Wichmann von Seeburg ( – 25 August 1192) was

Bishop of Naumburg The Prince-Bishopric of Naumburg-Zeitz (german: Bistum Naumburg-Zeitz; la, Citizensis, then ' or ') was a medieval diocese in the central German area between Leipzig in the east and Erfurt in the west. The seat of the bishop was Zeitz Cathedral in ...

from 1150 until 1154 and

Archbishop of Magdeburg The Archbishopric of Magdeburg was a Roman Catholic archdiocese (969–1552) and Prince-Archbishopric (1180–1680) of the Holy Roman Empire centered on the city of Magdeburg on the Elbe River. Planned since 955 and established in 968, the Roman ...

from 1154 until his death. He became the first Magdeburg prince-archbishop in 1180

Life

Wichmann was the second son of the

Saxon The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

count Gero of Seeburg (d. 1122) and his wife Matilda, a daughter of the Wettin count Thimo the Brave. He studied theology at the University of Paris before becoming a canon in Halberstadt. Throughout his long ecclesiastical career, he was a loyal supporter of the Hohenstaufen emperor

Frederick Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (german: link=no, Friedrich I, it, Federico I), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on ...

against

Pope Alexander III Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland ( it, Rolando), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181. A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a con ...

and an implacable military leader against the emperor's foes in the northeast, especially the

Welf Welf is a Germanic first name that may refer to: *Welf (father of Judith), 9th century Frankish count, father-in-law of Louis the Pious *Welf I, d. bef. 876, count of Alpgau and Linzgau *Welf II, Count of Swabia, died 1030, supposed descendant of W ...

duke Henry the Lion. Wichmann siegel a

Wichmann was elected Bishop of Naumburg-Zeitz in 1149 and ordained the next year. He made large donations to the monasteries of Pforta and Zeitz. A regular guest at the court of King

Conrad III of Germany Conrad III (german: Konrad; it, Corrado; 1093 or 1094 – 15 February 1152) of the Hohenstaufen dynasty was from 1116 to 1120 Duke of Franconia, from 1127 to 1135 anti-king of his predecessor Lothair III and from 1138 until his death in 1152 k ...

, he was quickly appointed to the Archdiocese of Magdeburg by Conrad's nephew, the newly crowned King Frederick Barbarossa in 1152. Wichmann initially had to overcome the resistance by Pope Eugene III and his successor

Anastasius IV Pope Anastasius IV ( – 3 December 1154), born Corrado Demetri della Suburra, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 July 1153 to his death in 1154. He is the most recent pope to take the name "Anastasius" upon his ...

; nevertheless, he immediately endeavoured to extend his diocese and its economy, and actively promoted trade within the cities. In 1157, he allied with the

Ascanian 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 ''Schloss ...

margrave Albert the Bear to re-conquer and

Germanise Germanisation, or Germanization, is the spread of the German language, people and culture. It was a central idea of German conservative thought in the 19th and the 20th centuries, when conservatism and ethnic nationalism went hand in hand. In ling ...

the cities of Brandenburg and Jüterbog, whose vicinity he conquered and colonised with Flemish settlers (cf. Fläming). In 1170 he granted large estates to the newly established

Cistercian The Cistercians, () officially the Order of Cistercians ( la, (Sacer) Ordo Cisterciensis, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint ...

monastery of Zinna. He attended the 1160 Council of Pavia, supporting the election of Antipope Victor IV. In 1164, he undertook a pilgrimage to

Palestine __NOTOC__ Palestine may refer to: * State of Palestine, a state in Western Asia * Palestine (region), a geographic region in Western Asia * Palestinian territories, territories occupied by Israel since 1967, namely the West Bank (including East ...

and fell for a time into

Turkish Turkish may refer to: *a Turkic language spoken by the Turks * of or about Turkey ** Turkish language *** Turkish alphabet ** Turkish people, a Turkic ethnic group and nation *** Turkish citizen, a citizen of Turkey *** Turkish communities and mi ...

hands. After supporting the election of

Antipope Paschal III Antipope Paschal III (or Paschal III) () was a 12th-century clergyman who, from 1164 to 1168, was the second antipope to challenge the reign of Pope Alexander III. He had previously served as Cardinal of St. Maria. Biography Born Guido of Crem ...

, he tried to adopt the position of a mediator with

. In 1166, Wichmann joined the German

princes A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary title, hereditary, in some Euro ...

in war with Duke Henry the Lion, but he succeeded only in seeing his lands devastated. In 1175, he supplied auxiliaries to the emperor for his Italian campaign. He was in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

negotiating the peace treaty in 1177. In 1178, he was back in Saxony for the war against Henry the Lion. He strongly worked for Henry's deposition and ban in 1180 and greatly profited from its actualisation, becoming the principal secular authority in Saxony after. He remained deeply predisposed against the Welfs, however. In 1180 and 1185, he gave parts of his extensive possessions to

Seitenstetten Abbey Seitenstetten Abbey (german: Stift Seitenstetten) is a Benedictine monastery in Seitenstetten in the ''Mostviertel'' region of Lower Austria. History The monastery was founded in 1112 by Udalschalk, or Udiskalk, a relative of Bishop Ulrich of Pa ...

in Austria and to the

Bishopric of Passau The Diocese of Passau is a Roman Catholic diocese in Germany that is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Munich and Freising.Köthen and was buried in his own cathedral. The city and diocese of Magdeburg had fully bloomed under his oversight. Wichmann is also credited with the first codification of

magdeburg town law Magdeburg rights (german: Magdeburger Recht; also called Magdeburg Law) were a set of town privileges first developed by Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor (936–973) and based on the Flemish Law, which regulated the degree of internal autonomy within c ...

in 1188.

Sources

*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Seeburg, Wichmann Von 1192 deaths Archbishops of Magdeburg Burials at Magdeburg Cathedral Year of birth uncertain 12th-century jurists