rulo von bismarck, 1309-1338.—excommunicated.—claus von bismarck.—his policy.—created castellan of burgstall, 1345.—castellans.—reconciliation with stendal, 1350.—councillor to the margrave, 1353.—dietrich kogelwiet, 1361.—his white hood.—claus in his service, while archbishop of magdeburg.—the emperor charles iv.—the independence of brandenburg threatened.—chamberlain to the margrave, 1368.—subjection of the marks to bohemia, 1373.—claus retires into private life.—death about 1377.—claus ii., 1403.—claus iii. and henning.—friedrich i. appoints henning a judge.—ludolf.—his sons.—pantaleon.—henning iii. obiit circa 1528.—claus electoral ranger, 1512.—ludolf von bismarck.—electoral sheriff of boetzow, 1513.—his descendants.
s the ancestor of the race of bismarck, we find among the bismarcks in stendal, where they had been known since 1270, a certain rule or rulo, otherwise rudolf von bismarck, whose name appears in the records from 1309 to 1338. this personage was a respected member of the guild of tailors, often its guide and master, as also a member of the town council of stendal.
in the sparse notices contained in the records concerning him, it appears that rule von bismarck was held in high esteem for his prudence and wealth. he represented stendal in the most important negotiations with princely courts, carried out political arrangements of every kind, and in every position maintained a high status among his fellow-townspeople. he is also to be regarded as one of the founders of the town schools in stendal, and met heavy opposition from the nicholas cathedral foundation, which claimed the establishment of schools as its sole privilege. but under his direction the council maintained its plans as to the establishment of city schools, and realized these despite of the ban of the church; probably this, the first bismarck of whom we have any knowledge, died an excommunicated man, for his long dispute with the authorities was only accommodated at a much later period by his son. rule left behind him four sons, nicholas i., commonly called claus, rulo ii., known during his father’s life (and so called in the records) as rulekin (the little rule); the others were john and christian.
the younger brothers soon fell into the background. claus von bismarck was an individual of remarkable character, which, based upon the honored name of the family, and the wealth he had inherited, aided him in extending the sphere of his influence far beyond that of his town circle. in testimony of respect to the memory of his father, he was immediately assigned the councillor’s seat, vacant by his father’s death. claus, acting with great moderation, next distinguished himself in settling the internal differences of the town, and reconciled the church with the memory of his father by large donations, and by the establishment of a memorial festival. very early in his career, however, he occupied a singular and duplex political attitude. in the town, with animation and wisdom, he headed the patrician element against the democratic innovations of the lower guilds, and stood at the front of the aristocratic conservative party in stendal. but in the country he sided more and more with the margrave, at that time of bavarian origin, and gradually became one of the leaders of that patriotic brandenburg association, which sought to reunite the marks, separated by the death of waldemar the great, under one government.
the political activity of claus von bismarck in the fourteenth century, offers many points of similarity to that of his descendant otto von bismarck in the nineteenth century.
in his contest with the democratic party in stendal, claus von[40] bismarck was not very successful. after a long and obstinate fight, the aristocratic guild of tailors was worsted. the members of it, and among them claus von bismarck, were driven out and banished. he now returned to the country, where he possessed numerous estates, inherited from his father; but he did not remain quiet. we see him in continued activity on behalf of the margrave ludwig, for whom he conducted the most intricate negotiations, and to whom he lent considerable sums of money.
the reward of his political assiduity was proportionate to its importance. on the 15th of june, 1345, the margrave granted the castle of burgstall, one of the strongholds of the country, protecting the southern frontier of the alt mark towards magdeburg, to claus von bismarck and his descendants, and their brothers, as a fief. thus the bismarcks entered the first rank of the nobility of the alt mark, as castellans.[4]
these castellan families in the alt mark, although they could not claim any right to a higher rank, formed a privileged class of the chivalric nobility, which maintained itself by the possession of castles—then of great importance for the defense of the country. the castellans under the luxemburg dynasty, like the members of the bohemian nobility, were called nobiles, while other classes of the nobility were only denominated “worshipful,” or strenui. they had ingress and precedence at the diets before the others, were not summoned to those assemblies by proclamation, but by writ, and were immediately under the jurisdiction of the land captain, while ordinary knights were subject to the courts of justice of the province. although the castellans maintained a portion of these rights to very recent times, they were never any thing more than alt mark junkers, whose families possessed some privileges beyond the rest.
among the castellans of the fourteenth century were the von der schulenburgs, the von alvenslebens, the von bartenslebens, the von jagows, the von knesebecks,[5] and the von bismarcks of burgstall.
[41]
on the outbreak of the terrible storm which accompanied the appearance of the pretender waldemar—whose claims have, however, not yet been disproved—claus von bismarck prudently withdrew himself, and awaited the conclusion of these troubles at the castle of burgstall. it was the only thing he could do, for, in the position of circumstances, he could afford no assistance to the bavarian margrave, with whom he was intimately connected, and on the general question he could give no decision, as the person of waldemar the great had never been known to him.
about this time, 1350, a reconciliation took place between the banished aristocratic party and the town of stendal. some of the members returned thither, but claus von bismarck, as may be supposed, remained at burgstall; but it would appear that from that time forward he stood on friendly terms with his native city.
in the year 1853, he became still more closely connected with the margrave, in the capacity of privy councillor; and in this post, which carried no emolument with it whatever, he exhibited energy of such a wise character that bismarck’s government, despite of the wretched and sorrowful state of things at the time, bore rich fruits, not only for the alt mark, but for miserable brandenburg in general.
in the year 1361, claus quitted the service of brandenburg for that of the archbishop of magdeburg, in consequence of his near relative, dietrich von portitz, known as kagelwiet or kogelwiet—i.e., white kogel or hood—having ascended the archiepiscopal throne of st. moritz.[6]
dietrich von portitz, whose relationship to claus is unquestionable, but whose precise affinity is not clear, was a native of stendal. he had embraced the ecclesiastical profession, and had[42] shown such a genius for government, even as a monk at lehnin, that the bishop of brandenburg, ludwig von neiendorff, intrusted him with the administration of his diocese, much to his own advantage. the emperor, charles iv., early recognized the importance of this man; created him bishop of sarepta and chancellor of bohemia, subsequently procured him the bishopric of minden, and finally the archbishopric of magdeburg. the cognomen of kagelwiet or kogelwiet this distinguished person received from a castle of this name in bohemia, but according to some, from the white hood which he had assumed in orders at lehnin. a tradition asserts that the bohemian magnates, envious of the eminence of the chancellor, accused him of fraud, and referred the emperor to the iron chest which stood in dietrich’s private chamber. when charles iv. had this chest opened by dietrich, there was only found within it the monk’s frock, the white hood of brother dietrich of lehnin.
as to the relationship between the archbishop dietrich kogelwiet and claus bismarck, it must be admitted that it has not been clearly established by the records. but we think we do not[43] err in assuming that dietrich kogelwiet was also one of the bismarcks of stendal of the same family as claus von bismarck. he certainly is called dietrich von portitz, but we must not consider this singular in an age when brothers even existed with different surnames; and, on the other hand, an identical name by no means establishes any relationship, or places it beyond doubt.
common armorial bearings were a much surer index to family affinity between their wearers than identical names. we can not, as before stated, absolutely prove from the records that the archbishop dietrich kogelwiet was a bismarck: it may be decided by later researches, but there are several reasons for considering this to be the case. there was no family of portitz at stendal, to claim the archbishop, as a scion of their house—an important fact, as the birthplace of dietrich is ascertained to have been stendal.
when dietrich kogelwiet entered on the government of the archbishopric of magdeburg, he immediately summoned his relative, claus bismarck, to assist in his administration. such an invitation might have been the more welcome, in consequence of the hopeless condition of the margrave’s affairs. it must not be forgotten that claus was not only a vassal to brandenburg, but to magdeburg, and was connected by blood and friendship with many members of the cathedral community.
thus claus von bismarck, in conjunction with the knight meinecke von schierstaedt, became general commandant of magdeburg. the duties were so shared between them that von schierstaedt fulfilled the office of minister of war, while von bismarck was minister of the interior and of finance. foreign affairs, and especially those relating to brandenburg, the archbishop had reserved for himself—why, we shall presently see. we must not, however, regard the various duties in those days as so clearly defined as in a modern government; the distinctions were less obvious, and thus we see claus von bismarck in many a battle-field, fighting bravely beside schierstaedt. dietrich kogelwiet and his two chief servants, in fact, carried on a really model government. in the course of a few years the very considerable debts of the archbishopric were liquidated, estates pawned or wholly alienated were redeemed, and the security of the subjects of the see fixed in a manner rarely known in germany at that era. bismarck’s[44] constant care was devoted to the protection of the peasantry against the frequent outbreaks, usually ending in the plunder or destruction of property; for his clear insight had perceived that the safety of the life and property of the subject was bound up with that of the liege lord’s income—apparently a secret to most rulers of that time.
thus this six years’ administration of the see by bismarck became a great blessing to it, and dietrich kogelwiet recognized the fact by implicit confidence, although—a very remarkable circumstance, impossible at the present day—he was opposed to bismarck in his foreign policy.
the politic emperor charles iv. had especially seated his bohemian chancellor upon the archiepiscopal throne of st. moritz, with the absolute intention of securing in him an efficient co-operator in his extensive plans. dietrich kogelwiet was to aid in the conquest of the mark of brandenburg for the great bohemian empire which charles iv. sought to erect from lübeck to the coast of the adriatic for the house of lützelburg. dietrich kogelwiet had from of old been a chief supporter of these aims, and, as archbishop of magdeburg, he succeeded only too well, considering the weakness and poverty of the bavarian margrave, in ensnaring him and bringing him into relations which rendered him an unconditional and very abject dependent of the emperor. at the death of the archbishop, after a reign of six years, the independence of brandenburg was lost, and the councillors of the margrave consisted of imperial servants alien to brandenburg.
claus von bismarck held utterly aloof from this policy of his chief, for his brandenburg patriotism desired the maintenance of the independence of the marks. he saw no safety in the division of his native land, and its final subjection to the crown of bohemia. despite of these differences, the archbishop held fast to his “dear uncle”—a designation applied in those days as cousin is now—bequeathed to him the greater part of his wealth, appointed him his executor, and a member of the interregnum provided to exist until the enthronement of his successor in the see.
when bismarck had acquitted himself of his duties towards the church of magdeburg, and had overcome the many obstacles towards a settlement of the inheritance of dietrich kogelwiet, he did what he had probably long since designed. he returned to the[45] service of the margrave of brandenburg. this step can only be explained by the high patriotism which actuated this excellent man. for himself he had nothing to gain by such a step, and he must have been aware of the sacrifice he was making, for the affairs of the margrave at that time were in the utmost confusion, and in a ruinous condition. the national income had long been anticipated, money was rare, and the partially justified concurrent government of the imperial councillors seemed to render it impossible to save the autonomy of brandenburg.
the emperor charles, to whom bismarck’s conduct was sufficiently intelligible, sought with great pains to win him to his party, but in vain. the faithful alt mark junker, in 1368, became administrator of the margrave’s government in the capacity of chamberlain, and conducted his patriotic labor with such energy and wisdom, that by the october of that year the imperial councillors placed about the margrave were dismissed, and their posts entirely filled by brandenburgers of bismarck’s party. in this new council there sat dietrich von der schulenburg, bishop of brandenburg, the noblest prelate in the land; count albert von lindau, lord of ruppin, the chief vassal of the margrave; bismarck himself was chamberlain for the alt mark; marshal sir lippold von bredow for the middle mark; and justice otto von moerner represented the new mark.
bismarck and his friends now actively promoted the safety of brandenburg independence by every means in their power during a period of five years. bismarck was the soul of this patriotic struggle against the policy and rapacity of the mighty emperor. his wisdom and energy were visible in every department of the state; his immense wealth he freely sacrificed in every direction; and the results were so important that they forced the disconcerted emperor to a measure which even bismarck had not been able to foresee as a wholly unexpected proceeding.
the politic charles, who had never speculated upon an appeal to arms, and who depended on the cunning, of which he was so great a master, before displayed in his counsels, suddenly seized the sword. he perceived that he was unable to outwit bismarck, and was compelled to emerge from his lair and break up the independence of brandenburg by force. bismarck could not oppose his mighty army, and thus by the treaty of fürstenwald[46] the independence of brandenburg was lost, on the 13th of august, 1373; the marks fell into the hands of bohemia.
after this destruction of his patriotic plans, claus von bismarck retired into private life, most probably to burgstall; but the proximity of the great emperor, who held his court at tangermünde, forced him to retreat from the former place. neither claus nor his sons ever served the house of lützelburg. he then retired to his native city of stendal, and occupied himself with religious duties and the affairs of the hospital of st. gertrude, which he had founded at the uengling gate of stendal in 1370. probably this foundation again embroiled the aged man with the ecclesiastical authorities during his closing years, and he seems to have died in excommunication, like his father. we do not know either the year of the birth or death of this illustrious and patriotic man. he appears first in the records in the year 1328, and we lose sight of him in 1377. he is buried at burgstall, with the simple inscription, “nicolaus de bismarck miles” on the tomb. he bequeathed to his sons a fortune of great amount in those days—consisting of lands, treasures, and ready money.
these sons, rule, claus ii., and john, with the patriotic spirit of their father, held aloof from the emperor charles iv., despite of all the efforts he made to draw the rich and illustrious possessors of burgstall to the court at tangermünde. claus became a knight, and is thence mentioned in precedence of his elder brother rule in the records, from the year 1376. rule died without heirs; the knight claus alone left any family, and died in 1403. the third brother, john, became an ecclesiastic, and was still living in 1431.
the sons of the knight claus were respectively named claus iii., and henning. they inhabited burgstall in common, but in consequence of a dispute with the chapter of the cathedral of st. nicholas, in stendal, they were excommunicated; but they do not appear to have suffered much in consequence, as public opinion had long since declared against the abuse of excommunication common with the churchmen. claus and henning were brave but peaceable individuals, who had a most difficult position to maintain during the bloody feuds and endless fighting of that convulsed age. the brethren bismarck were the first among the nobility[47] of the alt mark to take the part of the burgrave frederick von nürnberg, regarding that great prince as the saviour and deliverer of the marks.
frederick i. seems also to have had confidence in the bismarcks, for in 1414 he appointed henning one of the judges in the great suit of felony against werner von holzendorff,[7] who occupied, in the capacity of the margrave’s captain, the castle boetzow—now oranienburg—and had betrayed this castle to dietrich von quitzow.[8] claus on his part served the electoral prince in pecuniary matters, but he died in 1437, and his brother henning had preceded him to the grave by ten years.
as henning’s only son ruloff had died in his youth without issue, the sons of claus alone succeeded to the property. their names were ludolf, heide (heidrich), and henning. they inherited that love for country life and the pleasures of the chase peculiar to the bismarcks. these brothers improved and increased the condition of the house, which seems to have suffered amidst the strife of the evil days of previous generations. the time of ludolf’s death is unknown; heide was living in 1489; henning died in 1505—his wife was sabine von alvensleben.
the male heirs of ludolf and henning divided the property[48] of their fathers, but preserved much in common—the residence of burgstall castle among the rest.
the four sons of ludolf were günther, ludolf, george, and pantaleon. they were ennobled, together with their cousins, in 1499, by the elector joachim i., but the two elder brothers soon died without male heirs, and the third brother, george, was childless; it does not appear that he was ever married. pantaleon alone left a son, henning iii., by his wife ottilien von bredow, who died before 1528, leaving four sons behind him—henry, levin, frederick, and laurence. levin and laurence soon disappear from the records, and henry, married to ilse from the kattenwinkel, and frederick, wedded to anna von wenckstern, appear as the representatives of the elder stock of ludolf. all these bismarcks lived in peaceful retirement, on the best terms, at burgstall, with their cousins of the younger henning-branch of the family.
henning ii. and his wife sabine von alvensleben had as sons, busso, claus, dietrich, and ludolf. dietrich and busso dying in early youth, claus became in 1512 the electoral ranger of the great estate of gardelegen (the forests of j?venitz and letzling). the rangers were in those days high officials (chief foresters); the title, however, they did not obtain until the time of king frederick william i., with considerable privileges. the foresters were then literally called heath-runners (haide-l?ufer)—rangers, in fact.
ludolf von bismarck in 1513 became electoral sheriff of boetzow, the present oranienburg. his activity appears to have been applied to the protection of the electoral game preserves. ludolf was reckoned one of the best horsemen and warriors of his era, although we do not learn any thing respecting his prowess. he seems to have been very active in the establishment of the militia of the alt mark, and died in 1534. his wife, hedwig von doeberitz, long survived him. in the year 1543, the elector joachim owed her a thousand thalers, and she was still alive in 1562. ludolf’s sons were jobst, joachim, and george.
joachim was killed at the siege of magdeburg, at which he was present with his brothers. jobst married emerentia schenk von lützendorf. george married armengard von alvensleben.
we thus see the castle of burgstall in the middle of the sixteenth[49] century inhabited by two pairs of brothers, with four households; henry and frederick representing the elder or ludolf branch of the bismarcks, and jobst and george the younger one through henning. ludolf’s widow also resided at burgstall.