House of Plettenberg
The House of Plettenberg is a Westphalian noble family of the Uradel. It dates back at least to 1187, when Heidolphus de Plettenbrath was mentioned in a document by Philip I (Archbishop of Cologne).[1] Two branches of the family still exist today: the Counts of Plettenberg-Schwarzenberg (Protestant) and the Counts of Plettenberg-Lenhausen (Roman Catholic).
Notable members
- Wolter von Plettenberg (around 1450–1535), Master of the Livonian Order
- Gertrud von Plettenberg (15??–1608), royal mistress of Prince-Elector-Archbishop of Cologne Ernest of Bavaria
- Friedrich Christian von Plettenberg (1644–1706), Prince-Bishop of Münster
- Ferdinand von Plettenberg (1690–1737), Prime Minister of Archbishop-Elector Clemens August of Bavaria
- Joachim van Plettenberg (1739–1793), Governor of the Cape of Good Hope and founder of Plettenberg Bay
- Karl von Plettenberg (1852–1938), General of the Infantry, Commandant-General of the Guards Corps and Adjutant General of the German Kaiser
- Kurt von Plettenberg (1891–1945), plenipotentiary of the House of Hohenzollern (the royal house of Prussia), one of the inner circle of the July 20th plot against Hitler