Conrad of Vechta (Czech ''Konrád z Vechty''; German ''Konrad von Vechta'') (born ca. 1370, possibly in Bremen; died 24 December 1431 in

Roudnice nad Labem Roudnice nad Labem (; ) is a town in Litoměřice District in the Ústí nad Labem Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 13,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. A steel road br ...

) was

Bishop of Verden This is a list of bishops, prince-bishops, and administrators of Verden. The Catholic Diocese of Verden (german: link=no, Bistum Verden), was a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Mainz. From the 12th century, the Bishop of Verden was also, ''ex offi ...

(1400–1402/1407),

Bishop of Olomouc The following is a list of diocesan bishops and archbishops of Olomouc. Not much is known about the beginnings of the Diocese of Olomouc. It was reestablished in 1063 and in 1777 it was elevated to an archdiocese. Bishops of Olomouc *''89 ...

(1408–1413),

Archbishop of Prague The following is a list of bishops and archbishops of Prague. The bishopric of Prague was established in 973, and elevated to an archbishopric on 30 April 1344. The current Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Prague is the continual successor of the bis ...

(1413–1421), and Master of the Mint (1401–1403) and Chancellor (1405–1412) of the

Kingdom of Bohemia The Kingdom of Bohemia ( cs, České království),; la, link=no, Regnum Bohemiae sometimes in English literature referred to as the Czech Kingdom, was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Central Europe, the predecessor of the modern Czec ...

Before episcopate

It is not certain whether Conrad was a member of the

patrician Patrician may refer to: * Patrician (ancient Rome), the original aristocratic families of ancient Rome, and a synonym for "aristocratic" in modern English usage * Patrician (post-Roman Europe), the governing elites of cities in parts of medieval ...

family named von Vechta, living as successful merchants in

Bremen Bremen (Low German also: ''Breem'' or ''Bräm''), officially the City Municipality of Bremen (german: Stadtgemeinde Bremen, ), is the capital of the German state Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (''Freie Hansestadt Bremen''), a two-city-state consis ...

, where family members also held positions in the city government, or if Conrad was born in

Vechta Vechta (; Northern Low Saxon: ''Vechte'') is the capital and largest city of the Vechta (district), Vechta district in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is home to the University of Vechta. It is known for the 'Stoppelmarkt' fair, which takes place every ...

and therefore epithetised von Vechta in German.Václav Bartunek, "Konrad von Vechta", in: see references for bibliographical details, vol. 12, pp. 551seq., here p. 551. However, his brother Konstantin von Vechta held a

canonicate Canon ( el, κανονικός, translit=kanonikós) is a Christian title usually used to refer to a member of certain bodies in subject to an ecclesiastical rule. Originally, a canon was a cleric living with others in a clergy house or, later, ...

Bremen Cathedral Bremen Cathedral (german: Bremer Dom or St. Petri Dom zu Bremen), dedicated to St. Peter, is a church situated in the market square in the center of Bremen. The cathedral belongs to the Bremian Evangelical Church, a member of the Protestant umbre ...

as cathedral provost (Dompropst), presiding the

cathedral chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...

. This rather substantiates a patrician background, because Bremian canonicates were usually provided for members of patrician families of Bremen or of noble families of the Bremian

knight A knight is a person granted an honorary title of knighthood by a head of state (including the Pope) or representative for service to the monarch, the church or the country, especially in a military capacity. Knighthood finds origins in the Gr ...

age. Conrad was definitely no member of the comital family of Vechta, which used to be called after its castle

Counts of Ravensberg Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

.Walter Schlesinger, "Konrad von Vechta", in: see references for bibliographical details, vol. 16, pp. 608seq., here p. 608. Conrad strove for a clerical career. He sided already early with

Wenceslaus, King of the Romans Wenceslaus IV (also ''Wenceslas''; cs, Václav; german: Wenzel, nicknamed "the Idle"; 26 February 136116 August 1419), also known as Wenceslaus of Luxembourg, was King of Bohemia from 1378 until his death and King of Germany from 1376 until he w ...

, ruling the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

since 1376, on whose instigation Conrad was provided with a number of

prebend A prebendary is a member of the Roman Catholic or Anglican clergy, a form of canon with a role in the administration of a cathedral or collegiate church. When attending services, prebendaries sit in particular seats, usually at the back of the ...

s. As many North Germans used to study in

Prague Prague ( ; cs, Praha ; german: Prag, ; la, Praga) is the capital and largest city in the Czech Republic, and the historical capital of Bohemia. On the Vltava river, Prague is home to about 1.3 million people. The city has a temperate ...

, Conrad's siding with Wenceslaus, who was simultaneously ruling as

King of Bohemia The Duchy of Bohemia was established in 870 and raised to the Kingdom of Bohemia in 1198. Several Bohemian monarchs ruled as non-hereditary kings beforehand, first gaining the title in 1085. From 1004 to 1806, Bohemia was part of the Holy Roman ...

since 1378, may indicate that Conrad had done so too. In 1395 Wenceslaus failed to get Conrad invested as

bishop of Verden This is a list of bishops, prince-bishops, and administrators of Verden. The Catholic Diocese of Verden (german: link=no, Bistum Verden), was a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Mainz. From the 12th century, the Bishop of Verden was also, ''ex offi ...

, whereas

Dietrich of Nieheim Dietrich of Nieheim (Niem or Nyem) (22 March 1418), medieval historian, was born at Nieheim, a small town subject to the see of Paderborn. Life Nothing is known about his family, and but little about his life previous to his entry into the service ...

prevailed. Conrad had earlier been provost of Lüne Nunnery and was then promoted to canon of the Collegiate Church of St. Blaise in Brunswick.Thomas Vogtherr, "Bistum und Hochstift Verden bis 1502", in: see references for bibliographical details, vol. II: pp. 279–320, here p. 302. .

Provided bishop of Verden

In 1400

Pope Boniface IX Pope Boniface IX ( la, Bonifatius IX; it, Bonifacio IX; c. 1350 – 1 October 1404, born Pietro Tomacelli) was head of the Catholic Church from 2 November 1389 to his death in October 1404. He was the second Roman pope of the Western Schism.Richa ...

, on Wenceslaus' instigation, deposed Conrad's provided predecessor

Conrad of Soltau Conrad may refer to: People * Conrad (name) Places United States * Conrad, Illinois, an unincorporated community * Conrad, Indiana, an unincorporated community * Conrad, Iowa, a city * Conrad, Montana, a city * Conrad Glacier, Washingt ...

, who had so far only been provided

in 1399, but not invested, and provided instead Conrad of Vechta not before 1 May, however, also lacking

investiture Investiture (from the Latin preposition ''in'' and verb ''vestire'', "dress" from ''vestis'' "robe") is a formal installation or ceremony that a person undergoes, often related to membership in Christian religious institutes as well as Christian k ...

. Conrad titled himself bishop elect of Verden until 1407.Thomas Vogtherr, "Bistum und Hochstift Verden bis 1502", in: see references for bibliographical details, vol. II: pp. 279–320, here p. 303. . Lacking the elective mandate of the

in Verden upon Aller, it did not recognise his episcopate. However, the pope soon changed his mind again, when the other prince-electors had deposed Wenceslaus as ruler of the Empire in 1400 and replaced him by King Rupert, who in May 1401 had accepted the deposed Conrad of Soltau, a native of the

Prince-Bishopric of Verden The Prince-Bishopric of Verden (german: Fürstbistum Verden, ''Hochstift Verden'' or ''Stift Verden'') was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire that was located in what is today the state of Lower Saxony in Germany. Verden had be ...

, as legitimate and invested him with the princely

regalia Regalia is a Latin plurale tantum word that has different definitions. In one rare definition, it refers to the exclusive privileges of a sovereign. The word originally referred to the elaborate formal dress and dress accessories of a sovereign ...

as prince-bishop. Boniface IX thus also confirmed Conrad of Soltau as canonical bishop of Verden in autumn 1402.

Later offices

In 1410 Konstantin von Vechta followed Conrad to Prague, succeeding him as provost of

Mělník Mělník (; german: Melnik) is a town in the Central Bohemian Region of the Czech Republic. It has about 19,000 inhabitants. The town centre is well preserved and is protected by law as an urban monument zone. Mělník lies in one of the most im ...

's Ss. Peter and Paul Church, which was combined with a canonicate at

St. Vitus Cathedral , native_name_lang = Czech , image = St Vitus Prague September 2016-21.jpg , imagesize = 300px , imagelink = , imagealt = , landscape = , caption ...

, Prague. On 28 July 1419 Conrad crowned Sigismund of Luxembourg as King of Bohemia. Conrad took the side of the

Hussites The Hussites ( cs, Husité or ''Kališníci''; "Chalice People") were a Czech proto-Protestant Christian movement that followed the teachings of reformer Jan Hus, who became the best known representative of the Bohemian Reformation. The Hussit ...

during the

Hussite Wars The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars or the Hussite Revolution, were a series of civil wars fought between the Hussites and the combined Catholic forces of Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund, the Papacy, European monarchs loyal to the Cat ...

, despite remaining a Catholic prelate, and was deposed as archbishop by the Roman Curia.

Art patronage

Conrad was the probable original owner of a richly illuminated manuscript Bible, now known as the Antwerp Bible from its survival in the Museum Plantin-Moretus,

Antwerp Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504,

."Wenceslas Bible" in ''The Grove Encyclopedia of Medieval Art and Architecture'', vol. 2, edited by Colum Hourihane (

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print books ...

, 2012), pp. 366-367

References

* * Zdeňka Hledíková, Štěpán Kohout and Thomas Vogtherr, "Konrad von Vechta", in Erwin Gatz, ''Die Bischöfe des Heiligen Römischen Reiches'': 5 vols., in: ''Die Bischöfe des Heiligen Römischen Reiches'', Erwin Gatz under collaboration of Clemens Brodkorb (eds.), Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 2001, vol. 2: '1198 bis 1448', pp. 594–596; . * * Thomas Vogtherr, "Bistum und Hochstift Verden bis 1502", in: ''Geschichte des Landes zwischen Elbe und Weser'': 3 vols., Hans-Eckhard Dannenberg and Heinz-Joachim Schulze (eds.), Stade: Landschaftsverband der ehem. Herzogtümer Bremen und Verden, 1995 and 2008, vol. I 'Vor- und Frühgeschichte' (1995; ), vol. II 'Mittelalter (einschl. Kunstgeschichte)' (1995; ), vol. III 'Neuzeit' (2008; ), (=Schriftenreihe des Landschaftsverbandes der ehem. Herzogtümer Bremen und Verden; vols. 7–9), vol. II: pp. 279–320.

Notes