Regenstein, also ''Reinstein'', was a Lower Saxon noble family, which was named after the eponymous

Regenstein Castle Regenstein Castle (german: Burg Regenstein) is a ruined castle that lies three kilometres north of Blankenburg in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It is a popular tourist destination where, each year, a knight's tournament and a garrison festi ...

near

Blankenburg Blankenburg may refer to: Places * Blankenburg am Harz, a German town in the district of Harz, Saxony-Anhalt * Blankenburg Castle (Harz), the castle in Blankenburg am Harz (see above) * Bad Blankenburg, a German town in the Saalfeld-Rudolstadt d ...

on the edge of the

Harz Mountains The Harz () is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' derives from the Middle High German w ...

of central

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...

History

In 1162 ''Cunradus Comes de Regenstein'' (Conrad, Count of Regenstein), the son of Count

Poppo I of Blankenburg Poppo I of Blankenburg (c. 1095–1161 or 1164) probably came from the House of Reginbodonen and was Count of Regenstein-Blankenburg in the Harz in central Germany. His father was Conrad, Count of Blankenburg. His uncle, Reinhard of Blankenburg ...

from the House of Reginbodonen, was documented for the first time by name, thus establishing the line of Reinstein-

. Heimburg came into their possession in the 14th century as a

fief A fief (; la, feudum) was a central element in medieval contracts based on feudal law. It consisted of a form of property holding or other rights granted by an overlord to a vassal, who held it in fealty or "in fee" in return for a form of f ...

and founded the Younger Line of Reinstein(- Heimburg). Regenstein Castle (the line of Reinstein-Reinstein) was abandoned in the mid-15th century in favour of Blankenburg and

Derenburg Derenburg is a town in the district of Harz, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Since 1 January 2010, it has been part of the Blankenburg am Harz municipality. Geography The settlement is situated in the northern foothills of the Harz mountain range ...

. The last male descendant of the noble family, John Ernest, Count of Regenstein, died in 1599. Parts of the county evolved into the

Principality of Blankenburg The County of Blankenburg (german: Grafschaft Blankenburg) was a state of the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Blankenburg am Harz, Blankenburg, it was located in and near the Harz mountains. History County of Blankenburg About 1123 Lothair I ...

Seats

Westerburg Castle Westerburg () is a small town of roughly 6,000 inhabitants in the Westerwaldkreis in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The town is named after the castle built on a hill above the mediaeval town centre (''Burg'' is German for “castle”) Geogra ...

Heimburg Castle Heimburg Castle (german: Burg Heimburg), also called the ''Altenburg'' or ''Alteburg'', is a ruined castle on an oval hilltop about 330 metres above sea level (NN) which is located just north of the Harz Mountains in central Germany. The ruins of ...

Roseburg Castle Roseburg may refer: In the United States: * Roseburg, Grant County, Indiana *Roseburg, Union County, Indiana * Roseburg, Kentucky * Roseburg, Michigan *Roseburg, Oregon * Roseburg, Pennsylvania In Germany: *Roseburg, Schleswig-Holstein Roseb ...

Calvörde Castle Calvörde Castle (german: Burg Calvörde) is located in Calvörde in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Its existence was first recorded in the late 13th century. In the Late Middle Ages and Early Modern Period it was frequently fought over due t ...

Oschersleben Castle Oschersleben () is a town in the Börde district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The population in 1905 was 13,271, in 2020 about 19,000. History On November 23, 994 Oschersleben was first mentioned in a document by the Emperor Otto III. In 1 ...

Blankenburg Castle (Harz) Great Blankenburg Castle (german: Schloss Blankenburg) was built on the limestone hill of ''Blankenstein'' () in the town of Blankenburg in the district of Harz in the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. Nearby is the Little Castle with its Baroque ga ...

Coat of arms

The coat of arms of the comital line displays in silver a (black) red, six-tined

antler Antlers are extensions of an animal's skull found in members of the Cervidae (deer) family. Antlers are a single structure composed of bone, cartilage, fibrous tissue, skin, nerves, and blood vessels. They are generally found only on ...

. The later quartered shield shows also in silver (1:4) a black and in (2:3) a red six-tined antler. Helmet: crowned, right a black six-tined antler, left a red one of the same. The mantle is black and silver on the right and red and silver on the left. Taler Regenstein.JPG, Reverse of a Regenstein taler

Personalities

* Poppo I of Regenstein-Blankenburg, father of the line * Richenza of Regenstein-Blankenburg (born around 1100; died before 1145), wife of Poppo I *

Reinhard of Blankenburg Reinhard of Blankenburg (11th century – 1123) was Bishop of Halberstadt from 1107 to 1123. He was related to the later comital family. Reinhard may have not have been native in Saxony, but had Saxon relations. As a young man, he went to Paris t ...

(† 1123), Bishop of Halberstadt from 1107 to 1123 * Burchard II of Blankenburg († 1305), Archbishop of Magdeburg * Albert II of Regenstein († 1349), Count of Regenstein * Ulrich X of Regenstein-Blankenburg (1499–1551), count * Elisabeth of Regenstein-Blankenburg (1542–1584),

Abbess of Quedlinburg Quedlinburg Abbey (german: Stift Quedlinburg or ) was a house of secular canonesses ''(Frauenstift)'' in Quedlinburg in what is now Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was founded in 936 on the initiative of Saint Mathilda, the widow of the East Frankish ...

Sources

*Rudolf Steinhoff: ''Geschichte der Grafschaft bzw. des Fürstentums Blankenburg, Die Grafschaft Regenstein und des Klosters Michaelstein''. Vieweg, 1891. *Rudolf Steinhoff: ''Stammtafel Die Grafen von Regenstein und Blankenburg von ungefähr 1400 bis 1599''. In: ''Zeitschrift des Harz-Vereins für Geschichte und Alterthumskunde'', Bd. 25, Quedlinburg 1892, p. 146-167. *Detlev Schwennicke: ''

Europäische Stammtafeln ''Europäische Stammtafeln'' - German for ''European Family Trees'' - is a series of twenty-nine books which contain sets of genealogical tables of the most influential families of Medieval European history. It is a standard reference work for tho ...

: Hessen und das Stammesherzogtum Sachsen, Vol. 17 Stammtafeln zur Geschichte The europäischen Staaten''. Verlag Vittorio Klostermann, 1998. *Heinz A. Behrens; Hartmut Wegner: ''Das Ende einer Dynastie. Sonderausstellung aus Anlaß des 400. Todestages des Grafen Johann Ernst von Regenstein''. Bussert, Jena, Quedlinburg 1999. *Christof Römer: ''Die Grafen von Regenstein-Blankenburg als Stand des Reiches und des Niedersächsischen Reichskreises''. In: Heinz A. Behrens (Hrsg.): ''Zwischen Herrschaftsanspruch und Schuldendienst. Beiträge zur Geschichte der Grafschaft Regenstein''. Jena 2004, S. 73–90.

External links

* {{Authority control Regenstein