The leading house of the upper Iller valley below the Allgäu Alps, holding the castle of Rettenberg on its hill above the Iller and wide lands east of the river toward the Wertach.
Who he is
- Title
- Lords of Rettenberg
- Since
- not pinned
- Born
- not pinned
- Family
- One of the most influential families of the Oberallgäu from the beginning of the twelfth century until about 1350, with Burg Rettenberg as their seat; their holdings covered wide parts of the country east of the Iller. The lordship later belonged to the bishopric of Augsburg.
- Confidence
- low
de.wikipedia Rettenberg
What it holds
- Burg Rettenberg
- Wide lands east of the Iller (extent not pinned)
How it was acquired
Prominent from the beginning of the twelfth century.
Allies and rivals
Neighbours the abbey of Kempten and its Ronsberg advocates to the north, the bishop of Augsburg at Füssen to the east, the Bregenz inheritance to the west.
How things stand that morning
Hold Rettenberg; no part in the throne war recorded.
Wealth
Alpine pasture, cattle, the road up the Iller.
Military
One castle; no numbers.
Threats
- The bishop of Augsburg's expansion into the Alps
Places of note
- Burg Rettenberg: the family seat
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: The family's standing and seat are documented; its holder and boundaries in 1200 are not.
On the map: Rough castle district.
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.