A branch of the Carinthian Spanheims seated at Lebenau castle on a spur above the Salzach just below Laufen, counts of the country between the Salzach and the Alz with its core round Tittmoning.
They hold rights at Burghausen, the advocacy of the Salzburg cathedral chapter's estates in the Chiemgau (since 1150), of Seeon, where they are buried, and of St Emmeram at Regensburg, and lands in Carinthia and Lower Styria. Count Otto has ruled since his brother died on crusade in 1190.
Who he is
- Name
- Otto I of Lebenau
- Title
- Count of Lebenau (also styled count of Arch)
- Since
- 1190, after his brother Siegfried III died with the German army on the Third Crusade on 12 March 1190
- Born
- Not pinned
- Family
- A Spanheim branch: founded by Siegfried I, son of Margrave Engelbert I of Istria, who settled at Lebenau about 1104. Otto married first Eufemia of Dornberg and then Sophie of Plain. Sons: Siegfried IV (count 1205-1210) and Bernhard (count 1210-1229, the last); a daughter married Ulrich of Peggau. Kin of the Spanheim dukes of Carinthia.
- Confidence
- medium
de.wikipedia (Grafschaft Lebenau).
Overlord
The duke of Bavaria (the county lies in the Salzburggau within the duchy; at the line's end in 1229 it falls to Duke Louis, from whom Salzburg buys the core).
What it holds
- Lebenau castle above the Salzach below Laufen
- The county between the Salzach and the Alz, its core round Tittmoning (whose castle exists in the 12th century)
- Lordship and rights at Burghausen (from 1168; the town is the Bavaria researcher's record)
- Advocacy of the Salzburg cathedral chapter's Chiemgau estates (granted 18 November 1150)
- Advocacy of Seeon abbey (their burial place) and of St Emmeram at Regensburg
- Lands in Carinthia (Rabenstein, the Löschental, Lavamünd in the Lavanttal) and Lower Styria; the title of count of Arch (Raka) without a county there
- Under Otto, the lordship of the Haunsberg burgraves on the right bank of the Salzach (date not pinned; possibly after 1200)
How it was acquired
Lebenau about 1104; the western Sieghardinger lands through Siegfried I's first marriage; Burghausen rights 1168.
Allies and rivals
Kin of the Plains (Otto's wife Sophie) and of the Carinthian dukes; advocates of Salzburg's chapter and neighbours of the archbishop's Laufen.
How things stand that morning
Otto holds Lebenau and the county. Throne war: not pinned.
Wealth
The county's courts, river traffic past Lebenau, advocacy dues, the Carinthian estates.
Military
Lebenau castle and the castle at Tittmoning; vassals in the county.
Threats
- A failing line (extinct 1229)
- Salzburg and Bavaria both want the county
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.
- 1205 (beyond 1200)Otto dies; Siegfried IV succeeds, then Bernhard (1210); Bernhard's death in 1229 ends the line and the county is divided between the duke and the archbishop.Depends on: Nature. Stopped by: Not applicable in 1200.
Where the sources disagree
- Burghausen: de.wikipedia (Grafschaft Lebenau) gives the counts the lordship and rights of the town from 1168, passing to Duke Louis only in 1229; the Bavaria file (Duke Louis's own lands) gives the castle and the Salzach salt toll to the duke. Both may be true (castle ducal, rights in the town the counts'), but the campaign should choose.
Evidence: Counts and advocacies dated in de.wikipedia; the county's bounds in 1200 are reconstructed from the later Salzburg courts of Tittmoning.
On the map: The county's extent in 1200 is approximate; the castle site is placed from its description (a spur at the Schinderbach mouth below Laufen), not from surveyed coordinates.
Primary sources for Bavaria
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 Schäftlarn and the Bavarian annals (12th and 13th centuries). Brief Bavarian annals. Read online
- The Austrian and Salzburg annals (kept in the 12th and 13th centuries, with continuations to the late 13th century). A family of monastic annals from Austria, Styria and Salzburg, printed together. 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
- Regesta Imperii V: calendar of the acts of Philip, Otto IV and Frederick II, 1198 to 1272 (calendar of documents of 1198 to 1272, published 1881 to 1901). A dated calendar of every known act of King Philip and King Otto IV, with the acts of popes and princes that bear on the Empire. Read online
- Bavarian monuments: the charters of the Bavarian monasteries and bishoprics (charters from the 8th century onward, published 1763 to 1916). The great charter series of Bavaria, arranged by monastery and bishopric. Read online
- Charter book of the bishops of Trent (compiled 1207 to 1218; documents from the 11th century onward; edited 1852). The cartulary of the prince-bishops of Trent. Read online
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.