Family Partition

Engelhard of Auersperg and his brother Volkhard both found their brides beyond the borders of Carniola. Volker, the founder of the Schönberg (Šumberk) branch, found it in Viltuš in Styria, and Engelhard in Königsberg in Lower Austria. In 1440, Engelhard married Scholastica of Königsberg, acquiring additional lands through the marriage. He is remembered above all as a determined defender of the interests of the Auersperg family.

After assuming control of the lordship of Turjak, Engelhard engaged in a series of legal disputes that enabled him to expand the family’s estates. By purchasing estates around the castle, he gradually pushed aside smaller rival lords and consolidated his territory. In doing so, he also strengthened his power and prestige. 

The Auerspergs had already begun acquiring estates beyond the borders of Carniola in the second half of the 14^th century. By the second half of the 15^th century, the Auerspergs were already closely intertwined with the noble families of the neighboring regions of Carinthia, Styria, and Austria.

Titles and the Enhancement of Prestige 

Engelhard of Auersperg forged political alliances at the highest imperial level. As early as 1455, Emperor Frederick III granted him the hereditary office of chamberlain in Carniola and the Slovene March in place of his deceased relative Herbard. In 1463, he was granted the title of hereditary marshal of Carniola as a reward for his support of the emperor in his dispute with his brother, Duke Albert. This title became an integral part of the official designation of all male members of the family. 

A Fraternal Settlement 

Engelhard of Auersperg did not have conflicts with his brother Volker (1401–1455). The two successfully agreed on the division of their inheritance: Engelhard continued the main line at Turjak, while Volker inherited the Schönberg (Šumberk) branch of the family and established what would later become its distinct line. After the deaths of both brothers, their descendants – cousins within the Auersperg family – confirmed the division of the lineage in 1467. They sealed it with a famous deed of partition, now preserved in the Provincial Archives in Klagenfurt. Volker’s sons received the Schönberg inheritance, including the estates of Schönberg and Žužemberk, as well as parts of White Carniola, forming the Schönberg branch. Engelhard’s sons retained the central Turjak estates with their surrounding lands and continued the main line of the Auersperg family.