The House of Cirksena was the ruling family of

East Frisia East Frisia () or East Friesland (; ; ; ) is a historic region in the northwest of Lower Saxony, Germany. It is primarily located on the western half of the East Frisia (peninsula), East Frisian peninsula, to the east of West Frisia and to the ...

(). They descended from a line of

East Frisian chieftains The East Frisian chieftains (, Low German: ''hovetlinge / hovedlinge'') assumed positions of power in East Frisia during the course of the 14th century, after the force of the old, egalitarian constitution from the time of Frisian Freedom had ma ...

from

Greetsiel Greetsiel is a small seaport, port on the bight of Leybucht in western East Frisia, Germany, that was first documented in letters from the year 1388. Since 1972, Greetsiel has been part of the municipality of Krummhörn, which has its administrati ...

East Frisia

In 1439, in the wake of clashes between different lines of chieftains, the town of

Emden Emden () is an Independent city (Germany), independent town and seaport in Lower Saxony in the north-west of Germany and lies on the River Ems (river), Ems, close to the Germany–Netherlands border, Netherlands border. It is the main town in t ...

was first placed by Hamburg under direct rule and then, in 1453, given to the Cirksena. The family administered and ruled the town until 1595. The Cirksena gained strength and succeeded the chieftain line of the

tom Brok The tom Brok family (, also: tom Broke, tom Brook, tom Broek, ten Brok, ten Broke; equivalent to Dutch , "at the marsh") were a powerful East Frisian chieftains, East Frisian line of chieftains, originally from the Norderland on the North Sea coas ...

s, after their opponent Focko Ukena was defeated and expelled by several allied chieftains, led by Edzard Cirksena. Ulrich Cirksena (d. 1466) was elevated to the rank of

imperial count Imperial Count (, ) was a title in the Holy Roman Empire. During the medieval era, it was used exclusively to designate the holder of an imperial county, that is, a fief held directly ( immediately) from the emperor, rather than from a prince wh ...

by Emperor Frederick III and enfeoffed with the Imperial County of East Frisia. The most important ruler from the House of Cirksena was Edzard I (1462–1528), under whose leadership the Imperial County of East Frisia reached its greatest extent. During his reign, the Reformation spread throughout

. In 1654, the Cirksena were elevated to princes by the emperor. Charles Edzard, the last ruler from the House of Cirksena, died without issue during the night of 25/26 May 1744 (reportedly from a glass of buttermilk, which he is said to have drunk after a hunt). Immediately thereafter, the state was taken over by

Frederick the Great Frederick II (; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was the monarch of Prussia from 1740 until his death in 1786. He was the last Hohenzollern monarch titled ''King in Prussia'', declaring himself ''King of Prussia'' after annexing Royal Prussia ...

Rietberg

The Cirksena provided the

County of Rietberg The County of Rietberg () was a state of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the present-day German state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It was situated on the upper Ems in Westphalia, between the Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn and the Prince-Bishopr ...

rulers from 1581 to 1699. This initially happened as a

personal union A personal union is a combination of two or more monarchical states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, involves the constituent states being to some extent in ...

with East Frisia after Count Enno III had married Rietberg's daughter-heir, Walburg von Rietberg. In the Treaty of Berum (1600), however, he ceded the County of Rietberg to his daughters. In 1601, Enno's brother, Count John III, married his niece, Sabina Catherine, Enno's daughter and heiress of Rietberg, with

papal dispensation In the jurisprudence of the canon law of the Catholic Church, a dispensation is the exemption from the immediate obligation of the law in certain cases.The Law of Christ Vol. I, pg. 284 Its object is to modify the hardship often caused by rigor ...

. Both were converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

, and the Catholic branch line of the House of Cirksena was founded. The last male descendant of the House of East Frisia in Rietberg, Count Ferdinand Maximilian, died in 1687. His heiress, Maria Ernestine Francisca, married Maximilian Ulrich von Kaunitz in 1699.

Coat of arms

The

coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the last two being outer garments), originating in Europe. The coat of arms on an escutcheon f ...

of the family of Cirksena displays a crowned, golden

harpy In Greek and Roman mythology, a harpy (plural harpies, , ; ) is a half-human and half-bird mythical creature, often believed to be a personification of storm winds. They feature in Homeric poems. Descriptions Harpies were generally depict ...

(or angel) on a black field. This motif appears in a variety of successor coats of arms; for example, in the final

comital Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

coat of arms of East Frisia, which Count Rudolf Christian adopted in 1625. Here, the harpy is in the upper left of the shield. This coat of arms is still used today as the emblem of East Frisia. The upper half of Emden's coat of arms also depicts the Cirksena harpy. Until the Emden Revolution in 1595, the Cirksena resided in the town of Emden. Even the Dutch town of

Delfzijl Delfzijl (; ) is a city and former municipality (which now belongs to the municipality of Eemsdelta) with a population of 25,651 in the province of Groningen in the northeast of the Netherlands. Delfzijl was a sluice between the Delf and the Em ...

opposite Emden incorporated the Cirksena coat of arms into its own. This goes back to the rule of Edzard the Great in Groningerland. Likewise, the harpy is part of the coat of arms of Aurich district, albeit in a different colour, which also goes back to the Cirksena. Even the present-day municipality of

Krummhörn Krummhörn is a municipality in the Aurich (district), district of Aurich, in Lower Saxony, Germany. It is situated near the Ems (river), Ems estuary, approximately 15 km southwest of Norden, Lower Saxony, Norden, and 10 km northwest of ...

, where the ancestral homeland of the Cirksena lay, has the family's coat of arms in its municipal shield. After the Cirksena had taken over the reins of power in the

, their emblem was also found in Rietberg's coat of arms, between the coat of arms of the old ruling family and that of the

Lordships of Esens, Stedesdorf and Wittmund The Lordships of Esens, Stedesdorf and Wittmund (German language, German: ''Herrlichkeiten Esens, Wittmund und Stedesdorf'') formed a contiguous area in the old district of Harlingerland in the north of the East Frisia (peninsula), East Frisian ...

. It was later supplemented by the Kaunitz family's coat of arms. Through the link between East Frisia and Rietberg, the Cirksena harpy is still part of the coat of arms of the Principality of

Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (, ; ; ), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein ( ), is a Landlocked country#Doubly landlocked, doubly landlocked Swiss Standard German, German-speaking microstate in the Central European Alps, between Austria in the east ...

, albeit in the reverse colours (black and gold), at the bottom right (heraldic: bottom left). Gundakar of Liechtenstein had married Agnes Cirksena, the second daughter of Count Enno III and Walburgis of Rietberg, and had a claim to Rietberg as a result. File:Coacirksena.jpg, Cirksena coat of arms File:Arms of the house of Cirksena (2).svg, Coat of arms of

File:DEU Emden COA.svg,

coat of arms File:Delfzijl wapen.svg, Coat of arms of

File:DEU Landkreis Aurich COA.svg, Coat of arms of Aurich district File:Staatswappen-Liechtensteins.svg, Coat of arms of Liechtenstein File:Arms of the house of Kaunitz-Rietberg.svg, Coat of arms of the Kaunitz-Rietberg family File:DEU Krummhörn COA.svg, Coat of arms of

Origin of the name

The name ''Cirksena'' is of Frisian origin and is still a widespread family name in East Frisia today. It probably goes back to the old forename ''Tzirk'' (''Cirk''). Enno Attena took over the respectable name on his marriage to the daughter-heir, Gela Syardsna of Manslagt.

Genealogy

Syert/Syrt/Syrtatus, Captain of Norden, +after 1255; m. NN Aldersna; They had issue: A1. Enno, +after 1280; m. N van Norden B1. Sitat, Captain of Norden, +after 1310 C1. Enno, Captain of Norden, +after 1340 D1. Sitat (?), +after 1400; m. Frouwa N (+after 1437) D2. a daughter; m. Hylo Atena, Captain of Norden (+after 1367) D3. a daughter; m. Affo Beninga van Pirsum, heer van Bersum (+1402) D4. a daughter D5. Frouwa, +after 1437 B2. Idzerd, Captain of Appingen, +after 1312; m. Etta van Visquard (+after 1312) C1. Enno, Captain of Appingen, +after 1350; m. Adda van Groothusen D1. Etta; m. Hera Attena, heer van Dornum (+after 1410) D2. Idzerd, Captain of Appingen, +1406; 1m: Doda ten Book, dau.of Keno Hilmersna; 2m: N.von Engena (?) E1. Enno E2. Imel, Captain of Eilsum, +after 1404 F1. Sibrand, Captain of Eilsum, +4.4.1465 E3. Haro, +after 1408 E4. Enno, Captain of Norden, Greetsiel, Berva and Pilsum, +ca 1450; 1m: Gela Beningna von Manslagt (+after 1429); 2m: Ellen Sytzena, dau.of Affo Beninga van Pilsum, heer van Bersum en Tiadeke (+1450), widow of Ewo van Westerhusen F1. m.Frouwa; 1m: Sibet Attena (+1433); 2m: Eppo Gokkinga (+after 1437) F2. Edzard, Judge of Frisia, +after 1441; 1m: Moeder Ennosna (+1438); 2m: Frouwe, dau.of Ewo von Westerhusen and Ellen Sytzena F3. Ulrich I, Statolder of Ostfriesland (1454–64), 1st Graf von Ostfriesland (1464–66), +27.9.1466; 1m: Foelke van Esens (+1452); 2m: 1453 Theda Ukena, dau.of Uko van Oldersum (*ca 1434,+17.9.1494) G1. m.Hebe, *18.11.1457, +1476/78; m. Gf Erich I von Schaumburg- Pinneberg (*1420, +24/25.3.1492) G2. Gela, *1458, +1497 G3. Enno I, Graf von Ostfriesland (1466–91), *1.6.1460,+drowned 22.2.1491 G4. Edzard I, Graf von Ostfriesland (1491–1528), *15.2.1462,+15.2.1528; m. 8.7.1498 Elisabeth Gfn von Rietberg, dau.of GfJohann I von Rietberg by Margarethe zur

Lippe Lippe () is a ''Kreis'' (district) in the east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Neighboring districts are Herford, Minden-Lübbecke, Höxter, Paderborn, Gütersloh, and district-free Bielefeld, which forms the region Ostwestfalen-Lippe. ...

(*ca 1475,+13.7.1512) H1. Ulrich, Graf von Ostfriesland(1528–32),Valet of Emperor Maximilian I, *1499, +in madness 1532 H2. Margarete, *1500, +Altenwildungen 15.7.1537; m. Emden 17.2.1523 Gf Philipp IV von Waldeck-Wildungen (*1493 +1574) H3. Theda, *1502, +1563 H4. Enno II, Graf von Ostfriesland (1532–40), *VIII.1505,+24.9.1560; m. 6.3.1530 Anna von Oldenburg (*14.11.1501,+10.11.1575) H5. Johann, heer van Falkenburg, Durbuy en Halem, *1506 +Schloss Falkenburg 6.6.1572; m. 11.11.1539 Dorothea von

Habsburg The House of Habsburg (; ), also known as the House of Austria, was one of the most powerful dynasties in the history of Europe and Western civilization. They were best known for their inbreeding and for ruling vast realms throughout Europe d ...

, heiress of Falkenburg, Durbuy and Halem, illegitimate dau. of

Emperor Maximilian I Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death in 1519. He was never crowned by the Pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed hi ...

(*1516 +1572) I1. Maximilian, heer van Falkenburg, Durbuy en Halem,*1542, +ca 1603; m. 14.9.1564 Barbara de Lalaing J1. Christoph, heer van Falkenburg, Durbuy en Halem, +1636 J2. Dorothea, +1604; m. before 1.4.1592 Jacob t'Serclaes, Gf von Tilly et baron de Marbais (*1564, +11.10.1624) J3. Katharina Maria; m. François de Rye, marquis de Varambon J4. Louise, *ca 1565, +16.10.1607; m. 5.5.1601 Evrad de Limburg, baron de Barbançon (+31.12.1608) I2. Anna; m. Jodocus van Bronckhorst, Gf von Gronsfeld and Limburg (+1588/89) I3 Gisela; m. Heinrich van Hahnsberg, Heer van Bruck (+1590) H6. Anna, +1530 H7. Armgard, +1559 G5. Uko, *1463, +1507 G6. Almuth, *1465, +1522/23; m. Engelmann von Horstell F4. Adda, +ca 1470; m. Weren't Maninga von Bersum (+1450) F5. m.Tiadeke, *1438 ?, +after 1470 E5. m.Doda; m.Reduard Hyetsna, heer van Groothusen C2. Sibrand, Captain of Eilsum, +after 1379; m.N von Ilsum (?) D1. a son van Eilsum A2. Merten, +after 1288; m. N von Berum B1. Omptat, +after 1310 C1. Merten, +after 1367/78 D1. Omptat van Bersum, +after 1378 D2. Olrik van Bersum, +after 1373 D3. Bojo D4. arentage uncertainTiadeke, +after 1409;1402 m. Affo Beninga von Pilsum Lord of Bersum (+1402)

Sources

*Hobbing, Hans Heinrich (1915). ''Die Begründung der Erstgeburtsnachfolge im ostfriesischen Grafenhaus der Cirksena.'' Aurich(Abhandlungen und Vorträge zur Geschichte Ostfrieslands, 19) *Reimers, Heinrich (1925) ''Ostfriesland bis zum Aussterben seines Fürstenhauses.'' Bremen *Esselborn, Ernst (1945). ''Das Geschlecht Cirksena.'' Berlin

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cirksena German noble families History of East Frisia