Günther XXI. (Schwarzburg-Blankenburg)

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Gravestone, tracing

Günther XXI., Count of Schwarzburg-Blankenburg (* 1304 on the Blankenburg ; † June 14, 1349 in Frankfurt am Main ) was a German nobleman who fought against King (and later Emperor ) Charles IV of the House of Luxembourg in 1349 as an opposing king .

Life

Günther was the son of Count Heinrich VII von Schwarzburg-Blankenburg and Christine von Gleichen ; he had been married to Elisabeth von Hohnstein , daughter of Count Heinrich IV , at least since September 9, 1331 , who survived him for a good 30 years and died around April 4, 1380. He and Elisabeth had five children: a son, Heinrich XIII., His (childless) successor, and four daughters, Sophia (∞ Friedrich II. Von Orlamünde ), Elisabeth, Agnes and Mechtild, all of whom married in the social and spatial environment of the Count were.

Günther von Schwarzburg was a diplomat in the service of Emperor Ludwig IV from the House of Wittelsbach and, as such, two years after the Emperor's death on October 11, 1347 and after a series of unsuccessful attempts by the Wittelsbach party, he had a successor from his own ranks against Charles IV of Luxembourg, who was elected on July 11, 1346 - at that time still as the opposing king - and persuaded him to seek the office himself. On January 30, 1349 he was elected by the Wittelsbach party and its supporters in the Dominican monastery in Frankfurt am Main ; the Margrave of Brandenburg, Emperor Ludwig's son Ludwig V , as well as the Duke of Saxony-Lauenburg , the Count Palatine of the Rhine and the deposed Archbishop of Mainz , Heinrich von Virneburg , were eligible to vote enough to hold the election.

Günther justified his legitimacy essentially with the fact that he - unlike Karl, who was elected in Rhens - had been elected "in the right place", namely "in Frankenfort in the Velde, since Romanian kunge are right ...". In addition, Karl was not crowned in the right place (not in Aachen , but in Bonn ). However, the city had recognized Charles IV after Ludwig's death and had Günther wait in the field in front of the city for a week. Only on February 6th did he solemnly move into the city, where he was introduced to his office according to old tradition, the privileges of the city were confirmed and in return received the homage of the citizens on the Römerberg .

Charles IV quickly succeeded in getting the supporters of this opposing king on his side and finally routed Günther's army near Eltville on the Rhine . Günther waived all claims on May 26, 1349 in the Treaty of Eltville in return for compensation and an amnesty for his followers. But he could no longer enjoy the benefits of his waiver, as he died a short time later in the Frankfurt Johanniterkloster , presumably of the plague . The count himself indicated poisoning, but this cannot be proven historically.

Günther was buried with royal honors in the Frankfurt Cathedral at the instigation of Charles IV . The Schwarzburgstrasse and the Schwarzburg School as well as the Güntherstrasse in Frankfurt are named after him.

In 1777 Ignaz Holzbauer's opera "Günther von Schwarzburg" premiered with great success. Long forgotten, the opera was performed several times in concert and for the record in the late 20th century.

See also

literature

personal data
SURNAME Günther XXI.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Günther XXI., Count of Schwarzburg-Blankenburg
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German nobleman and anti-king
DATE OF BIRTH 1304
PLACE OF BIRTH Blankenburg
DATE OF DEATH June 14, 1349
Place of death Frankfurt am Main