Starting position of the Swabian League , 1522 The Swabian League, which can be viewed as a first attempt at a peacekeeping force, was asked for help by the
Imperial City of Nuremberg. The alliance had been created in order to assist its members in the preservation of the
Landfriede. The Swabian League, which as its name suggests, had its roots in Swabia was made up of Swabian and Franconian Imperial Circles, as well as various Franconian Imperial Cities and territorial lords, for example, the
Prince-Bishopric of Würzburg. Under the leadership of Nuremberg, the League began to raise a powerful army comprising contingents of its member states. The list of castles that Nuremberg wanted to have destroyed was long - in negotiations among the members of the League, agreement was finally reached in 1522 on the castles that were then to be attacked. According to
Roth von Schreckenstein, members of the Swabian League included the following Bavarian, Franconian and Swabian noble families:
Seckendorff,
Stain,
Reischach,
Wellwart,
Schwendi,
Echter,
Torringer,
Seibolstorff,
Nothaft,
Preysing,
Nußberg,
Hundt,
Freiberg,
Auer,
Löffelholz,
Ehingen,
Hürnheim,
Sotzingen,
Thumb,
Gültlingen,
Rieringen,
Ow zu
Wachendorf, and
Knöringen. In addition they were joined by various
counts of Oettingen. An exact contemporary listing is found in the Bamburg Castle Book.
Starting position of the robber barons around Hans Thomas Absberg Various factors led to the steady decline of the knighthood, for example, the decline in their importance compared with the territorial states or cities with thriving trade relations and even the loss of their function in raising troops for war. Noble families who had successfully dealt with this structural change usually presented themselves for service to territorial princes or the Emperor and were given important posts such as
Hofmeister or
Amtmann. Nevertheless, Hans Thomas Absberg had strong backing among the Franconian knights; his closest followers came from prominent families, like the
Rosenbergs,
Thüngens,
Guttenbergs,
Wirsbergs,
Sparnecks, and
Aufseßes. Many of the small estates into which the Franconian region was politically divided benefited from his raids. Besides In addition to imperially free estates, the borders of the bishoprics of
Bamberg and Würzburg,
Brandenburg-Kulmbach and the road to
Bohemia and
Saxony all lay close together.
Wider political context The Swabian League not only took its duty seriously to provide assistance for the city of Nuremberg as a member of the League, but also had a cause for concern because of a connection between the banned
Ulrich of Württemberg and the rebel knight,
Franz von Sickingen. Von Sickingen's raids extended as far as Trier and he had strong support in the central German knighthood. Even when Von Sickingen died in May 1523 of his war wounds, the Palatine
Knights' War and
German Peasants' War erupted a few years later, causing widespread unrest that endangered the growing power of the principalities.
Destruction by the Swabian League in 1523 Before the army of the Swabian League marched, the knights who had broken the
Landfrieden were given the opportunity to repent and swear an oath of purgation (
Reinigungseid). Some of them took the oath and were thus released from further punishment, others were not permitted to take the oath, still others ignored the offer.
Woodcarver and "
war correspondent" captured the events of 1523 in 23 carvings. At the end of the campaign, some families were able to reconcile with the Swabian League and their estates were restored in return for a sum of gold and the promise that they would respect the peace. Other knights continued their rampaging in the company of Thomas of Absberg, so that, even in 1527, various communities established mounted patrols in order to guard against the raids.
Aftermath Horst Carl sees in the events of 1523 a defining moment for Franconia and Swabia. The picture of "Franconian troublemakers and Swabian law enforcers" (
fränkischen Unruhestiftern und schwäbischen Ordnungshütern) has had lasting influence on both regions in terms of their self-portrayal and their view of the other region. == See also ==