Andechs Meranien Diessen Siebmacher008 - 1703 - Grafen

The House of Andechs was a feudal line of Bavarian princes in the 12th and 13th centuries. The counts of Dießen-Andechs (1100 to 1180) obtained territories in northern

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

on the

Adria Adria is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Rovigo in the Veneto region of northern Italy, situated between the mouths of the rivers Adige and Po River, Po. The remains of the Etruria, Etruscan city of Atria or Hatria are to be found below ...

tic seacoast, where they became Margraves of Istria and ultimately dukes of a short-lived

imperial state An Imperial Estate (; , plural: ') was an entity or an individual of the Holy Roman Empire with representation and the right to vote in the Imperial Diet (Holy Roman Empire), Imperial Diet ('). Rulers of these Estates were able to exercise signi ...

named Merania from 1180 to 1248. They were also self-styled lords of Carniola.

History

The noble family originally resided in southwestern

Bavaria Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a States of Germany, state in the southeast of Germany. With an area of , it is the list of German states by area, largest German state by land area, comprising approximately 1/5 of the total l ...

at the castle of Ambras near

Innsbruck Innsbruck (; ) is the capital of Tyrol (federal state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the Wipptal, Wipp Valley, which provides access to the ...

, controlling the road to the March of Verona across the Brenner Pass, at Dießen am Ammersee and Wolfratshausen. One Count Rasso (''Rath'') is documented in Dießen, who allegedly fought against the invading

Magyars Hungarians, also known as Magyars, are an ethnic group native to Hungary (), who share a common culture, language and history. They also have a notable presence in former parts of the Kingdom of Hungary. The Hungarian language belongs to the ...

in the early 10th century and established the monastery of Grafrath. By their ancestor Count Palatine Berthold of Reisensburg, a grandson of the Bavarian duke Arnulf the Bad, the Andechser may be affiliated with the Luitpolding dynasty. Berthold appears a fierce enemy of King Otto I of Germany and was blamed as a traitor at the 955 Battle of Lechfeld against the Hungarians. He probably married a daughter of Duke Frederick I of Upper Lorraine; his descendant Count Berthold II (d. 1151), from about 1100 residing at Andechs, is credited as the progenitor of the comital dynasty. Berthold II had inherited the family's Bavarian territories but also acquired possessions in the adjacent Franconian region, where about 1135 he had the Plassenburg built near

Bayreuth Bayreuth ( or ; High Franconian German, Upper Franconian: Bareid, ) is a Town#Germany, town in northern Bavaria, Germany, on the Red Main river in a valley between the Franconian Jura and the Fichtel Mountains. The town's roots date back to 11 ...

and established the town of Kulmbach. He served as '' vogt'' of Benediktbeuern Abbey and by marriage with Sophie, daughter of Margrave Poppo II, came into property of lands in the

March of Istria March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 21 ...

and Carniola. In the year 1180, the County of Andechs acquired the town of Innsbruck.Chizzali. Tyrol: Impressions of Tyrol. (Innsbruck: Alpina Printers and Publishers) p. 5 Otto II of Andechs was bishop of Bamberg from 1177 to 1196. In 1208, when Philip of Swabia, King of the Germans, was assassinated at Bamberg by Otto VIII of Wittelsbach, members of the House of Andechs were implicated. Saint Hedwig of Andechs (c. 1174 – October 1243) was one of eight children born to Berthold IV, Duke of Merania, Count of Dießen-Andechs and Margrave of Istria. Of her four brothers, two became bishops: Ekbert of

Bamberg Bamberg (, , ; East Franconian German, East Franconian: ''Bambärch'') is a town in Upper Franconia district in Bavaria, Germany, on the river Regnitz close to its confluence with the river Main (river), Main. Bamberg had 79,000 inhabitants in ...

(1203–1231), and Berthold, Patriarch of Aquileia. Otto succeeded his father as Duke of Dalmatia, and Henry became Margrave of Istria. Of her three sisters, Gertrude of Andechs-Merania (1185 – 28 September 1213) was the first wife of Andrew II of Hungary and the mother of St Elizabeth of Hungary; Mechtilde became Abbess of Kitzingen; while Agnes, a famous beauty, was made the illegitimate third wife of Philip II of France in 1196, on the repudiation of his lawful wife, Ingeborg, but was dismissed in 1200, after

Pope Innocent III Pope Innocent III (; born Lotario dei Conti di Segni; 22 February 1161 – 16 July 1216) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1198 until his death on 16 July 1216. Pope Innocent was one of the most power ...

laid France under an interdict.

Genealogy

#Arnold IV, Count of Dießen (d. 1098), married to Gisela of Schweinfurt, daughter of Duke Otto III of Swabia ## Berthold II (d.1151), Count of Dießen and Andechs in

, Count of Plassenburg and Kulmbach in Franconia, '' Vogt'' of Benediktbeuern Abbey, married Sophia, daughter of Margrave Poppo II of Istria, secondly married to Kunigunde of Vornbach ###Poppo (d. Constantinople 11 December 1148), married to Kuniza of Giech, divorced 1142 ####Henry, Abbot of Millstatt ###Margrave Berthold I of Istria (c. 1110/15 – 14 December 1188), married to Hedwig, daughter of Count Otto V of Wittelsbach, secondly to Luitgard, daughter of King

Sweyn III of Denmark Sweyn III GratheFor the significance of the epithet, see (; – 23 October 1157) was the king of Denmark between 1146 and 1157, in shifting alliances with Canute V and his own cousin Valdemar I of Denmark, Valdemar I. In 1157, the three agreed ...

#### Berthold IV, Duke of Merania (d. 12 August 1204), married to Agnes of Wettin, daughter of Margrave Dedi III of Lusatia ##### Otto I, Duke of Merania (d. 7 May 1234), Count Palatine of Burgundy, Margrave of

Istria Istria ( ; Croatian language, Croatian and Slovene language, Slovene: ; Italian language, Italian and Venetian language, Venetian: ; ; Istro-Romanian language, Istro-Romanian: ; ; ) is the largest peninsula within the Adriatic Sea. Located at th ...

, married to Beatrice of

Hohenstaufen The Hohenstaufen dynasty (, , ), also known as the Staufer, was a noble family of unclear origin that rose to rule the Duchy of Swabia from 1079, and to royal rule in the Holy Roman Empire during the Middle Ages from 1138 until 1254. The dynast ...

, daughter of Count Otto I of Burgundy, secondly to Sophia of Ascania, daughter of Count Henry I of Anhalt ###### Otto III, Count of Burgundy (c. 1226 – 19 June 1248), Duke of Merania, married to Elizabeth, daughter of Count Adalbert IV of Tyrol ###### Agnes (d. 1263), married to the last Babenberg duke Frederick II of Austria (divorced); secondly, to the last Sponheim duke, Ulric III of Carinthia ###### Beatrix (d. after 1265), married to the Ascanian count Herman II of Weimar-Orlamünde ######Margaret (d. 18 October 1271), married to Přemysl of

Moravia Moravia ( ; ) is a historical region in the eastern Czech Republic, roughly encompassing its territory within the Danube River's drainage basin. It is one of three historical Czech lands, with Bohemia and Czech Silesia. The medieval and early ...

, son of King Ottokar I of Bohemia; secondly, to Count Frederick of Truhendingen ######

Adelaide Adelaide ( , ; ) is the list of Australian capital cities, capital and most populous city of South Australia, as well as the list of cities in Australia by population, fifth-most populous city in Australia. The name "Adelaide" may refer to ei ...

(d. 8 March 1279), married to Count Hugh III of Burgundy, secondly to Count Philip I of Savoy ######Elizabeth (d. 18 December 1272), married to the Hohenzollern burgrave Frederick III of Nuremberg ##### Henry (d. 18 July 1228), Margrave of Istria, married to Sophia of Weichselburg ##### Ekbert (d. 6 June 1237) Bishop of Bamberg ##### Berthold (d. 23 May 1251), Archbishop of Kalocsa, Patriarch of Aquileia ##### Agnes (c. 1180 – 29 July 1201), married to King Philip II of France ##### Gertrude ( assassinated 28 September 1213), married to King Andrew II of Hungary #####Saint Hedwig (c. 1176/80 – 14 May 1243, Abbess of

Trzebnica Trzebnica (Polish pronunciation: ; , ) is a town in Lower Silesian Voivodeship in west-central Poland. It is the seat of Trzebnica County, and of the smaller administrative district (gmina) called Gmina Trzebnica. It lies within the eastern Trzebni ...

, married to Henry I the Bearded, Duke of Silesia #####Mathilde (d. 1 December 1254), Abbess of Kitzingen #####unnamed daughter, married into the royal Nemanjic family of

Serbia , image_flag = Flag of Serbia.svg , national_motto = , image_coat = Coat of arms of Serbia.svg , national_anthem = () , image_map = , map_caption = Location of Serbia (gree ...

####Sophia (d.1218), married to Count Poppo VI of Henneberg ####Kunigunde (d.1207), married to Count Eberhard III of Eberstein #### Mechtild (d.1245), married to Count Frederick I of Hohenburg, secondly to Count Engelbert III of Görz ####Poppo (1175 – Dezember 1245), Bishop of Bamberg ####Bertha, Abbess of Gerbstedt ###Otto (c. 1132 – 1196), Bishop of

Brixen Brixen (; , ; or , ) is a town and communes of Italy, commune in South Tyrol, northern Italy, located about north of Bolzano. Geography Brixen is the third-largest city and oldest town in the province, with a population of nearly twenty-three t ...

and

### Mechtildis of Edelstetten (d.1160) ###Euphemia (d.1180), Abbess of Altomünster ### ### ### ### ### ### ###Kunigunde (d.1139), nun in Admont Abbey ### ### ### ### ### ### ### ### A history of the House of Andechs was written by the statesman and historian Joseph Hormayr, Baron zu Hortenburg, and published in 1796.

Notes

{{reflist Counts in Germany