Günther (Schwarzburg) von Schwarzburg (abt. 1304 - 1349)

Born about 1304 in Blankenburg, Grafschaft Schwarzburg, Heiliges Römisches Reich

Ancestors

Descendants

Died 14 Jun 1349 at about age 45 in Frankfurt am Main, Freie Reichsstadt, Heiliges Römisches Reich

Biography

Günther XXI, in other sources IX, von Schwarzburg was born between 1302 and 1305, with 1304 most often listed, in the castle Blankenburg, now called Greifenstein.^[1][2] He married Elisabeth von Honstein before 9 Sep 1331.^[2]

After having been a diplomat in the service of emperor Ludwig IV he was persuaded by the Wittelsbach party to stand as their candidate for German king. On 30 Jan 1349 he was elected anti-king to Karl IV. Karl IV succeeded quickly in bringing Günther's supporters to his side and after defeat at the battle of Eltville am Rhein and already seriously ill Günther relinquished his claim 26 May 1349. He died shortly after on 14 Jun 1349 in the Johanniterkloster in Frankfurt, most likely of the plague. Rumors supported by himself he was poisoned have not been able to be verified.^[3]

Sources

1. ↑ Günther von Schwarzburg, erwählter Römischer König, Friedrich Lorenz Hoffmann, Hof-Buch u. Kunsthandl., 1819, p. 58
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Detlev Schwennicke: Europäische Stammtafeln, Neue Folge, Band I.3, Tafel 315, Verlag: Vittorio Klostermann, Frankfurt a. M. 2000, quoted in Stammliste des Hauses Schwarzburg
3. ↑ Opitz, Gottfried, "Günther" in: Neue Deutsche Biographie 7 (1966), S. 263 (Online-Version)