Melchior from Sparneck
Melchior von Sparneck (* before 1488; † November 22, 1536 ) was canon in Regensburg at the beginning of the 16th century and owner of Uprode Castle , which was destroyed on July 11, 1523.
Von Sparneck family
Melchior came from the von Sparneck noble family and belonged to the Weißdorfer line. He was the son of Martin von Sparneck and Margarethe Schott von Schottenstein . Martin, Balthasar, Hans, Sebastian, Anna and Maria are considered siblings. The Sparneck community is now part of the Hof district in Upper Franconia .
Destruction of the Sparneck castles in 1523
During his time as Canon of Regensburg, his brothers and relatives in the home country around Sparneck supported the notorious robber baron Thomas von Absberg in kidnapping Nuremberg merchants. These were imprisoned for a short time in almost all of the Sparneck castles. The dungeon at Waldstein was called the "murder pit". As Thomas von Absberg's helpers, they were blown when the merchants managed to escape. The Swabian Federation's punitive expedition put an end to the hustle and bustle , it destroyed numerous small knight castles in Central Germany, including almost all of the family castles of the Sparnecker family (see also Wandereisen woodcuts from 1523 ). Since the Uprode Castle belonged at least in part to the Melchior, he received a small financial compensation for the destruction, but this was in no proportion to the damage. On December 24, 1527, Emperor Charles V issued a letter of safe conduct for Melchior von Sparneck in Speyer . The Sparneckers were only able to stay for one generation in the original area around Sparneck, which corresponded to the former Münchberg district . Only further generations of the Weißdorfer line, to which Melchior belonged, could survive in the Upper Palatinate .
Melchior's sister Appolonia lived as a nun in Engelthal Monastery until 1526 , which she left after the city council of Nuremberg had promised her a treasure , but for a long time she did not see a single guilder. It wasn't until she married and her husband Tuchscherer and her brother stood up for her that she received her first payment in 1532.
Context as canon
The office and dignity of a canon served during this time to care for sons of the lower aristocracy, who, in order to avoid dividing inheritance, were not granted a secular career. Melchior received benefices from the Regensburg Cathedral Chapter in 1504 and was enrolled as a student at Leipzig University in 1506 . From 1515 to 1528 he looked after the parishes in Leiblfing , Cadolzburg and Kemnath near Neunaigen. Regensburg bishop was then Johann III. from the Palatinate . Due to the split in faith, the diocese lost the Wunsiedel area, which permanently changed to the new denomination. Connections between the von Sparneck family and the diocese of Regensburg, which were expressed almost exclusively in the person of Melchior and his function as canon, resulted from the border location of the ancestral areas around Sparneck , including Uprode Castle and the Wunsiedeler area. It is possible that the friendly relations between the Sparneckers and the von Absberg family , from which Bishop Heinrich IV emerged, contributed to Melchior's installation. Heinrich IV died in 1492.
Epitaph in the cathedral cloister of Regensburg Cathedral
The epitaph of Melchior von Sparneck is located in the cathedral cloister of Regensburg Cathedral . It is set into the ground along with numerous other grave slabs.
The Latin text - if still legible - translates as: "The venerable and high-born Melchior von Sparneck zu Weißdorf and Uprode, canon and scholaster at Regensburg Cathedral died in November (...)." The central motif is the Sparneck coat of arms with the inscribed coats of arms of the Sparneck, Schotten , Wallenfels and Gauberstatt families in the corners.
A sketch of the tomb is in the tombstone book of Freising Bishop Johann Franz .
literature
- Peter Braun: The gentlemen from Sparneck. Family tree, distribution, brief inventory . In: Archives for the history of Upper Franconia 82 (2002).
- Alban von Dobenck : History of the extinct family of the von Sparneck (part 1) . In: Archives for the history of Upper Franconia . 22.3 (1905); Pp. 1-65. Reprint: ISBN 9783837087178 .
- Reinhardt Schmalz: History of the noble family von Sparneck . Krumbach 2013. p. 98.
Individual evidence
- ^ Johann Franz: Collection of depicted gravestones and other monuments in Bavaria . Volume 1. P. 30. ( BSB Cgm 2267 )
| personal data | |
|---|---|
| SURNAME | Sparneck, Melchior from |
| BRIEF DESCRIPTION | Canon of Regensburg, owner of Uprode Castle |
| DATE OF BIRTH | before 1488 |
| DATE OF DEATH | November 22, 1536 |