Philipp Christoph von Königsmarck

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Philipp Christoph von Königsmarck

Philipp Christoph Graf von Königsmarck (* 4th March July / 14th March  1665 greg. In Stade ; † 1 July July / 11 July  1694 greg. In Hanover ) was a Hanoverian officer and court cavalier . He was the son of Kurt Christoph Graf von Königsmarck (1634–1673) and Maria Christine von Wrangel (1638–1691).

Life

Count Königsmarck came from an old noble family in Brandenburg . He was the grandson of the German-Swedish field marshal Hans Christoph von Königsmarck . His uncle was Otto Wilhelm von Königsmarck , his brother Hans Karl von Königsmarck . He also had two younger sisters, Amalie Wilhelmine and Maria Aurora .

Philipp Christoph von Königsmarck at a young age

He had been friends with the Hereditary Princess of Braunschweig-Lüneburg , Sophie Dorothea von Celle , who was a year younger than he was when he was a child as a page at the court of Celle . At the age of 16 she was married to her cousin, Duke Georg Ludwig of Braunschweig and Lüneburg and Prince von Calenberg , who later became Elector of Braunschweig-Lüneburg and was King George I of Great Britain . The politically motivated marriage was concluded against Sophie Dorothea's wishes and was probably rather unhappy.

Meanwhile, after studying at Oxford , the young Königsmarck embarked on a career as an officer and initially served in the imperial service. In Venice he met the then Elector Prince August of Saxony ; he returned home with him and lived for some time in Dresden .

After his uncle and brother were killed in battle in the Turkish Wars of 1686 and 1688 before Argos and Negroponte, he went to Hanover in 1688 as a rich heir. 29 servants and 52 horses are said to have belonged to his household. Here he entered the service of Duke Ernst August von Braunschweig-Lüneburg and took part in the campaign against France . As Colonel of the Life Guard, he belonged to the closest circle of the ducal court and was regularly present at social events. Together with his friend, Prince Karl Philipp (1669–1690), he moved to the Peloponnese ( Morea ) to fight the Turks there. In April 1690 he came back to Hanover alone.

Königsmarck affair and disappearance

Sophie-Dorothea of ​​Braunschweig-Lüneburg

In Hanover, von Königsmarck probably began a love affair with the wife of the electoral prince, Hereditary Princess Sophie Dorothea von Braunschweig-Lüneburg, in March 1692 . Historical research has been able to prove through an extensive correspondence that Sophie Dorothea, despite all her contradicting statements, had a sexual relationship with the Count for several years - and did little to stop the rumors about it. In the summer of 1694, the two lovers finally planned their escape together, which was to lead either to Wolfenbüttel to Duke Anton Ulrich or to Electoral Saxony , where the Count held an officer position as major general of the cavalry.

By Countess Clara Elisabeth von Platen (1648-1700), a mistress of electors that were Liaison and the planned escape betrayed. After a last encounter with Sophie on July 2, 1694, Count von Königsmarck disappeared in Hanover's Leineschloss , in all likelihood he was secretly murdered on the same day. According to some accounts, the murder took place on behalf of the elector. Officially, however, the count is still considered missing today. The disappearance of Count von Königsmarck turned into a state affair, which not only drew large circles among the European nobility, but also among diplomats and the general public. The princess was culpably divorced and imprisoned at Ahlden Castle for 32 years until the end of her life.

Bone finds

Since Count von Königsmarck's disappearance, there have been numerous bone finds in the area of ​​the Leineschloss, in which the Lower Saxony State Parliament has had its seat since 1962 . Although a connection with the count was usually suspected, this was not confirmed in any case. In the 18th century, his skeleton is said to have been found during construction work behind the paneling of a toilet room or in a "secret room". During the Second World War , a property owner found three skeletons while digging a pit in the area of ​​the Leineschloss. In 1949 more bones came to light during excavations at the Leineschloss. According to studies, the skull found belonged to a man around 50, which is why the Graf, who died at the age of 29, was out of the question. There are numerous rumors about the disappearance of the body - according to one legend, his body was buried in Rethmar Castle or buried in the crypt under the church there, according to another, the body was sunk on a leash .

Bone finds 2016

The portico of the Leineschloss during the reconstruction with the discovery of the bones; August 2016

On August 10 or 11, 2016, construction workers found human bones in the Leineschloss while digging a pit to install an elevator. They were about eight meters below the portico . After the bones were handed over to the police, the Hanover Public Prosecutor's Office had them examined by the Hanover Medical School on suspicion of a recent homicide . The investigation found that the bones could be hundreds of years old. This led to the assumption that it could be the mortal remains of Count von Königsmarck, which led to strong media attention throughout Germany and internationally. After the investigation was over, the public prosecutor handed over the bone material to the Lower Saxony State Office for Monument Preservation . The number of bones increased to about 40 pieces as a result of a search by the district archaeologist Friedrich-Wilhelm Wulf . The identity of the bones should be checked by DNA comparison with blood-related descendants of the line. A related woman living in Great Britain volunteered for this. The Lower Saxony State Office for Monument Preservation had the bones examined at the Institute for Historical Anthropology at the University of Göttingen and considered a C14 examination to determine their age. Archaeologists, such as the Lower Saxony state archaeologist Henning Haßmann , were reluctant to comment on the bone finds, as the age of the bone material appears to vary between 200 and 600 years and can come from several individuals. Even in the initial statements, the state office suspected that the human remains could come from another person, such as a buried monk from the Minorite Monastery in Hanover , which existed until 1533 . Another possibility of origin was the former family crypt of the Welfs under the chapel in the Leineschloss, whose deceased were reburied in 1957.

The bones found after the examination; November 2016

In November 2016, the President of the Lower Saxony State Parliament, Bernd Busemann, announced that, due to the scientific investigations, it is highly likely that the remains did not come from Count Philipp Christoph von Königsmarck. According to the findings of the University of Göttingen, the bones, including arm bones, a skull fragment, remains of a pelvic bone and vertebral bones, belonged to at least four adults and one adolescent person. They were each younger or older than the Count von Königsmarck. Only the skull fragment could have been assigned to him, which according to a DNA analysis, however, belonged to a female individual. Since a connection between the bones and the count appeared to be very unlikely, no further investigations were made. The bones found are probably the bones of the deceased that were relocated secondarily after burial and were buried there before the construction of the Leineschloss in 1637. A church, a monastery and a hospital have stood on the site since the Middle Ages . After completing the examinations, the Lower Saxony State Museum in Hanover received the bone material to store in the magazine .

reception

Folk song

Theodor Fontane deals with the story in detail in his hikes through the Mark Brandenburg . According to his account, von Königsmarck only went to the castle in Hanover to say goodbye to the electoral princess. There he was killed by four hired murderers and buried within the castle walls. Two of the halberdiers involved are said to have confessed to the crime on their deathbed. According to Fontane, the compromising correspondence between von Königsmarck and the princess was a subsequent forgery by the court in Hanover, while the real reason for his murder was the jealousy of Countess Platen, who was spurned after a love affair with the count. However, the authenticity of the correspondence is certain today. The allegation of falsification initially came from the court in Hanover, which wanted to evade diplomatic pressure after the Königsmarck affair and blackmail attempts.

Countess Platen - as the alleged instigator of the whole thing - was the object of general hatred. Fontane reports on a folk song in which this mood is expressed.

Who goes to court so late
Since everything is long in your sleep?
The maid keeps watch in the anteroom -
The handsome count is already approaching.
He said: "Before I go to France,
Do I still have to hug her
Princess Dorothee. "
Countess, you are betrayed
Your luck is betrayed
The evil Countess Platen
Come up with a boy’s piece.
You switch them a weather vane,
She likes to do you a lot of love
Now you are done.
He went to eternal rest
With a lot of pain
But there was no chest
Bed his bones.
I don't know where he likes modern
But one day he will appear
On the day of resurrection.

Novels

Movies

literature

Web links

Commons : Philipp Christoph von Königsmarck  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b George I Feature Page on Undiscovered Scotland . Retrieved August 28, 2016.
  2. ^ Ragnhild Hatton: Georg I. A German elector on England's throne. 2nd edition Frankfurt a. M. 1985, p. 55ff.
  3. ↑ a b Mijndert Bertram: The Kingdom of Hanover - A Brief History of a Past German State. Hanover 2003, ISBN 3-7752-6121-4 .
  4. ↑ Oliver Kühn: The riddle of the state parliament remains unsolved in the Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung of September 17, 2016
  5. ↑ Bones found in the state parliament: Does a DNA test bring clarity? in: Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung from August 29, 2016
  6. ↑ Isabel Christian, Simon Benne: Was the murdered count lying under the Leineschloss for 300 years? in: Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung from August 26, 2016
  7. ^ A Skeleton Found in a Castle Could Be the Key to Cracking a 17th-Century Cold Case in Smithsonian Magazine, October 18, 2016
  8. ↑ Försvunnen svensk greve kan ha hittats in: Aftonbladet of August 28, 2016
  9. ↑ Simon Benne: Discovered even more bones in the state parliament in Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung of August 26, 2016
  10. ↑ Bertil Starke: After 322 years: murder victims discovered under the state parliament? at ndr.de on August 26, 2016
  11. ↑ Is it Königsmarck? in: Hallo Hannover from September 3, 2016
  12. ↑ Alexander Nortrup: Skeleton in the Landtag: Does Mrs. Gadsby solve the riddle? at NDR.de on September 9, 2016
  13. ↑ Mysterious Bones? in: Hallo Hannover from September 3, 2016
  14. ^ Skeleton find under Landtag: Further investigations at ndr.de from September 14, 2016
  15. ↑ Alexander Nortrup: Is it the Count's skeleton - or speculation? at ndr.de from August 30, 2016
  16. ↑ Was the murdered count lying under the Leineschloss for 300 years? in Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung from August 26, 2016
  17. ↑ Bones do not come from Count Königsmarck in the Hannoversche Allgemeine Zeitung from November 14, 2016
  18. ↑ Melanie Heike Schmidt: The riddle about missing counts remains unsolved in: Neue Osnabrücker Zeitung from November 14, 2016
  19. ↑ Bones in the Leineschloss do not come from the count at ndr.de from November 14, 2016
  20. ↑ The bones do not come from the Count in Weser-Kurier on November 14, 2016
personal data
SURNAME Königsmarck, Philipp Christoph von
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Königsmarck, Philipp Christoph Graf von (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Hanoverian officer and court cavalier
DATE OF BIRTH March 14, 1665
PLACE OF BIRTH Stade
DATE OF DEATH July 11, 1694
Place of death Hanover