| House of Zähringen | |
|---|---|
 Seal ofBerthold IV, featuring alion rampant | |
| Parent family | Alaholfings |
| Country | Duchy of Carinthia March of Verona Margraviate of Baden Grand Duchy of Baden |
| Founded | 11th century |
| Founder | Berthold I of Zähringen |
| Final ruler | Berthold V as Duke of Zähringen Frederick II as Grand Duke of Baden |
| Dissolution | 1218 (ducal branch of Zähringen) |
| Branches | Baden (extant) Teck (extinct in 1439) |
TheHouse of Zähringen (German:Zähringer,pronounced[ˈtsɛːʁɪŋɐ]) was a dynasty ofSwabian nobility. The family's name derived fromZähringen Castle nearFreiburg im Breisgau. The Zähringer in the 12th century used the title of Duke of Zähringen, in compensation for having conceded the title ofDuke of Swabia to theStaufer in 1098. The Zähringer were granted the special title ofRector ofBurgundy in 1127, and they continued to use both titles until the extinction of the ducal line in 1218.
The territories and fiefs held by the Zähringer were known as the Duchy of Zähringen (German:Herzogtum Zähringen), but it was not seen as aduchy in equal standing with the oldstem duchies. The Zähringer attempted to expand their territories in Swabia and Burgundy into a fully recognized duchy, but their expansion was halted in the 1130s due to their feud with theWelfs. Pursuing their territorial ambitions, the Zähringer founded numerous cities and monasteries on either side of theBlack Forest, as well as in the westernSwiss Plateau. After the extinction of the ducal line in 1218, parts of the family's territories reverted to the crown (attainedimperial immediacy), while other parts were divided between the houses ofKyburg,Urach andFürstenberg.
The earliest-known ancestor (progenitor) of the family was one Berthold, Count in theBreisgau (d. 982), who was first mentioned in 962. In view of his name, he may have been related to the AlemannicAlaholfing dynasty.
Count Berthold's great-grandson, who became known asBerthold II, Duke of Carinthia – posthumously referred to as Berthold I of Zähringen (c. 1000–1078) – held several lordships (Herrschaften) in the Breisgau, inThurgau,Ortenau andBaar. By his mother, he was related to the risingHohenstaufen family. EmperorHenry III had promised his vassal Berthold theDuchy of Swabia, but this was not fulfilled, as upon Henry's death, his widowAgnes of Poitou appointed CountRudolf of Rheinfelden to the position ofDuke of Swabia in 1057. In compensation, Berthold was madeDuke of Carinthia andMargrave of Verona in 1061. However, this dignity was only a titular one, and Berthold subsequently lost it when, in the course of theInvestiture Controversy, he joined the rising of his former rival Rudolf of Rheinfelden against German kingHenry IV in 1073.
Berthold's sonBerthold II (c. 1050–1111), who like his father fought against Henry IV, inherited a lot of the lands of Rudolf's son CountBerthold of Rheinfelden in 1090 (though not his comital title, which stayed with the family von Wetter-Rheinfelden). Berthold II is so named both as Duke of Swabia (following Berthold of Rheinfelden, the first duke of Swabia of this name) and as head of the House of Zähringen (following his father, who is counted as Berthold I of Zähringen in spite of not historically having used the name Zähringen). Berthold II did use the name Zähringen, although he moved his main residence fromZähringen Castle to the newly builtFreiburg Castle in 1091.
In 1092, Berthold II was elected Duke of Swabia againstFrederick I of Hohenstaufen. In 1098, he reconciled with Frederick, renounced all claims to Swabia and instead concentrated on his possessions in the Breisgau region, assuming the title of Duke of Zähringen. He was succeeded in turn by his sonsBerthold III (d. 1122) andConrad (d. 1152).
In 1127, upon the assassination of his nephew CountWilliam III, Conrad claimed the inheritance of theCounty of Burgundy against CountRenaud III of Mâcon. Renaud prevailed, although he had to cede large parts of the easternTransjuranian lands to Conrad, who thereupon was appointed by EmperorLothair III as a 'rector' of the ImperialKingdom of Burgundy-Arles. This office was confirmed in 1152 and held by the Zähringer dukes until 1218. As a result, they are sometimes referred to as 'Dukes of Burgundy', although the existingDuchy of Burgundy was not an Imperial fief but aFrench one. DukeBerthold IV (d. 1186), who followed his father Conrad and founded the Swiss city of Fryburg (today's Fribourg-Freiburg) in 1157, spent much of his time in Italy in the train of EmperorFrederick I Barbarossa.
His son and successor,Berthold V, showed his prowess by reducing the Burgundian nobles to order. This latter duke was the founder of the city ofBern in 1191, and when he died in February 1218, the ducal line of the Zähringer became extinct. Among other titles, the Zähringen family acted asReichsvogt of theZürichgau area.
After the extinction of the ducal line in 1218, much of its extensive territory in the Breisgau and modern-day Switzerland returned to the crown, except for the allodial titles, which were divided between thecounts of Urach (who subsequently called themselves the counts of Freiburg) and thecounts of Kyburg, both descended from the sisters of Berthold V. Less than fifty years later, the Kyburgs died out, and large portions of their domains were inherited by theHouse of Habsburg. Bern achieved the status of afree imperial city, whereas other cities (such as Fribourg-Freiburg) only obtained the same status later in history.
Berthold I (ancestor of both the House of Zähringen and the House of Baden) held the comital titles ofBreisgau andThurgau, as well as being reeve inStein am Rhein (owned by thebishop of Bamberg). The county of Thurgau was lost around 1077.
In 1098, Berthold II, founder of the House of Zähringen proper, receivedZähringen Castle and thejurisdiction overZürich (alongside theCounts of Lenzburg until 1173). Ownership of the county ofRheinfelden and ofBurgdorf also dates to c. 1198.
The 'rectorate' of thecounty of Burgundy was granted in 1127 (inheritance ofOtto-William, Count of Burgundy). Ownership of Burgundy was contested, and Zähringerde facto rule was limited to the parts ofUpper Burgundy east of theJura and north ofLake Geneva. The territories south of Lake Geneva were conceded toSavoy andProvence in 1156. In compensation, Berthold IV received the investiture right for the bishops of Geneva, Sion and Lausanne,de facto realised only in the case of Lausanne.
The extinction of the counts of Lenzburg in 1173 strengthened the Zähringer position south of the Rhine, but their territorial expansion was halted following their support of theWelfs in the unsuccessful feud againstConrad III of Germany during 1138–1152. This frustrated their ambitions to carve out a contiguous territorial duchy wedged between Swabia andBurgundy, in spite of late attempts on the part of Berthold V to increase his territorial sway (who as late as 1210 aimed at receiving the jurisdiction overSt. Gallen).
Instead of territorial expansion, the dukes of Zähringen from the 1150s focused on attaining more immediate feudal control over the territories they already had. This included their policy of expanding settlements into fortified towns or cities and the construction of new castles, mostly in their territories north of the Rhine. Their encroachment on the rights of the comital nobility south of the Rhine seems to have been resisted, mostly passively, but in the case of the lords ofGlâne andThun in an open revolt in 1191.
The fragmentation of the Zähringer possessions after 1218 was an important factor in thecommunal movements of the late medieval period in the region, including theimperial immediacy of Bern and Zürich, and thegrowth of the Old Swiss Confederacy in the early 14th century.[1]
Among the cities founded or expanded by the Zähringer dukes (German:Zähringerstädte) are:
Other towns owned by or under the jurisdiction (Reichsvogtei) of the Zähringer include:Solothurn (acquired 1127),Zürich (acquired 1173),Schaffhausen (acquired 1198) andStein am Rhein.[year needed]
The city ofMorges on Lake Geneva is not a Zähringer foundation (having been founded in 1286 byLouis I of Vaud) but shared the characteristic layout of the Zähringer cities.
Berthold II, Duke of Carinthia, Margrave ofVerona (c. 1000–1078, r. 1061–1077), is also known as "Berthold I of Zähringen". Therefore, the succession of dukes of Zähringen begins with his son as Berthold II:
Dukes of Zähringen:
Other notable Zähringer:
TheVeronese margravial title was used byHerman I of Baden, the eldest son ofBerthold I of Zähringen. Herman's son,Herman II, was the first to use the title ofMargrave of Baden in 1112.
Now more commonly known as the House of Baden, Herman's descendants ruled successively asmargraves until theFinal Recess of 1803, aselectors of theElectorate of Baden until 1806, then asGrand Dukes of Baden until the end of the German monarchy in 1918. For the Heads of the House of Baden until 1918, see thelist of monarchs of Baden.
Heads of the House of Baden since 1918
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Adalbert I (d. 1196) was a son of Duke Conrad I of Zähringen. Upon the death of his brother Berthold IV in 1186, he inherited the family estates aroundTeck Castle and, from 1187, adopted the title of Duke of Teck. His descendantConrad II of Teck (1235–1292) allegedly was designatedKing of the Romans shortly before his assassination. The line became extinct in 1439 with the death ofLouis of Teck,Patriarch of Aquileia.
In 1871, aducal title with the same name was granted by KingCharles I of Württemberg toPrince Francis of Teck (1837–1900), amorganatic son ofDuke Alexander of Württemberg. Francis' daughterMary of Teck (1867–1953), as the wife of KingGeorge V, became Queen of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions, and Empress of India.
Francis's surviving children ceased using their German titles duringWorld War I and (aside from Queen Mary) took the name Cambridge, with his eldest son (Adolphus) being madeMarquess of Cambridge and his youngest son (Alexander) being madeEarl of Athlone. This branch of the family died out in the male line in 1981 and in its entirety in 1994 with the death of Francis's granddaughter,Lady Mary Abel Smith.
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