tom brok
The tom Brok (also: tom Broke , tom Brook , tom Broek , ten Brok , ten Broke ) were a powerful East Frisian chieftain family , originally from the Norderland . Under the Frisian chief families, the tom Brok tried to rule East Frisia from the second half of the 14th century. The tom Brok family died out in 1435.
rise and fall
The earliest historically documented representative of the family is Keno Kenesna, who in 1309 was one of the three consules et advocati terrae Nordensis . Originally, the family's holdings in Brokmerland were probably not very large. Descendants had already ruled the parishes of Uttum and Visquard around 1347 , and the family was one of the most influential in the Emsigerland and the Norderland. In Brokmerland, the tom Brok maintained a Redgerhof in Engerhafe , which gave the owner the right to exercise the judicial office. Keno's grandson, Keno Hilmerisna , was eventually elected chief by the Brookmerlanders. He was the first to call himself tom Brok. In 1361 he led the state contingent against Edo Wiemken and in 1371 became chief of Brokmerland for the first time. Furthermore, he was one of the four Consules of the Norderland, elected each year .
Keno's son Ocko I (around 1345-1391) was knighted at the court of Naples and expanded the property to include the northern region. In 1379 the Emsigerland north of Emden was taken over, as was the Harlingerland and the Auricherland . In the following years the Auricherland with its castle in Aurich became the center of the rule of tom Brok. In 1381 Ocko I offered Duke Albrecht of Bavaria as Count of Holland his rule as a fief. The East Frisians saw this as a violation of Frisian freedom and Ocko I was murdered in front of his Aurich castle.
Ocko's widow Quade Foelke initially took over the government as custodian for Ocko's illegitimate son Widzeld . After he had gained sovereignty, he took in the Vitalienbrüder under Klaus Störtebeker and offered them a retreat in East Frisia. Widzeld died by fire in 1399 in the church in Detern from a fire set by warriors of the Archbishop of Bremen, the Count of Oldenburg and other allies. This prompted the Hanseatic League to intervene against the Vitalienbrüder around 1400.
1400 forced the Hanse Widzelds successor Keno II to give up the alliance with the pirates. Keno defeated the Emden chief Hisko Abdena in 1413 , and in 1415 he expanded his rule to include western Friesland .
Keno's son Ocko II . inherited such large territories that he could call himself the chief of East Frisia. He consolidated his rule in West Friesland and Emden in 1421/22 with the victory of the chief Focko Ukena, who was allied with him . In the following period, however, there were disputes between Focko Ukena and Ocko tom Brok, which turned into open acts of war. After the first victory of the East Frisian chief Focko Ukena over Ocko II. Near Detern in 1426, Focko allied himself with the Bishop of Münster and numerous East Frisian chiefs against Ocko, who was limited to Brokmerland, and defeated him on October 28 in the wild fields between Oldeborg and Marienhafe final. He was brought to Leer and was imprisoned for four years. In 1435 he died powerless as the last of his family in the north .
literature
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- Dettmar Coldewey: Local history data. Signpost and timetable for the historical picture map of the Jade area . Lohse-Eissing, Wilhelmshaven 1960.
- OG Houtrouw : East Frisia. A historical and local hike towards the end of the princely period . 2 volumes. Dunkmann, Aurich 1889-1891. (Reprint: Schuster, Leer 1974, ISBN 3-7963-0088-X ).
- Günther Möhlmann: tom (ten) Brok. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 2, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1955, ISBN 3-428-00183-4 , p. 631 f. ( Digitized version ).
- Tileman Dothias Wiarda: East Frisian History . 10 volumes (in 11 parts). August Friedrich Winter, Aurich 1791–1819. (Reprint: Schuster, Leer 1968), (Volume 10: Latest East Frisian History ).