Enno I. (East Frisia)

Enno I. (1460-1491)

Enno I. (* around 1460 ; † February 19, 1491 ) was Count of East Friesland from 1466 to 1491 . In 1491 he drowned in the moat of Friedeburg .

Life

Enno I was the first son of Ulrich I , the Count of East Friesland from the Cirksena family , and his wife Theda Ukena . At first he had other interests than to succeed Ulrich I. The administration of East Frisia remained in the hands of Theda, Ulrich I's widow. It was not until the years after 1480 that Enno took over more and more government tasks. However, there was no formal takeover of government.

In 1489, Enno, accompanied by Viktor Frese and Folef von Innhausen and Knyphausen, set out on a pilgrimage to the Holy Land , where he was knighted at the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem . During his absence, his sister Almut fell in love with the Westphalian nobleman Engelmann von Horstell, the Drost of Friedeburg. They even forged marriage plans, which Almut's mother Theda would not tolerate.

Nevertheless Almut went to the Friedeburg with her fiancé and took her family jewelry with her as trousseau. She protested that her brother agreed to love. When Enno later came back to East Frisia, however, the opposite turned out. Believing that the sister had been kidnapped by her lover, he angrily went after the two who had fled. In the field shortly before the Friedeburg he confronted the Drost. However, he insisted on his love and did not give Almut back. He reached the Friedeburg just in time, followed by Enno. But when he crossed the castle moat, which was frozen over in winter, with his heavy armor, the ice shattered and he drowned.

Enno I. died at the age of only 30 years. His mother Theda had a death shield made in his honor , which can still be seen on the wall of the Great Church , today Johannes a Lasco Library , in Emden in the area of ​​the crypt.

See also

• Cirksena tribe list

Web links

• Walter Deeters : Enno I. (PDF; 44 kB) in: Biographisches Lexikon für Ostfriesland (accessed on June 25, 2012)