A Carolingian palace on the Rur on the road from Aachen to Cologne, still the king's in 1200: it is pledged to William IV of Jülich only in 1241.
Its walls are begun about 1212. Lying between the Jülich blocks and on Otto's side of the Rhine, it is most likely held for Otto that winter, but no source names its officers or its master.
Who he is
- Title
- The king's officers at Düren
- Confidence
- low
de.wikipedia Düren
Overlord
The king
What it holds
- The royal palace and the king's lands round Düren
How it was acquired
Royal since the Carolingians.
Allies and rivals
Jülich surrounds it.
How things stand that morning
The king's; held for Otto IV most likely (welf, low confidence).
Wealth
Markets on the Aachen-Cologne road. No figures.
Military
No walls yet (begun about 1212).
Threats
- The count of Jülich's ambitions (realised by the pledge of 1241)
- Raids through the Zülpich plain (August 1199)
Where the sources disagree
- de.wikipedia's statement that Otto III confirmed Düren's rights 'as a free imperial city' in 1000 back-projects a later status and is not used.
Evidence: No dated evidence for 1199-1200.
On the map: The royal lands' extent is not known.
Primary sources for Welf
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 Egmond (12th century to about 1205). The house annals of Egmond, the counts of Holland's abbey, and the main native source for Holland around 1200. Read online
- 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
- Annals of Stade, by Albert of Stade, Albert of Stade (about 1240 to 1256). A world chronicle written at Stade in the 1240s from older Stade and Bremen annals. 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
18 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.