House of Helfenstein
| House of Helfenstein | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Country | County of Helfenstein |
| Titles | Count |
| Founded | Around 1100 |
| Founder | Eberhard of Helfenstein |
| Final ruler | Georg I (Helfenstein-Blaubeuren)/Rudolph II (Helfenstein-Wiesensteig) |
| Current head | Extinct |
| Dissolution | Helfenstein-Blaubeuren in 1517, Helfenstein-Wiesensteig on 20 September 1627 |
| Cadet branches | Helfenstein-Blaubeuren, Helfenstein-Wiesensteig |
The House of Helfenstein was a German noble family during the High and Late Middle Ages. The family was named after the family castle, Castle Helfenstein, located above Geislingen an der Steige in the Swabian Alb region of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The family held the rank of Graf or Count and was very significant in the 13th and 14th Centuries, but fell into financial difficulties and the family died out by 1627.
The House of Helfenstein used an elephant on their coat of arms. According to one source, the elephant is a type of Namenwappen (German: Coat of Arms from a name), in this case Helfenstein became Elefanten or elephant because of similarity between the sounds. A more fanciful source claims that the elephant comes from the first ancestor of the family, Helfrich, a citizen of Rome in 225 AD, a captain of the 5th Legion of Veterans based in Germany and the Lord of the Fils River. Because his legion had fought against Hannibal four centuries earlier, Helfrich acquired an elephant for his coat of arms from the Legion's emblem.
While the ancestral castle, Burg Helfenstein, was built around 1100 the family may originate about three centuries earlier. Ulric Helfenstein was appointed Second Provost at an earlier Blaubeuren Abbey by Charlemagne in 800. His son Rudolf was born around 820. On 12 December 861 he founded the church at Wiesensteig. Later he also founded the Cyriasus Abbey in Wiesensteig.
It is possible that the Counts from Vils (Fils) were the ancestors of the House of Helfenstein, because in 1060 the Archbishop of Salzburg, Gebhard of Salzburg (from the Counts of Vils) was also known as Gebhard von Helfenstein. This connection is debated.
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