Berthold II, Duke Of Swabia
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Berthold II ( – 12 April 1111), also known as Berchtold II, was the
Duke of Swabia The Dukes of Swabia were the rulers of the Duchy of Swabia during the Middle Ages. Swabia was one of the five stem duchy, stem duchies of the medieval German kingdom, and its dukes were thus among the most powerful magnates of Germany. The most no ...
from 1092 to 1098. After he conceded the Duchy of Swabia to the
Staufer 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 List of German monarchs, royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 ...
in 1098, the title of " Duke of Zähringen" was created for him, in use from c. 1100 and continued by his successors until 1218. Berthold was a younger son of
Berthold I of Zähringen Berthold II, Duke of Carinthia (c. 1000 – 6 November 1078), also known as Berthold I of Zähringen, was a progenitor of the Swabian House of Zähringen. From 1061 until 1077, he was the Duke of Carinthia and Margrave of Verona. Life He was pos ...
and initially supported
Rudolf of Rheinfelden Rudolf of Rheinfelden ( – 15 October 1080) was Duke of Swabia from 1057 to 1079. Initially a follower of his brother-in-law, the Salian emperor Henry IV, his election as German anti-king in 1077 marked the outbreak of the Great Saxon Revolt a ...
against King Henry IV. In 1077, both the Zähringer and Rheinfeldener were relieved of their titles and possessions by the king. Berthold I of Zähringen died in 1078 and his son Berthold inherited his claims, including a claim to the
Duchy of Swabia The Duchy of Swabia (; ) was one of the five stem duchy, stem duchies of the medieval Kingdom of Germany, German Kingdom. It arose in the 10th century in the southwestern area that had been settled by Alemanni tribes in Late Antiquity. While th ...
. In 1079, Berthold married Agnes of Rheinfelden, Rudolf's daughter. In the following years, he became a strong supporter of Rudolf's eldest son, Berthold of Rheinfelden, against the king. He was also at odds with Frederick of Stauf and the bishops of
Basel Basel ( ; ), also known as Basle ( ), ; ; ; . is a city in northwestern Switzerland on the river Rhine (at the transition from the High Rhine, High to the Upper Rhine). Basel is Switzerland's List of cities in Switzerland, third-most-populo ...
and
Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...
. However, when the region quieted down in the late 1080s, Berthold is found as a witness to an exchange of land involving the bishop of Basel (1087). Tensions rose again in 1090, when Berthold of Rheinfelden died. At that point, Berthold of Zähringen asserted his claims to the Rheinfeldener inheritance in
Burgundy Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...
, but not their titles, which went to Berthold of Rheinfelden's younger brother, Otto von Wetter(au)-Rheinfelden. He also placed a claim on the Duchy of Swabia. Supported by the
Welfs The House of Welf (also Guelf or Guelph) is a European dynasty that has included many German and British monarchs from the 11th to 20th century and Emperor Ivan VI of Russia in the 18th century. The originally Franconian family from the Meuse-Mo ...
and the
Papacy The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...
, he was elected duke in opposition to Frederick in 1092. In that same year, he was chosen as
Duke of Carinthia The Duchy of Carinthia (; ; ) was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, and was the first newly created Imperial State after the original German stem duchy, stem duc ...
and
Margrave of Verona Margrave was originally the Middle Ages, medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or a monarchy, kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain Feudal ...
(like his father) by those who opposed Duke Henry V. Berthold, also like his father, never held any real power in Carinthia. In 1093, Berthold and Welf IV signed a "peace oath" at
Ulm Ulm () is the sixth-largest city of the southwestern German state of Baden-Württemberg, and with around 129,000 inhabitants, it is Germany's 60th-largest city. Ulm is located on the eastern edges of the Swabian Jura mountain range, on the up ...
. At first only valid in Swabia, it was soon extended to Bavaria and strengthened the opposition to the emperor in southern Germany. Around 1098, Berthold and Frederick came to terms, whereby Frederick kept Swabia, but Berthold was given the '' Reichsvogtei'' (or imperial estates, depending on the source) of
Zürich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...
and allowed to keep a ducal title. By this step, the relationship between the Zähringer and Henry IV improved. In 1105, Berthold was the closest ally of Henry's son,
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 (–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (1216–1281 ...
, who rebelled against his father. Berthold, beginning in 1090, extended his power into the
Breisgau The Breisgau () is an area in southwest Germany extending along the Rhine River and enveloping portions of the Black Forest. Part of the state of Baden-Württemberg, it centers on the city of Freiburg im Breisgau. The district of Breisgau-Hoch ...
so that the Zähringer territory extracted itself from the influence of the Swabian duke. In 1091, he abandoned Zähringen castle as his main residence, in favour of the newly built Freiburg Castle. Berthold was the first of the Zähringer to hold the title of "Duke of Zähringen" (from around 1100). He established his rule with the foundation of monasteries and other settlements in the
Black Forest The Black Forest ( ) is a large forested mountain range in the States of Germany, state of Baden-Württemberg in southwest Germany, bounded by the Rhine Valley to the west and south and close to the borders with France and Switzerland. It is th ...
. His territory was small and he had little opportunity for expansion. His ducal title was described by
Otto of Freising Otto of Freising (; – 22 September 1158) was a German churchman of the Cistercian order and chronicled at least two texts which carry valuable information on the political history of his own time. He was the bishop of Freising from 1138. Ot ...
as one of the first "empty titles" in medieval Germany: a title signifying little in the way of governmental or territorial significance. His was not a political or military office, nor a tribal or territorial command. Rather, his ducal title was a mere dignity, and his estates were family possessions. In 1093, he founded the
Benedictine The Benedictines, officially the Order of Saint Benedict (, abbreviated as O.S.B. or OSB), are a mainly contemplative monastic order of the Catholic Church for men and for women who follow the Rule of Saint Benedict. Initiated in 529, th ...
monastery of Saint Peter, which became the family mausoleum. The monasteries that he founded were usually reformed monasteries which were hostile to the emperor. With the displacement of the counts of Hohenburg from the region of the Black Forest, Berthold successfully turned it into his centre of power. By the end of his life, Berthold's estates amounted to a justification of his grandiose title. He was succeeded as duke of Zähringen by his eldest son, Berthold III. His second son,
Conrad Conrad may refer to: People * Conrad (name) * Saint Conrad (disambiguation) Places United States * Conrad, Illinois, an unincorporated community * Conrad, Iowa, a city * Conrad, Montana, a city * Conrad Glacier, Washington Elsewher ...
, succeeded Berthold III after eleven years. He also had a daughter Agnes, who married William II (the German), Count of Burgundy (1085-1125).


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* {{DEFAULTSORT:Berthold 2, Duke of Swabia 1050s births 1111 deaths Dukes of Swabia House of Zähringen