St. George's Order (Austria)
The Austrian Order of St. George was created by Emperor Friedrich III. and Pope Paul II on January 1, 1469 in the Lateran Basilica in Rome by the investiture of the 1st Grand Master Johann Siebenhirter . The order's task was to fight the Turks, who threatened the Habsburg hereditary lands of Carinthia , Carniola and Styria . The head office was the former Benedictine monastery Millstatt , the second head office was Wiener Neustadt . A special sponsor of the order was Emperor Maximilian I. After his death, the order quickly lost its importance until in 1598 its possessions were handed over to the Jesuit College in Graz . Several communities today refer to the tradition of the historical Order of St. George, which existed between 1469 and 1598 (see below).
History of the Order
Predecessor with the same name
The St. George's Chapel in Vienna's Augustinian Church is mentioned until 1378 as the liturgical assembly room of the "Order of St. George" founded by Duke Otto the Merry (1301–1339). This was a Habsburg house order following the courtly fashion of the late Middle Ages , but only had a short life and apart from the fact that it had the same name, it had no connection with the order founded in 1469 and later located in Millstatt. As early as the 16th century, the St. George's Chapel in Vienna's Augustinian Church was used as a chapel for the dead.
Foundation and heyday of the order
During the siege of Emperor Friedrich III. in 1462 in the castle of Vienna by his brother Albrecht VI. and the citizens of the city the emperor made a threefold vow: after his salvation he would make a pilgrimage to Rome, a diocese and a knightly order in honor of St. Georg found. In November 1468, Friedrich III. the pilgrimage to Rome, on 1 January 1469 it came to the investiture of the first Grand Master Wikiporno: Johann Siebenhirter were in the Lateran Basilica by the Emperor and Pope Paul II and on 18 January the Pope, the two dioceses. Vienna and Wiener Neustadt built ; both had only a small territory. The Diocese of Wiener Neustadt was incorporated into the Order of St. George Knights in 1479, but due to constant disputes between the order and the bishop, especially over precedent , this union was finally ended in 1528. On May 14, 1469, the Millstatt Monastery was handed over to the new Grand Master and the members of the order by the last Benedictine monks . As Vogt of the Millstatt Monastery, the Emperor had the Pope repealed; the location of the monastery was very favorable for the emperor's plans, since Millstatt was not directly exposed to the Turkish threat , but was strategically well positioned for defense and counterattack. For an efficient defense against the Turks, the Rechberg Castle was also given to the Order, where the Order built fortifications to prevent the Turks coming from the Seebergsattel from invading Carinthia. Because of the small number of members, the order could not meet the expectations of the emperor. Large possessions were made by Friedrich III. handed over to the Order or promised. So the order came into the possession of the provost Maria Wörth , the rule Pürgg in the Ennstal and the rule Sankt Lorenzen in the Mürz valley . At times the order also owned the dominion of Sternberg and Landskron as well as the city parish of Bozen , and the order also acquired properties in Vienna and Lower Austria. The takeover of the Viktring Cistercian Abbey failed due to the determined resistance of the Carinthian provinces and the Archbishop of Salzburg. In Wiener Neustadt, Emperor Friedrich III. the church in the castle built by the builder Peter Pusica around 1450, which originally had a Marian patronage, but is now dedicated to St. Georg was consecrated. Johann Siebenhirter not only renovated the desolate buildings of the monastery, but also expanded the complex into a representative seat of the Grand Master of the Order and built fortifications that could withstand roaming Turks. Numerous works of art are associated with his name, which he commissioned for himself or for the order, such as his prayer book with numerous miniatures ( Royal Library Stockholm ), the magnificent, richly decorated antiphonary ( University Library Graz ), valuable incunabula (also University Library Graz) as well as numerous late Gothic winged altars which he commissioned for Millstatt or for churches belonging to Millstatt. The winged altars from Lieseregg and the Katharinenkapelle in Bad Kleinkirchheim are still preserved today . In the Capuchin monastery in Wiener Neustadt there is a panel painting with the Descent from the Cross , which was probably donated by Siebenhirter for the Georgskirche in the castle. A panel painting by Master Thomas von Villach depicts St. Depicting Domitian, originally part of a winged altar in the collegiate church Millstatt (today in the museum of the city of Villach ) and together with his school he created the frescoes at the cemetery portal and in the cloister . Presumably the frescoes by the same master in the church of Gerlamoos , the subject of which are scenes from the legend of St. George , also go back to a commission from Siebenhirters. The order had possessions (lingwood) in the area of this church. Currently Johann Siebenhirters also came bridal chests of Paola Gonzaga to Millstatt. She had married the last Count of Görz Leonhard , but died in 1495 without any descendants (one girl had died early). Leonhard handed over four chests created according to designs by Andrea Mantegna to the Order of St. George. Two chests with ivory reliefs are in Graz Cathedral , stucco reliefs of two gilded wooden chests are in the Carinthia State Museum and one of these chests has been preserved in Millstatt; it is kept in the monastery museum. The close connection between the emperor and the order he founded was also evident in the fact that he wanted to be buried in the order's robes. On his tomb in St. Stephen's Cathedral in Vienna reference is made in several scenes to the Order of St. George and on the epitaph with the depiction of the emperor and the coats of arms of his countries, the coat of arms of the order has a special rank.
In the successor to Emperor Maximilian I , the order was given a special sponsor who remained closely connected to the order until his death and who felt directly responsible for the order. This bond is also related to the special veneration of St. George, whose name Maximilian I should actually bear, and Maximilian's lifelong idea of averting the Turkish threat .
St. George Brotherhood
Since the emperor had to find out that the order had relatively few members and was therefore not in a position to seriously take up the fight with the Turks , Maximilian I founded St.Petersburg in Innsbruck shortly after the death of his father on September 17, 1493. George Brotherhood. A secular brotherhood was envisaged, but it should be affiliated to the order, and whose members should actively support it through donations or by participating in the fight against the Turks. With their help, a fortress with a crew of 2,000 to 3,000 men was to be built in Rann on the Save (today Brežice in Slovenia). As an added incentive, members should be given a number of privileges. On October 28, 1494, the emperor himself accepted membership of the St. George Brotherhood with his entire family and numerous imperial princes in the cathedral of Antwerp . The then Pope Alexander VI. and numerous cardinals became members of this brotherhood. On November 15, 1494, Maximilian I addressed an appeal to all Christian kings and princes as well as to all of Christianity to join the brotherhood and support a Turkish campaign planned by the emperor for the following year, but without finding much interest. He granted the knights who would take part in this campaign the privilege of wearing a crown in their coat of arms, thus creating the status of "crowned knight". Due to the numerous clashes with France and Venice , the planned campaign did not take place.
St. George's Society
In 1503 the emperor renewed his appeal to support the fight against the Turks and also created the St. George Society. The broad approval hoped for by the Emperor did not materialize this time either. When Maximilian was proclaimed to be emperor in the Cathedral of Trento on February 4, 1508, the knights of St. George present were given the task of formally requesting Maximilian to accept this dignity. Grand Master Johann Siebenhirter died on October 10th of the same year and was buried in the collegiate church in Millstatt. His epitaph is now in the northern side chapel that bears his name. Johann Geumann was elected as his successor , who like his predecessor had a close relationship with the emperor and was later chosen by Maximilian I as executor. Geumann was only confirmed by the emperor as administrator of the office of grand master, only on March 25, 1518, almost ten years later, he was appointed grand master in a solemn ceremony with the participation of representatives of several ruling houses in Hall / Tyrol. Maximilian probably thought for a long time to take on the dignity of Grand Master himself, as he was the Duke of Burgundy at the head of the Order of the Golden Fleece , until he had to hand this dignity over to his son Philip . The Order of St. George played a special role in Maximilian's drafts of will. The emperor planned his grave monument as a kind of Grail Castle on Falkenstein near St. Wolfgang . The bronze statues of his ancestors, which he had cast in Innsbruck, should also be erected there (see the tomb of Emperor Maximilian I ). The members of the Order of St. George were to take over the grave guard. These plans were thwarted by the Archbishop of Salzburg, Leonhard von Keutschach , and shortly before his death on January 12, 1519, the Emperor ordered his body to be buried under the altar steps in the Georgskirche in Wiener Neustadt. The grave guard should be incumbent on the Order of St. George Knights, who also performed this task as long as they were able to do so. The Emperor also certain that his body was laid out in the robes of the Order and the catafalque the insignia of this order shall be prepared.
Decline and end of the order
With the death of Emperor Maximilian, the order lost its importance. Emperor Charles V and his brother Ferdinand I were not interested in the order, especially since it had never succeeded in fulfilling the tasks associated with its founding in fighting the Turks. The number of members shrank, several members joined the Reformation and the discipline slackened more and more, so that the members of the order in Millstatt as in Wiener Neustadt and at the other locations of the order aroused growing annoyance. Johann Geumann had given the order shine through brisk building activity in Millstatt and his work in the emperor's environment. During his time, Augustinus Reinwald , who was close to the order, donated the magnificent Last Judgment fresco, which was probably created by Urban Görtschacher after 1519. Geumann died in 1536 and was also buried in the collegiate church in Millstatt; his epitaph is now in the south side chapel that bears his name. His successor was Wolfgang Prandtner , who was a diplomat in the imperial service and could not take care of the order. He died of the plague in 1541 and was buried in Trautmannsdorf near Wiener Neustadt. There was no election of a new Grand Master, the property of the order was partially pledged, the administration was carried out by imperial commissioners. From 1573 the proceeds were used to an increasing extent for the newly founded Jesuit college in Graz and finally in 1598 the entire property was handed over to this college and the Jesuit university in Graz. A formal cancellation of the order cannot be proven in writing. It is possible that this rather bureaucratically complex measure was omitted because there were no more knights of the order.
Aftermath of the order after 1598
Little is available about the further development of the apparently widely dispersed order; neither a document is known about the dissolution of the order nor about a later re-establishment or re-establishment. The "Ritter-Orden Almanach" published in Vienna in 1779 lists the order among the list of the abolished orders of knights in Germany.
Roman von Procházka mentions in the “Austrian Order Handbook” (1974, 1979) a “Millstatt Monastery Order of St. George in Carinthia” and describes this as a sovereign knightly order with its seat in Rome and the Italian name “Sovrano Militare Ospitaliero Ordine di San Giorgio in Carinzia” “, But does not give a founding date for this community. According to Procházka, this is a “re-establishment of the knightly brotherhood of the same name, following on from the Austrian knightly order of St. George [...], which continues under the patronage of the Sovereigns of the House of Habsburg existed and was pardoned by Maria Theresa in 1756 with special statutes. ”According to Procházka, this community was“ in exile in Bavaria from the French rule in Illyria until 1838 ”, whereupon“ the priory in Austria in Austria was in exile. ahre] [was] confirmed in 1849 by Emperor Franz Joseph and then in 1917 by Emperor Karl I , who also appointed the German Bishop Hudal as governor of the order in Rome. “There are no documents about the new foundation mentioned by Procházka, including the confirmation by Maria Theresa in 1756 and Kaiser Franz Joseph 1849 cannot be proven. The confirmation of the order by Charles I is different, which was only given orally due to circumstances, but is proven by several witnesses.
Similar organizations
In 1926, under the direction of Count Bernhard zu Stolberg-Stolberg, an association was established under the name of the "Old Order of St. George Knights, also known as the Order of the Four Roman Emperors". This included the regions of Wendland , Lower Saxony , Rhineland - Westphalia , southern Germany and Austria-Hungary . In 1935 the "Ordens-Balleien" were dissolved by the National Socialists in Germany, as was the "Ballei Österreich" in 1938. Immediately after the Second World War, Johannes von Liechtenstein rebuilt the life of the order, based in Vienna, and consolidated it in 1951 with the entry of an association in the Austrian register of associations under the name “St. Georgs-Klub ”, which he led as president. After a change in the statutes, which was confirmed by a decision of the association authority in 1960, the association was renamed from “St. George's Club ”in“ Old Order of St. George ”. Mag. Gundakar Liechtenstein has held the office of governor of the association since 1999.
Another “St. George's Order ”, which Procházka also mentions Bishop Hudal (since 1923 rector of the Collegio Teutonico di Santa Maria dell Anima in Rome ) in a historical treatise written by him. In it he describes, among other things, that in 1917 Emperor Karl I had the right to dispose of various orders of knights - such as the Order of the Golden Fleece , but also the “St. George Order ”- and Hudal himself acted as provisional spiritual prior of the order. After the death of Charles I, the protectorate of the Order of St. George passed to his son Otto by dynastic succession .
In a so-called “reorganization convention” on January 18, 2008, an order of the same name was publicly re-established as an association with the previous participation of Otto Habsburg-Lothringen , Karl Habsburg-Lothringen , and Vincenz Liechtenstein . On April 24, 2010, Otto von Habsburg gave it a new constitution. At the convention of April 30, 2011 in the Münster zu Neuberg an der Mürz , after the death of Otto von Habsburg, after the proclamation by Grand Master Karl, the " Order of St. George - A European Order of the House of Habsburg-Lothringen " was confirmed as a "Habsburg Order" .
Works of art and art treasures
In many works of art commissioned by Emperor Maximilian I, reference is made to the Order of St. George, such as the Great Gate of Honor , the Triumphal Procession, Theuerdank and the Weißkunig, as well as in several woodcuts and copper engravings with depictions of the emperor who the Bears insignia of the order. The prayer book of Maximilian I , which he created for the Order of St. George, is of particular importance . Several copies were printed on parchment and were intended for princes to win them over to the order. The copy intended for the emperor was provided with drawings by the most important artists from Maximilian's circle. Most of these drawings come from Albrecht Dürer , Albrecht Altdorfer , Lucas Cranach , Jörg Breu , Hans Baldung and Hans Burgkmair the Elder were also involved. The majority of this copy is now a special treasure in the Bavarian State Library in Munich, the rest in the Besançon City Library .
In the Millstatt Abbey Museum , numerous works of art from the time of the Order of St. George are on display. These include facsimiles of a number of valuable manuscripts such as the Latin prayer book of Johann Siebenhirter with particularly high-quality miniatures , the splendid antiphonary of the order as well as important incunabula from the early days of book printing and, above all, the famous prayer book of Emperor Maximilian I with pen drawings by Albrecht Dürer , Albrecht Altdorfer and Lukas Cranach . In 1495, after the death of his wife Paola Gonzaga , Count Leonhard von Görz gave the bridal chests designed by Andrea Mantegna to the Order of St. George Knights in Millstatt, one of which is on display in the museum. Two extremely well-preserved bridal chests are located as reliquary shrines in Graz Cathedral. Ambras Castle Innsbruck shows in its "Collection of Gothic Sculptures" the George altar , which was made by order of Maximilian I by Sebold Bocksdorfer .
literature
- Walter Franz Winkelbauer: The Order of St. George Knights, Emperor Friedrich III. (unedited dissertation, Vienna 1949).
- WF Winkelbauer: Emperor Maximilian I and St. Georg . In: Mitteilungen des Österreichisches Staatsarchiv 7 (1954), pp. 523-550.
- Heinrich Koller : The St. George order of knights of Emperor Friedrich III , in: The spiritual orders of knights of Europe. Edited by Josef Fleckenstein and Manfred Hellmann . Sigmaringen: Thorbecke 1980. pp. 417-429 (= lectures and research. Konstanz working group for medieval history. Vol. 26.).
- Inge Friedhuber: Maximilian I and the Order of St. George Knights . In: Symposium on the history of Millstatt and Carinthia 1984. Reprint: Studies on the history of Millstatt and Carinthia (Klagenfurt 1997), pp. 431–453.
- Gisela Goldberg: The prayer book of Emperor Maximilian I and the St. George order of knights . In: Symposium 1984. Reprint: Studies, pp. 455-484.
- Walther Brauneis : The tomb plans of Emperor Maximilian I and the Order of St. George Knights . In: Symposium 1984. Reprint: Studies, pp. 485-493.
- Franz Stubenvoll: From the life of Hanns Siebenhirter - First Grand Master of the Order of St. George (1420 - 1508) . In: Symposium 1985. Reprint: Studies, pp. 495-510.
- Robert Wlattnig: The so-called Siebenhirter table, an art historical analysis . In: Symposium 1985.
- Gertrud Buttlar-Gerhartl: The St. Georgs knight order and Wiener Neustadt . In: Symposium 1985. Reprint: Studies, pp. 511-527.
- Richard Perger: The Order of St. George Knights in Vienna . In: Symposium 1987, pp. 84-94. Extended version: The S. Martinsspital in front of the Widmertor in Vienna. In: Yearbook of the Association for the History of the City of Vienna 44/45 (1989) pp. 7–25.
- Inge Wiesflecker - Friedhuber: Maximilian I and the Order of St. George Knights. On the question of his religious affiliation . In: Symposium 1989, pp. 87-106. Reprint: FS HJ Mezler-Andelberg. (Graz 1988) pp. 543-554.
- Erich Glantschnig: The Villach Renaissance painter Urban Görtschacher - style and questions of attribution . In: Symposium 1998, pp. 21-48.
- Daniela Gregori: The bridal chests of Paola Gonzaga . In: Symposium 1998, pp. 49-58.
- Franz Höring: The restoration of the wedding chest of Paola Gonzaga . In: Symposium 2002, pp. 124-133.
- Karl-Georg Pfändtner: The prayer book of Johann Siebenhirter in Stockholm. History - equipment - meaning . In: Symposium 2006, pp. 43–98.
- Magdalena Bushart: The marginal drawings in the prayer book of Emperor Maximilian I. In: Symposium 2006, pp. 99–114.
- Christine Baier: The late medieval book illumination in manuscripts from Millstatt . In: Symposium 2007, pp. 35–68.
- Karl-Georg Pfändtner: The Siebenhirterbrevier Cod. 2781 of the ÖNB Vienna. New aspects of dating and localization . In: Symposium 2007, pp. 69–96.
- Johann Tomaschek: The "abolition" of the Millstatt Benedictine monastery and its transfer to the Order of St. George Knights . In: Symposium 2010, pp. 37–55.
such as:
- Dehio manual. The art monuments of Austria. Carinthia. 2nd edition, Anton Schroll, Vienna 1981, pp. 397–408. ISBN 3-7031-0522-4 .
- Wilhelm Deuer: Main parish church of St. Salvator and All Saints in Millstatt. Christian Art Centers Austria 274, Verlag St. Peter, Salzburg 1996. (without ISBN).
- Matthias Maierbrugger : The story of Millstatt. Market town of Millstatt published by Ferd. Kleinmayr, Klagenfurt, 1964; exp. New edition: Carinthia Verlag, Klagenfurt 1989. pp. 93–133 (without ISBN).
- Maria Mairold: The Millstatt Library. In: Historical Society of Carinthia: Carinthia I . Journal for historical regional studies of Carinthia. Volume 170/1980, pp. 87-106.
- Erika Weinzierl-Fischer: History of the Millstatt Benedictine Monastery in Carinthia. Archive for patriotic history and topography, Volume 33. Verlag des Geschichtsverein für Kärnten, Klagenfurt 1951 (without ISBN).
- Roman Freiherr von Procházka : Austrian Order Handbook , 1st edition published by Graf-Klenau-OHG, Munich 1974 (without ISBN); 2nd edition published by Graf-Klenau-OHG, Munich 1979 (without ISBN).
- Peter F. Wallnöfer - Monte Liechtenberg: The SMH Knight Order of Saint George in Carinthia in the 20th century, reprint from Carinthia I, the Carinthian historical journal, Verlag des Geschichtsvereines für Kärnten, Klagenfurt 2005 (without ISBN).
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Georgskapelle (1, Augustinerkirche) in the Vienna History Wiki of the City of Vienna
- ↑ The Habsburg Court Monastery - St. Augustin , on habsburger.net, accessed on July 4, 2018
- ^ Georgskapelle (1, Augustinerkirche) in the Vienna History Wiki of the City of Vienna
- ↑ Ritter-Orden Almanach to the year 1779. with KK Freiheit. Vienna. In the calendar publishers of the KK observatory
- ^ Roman Baron von Procházka : Austrian Order Handbook, Volume 4 , 2nd Edition, Graf-Klenau-OHG, Munich 1979, page 274.
- ↑ Website “ Old Order of Saint George - called Order of the Four Roman Emperors - History ( Memento of the original from April 16, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ", Accessed April 16, 2014
- ↑ decision Zl 88149-4 / 60 of the Austrian Federal Ministry of the Interior
- ↑ Website “ Old Order of Saint George - called Order of the Four Roman Emperors - History ( Memento of the original from April 16, 2014 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link has been inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice. ", Accessed April 16, 2014
- ↑ Die Welt - "Elitist, Conservative, European" of February 3, 2008
- ^ Karl-Georg Pfändtner: The prayer book of Johann Siebenhirter in Stockholm. Carinthia I, 2007. pp. 107-156. [with 38 mostly colored illustrations]
