For five

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Facade of the old town hall in Lindau - with the coat of arms of the patrician families

The Gesellschaft zum Sünzen was a patrician society in Lindau , which was first mentioned in a document in 1358. Like other patrician societies, it served only superficially for sociability, while the real intention was to expand and consolidate political and economic influence. The oldest surviving statute dates from 1430.

As the spatial proximity in the Lake Constance area suggests, there were cross-connections to other local patrician societies , namely to Zum Esel in Ravensburg , to Zur Katz in Konstanz and to Zum golden Löwen in Memmingen . It is not without reason that it can still be stated today that the articles of association of the companies in Ravensburg, Memmingen, Lindau and Konstanz are word for word in parts.

Political importance

Old town hall in Lindau
Haus zum Sünzen, Maximilianstrasse 1

With the constitutional amendments from 1551 to 1553, Charles V intended to smash guild rule in all imperial cities, if possible the guilds themselves, and to hand over power to the patriciate . Comrades in five were bound to friendship and trust among one another and, above all, to obedience to the emperor and empire.

From 1540-1830 the five-man society had a total of 251 male members. Almost half of them held a council seat. Another 18 worked in city offices, for example council consultants, city clerks, city physicians, city administrators. The gentlemen who did not hold office were either single or they lived outside Lindau, for example “in the country”. Mercenary officers were also abroad a lot and were never elected to the councils.

Class privileges

Patricians were considered to be equal to the local nobility and, like other patrician societies, the Sünzen was a closed society, which had the character of a natal aristocracy with ties to each other. Only citizens of Lindau could become members of the Sünzen and no one could join of their own accord. Outsiders were admitted , if at all, by co-opting the existing members. However, it was expressly allowed to “weave” the five. If the daughter of a five-year-old married with the will of her parents, the husband was accepted, "who would otherwise not be able to equal the five-centime", for two guilders or as a younger son.

Most characteristic of the sense of class are still the titles and dignities of the five lords. Society itself called itself in the 16th and 17th centuries "eerliche" or "honorable" society, but around 1700 it was called "aristocratic" and even "noble" society. Around 1600 the title " Junker " came up for the ennobled members. In the case of academically educated nobles, however, the degree “doctor” or “ licentiate ” takes the place of Junker. Many patrician families had the emperor confirm the quality of their nobility by means of imperial nobility or coat of arms letters, which were often associated with improvements in the coat of arms. To demonstrate that they felt aristocratic, other families added an addition "von" to their original family name and the names of the estates they had bought.

Although the emperor's bestowal of nobility made it easier for him to join the Sünzen, it was not a prerequisite for this. Membership raised itself to a higher level and that is why gentlemen of five also wanted confirmation as identification when they traveled to other cities. The diary of Rudolf von Curtabatt shows that not only in the aristocratic ruled cantons of Zurich and Berne, but also at the court of Louis XIV. Looked at and the patrician Lindau as hoffähige Kavalliere treated.

Five sexes

Coat of arms on a Lindau house facade (January 2011)

Until 1350

Aedelline (t); Birchtil; Blaser; Bombrot; Brender; From the Buhel; Buzzebeard; Crispus; Elyas; Frey, Frige; Gaizor; Gebtz; Grave; Goldsmith; Guderscher; Herbolder, knight; Hell; Kime; Kitzi; Lance; Lassaur; Milwe; Multer; Necker; Rienolt; v. Schönstein, knight; Channel; Strube; Sunntac; Vögli; Who (ch) master; Winmann; usurer

1350-1540

v. Arbon; v. Ems; v. Tightness; Gässler; Helwer v. Veldegg; v. Hochdorf; v. Maximum; v. Lauenberg; v. Punching; v. Neideck; v. Ostrach; v. Rebstein; v. Ringingen; v. Rötenberg; Schenk v. Landeck; v. Schönau; v. Schönstein; v. Schwarzach; v. Stone; v. Tettikoven; v. Puffing; Hamlet v. Altenburg; v. Wolfurt; Aedillin; Arnolt; v. Branch; Birchtil; Blaser; Bonoll; Brähi; In the Bündt; Burgauer; Bürgi; Bützel; Lockpick; Faber; v. Fladingen; Furtenbach; Gebtz; Gögel; Goldsmith; Grav; Guderscher; Haintzel v. Degelstein; Halder v. Mollenberg; Han; Harzer; Humpiss ; Hünlin; Hurle cart; Kime; v. Churches; Kitzi; Kröl v. Luxburg; Ledergerw; Litscher; Maiger; Milwe; Nagel from the old Schönstein; Necker; Neukomm; Riveting stone; Pappus v. Tratzberg; Palatinate; Pfannder; Pfender; Rappenstein; Deer; Renner; Rienolt; Switch; Schneeberg; Clerk; Black; Siber v. Schonburg; Sinkmoser; Spiser; Steinmair; Stocklin; Talhofen; Gymnast; Varnbuhler; Who (ch) master; Usurer; Zendring

1540-1830

The coat of arms of the Kurtz von Senftenau

Andreae; Barbarossa; Bensperg; Betz; Bonoll; Burgauer; Butler v. Solhil; Cramer; Curtabatt ; Deller (plate); v. Eberz; Eckolt (Eggolt); Ehinger v. Baltzheim; Faber; Falck; Rock; Frantz; Frey; Funk v. Senftenau; Furtenbach; Low; Logging pourer; Gullmann; Habisreutinger; Halder v. Mollenberg; Heider v. Gitzenweiler; Haintzel v. Degelstein; Hensler; Hünlin; v. Churches; Cook; Kröl v. Luxburg; Kurtz v. Senftenau; Langensee; Mayrhoffer v. free Thurn; Mennlishoven; Merklin; Miller (Muller); v. Neideck; Neukomm; Pappus v. Tratzberg; from Pfister ; Polan (Bolan); Porcelius; Bikes; Rangus; Deer; Rhaw (rough); Ringelsdörffer; v. Rötenberg; Scheidlin; Schmid; Schmidt; Seutter v. Soldering; Thoman v. Hailstone; Varnbuhler; Guardian; Weller; Weltz

Well-known five-men

The end of the five-seasons

The last meeting of the five took place on December 30, 1830 in the house of the last president, Christoph von Pfister . Zacharias Falckh, Johann Michael von Seutter and Z. Porzelius-Fels were present. The last entry in the log reads: “This is the lot of all mortals. May the benevolent providence keep the living members of society long in the enjoyment of good health and all well-being! "

Although they are now widely scattered around the world, the members of the Historical Five-Ages Society still keep in touch and still feel closely connected to the hometown of Lindau.

Five-Centers Society in Lindau

Gasthaus "Zum Sünzen"

The historical meeting place of the society was the house Zum Sünzen , which still exists today, in the Maximilianstrasse, in which now an inn is operated, which tries to maintain tradition. The historical patrician society merged with the newly founded "Kaufleuteinnung" (merchants' association) from 1815, which after a few changes of name was finally transferred in 1939 to the Sünzen-Gesellschaft eV in Lindau . Research about the Society for the Sünzen is made more difficult today by the fact that the bulk of the older archive material was sold as waste in the years 1869 and 1880 and then pulped.

swell

literature

  • Dr. Diamonds: five. In: Writings of the Association for the History of Lake Constance and its Surroundings , 28th year 1899, pp. 115–116 ( digitized version ) - with the thesis of the origin of the word "Symposion"
  • Karl Wolfart: The Patriziergesellschaft zum Sünzen in Lindau , in: Writings of the Association for the History of Lake Constance and its Surroundings , 32nd year 1903, pp. 3–23 ( digitized version )
  • Franz Joetze (Ed.): The life of the Mayor of Lindau Rudolf Curtabatt , in: Writings of the Association for the History of Lake Constance and its Surroundings , 35th year 1906, pp. 35–64 ( digitized version )
  • Wilhelm Beck: Der Sünzen in Lindau , in: Writings of the Association for the History of Lake Constance and its Surroundings , 49th year 1921, pp. 25-26 ( digitized version )
  • Clara Speer-Stolze: Eternal source: Anna Stolze's book of life from Pfister. Salzer, Heilbronn 1937.
  • Alfred Otto Stolze: The five to Lindau. The patriciate of a Swabian imperial city . Bernhard Zeller, Lindau / Konstanz 1956.
  • Wolfgang Reinhard: Oligarchic entanglement and denomination in Upper German cities . In Antoni Mączak (Ed.): Client systems in Europe in the early modern period . Oldenbourg, Munich 1988
  • Christoph Heiermann: The top of the social structure: Organization of urban elites in the Lake Constance area . In: Matthias Meinhardt and Andreas Ranft (eds.): The social structure and social topography of pre-industrial cities . Akademie Verlag, Berlin 2005.
  • Beate Falk: The Lindau patrician society Zum Sünzen. A new interpretation of the name , in: Writings of the Association for the History of Lake Constance and its Surroundings , 128th year 2010, pp. 3–12 ( digitized version ) - interprets the origin of the word as vice "sigh" (anger, greed for revenge)