Philipp Lang (court official)

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Philipp Lang von Langenfels (* around 1560 ; † around 1609 in Prague ) was a politically influential valet of Emperor Rudolf II.

Life

He is said to come from a Jewish family in Prague. It is unclear under what circumstances he converted to Christianity. In 1568 he was a choirboy in Archduke Ferdinand's chapel in Tyrol . After his voice broke, he entered the service of the Archduke's sons. He accompanied one of them, Cardinal Andreas , to Rome in 1579 . In 1582 he married a servant of the Archduchess Philippine named Maria Scalaber. This came from a family of sculptors from Innsbruck. Some time later he became Archduke Ferdinand's valet. Apparently he has earned his trust, since Lang was elevated to the nobility by the nickname of Langenfels. In 1582 the Archduke gave him a house and in 1592 appointed him castle keeper of Innsbruck . Soon after embezzlement and attempted fraud, he fell temporarily out of favor and was imprisoned. But he was forgiven.

Under unexplained circumstances he entered the service of Rudolf II as a valet. He soon gained considerable influence over the emperor. He was the only one who was allowed to contradict the imperial confidante Johann Anton Barvitius . He was probably involved in the fact that the first valet of the emperor Hieronymus Machowsky von Machau fell out of favor in 1603. Lang took his position and was able to further increase his influence on the emperor. He had received over 200,000 guilders from so-called gifts alone.

He controlled access to Rudolf II and anyone who needed an imperial favor had to turn to Lang. Even members of the Habsburg family, such as Maximilian III. , Imperial princes or foreign princes required his mediation in return for generous payment. He bribed Ernst von Bayern , who supported his position in connection with the so-called Frankfurt rabbinical conspiracy. He did not have a political concept.

The emperor granted him numerous offices and income. In other ways, too, Lang managed to capitalize on his position. His sons also benefited from this. He succeeded in marrying the eldest son Andreas to a daughter from the Augsburg patrician family Imhof . He also increased his fortune through fraud, embezzlement and theft. He was even suspected of poisoning. He also lent money at exorbitant interest. Lang was, among other things, imperial councilor, administrator of the office of a Oberstland hunter master , Mautner zu Stein, city governor in Krems , caretaker of Innsbruck Castle, postmaster and customs officer at Kollmann. Lord of Oberinglingen and member of the Bohemian knighthood. In addition, he had a large fortune and several houses in Prague. The imperial trust was so great that attempts to overthrow Lang failed.

However, when he turned to Archduke Matthias , he fell out of favor with the Emperor in 1608. When Matthias and his troops stood in front of Prague, had Rudolf Lang arrested. This was a reaction to the fact that the anti-imperial forces, but also the Bohemians, sharply criticized the valet's regiment. An investigation was made against Lang, the result of which is not known. He died in prison in 1609 or 1610, possibly a violent death, and his property was confiscated. The widow later received a small pension.

literature

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Birgit Klein: Levi von Bonn alias Löb Kraus and the Jews in the old empire. On the trail of a betrayal with far-reaching consequences. Diss. Duisburg, 1998 p. 379f
personal data
SURNAME Lang, Philipp
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Lang von Langenfels, Philipp (full name)
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Valet Rudolf II.
DATE OF BIRTH around 1560
DATE OF DEATH around 1609
Place of death Prague