Von Schmidt auf Altenstadt
Encyclopedia
Von Schmidt auf Altenstadt, (also von) was a German
noble family whose seat was at Schloss Gattendorf
outside Hof, Bavaria
near the Czech
border. Also known as Schmidt von Altenstadt, it had branches in other countries including the Netherlands
, and Russia
, where its members also distinguished themselves. In 1861, one branch received a baronial title from the King of Württemberg
.
form "Fabricius", in order to attract the attention of the Emperor. He served Maximilian II
against the Turks
and was given a coat of arms
by the imperial
Letters Patent of 2 November
1564. His son Martin was ennobled on 10 December
1577. They were granted a swan coat-of-arms where the swan is in an attack position on the shield; this is repeated in miniature "above the crown".
In 1638 the Fabricius family reverted to their former surname of Schmidt and on 23 February
1713 were granted the additive "auf Altenstadt". The native city of the family was Hof
but they had a village called Schmidt where there was a castle called Burg Hengebach four miles away from the town of Heimbach
.
On 18 October 1712/23 February 1713 the Emperor Charles VI
granted augmentation of a knight's arm holding a sword to the swan coat-of-arms, to heirs Anton Johann Christoph, Johann Georg, and Christopher Wolf (successive lords of Gattendorf). The three brothers succeeded each other, one after the other, as lords of Gattendorf; the first two died without heirs. The third brother had children and the line continued.
Hans-Georg Schmidt von Altenstadt (21 August 1904 − 25 July 1944) was the last baron von Altenstadt of the castle Schloss Gattendorf and the last in life of the aristocratic family Von Schmidt auf Altenstadt. He reached the rank of Generalmajor 1 July 1944. Although the family is officially extinct, genetic connections to the family are still to be found in the United States.
Hans-Georg Schmidt von Altenstadt was the author of the book, "Unser Weg zur Meer" {http://biblioman.es/articleHistoricaAntiqua5759/32744.htm}.
The family's Schloss castle is now a hotel The swan coat-of-arms can still be seen carved above the stone entryway to the castle; it is run by the city of Gattendorf.
. He erected the Hof memorial stone and was created "Baron of the Russian Empire" and awarded knighthoods in the orders of Sts. Ann-and-Vladimir and the Order of St. Stanislaus, Russia's highest order, after serving as Kollegianrat (Provost) of the University of St. Petersburg. His daughter by his second marriage (1824) to Eudoxia Bruce, Eudoxia Schmidt von Altenstadt (born 1825, a goddaughter of Czar Alexander I shortly before his death), married a Russian nobleman (Alexander Gordon) and his grandsons, Peter and Paul Gordon lived at Neva Beach, St. Petersburg, Russia. Theresien Schmidts Gedenkstein is an important monument in the city of Hof, Bavaria.
The municipality of Gattendorf elected to adopt a version of the coat of arms posthumously in 1974 to commemorate the family.
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
noble family whose seat was at Schloss Gattendorf
Gattendorf
Gattendorf is a municipality in Upper Franconia in the district of Hof in Bavaria in Germany.The distinctive swan coat-of-arms of the municipality of Gattendorf was adopted as municipal coat-of-arms in 1974 after the extinction, in 1944, of the local noble family von Schmidt auf Altenstadt....
outside Hof, Bavaria
Hof, Germany
Hof is a city located on the banks of the Saale in the northeastern corner of the German state of Bavaria, in the Franconia region, at the Czech border and the forested Fichtelgebirge and Frankenwald upland regions....
near the Czech
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
border. Also known as Schmidt von Altenstadt, it had branches in other countries including the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, where its members also distinguished themselves. In 1861, one branch received a baronial title from the King of Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
.
Von Schmidt auf Altenstadt
Johann Fabricius , originally surnamed Schmidt, had altered his name to the LatinLatin
Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
form "Fabricius", in order to attract the attention of the Emperor. He served Maximilian II
Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor
Maximilian II was king of Bohemia and king of the Romans from 1562, king of Hungary and Croatia from 1563, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation from 1564 until his death...
against the Turks
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
and was given a coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
by the imperial
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...
Letters Patent of 2 November
November
November is the 11th month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of four months with the length of 30 days. November was the ninth month of the ancient Roman calendar...
1564. His son Martin was ennobled on 10 December
December
December is the 12th and last month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian Calendars and one of seven months with the length of 31 days.December starts on the same day as September every year and ends on the same day as April every year.-Etymology:...
1577. They were granted a swan coat-of-arms where the swan is in an attack position on the shield; this is repeated in miniature "above the crown".
In 1638 the Fabricius family reverted to their former surname of Schmidt and on 23 February
February
February is the second month of the year in the Julian and Gregorian calendars. It is the shortest month and the only month with fewer than 30 days. The month has 28 days in common years and 29 days in leap years...
1713 were granted the additive "auf Altenstadt". The native city of the family was Hof
Hof
Hof may refer to:In places:* Hof, Germany, a city in Bavaria, Germany** Hof , a district in Bavaria* Hof, Rhineland-Palatinate, a municipality in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany* Hof, Iceland, a small village in Iceland...
but they had a village called Schmidt where there was a castle called Burg Hengebach four miles away from the town of Heimbach
Heimbach
Heimbach is a town in the district of Düren in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is located on the river Rur, in the Eifel hills, approx. 20 km south of Düren. Heimbach is the city with the smallest number of residents in North Rhine-Westphalia...
.
On 18 October 1712/23 February 1713 the Emperor Charles VI
Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor
Charles VI was the penultimate Habsburg sovereign of the Habsburg Empire. He succeeded his elder brother, Joseph I, as Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia , Hungary and Croatia , Archduke of Austria, etc., in 1711...
granted augmentation of a knight's arm holding a sword to the swan coat-of-arms, to heirs Anton Johann Christoph, Johann Georg, and Christopher Wolf (successive lords of Gattendorf). The three brothers succeeded each other, one after the other, as lords of Gattendorf; the first two died without heirs. The third brother had children and the line continued.
Hans-Georg Schmidt von Altenstadt (21 August 1904 − 25 July 1944) was the last baron von Altenstadt of the castle Schloss Gattendorf and the last in life of the aristocratic family Von Schmidt auf Altenstadt. He reached the rank of Generalmajor 1 July 1944. Although the family is officially extinct, genetic connections to the family are still to be found in the United States.
Hans-Georg Schmidt von Altenstadt was the author of the book, "Unser Weg zur Meer" {http://biblioman.es/articleHistoricaAntiqua5759/32744.htm}.
The family's Schloss castle is now a hotel The swan coat-of-arms can still be seen carved above the stone entryway to the castle; it is run by the city of Gattendorf.
The Dutch branch
The Dutch branch was established by a daughter of the family in the fifth generation: (5) Maria Magdalena (6 November 1725 - 10 March 1781) married Dutch nobleman Johann Caspar von Scheidlin who took the name of von Schmidt auf Altenstadt on marriage and is the ancestor of the branch that uses the title "Jonkheer", with descent to modern days.- Johann George Otto Stuart von Schmidt auf Altenstadt (b.1806 Sint-Oedenrode, d.1857 the HagueThe HagueThe Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
), was a Governor-General of the Dutch Guyana in 1852-55. - Peter von Schmidt auf Altenstadt is partner at Houthoff BurumaHouthoff BurumaHouthoff Buruma is a Dutch law firm, headquartered in Amsterdam. With over 300 legal professionals, Houthoff Buruma is one of the largest law firms in the Netherlands.-Awards:* Selected 'Benelux Law Firm of the Year 2010' by The Lawyer...
in The HagueThe HagueThe Hague is the capital city of the province of South Holland in the Netherlands. With a population of 500,000 inhabitants , it is the third largest city of the Netherlands, after Amsterdam and Rotterdam...
. He held the position of president of the Netherlands Bar Association from 1998 to 2000.
The Russian branch
Christoph August von Schmidt was ennobled by Tsar Aleksandr I of RussiaAlexander I of Russia
Alexander I of Russia , served as Emperor of Russia from 23 March 1801 to 1 December 1825 and the first Russian King of Poland from 1815 to 1825. He was also the first Russian Grand Duke of Finland and Lithuania....
. He erected the Hof memorial stone and was created "Baron of the Russian Empire" and awarded knighthoods in the orders of Sts. Ann-and-Vladimir and the Order of St. Stanislaus, Russia's highest order, after serving as Kollegianrat (Provost) of the University of St. Petersburg. His daughter by his second marriage (1824) to Eudoxia Bruce, Eudoxia Schmidt von Altenstadt (born 1825, a goddaughter of Czar Alexander I shortly before his death), married a Russian nobleman (Alexander Gordon) and his grandsons, Peter and Paul Gordon lived at Neva Beach, St. Petersburg, Russia. Theresien Schmidts Gedenkstein is an important monument in the city of Hof, Bavaria.
The municipality of Gattendorf elected to adopt a version of the coat of arms posthumously in 1974 to commemorate the family.
External Links
- Portrait of a member of the Dutch Branch who was Gouverneur-General of Java.