rhenish Franconia (german: Rheinfranken) or Western Franconia () denotes the western half of the central German stem duchy of Franconia in the 10th and 11th century, with its residence at the city of Worms. The territory located on the banks of ...

. They were immediate Counts of Sponheim until 1437 and Dukes of

Carinthia Carinthia (german: Kärnten ; sl, Koroška ) is the southernmost Austrian state, in the Eastern Alps, and is noted for its mountains and lakes. The main language is German. Its regional dialects belong to the Southern Bavarian group. Carin ...

from 1122 until 1269. Its cadet branches ruled in the Imperial County of Ortenburg-Neuortenburg and various Sayn-Wittgenstein states until 1806.

History

Ruine der Burg Sponheim bei Kreuznach (inproved) JC Scheuren

The family took its name from their ancestral seat at Sponheim Castle in the

Hunsrück The Hunsrück () is a long, triangular, pronounced mountain range, upland in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is bounded by the valleys of the Moselle (river), Moselle-Saar (north-to-west), the Nahe (south), and the Rhine (east). It is continued ...

range, in present-day

Burgsponheim Burgsponheim is an '' Ortsgemeinde'' – a municipality belonging to a ''Verbandsgemeinde'', a kind of collective municipality – in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It belongs to the ''Verbandsgemeinde'' of Rüdesh ...

near

Bad Kreuznach Bad Kreuznach () is a town in the Bad Kreuznach district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a spa town, most well known for its medieval bridge dating from around 1300, the Alte Nahebrücke, which is one of the few remaining bridges in t ...

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; german: link=no, Rheinland-Pfalz ; lb, Rheinland-Pfalz ; pfl, Rhoilond-Palz) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the ...

. From the 11th century the family was divided in two closely related branches. One of these branches, probably the senior one, retained the Duchy of Carinthia and originated the County of Ortenburg in

Bavaria Bavaria ( ; ), officially the Free State of Bavaria (german: Freistaat Bayern, link=no ), is a state in the south-east of Germany. With an area of , Bavaria is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total l ...

. The other one remained in Rhenish Franconia, retaining the County of Sponheim. The founder of the ducal branch was Count Siegfried I (1010–1065), a Ripuarian Frank by birth and retainer of the

Salian The Salian dynasty or Salic dynasty (german: Salier) was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages. The dynasty provided four kings of Germany (1024–1125), all of whom went on to be crowned Holy Roman emperors (1027–1125). After the death of the la ...

emperor

Conrad II Conrad II ( – 4 June 1039), also known as and , was the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire from 1027 until his death in 1039. The first of a succession of four Salian emperors, who reigned for one century until 1125, Conrad ruled the kingdoms ...

. For this reason the family is sometimes termed the Siegfrieding. Siegfried followed Conrad in his 1035 campaign against Duke Adalbero of Carinthia, who for unknown reasons had fallen out of favour with the emperor. By his marriage to Richgard, daughter of one Count Engelbert of the Bavarian Sieghardinger noble family, he became heir to large territories in Carinthia and

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

. In 1045 Siegfried received the title of a

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 ...

in the Hungarian March by Emperor Henry III. His sons Engelbert, Margrave in

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian and Slovene: ; ist, Eîstria; Istro-Romanian, Italian and Venetian: ; formerly in Latin and in Ancient Greek) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. The peninsula is located at the head of the Adriatic betwe ...

from 1090, and Hartwig founded

Saint Paul's Abbey, Lavanttal Saint Paul's Abbey in Lavanttal (german: Stift St. Paul im Lavanttal) is a Benedictine monastery established in 1091 near the present-day market town of Sankt Paul im Lavanttal in the Austrian state of Carinthia. The premises centered on the Roma ...

on their mother's estates in 1091. When the ducal House of Eppenstein finally became extinct in 1122, Siegfried's grandson Henry inherited the title and became the first Sponheim Duke of Carinthia as well as Margrave in the Italian

March of Verona The March of Verona and Aquileia was a vast Marches, march (frontier district) of the Holy Roman Empire in the northeastern Italian peninsula during the Middle Ages, centered on the cities of Verona and Aquileia. Seized by King Otto I, Holy Roman ...

. Upon his death only one year later, he was succeeded by his brother Engelbert, whose descendants ruled in Carinthia until the death of Duke Ulrich III in 1269. Engelbert's younger son Rapoto became the ancestor of the Bavarian Ortenburg dynasty. The Sponheim dukes tried to consolidate their possessions by being loyal liensmen of the Imperial

House of Hohenstaufen The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynas ...

, they nevertheless had to struggle with reluctant local nobles like the Carinthian Ortenburger. The margravial title in Verona was lost to Herman III of Baden in 1151. Under Bernhard of Sponheim, Carinthian duke from 1202 until 1256, the dynasty reached the height of its power. In 1213 he married Judith, a daughter of King

Ottokar I of Bohemia Ottokar I ( cs, Přemysl Otakar I.; c. 1155 – 1230) was Duke of Bohemia periodically beginning in 1192, then acquired the title of King of Bohemia, first in 1198 from Philip of Swabia, later in 1203 from Otto IV of Brunswick and in 1212 (a ...

, which affiliated the ducal line with the Czech royal

Přemyslid dynasty The Přemyslid dynasty or House of Přemyslid ( cs, Přemyslovci, german: Premysliden, pl, Przemyślidzi) was a Bohemian royal dynasty that reigned in the Duchy of Bohemia and later Kingdom of Bohemia and Margraviate of Moravia (9th century–1 ...

. Bernhard's son Ulrich III by marriage with Agnes of Merania in 1248 also inherited the title of a margrave in the adjacent

March of Carniola The March (or Margraviate) of Carniola ( sl, Kranjska krajina; german: Mark Krain) was a southeastern state of the Holy Roman Empire in the High Middle Ages, the predecessor of the Duchy of Carniola. It corresponded roughly to the central Carniolan ...

. However, as he outlived his children, he bequested his Carinthian and Carniolan lands to his Přemyslid cousin King

Ottokar II of Bohemia Ottokar II ( cs, Přemysl Otakar II.; , in Městec Králové, Bohemia – 26 August 1278, in Dürnkrut, Lower Austria), the Iron and Golden King, was a member of the Přemyslid dynasty who reigned as King of Bohemia from 1253 until his dea ...

according to a secret inheritance agreement of 1268. These estates were among the territories which Rudolph of Habsburg after his election as

King of the Romans King of the Romans ( la, Rex Romanorum; german: König der Römer) was the title used by the king of Germany following his election by the princes from the reign of Henry II (1002–1024) onward. The title originally referred to any German k ...

in 1273 seized due to their acquisition in suspicious circumstances. The founder of the Rhenish branch was Count Stephan I of Sponheim (d. 1080), who may have been a 1st cousin, a son or a nephew of Siegfried. One of his successors Gottfried III (1183–1218) married Adelheid of Sayn, sister and heiress of the last Count of

Sayn Sayn was a small German county of the Holy Roman Empire which, during the Middle Ages, existed within what is today Rheinland-Pfalz. There have been two Counties of Sayn. The first emerged in 1139 and became closely associated with the County ...

, Henry II. In 1437 this branch's ruling male line in Sponheim died out, and female line descendants, namely the Margraves of Baden and the Counts Palatine of Simmern-Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld, took on the title of Count to Sponheim, along with the

Elector of the Palatinate The counts palatine of Lotharingia /counts palatine of the Rhine /electors of the Palatinate (german: Kurfürst von der Pfalz) ruled some part of Rhine area in the Kingdom of Germany and the Holy Roman Empire from 915 to 1803. The title was a kind ...

, who had received a small part as dowry.

Rupert of Germany Rupert of the Palatinate (german: Ruprecht von der Pfalz; 5 May 1352 – 18 May 1410), sometimes known as Robert of the Palatinate, a member of the House of Wittelsbach, was Elector Palatine from 1398 (as Rupert III) and King of Germany from ...

's firstborn Rupert Pipan married Elisabeth of Sponheim-Kreuznach; the marriage remained childless. The branch of the Counts of Ortenburg is still living today in Tambach (Bavaria). A lateral line of the Rhenish branch survives also with the Princes of Sayn-Wittgenstein.

Genealogy

Ducal line

# Siegfried I (d. 1065), Count in the

Puster Valley The Puster Valley ( it, Val Pusteria ; german: Pustertal, ) is one of the largest longitudinal valleys in the Alps that runs in an east-west direction between Lienz in East Tyrol, Austria, and Mühlbach near Brixen in South Tyrol, Italy. The ...

, Margrave of the Hungarian March ## Hartwig (d. 1102), Archbishop of

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebu ...

## Engelbert I (d. 1096), Margrave of

### Bernhard of Trixen (d. 1147) ### Richardis (d. about 1112), married to Margrave Poppo II of Carniola ### Henry IV (1065/70–1123), Duke of

and Margrave of

Verona Verona ( , ; vec, Verona or ) is a city on the Adige River in Veneto, Italy, with 258,031 inhabitants. It is one of the seven provincial capitals of the region. It is the largest city municipality in the region and the second largest in nor ...

###

Engelbert II Engelbert II may refer to: * Engelbert II of Istria (died 1141) * Engelbert II, Count of Gorizia (died 1191) * Engelbert II of Berg (1185 or 1186 – 1225) * Engelbert II of Falkenburg (1220–1274), Archbishop of Cologne * Engelbert II of the M ...

(d. 1141), Margrave of

Carniola Carniola ( sl, Kranjska; , german: Krain; it, Carniola; hu, Krajna) is a historical region that comprised parts of present-day Slovenia. Although as a whole it does not exist anymore, Slovenes living within the former borders of the region s ...

and Istria, Duke of Carinthia and Margrave of Verona #### Ulrich I (d. 1144), Duke of Carinthia and Margrave of Verona #####

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 (121 ...

(d. 1161), Duke of Carinthia, Margrave of Verona until 1151 ##### Herman II (d. 1181), Duke of Carinthia ######

Ulrich II Ulrich II may refer to: * Ulrich II. (St. Gallen) († 1076) Abbot of St. Gall * Ulrich II, Duke of Carinthia (c. 1176 – 1202) * Ulrich II, Count of Württemberg (c. 1254 – 1279) * Ulrich II von Graben (before 1300 – about 1361) * Ulrich II, ...

(1176–1202), Duke of Carinthia ###### Bernhard (c. 1180–1256), Duke of Carinthia ####### Ulrich III (c. 1220–1269), Margrave of Carniola since 1248, Duke of Carinthia, married to Agnes of Merania and secondly to Agnes of Baden #######

Philip Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who populariz ...

(d. 1279) Archbishop-elect of

Salzburg Salzburg (, ; literally "Salt-Castle"; bar, Soizbuag, label=Austro-Bavarian) is the fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020, it had a population of 156,872. The town is on the site of the Roman settlement of ''Iuvavum''. Salzburg was founded ...

, Patriarch of

Aquileia Aquileia / / / / ;Bilingual name of ''Aquileja – Oglej'' in: vec, Aquiłeja / ; Slovenian: ''Oglej''), group=pron is an ancient Roman city in Italy, at the head of the Adriatic at the edge of the lagoons, about from the sea, on the river ...

##### Ulrich, Count of Laibach (Ljubljana), but predeceased his eldest brother. ##### Godfrey (Gottfried) became a monk, but predeceased his father. #####

Pilgrim A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journey (often on foot) to some place of special significance to the adherent of ...

became the Patriarch of Aquileia. #### Engelbert III (1124–1173), Margrave of Istria, Margrave of

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

#### Henry (d. 1169), Bishop of

Troyes Troyes () is a commune and the capital of the department of Aube in the Grand Est region of north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about south-east of Paris. Troyes is situated within the Champagne wine region and is near ...

#### Rapoto (d. 1186), Count of Ortenburg, founder of the ''House of Ortenburg'' #### Adelheid (d. 1178), Abbess at Göss #### Hartwig II (d. 1164), Bishop of

Regensburg Regensburg or is a city in eastern Bavaria, at the confluence of the Danube, Naab and Regen rivers. It is capital of the Upper Palatinate subregion of the state in the south of Germany. With more than 150,000 inhabitants, Regensburg is the ...

####

Matilda Matilda or Mathilda may refer to: Animals * Matilda (chicken) (1990–2006), World's Oldest Living Chicken record holder * Matilda (horse) (1824–1846), British Thoroughbred racehorse * Matilda, a dog of the professional wrestling tag-team The ...

(d. 1160/61), married to Count Theobald II of Champagne ### Siegfried II (d. 1132), Count at Lebenau ### Hartwig I (d. 1126), Bishop of Regensburg # Frederick (1022–1058) # Eberhard

Comital line

# Stephan I (d. about 1080), probably a cousin or brother of Siegfried I ## Stephan II (d. about 1118), probably married to Sophia of Formbach, widow of Count

Hermann of Salm Herman(n) of Salm ( – 28 September 1088), also known as Herman(n) of Luxembourg, the progenitor of the House of Salm, was Count of Salm and elected German anti-king from 1081 until his death. Life Hermann was a son of Count Giselbert of ...

, German anti-king from 1081 ### Meginhard I (d. 1136/45), married to Mechtild, daughter of Count Adalbert II of Nellenburg ####Godfrey I (d. after 1159), probably married to Matilda (Mechtild), daughter of Duke Simon I of Lorraine #####Godfrey II, probably married to a daughter of Count Gerlach of Veldenz ######Godfrey III (c. 1175–1218), married to Adelheid, sister of Count Henry III of

, died in the Fifth Crusade #######John I of Sponheim-

Starkenburg Starkenburg is an historical region in the State of Hesse, Germany, comprising the area south of the Main River and east of the Rhine, around the regional capital Darmstadt. Geography The region is named after Starkenburg Castle, above Heppen ...

(c. 1206-1266), Count of Sayn from 1263, probably married to a daughter of Count

Frederick of Isenberg Count Frederick of Isenberg (Friedrich von Isenberg) (1193 – 15 November 1226) was a German noble, the younger son of Arnold of Altena (died 1209). Before the split between Arnold of Altena-Isenberg the eldest and his brother Friedrich Altena ...

, see Sponheim-Starkenburg below #######Henry (d. 1259), married to Agnes of Heinsberg #######Simon I of Sponheim-Kreuznach (c. 1210-1264), married to Margaret of

Heimbach Heimbach is a town in the district of Düren of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the river Rur, in the Eifel hills, approx. 20 km south of Düren. Heimbach has the smallest population of any town in North Rhi ...

, see Sponheim-Kreuznach below ###Gerhard I, probably married to a daughter of Count Bertolph of

Vianden Vianden ( lb, Veianen or (locally) ) is a commune with town status in the Oesling, north-eastern Luxembourg, with over 1,800 inhabitants. It is the capital of the canton of Vianden, which is part of the district of Diekirch. Vianden lies on t ...

###Hugo (d. 1137), Archbishop of

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 ...

###

Jutta The feminine name Jutta (pronounced "yutta") is the German form of Judith. There is also an alternative theory that it could be derived from the Germanic name ''Eutha'', meaning "mankind, child, descendant", or from a short form of ''Henrietta'' ...

(1091–1136), Abbess at

Disibodenberg Disibodenberg today Disibodenberg ruins Disibodenberg ruins Disibodenberg picture Disibodenberg is a monastery ruin in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It was founded by Saint Disibod. Hildegard of Bingen, who wrote Disibod's biography "Vita Sanc ...

Sponheim-Starkenburg

#John I (c. 1206-1266), Count of

from 1263, probably married to a daughter of Count

##Godfrey I of

Sponheim-Sayn Sponheim-Sayn was a County of Rhineland-Palatinate and North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It was created as a partition of Sponheim-Starkenburg in 1261, and it comprised the lands of the former County of Sayn. In 1283, it was divided into Sayn a ...

(d. 1284), married to Jutta of Isenburg ### John II of Sayn-Sayn ### Engelbert of

Sayn-Homburg Sayn-Homburg (not to be confused with the later state of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Homburg) was a mediaeval county of Germany with its seat at Homburg Castle. It was created as a partition of Sponheim-Sayn in 1283. In 1345, Salentin, the son of Count ...

, ancestor of the ''House of Sayn-Wittgenstein'' ##Henry I (c. 1235-1289), married to Blancheflor, daughter of Count William IV of Jülich ###John II (c. 1265-1324), married to Catherine of

#### Henry II (c. 1292-1323), married to

Loretta Loretta is a female given name, the masculine version being Lauro. The name derives its name from the laurel tree which is symbolic of victory. This name is Italian in origin; it was popularized in the United States in the 1930s. It has many vari ...

Salm Salm may refer to People * Constance de Salm (1767–1845), poet and miscellaneous writer; through her second marriage, she became Princess of Salm-Dyck * Salm ibn Ziyad, an Umayyad governor of Khurasan and Sijistan * House of Salm, a European ...

##### John III (c. 1315-1398), married to Mechtild of the Palatinate, niece of Emperor Louis IV ######John IV (c. 1338-1413/14), married to Elizabeth, daughter of Count Walram of Sponheim-Kreuznach (see below) #######John V (c. 1359-1437), also Count of Sponheim-Kreuznach from 1417, married to Walburg of Leiningen, died childless ######Mechtild (d. 1407/10), married to Margrave Rudolf VI of Baden ######Loretta, married to Count Henry III of Veldenz #######Frederick III of Veldenz (d. 1444) ########

Anna of Veldenz Countess Palatine Anna of Veldenz (12 November 1540 – 30 March 1586) was Margravine of Baden-Durlach by marriage to Charles II, Margrave of Baden-Durlach, and co-regent of the Margraviate of Baden-Durlach during the minority of her son Ernest ...

(c. 1390-1439), married to Count Palatine Stephen of Simmern-Zweibrücken Wappen Vordere Grafschaft Sponheim

Sponheim- Kreuznach

#Simon I (c. 1210-1264), married to Margaret of

John I John I may refer to: People * John I (bishop of Jerusalem) * John Chrysostom (349 – c. 407), Patriarch of Constantinople * John of Antioch (died 441) * Pope John I, Pope from 523 to 526 * John I (exarch) (died 615), Exarch of Ravenna * John I ...

(c. 1245-1290), married to Adelheid of Leiningen ###John II (c. 1270-1340), unmarried ### Simon II at Kastellaun (c. 1270-1336), married to Elizabeth of Valkenburg ####Walram (c. 1305-1380), married to Elizabeth of

Katzenelnbogen Katzenelnbogen () is the name of a castle and small town in the district of Rhein-Lahn-Kreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Katzenelnbogen is the seat of the '' Verbandsgemeinde'' ("collective municipality") Aar-Einrich. History Katzenelnbo ...

#####Simon III (c. 1330-1414), married to Maria of Vianden, died without male heirs ######Elizabeth (d. 1417), married to Count

Engelbert III of the Mark Engelbert III of the Mark (1333–1391) was the Count of Mark from 1347 until 1391. Adolph was the eldest son of Count Adolph II of the Marck and Margaret of Cleves. After his father died in 1347, Engelbert III ruled the County of Mark, mainly ...

, secondly to Prince Ruprecht Pipan, son of Rupert of the Palatinate #####Elizabeth, married to Count John IV of Sponheim-Starkenburg (see above)

Sources

* Freed, John B
"Reflections on the Medieval German Nobility."
''The American Historical Review'', Vol. 91, No. 3. (Jun., 1986), pp 553–575. *

. Archiv für rheinische Geschichte Coblenz, 1.1833 - 2.1835. Zweiter Teil 1835. http://www.dilibri.de/rlb/periodical/pageview/27862

Footnotes

External links

*
Genealogy at genealogie-mittelalter.de
* * * *
Site of the Countly House of Ortenburg-Tambach
*

{{Authority control Sponheim Sponheim