A royal town on the Lahn below the castle of Kalsmunt, raised by Frederick I in 1180, when he gave its citizens the rights of Frankfurt's.
It lives by iron from the Lahn and Dill ores, wool weaving and leather, and by the high road from Cologne to Frankfurt; it is growing fast into the second town of the region.
Who holds it
- Name
- The king (Philip of Swabia)
- Title
- Lord of the town
- Since
- royal advocacy 1180
- Confidence
- medium
Lord in 1200
The king, through the imperial advocacy Frederick I set up in 1180 and the royal castle of Kalsmunt above the town; the collegiate church of St Mary, founded by the Konradiner in the early 10th century, holds much of the town; the Merenbergers claim an advocacy here. Officers on 1 January 1200 not pinned.
How things stand that morning
Philip's.
Charter
Frederick I's privilege of 1180: the citizens to have the same rights as Frankfurt's.
Council
Not pinned for 1200.
Communities
The canons of St Mary. Jews are first mentioned only in 1277.
Fairs and markets
A market (date of the grant not pinned) and an iron market (forum ferri).
Walls and castle
Walls under construction (largely finished by 1250); Kalsmunt castle, enlarged by Frederick I; the collegiate church (rebuilt from 1230).
Trade and crafts
Iron smelting and smithing, wool weaving, leather; a royal mint (a denarius inscribed 'Calsmund' under Frederick I, mint probably from about 1160).
Quarrels
None dated for 1200; later quarrels with the collegiate church and the counts of Solms.
Where the sources disagree
Evidence: 1180 privilege dated; officers in 1200 not pinned.
Primary sources for Staufen
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
- 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
23 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.