TheFrydag family, also spelledVrydach, Freytag, Freydag and various other slightly different spellings, is a German noble family known since the beginning of the 14th century that originated inUradel inWestphalia.
The family was first documented between 1198 and 1217 with the person ofWecelo Vriedach.[1] At the end of the 13th century, Westphalian aristocrats, among them also members of the Frydags, moved toPrussia andLivonia to fight with and in theTeutonic Order for the spread ofChristianity. By marrying in 1574 with the heiress of theGödens Castle inEast Frisia, the Frydag's gained great prestige and wealth. Since 1644 some family lines have been using the titleBaron and since 1692 other lines have been using the titleCount.
The spelling of the different branches of theFreiherr family diverges:
from Frydag
from Freytag called Löringhoff
Freytag by Loringhoven (also by Freytag-Loringhoven)
Freytagh by Loringhoven (also by Freytagh-Loringhoven)
Additional name additions were:
to Husen (near Syburg), extinguished in 1655
to Buddenburg, extinct 1908
to Sandfort (at Olfen-Vinnum), extinct in 1717
to Goedens, imperial barons 1649, imperial counts 1692, extinct 1746
to Grevel (near Syburg), extinct in 1546
to Drenhusen
to Hockerde (near Syburg)
Furthermore, the following spellings were used as well: Vriedach, Fridagh, Frydag, Freydag, Frejdag.
The Baltic born members of the family lead as part of the name the former predicate "Baron", provided that no substitution was made with its German-speaking areas equivalent "Freiherr".
The pavilion of House Buddenburg that was owned by the Frydag line from the 14th century to 1902. The pavilion was but a small part of House Buddenburg
In 1326, a Goswin ofDatteln[3] called Fridag, was sealed with theHeraldricCoat of arms, consisting of Three Rings Crest. To the other first tangible carriers of this name,Johann von der Berswordt in his Westphalian family tree leads from 1624 belong toTheodericus Frydag,[4] meles et castelanus inRecklinghausen, who witnessed in 1366 in a document of themonastery of Oelinghausen and Konrad Frydag 1316 his house and farm sold in Dortmund to the Dominicans to build a monastery. It is believed that the abbotMeinerus Frydag to Deutz, who died in 1330, was a brother of the above. Probably Hermann Frydag was a son or grandson ofKonrad Frydag[5] who stood in court of CountEngelbert II of the Mark in his feuds and as a witness often confirmed the documents issued by Count Engelbert in 1370. AnEberhard von Frydag was from 1385 to 1390 the 21st abbot of the former monastery ofCappenberg Castle.Arnold and Golfried Frydag signed the union of the Margrave nobility on the Laurentiustage 1419. In 1421 the uninterrupted genealogy of the Frydag family begins, whenEberhard Frydag acquired the estate ofLoringhoven nearRecklinghausen, and assumed the name of the estate as his surname. His descendants still bear the name Freytag von Loringhoven. This Eberhard also possessed estates in theDuchy of Jülich, which he received from the Palatinate Counts.
House Wischlingen
The House of Buddenburg was owned from the 14th century to 1902 by the line Frydag to Buddenburg but the name became extinct in 1908, which also had Loxten in the 17th century. House Grevel came into possession of the family in 1350, the local line went out 1546. House Wischlingen came in the second half of the 14th century two daughters in equal parts to the families of Frydag andOvelacker; the Frydag part came over the family ofPlettenberg in 1511 to that of Syberg. Godert and Arnt Frydag[6] married the heirsAleke and Belke von Husen and thus came into the possession of the Niederhofes and the Oberhofes in Husen in Syburg, todayCastle Husen and House Husen, that remained in their possession until 1655.
In 1421,Diederich Frydag van den Husen acquired the house Schörlingen and in acquired the house Löringhof south ofDatteln, which until the 17th and 18th Century remained in the possession of the family, but which was later demolished in 1961. Around 1450, two brothers of the family, went to the Baltics, this seat being named for the Baltic branches (see below,German Order). From 1550 to 1719Sandfort Castle [de] inOlfen was owned by the family. A line sat on Hockerde, Pentling and Drenhusen (near Syburg). In 1574, the East FrisianGödens came to the family as a marriage estate, which built a Baroque palace there,Gödens Castle which was passed on to its present owner, Count Wedel, in 1746 (see below,Ostfriesische line).Georg Wilhelm Freiherr von Frydag from Gödens inherited the estate Daren in 1742 from his first wifeSophia Johanna von Schade[7] and who built a new mansion there in 1752. Of all Westphalian branches flourishes until today only the line of barons of Frydag on Daren. Since 1907, the brickyardOlfry inVechta, founded byAugust Freiherr von Frydag on Daren, has been family-owned.
In 1445, Johann Frydag zu Talberg (zu meaning resident at) was one of the knights who assistedDietrich II. von Moers [de]Archbishop of Cologne in theSoest Feud. The archbishop and some of his knights, including Johann Frydag, were taken prisoner during the campaign. To gain their release, they bought their freedom with 32,000goldflorins. But this did not deter Dietrich from further battle as in the following year of 1446, along several other nobles, he sent a feudal letter (dispute) to DukeReinold von Geldern.
The brothersAndreas Frydag andJohann Frydag from Löringhoff moved toPrussia in the middle of the 15th century to assist theTeutonic Order in its wars against the poles. Johann Frydag joined the Teutonic Order. His courage and valour combined with his intellect, earned him the post of army commander of theLivonian Order, a position he held for 37 years. In 1489, after appointingWolter von Plettenberg, the Country Marshall (German:Landmeister) in 1491, he was able to end the 200-year civil war inTerra Mariana. This resulted in a period of cultural prosperity and peace that existed until 1561. His brother Andreas became a merchant and a father. The third brother, Melchior (b. 1466) is the common progenitor of the line in Prussia in the provinces of theMark andMünster.
The existence of German-Baltic and German-Baltic branch of the family that existed for many centuries, i.e., in the original home of settled lines and the descendants of mostly younger sons, who had already emigrated to theState of the Teutonic Order and settled there, is also recorded in other noble families, the Vietinghoff, theKorff, the Wenge/Lambsdorff, the Grotthuß/Grothaus or theWaldburg-Capustigall families.
With the brothers Franz and Bertold, the family divided in the middle of the 16th century into theEast Frisian andWestphalian line.
Water Castle, Gödens
Franz Frydag (1555-1606) married Almuth von Olden-Bockum, Almuth Boing's daughter, heiress of theLordship of Gödens (nowSande). So the family received the glorious Gödens and Uiterstewehr castles inEast Frisia in 1574. He was a founder of several lines, of which one was raised soon after in baronial and ducal status, but ceased in 1746.
Franz held the position of a court judge inAurich, after he had received the approval for the establishment of a Court of Justice by CountJohan II of East Frisia (1590). When he died, he left behind a daughter Margaret, who was married and had four sons, of whom the oldestOldenbockum, which was his mother's surname as his baptismal name (a usage that was frequent in northern Germany). He died during theSiege of Rees (1602). Other sons were Haro (1578-1637) and Melchior Ernst (1579-1641), who shared the lordship of the Gödens and Uiterstewehr lines and thus were heirs too two further family lines.
Melchior Ernst (1579-1641) distinguished himself in theDutch–Portuguese War and married Beate Sophia von Boineburg aus dem Hause, i.e. of the house ofHohnstein Castle. His great-granddaughter Hendrina was married to theEast Frisian administrator of thePrincipality of Nassau-Siegen, Nicolaus Moritz Frese to Hinte and thus heir to the manor Uiterstewehr. This branch of the family became extinct in 1748.
Johann Wilhelm married Johanna von Diepenbrock and became the founder of a line in Westphalia.
Franz Hyko (born 9 January 1606) led as chief to Gödens the main stem. He received his father's job as Drost to Leer and in 1639, after marryingElisabeth von Westerholt, heiress ofCastle Hackfort, converted back to the Catholic religion. He was promoted on 3 February 1644 byEmperor Ferdinand II to an Imperial Baron (Freiherr). Franz Hyko had several children:
Haro Burchhard,[8] (1640-1692), devoted himself with his brotherFranz Heinrich (1643-1693) to the legal sciences at German, Dutch and French academies and made according to the custom at that time with his brother, the cavalier tour of Europe. On his return, he was appointed chamberlain byEmperor Leopold I. Because of his knowledge, he received the post ofReichshofrat inVienna and died unmarried inHamburg as an imperial representative at the Lower Saxony circle. From 1671 he had the water castle Gödens built in its preserved form today.[9]
Karl Philipp (1644-1698) entered theOrder of Malta. After having made imperial service against the Turks in Hungary as well as some campaigns on the Mediterranean against the Barbarians, he becameGrand Prior inHungary and died inValletta in 1698 when he was preparing a new campaign againstTunis.
Burkard Philipp (1685-1746) also followed the diplomatic career of his father and uncle. After returning from universities and travels, he entered the circle of ImperialChamberlains andPrivy Councilors and EmperorCharles VI added. As an envoy to the Nordic courts inStockholm andCopenhagen, he developed his diplomatic skills. He kept his position until his death in Copenhagen, where he died in 1746 at the age of 61 years. He was married to Countess Edela Augusta Bielke the daughter of the royal Danish Major General CountChristoph Bielke (1654-1704). His wife brought the fiefdoms of Lopkeld, Oberaha, Nederowe into the family wealth. His son of the same name died shortly after birth. This extinguished the line. The heirs were the descendants of his sisterMaria Juliane (1684-1727), who was married to the royal Danish generalErhard Friedrich von Wedel-Jarlsberg (1668-1740). Their sonAnton Franz von Wedel (1707-1788) now inherited the glory of Göden, which is since then in the possession of the Counts ofWedel
Georg Wilhelm Frydag zu Gödens (1712–1782), Regierungsrat
Christian Philipp Frydag zu Gödens (* 1714), from 1755, Drost (bailiff) ofAurich
Christian Wilhelm Freytag von Gödens († 10 June 1804), Träger des Pour le Mérite, Oberst und Kommandeur des Infanterieregiments Nr. 10, Drost von Aurich
Westphalian document, Westfälisches Urkunden-Buch, Bd.II, Nr. 576, Volume III, Nr. 117
Goth. frhrl. Taschenbuch, A 1896, 1898, 1934, 1942
Genealogical Handbook of the Nobility, A 2, 1956; A 61, 1975, Frhr. 18, 1995;
Genealogical Handbook of the Baltic Knights, parts Kurland and Livland, Genealogisches Handbuch der Baltischen Ritterschaften, Teile Kurland und Livland, Görlitz 1929–1935; Teil Oesel, Tartu (Dorpat) 1935–1938;
Introduction to Swedish Notability, Den introducerade svenska adelns ättartavlor, Stockholm 1926;
Nederlands Adelsboek 1908
von Krusenstjern, Georg; Ritterschaft, Livländische; Ritterschaft, Öselsche (1963).Die Landmarschälle und Landräte der Livländischen und der Öselschen Ritterschaft in Bildnissen [Portraits of the Land Marshals and Land Councillors of the Livonian and Oeselian Knighthoods] (in German). Hamburg: H.v. Hofmann.OCLC14933008.
Freytag-Löringhoff, Bruno von (2002).Wilhelm Schickards Tübinger Rechenmaschine von 1623. Kleine Tübinger Schriften, Volume 4 (in German) (5th ed.). Tübingen: Universität Tübingen, Kulturamt.ISBN3-910090-48-6.OCLC53144772.
deutsch:With Hitler in the bunker - Records from the Führer's headquarters,Mit Hitler im Bunker – Aufzeichnungen aus dem Führerhauptquartier Juli 1944 – April 1945, Berlin 2006,ISBN3-937989-14-5
von Frydag, Georg Wilhelm (1970).Chronik der Familie von Frydag in Daren. Selbstverl.OCLC254404610.
Gammel, Irene (2002).Baroness Elsa : gender, dada, and everyday modernity : a cultural biography. Cambridge, Mass.: MIT Press.ISBN9780262072311.OCLC62197061.
Grimm, Sabine (2011).Adelslinien - Die Herren von Frydag Unruhige Zeiten - Band 7. Norderstedt.ISBN978-3-8423-2926-3.OCLC863697619.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
Johann Samuel Ersch (1850).Allgemeine encyclopädie der wissenschaften und künste in alphabetischer folge von genannten schrifts bearbeitet und herausgegeben von J. S. Ersch und J. G. Gruber ... (in German). J. f. Gleditsch. p. 475.
Alexander von Werdum; Sebastian Eberhard Jhering (1845).Hironimus Grestius's Reimchronik von Harlingerland, nebst Alexander von Werdum's Genealogie der Häuptlinge von Gödens &c., und S.E. Jhering's Beschreibung der Herrlichkeit Gödens (in German). Hergeröder. p. 40.
