Gottfried von Cappenberg

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Gottfried's tomb in the Cappenberg collegiate church

Gottfried von Cappenberg (* 1096/97 in Cappenberg near Lünen ; † January 13, 1127 in Ilbenstadt near Friedberg (Hesse) ) was a Westphalian count from the Cappenberg family , Premonstratensian and is venerated as a non-canonized saint. His Catholic feast day is January 13th.

Life

Gottfried's father was Gottfried I von Cappenberg, who fell in 1106, son of Count Hermann von Cappenberg and Gerberga von Huneburg, grandson of Count Gottfried von Cappenberg and great-grandson of Hermann von Eenham , Margrave of Eenham , Count of Verdun and from 1017 Count of the Eifelgau and in the Stevergau .

Gottfried's younger siblings were Otto , Gerberga and Beatrix. From the inheritance of their maternal grandfather, Heinrich von Hildrizhausen , the brothers Gottfried and Otto also owned two castles in Swabia with many ministerials and around 2,000 Hufen . One of the castles was in Hildrizhausen, while the other castle was called "Creinekke". The two family castles of the Counts of Hildrizhausen and Kräheneck came under the control of the Cappenbergers through their mother Beatrix.

The Cappenbergers, who are related to the Salians and Staufers, were counts of the Dreingaus and were among the most respected, richest and most powerful lords in the country.

In 1120 he married Jutta / Ida von Werl , the daughter of Count Friedrich von Arnsberg .

In the winter of 1120/21 he moved in the course of the investiture dispute with Duke Lothar against Münster to reinstate Bishop Dietrich II of Münster, who was loyal to the Pope. During the storming of Münster on May 7, 1121, the cathedral burned down , which Gottfried was personally blamed for. Emperor Heinrich V brought charges of high treason against all participants in this campaign . In November 1121, on a pilgrimage in Cologne, Gottfried and Otto met Norbert von Xanten , the founder of the Premonstratensian order who was later canonized. His sermons impressed him. Against the will of his father-in-law, he and his brother Otto decided to bequeath Cappenberg Castle to the order and to join the order with the whole family. In this way they could avoid the danger of falling under imperial ban if convicted of high treason . In addition to the danger to life and limb, this would also have entailed expropriation of all their property without compensation . The family seat was transformed into the Premonstratensian monastery. Until his death in 1124, his father-in-law tried to dissuade him from doing so by force of arms. After that, Gottfried finally entered the order himself. He founded a women's choir near the Cappenberg monastery, which his wife and sisters reluctantly joined. Gottfried founded further abbeys in Varlar near Coesfeld and in Ilbenstadt in the Wetterau .

In the winter of 1126/27 he fell ill on the return journey from Magdeburg, where he had accompanied Norbert, and died. His widow probably left the women's choir and married Gottfried von Cuyk .

His grave is in front of the high altar in the Ilbenstadt basilica.

meaning

His decision to renounce secular rule and to bring the entire inheritance into the family foundation of Cappenberg Monastery in 1122 was decisive for the fate of Westphalia. The planned connection Werl – Arnsberg – Cappenberg should have welded the whole of Westphalia into one large power bloc. In the period that followed, Westphalia broke up more and more into many counties and lordships and fell completely into the shadow of imperial politics.

Adoration

Gottfried von Cappenberg has been venerated by the Premonstratensian order since his death. However, an official canonization never took place.

In the dioceses of Münster and Mainz , his feast of saints is celebrated annually on January 13th as a day of remembrance not required .

The churches of St. Gottfried in Münster and St. Gottfried in Butzbach bear his name, as does the parish church of St. Gottfried in the Lüner district of Wethmar, which is part of the Lüner parish of St. Marien .

literature

Web links

Commons : Gottfried von Cappenberg  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Franz-Peter Kreutzkamp: Liberation of farmers on Cappenberg . In: Franz-Peter Kreutzkamp (Ed.): IUS VIVENS Rechtsgeschichtliche Abhandlungen, Vol. 14 . LIT Verlag, Münster 2003, ISBN 3-8258-6946-6 , p. 10-11 .
  2. ↑ Nathalie Kruppa: Memory of a Count. Adolf IV von Schaumburg and his memoria . In: Nathalie Kruppa (ed.): Nobles - donors - monks. On the relationship between monasteries and medieval nobility . Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, Göttingen 2007, ISBN 978-3-525-35886-3 , p. 183-224 .
  3. ^ Ingrid Ehlers-Kisseler: Adoration of saints by the Premonstratensians. The Blessed and Saints of the Premonstratensian Order in the German-speaking area . In: History Association of the Diocese of Rottenburg-Stuttgart (Hrsg.): Rottenburger yearbook for church history . tape 22 . Thorbecke, 2003, ISSN  0722-7531 , p. 65-94 .
  4. ↑ See diocesan calendar of the diocese of Münster.
personal data
SURNAME Gottfried von Cappenberg
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Westphalian count, premonstratensian and saint
DATE OF BIRTH 1096 or 1097
PLACE OF BIRTH Cappenberg
DATE OF DEATH January 13, 1127
Place of death Ilbenstadt near Friedberg (Upper Hesse)