Cochem castle above the Moselle was built about 1100 by the palatine house of Ballenstedt, and in 1130 Count Palatine William levied a ship toll there.
After his death Hermann of Stahleck seized it (1150), and King Conrad III besieged and took it in 1151, making it a royal castle that ran the surrounding royal estate, first with castle-men and then with royal ministeriales styled burgraves. No burgrave of 1200 is named in the sources consulted. The Welf count palatine, heir of the palatine claim, is building Thurant a few miles downstream.
Who he is
- Name
- Philip of Swabia (control that winter not pinned)
- Title
- King of the Romans (disputed), through royal burgraves
- Since
- 1198
- Born
- about 1177
- Family
- Barbarossa's youngest son
- Confidence
- low
de.wikipedia Reichsburg Cochem
Overlord
None: an imperial castle since 1151
What it holds
- Cochem castle
- The Moselle ship toll at Cochem
- The royal estate round Cochem
How it was acquired
Taken by Conrad III in 1151.
Allies and rivals
The archbishop of Trier, who will get it in pledge only in 1294; the count palatine, heir of the old palatine claim.
How things stand that morning
Royal; in whose hands that winter is not pinned. Shown as Staufen because the lower Moselle round it answered to Philip's Trier ally.
Wealth
The Moselle toll; wine.
Military
Cochem castle and its burgraves.
Threats
- The count palatine's revived claims and his new castle of Thurant
Places of note
- Cochem castle: Royal castle and toll
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Royal status since 1151 is attested; the holder in 1200 is not.
On the map: Castle district 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.