Montgelas (noble family)

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Coat of arms of the Counts of Montgelas 1809

The counts of Montgelas (pronounced mõʒəla ) are from Savoy originating Bavarian noble family. The most important representative of this family was Maximilian Graf von Montgelas (1759–1838) , who, as the influential minister of the later King Maximilian I Joseph of Bavaria, carried out a far-reaching modernization of the administration and politics of Bavaria.

history

Maximilian Graf von Montgelas (1759–1838) at the age of 75 (painting by Eduard von Heuss )

The noble family of the Montgelas comes from the landed gentry of the Duchy of Savoy . The field names Montgelas and Tuille exist in the district of Chignin near Chambéry. In the Middle Ages there was a Montgelat Castle. In 1742 the officer Janus Sigismon de Garnerin von Montgelas (1710-1767), son of Sigismond de Garnerin Seigneur de la Thuille (1670-1756), joined the Bavarian Wittelsbach family . He was accepted with the title of baron and eventually made it to the position of general in the Bavarian army . He was married to Ursula Countess Trauner (1720-1760), the daughter of a Privy Councilor of the Prince-Bishop of Freising . There were two children from their marriage: the older daughter Josepha and the younger son Maximilian . Maximilian's godfather was Elector Maximilian III. Joseph .

Maximilian von Montgelas worked from 1799 to 1817 as an influential minister under the elector and later King of Bavaria Maximilian I. With interruptions he was Bavarian Foreign Minister from 1799 to 1817 , with interruptions from 1803 to 1817 Bavarian Minister of Finance and from 1806 to 1817 Bavarian Minister of the Interior . In these functions he implemented a far-reaching restructuring and modernization of the administration and politics of Bavaria, which encompassed all areas of social life. At the end of 1809 Montgelas was raised from baron to count status.

The Counts of Montgelas had a hereditary seat in the Chamber of Imperial Councils until the end of the monarchy in Bavaria . In 1917 this position was exercised by Joseph Max Graf von Montgelas (1870–1921).

Possessions

After his dismissal as minister, Maximilian von Montgelas acquired extensive property and property. In addition to several palaces in Munich, from 1833 he acquired the former court brands Egglkofen , Aham and Gerzen, which were still owned by the Montgelas family in 2010 .

Rudolf-Konrad Graf von Montgelas, Freiherr von der Heydte (1939–2015) was a member of the family of Maximilian Graf von Montgelas (1807–1870), the eldest son of the Bavarian chief minister. In 2011 he founded the non-profit Graf von Montgelas Foundation based in Egglkofen, to which he also bequeathed Egglkofen Castle .

coat of arms

Montgelas family coat of arms (1809): squared shield with central shield. In the silver center shield three blue Bavarian alarm clocks standing next to each other, over which a golden royal crown hovers (when raised to the rank of count, issued in memory that Bavaria received the royal dignity under the ministry of the Count of Montgelas). 1 and 4 in red a silver, right-facing dragon with an open spiked tail. 2 and 3 in blue three (2 and 1) silver pomegranates, each on a stem with two silver leaves. Five crowned helmets rise above the count's crown. The right helmet is studded with five ostrich feathers, alternating blue and silver; the second helmet wears the dragons of the 1st and 4th field facing inwards, the middle two silver buffalo horns, between which the royal crown of the central shield lies on a red cushion; the fourth a double-curled, inward-facing, golden lion, which holds a silver pomegranate with a stem and leaves in the right front paw, and the left helmet a red eagle's wing that the Saxons turn inward. The shield is held by two forward-looking, golden, lion leopards, and the whole thing is surrounded by a red coat of arms lined with ermine.

Genealogy (extract)

Grave of Ludwig (1814–1892), Anna (1833–1909) and Max (1860–1938) von Montgelas in the old north cemetery in Munich
  1. Janus Freiherr von Montgelas (1710–1767), Bavarian General ∞ Ursula Countess Trauner (1720–1760)
    1. Josepha Freiin von Montgelas
    2. Maximilian (1759–1838) , Bavarian minister, raised to the rank of count in 1809 ∞ Ernestine von Arco (1779–1820), daughter of Count Ignatz von Arco (1741–1812)
      1. Caroline Auguste Franzisca (1804–1860) ∞ Max Freiherr von Freyberg , Ministerial Counselor and Director of the Reich Archives
      2. Maximilian (1807–1870) ∞ Elisabeth J. Watts-Russell (1816–1881), and left offspring from this marriage
      3. Maria Rupertine Ernestine (1808-1822)
      4. Maria Amalia (1810-1875)
      5. Maria Hortensia (1811–1895)
      6. Theresia (1812–1872)
      7. Ludwig (1814–1892), Bavarian envoy to Saint Petersburg and Berlin ∞ Anna Countess von Seinsheim (1833–1909), and left descendants from this marriage, including:
        1. Max (1860–1938) , politician, general, diplomat ( military attaché ) and historian ∞ Pauline von Wimpffen (1874–1961) , women's rights activist
      8. Heinrich Rudolf Max Eduard (1817–1847)

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Eberhard Weis: Montgelas - Between Revolution and Reform 1759-1799 , Verlag CH Beck, 2nd revised edition, Munich, 1988, ISBN 3-40632-974-8 , pp. 1-2
  2. ↑ http://geneall.net/de/name/1812946/joseph-maximilian-rudolf-antonius-maria-de-garnerin-graf-von-montgelas/
  3. ↑ Prof. Dr. Ernst Heinrich Kneschke: "German count houses of the present: in heraldic, historical and genealogical relation", 2nd volume L – Z, Verlag TO Weigel, Leipzig 1853, p. 129
  4. ↑ http://geneall.net/de/name/1812928/maximilian-joseph-philipp-wilhelm-de-garnerin-graf-von-montgelas/