Berthold II, Count of Andechs
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Berthold II | |
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Count of Andechs | |
Born | before 1099 |
Died | 27 June 1151 |
Noble family | House of Andechs |
Spouse(s) | Sophia of Istria Kunigunde of Formbach-Pitten |
Issue | Berthold I of Istria Mechtildis of Edelstetten |
Father | Count Arnold of Dießen |
Mother | Gisela of Schweinfurt |
Berthold II of Andechs (also known as Berthold IV, Berchtold, or Bertholf; before 1099 – 27 June 1151), a member of the House of Andechs, was a German nobleman. He was a ruling count of Dießen and Andechs in the Duchy of Bavaria, of Plassenburg and Kulmbach in Franconia, as well as bailiff of Benediktbeuern Abbey.
Life
Berthold's ancestry has not been conclusively established. According to the Europäische Stammtafeln genealogy, he was probably the elder son and heir of Count Arnold of Dießen (d. 1098) and his wife Gisela of Schweinfurt, a daughter of Duke Otto III of Swabia. He thereby was a grandson of Count Frederick II of Dießen (d. 1075).
In 1098, he inherited his father's Bavarian possessions around the
Around 1100, Berthold built a new residence on a hill outside Andechs, which later became the site of Andechs Abbey. A little later, in the early 1130s, he built Plassenburg Castle north of Bayreuth; from 1137, he styled himself "Count of Plassenburg". He probably founded the town of Kulmbach around the same time at the foot of the hill below Plassenburg Castle; the town is first mentioned in contemporary sources in 1174.
He was married to
.After 1140, Berthold spent much of his time at the court of King
Marriage and issue
Berthold married twice. His first wife was Sophia, a daughter of Margrave Poppo II of Carniola (d. 1103), a member of the House of Weimar-Orlamünde. Together, they had the following children:
- Poppo (d. 1148)
- Berthold III (d. 1188)
- Bambergfrom 1177 until his death as Otto II.
- Gisela (d. after 1150), married Count Diepold II of Berg-Schelklingen (d. 1160/1165)
After Sophia's death, he married Kunigunde, a daughter of Count Egbert II of Formbach-Pitten, the heiress of Formbach. With her, he had the following children:
- Mechtildis (d. 1160), Abbess of Edelstetten Abbey
- Euphemia (d. 1180), abbess of Altmünster Abbey
- Kunigunde (d. 1139), a nun at Admont Abbey