Counts · Other imperial lands · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Burgrave Siegfried (Belzig)

The burgraves of Brandenburg are a royal office set beside the margrave after the conquest of 1157: Baderich of Jabilinze, count of Dornburg, was castellan of Brandenburg from 1160, and his son Siegfried held the office by 1186.

Siegfried gave Dornburg on the Elbe to his brother Baderich in 1194 and from then on is mostly called burgrave or count; in 1201 he is first called count of Belzig, the castle on the Fläming whose stone keep his line built. The county lay along the upper Plane round Belzig (villages named later: Dahnsdorf, Borne, Rottstock). The office competed with the margraves' rights at Brandenburg, and the family's relations with the Ascanian margraves were poor; the monks of Lehnin are remembered as guarding against the count of Belzig.

The burgraviate ended about 1237.

Who he is

Name
Siegfried (of Dornburg, later of Belzig)
Title
Burgrave (castellan) of Brandenburg; count; called count of Belzig ('Beltitz') from 1201
Since
burgrave by 1186 (called count of Dornburg and castellan of Brandenburg in 1186)
Born
not pinned (first named about 1170)
Family
Of the house later called the counts of Belzig (the Baderich line). Son of Baderich of Jabilinze (died after 1179), count of Dornburg and first burgrave of Brandenburg (castellanus de Brandenburch from 1160). Brother of Baderich II, count of Dornburg (from 1194) and Mühlingen (from 1195). Son: Baderich, count of Belzig from 1211 and burgrave, the last of the line (died after 1251). Wife not pinned.
Confidence
medium

de.wikipedia (Siegfried von Belzig; Baderich von Jabilinze; Baderich von Dornburg; Baderich von Belzig; Burg Eisenhardt).

Overlord

The king for the burgraviate (the office was meant to represent royal interests in the conquered castle beside the margrave); the overlord of the Belzig lands in 1200 is not pinned (Otto III had given the Burgward of Belzig to Magdeburg in 997; in 1227 Duke Albert I of Saxony appears as feudal lord of the county).

What it holds

  • The burgraviate of Brandenburg: the king's castellan's rights and court on the castle island (extent not described in the sources)
  • The castle and county of Belzig on the upper Plane (title from 1201): Belzig castle (later Eisenhardt), with villages such as Dahnsdorf, Borne and Rottstock
  • Kinship claims to Dornburg on the Elbe (held by his brother since 1194)

How it was acquired

The burgraviate by succession to his father (by 1186); Belzig by means not pinned (the Burgward came into Ascanian hands in the 12th century, then to this family).

Allies and rivals

Rival of the margraves over the rights at Brandenburg; brother Baderich II of Dornburg.

How things stand that morning

On 1 January 1200 Siegfried is the burgrave of Brandenburg (attested 1186 to 1204) and a count; the title 'count of Belzig' is first recorded in 1201, so his hold on Belzig that morning is likely but not documented. His side between the kings is not pinned.

Wealth

Court dues of the burgraviate; rents of the Belzig villages on the Fläming.

Military

Belzig castle (the stone castle is credited to Count Siegfried in the early 13th century); his share of the castle of Brandenburg. No figures.

Threats

  • The margraves' pressure on the burgraviate

What the year holds

What happened next, if nothing in play changes it. Each event carries what it depends on and what would stop it.

  1. 1201Siegfried is called count of Belzig in a charter (first record of the title).Depends on: Nothing in play changing his position. Stopped by: Loss of Belzig.
  2. after 1204 (not yet)Last mentioned in 1204; his son Baderich follows as count of Belzig (from 1211) and burgrave.Depends on: Natural course. Stopped by: Nothing likely.

Places of note

  • Belzig castle: The count's castle on the Fläming.
  • The burgrave's seat at Brandenburg: Royal castellan's office beside the margrave.

Where the sources disagree

  • The Burg Eisenhardt article gives the first count of Belzig as 'about 1201' without a name; the Siegfried von Belzig article names Siegfried in 1201. Followed.

Evidence: The line and the titles are dated from charters cited by de.wikipedia; the county's extent and its overlord in 1200 are not.

On the map: The county's 1200 extent is not described; drawn as a small block round Belzig. The burgraviate's rights at Brandenburg are not drawn.

Primary sources for Empire

Chronicles, registers, sagas and inscriptions written in or near 1200 that cover this entry. Each has its own page with editions, translations and where to read it.

8 more in the sources library for The Rhineland, the Low Countries and the Swiss Lands.

Sources and studies

  1. Siegfried von Belzig, de.wikipedia
  2. Baderich von Jabilinze, de.wikipedia
  3. Baderich von Belzig, de.wikipedia
  4. Burg Eisenhardt, de.wikipedia

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.