Bilstein (German : Edelherren von Bilstein) were a medieval German noble family in what later became the Duchy of Westphalia with an estate (called Land Bilstein) mainly within the present region of Sauerland in Germany. Their family home was at Bilstein Castle in the present-day town of Lennestadt. This Westphalian family of Edelherren should not be confused with the Franconian counts of Bilstein, who held estates on the River Werra and in North Hesse.
The coat of arms depicts three pales vert on a field or. On the helmet with its green and gold mantling is a golden ball with three green pales and, above it three green peacock feathers. [1]
John I and his son, Dietrich III, of Bilstein used a seal with 3 roses on the shield.
The County of Mark was a county and state of the Holy Roman Empire in the Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle. It lay on both sides of the Ruhr River along the Volme and Lenne rivers.
Plettenberg is a town in the Märkischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Meinerzhagen is a town in the Märkischer Kreis, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Doberlug-Kirchhain is a German town in the district of Elbe-Elster, Lower Lusatia, Brandenburg.
The Prince-Bishopric of Würzburg was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire located in Lower Franconia, west of the Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg. Würzburg had been a diocese since 743. As established by the Concordat of 1448, bishops in Germany were chosen by the canons of the cathedral chapter and their election was later confirmed by the pope. Following a common practice in Germany, the prince-bishops of Würzburg were frequently elected to other ecclesiastical principalities as well. The last few prince-bishops resided at the Würzburg Residence, which is one of the grandest Baroque palaces in Europe.
Wettringen is a village and a municipality in the district of Steinfurt, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Lennestadt lies in the Sauerland in southeast North Rhine-Westphalia and is a community in Olpe district. It is the district's most populous municipality. Lennestadt itself is not an actual town but a community which comprises several towns and villages.
Kirchhundem is a German community in North Rhine-Westphalia. It belongs to the Olpe district.
Jerichow is a town on the east side of the river Elbe, in the District of Jerichower Land, of the state of Saxony-Anhalt in Germany. With about 270 square kilometres (100 sq mi), the municipality of Jerichow is one of the largest municipalities in area size in Germany.
The House of Schwarzenberg is a German (Franconian) and Czech (Bohemian) aristocratic family, and it was one of the most prominent European noble houses. The Schwarzenbergs are members of the German nobility and Czech nobility, and they held the rank of Princes of the Holy Roman Empire. The family belongs to the high nobility and traces its roots to the Lords of Seinsheim during the Middle Ages.
The House of Limburg-Stirum, which adopted its name in the 12th century from the immediate county of Limburg an der Lenne in what is now Germany, is one of the oldest families in Europe. It is the eldest and only surviving branch of the House of Berg, which was among the most powerful dynasties in the region of the lower Rhine during the Middle Ages. Some historians link them to an even older dynasty, the Ezzonen, going back to the 9th century.
The County of Dassel emerged shortly after the turn of the 11th and 12th centuries when, after the extinction of the male line of the Billungs, its seat in Suilbergau, north of the Solling hills was divided into the domains of Einbeck and Dassel. Reinold of Dassel was able to secure rights similar to comital rights. The county lasted about 200 years, till it was abandoned in 1310 when there were no heirs. The most prominent member of the comital family was Rainald of Dassel, chancellor to Emperor Frederick Barbarossa and Archbishop of Cologne.
Saldern or von Saldern, is the name of an old German aristocratic family from the areas of Hildesheim and Brunswick Land. The family seat of the same name is an eponymous castle on the River Fuhse in Salzgitter-Salder. Originally the family, whose branches are still alive today, only owned estates in the Lower Saxony area, but from the middle of the 16th century they also owned extensive property in the March of Brandenburg.
Merveldt is the name of a Westphalian noble family, which belongs to the nobility of the Middle Ages. The Herrn [Lords] von Merveldt were among the oldest families in the Münsterland. Merfeld, the eponymous seat of the family, is now a neighborhood of the city of Dülmen in the District of Coesfeld in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia in Germany.
The House von und zu Manndorff zu Pfannhofen und Wissenau is the name of an ancient Austrian noble family, more specifically the Uradel. They are among the oldest Carinthian noble families still in existence today.
Bilstein Castle is a hill castle in the Sauerland in Germany. It is located in the eponymous quarter of Bilstein in the town of Lennestadt. Since 1927 the building has been a youth hostel.
Amt Bilstein was an administrative district in what is now the region of Westphalia, Germany. Its territory corresponded more or less with the current municipality of Lennestadt. It was first mentioned in 1434 and, until 1803, was part of the Duchy of Westphalia and thus the Electorate of Cologne, before it was transferred to the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt, from which, in 1806 the Grand Duchy of Hesse emerged. Following a ruling by the Congress of Vienna this association came to an end and, on 1 August 1816, the territory of the Amt became part of the newly formed Regierungsbezirk Arnsberg in the Prussian Province of Westphalia. It became a subdivision of the Kreis Olpe. The Amt was disbanded in 1969.
The Barony of Bilstein was a dynastic lordship with extensive estates in the region of the present German states of Hesse and Thuringia.
The House of Egloffstein is an ancient Franconian aristocratic family (Uradel) with an eponymous family home in the hill region of Franconian Switzerland in the Bavarian province of Upper Franconia. The family first appears in the records in 1187 with a Heinrich genannt Stuchs who is also the progenitor. The house belongs to the brotherhood of Franconian Imperial Knights. Egloffstein Castle and Kunreuth Castle are to this day owned by the family.
The Koskullfamily, also written as Koschkull, is a wealthy aristocratic family of Livonian origins, famous for their extensive lands and manors. The family are descendants of the first King of Livonia and officially established as Koskele in 1302 in Livonia. The family spread to Estonia, Courland and Poland throughout the 15th century, Sweden and Finland in the 17th century, and Prussia and Russia in the 18th century. Several branches of the family still exist today, and is believed to be related to the von der Pahlen family.