Ortenburg

Who he is

Name

The heirs of Count Otto II (Hermann II is the next count on record; who heads the house on 1 January 1200 is not pinned)

Title

Count of Ortenburg

Since

Otto II died probably in 1197 on Henry VI's crusade

Born

not pinned

Family

Founded by Adalbert I (died 1096), advocate and vicedominus of the church of Freising in Carinthia in 1072, who first called himself 'of Ortenburg' in 1093. Otto II married Brigitta of Heunburg, still living after 1199. Otto II and his brother Hermann, archdeacon (born 1147, died 1200, once anti-bishop of Gurk), founded the hospital of Spittal in 1191. Ulrich of Ortenburg, born about 1188, later bishop of Gurk (died 1253), is a boy. Hermann II (died 19 May 1256), who built Sommeregg in 1237, is the next count on record. Whether Hermann the archdeacon, who died in 1200 (day not pinned), still lives on 1 January and guides the family is not pinned.

Confidence

medium

German Wikipedia (Grafen von Ortenburg; Spittal an der Drau; Grafen von Heunburg).

Overlord

The duke of Carinthia for the county; many estates held of churches (Salzburg, Aquileia, Freising, Bamberg; not itemised for 1200).

What it holds

• The castle of Ortenburg (about 1091; named 1093) and the Lurnfeld east of Möllbrücke.
• The hospital and settlement of Spittal on the Lieser (1191), under an Ortenburg tower castle; a market only in 1242.
• The Drava valley down to Rennstein near Villach (Paternion, Feistritz).
• The Hohenburg in the Lurnfeld (named from 1142; builder not pinned).
• Large estates in Upper and Lower Carniola: the date of acquisition is not pinned for 1200; the Gottschee settlement is of 1320-1330.

How it was acquired

Castle built about 1091; the Lurn inheritance east of Möllbrücke in 1135; counts by 1135.

Allies and rivals

Kin by marriage of the Heunburg counts (Brigitta of Heunburg; Gero of Heunburg married Elisabeth of Ortenburg). Duke Hermann of Carinthia feuded with the Carinthian Ortenburgs. Neighbours of Salzburg (Sachsenburg, Gmünd) and Gorizia (west of Möllbrücke).

How things stand that morning

The house holds the Lurnfeld and Spittal under the guardianship of Otto II's family after his death on crusade; the head of the house on 1 January 1200 is not pinned.

Wealth

The road over the Katschberg and the Tauern and the hospital's traffic; tolls and rafting on the Drava (Spittal's later rights); estates in the Drava valley.

Military

Ortenburg castle and the Hohenburg; the comital vassals of the Lurnfeld.

Threats

• A minority after Otto II's death.
• Salzburg's castles at Sachsenburg and Gmünd on its northern edge.

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. 1200, day not pinnedHermann of Ortenburg, the archdeacon and former anti-bishop of Gurk, co-founder of Spittal, dies.Depends on: A natural death recorded in the family list. Stopped by: Not pinned whether it precedes 1 January 1200.

Places of note

• Ortenburg castle: The family seat, south of the Drava west of Spittal; coordinates approximate.
• The hospital of Spittal: Founded 1191.

Where the sources disagree

Evidence: The family article and the Spittal and Heunburg articles give the 1135 division, the 1191 foundation, Otto II's death on crusade and the marriages; the head of the house in 1200 is not pinned.

On the map: The county is drawn as the Lurn share described for 1135; its 1200 edges against Salzburg's Sachsenburg and Millstatt abbey's lands are not pinned.

Primary sources for Carinthia

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.

• 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