The Frohburg counts hold the passes over the Jura between Basel and the Aare: the Frohburg castle above Trimbach on the lower Hauenstein road, the landgraviate of the Buchsgau between Olten and Solothurn as a fief of the bishop of Basel (since the late 11th century), and castles and new market places at Olten, Zofingen, Waldenburg on the upper Hauenstein, Liestal, Wiedlisbach and Bipp.
HLS and de.wikipedia date these foundations only to 'the end of the 12th and the start of the 13th century': which of them were towns on 1 January 1200 is not pinned.
Who he is
- Name
- Hermann II of Frohburg (attested 1160-1211), with his sons Ludwig III (attested from 1196) and Hermann III
- Title
- Count of Frohburg; landgrave in the Buchsgau (a fief of the bishop of Basel)
- Since
- not pinned
- Born
- not pinned
- Family
- Hermann II married a Kyburg lady. Sons Ludwig (III) and Hermann (III) later married Rudolf II of Habsburg's daughters Gertrude and Heilwig; daughter Richenza married Berthold of Neuchâtel. Arnold of Frohburg is abbot of Murbach (attested 1194, died 1216).
- Confidence
- medium
HLS Frohburg; de.wikipedia Frohburg (Adelsgeschlecht).
Overlord
The king; the bishop of Basel for the Buchsgau landgraviate.
What it holds
- Frohburg castle on the lower Hauenstein road
- The Buchsgau landgraviate (Basel fief, since the late 11th century)
- Olten on the Aare crossing
- Zofingen and its house of canons
- Waldenburg on the upper Hauenstein and Schönthal monastery (founded about 1140)
- Liestal (later a town)
- Wiedlisbach and Bipp castle
- The Sisgau landgraviate only after 1223
How it was acquired
Inheritance; Basel fiefs since the late 11th century.
Allies and rivals
Basel's bishop as lord of fiefs; Kyburg by marriage; Habsburg, soon to be in-laws; the Homberg cousins in the Sisgau.
How things stand that morning
Hermann II holds the Hauenstein passes and the Buchsgau. Allegiance not pinned; his lord the bishop of Basel is Staufen (campaign notes, thin).
Wealth
Pass tolls on both Hauenstein roads (the Basel to Lucerne and Gotthard road), Aare crossing at Olten, market dues. No figures.
Military
Frohburg, Waldenburg, Bipp and other castles. No numbers.
Threats
- Zähringen pressure from Solothurn and Burgdorf.
- Basel's claims over its fiefs.
Places of note
- Frohburg castle: Seat above Trimbach
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Family and fiefs firm; the dating of each town is not.
On the map: The Buchsgau was a landgraviate (high justice) over others' land as well; drawn with the core.
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.
- 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
- Chronicle of Hainaut, Gislebert of Mons (about 1195 to 1196). Ends in 1195, so it has no 1200 entries, but it is the indispensable background for Flanders and Hainaut: the career of Count Baldwin V of Hainaut (VIII of Flanders), his union of the two counties, the settlement with Philip over Artois, the rights, castles, fiefs and vassals of Hainaut listed by a man who ran its chancery, and the youth of Baldwin IX, who held both counties in 1200. Read online
8 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.