Albrecht II (or Albert II) of Hohenberg-Rotenburg (c. 1235 – 17 April 1298) was Count of Hohenberg and Haigerloch and imperial governor of Lower

Swabia Swabia ; , 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 Swabia, one of ...

. He was a member of the house of Zollern-Hohenberg, a branch of the Swabian

House of Hohenzollern The House of Hohenzollern (, ; , ; ) is a formerly royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) German dynasty whose members were variously princes, Prince-elector, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern Castle, Hohenzollern, Margraviate of Bran ...

which split off in the 12th century. Two stanzas in the

Codex Manesse The Codex Manesse (also or Pariser Handschrift) is a (a German term for a manuscript containing songs) which is the single most comprehensive source of Middle High German ''Minnesang'' poetry. It was written and illustrated manuscript, illustr ...

are attributed to him under the name of Albrecht von Haigerloch.

Life

Count and Vogt

Albrecht was the son of Count Burchard V of Hohenberg and his wife Mechthild hereditary countess (''Erbgräfin'') from the family of Counts Palatine of Tübingen. On his father's death in 1253 he inherited the territory around Hohenberg Castle,

Haigerloch Haigerloch () is a town in the north-western part of the Swabian Alb in Germany. Geography Geographical location Haigerloch lies at between 430 and 550 metres elevation in the valley of the Eyach (Neckar), Eyach river, which forms two loops in a ...

and Rotenburg. His younger brother Burkhard VI. (d. 1318) inherited to lands of his mother around the castles of

Nagold Nagold () is a town in southwestern Germany, bordering the Northern Black Forest. It is located in the '' Landkreis'' (district) of Calw (Germany/Baden-Württemberg). Nagold is recorded for the first time in a historical document dating back to ...

and Wildberg, and founded a separate Hohenberg line. At around 1280, Albrecht founded the town of Rotenburg (today Rottenburg am Neckar) near the existing castle as new administrative center of his county. A more central authority was necessary because of the constant territorial extensions of Hohenberg towards the

Neckar The Neckar () is a river in Germany, mainly flowing through the southwestern States of Germany, 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 ...

. He was a supporter of his brother-in-law, the king Rudolf I of Habsburg, who was married to his older sister Gertrud Anna. He benefited from the rise of the Habsburgs; he was a close adviser to the king and accompanied him on several campaigns. In 1290 a visit of Albrecht to the court of

Wenceslaus II of Bohemia Wenceslaus II Přemyslid (; ; 27 SeptemberK. Charvátová, ''Václav II. Král český a polský'', Prague 2007, p. 18. 1271 – 21 June 1305) was King of Bohemia (1278–1305), Duke of Cracow (1291–1305), and King of Poland (1296–130 ...

is documented. Rudolf commissioned Albrecht as a bailiff (''Landvogt'') of the newly-formed territory of Niederschwaben to win back lost imperial territory. However Rudolph's plans to revive the Duchy of Swabia and win it over for the Habsburgs failed. After Rudolf's death Albrecht supported his son Albrecht of Austria against the elected king Adolf of Nassau-Weilburg. In 1298, while trying to prevent

Otto III, Duke of Bavaria Otto III (11 February 1261 – 9 November 1312), a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty, was the Duke of Lower Bavaria from 1290 to 1312 and the King of Hungary and Croatia between 1305 and 1307. His reign in Hungary was disputed by Charles Robe ...

from uniting his army with Adolf's against Albrecht of Austria, Albrecht fell in the battle on the ''Kreuzwiesen'' near his castle of

Leinstetten Dornhan is a town in the district of Rottweil, in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated in the eastern Black Forest, 14 km southeast of Freudenstadt. Geography Position Dornhan is situated on a plateau in the Black Forest foothil ...

Minstrel

Albrecht is also noted as a

minstrel A minstrel was an entertainer, initially in medieval Europe. The term originally described any type of entertainer such as a musician, juggler, acrobat, singer or fool; later, from the sixteenth century, it came to mean a specialist enter ...

. In the Codex Manesse on page 42r is a miniature showing him under the name of Count Albrecht of Haigerloch as a knight in battle (presumably the battle in which he fell). The back of the page contains the only two song verses ascribed to Albrecht.

Descendants

Albrecht was married three times. The name of his first wife is unknown. He had two children from this marriage: *Agnes m. 1281 Albrecht (d. 1292), Count of

Gorizia Gorizia (; ; , ; ; ) is a town and (municipality) in northeastern Italy, in the autonomous region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia. It is located at the foot of the Julian Alps, bordering Slovenia. It is the capital of the Province of Gorizia, Region ...

and Tyrol *Albrecht III, called ''Rösselmann'' (d. 1304), Count of Hohenberg m.c. 1284, spouse unknown In 1282 he married Countess Margareta von Fürstenberg (d. 1296). From this marriage he had three children: *Margaretha (d. 1295) m.(engagement 1288) Henry IV (d. 1301), Margrave of

Burgau Burgau () is a Town#Germany, town in Günzburg (district), the district of Günzburg in Swabia (Bavaria), Swabia, Bavaria. Burgau lies on the river Mindel (river), Mindel and has a population of just under 10,000. History The territory around ...

*Mechthild m. 1291 Ulrich (d. 1315), son of

Eberhard I, Count of Württemberg Eberhard I (13 March 1265, in Stuttgart – 5 June 1325, in Stuttgart) was Count of Württemberg from 1279 until his death. He was nicknamed 'der Erlauchte' or the Illustrious Highness. Life Eberhard's half-brother and predecessor Ulrich II ...

*Rudolf I. (d. 1336), Count of Hohenberg, Lord of

Triberg Triberg im Schwarzwald is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located in the Schwarzwald-Baar district in the Black Forest. Triberg lies in the middle of the Black Forest between 500 and 1038 metres above sea level. Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaf ...

His third wife was Countess Ursula von Oettingen (d. 1308). From this marriage two children were born: *Albrecht, a monk in

Bonndorf Bonndorf im Schwarzwald (, ) is a town in the Waldshut district in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated in the southern Black Forest, 14 km southeast of Titisee-Neustadt. It comprises the villages Boll, Brunnadern, Dillendorf, Ebnet ...

1317 *Adelheid (d. February 23, 1333) m. 1317 Konrad I (d. 1353), Count of Schaunberg

References

{{Reflist 13th-century German nobility 1230s births 1298 deaths Minnesingers German male poets 13th-century German poets