Once among the greatest Swabian houses (advocates of Hirsau, Sindelfingen and Lorsch in the Salian age, and Welf VI's in-laws through Uta of Calw), the counts of Calw have declined since the quarrel over the Calw inheritance with Welf VI and Conrad of Zähringen.
In 1200 the main line holds Calw castle on the Nagold with the advocacy of Hirsau, while branches hold Vaihingen and Löwenstein.
Who he is
- Name
- Konrad (II) and Adalbert (VI), sons of Count Adalbert V (the head of house on 1 January 1200 is not pinned)
- Title
- Counts of Calw
- Since
- Not pinned
- Family
- Sons of Adalbert V (attested 1145-1188); their brother Gottfried (II) is count of Vaihingen (1189) and will be count of Calw by 1209. The Calw-Löwenstein line is a separate branch.
- Confidence
- low
de.wikipedia (Grafen von Calw).
Overlord
The duke of Swabia and the king.
What it holds
- Calw castle
- The advocacy of Hirsau abbey (not pinned for 1200)
- Lands in the Böblingen, Calw, Pforzheim and Ludwigsburg districts and at Mingolsheim near Bruchsal (12th century)
How it was acquired
Inheritance.
Allies and rivals
The Tübingen counts (who will be the main heirs of the line); the Zähringen and Baden as neighbours in the Black Forest.
How things stand that morning
Hold Calw on 1 January 1200; which brother leads is not pinned. Throne war: not pinned.
Wealth
The Nagold valley and Black Forest timber (not pinned).
Military
Calw castle.
Threats
- Decline and division
Places of note
- Hirsau abbey: Reformed abbey under the counts' advocacy.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The genealogy is from a list without dates for 1199-1200.
On the map: Core only.
Primary sources for Staufen
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.
- Annals of Marbach (compiled to 1238, the section on 1198 to 1210 written in the early 13th century). Alsatian annals on the Staufen side of the Upper Rhine. Read online
- Annals of Reiner of Saint James, Liège, Reiner of Liège (1197 to 1230, kept year by year). Contemporary annals kept inside Liège. Read online
- Chronicle of Burchard of Ursberg, Burchard of Ursberg (about 1229 to 1230, reworked by Conrad of Lichtenau). Written a generation later by a fierce partisan of the Staufen and a critic of Innocent III. Read online
- Chronicle of Otto of St Blasien, Otto of St Blasien (about 1209 to 1210). A Swabian continuation of Otto of Freising written from the Staufen side. Read online
- Chronicle of Reinhardsbrunn; Chronicle of St Peter's, Erfurt (Erfurt chronicle in the 13th century; Reinhardsbrunn compilation about 1340 to 1349 from older annals). The two Thuringian chronicles. Read online
- Chronicle of the Slavs, by Arnold of Lübeck, Arnold of Lübeck (about 1209 to 1210). Arnold continues Helmold and writes from Lübeck, close to Danish, Welf and Baltic affairs. Read online
- Royal Chronicle of Cologne (in stages from about 1175 to about 1250; the section on 1198 to 1220 written soon after the events). The fullest German narrative of the throne war from the Welf and Cologne side. Read online
- Annals of Jarloch (Gerlach), abbot of Milevsko, Jarloch of Milevsko (about 1200 to 1220). The last Bohemian narrative before 1200, continuing Vincentius of Prague. Read online
23 more in the sources library for The Rhineland, the Low Countries and the Swiss Lands.
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.