Sigismund von Herberstein

Baron Sigismund von Herberstein, (1486-1566), Austrian diplomat, writer and historian, was born in Herberstein Castle at Wippach in the region of Styria in Austria. He was most noted for his extensive writing on the geography, history and customs of Russia and contributed greatly to Western European knowledge of the area.

Early Life

Herberstein was born in 1486 to Leonhard von Herberstein and Barbara von Lueg, members of the prominent German Herberstein family which had already resided in Herberstein Castle for nearly 200 years. Little is known of his early life apart from the fact that he became familiar with the Slovenian language spoken in the region. This knowledge became significant later in his life.

In 1499 he entered the University of Vienna to study philosophy and law. In 1506 he entered the army as an officer and served in a number of campaigns. In 1508 he was knighted by the Emperor Maximillian I personally. In 1515 he entered the Imperial council, or Parliament, and began a long and illustrious diplomatic career.

Diplomatic Career Summary

Between 1515 and 1553, Herberstein carried out approximately 69 missions abroad, travelling throughout much of Europe, including Turkey. He was feted by the ruling Habsburgs and rewarded with titles and estates. He was twice sent to Russia as the Austrian ambassador, in 1517 to attempt to arrange a truce between Russia and Lithuania, and in 1526 to renew a treaty between the two signed in 1522. These extended visits (nine months in his 1517 visit) provided him the opportunity to study a hitherto largely unknown Russian society.

Writing on Russia

He probably wrote his first account of life in Russia between 1517 and 1527, but no copy of this survives. In 1526 he was asked to produce a formal report on his experinces in Russia, but this remained relatively unnoticed in the archives until he was able to find time to revise and expand it, which he possibly started in the 1530s.

The evidence suggests that Herberstein was an energetic and capable ethnographer. He investigated in depth both by questioning locals and by critically examining the scarce existing literature on Russia.

The result was his major work, a book written in Latin titled Rerum Moscoviticarum Commentarii (Notes on the Muscovites), published in 1549. This became the main early source of knowledge in Western Europe on Russia. He contributed greatly to a European image of Russia that lasted several centuries.