Bavarian War (1459–1463)

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The Bavarian War from 1459 to 1463, also known as the Prince's War , was the result of the expansion efforts of the principalities, with Margrave Albrecht Achilles from the house of the Hohenzollern , who at that time already united the principalities of Brandenburg-Kulmbach and Brandenburg-Ansbach in his hands, Ludwig the Rich as Duke of Bavaria-Landshut from the Wittelsbach family .

Starting position

Albrecht Achilles tried to extend his influence to the neighboring areas by expanding his jurisdiction. For this reason, he undertook the initiative to raise his castle counts district court to the imperial court. This would have meant that he could have influenced the jurisdiction of the neighboring principalities and, as a higher-level court, could then override decisions of lower-level courts. The idea behind Albrecht Achilles' endeavors was the re-establishment of the Duchy of Franconia ; In connection with the ducal status, this thought stayed awake in the Würzburg monastery for a long time without ever becoming a reality again.

Shortly before, Ludwig the Rich had gained considerably in importance by incorporating the defunct Duchy of Bavaria-Ingolstadt .

Alliances

Albrecht Achilles knew how to show his own interests to the Habsburg Emperor Friedrich III. as imperial interests to make credible. After Ludwig with taking the recently for the rich imperial city collected Donauwörth provided the trigger for the war, the Emperor Albrecht Achilles charged with the execution of about Ludwig the rich imposed outlawry .

Due to the different interests, the conflict spread to southern and central Germany, and both camps received an influx of further princes, including the Bohemian King George of Podebrady took sides.

On the side of Albrecht Achilles stood as imperial governors appointed by the emperor Karl von Baden and Ulrich von Württemberg . Other allies were his brother, the Brandenburg Elector Friedrich , Kurmainz , Duke Wilhelm of Saxony and Landgrave Ludwig of Hesse . On the side of Ludwig the Rich stood the Palatine Elector Friedrich the Victorious from the House of Wittelsbach, Count Palatine Otto von Mosbach and the two Prince-Bishops Johann III. von Grumbach von Würzburg and Philipp von Henneberg von Bamberg. While the bishops brought in no decisive support and the alliance of convenience did not promise to last, the Bohemian King George of Podebrady joined the fighting on the side of Louis during the war .

Course of the war and consequences

At first, the conflict seemed to have come to a quick end as early as 1460: Ludwig the Rich had invaded the land of Albrecht Achilles and Albrecht Achilles had to accept the assignment of territory in the so-called "Rother direction". In 1461 he saw the possibility to get rid of this agreement, not least because of his allies standing by his side. In fact, Ludwig the Rich was militarily so strong that he was able to occupy further areas of the margravate. Through the intervention of the emperor, the Bohemian king took on a mediating role and it was possible to negotiate an armistice in Prague.

Also the Hochstift Eichstätt under Prince-Bishop Johann III. von Eych was not spared from the arguments of his neighbors. Ludwig the Rich attacked Eichstätt in 1460 and other cities in the following years, partially destroying them.

The two decisive battles in the course of the war were the battle of Seckenheim in June 1462, in which Ludwig's ally Friedrich the Victorious was able to capture the imperial governors Karl von Baden and Ulrich von Württemberg and the battle of Giengen ( Giengen an der Brenz ), which Ludwig the rich man won. A settlement was finally agreed in the Peace of Prague of 1463: Louis the Rich withdrew from the occupied territories and Albrecht Achilles waived his claim to imperial jurisdiction.

The events of the war and the alliances made are intertwined with other disputes, e. B. the Mainz collegiate feud .

Situation in Sechsämterland 1462

A force of troops from Bohemia and Eger had invaded the Sechsämterland in 1462 and had caused considerable damage through destruction and looting. The bailiff Friedrich von Dobenck at Thierstein Castle set fire to the village of Thierstein to prevent opposing troops from holing up in it. Since he took the villagers into the castle, he was only able to resist for a short time due to the supply situation, and Hohenberg Castle was also handed over. In the spring of 1462, Bohemian troops burned Weißenstadt . According to a founding legend, Friedrich von Sparneck vowed to found a monastery in Sparneck should he be spared the chaos of war. On the Katharinenberg near Wunsiedel , Jobst von Schirnding succeeded in repelling the Bohemians after their unsuccessful six-week siege of the city. The church on the Katharinenberg has been in ruins since then. The withdrawal did not succeed because of military strength - the Bohemian troops were far superior - but because of differences between the partners Eger and Bohemia and the internal conflicts that broke out in the Bohemian region. The withdrawal of the Bohemians did not happen without devastating villages in the catchment area of ​​the city of Eger. Local sources speak of a "longer" and a "closer Hussenrais" and thus establish a connection to the Hussite Wars . The events were passed down in the local population in the Wunsiedler Siegeslied .

literature

  • Friedrich Baethgen : Schism and Konilszeit - Reich reform and Habsburgs rise. In: Handbook of German History. Volume 6. pp. 121-122.
  • Benno Hubensteiner : Bavarian History. Munich 1977, ISBN 3-7991-5684-4 , pp. 159-160.
  • Elisabeth Jäger : Wunsiedel 1163–1560. Wunsiedel 1987, pp. 235-246.
  • Karl Heinz Kalb: On the nature of warfare at the beginning of modern times - its effects on the upper Main. In: Local supplement to the official school gazette of the administrative district of Upper Franconia. Bayreuth 1977, pp. 34-42.
  • Andreas Kraus (Ed.): History of Franconia up to the end of the 18th century. In: Handbook of Bavarian History. Volume 3, Teilband 1. München 1997, ISBN 3-406-39451-5 , pp. 435-441.
  • Johannes Merz, Robert Schuh (Ed.): Franconia in the Middle Ages. Dachau 2004, pp. 310-319.
  • Johannes Müllner: The annals of the imperial city of Nuremberg from 1623. Part II: From 1351–1469. Nuremberg 1972, p. 533f.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Karl Dietel : Hallerstein, Münchberg district, castle, rule, church and village. In: Archives for the history of Upper Franconia.
  2. ↑ Stadelmann: The repulsed storm of the Bohemians on the city of Wunsiedel in 1462. In: Archives for the history of Upper Franconia . Volume 8, 3rd issue. Bayreuth 1862, pp. 33-40.
  3. ↑ Hans Vollet, Kathrin Heckel: The ruins drawings of the Plassenburg cartographer Johann Christoph Stierlein . 1987.
  4. ↑ Elizabeth Hunter : Wunsiedel 1163-1560. Wunsiedel 1987, p. 242.