List of the burgraves of Meissen

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This is a list of the burgraves of Meissen.

The Burgraviate of Meissen was first mentioned in 1068, when King Henry IV installed a burgrave in the imperial castle (Reichsburg) of Meissen. The burgraves of Meissen were royal officials appointed to document the king's claims to power. They acted as a counterbalance to the margrave and bishop of Meissen and were based at a castle on the site of the Albrechtsburg at Meißen. The lordship of the burgrave included quite a few of the villages in the surrounding area. The Vogtland was not part of the burgraviate, but the two territories had the same lord. The burgraves came from the House of Meinheringer and, from 1426, the House of Plauen. The Burgraviate of Meissen should not be confused with the Bishopric of Meissen and the Margraviate of Meissen.

Meissen Place in Saxony, Germany

Meissen is a town of approximately 30,000 about 25 km (16 mi) northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrechtsburg castle, the Gothic Meissen Cathedral and the Meissen Frauenkirche. The Große Kreisstadt is the capital of the Meissen district.

Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defence of one of the border provinces of the Holy Roman Empire or of a kingdom. That position became hereditary in certain feudal families in the Empire, and the title came to be borne by rulers of some Imperial principalities until the abolition of the Empire in 1806. Thereafter, those domains were absorbed in larger realms or the titleholders adopted titles indicative of full sovereignty.

Albrechtsburg castle in Saxony, Germany

The Albrechtsburg is a Late Gothic castle located in the town centre of Meissen in the German state of Saxony. It is situated on a hill above the river Elbe, adjacent to the Meissen Cathedral.

Contents

List (incomplete)

Verifiable burgravesfromtoLife spanRemarks
Frederick I of Wettin [ contradictory ]before 10091017d 1017Frederick was Count of Eilenburg and was only appointed as Burgrave of Meissen at very short notice and only in emergencies in the years 1009 and 1015 (22 October to 19 November).
Burchard1076d 1076Murdered
Burchard II11141117
Henry Haupt (Caput)1116Exchanged by Henry V for Wiprecht von Groitzsch, Louis of Thuringia and Burchard II.
HoyerRecorded 1180
Burgraves
from the Meinheringer family
fromtoLife spanRemarks
Hermann Sterker von Wohlsbach 11701180b ca. 1143; d ca. 1171With nephew of the same name, Hermann, Count of Wolfsbach and Schaumberg (b before 1152; d after 1177)
Meinher I of Werben 1199b before 1171; d 1217/1218
Meinher II1214b 1203; d after 1250Partly with his brother, Hermann II (I)
Meinher (III)1243d after 1297Son of Meinher II.
Hermann III.b before 1308; d after 1351Grandson of Meinher (III)
Meinher IV (V)b before 1308; d 1352/1355Grandson of Meinher (III)
Hermann IV† nach 1349Son of Hermann III.
Meinher V (VI)b before 1308; d 1388Founder of the Hartenstein line
Berthold I13881398d 1398Founder of the Frauenstein line
Meinher VI1398after 1401b before 1381; d after 1403Son of Berthold I.
Henry I of Hartenstein 13881423* vor 1381; d 1423Son of Meinher V (VI)
Henry II 14231426†† ⚔ 1426Last Meinheringer, son of Henry I.
Burgraves
from the Plauen family
fromtoLife spanRemarks
Henry I of Plauen 1426 (1439)1446b 1387; d 1446/1447Originally Henry X of Plauen
Henry II of Plauen 1446/14471482b 1417; d 1482/1484In 1466 the lordship of the Plauens over the Ämter of Plauen and Voigtsberg ended with the expulsion of Henry II. It was given to the Saxon elector, Ernest as a Bohemian enfeoffment.
Henry III of Plauen 14821519b 1453; d 1519In 1482 Henry III finally renounced his claims in favour of the House of Wettin, but still retained the right for himself and his descendants to bear the title of Burgrave of Meissen, which conferred on him a voice at the Imperial Diet. This was confirmed to him by Emperor Frederick III in a 1490 document.
Henry IV of Plauen 15191554b 1510; d 1554
Henry V of Plauen 15541568b 1533; d 1568
Henry VI of Plauen 15541572b 1536; d 1572

With the extinction of the Older Line of the advocates (Vögte) of Plauen in 1572 the family line of the burgraves of Meißen ended. After the Plauens had never reigned as burgraves, the title now went to the prince-electors of Saxony.

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of the burgraves had a black saltire on a gold field. On the helmet is a gold rectangular shield board (Schirmbrett), on which is a cross, which is adorned at the corners with 5 peacock feathers. The mantle is gold and black. This coat of arms was also carried by the burgraves of Merseburg, Naumburg (Saale), Neuenburg near Freyburg (Unstrut) and Osterfeld.

Merseburg Place in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany

Merseburg is a town in the south of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt on the river Saale, approx. 14 km south of Halle (Saale) and 30 km west of Leipzig. It is the capital of the Saalekreis district. It had a diocese founded by Archbishop Adalbert of Magdeburg. The University of Merseburg is located within the town. Merseburg has around 33,000 inhabitants. Merseburg is part of the Central German Metropolitan Region.

Neuenburg Castle (Freyburg) château

Neuenburg Castle is a hilltop castle overlooking Freyburg, a town in the state of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.

Osterfeld Place in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany

Osterfeld is a town in the Burgenlandkreis district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated southeast of Naumburg. It is part of the Verbandsgemeinde Wethautal.

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International Standard Book Number Unique numeric book identifier

The International Standard Book Number (ISBN) is a numeric commercial book identifier which is intended to be unique. Publishers purchase ISBNs from an affiliate of the International ISBN Agency.

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