Oswald von Wolkenstein
Encyclopedia
Oswald von Wolkenstein (1376 or 1377, presumably in Castle Schöneck in Kiens
– August 2, 1445 in Meran) was a poet
, composer and diplomat
. In the latter capacity, he traveled through much of Europe
, even as far as Georgia
(as recounted in "Durch Barbarei, Arabia"), and was inducted into the Order of the Dragon
. He lived for a time in Seis am Schlern.
and his mother Katharina von Villanders. When he was ten years old, Oswald left his family and became squire
of a knight errant. Oswald described the journeys undertaken by him in the following 14 years in his autobiographical song "Es fügt sich...", mentioning travels to Crete
, Prussia
, Lithuania
, Crimea
, Turkey
, the Holy Land
, France, Lombardy
and Spain, as well as being shipwrecked in the Black Sea
.
After the death of his father in 1399, Oswald returned to the Tyrol and began a drawn out quarrel with his older brother Michael about their inheritance. In 1401-1402 Oswald participated in the failed Italian expedition of King Rupert of Germany
. In 1407 he and his brother finally agreed on how to split the inheritance: Oswald received a third of Castle Hauenstein and the accompanying estates in Seis am Schlern. The other two thirds of the castle belong to a knight named Martin Jäger, but Oswald did not respect the property situation, occupying the entire castle and appropriating Jägers share of the tithe
. In 1408, in preparation for a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, Oswald paid for a memorial stone to be installed on the wall of the cathedral in Brixen
. The stone has survived, and shows him in the garb of a Crusader
, with the long beard associated with pilgrims. Before he left, he wrote several songs for his beloved, Anna Hausmann, the wife of the Brixner burgher Hans Hausmann. After his return in 1410 he acquired the right to take up residence in the Augustiner-Chorherren cloister Neustift near Brixen.
In 1414 Oswald became a member of the entourage of Friedrich IV
, Duke of Austria and Count of Tyrol at the Council of Constance
(1414–1418); a portrait of Oswald can be found in the council's chronicle (by Ulrich von Richental). Oswald entered as diplomat in the service of Sigismund
, King of the Holy Roman Empire
and of Hungary. His first diplomatic voyage brought him to England, Scotland
and Portugal
, where he participated in the conquest of the Moorish city of Ceuta
(see Battle of Ceuta
). In 1416 he joined King Sigismund in France and they travelled together back to Constance
.
In 1417 Oswald married Margarete von Schwangau
, with whom he would have seven children. Later that year he returned to Tyrol, where he joined the Elefantenbund, an alliance of noblemen against Friedrich IV
, who had been banned by King Sigismund for aiding the flight of Antipope John XXIII
from the Council of Constance. With the help of the local population, especially the peasants, Friedrich was able to resist the King and the nobles and from 1418 onwards Friedrich pursued his enemies within Tyrol vigorously. In September 1421 Oswald was lured by his lover Anna Hausmann into a trap and apprehended by Martin Jäger, who brought Oswald to Innsbruck
and handed him over to Count Friedrich. In March 1422 Friedrich, in exchange of a surety
of 6,000 ducats and an oath to abjure all vengeance, released Oswald for the duration of five months, so that Oswald may settle his debts with Martin Jäger and other nobles. Oswald could not reach an agreement with his enemies and did not show up in Tirol Castle on August 24, 1422, opting rather to ride to Hungary
, where he met King Sigismund. Together they plotted a war against Friedrich. The war was started by Oswald's brother Michael who wrote to Friedrich on September 5, 1422: "Therefore I want to be your enemy and be in an alliance with your enemies."
In 1423 open hostilities culminated in the siege of Castle Greifenstein, during which Oswald with both his brothers was part of the castle's garrison. The siege was lifted in November 1423 through a successful sally. But because the burghers and peasants of Tyrol and the bishop of Brixen supported Count Friedrich, most of the nobles, including both brothers of Oswald, surrendered on December 17, 1423. Few nobles chose to continue to fight. The most prominent were: Hans von Villanders, the brothers Ulrich and Wilhelm von Starkenberg, who successfully defended castle Greifenstein for years to come, and Oswald, who in the end would be become the last to surrender.
In 1424 things calmed down and Oswald commissioned the Neustift monastery to create a manuscript of his songs. The calmness of the year was due to the new Binger Kurverein (Alliance of Bingen
) by the Empire's Kurfürsten
against Sigmund, who could not afford to fight three wars at once: the planned one against Friedrich, the brewing one against the Kurverein and the ongoing one against the Hussite
s. On 17 February 1425, King and Count made peace on Castle Hornstein
; Oswald was present.
Oswald returned to Tyrol to find himself completely penniless. Count Friedrich insisted on the payment of the 6,000 ducat surety
. Oswald tried in vain to get hold of the money, and fled the Tyrol. In 1425 he resided in Castle Neuhaus near Gais
, which at this point was not yet part of the County of Tyrol, but part of the County of Görz. Friedrich immediately used the peace with King Sigismund to renew the siege of Castle Greifenstein.
After Wilhelm von Starkenberg's capitulation on 26 November 1426, Oswald was the last nobleman feuding with Count Friedrich, and was summoned to the Landtag
in Bozen. Oswald again fled Tyrol, but his flight was discovered. He was apprehended near Wasserburg
on Lake Constance
, brought back to Tyrol, and imprisoned in Castle Vellenberg (later Castle Sonnenburg) in Innsbruck. Oswald now had no choice but to make peace with Count Friedrich, who forced him to pay Martin Jäger a compensation in exchange for the stolen tithes, and in the process allowed Oswald to acquire full ownership of Castle Hauenstein and its estates. Furthermore, Oswald had to swear to refrain from any contact with nobles from outside Tyrol unless sanctioned by Count Friedrich.
In 1428, Oswald broke his oath and travelled to Heidelberg to meet Kurfürst Ludwig von der Pfalz
, Archbishop of Cologne, Count Dietrich II von Moers and Duke Adolf VII von Jülich, with the aim to garner the help of the League of the Holy Court
in a dispute with his cousin Hans von Villanders, who owed Oswald 2,200 ducats. While there, Oswald entered into a fray between the Domkapitel
of Brixen and the new Prince-Bishop of Brixen, Ulrich Putsch, who was a friend of Martin Jäger, a confidante of Count Friedrich, and soon-to-be bishop chancellor of the County of Tyrol. The clash culminated in a coup on 30 October 1429, supported by Friedrich and led by Oswald against the bishop, who while being a prisoner of Oswald was beaten publicly by him. Initially, King Sigismund backed Oswald, but when informed by the other side in the dispute, both Sigismund and Friedrich switched sides and reinstated bishop Ulrich.
In 1430 King Sigismund summoned the nobles of the Holy Roman Empire
to a Reichstag
in the city of Nuremberg
and Oswald with his brother Michael immediately left Tyrol to meet the King, who instead of going directly to Nuremberg undertook a two-month detour to the South German cities of Überlingen
and Constance
to celebrate Christmas. During this period, Oswald wrote many songs of an erotic nature- the most famous being "Ain Graserin" (KL 76) about a bathing maid, whose "frizzy hair" between her legs leads a man to rape her on the spot. In Nuremberg, Oswald became a member of the first rank of the Order of the Dragon
- a rank King Sigismund awarded only to two dozen nobles. Along with the honor came the obligation to participate in Sigismund's disastrous expedition against the Hussites in Bohemia
in 1431 (see also Hussite Wars
). Oswald experienced firsthand the mass flight of the 130,000-strong Imperial army on 14 August 1431 when the entire Imperial army panicked
after sighting the 50,000-strong Hussite army approaching and singing.
Sigismund sent Oswald back to Tyrol to prepare the county for an expected Hussite invasion of the Empire and invited the Hussites to the Council of Basel to negotiate. Sigismund himself fled to Milan
and later to Piacenza
under the pretext that he had to go now to Rome to be crowned emperor. During this time Oswald commissioned the cloister Neustift to create a second manuscript collection of his songs. Sigismund called him to join him in Piacenza and Oswald obliged. The unpleasantness of his visit inspired him to write the complaint-song "Wer die ougen vil verschüren", which he set to a French melody. In May of the same year, Oswald was sent by Sigismund to Basel. After over a year of negotiations, Sigismund was crowned Holy Roman Emperor
on 31 May 1433 by Pope Eugenius IV, with Oswald probably in attendance.
During the next years, Oswald's life settled down, and almost no reports of fights, brawls or trials are preserved. This changed with the death of Count Friedrich on 24 June 1439. As the heir Sigismund
was only twelve years old at the time, a guardian had to be found until Sigismund came of age. The Landstände
of Tyrol choose Sigismund’s uncle Friedrich V, Duke of Austria
. The contracts of the guardianship were put in Oswald's care. Oswald used the opportunity to seek the assistance of Friedrich V in his eighteen-year long legal wrangling with Hans von Villanders (over bonds Oswald had given his cousin to hold).
When the guardianship of Sigismund ended on 25 July 1443 and Friedrich, now King Friedrich III of the Holy Roman Empire, decided to prolong it for another six years, the Landstände of Tyrol organized an open revolt. Oswald became one of five military commanders and was tasked with the defence of the most important of all positions, the Mühlbacher Klause (Mühlbach fortress), which blocked the most likely invasion route from Styria, where King Friedrich had taken up residence. The cities of Meran and Bozen provided funds and troops to reinforce the fortress, and all other passes and entrances into Tyrol were blocked by troops. As the city of Trento
backed the King, an army of 3,000 men was sent south to besiege the city. On 10 December, a Tyrolean delegation arrived in Graz
to demand the release of Sigismund and the return of the county's treasures, taken by Friedrich in 1440. Friedrich refused and threatened war. The Tyroleans responded by sacking Trento and electing Johann Röttel as the new bishop on 4 January 1440. Röttel's first declaration was to fully support the Landstände against the King. Oswald was one of the electors and the main instigator of this election. The next session by the Landstände began in Meran on 16 May 1445, and as it was now clear that King Friedrich was not planning an attack, options were discussed on how to bring Sigismund to Tyrol.
Oswald died on 2 August 1445 in Meran, succumbing to an intense heatwave. His offices were taken over by Ulrich von Matsch. His body was brought to Monastery Neustift (Vahrn
) and buried near the font in the monastery's church, where his grave was rediscovered in 1973.
He is one of the most important composers of the early German Renaissance, and his melodies are of high quality. There are three main topics of his work: travel, God
and sex
.
Oswald's poems are preserved in three manuscripts:
Mss A and B were completed under the supervision of Oswald himself, and both contain a depiction of the author, qualifying as the earliest authentic depictions of a German author.
Kiens
Kiens is a comune in South Tyrol in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 100 km northeast of Trento and about 50 km northeast of Bolzano.-Geography:...
– August 2, 1445 in Meran) was a poet
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, composer and diplomat
Diplomacy
Diplomacy is the art and practice of conducting negotiations between representatives of groups or states...
. In the latter capacity, he traveled through much of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, even as far as Georgia
Georgia (country)
Georgia is a sovereign state in the Caucasus region of Eurasia. Located at the crossroads of Western Asia and Eastern Europe, it is bounded to the west by the Black Sea, to the north by Russia, to the southwest by Turkey, to the south by Armenia, and to the southeast by Azerbaijan. The capital of...
(as recounted in "Durch Barbarei, Arabia"), and was inducted into the Order of the Dragon
Order of the Dragon
The Order of the Dragon was a monarchical chivalric order for selected nobility,founded in 1408 by Sigismund, King of Hungary and later Holy Roman Emperor The Order of the Dragon (Latin Societas Draconistrarum) was a monarchical chivalric order for selected nobility,founded in 1408 by Sigismund,...
. He lived for a time in Seis am Schlern.
Life
Oswald's father was Friedrich von WolkensteinSëlva
Sëlva is a comune in the Val Gardena in South Tyrol, northern Italy, located about 70 km northeast of the city of Trento and about 30 km east of the city of Bolzano.-Geography:...
and his mother Katharina von Villanders. When he was ten years old, Oswald left his family and became squire
Squire
The English word squire is a shortened version of the word Esquire, from the Old French , itself derived from the Late Latin , in medieval or Old English a scutifer. The Classical Latin equivalent was , "arms bearer"...
of a knight errant. Oswald described the journeys undertaken by him in the following 14 years in his autobiographical song "Es fügt sich...", mentioning travels to Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
, Prussia
Prussia
Prussia was a German kingdom and historic state originating out of the Duchy of Prussia and the Margraviate of Brandenburg. For centuries, the House of Hohenzollern ruled Prussia, successfully expanding its size by way of an unusually well-organized and effective army. Prussia shaped the history...
, Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
, Crimea
Crimea
Crimea , or the Autonomous Republic of Crimea , is a sub-national unit, an autonomous republic, of Ukraine. It is located on the northern coast of the Black Sea, occupying a peninsula of the same name...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
, the Holy Land
Holy Land
The Holy Land is a term which in Judaism refers to the Kingdom of Israel as defined in the Tanakh. For Jews, the Land's identifiction of being Holy is defined in Judaism by its differentiation from other lands by virtue of the practice of Judaism often possible only in the Land of Israel...
, France, Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
and Spain, as well as being shipwrecked in the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
.
After the death of his father in 1399, Oswald returned to the Tyrol and began a drawn out quarrel with his older brother Michael about their inheritance. In 1401-1402 Oswald participated in the failed Italian expedition of King Rupert of Germany
Rupert of Germany
Rupert of Germany from the House of Wittelsbach was Elector Palatine from 1398 and German King from 1400 until his death...
. In 1407 he and his brother finally agreed on how to split the inheritance: Oswald received a third of Castle Hauenstein and the accompanying estates in Seis am Schlern. The other two thirds of the castle belong to a knight named Martin Jäger, but Oswald did not respect the property situation, occupying the entire castle and appropriating Jägers share of the tithe
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
. In 1408, in preparation for a pilgrimage to the Holy Land, Oswald paid for a memorial stone to be installed on the wall of the cathedral in Brixen
Brixen
Brixen is the name of two cities in the Alps:*Brixen, South Tyrol, Italy*Brixen im Thale, Tyrol, AustriaBrixen may also refer to:*Bishopric of Brixen, the former north-Italian state....
. The stone has survived, and shows him in the garb of a Crusader
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
, with the long beard associated with pilgrims. Before he left, he wrote several songs for his beloved, Anna Hausmann, the wife of the Brixner burgher Hans Hausmann. After his return in 1410 he acquired the right to take up residence in the Augustiner-Chorherren cloister Neustift near Brixen.
In 1414 Oswald became a member of the entourage of Friedrich IV
Frederick IV, Duke of Austria
Frederick IV, Duke of Further Austria , also known as Frederick of the Empty Pockets, was the Habsburg duke of Further Austria from 1402, and Count of Tyrol from 1406, until his death...
, Duke of Austria and Count of Tyrol at the Council of Constance
Council of Constance
The Council of Constance is the 15th ecumenical council recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, held from 1414 to 1418. The council ended the Three-Popes Controversy, by deposing or accepting the resignation of the remaining Papal claimants and electing Pope Martin V.The Council also condemned and...
(1414–1418); a portrait of Oswald can be found in the council's chronicle (by Ulrich von Richental). Oswald entered as diplomat in the service of Sigismund
Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor
Sigismund of Luxemburg KG was King of Hungary, of Croatia from 1387 to 1437, of Bohemia from 1419, and Holy Roman Emperor for four years from 1433 until 1437, the last Emperor of the House of Luxemburg. He was also King of Italy from 1431, and of Germany from 1411...
, King of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
and of Hungary. His first diplomatic voyage brought him to England, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
and Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, where he participated in the conquest of the Moorish city of Ceuta
Ceuta
Ceuta is an autonomous city of Spain and an exclave located on the north coast of North Africa surrounded by Morocco. Separated from the Iberian peninsula by the Strait of Gibraltar, Ceuta lies on the border of the Mediterranean Sea and the Atlantic Ocean. Ceuta along with the other Spanish...
(see Battle of Ceuta
Battle of Ceuta
The Battle of Ceuta and the subsequent conquest of the Wattasid city of Ceuta by the Portuguese had its roots in the earliest years of the House of Aviz dynasty of Portugal...
). In 1416 he joined King Sigismund in France and they travelled together back to Constance
Constance
Constance is a female given name that derives from Latin and means "constant." Variations of the name include Connie, Constancia, Constanze, Constanza, Stanzy, and Konstanze.Constance may refer to:-People:*Constance Bennett , American actress...
.
In 1417 Oswald married Margarete von Schwangau
Schwangau
Schwangau is a municipality in the district of Ostallgäu in Bavaria, Germany. The village lies 4 km from the larger town of Füssen and just 1.5 km from Hohenschwangau, a collection of tourist-oriented facilities adjacent to the major tourist attractions of Schloss Neuschwanstein and Schloss...
, with whom he would have seven children. Later that year he returned to Tyrol, where he joined the Elefantenbund, an alliance of noblemen against Friedrich IV
Frederick IV, Duke of Austria
Frederick IV, Duke of Further Austria , also known as Frederick of the Empty Pockets, was the Habsburg duke of Further Austria from 1402, and Count of Tyrol from 1406, until his death...
, who had been banned by King Sigismund for aiding the flight of Antipope John XXIII
Antipope John XXIII
Baldassarre Cossa was Pope John XXIII during the Western Schism. The Catholic Church regards him as an antipope.-Biography:...
from the Council of Constance. With the help of the local population, especially the peasants, Friedrich was able to resist the King and the nobles and from 1418 onwards Friedrich pursued his enemies within Tyrol vigorously. In September 1421 Oswald was lured by his lover Anna Hausmann into a trap and apprehended by Martin Jäger, who brought Oswald to Innsbruck
Innsbruck
- Main sights :- Buildings :*Golden Roof*Kaiserliche Hofburg *Hofkirche with the cenotaph of Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor*Altes Landhaus...
and handed him over to Count Friedrich. In March 1422 Friedrich, in exchange of a surety
Surety
A surety or guarantee, in finance, is a promise by one party to assume responsibility for the debt obligation of a borrower if that borrower defaults...
of 6,000 ducats and an oath to abjure all vengeance, released Oswald for the duration of five months, so that Oswald may settle his debts with Martin Jäger and other nobles. Oswald could not reach an agreement with his enemies and did not show up in Tirol Castle on August 24, 1422, opting rather to ride to Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
, where he met King Sigismund. Together they plotted a war against Friedrich. The war was started by Oswald's brother Michael who wrote to Friedrich on September 5, 1422: "Therefore I want to be your enemy and be in an alliance with your enemies."
In 1423 open hostilities culminated in the siege of Castle Greifenstein, during which Oswald with both his brothers was part of the castle's garrison. The siege was lifted in November 1423 through a successful sally. But because the burghers and peasants of Tyrol and the bishop of Brixen supported Count Friedrich, most of the nobles, including both brothers of Oswald, surrendered on December 17, 1423. Few nobles chose to continue to fight. The most prominent were: Hans von Villanders, the brothers Ulrich and Wilhelm von Starkenberg, who successfully defended castle Greifenstein for years to come, and Oswald, who in the end would be become the last to surrender.
In 1424 things calmed down and Oswald commissioned the Neustift monastery to create a manuscript of his songs. The calmness of the year was due to the new Binger Kurverein (Alliance of Bingen
Bingen am Rhein
Bingen am Rhein is a town in the Mainz-Bingen district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany.The settlement’s original name was Bingium, a Celtic word that may have meant “hole in the rock”, a description of the shoal behind the Mäuseturm, known as the Binger Loch. Bingen was the starting point for the...
) by the Empire's Kurfürsten
Prince-elector
The Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire were the members of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Roman king or, from the middle of the 16th century onwards, directly the Holy Roman Emperor.The heir-apparent to a prince-elector was known as an...
against Sigmund, who could not afford to fight three wars at once: the planned one against Friedrich, the brewing one against the Kurverein and the ongoing one against the Hussite
Hussite
The Hussites were a Christian movement following the teachings of Czech reformer Jan Hus , who became one of the forerunners of the Protestant Reformation...
s. On 17 February 1425, King and Count made peace on Castle Hornstein
Hornstein, Austria
Hornstein is a town in the district of Eisenstadt-Umgebung in Burgenland in Austria....
; Oswald was present.
Oswald returned to Tyrol to find himself completely penniless. Count Friedrich insisted on the payment of the 6,000 ducat surety
Surety
A surety or guarantee, in finance, is a promise by one party to assume responsibility for the debt obligation of a borrower if that borrower defaults...
. Oswald tried in vain to get hold of the money, and fled the Tyrol. In 1425 he resided in Castle Neuhaus near Gais
Gais
Gais is a municipality in the canton of Appenzell Ausserrhoden in Switzerland. The area of Gais is .In 1977 Gais received the Wakker Prize for the development and preservation of its architectural heritage...
, which at this point was not yet part of the County of Tyrol, but part of the County of Görz. Friedrich immediately used the peace with King Sigismund to renew the siege of Castle Greifenstein.
After Wilhelm von Starkenberg's capitulation on 26 November 1426, Oswald was the last nobleman feuding with Count Friedrich, and was summoned to the Landtag
Landtag
A Landtag is a representative assembly or parliament in German-speaking countries with some legislative authority.- Name :...
in Bozen. Oswald again fled Tyrol, but his flight was discovered. He was apprehended near Wasserburg
Wasserburg am Bodensee
Wasserburg am Bodensee is one of the three Bavarian municipalities on the shores of Lake Constance. It is a well known resort, sought out for the supposedly healthy nature of its atmosphere.-Parts of the municipality:...
on Lake Constance
Lake Constance
Lake Constance is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee , the Untersee , and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein.The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps...
, brought back to Tyrol, and imprisoned in Castle Vellenberg (later Castle Sonnenburg) in Innsbruck. Oswald now had no choice but to make peace with Count Friedrich, who forced him to pay Martin Jäger a compensation in exchange for the stolen tithes, and in the process allowed Oswald to acquire full ownership of Castle Hauenstein and its estates. Furthermore, Oswald had to swear to refrain from any contact with nobles from outside Tyrol unless sanctioned by Count Friedrich.
In 1428, Oswald broke his oath and travelled to Heidelberg to meet Kurfürst Ludwig von der Pfalz
Louis III, Elector Palatine
Louis III, Count Palatine of the Rhine , was an Elector Palatine of the Rhine from the house of Wittelsbach in 1410–1436....
, Archbishop of Cologne, Count Dietrich II von Moers and Duke Adolf VII von Jülich, with the aim to garner the help of the League of the Holy Court
League of the Holy Court
The Vehmic courts, Vehmgericht, holy vehme, or just the Vehm, also spelt Feme, are names given to a "proto-vigilante" tribunal system of Westphalia active during the later Middle Ages, based on a fraternal organisation of lay judges called “free judges” . The principal seat of the courts was in...
in a dispute with his cousin Hans von Villanders, who owed Oswald 2,200 ducats. While there, Oswald entered into a fray between the Domkapitel
Chapter (religion)
Chapter designates certain corporate ecclesiastical bodies in the Roman Catholic, Anglican and Nordic Lutheran churches....
of Brixen and the new Prince-Bishop of Brixen, Ulrich Putsch, who was a friend of Martin Jäger, a confidante of Count Friedrich, and soon-to-be bishop chancellor of the County of Tyrol. The clash culminated in a coup on 30 October 1429, supported by Friedrich and led by Oswald against the bishop, who while being a prisoner of Oswald was beaten publicly by him. Initially, King Sigismund backed Oswald, but when informed by the other side in the dispute, both Sigismund and Friedrich switched sides and reinstated bishop Ulrich.
In 1430 King Sigismund summoned the nobles of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
to a Reichstag
Reichstag (Holy Roman Empire)
The Imperial Diet was the Diet, or general assembly, of the Imperial Estates of the Holy Roman Empire.During the period of the Empire, which lasted formally until 1806, the Diet was not a parliament in today's sense; instead, it was an assembly of the various estates of the realm...
in the city of Nuremberg
Nuremberg
Nuremberg[p] is a city in the German state of Bavaria, in the administrative region of Middle Franconia. Situated on the Pegnitz river and the Rhine–Main–Danube Canal, it is located about north of Munich and is Franconia's largest city. The population is 505,664...
and Oswald with his brother Michael immediately left Tyrol to meet the King, who instead of going directly to Nuremberg undertook a two-month detour to the South German cities of Überlingen
Überlingen
Überlingen is a city on the northern shore of Lake Constance . After the city of Friedrichshafen, it is the second largest city in the Bodenseekreis , and a central point for the outlying communities...
and Constance
Constance
Constance is a female given name that derives from Latin and means "constant." Variations of the name include Connie, Constancia, Constanze, Constanza, Stanzy, and Konstanze.Constance may refer to:-People:*Constance Bennett , American actress...
to celebrate Christmas. During this period, Oswald wrote many songs of an erotic nature- the most famous being "Ain Graserin" (KL 76) about a bathing maid, whose "frizzy hair" between her legs leads a man to rape her on the spot. In Nuremberg, Oswald became a member of the first rank of the Order of the Dragon
Order of the Dragon
The Order of the Dragon was a monarchical chivalric order for selected nobility,founded in 1408 by Sigismund, King of Hungary and later Holy Roman Emperor The Order of the Dragon (Latin Societas Draconistrarum) was a monarchical chivalric order for selected nobility,founded in 1408 by Sigismund,...
- a rank King Sigismund awarded only to two dozen nobles. Along with the honor came the obligation to participate in Sigismund's disastrous expedition against the Hussites in Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
in 1431 (see also Hussite Wars
Hussite Wars
The Hussite Wars, also called the Bohemian Wars involved the military actions against and amongst the followers of Jan Hus in Bohemia in the period 1419 to circa 1434. The Hussite Wars were notable for the extensive use of early hand-held gunpowder weapons such as hand cannons...
). Oswald experienced firsthand the mass flight of the 130,000-strong Imperial army on 14 August 1431 when the entire Imperial army panicked
Battle of Domažlice
The Battle of Domažlice or Battle of Taus was fought on August 14, 1431 as the part of the 5th crusade against Hussites. The crusade was sent to Bohemia after the negotiations they were held in Pressburg and Cheb between Hussites and the emperor Sigismund had failed.The Imperial army was...
after sighting the 50,000-strong Hussite army approaching and singing.
Sigismund sent Oswald back to Tyrol to prepare the county for an expected Hussite invasion of the Empire and invited the Hussites to the Council of Basel to negotiate. Sigismund himself fled to Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
and later to Piacenza
Piacenza
Piacenza is a city and comune in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Piacenza...
under the pretext that he had to go now to Rome to be crowned emperor. During this time Oswald commissioned the cloister Neustift to create a second manuscript collection of his songs. Sigismund called him to join him in Piacenza and Oswald obliged. The unpleasantness of his visit inspired him to write the complaint-song "Wer die ougen vil verschüren", which he set to a French melody. In May of the same year, Oswald was sent by Sigismund to Basel. After over a year of negotiations, Sigismund was crowned Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
on 31 May 1433 by Pope Eugenius IV, with Oswald probably in attendance.
During the next years, Oswald's life settled down, and almost no reports of fights, brawls or trials are preserved. This changed with the death of Count Friedrich on 24 June 1439. As the heir Sigismund
Sigismund, Archduke of Austria
Sigismund of Austria, Duke, then Archduke of Further Austria was a Habsburg archduke of Austria and ruler of Tirol from 1446 to 1490....
was only twelve years old at the time, a guardian had to be found until Sigismund came of age. The Landstände
Landtag
A Landtag is a representative assembly or parliament in German-speaking countries with some legislative authority.- Name :...
of Tyrol choose Sigismund’s uncle Friedrich V, Duke of Austria
Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick the Peaceful KG was Duke of Austria as Frederick V from 1424, the successor of Albert II as German King as Frederick IV from 1440, and Holy Roman Emperor as Frederick III from 1452...
. The contracts of the guardianship were put in Oswald's care. Oswald used the opportunity to seek the assistance of Friedrich V in his eighteen-year long legal wrangling with Hans von Villanders (over bonds Oswald had given his cousin to hold).
When the guardianship of Sigismund ended on 25 July 1443 and Friedrich, now King Friedrich III of the Holy Roman Empire, decided to prolong it for another six years, the Landstände of Tyrol organized an open revolt. Oswald became one of five military commanders and was tasked with the defence of the most important of all positions, the Mühlbacher Klause (Mühlbach fortress), which blocked the most likely invasion route from Styria, where King Friedrich had taken up residence. The cities of Meran and Bozen provided funds and troops to reinforce the fortress, and all other passes and entrances into Tyrol were blocked by troops. As the city of Trento
Trento
Trento is an Italian city located in the Adige River valley in Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol. It is the capital of Trentino...
backed the King, an army of 3,000 men was sent south to besiege the city. On 10 December, a Tyrolean delegation arrived in Graz
Graz
The more recent population figures do not give the whole picture as only people with principal residence status are counted and people with secondary residence status are not. Most of the people with secondary residence status in Graz are students...
to demand the release of Sigismund and the return of the county's treasures, taken by Friedrich in 1440. Friedrich refused and threatened war. The Tyroleans responded by sacking Trento and electing Johann Röttel as the new bishop on 4 January 1440. Röttel's first declaration was to fully support the Landstände against the King. Oswald was one of the electors and the main instigator of this election. The next session by the Landstände began in Meran on 16 May 1445, and as it was now clear that King Friedrich was not planning an attack, options were discussed on how to bring Sigismund to Tyrol.
Oswald died on 2 August 1445 in Meran, succumbing to an intense heatwave. His offices were taken over by Ulrich von Matsch. His body was brought to Monastery Neustift (Vahrn
Vahrn
Vahrn is a comune in South Tyrol in the Italian region Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, located about 90 kilometres northeast of the city of Trento and about 35 km northeast of the city of Bolzano.-Geography:...
) and buried near the font in the monastery's church, where his grave was rediscovered in 1973.
He is one of the most important composers of the early German Renaissance, and his melodies are of high quality. There are three main topics of his work: travel, God
God
God is the English name given to a singular being in theistic and deistic religions who is either the sole deity in monotheism, or a single deity in polytheism....
and sex
Sexual intercourse
Sexual intercourse, also known as copulation or coitus, commonly refers to the act in which a male's penis enters a female's vagina for the purposes of sexual pleasure or reproduction. The entities may be of opposite sexes, or they may be hermaphroditic, as is the case with snails...
.
Oswald's poems are preserved in three manuscripts:
- MS A (Vienna), 42 songs completed 1425, addition of another 66 poems 1427-1436.
- MS B (Innsbruck): 1432
- MS C (Innsbruck-Trostburg): 1450, copy of B.
Mss A and B were completed under the supervision of Oswald himself, and both contain a depiction of the author, qualifying as the earliest authentic depictions of a German author.
Editions
- [MS A] Oswald von Wolkenstein. Die Gedichte, ed. J. Schatz. 2nd ed. Göttingen 1904.
- [MS B] Die Lieder Oswalds von Wolkenstein, ed. K. K. Klein. 3rd ed. H. Moser, N. R. Wolf, N. Wolf, Tübingen 1987.
- [MS C] Die Gedichte Oswalds von Wolkenstein. Mit Einleitung, Wortbuch und Varianten, ed. B. Weber, Innsbruck 1847.
- Classen, Albrecht: The Poems of Oswald Von Wolkenstein: An English Translation of the Complete Works. (1376/77-1445) The New Middle Ages. Palgrave 2008, ISBN 978-0230609853