Counts · Other imperial lands · as at first light, 1 January 1200

Henneberg

The Henneberg counts are the greatest lay house of northern Franconia, seated at the castle of Henneberg above the upper Werra, with their house abbey at Vessra (founded 1131) and lands across the Grabfeld and into the Rhön.

Since about 1057 they have held the burgraviate of Würzburg, the see's lay advocacy and court, but Barbarossa's privilege of 1168 gave the high justice of the diocese to the bishop, and the burgraviate is becoming a title with fees. On their father's death on crusade in 1190 the three brothers divided the inheritance: Berthold the burgraviate, Poppo the county of Henneberg, Otto the castle of Botenlauben by Kissingen. Otto is overseas that winter, most probably in the kingdom of Jerusalem.

From about 1200 the town of Königshofen in the Grabfeld belongs to them.

Who he is

Name
Berthold (II) of Henneberg, with his brothers Poppo (VII) and Otto
Title
Count of Henneberg; burgrave of Würzburg (the see's hereditary advocate and marshal)
Since
14 June 1190, when their father Poppo VI died at Margat on the Third Crusade and the brothers divided his inheritance
Born
not pinned (Otto, the youngest, probably 1177)
Family
The Popponen (Henneberg) house of the Grabfeld. Father Poppo VI (died 14 June 1190); mother Sophie, daughter of Count Berthold III of Andechs, so Duke Berthold of Merania is the brothers' uncle. Berthold (II) holds the burgraviate (died 24 August 1212; his son Berthold III follows). Poppo (VII) holds Henneberg itself according to the English list (German accounts make Berthold the head of the house until 1212, after which Poppo leads it; died 21 August 1245). Otto, styled count of Henneberg in charters of 1196 and 1197, went with Henry VI to Italy in 1197 and on to the Holy Land; from 1206 he styles himself count of Botenlauben, marries Beatrix of Courtenay by 1208 and stays in the East until 1220. Kinsman: Otto of Henneberg, bishop of Speyer (dies 3 March 1200). Side branches: the lords of Lichtenberg (from 1156) and of Sternberg (from 1199).
Confidence
medium

en.wikipedia House of Henneberg (dates of the counts and the 1190 division); de.wikipedia Henneberg (Adelsgeschlecht), Otto von Botenlauben, Bad Königshofen.

Overlord

The king for the county and imperial fiefs (Lichtenberg); the bishop of Würzburg for the burgraviate and many fiefs; the abbey of Fulda for others.

What it holds

  • The castle of Henneberg and the county round it (the upper Werra and the Grabfeld)
  • Vessra abbey (Premonstratensian; the house's foundation and burial church)
  • The burgraviate of Würzburg: the burgrave's rights and court in the city and the see (much reduced since 1168)
  • Königshofen in the Grabfeld (theirs from about 1200; town rights about 1235)
  • Botenlauben castle near Kissingen (Otto's share)
  • Lichtenberg in the Rhön, an imperial fief, through the Lichtenberg branch
  • Nordeck near Stadtsteinach in the Frankenwald (inherited in the second half of the 12th century)
  • Hildburghausen, a village of the Botenlauben share until its sale to Würzburg in 1234 (first documented then)
  • Fiefs of Würzburg and Fulda across the Grabfeld and the Rhön

How it was acquired

Ancient comital family of the Grabfeld; burgraviate from about 1057; the 1190 division among the sons of Poppo VI.

Allies and rivals

Kin: the Andechs-Meranians (their mother's house). Rival: the bishop of Würzburg, who is squeezing the burgraviate. Neighbours: the landgrave of Thuringia and the abbey of Fulda to the north, Würzburg's manors at Meiningen and Mellrichstadt among their lands.

How things stand that morning

Berthold and Poppo hold their shares; Otto is overseas. Which king they back that winter is not pinned: no 1199 act seen. The presumption is Staufen: their uncle the duke of Merania and their kinsman the bishop of Speyer both signed the Speyer protest for Philip, Otto served Henry VI, and Franconia was Philip's ground.

Wealth

Lands and forests of the Grabfeld and the Rhön, the burgrave's fees in Würzburg, abbey advocacies.

Military

Henneberg castle, Botenlauben, the Lichtenberg; vassals and ministeriales in the Grabfeld. No figures survive.

Threats

  • The bishop of Würzburg's drive to take over the burgrave's rights
  • The landgrave of Thuringia to the north

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.

  1. 3 March 1200Death of their kinsman Otto of Henneberg, bishop of Speyer (campaign notes).Depends on: nature Stopped by: play

Places of note

  • Henneberg castle: The house's ancestral castle
  • Vessra abbey: House abbey, founded 1131
  • Botenlauben castle: Otto's castle above Kissingen

Where the sources disagree

  • English and German lists differ on whether Berthold (II) or Poppo (VII) held the county of Henneberg itself between 1190 and 1212; all agree Berthold held the burgraviate.

Evidence: The family's dates are clear; its lands in 1200 and its side in the throne war are not well pinned in what we read.

On the map: Henneberg lands were mixed with Würzburg and Fulda manors; Meiningen and Mellrichstadt (Würzburg's) lie among them. Only the cores are drawn.

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.

8 more in the sources library for The Rhineland, the Low Countries and the Swiss Lands.

Sources and studies

  1. House of Henneberg, en.wikipedia
  2. Henneberg (Adelsgeschlecht), de.wikipedia
  3. Otto von Botenlauben, de.wikipedia
  4. Bad Königshofen im Grabfeld, de.wikipedia
  5. Hildburghausen, de.wikipedia

Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.