The House of Eltz is a noted German noble family, belonging to the ''

Uradel (, German: "ancient nobility"; adjective or ) is a genealogical term introduced in late 18th-century Germany to distinguish those families whose noble rank can be traced to the 14th century or earlier. The word stands opposed to '' Briefadel'' ...

''. The

Rhenish The Rhineland ( ; ; ; ) is a loosely defined area of Western Germany along the Rhine, chiefly its middle section. It is the main industrial heartland of Germany because of its many factories, and it has historic ties to the Holy Roman Empir ...

dynasty has had close ties to the

Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia The Kingdom of Croatia-Slavonia (; or ; ) was a nominally autonomous kingdom and constitutionally defined separate political nation within the Austro-Hungarian Empire. It was created in 1868 by merging the kingdoms of Kingdom of Croatia (Habs ...

since 1736.

History

Though older sources mentioned one Eberhard zu Eltz, a

Frankish Frankish may refer to: * Franks, a Germanic tribe and their culture ** Frankish language or its modern descendants, Franconian languages, a group of Low Germanic languages also commonly referred to as "Frankish" varieties * Francia, a post-Roman ...

citizen of

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

in the late 7th century, the otherwise first recorded instance of the name occurred in 1157, when Rudolph zu Eltz was mentioned as witness to the donation of a property deed by Emperor Fredrick Barbarossa. At that time, Eltz lived in a small manor on the banks of the River Elz, a tributary of the

Moselle The Moselle ( , ; ; ) is a river that rises in the Vosges mountains and flows through north-eastern France and Luxembourg to western Germany. It is a bank (geography), left bank tributary of the Rhine, which it joins at Koblenz. A sm ...

, in what is now the German state of

Rhineland-Palatinate Rhineland-Palatinate ( , ; ; ; ) is a western state of Germany. It covers and has about 4.05 million residents. It is the ninth largest and sixth most populous of the sixteen states. Mainz is the capital and largest city. Other cities are ...

. The family members had been

ministeriales The ''ministeriales'' (singular: ''ministerialis'') were a legally unfree but socially elite class of knights, administrators, and officials in the High Middle Ages in the Holy Roman Empire, drawn from a mix of servile origins, free commoners, and ...

and loyal supporters of the Imperial

Hohenstaufen dynasty 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 dynasty ...

. In the early 14th century they inherited the ''

Vogt An , sometimes simply advocate, (German, ), or (French, ), was a type of medieval office holder, particularly important in the Holy Roman Empire, who was delegated some of the powers and functions of a major feudal lord, or for an institutio ...

ei'' over Rübenach near

Koblenz Koblenz ( , , ; Moselle Franconian language, Moselle Franconian: ''Kowelenz'') is a German city on the banks of the Rhine (Middle Rhine) and the Moselle, a multinational tributary. Koblenz was established as a Roman Empire, Roman military p ...

, a possession of Imperial Abbey of St Maximin at Trier.

Eltz Castle Eltz Castle () is a medieval castle nestled in the hills above the Moselle between Koblenz and Trier, Germany. It is still owned by a branch of House of Eltz who have lived there since the 12th century. Eltz Castle along with Bürresheim Castl ...

was built in the early 12th century on a site that held a 9th-century manor house with a simple earthwork

palisade A palisade, sometimes called a stakewall or a paling, is typically a row of closely placed, high vertical standing tree trunks or wooden or iron stakes used as a fence for enclosure or as a defensive wall. Palisades can form a stockade. Etymo ...

. Before 1268 three brothers shared the ownership of the castle and it was kept jointly by their descendants, the Kempenich, Rodendorf and Rübenach branches until 1815 when it was taken over by the Kempenich branch, which still owns it today. Burg Eltz HDR

From 1331 until 1336 the Eltz were stuck in a fierce feud with mighty

Baldwin of Luxembourg Baldwin of Luxembourg (c. 1285 – 21 January 1354) was the archbishop and elector of Trier and archchancellor of Burgundy from 1307 to his death. From 1328 to 1336, he was the administrator of the archdiocese of Mainz and from 1331 to 1337 (w ...

, then Elector and Prince-Archbishop of Trier enforcing his acknowledgement as their suzerain, whereafter the Eltz family remained vassals of the Trier archbishops. In 1324

Pope John XXII Pope John XXII (, , ; 1244 – 4 December 1334), born Jacques Duèze (or d'Euse), was head of the Catholic Church from 7 August 1316 to his death, in December 1334. He was the second and longest-reigning Avignon Papacy, Avignon Pope, elected by ...

had appointed Canon Arnold von Eltz Prince-Bishop of Cammin in Pomerania against the resistance of King Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor, Louis IV. Robin von Eltz served as Master of the Livonian Order from 1385 until 1389. Canon Jakob zu Eltz was elected Prince-Archbishop of Trier in 1567; he was one of the strongest champions of the Counter-Reformation and allied himself with the Jesuits in opposing Lutheran and Calvinist influence in the region. In 1624, Hans Jakob zu Eltz was given the hereditary office of Field Marshal for the Electorate of Trier. This made him the supreme military commander of the region in time of war, including leader of the vassals on this important region of the Holy Roman Empire. The Eltz family, Imperial Knights since 1729, reached their greatest influence with Philipp Karl von Eltz-Kempenich, from 1732 Archbishopric of Mainz, Prince Elector and Archbishop of Mainz and German Archchancellor, making him the most noble and one of the most powerful Catholic princes north of the Alps. As a result of their service throughout the troubles of the Protestant Reformation, Reformation and during the wars against the Ottoman Empire, the elder line of Eltz were awarded the title of ''Graf, Reichsgrafen'' (Counts of the Empire) by the House of Habsburg, Habsburg Emperor Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor, Charles VI in 1733 in Vienna. The additional "Great Palatinate" privilege entitled the Eltz lords to knight others in the name of the Emperor, select notaries public, Wiktionary: legitimate, legitimate illegitimate children, confer coats of arms and crests, appoint judges and clerks, and release serfs from service. In 1736 Archbishop Philipp Karl von Eltz had acquired the Lordship of Vukovar in eastern Kingdom of Slavonia, Slavonia (present-day Croatia) affiliated with the Kingdom of Hungary, Hungarian nobility. From 1749 onwards his heirs had Eltz Manor erected, the main residence of the Grafen von und zu Eltz until the family was expelled by the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, Yugoslav communist regime in 1945. After Croatia Croatian War of Independence, declared independence from Yugoslavia, Jakob Eltz returned to Croatia and as a naturalized citizen became a member of the new ''Sabor'' parliament, where he represented Vukovar.https://www.davu.hr/images/IZDANJA-DAVU/DIGITALIZIRANO-PDF/davu_kulturni-identitet.pdf

Properties

File:Burghaus der Freiherrn von Eltz-Rübenach Koblenz 2012.jpg, Eltz House in Rübenach near

, since 1316 owned by the Rübenach branch File:Burg Kuehlseggen1.jpg, Kühlseggen Castle, since 1836 owned by the Rübenach branch File:Schloss Wahn Innenhof 2.jpg, Wahn Castle, since 1820 owned by the Rübenach branch File:EltvillePlatzVonMontrichardRheinuferpromenade.JPG, Eltzer Hof (center) at Eltville on the banks of the Rhine, since 1629 owned by the Kempenich branch File:Eltzer Hof.jpg, The former Eltz House at Mainz, formerly Eltz-Kempenich File:Vukovar_Dvorac_Eltz_SK.jpg, Eltz Manor at Vukovar/Croatia, formerly Eltz-Kempenich

Notable members

File:Jakob von Eltz.jpg, Jakob von Eltz-Rübenach (1510-1581), Prince Elector and Archbishop of Trier from 1567 File:Philipp Karl von Eltz.jpg, Philipp Karl von Eltz-Kempenich (1665-1743), Prince Elector and Archbishop of Mainz from 1732 *Paul Freiherr von Eltz-Rübenach (1875-1943), Reich Minister of Mail and Transport from 1932 until 1937

Notes

References

Eltz Castle
* de Fabianis, Valeria, ed. (2013). Castles of the World. New York: Metro Books. {{Authority control Counter-Reformation German noble families Croatian noble families History of Vukovar House of Eltz,

History

Properties

Notable members

See also

Notes

References