|
a.
|
Note: at pride in his ancestry - which far outshone that of his family�s hereditary enemies, the Cirksenas - but was aware that noble blood alone counts for nothing.
This is expressed in his personal motto, which he had inscribed on the chimney-piece in his sleeping quarters in the Castle of Esens:
"Wer das wohl doht, der ist hochgeboren: Sonder doghede ist de adel verloren."
(He who serves the common good is nobly born: Without right actions, nobility is forlorn.)
On the other side, because he was, ultimately, personally ruined by his enemies (notably the City of Bremen and the upstart Cirksenas), strongly-biased "victor�s history" plays a significant role in the subsequent evaluation of Balthasar, as indeed it does for his father Hero II Omken. However, he won the love and loyalty of his people, and this was mutual. His reputation as the colourful "Junker Balthasar" or "Ritter Balthasar" rests on his popularity amongst the "ordinary" people. He was, after all, primarily interested in defending his people and his territory from the encroachments of the overpowerful, unscrupulous Cirksenas and the mean-minded, mercantile exploitation of the city of Bremen. A measure of his success is that he succeeded in winning City rights/status for Esens in the early 1500�s. Clearly this made him popular among his own people and hated by commercially-focussed rivals such as the Bremen merchants who determined to use their financial clout to engineer his downfall.
As a result of Balthasar�s efforts, and as a measure of the place he held (and continues to hold) in the hearts of the people, he features in a number of popular stories and legends, including that of "The Bear of Esens".
(from remarks contributed by Balthasar�s kinsman, A. Oomkens, ) in a paper of circa 1880.
Note: Balthasar holds a controversial place among the many controversial characters of the period. He has had very much a "mixed press". On the one side, he was a "flower of chivalry" with the noblest conceptions of duty and loyalty. He took gre
|
