Gebhard I. von Waldburg

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Gebhard von Waldburg-Trauchburg
Archbishop Gebhard of Cologne
Waldburg coat of arms from Scheibler's book of arms from 1450–1480

Gebhard Truchseß von Waldburg-Trauchburg (born November 10, 1547 in Heiligenberg ; † May 31, 1601 in Strasbourg ) was as Gebhard I. Elector and Archbishop of Cologne and Duke of Westphalia (1577–1583). He converted to Protestantism, married and wanted to secularize the archbishopric. This sparked resistance from the majority of the Cologne cathedral chapter . Both sides, supported by foreign allies, fought against each other in the Cologne War , which Gebhard finally lost.

Early years

Gebhard came from the Jacobean line of the Reichstruchsessen from Waldburg . His father was Wilhelm the Younger zu Friedberg, Scheer and Trauchburg. He was imperial councilor and envoy. The mother was Johanna, daughter of Count Friedrich von Fürstenberg.

Gebhard was earmarked for the clergy at an early stage. His uncle Otto von Waldburg , bishop of Augsburg and cardinal, took on the task of educating Gebhard to be clergy and to study in 1558. He studied at the universities of Dillingen , Ingolstadt , Löwen and Perugia . Not least through his uncle, Gebhard acquired Dompfründen in Augsburg , Cologne and Strasbourg . He was ordained as a subdeacon in 1567. After his return from Italy he lived an initially quite secular life, mainly in Augsburg, before giving up after being warned. Little is known about him over the following years. In Augsburg he rose to the position of provost of the cathedral in 1574 and in the same year to the cathedral dean in Strasbourg . Although he was also a canon in Cologne, he was rarely there and also neglected his annual residence obligation. In the dispute between Archbishop Salentin von Isenburg and the cathedral chapter, he therefore initially had no active part.

Archbishop election and beginning of rule

When the archbishop announced his resignation, Gebhard was initially not a promising candidate for successor. But he was now more concerned with the conditions in the archbishopric of Cologne. He participated in upholding the rights of the cathedral chapter on the question of succession. In addition to Gebhard, there were various other possible successors. The Jesuit pupil Ernst von Bayern seemed to be particularly promising . Behind this stood not only Duke Albrecht V , but also the papal nuncio . On the other hand, Gebhard had good relations in the cathedral chapter and the estates preferred him as a successor to a descendant from a powerful royal house. Within the cathedral chapter there was a party close to Protestantism that feared the influence of the strictly Catholic Bavaria. After the resignation of Archbishop Salentin von Isenburg, Gebhard was elected Archbishop on December 5, 1577 in Cologne with 12/10 votes against Ernst von Bayern. The defeated candidate initially refused to submit, claimed that heretics had taken part in the election and ultimately appealed to Rome in vain. However, this delayed the papal confirmation of the election.

Gebhard initially confessed to Catholicism through his actions. On March 19, 1578 he was ordained a priest and took the Tridentine oath of faith . Ordination to the priesthood was by no means a matter of course, as his four predecessors had renounced it. His support for the Jesuits in Cologne against the will of the citizens and his intention to have a visit to the Duchy of Westphalia also spoke for his Catholic attitude . In April 1578 it was enfeoffed by Emperor Rudolf II and accepted into the electoral college . He received papal confirmation of his election on March 29, 1580.

The Kaiser was secretly satisfied with Gebhard's election, even if he had officially supported Ernst von Bayern. In fact, the imperial court would not have been able to further strengthen Bavaria. Gebhard took part in the Worms Deputation Day in 1578. In 1579 he took part as the imperial commissioner at the Cologne Pacification Congress to settle the dispute between Spain and the rebellious Dutch provinces . He was clearly in favor of Spain and against the religious claims of the Protestant Netherlands. For this reason the relationship with the Netherlands and the House of Orange-Nassau deteriorated . In contrast to his predecessor, Gebhard had relatively good relations with the neighboring Duchy of Jülich . In contrast, the relationship with the Counts of Wetterau , who had supported him during the bishopric election, deteriorated .

Introduction of Protestantism

Nothing is known about Gebhard's way of life during the first part of his term in office. He had had a love affair with the Protestant Agnes von Mansfeld since around 1579 or 1580 . This was a canon in the Gerresheim Abbey . Both met initially in secret at Moers Castle . The plan to marry his beloved, to secularize the Archbishopric of Cologne and to introduce Protestantism also arose through the influence of canons who had secretly converted to Protestantism and through pressure from the House of Mansfeld , who did not want to see Agnes as a mere mistress. It was convenient for Gebhard that the Protestants in Cologne asked the city council to practice their religion freely.

Rumors of these plans reached the cathedral chapter. There the criticism of Gebhard intensified, who had already been in dispute with the cathedral chapter about various rights. Rumors about the plans soon reached Gregory XIII. who warned Gebhard in a letter to refrain from his plan and at the same time urged the cathedral chapter to resist.

The leader of Gebhard's opponents in the cathedral chapter was the choir bishop Friedrich von Sachsen-Lauenburg (1554–1586). The latter took the Zons customs from the elector . Thereupon Gebhard raised troops and moved on November 4, 1582 before Bonn . He took possession of the city and some neighboring towns and castles. He was now supported by the Wetterau counts. As a result, negotiations with the cathedral chapter took place. One of Gebhard's problems was that none of the learned electoral councilors took his side. During this time Gebhard also became more familiar with the Protestant teachings.

On December 19, 1582, Gebhard publicly renounced the Catholic Church and converted to the Reformed religion . He gave his subjects the choice of denomination. The majority of the Cologne cathedral chapter continued to support Catholicism. Gebhard also declared that he would continue to be Archbishop. He married his lover on February 2, 1583 in Bonn. Count Adolf von Neuenahr , allied with Gebhard, occupied the heavily fortified town of Rheinberg with his troops.

Gebhard's approach violated applicable law in many ways. These included violations of the Reservatum ecclesiasticum of 1555, of the Golden Bull , of the Tridentine oath and of the Hereditary Lands Association of 1550. The political consequences were even more significant. Secularization of Kurköln would have meant a massive weakening of Catholicism and possibly its collapse in all of north-west Germany. There was a threat of a shift in the balance of forces in the Electoral College in favor of the Protestants. The choice of a Protestant emperor was therefore possible.

Against this background, Gebhard's opponents formed. The counter-movement began among the Catholic members of the cathedral chapter. The majority of the three remaining estates of the Archbishopric and Vest Recklinghausen joined the protest or declared themselves neutral. At the Cologne Landtag of 1583 the estates of the Duchy of Westphalia were not present. The representatives of the two remaining areas asked the emperor to depose Gebhard. Rudolf II asked Gebhard to resign in vain.

Even before the Cologne state parliament, Gebhard's opponents from the cathedral chapter had opened the military fight. The estates of the Duchy of Westphalia initially acted indecisively, until they came under pressure from the emperor in an appeal against the elector. This remained unimpressed and convened a state parliament in Arnsberg. He also proclaimed the equality of denominations for the duchy. At the state parliament in March 1583 it became clear that there were both opponents and supporters of Gebhard. Above all, the councilor Otto von Wolmeringhausen and the cities in the east of the Electorate of Cologne were close to him, which was of strategic importance because of the proximity to Protestant Hesse , Waldeck and Wittgenstein . Ultimately, Gebhard prevailed in the Duchy of Westphalia. Landdrost Eberhard zu Solms-Lich , who remained Catholic, and with him most of the Westphalian councilors, i.e. the head of the administration of the duchy, went into exile in Dortmund .

Cologne War

On April 1, 1583 Gebhard was by Pope Gregory XIII. excommunicated. On May 23, 1583, the cathedral chapter elected his former opponent Ernst von Bayern as anti-archbishop of Cologne, thereby securing Bavarian-Spanish troop support and a Catholic majority in the electoral college.

Gebhard, who was still able to rely on the Westphalian parts of his dominion, mobilized his troops. He received help from the Electorate of the Palatinate from Count Palatine Johann Kasimir . Further support from Protestant princes was largely absent. In the Duchy of Westphalia he began to introduce a Protestant church order, but at least in part met with resistance.

Overall, the Cologne War (1583–1588), also known as the Truchsessian War , was unfavorable for Gebhard. There were initially successes, e.g. B. the capture of Rheinberg in alliance with his supporter, Count Adolf von Moers and Neuenahr , as well as the victory in the Battle of Hüls at the end of 1583 .

After the conquest of Godesburg near Bonn on December 7, 1583 by Bavarian-Spanish troops, Gebhard had to flee to Werl in the Duchy of Westphalia and holed up in the electoral castle there. During the so-called Truchsess turmoil, large parts of the Archbishopric and the Duchy of Westphalia were subsequently devastated. The establishment of the Werler parish church St. Walburga was destroyed. Gebhard also met resistance in the Duchy of Westphalia. These included the Drost zu Balve, Arnsberg district, Hermann von Hatzfeld . Gebhard went to the Netherlands in 1584 on the mediation of William of Orange and continued the war from there with Dutch troops. They conquered Bonn on December 23, 1587 and devastated the city.

Last years

Gebhard gave up the fight in 1589, moved to Strasbourg and became a Protestant cathedral dean at the court of Duke Friedrich von Württemberg . He died in Strasbourg in 1601 and was buried in the Strasbourg Cathedral. In 1585 he unsuccessfully claimed the Württemberg town of Nusplingen with the rule of Kallenberg as his heir from his brother Truchseß Christoph .

A will from May 8, 1583 was changed to the Duke of Württemberg and his eldest son after the death of his brothers. Duke Friedrich and his successor Duke Johann Friedrich tried unsuccessfully to take over their inheritance in a peaceful way. On November 5, 1632, the first election of the citizens of Wuerttemberg who were compulsory military service moved out in Meßstetten under the command of Colonel Michael Rau, flanked by Swedish troops, in order to carry out Gebhard's last will.

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literature

Web links

Commons : Gebhard I. von Waldburg  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Friedrich v. Schiller: History of the 30-year war . Ed .: DigiBib.org. S. 17 .
predecessor Office successor
Salentin of Isenburg Elector and Archbishop of Cologne
1577–1583 		Ernst of Bavaria
personal data
SURNAME Gebhard I. von Waldburg
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Gebhard, Truchsess von Waldburg; Archbishop Gebhard of Cologne
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Elector and Archbishop of Cologne (1577–1583)
DATE OF BIRTH November 10, 1547
PLACE OF BIRTH Heiligenberg Castle , Heiligenberg
DATE OF DEATH May 31, 1601
Place of death Strasbourg