Petermann from Raron

Petermann von Raron (* around 1405 ; † on July 31, 1479 in Toggenburg ) was a baron, lord of Toggenburg and the last representative of the barons of Raron . From the genealogy , he is also referred to as Petermann (II.) Von Raron , to distinguish him from his uncle Petermann (I.) (* before 1351; † 1387). He gained notoriety and special significance for his over 30-year rule over the County of Toggenburg and for his involvement and ultimately participation on the side of the Confederates in the Old Zurich War (1436–1450). Obliged by alliances, he took part in their campaign against Zurich in November 1440 from the east and fought from 1443 to 1446 as the only noble ally in an exposed position on the federal side. Later he also took part in the siege of Winterthur (1460) and the Waldshut War (1468).

Life

Baron Petermann von Raron was the younger son of Witschard von Raron from his first marriage to Margareta von Rhäzüns, which resulted in a total of five children (including three daughters). Petermann's mother Margareta, who descended on her mother's side from the Counts of Werdenberg-Heiligenberg , was her first married to Johann II. Von Matsch († 1397), so that the only child from this marriage was Ulrich VIII. Von Matsch (* 1396; †) August 1461), Count von Kirchberg, was Petermann's half-brother. He also had another half-brother named Petermann [III.], Who came from his father's second marriage.

Petermann and his older brother Hildebrand , as heirs in the male line, owned the ancestral estates of the Leuk branch of the family in Valais, which his grandfather Peter had brought to bloom, along with the ancestral lands of Raron, including the lordship of Anniviers . However, through the activities of his father Witschard (* around 1360, † around 1425) and his uncle Wilhelm II (* 1381; † before 1428) during the Raron War , Petermann's and Hildebrand's legacy came under severe economic hardship, which the brothers either had to sell in part or Pledging of their possessions forced what was to shape Petermann's life in the long term. Petermann remained unmarried and childless throughout his life, making him the last of his family after the death of his brother Hildebrand in 1467.

Old Zurich War

1436–1439: Toggenburg inheritance issue

When in 1436 the disputes between the federal towns of Zurich and Schwyz over the legacy after the death of the last Toggenburg Count Friedrich VII broke out on April 30th, Ital Reding the Elder , Landammann von Schwyz, left the Obere March contractually promised to them by the Count with the Occupy the Linth crossing at Grynau immediately. The count's widow, Countess Elisabeth von Matsch , who was appointed sole heiress by her husband in 1433, renounced the former Austrian dominions Feldkirch, Rheineck, Altstätten and the Rhine Valley, Sargans, Freudenberg, Nidberg, Walenstadt, Weesen and on September 19, 1436 Windegg / Gaster. On October 31, Elisabeth, who was recognized as sole heir by Zurich and Austria, took castle rights in Zurich and handed the county of Uznach over to the city. However, the people of the county refused to take the oath of homage to Zurich and in turn entered into a land right with Schwyz and Glarus. The city of Zurich then began to pull together troops on the borders with Schwyz and the county of Uznach. Due to the uncertain situation, the country folk of the Toggenburg ancestral lands met in December 1436 to form their own parish and also entered into the land law of Schwyz and Glarus . Conversely, the people of Walenstadt refused to return to Austria and entered into a castle right with Zurich. The people of the County of Sargans - with the exception of the city of Sargans - who came to Count Heinrich II von Werdenberg-Sargans via Austria, also refused to pay homage to him and on December 21 also entered the Zurich castle law, whereupon the Count to regain the area in Schwyzer and Glarner Landrecht entered. On December 24th, the latter militarily occupied the county of Uznach. Through negotiations with Austria at the end of 1436, Schwyz and Glarus succeeded in persuading Duke Friedrich IV to conclude land rights with the people of Gaster , subject to Austrian rights, which was documented on January 17, 1437. One year later, on March 2, 1438, Friedrich pledged this rule to the two provincial towns.

On March 9, 1437, a federal arbitration court in Lucerne decided that Glarus and Schwyz would not have to dissolve their alliances with Uznach and Toggenburg, but would have to return Uznach to Elisabeth until the inheritance matter had been resolved. Elisabeth, who was related by marriage to Petermann's mother Margaretha von Rhäzüns, transferred her inheritance to her brother Ulrich VI in April 1437. († 1444) and her cousin Ulrich von Matsch with the condition that it should be divided fairly. As a result, the counties of Toggenburg and Uznach, which were part of the Schwyz and Glarner Landrecht, fell to Petermann and Hildebrand via Margaretha. In 1439, the two brothers confirmed the land rights with the two federal locations.

Since Petermann moved to Toggenburg and Hildebrand stayed in the Valais and the brothers ruled over the respective areas, the house of Raron was quasi-divided, even if the brothers mostly signed important documents together and the house was kept as a family property. On April 29, 1437, Zurich, Duke Friedrich IV, declared war and subsequently conquered Sargans and the lords of Nidberg and Freudenberg with the help of the Chur bishop and the Sargans country people. The rule of Uznach pledged Petermann in stages in four Pfandbriefe, first on May 25, 1437 for 1000 Rhenish guilders and in the same year for another 200, then on August 5, 1438 for 1153 guilders and in 1440 another 410 guilders to Schwyz and Glarus, which totaled Received 2,763 guilders from Bern. The Raron officially took over the county of Toggenburg and the rule of Uznach on November 14, 1437 when the Toggenburg inheritance was divided. From then on, Petermann resided in Lichtensteig or Lütisburg . On March 15, 1440, the two Lords of Raron finally entered into the land law of the two cantons themselves and thus took political sides against Zurich.

1440: Campaign against the county of Kyburg

Overview map of the Old Zurich War

When the war in October 1440, triggered by the conquest of the Sarganserland between October 24th and 28th and the resulting expulsion of the Zurich occupation there, Petermann von Raron now actively lined up in accordance with his alliance with the two countries in March Opposition from Zurich. Schwyz and Glarus, who promised Petermann his future conquests as property, formally declared war on Zurich on November 2nd. Also on November 2, Zurich received declarations of war from Gersau and Weggis and - as support from Bern, which initially avoided canceling Zurich - Saanen and Frutigen . Petermann and with him the abbot city ​​of Wil canceled the city of Zurich on November 3rd. On the same day, the people of Zurich drove their main force, a large contingent of 40 ships, across Lake Zurich to Pfäffikon SZ . The Schwyzer and Glarner opened the hostilities on November 4th from the south with about 2000 men through devastation in the area of ​​the courtyards . On the same day, Petermann set out from the east with an army of 1,600 men from Wil and Toggenburg. He was accompanied by the well-known knight Beringer VIII from Landenberg-Greifensee (so-called Bös -Beringer), who had defected from Zurich. In the southeast, the Uznach troops plus 400 men from Count Heinrich von Werdenberg-Sargans gathered near St. Gallenkappel to advance towards the forest . As a result of the declarations of war by the Uri and Unterwalden estates on November 4th, which were unexpected for Zurich (as well as the expected partisanship of Bern), the Zurich leadership saw their actually superior main power, to the surprise of their opponents, prematurely across the lake to Uerikon (municipality of Stäfa ) and soon then to move back to Zurich. The cancellation of the Lucerne and Zug stalls on November 5 forced Zurich to continue on the defensive, so that the Zurich countryside found it difficult to defend itself against the invasion that followed from different sides and Zurich asked Bern to settle the dispute before November 9 to take over.

Petermann's army, which he commanded personally, first turned against Lommis in southern Thurgau , which belonged to Ulrich von Lommis (captain of the Zurich troops in the battle on the Etzel ) , who was in Zurich's service, and had the tower there burned down. In 1443, Petermann von Raron finally pulled Lommis to himself. Ulrich von Lommis reacted by transferring 800 men to the town of Elgg , which he soon had to withdraw again at Rudolf Stüssi's order out of concern about the threat to the city of Zurich, so that Petermann and his army soon appeared in front of Elgg and the town was surrendered and the local castle as well as the homage of the citizens. From then on he turned against the entire County of Kyburg and covered it with fire and looting, with the threat of violence falling on fertile ground. Andelfingen , Ossingen , Pfäffikon ZH , Kloten , Bülach and other places surrendered to Petermann and paid homage to him. The campaign brought a large number of prisoners of war for later ransom demands and induced numerous nobles to desert Zurich, such as the knights Albrecht von Landenberg ( Wetzikon ), Kaspar von Bonstetten ( Uster ) and Hertdegen and Friedrich von Hinwil (Greifenberg). During the siege of the Zurich power center Kyburg , Petermann was warned by the Schwyzers and Glarnern to move to their siege of Grüningen . In doing so, he made the mistake of taking most of his crew with him and leaving only 200 men behind. When the people of Zurich marched into the Kyburg office with power and plundered them, 500 men with some mounted men under the leadership of Heinrich Schwend managed to attack Petermann's entrenchments in front of Kyburg after midnight and to take 40 Toggenburgers prisoner. The others used the night's darkness to flee. In spite of Zurich's request, Bern finally declared war on 11 November Zurich, together with its nobles, including Heinrich von Werdenberg-Sargans, but on November 12 the fighting was officially ceased and peace negotiations brokered by various imperial cities followed ended on November 18; but on the day of the graduation, the people of Zurich complained that «von Raron's» that Wiler and Bös-Beringer were still in their field and damaging their people. The Kilchberg Peace , which was unfavorable for Zurich, was chartered on December 1, 1440 in Lucerne.

1441–1442: resting phase

Regarding the territories conquered by Petermann, which he initially refused to surrender due to the war costs of his own and the assurances of his allies, the Schwyz came to the new king of the House of Habsburg Friedrich III. in order to obtain an assignment to Petermann and his allies. The other confederates opposed these intentions, in order not to let Schwyz's influence become too great, and at a daily statute in Lucerne in February 1441, threatened to return it to Zurich. Bern in particular did not want to damage the city on the Limmat to such an extent that the entire Zurich landscape would be territorially fragmented. However, the king intervened that the county should be kept in the hands of the empire until he came into the country himself to take care of the matter - with the intention of returning the county of Kyburg, originally acquired by Habsburg Austria from Zurich in 1424, to the House of Austria affiliate. After lengthy negotiations from the king, Zurich tried to obtain the cession of the counties of Toggenburg and Uznach as compensation for Kyburg, which at least in the case of Toggenburg would hardly have been possible anyway, since this county had the status of an imperial fief and was indisputably subordinate to the Barons von Raron. And Uznach was pledged by the latter between 1437 and 1440 to Schwyz and Glarus and could only have been handed over to them in the event of a successful war for Zurich.

The county of Kyburg officially came back to Habsburg Austria on December 22nd, 1442 - after the new office that had remained in Zurich had been separated - basically as the price for the king's partisanship for Zurich - in this way after Frederick's visit, it returned to Habsburg Austria, which after the war, already ten years later, for financial reasons, had to finally sell to Zurich. So Petermann went largely empty-handed during his campaign in 1440, with the exception of Lommi's rule. Since the course of the war also favored the Confederates, King Friedrich III. not keeping his territorial promises to Zurich anyway.

1443: guerrilla warfare

When the fighting flared up again at the end of May 1443, a changed military situation presented itself to Petermann. Except for the Linth plain, his domain was quite exposed due to the merging of Zurich with Habsburg. In addition, Petermann and Abbot Kaspar von St. Gallen were from King Friedrich III. under threat of loss of fiefs and privileges as well as a fine of 200 gold marks, urged to at least maintain neutrality, according to which Petermann should have stayed out of the rest of the war. That this was apparently not possible is shown by the unsuccessful attack on the city of Wil by the war entrepreneur Hans von Rechberg in 1443 . After Rechberg's troops had been pushed back, the Toggenburgers and Wilers undertook some forays into Thurgau and Elgg. However, the other warlike events in Toggenburg remained comparatively limited that year, since the fighting, as in 1440, was primarily concentrated in the Zurich countryside and Rapperswil.

1444: Appenzell enters the war

When the war broke out again on April 23, 1444, Petermanns Toggenburger and Wiler, reinforced by Appenzell immigrants , moved in front of the Thurgau castles of Griesenberg and Spiegelberg a few hours after the end of the armistice and plundered the area after they were destroyed. Appenzell, hitherto neutral and courted by both sides, officially declared war on Zurich and Austria on April 30, which brought relief to Petermann and the Confederates to the east. But from November 30, 1444, Petermann was the only nobleman left in the war on the federal side, as Heinrich von Werdenberg-Sargans and Wolfhart V von Brandis transferred to the opposite side and expelled the Swiss from the Sarganserland from December 1, whereby the exposed location of the Toggenburg increased again.

1445: Eastern Swiss front

On January 28, 1445, a division from Zurich and Winterthur moved in front of Wil, burned the villages in the area and stole the cattle there. When the people of Zurich withdrew via Zuckenriet , unsuccessful fighting with the pursuing Wilern and Toggenburgers followed. On January 29th, 300 Toggenburgers joined a detachment of around 800 Berners, Schwyzers, Glarnern, Nidwalden and Urner, who went via Lichtensteig and Appenzell , where they were reinforced by troops from this place and the number of troops supposedly increased to 4,000 men, via Altstätten and Montlingen advanced across the Rhine and, after the battle near Koblach between January 30 and February 5, 1445, devastated both banks of the Rhine and besieged Sargans .

On May 20, another enemy attack on Wil took place , with the attackers retreating before the arrival of the federal relief. Nevertheless, the troops commanded by Petermann caused considerable damage to the attackers. New fighting took place on June 11, 1445, when a contingent from Winterthur under the command of the Habsburg captain Werner vonbahnen undertook a raid into lower Toggenburg. When they set out, however, significantly fewer than the 300 to 400 soldiers called out turned up. In Aadorf they met reinforcements from Frauenfeld under Captain Heiri Egger, who brought with them a man who was supposed to be familiar with the country, but who chose a bad path. In addition, contrary to the orders, the soldiers undertook a looting campaign via Sirnach against Dietschwil near Kirchberg , which caused them to be ambushed by Petermann's troops after overcoming the Letzi there. The Winterthur are said to have lost 50–80 men and their banner as well as a considerable amount of booty in this battle near Kirchberg . On the same day there was an attack on the Austrian side from the Rhine Valley, which was repulsed by the Appenzell people in the battle of Wolfhalden .

On August 24, 1445, Count Wilhelm von Werdenberg-Sargans, commander of Walenstadt, carried out a cattle raid from Sargans to the upper Toggenburg, which had previously been made accessible by expanding the pass paths. This led to another battle in Obertoggenburg due to the residents rushing up , in which 18 Toggenburgers and 11 Austrians lost their lives. Soon after, a small group of Toggenburgers carried out a retaliatory raid on Austrian territory.

In September 1445 a major raid by the Confederates followed from Pfäffikon deep into the Thurgau, in which 300 Toggenburgers joined the garrison of Wil. After the battle near Wigoltingen , which was victorious for the Confederates , they returned to Wil laden with booty.

The left-hand Austrian territories came to Appenzell in December 1445, which they administered for 45 years as the Vogtei Rheintal . In 1490 Zurich, Glarus, Schwyz and Lucerne took over the area due to the events of the St. Gallen War to the exclusion of Appenzell, but already in the following year they included Uri , Unterwalden and Zug in the newly created four-part commune . The Appenzeller were also included in the rule in 1500. In 1712, as a result of the Second Villmerger War, also the city-state of Bern .

1446: End of the war

In February 1446 the Toggenburgers and Wiler were warned by the Confederates to move in for the campaign against the Sarganserland. They should have carried out an attack against Gams and Werdenberg and then joined the Confederates. This campaign was not carried out, however, and the Toggenburgers therefore stayed away from the skirmishes that culminated in the Battle of Ragaz on March 6 , for reasons unknown. On May 23, an opposing enterprise followed against the lower Toggenburg, which should have damaged the market in Lichtensteig, but this was only carried out half-heartedly and ended in Rickenbach . Two days later, on May 25, another cattle robbery was carried out in the Kirchberg area. On June 12, 1446, an armistice finally came into force, by which further fighting was ceased and the old Zurich War de facto ended, although the peace negotiations continued for another 4 years.

Next life

Petermann, who ruled the County of Toggenburg for a total of 32 years, is described in the old sources as a mild and popular ruler who always carefully observed the confirmed rights and privileges of the country people. Conversely, however, he insisted on his own sovereign rights, such as the traditional nationwide hunting and fishing rights, which were primarily reserved for the authorities. Since the county did not shed so much to take into account his befitting lifestyle and the repayment of the old inherited debts from the Raron War, he found himself repeatedly forced to sell partial rights and pledges during the 1450s and 60s. Regardless of this, he still managed to buy other possessions and rights during this time.

In the autumn of 1460, in connection with the conquest of Thurgau by the seven federal towns of Zurich , Lucerne , Uri , Schwyz , Unterwalden , Zug and Glarus, there was a six-week siege of the city of Winterthur , in which Petermann, who was bound by alliances, took part. Although the city withstood the siege, it could not be prevented that Winterthur, which was completely enclosed by the Swiss Confederation, came under increasing pressure from the Confederation and, due to the notorious financial shortage of the Habsburgs, was finally pledged to the city of Zurich by Duke Sigmund for 10,000 guilders in 1467 , whereby their traditional rights and freedoms should be respected.

In 1463 Petermann appeared in person in Bern - he had already been buried with this city since the Raron War - to ask the mayor and advice of Bern to settle a dispute between the valley people of the upper Toggenburg and Schwyz and Glarus regarding provisions of the land law of 1436, with which the latter did not agree. The Bernese decided in favor of Schwyz and Glarus, but with the condition that the connection should not go further than in the original form.

In 1464 Petermann played a role in the so-called Asperlin trade (1460–1482). Since 1460, this dispute smoldered between Petermann's brother-in-law Rudolf Asperlin von Raron zu Bex (* around 1410, † around 1478) and the Sion bishop Walter Supersaxo , who revolved around the legacy of Raron's home estates in Valais - especially the Vice-Dominate Anniviers. Asperlin, who was married to Petermann's youngest sister Francisquina, became a co-heir, but also co-debtor of the Raron family through the marriage. In 1463, Asperlin felt compelled to seek protection from Duke Ludwig of Savoy in Bex in his distressed situation . In October 1464 there was an attack by Bern on Asperlin's house, for which Petermann gave the city a free hand in order to reduce the debts of the Raron house. Petermann's brother Hildebrand died in 1467, leaving behind only one daughter named Agnes, so that the Raron family estates were united under Petermann's hands for the last time. As a result of the decision of the Valais District Administrator on February 2, 1482, which was unfavorable for the descendants of Asperlin, they were forced to leave Valais, whereupon the Valais rights and property of the Raron family passed to the Duchy of Sion.

In the summer of 1468, Petermann was invited by Schwyz and Glarus to take part in the Waldshut War. In the contingent of 100 men provided by the Abbot of St. Gallen to relieve Schaffhausen, some Toggenburgers were also there. At the end of 1468, after three years of negotiations, Petermann sold the County of Toggenburg for 14,500 guilders to the abbot of St. Gallen, Ulrich Rösch, which left it under the rule of the prince abbey of St. Gallen until 1798 . 5708 guilders of this sum went to Petermann's creditors, the rest he insured as an annuity. In 1469 he finally ceded the rule of Uznach for a total of 3550 Rhenish guilders to Schwyz and Glarus, who administered it as a two-part common rule until 1798 . (Certification of land rights on August 5, 1450, and finally in May 1498).

After selling all his possessions, Petermann stayed in Toggenburg and lived partly in Wil and partly in Lütisburg when he died. In 1479, Petermann died as the last of his family at the age of around 74 in Toggenburg and was buried in the Rüti monastery .

genealogy

ancestors

Rudolf von Raron (* before 1299; † between 1359 and 1363)

Peter von Raron (* around 1325; † 1412)

unknown

Witschard von Raron (* around 1360, † around 1425)

unknown

Alesia Albi von Granges († before 1380)

unknown

Petermann von Raron (* around 1405, † 1479)

Donat I. von Rhäzüns (* around 1326, † after 1345)

Ulrich II. Brun von Rhäzüns (* 1367; † 1412)

Margaret of Orello (* around 1330, † around 1380)

Margaretha von Rhäzüns (* around 1374, † after 1439)

Albrecht II of Werdenberg-Heiligenberg (* around 1330; † 1373)

Elisabeth von Werdenberg-Heiligenberg (* around 1350; † 1419)

Agnes von Hohenzollern-Nürnberg (* around 1330; † 1364)

literature

• Edwin Hauser: History of the Barons of Raron . In: Leemann (Hrsg.): Swiss studies of historical science . 1916, p. 205 .

Web links

• Hans Kalbermatten: Raron, Petermann von. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Alois Niederstätter: The Old Zurich War (1995)
2. ↑ Thomas Faßbind: History of the Canton of Schwyz (1833)
3. ↑ Peter Niederhäuser, Christian Sieber: A «fratricidal war» makes history (2006)
4. ↑ Bernhard Stettler: The Confederation in the 15th Century (2004)
5. ^ Karl Wegelin: History of the Toggenburg Landscape (1830)