Franz Georg von Schönborn (15 June 168218 January 1756) was a German nobleman who served as

Archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

and

Elector of Trier The elector of Trier was one of the prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire and, in his capacity as archbishop, administered the Roman Catholic Diocese of Trier, archdiocese of Trier. The territories of the Electorate of Trier, electorate and t ...

from 1729 until his death in 1756. He was also Prince-Bishop of Worms and Prince-Provost of Ellwangen from 1732.

Biography

Franz Georg was born in

Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...

, the ninth son of the Count of Schönborn and the nephew of

Lothar Franz von Schönborn Lothar Franz von Schönborn-Buchheim (4 October 1655 – 30 January 1729) was the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz from 1694 to 1729 and the Bishop of Bamberg from 1693 to 1729. As Archbishop of Mainz, he was also Archchancellor of the Holy Roman Emp ...

, the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz. Franz Georg's brothers were Johann Philipp Franz, Friedrich Karl and Hugo Damian, all three important churchmen. Beginning in 1702 he studied law, philosophy, theology, geography, history, and language at

Salzburg Salzburg is the List of cities and towns in Austria, fourth-largest city in Austria. In 2020 its population was 156,852. The city lies on the Salzach, Salzach River, near the border with Germany and at the foot of the Austrian Alps, Alps moun ...

Siena Siena ( , ; traditionally spelled Sienna in English; ) is a city in Tuscany, in central Italy, and the capital of the province of Siena. It is the twelfth most populated city in the region by number of inhabitants, with a population of 52,991 ...

, and

Leiden Leiden ( ; ; in English language, English and Archaism, archaic Dutch language, Dutch also Leyden) is a List of cities in the Netherlands by province, city and List of municipalities of the Netherlands, municipality in the Provinces of the Nethe ...

. After completing his studies he travelled to the

Vatican Vatican may refer to: Geography * Vatican City, an independent city-state surrounded by Rome, Italy * Vatican Hill, in Rome, namesake of Vatican City * Ager Vaticanus, an alluvial plain in Rome * Vatican, an unincorporated community in the ...

, Spain, and England. Through the influence of his uncle, Franz Georg gained valuable contacts in the court of the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans (disambiguation), Emperor of the Romans (; ) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period (; ), was the ruler and h ...

Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...

. After his uncle died in 1729 and Franz Ludwig, Archbishop-Elector of

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

, succeeded him after vacating his own see, Franz Georg was unanimously elected the new Archbishop of Trier and thus appointed Prince-Elector of Trier. Owing to the protection of the Papacy in 1732 he was also elected the Prince-Bishop of

Worms The World Register of Marine Species (WoRMS) is a taxonomic database that aims to provide an authoritative and comprehensive catalogue and list of names of marine organisms. Content The content of the registry is edited and maintained by scien ...

and the Prince-Provost of

Ellwangen Abbey Ellwangen Abbey () was the earliest Benedictine monastery established in the Duchy of Swabia, at the present-day town of Ellwangen an der Jagst, Baden-Württemberg, about 100 km (60 mi) north-east of Stuttgart Stuttgart (; ; Swabia ...

. Politically Franz Georg sided with the

House of Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful Dynasty, dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout ...

, and through it the Archbishopric-Electorate of Trier became involved in the great conflicts of the day. In the second half of his reign, Franz Georg retired from active involvement in politics, and focused on administration and construction projects. From 1737 until 1753 he constructed a

Baroque The Baroque ( , , ) is a Western Style (visual arts), style of Baroque architecture, architecture, Baroque music, music, Baroque dance, dance, Baroque painting, painting, Baroque sculpture, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished from ...

residence in

Ellwangen Ellwangen an der Jagst, officially Ellwangen (Jagst), in common use simply Ellwangen () is a town in the district of Ostalbkreis in the east of Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It is situated about north of Aalen. Ellwangen has 25,000 inha ...

. Beginning in 1739 he began the extension of the

Philippsburg Philippsburg () is a town in the district of Karlsruhe, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. History Before 1623, Philippsburg was known as "Udenheim". The city was a possession of the Bishop of Speyer from 1316 to 1803. The town is named after P ...

Koblenz Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...

. He also constructed a new summer residence, Schönbornslust. In Worms, he continued the rebuilding of the

Bischofshof The Bischofshof palace ( or or ) was a former Baroque Architecture, Baroque-style palace in Worms, Germany, Worms, Germany. It was located next to the Worms Cathedral, on its northern side, on the current ''Schlossplatz'' (). It served as the m ...

palace, which was started by his predecessor, Francis Louis of Palatinate-Neuburg. Despite being pious, Franz Georg worked hard to increase the level of education amongst the populace. He outlawed several pilgrimages, holidays and exorcisms. Towards the end of his life Franz Georg's power declined with that of his family. He died in Philippsburg in 1756 and was buried in the

Cathedral of Trier The High Cathedral of Saint Peter in Trier (), or Trier Cathedral (), is a Roman Catholic cathedral in Trier, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is the oldest cathedral in Germany and the largest religious structure in Trier, notable for its long l ...

. Bischofsstab F. G. v. Schönborn (Trier).JPG, Crozier Trier Sankt Paulin Wappen von Schönborn.jpg, Coat of arms at Basilica of St. Paulinus, Trier Messgewand v. Schönborn (3b) - 2011-05-30.jpg, Chasuble Messgewand v. Schönborn (Wappen) - 2011-05-30.jpg, Heraldic figure Grabaltar für Erzbischof Franz Georg von Schönborn, Trierer Dom-3506.jpg, Burial in the Trier cathedral

References

, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Schonborn, Franz Georg von 1682 births 1756 deaths Clergy from Mainz Francis 02 Roman Catholic bishops of Worms 18th-century Roman Catholic archbishops in the Holy Roman Empire Franz Georg