Lothar von Hochstaden (died 1194 in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

) was

Bishop of Liège A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of dioceses. The role ...

and

archchancellor An archchancellor (, ) or chief chancellor was a title given to the highest dignitary of the Holy Roman Empire, and also used occasionally during the Middle Ages to denote an official who supervised the work of chancellors or notaries. The Car ...

Background

He came from the family of the Counts of Hochstaden. Lothar von Hochstaden was the brother of the Dietrich von Are-Hochstaden 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 ...

. He was

provost Provost may refer to: Officials Ecclesiastic * Provost (religion), a high-ranking church official * Prince-provost, a high-ranking church official Government * Provost (civil), an officer of local government, including the equivalent ...

of St. Cassius in

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and St. Servatius in

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, and

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of St. Lambertus in

Liège Liège ( ; ; ; ; ) is a City status in Belgium, city and Municipalities in Belgium, municipality of Wallonia, and the capital of the Liège Province, province of Liège, Belgium. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east o ...

. After the death of Archbishop Philip I of Cologne, the cathedral chapter at the end of 1191 elected him as the new archbishop. However, the Count of Berg forced him to give up. Then Bruno von Berg was chosen as the new archbishop. In January 1192 the Emperor Henry VI made him archchancellor and bishop of Liège, where there had recently been a contentious election in which both parties were supported by various Flemish nobles. One possible aim of the Emperor was to establish a power base in the Lower Rhine region. Baldwin V of Hainault accepted the appointment but Henry I of Brabant refused. The originally chosen bishop, Albert of Leuven, a brother of Henry of Brabant, obtained from the

Pope Celestine III Pope Celestine III (; c. 1105 – 8 January 1198), was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 March or 10 April 1191 to his death in 1198. He had a tense relationship with several monarchs, including Emperor ...

confirming his episcopal dignity and was consecrated September 19, 1192 to

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. Then, leaning on Henry VI, Lothar and Baldwin took action against Albert, who was killed on 24 November in front of German knights of Reims. Lothar was blamed for Albert's death. Though he swore his innocence in an oath, the Pope took him with excommunication and released him from his episcopate. Lothar then traveled to Rome. He was released from the spell, but had to abandon the diocese of Liège. To regain his full acquittal, he went in 1194 again to Rome, where he died the same year.

References

Notes

*Peter Csendes: ''Heinrich VI.'', Primus Verlag Darmstadt 1993. {{DEFAULTSORT:Hochstaden, Lothar von 1195 deaths Prince-bishops of Liège 12th-century births 12th-century Prince-Bishops of Liège