Schernberg (Thuringian noble family)

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The Lords of Schernberg were a Thuringian noble family with their headquarters at Schernberg Castle . You were Truchsesse of the Landgraves of Thuringia .

history

The family is mentioned in a document with Volkhold von Schernburg on Kölleda and in 1203 with Truchsess Cunemund "de Scerinburg".

The Sondershausen-Schernberg-Ebeleben area has some places with reference to the scissors (Scharburg, Schyrenberg, Scheerenberg) and others with the leading names of a suspected "scissors clan" (Gundersleben, Günthersberg, Dietenborn, Dieterrode, Willrode). A number of Thuringian noble families had sheep shears in their coat of arms, including those of Nordhausen . The coat of arms also appears in Franconia (with the knights of Scherenberg ). The also Thuringian marshals , like the Franconian von Giech , had two scissors in their coat of arms. At least in part it could be an early community of locators who founded settlements through clearing and belonged to the same feudal lord , in part perhaps also a community of descent. The former “Scharburg” 400 meters southeast of Schernberg could have been the first of these castles.

After Truchsess Cunemund, his son Bertho inherited the Schernburg and Straussberg Castle . After him, Schernburg came into possession of his three younger sons, Heinrich, Dietrich and Bertho II. As they were no longer in the landgrave's service, they did not bear the title of chief chef.

The family was a respected family in the Nordhausen-Sondershausen region. All of them acquired citizenship of the imperial city of Nordhausen, where, in addition to their Schernberg feudal estates, they also owned some Hufen agriculture and forests. Some came to the council and were councilors and mayors in Nordhausen and city treasurers in Mühlhausen. Their wealth enabled them to buy feudal estates from Beichling and the same niche and to give gifts to monasteries and parishes.

From the 3rd generation onwards, two lines were formed: Heinrich and Bertho. Knight Heinrich I was treasurer of the city of Mühlhausen from 1268 to 1293. His son, knight Heinrich II, inherited his office and was also a councilor in Nordhausen from 1338–1344. His second son, Ritter Giseler, (first documented mention 1331–1357) was an advocate for the Counts v. Schwarzburg and Vogt on Sondershausen. This line continued into the 7th generation. The documented 6th generation consists of four sons of the Heinrich line, three of whom were also commercially active: Bertho IV., From 1369 mayor in Nordhausen, and Dietrich IV. And Hans, councilors in Nordhausen. The latter two were banished from Thuringia after a town hall feud with the loss of their nobility. In the 7th generation, only Christian, Bertho's son (1460 mayor, † 1467) and Mechtild, Dietrich's IV daughter, prioress of the monastery on the Frauenberg, are known. The feudal shares of her exiled father and uncle were converted into " women feuds " in their favor , which became cloister property after her death.

Knight Bertho II is documented from 1269 to 1311. His wife was called Ottilie Kämmerer von Mühlhausen. In the 5th generation of this line were two priests, Heinrich IV, vicar of the Ilm monastery (1362-1368), and Reinhard, vicar of the Jechaburg monastery († 1366). The third son, Ludwig, was a councilor in Nordhausen (1365). His only son, the last of the Bertho line, was called Volker (1367 witness). Ludwig's sister, not mentioned in the documents, had a daughter, the monastery sister Christine, who bought interest with her uncle Heinrich IV in 1364, which was paid to the Ilm monastery after her death .

After the extinction of the v. Schernberg was named Count Heinrich v. By the Landgrave on August 8, 1467. Schwarzburg with the former Scherensippen alloden : Schernberg, Winkelte, Himmelsberg, Gundersleben, Rockstädt, Thalebra, Hohenebra, etc. enfeoffed. Most of these feudal estates were bought by the v. Tettenborn, a line of the Anglish "Wolfshacken-Kinship", as well as from the families v. Werthern and Hopfgarten received as afterlehn .

There is no news about the further fate of the exiled brothers Dietrich and Hans, but an interesting theory: About 40 km west of Nordhausen there is also a town Scheerenberg in Lower Saxony, and after another 20 km the town Seesen. Seesen was the home of the patrician family Schernberg, whose members, according to their family saga, were descendants of the exiled brothers Dietrich and Hans v. Schernberg should be. One Scherenberg family in Austria and one in Germany were ennobled at the beginning of the 20th century.

Personalities

According to documents, only the first four generations were in the knighthood.

Dietrich III. v. Schernberg, a theologian with a doctorate at the University of Erfurt, was canon of the Church of the Holy Brunn and in 1373 procurator of the St. Severi Church in Erfurt. He was also active in literature. His story of "Frau Jutte the Popess" comprises 1724 verses.

coat of arms

In addition to the "Eineresiegel", the members of the "Heinrich Line" used two more: Heinrich I and his sons the seal of the Chamberlain of Mühlhausen ( seared crossbar), and the 6th generation the billy goat coat of arms of the von der Sachsa and von Gräfendorff families. The billy goat was the second seal of their tribe relatives, the lords of Nordhausen and von Cullenstedt, whose goods were in the Schernberg territory and its surroundings.

literature

  • F. Apfelstedt: Schernberg. In: Construction and monuments of the principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. Sondershausen 1886.
  • Otto Dobencker: Regesta diplomatica necnon Epistolaria Historiae Thuringiae. Jena 1896–1939.
  • Fritz Fischer: On the genealogy of the Truchseß family from Schlotheim. In: Ahnenreihen ... 1977.
  • EG Förstemann: Documented history of the city of Nordhausen. 1927.
  • Günther Linke: Nordhäuser document book. 1936.
  • Gerhard Meissner: Document book of the imperial city Nordhausen 1267–1703. 1939.
  • Walter Müller: Official register of the imperial city of Nordhausen 1312-1345. 1956.
  • Hans Silberborth : History of the free imperial city of Nordhausen. Geiger, Horb am Neckar 1997, ISBN 3-89570-288-9 .
  • Manfred Stimming, Peter Acht: Mainz document book. Volume 1, 1932, Volume 2, 1968.
  • Siebmacher's heraldic books. 1596-1999.
  • Harzverein magazine. 1909.

See also