Ulrich II von Graben (before 1300 – ) was a Styrian

noble A noble is a member of the nobility. Noble may also refer to: Places Antarctica * Noble Glacier, King George Island * Noble Nunatak, Marie Byrd Land * Noble Peak, Wiencke Island * Noble Rocks, Graham Land Australia * Noble Island, Gr ...

, a member of the ''

edelfrei The term ''edelfrei'' or ''hochfrei'' ("free noble" or "free knight") was originally used to designate and distinguish those Germanic noblemen from the Second Estate (see Estates of the realm social hierarchy), who were legally entitled to atone ...

Von Graben Herren von Graben, also named ''von (dem) Graben'', ''vom Graben'', ''Grabner'', ''Grabner zu Rosenburg'', ''Graben zu Kornberg'', ''Graben zu Sommeregg'', ''Graben von (zum) Stein'', and ''ab dem Graben'' was the name of an old (Uradel) Austrian ...

family. He held the titles as Lord of Kornberg and Graben (near

Novo Mesto Novo Mesto (; ; also known by #Name, alternative names) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, seventh-largest city of Slovenia. It is the economic and cultural centre of the traditional region of Lower Carniola (southeastern Slovenia) and ...

Lower Carniola Lower Carniola ( ; ) is a traditional region in Slovenia Slovenia, officially the Republic of Slovenia, is a country in Central Europe. It borders Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the south an ...

), as well as

burgrave Burgrave, also rendered as burggrave (from , ), was since the medieval period in Europe (mainly Germany) the official title for the ruler of a castle, especially a royal or episcopal castle, and its territory called a ''Burgraviate'' or ''Burgr ...

of Gleichenberg, Rothenfels and Hohenwang.

Life

Origin and Family

He was the son of Ulrich I von Graben,

of Gleichenberg, and his wife Gertrud (both died before 1325). His father had entered the service of the

Lords of Walsee The Lords of Walsee were a German noble family between the 13th and 15th centuries. Taking their name from Bad Waldsee in Upper Swabia, they were originally ministerials (unfree knights) in the service of the abbey of Weissenburg and the Staufe ...

, a Swabian dynasty with extended properties in the Styrian lands, and from 1302 appeared as a vassal of the

Stubenberg family The House of Stubenberg is the name of an old Austrian nobility, Austrian noble family from Pitten documented since about 1160, with its ancestral seat at Stubenberg, Styria. Members of the family held important posts in the Habsburg monarchy and ...

. Ulrich II was married with Barbara, daughter of Johann von Auersperg and Cimburgis Schauerpeck, and later with a Lady called Gertraud (died before 1375). He seemed to have left no children, as his heritage passed to his surviving brother Frederick and his nephew Frederick the Younger.

Coat of arms

The joint purchase of Kornberg by the brothers Otto I, Ulrich II and Friedrich I in 1328 from ''Friedrich Kornberger, together with the coat of arms and accessories'' resulted in the adoption of a new coat of arms, the one with the shovel, the Spade. This could explain the deviating family coat of arms of the Kornberg line of the Lords of Graben and their descents in Lower Austria, Tyrol and the Netherlands (but not in Carinthia and East Tyrol) to the family coat of arms with the diagonal bar. * Annotation: From his mother Gertraud von Graben (Gertraud Grabner) her coat of arms seal with the diagonal bar from the year 1331 has been preserved.

Career

Ulrich II was first mentioned in a 1300 deed, making donations to the

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

abbey of

Rein Reins are used to direct a horse (or other animal) when riding or driving. They are attached to a bridle's bit or noseband and are made of leather, nylon, or other materials. Reins are used to give subtle commands or cues—also known as r ...

in Styria. In 1314 he acquired the village of Wetzelsdorf. After 1325 he succeeded his father as Burgrave of In 1328, together with his brothers Otto and Frederick, he bought the Lordship (''

Herrschaft The German term ''Herrschaft'' (plural: ''Herrschaften'') covers a broad semantic field and only the context will tell whether it means, "rule", "power", "dominion", "authority", "territory" or "lordship". In its most abstract sense, it refers ...

'') and Castle of Kornberg with a new family coat of arms. The Kornberg

fief A fief (; ) 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 feudal alle ...

remained the ancestral seat of the Styrian branch of the Graben family until the extinction of the line in 1556. Ulrich and his brothers also purchased the villages of Edelsbach and Krottendorf. From 1343, Ulrich served as

of Rothenfels, an estate then held by the Prince-Bishops of Freising. In 1354 he received the Styrian Burgraviate / Lordship and Castle of Hohenwang from the

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 ...

duke

Albert II of Austria Albert II (; 12 December 1298 – 16 August 1358), known as ''the Wise'' () or ''the Lame'' (), a member of the House of Habsburg, was duke of Austria and duke of Styria, Styria from 1330, as well as duke of Carinthia and margrave of Carniola fro ...

in pawn. Furthermore, Ulrich von Graben owned his family's ancient castle in Carniola, Graben Castle, near

Novo mesto Novo Mesto (; ; also known by #Name, alternative names) is the List of cities and towns in Slovenia, seventh-largest city of Slovenia. It is the economic and cultural centre of the traditional region of Lower Carniola (southeastern Slovenia) and ...

Johann Weichard Freiherr von Valvasor Johann, typically a male given name, is the German form of ''Iohannes'', which is the Latin form of the Greek name ''Iōánnēs'' (), itself derived from Hebrew name '' Yochanan'' () in turn from its extended form (), meaning "Yahweh is Gracious" ...

: Die Ehre dess Hertzogthums Crain: das ist, Wahre, gründliche, und recht eigendliche Belegen- und Beschaffenheit dieses Römisch-Keyserlichen herrlichen Erblandes. Laybach (Ljubljana) 1689

Notes

Literature

*Adalbert Sikora: Die Herren vom Graben in Zeitschrift des historischen Vereines für Steiermark. 51. Jahrgang, Graz 1960 {{DEFAULTSORT:Ulrich von Graben People from Styria Medieval Austrian nobility 14th-century Austrian people 14th-century nobility from the Holy Roman Empire Year of birth uncertain Year of death uncertain