Gottfried zu Castell-Rüdenhausen

Gottfried Graf und Herr zu Castell-Rüdenhausen (born January 16, 1577 in Rüdenhausen ; † August 6, 1635 in Castell ) was ruler of the Grafschaft Castell from 1597 to 1635.

The county before Gottfried

Several contrary developments shaped the county of Castell in the 16th century. For one thing, the county was exposed to two armed conflicts. The German Peasants' War of 1525 had many reasons. Among other things, the peasants took violent action against the rulers in order to free themselves from excessive taxes. The county was also exposed to the Margrave War . Both events resulted in some destruction.

The other event was the beginning of the Reformation , which was introduced by the Counts in Castell. Count Gottfried's predecessors, the county had been divided among three brothers, initially held benefices in the Catholic dioceses in the area. In the course of time, however, they adopted the new faith and underpinned this attitude with the signing of the formula of the Concord in 1579.

Life

Gottfried was born on January 16, 1577 in Rüdenhausen. He was the last son of Count Georg II zu Castell and his wife Sophia Schenkin zu Limpurg in Speckfeld . Count Gottfried had five siblings, but not all of them reached adulthood. The oldest brother Wolfgang was initially established as the successor to Georg II. After Georg obliged his sons to split the line, Gottfried also became the ruling count.

After the father's death in 1597, the county was split. While Wolfgang now resided in Remlingen and Castell, Gottfried received Rüdenhausen and Wiesenbronn . A total of 389 subjects who lived in 20 communities were subordinate to him. In addition, 2000 guilders came from 14 villages annually into the government treasury of the county of Castell-Rüdenhausen. Count Gottfried also made modest changes to the medieval castle in Rüdenhausen.

During the count's tenure, the Thirty Years' War also broke out in Franconia . First the county was hit by the so-called Croatian storms. It was only with the intervention of the Swedes that the devastation increased. Count Gottfried also temporarily held the position of director of the Franconian counts' college. Gottfried died in Castell on August 6, 1635.

Marriage and offspring

Count Gottfried married on September 16, 1599 Obersontheim Anna Schenkin to Limpurg in Obersontheim. With her he had two sons, the first-born Georg Friedrich was built as his successor.

• Georg Friedrich (born August 21, 1600 in Rüdenhausen; † March 29, 1653 ibid)
• Heinrich Albrecht (born August 22, 1603 in Rüdenhausen, † July 25, 1633 in Obersontheim)

literature

• Wilhelm Engel: House u. Reign of Castell in Franconian history . In: Society for Franconian History (ed.): Castell. Contributions to the culture and history of home and dominion. New Year's Sheets XXIV . Würzburg 1952. pp. 1-19.
• Otto Meyer: The Castell house. State and class rule over the centuries . In: Otto Meyer, Hellmut Kunstmann (ed.): Castell. State rule - castles - status lordship . Castell 1979. pp. 9-53.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Engel, Wilhelm: Haus u. Reign of Castell . P. 9.
2. ↑ Meyer, Otto: The Castell House . P. 20.
3. ↑ Angelfire.com: Castell family tree , accessed March 27, 2015.

predecessor	Office	successor
Conrad Heinrich IV. George II.	Count of Castell-Rüdenhausen 1597–1635	Georg Friedrich