One of the few great free houses left in Austria.
The Lengenbachs moved their seat from Altlengbach to the new castle of Neulengbach (built about 1189) in the western Wienerwald. As cathedral advocates of Regensburg they exercise the protection and high justice over the Regensburg church's Austrian lands, and Hartwig III inherited more than twenty castle lordships, run by his own ministeriales and castle men, with his own court officers (a cupbearer, Siegfried of Wolfsberg, and a steward, Ulrich). They also hold imperial fiefs in the Lungau from the Sulzbach inheritance, lands from Duke Ottokar IV of Styria, and the castles of Spielberg (since 1148) and Windegg (about 1170-80) north of the Danube.
Who he is
- Name
- Hartwig III of Lengenbach
- Title
- Free lord (vir liber et nobilis); cathedral advocate (Domvogt) of Regensburg for the see's lands in Austria
- Since
- After the death of Otto IV of Rehberg and Lengenbach (1192, or 1195 in the genealogy); Hartwig styles himself Domvogt of Regensburg from 1195
- Born
- about 1150; about 50 on 1 January 1200
- Family
- Free (not ministerial) house of Bavarian and Austrian standing. Otto IV received the Regensburg advocacy in Austria in 1189, after Count Gebhard of Sulzbach died. Hartwig's son Otto V (born about 1200-04, so perhaps not yet born) will be the last of the line (died January 1236).
- Confidence
- medium
de.wikipedia Herren von Lengenbach.
Overlord
Duke Leopold VI for the Austrian ground; the bishop of Regensburg for the advocacy
What it holds
- Neulengbach castle (about 1189) and Altlengbach
- The advocacy of the Regensburg see's lands in Austria (the Regensburg holdings in the Riedmark and elsewhere)
- Spielberg castle (held since 1148) and Windegg castle (about 1170-80) in the lower Mühlviertel
- Imperial fiefs in the Lungau from the Sulzbach inheritance (sal's ground)
- More than twenty castle lordships in all (not individually pinned)
- Former advocacy of St. Andrä an der Traisen, their family house (given up 1186-92)
How it was acquired
Family lands; the Regensburg advocacy in 1189.
Allies and rivals
Loyal to the dukes in 1200; under Otto V the family turns against Duke Frederick II (1235).
How things stand that morning
Held by Hartwig III on 1 January 1200.
Wealth
Castle lordships, the advocacy dues of the Regensburg estates.
Military
Own ministeriales and castle men in more than twenty castle lordships; no numbers.
Places of note
- Neulengbach castle: Seat from about 1189
- Spielberg castle: Danube castle near Enns, held since 1148
- Windegg castle: Built about 1170-80
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: Seat, offices and advocacy from de.wikipedia; the list of castles is not pinned.
On the map: The many castle lordships are not drawn; the Regensburg lands under the advocacy are scattered.
Primary sources for Austria
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 Jarloch (Gerlach), abbot of Milevsko, Jarloch of Milevsko (about 1200 to 1220). The last Bohemian narrative before 1200, continuing Vincentius of Prague. Read online
- 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
- 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
- The Registers of Pope Innocent III for 1199 to 1201, Innocent III and the papal chancery (22 February 1199 to 21 February 1201). The pope's outgoing letters for the year, in his chancery's own copy, touching nearly every realm in the atlas. 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
- The political songs of Walther von der Vogelweide, 1198 to 1201, Walther von der Vogelweide (about 1198 to 1201). Three stanzas of the Reichston, composed between 1198 and 1201 after Walther left Vienna, lament the disorder of the double election and call on Philip to take the crown. Read online
- Constitutions and public acts of the emperors and kings, volume 2, 1198 to 1272 (documents of 1198 to 1272, edited 1896). The public documents of the throne war in full text: the election notices of 1198, the princes' declaration of Speyer of 28 May 1199 to Innocent III, the pope's replies, Philip's and Otto's letters and promises, and the imperial acts of 1200 and 1201 including Otto's promises at Neuss in June 1201. Read online
Sources and studies
Last revised 4 November 2026. Published 4 November 2026. Suggest a correction on the OMNIA Discord.