Conrad IV of Rietberg

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Konrad von Rietberg (* around 1456; † February 9, 1508 ) had been Bishop of Osnabrück as Conrad IV from February 2, 1482 and Bishop of Münster as Conrad II from April 18, 1497 . In Osnabrück he continued to serve as administrator from 1497.

family

Coat of arms of the paternal ancestors of Konrad IV. Von Rietberg when he was revolted as Cologne canon in 1471; Book of arms of Johann Gottfried von Redinghoven (1628–1704)

He came from the family of the Counts von Rietberg . His father was Konrad V. von Rietberg. The mother was Jacoba von Neuenahr , a daughter of the Cologne bailiff Gumprecht II von Neuenahr . One uncle was the bishop of Osnabrück Konrad III. from Diepholz . The older brother Johann I was the ruling Count of Rietberg. The sister Margarethe married the Duke Friedrich von Braunschweig-Lüneburg-Calenberg .

Early years

Already in his childhood he was planned for the Cologne cathedral chapter . He was emancipated in 1471 and became the capitular in Cologne in 1480. From August 14, 1480 to November 23, 1481 he was vicar general of the Archdiocese of Cologne. He was also provost of the Cassius Foundation in Bonn . He gave up this position in 1482. After legal disputes, he was provost in Deventer and cathedral provost in Osnabrück . For educational purposes he spent a few years in Rome from 1477 and studied at the University of Cologne from 1481.

Bishop of Osnabrück

In 1482 he was elected Bishop of Osnabrück by the cathedral chapter. He followed his uncle Konrad von Diepholz. He kept the provost's office in Deventer alongside the office of bishop.

The estates granted him a welcome estimate . However, the electoral surrender provisions were very restrictive for the bishop. He took over the consultant of his predecessor Erwind Erdmann in his service. He made the Augustinian hermit Johannes Schodehoet auxiliary bishop . He later took over this office in the diocese of Münster.

In Osnabrück he tried to reform church life. For example, he reformed several monasteries and had the Bramsche monastery chapter moved to Quakenbrück .

As ruler of the Osnabrück Monastery, he tried to settle disputes. However, he could not prevent himself from being drawn into violent confrontation. This applies in particular to the dispute between his mentally disturbed brother-in-law Duke Friedrich and his brother Wilhelm the Younger . The latter allied itself in 1483 with the Bishop of Hildesheim. His brother Friedrich was allied with Bishop Konrad, as well as the bishops of Minden and Paderborn as well as Count Johann von Rietberg, Duke Heinrich von Braunschweig-Grubenhagen and other gentlemen. Wilhelm captured his brother Friedrich and imprisoned him until his death. Johann von Rietberg was also taken prisoner. The war and the ransom money led to Konrad's debt.

His financial problems forced him to serve Elector Johann von Brandenburg as counselor and diplomat, for example on trips to Hungary , Denmark or Poland . As a result of his absence, internal feuds erupted and the economy and finance fell into decline. In Osnabrück there was an uprising of the citizens in 1488.

In 1491 he brokered a family contract in the Lippe house . Agreements were also made with several neighboring princes about the delimitation of the courts. He took part in the siege of Braunschweig in 1493 and temporarily returned to Brandenburg.

The cathedral chapter in Münster postulated Konrad to be bishop in 1497. Around this time Konrad returned to Westphalia permanently. He concluded an alliance with the city of Bremen for the bishopric of Osnabrück and renewed the oath to surrender.

The voters in Münster made the condition that he should drop the title of bishop of Osnabrück and accept the title of administrator for Osnabrück.

In 1500 the administrator allied himself with the Bishop of Hildesheim. He also formed an alliance with the Archbishop of Bremen.

Despite the great difficulties at times, the bishopric was in comparatively good condition at the end of its life. Of the state castles, only Hunteburg Castle was pledged. The town of Wiedenbrück , which had been pledged for centuries, was released from Konrad's estate .

Bishop of Munster

In Munster, too, he had to agree to an election surrender that severely restricted his options for action.

After the announcement of the papal jubilee indulgence, the cardinal priest Raimund Peraudi also visited the two dioceses of Osnabrück and Münster in 1502/1503. He announced a papal power of attorney to visit the monasteries in the diocese of Münster, sent relics to the bishop, preached indulgences and confirmed privileges.

There was little relationship with the empire . The bishop took part in the Reichstag in Cologne in 1505. The bishop was generally considered to be peaceable, but paid attention to military armaments in case of war.

He mediated between the Counts of Tecklenburg and the monasteries Marienfeld , Clarholz and Herzebrock on the issue of bailiwick rights. His attempt to convert the Rosental sister house in Münster into an Augustinian convent was only partially successful.

The bishop's scope of action was severely limited by the estates. At his inauguration, the first verifiable welcome assessment was carried out in the Hochstift Münster . This was levied on all residents over twelve years old, with the exception of the clergy and the nobility, and brought in a total of over 11,000 marks. The income did not change the precarious financial situation. In 1507 the Pope even had the bishop's debts examined. Like his predecessors, the bishop was forced to mortgage or sell rights and possessions. In 1499, the Lüdinghausen office was pledged. The proceeds were used to trigger the Sassenberg office .

The economy is flourishing and the relatively peaceful times allowed for an upswing in education. The Paulinum grammar school in Münster, which emerged from the cathedral school, was now run according to humanistic principles. Science also experienced an upswing overall. In the legal and monetary systems, orderly conditions were restored. The bishop resolutely opposed the secularization tendencies of the clergy. A number of monasteries and monasteries were reformed.

At the beginning of Konrad's reign there was hope that the disputes with the Counts of East Friesland could be resolved. There was a rapprochement with Count Edzard . However, the bishop held fast to the spiritual jurisdiction in East Frisia. The rights of Münster in Emden remained controversial .

The inhabitants of the Frisian Westerwoldingerland paid homage to the bishop in Meppen in 1498 . In 1499, he provided soldiers to Count Johann von Oldenburg , who declared Oldenburg Castle to be the open house of the bishopric and subordinated the peasant republics of Butjadingen and Stadland to the bishop as a fief.

Relations with Archbishop Hermann von Hessen were good from the start. In 1498 an alliance was formed. This ensured peace in Westphalia. The alliance was renewed in 1502 and was directed in particular against the marching through of foreign, unemployed mercenaries. In 1504, Konrad made a twenty-year peace with Duke Heinrich von Braunschweig-Lüneburg.

In 1503, Johann entered into an alliance with Landgrave Wilhelm von Hessen to keep the peace . The castle and town of Nienburg received Count Jobst von Hoya from him in the same year as a fief. In 1506 he made an alliance with Duke Georg von Sachsen, the Landgrave of Thuringia and hereditary Gubenator of Friesland.

After his death, his heart was buried in Osnabrück Cathedral , the rest of the body in St. Paul's Cathedral in Münster.

progeny

Johannes Spiker and Yrmgard, who had entered into a secret marriage in the knowledge that Yrmgard was the daughter of Conrad von Rietberg (Retborch) from Osnabrück, applied to the Roman Curia in 1495 for a subsequent dispensation from the marriage obstacle of the spiritual relationship because Johannes Spieker came from Conrad baptized and the legitimacy of their marriage. Johannes Spiker (Spyker) was probably a son of Eilhard Spieker the Elder. Ä. († before 1473) and his wife Stina, a brother of Otto Spiker, Consul civitatis Osnabrugensis , later episcopal geographer, and Eilhard Spicker d. J.

literature

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ See entry of March 21, 1470 ( "in 14. et [atis] sue an [no]" ); RG IX 00872 ( digitized at RG Online).
  2. ^ Arnold Güttsches: The Vicars General of the Archbishops from Cologne to the end of the Middle Ages. M. Welzel, 1931, p. 31.
  3. ^ Entry from July 18, 1495; RPG VIII 00640 ( digitized at RG Online).
  4. ↑ See document of March 19, 1473; Lower Saxony State Archives Osnabrück (Dep. 3 a 1 City of Osnabrück - Main Archives - Documents XII A, No. 22/10).
  5. ↑ Cf. document from the elector Konrad von Riedberg of October 30, 1484; Lower Saxony State Archives Osnabrück (Rep. 4 Osnabrück, High School Carolinum - certificates, No. 33).
predecessor Office successor
Conrad III. from Diepholz Bishop of Osnabrück
1482–1508 		Erich von Braunschweig-Grubenhagen
Henry III. from Schwarzburg Bishop of Münster
1497–1508 		Erich I of Saxony-Lauenburg
personal data
SURNAME Conrad IV of Rietberg
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Konrad II of Rietberg
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Bishop of Osnabrück, Prince-Bishop of Rietberg (1482–1508); Bishop of Münster (1497–1508)
DATE OF BIRTH 15th century
DATE OF DEATH February 9, 1508