Borders by Horse Circuit
1699: The acquisition of the Thurnau jurisdiction
When Margrave Christian Ernst von Brandenburg-Bayreuth found himself confronted with growing debt, he warmed up to the idea of “selling” Thurnau. He thus bestowed unto Hans Georg von Giech the “high jurisdiction, cent and lineage in and around Thurnau, Peesten and other localities under the dominion of Thurnau.” The borders were redefined accordingly through a “circuit by horse” and marked via some 45 cent stones. Cent stones are landmarks used to indicate legal and spatial borders. They were used to indicate a cent, a form of both judicial and administrative district in the Holy Roman Empire, usually containing some 100 Families. Though their specific responsibilities could vary widely, they generally included jurisdiction and administrative work, such as maintaining a place of execution.
1726: Disputing the legal status of county Thurnau
In 1726 the Counts von Giech received both “seat and vote in the Franconian Reichsgrafenkollegium and Reichskreis.” Not only did this elevate them into said Imperial circle but also ensured them a certain degree of sovereignty and, in theory, a status equal to larger and mightier principalities. This allowed for a more confident policy towards the margravate, as both the Kreistag and Reichskreis could be used to file grievances against another Imperial count.
This had already transpired in 1710, when the counts von Giech had found themselves censured by the knighthood of the Reichskreis after having issued a map of Thurnau which marked it as a county even though this privilege had not been granted to them only two years prior. The fact that the Counts von Giech tried to use visual accents to gain the status of a county for their own territory shows particularly how close the connection between "borders", their location and representation, and the importance of the territory they enclosed was (and still is). Remarkably, by merely printing a map which designated Thurnau as a county did the counts try and acquire a seat in the Reichsgrafenkollegium and Reichskreis. It came thus as no surprise that the remaining Imperial counts immediately moved to prevent and sanction this rather audacious endeavour.
References
Literature:
Thurnau – 1239 bis zum Ende des Alten Reiches. Ersch. in: Markt Thurnau (Hrsg.): Thurnau 1239-1989. Bayreuth, 1989. S.9-16. S.12.
Authors: Luca Kost, Wolfgang Ficht
