In the year 1243 the male line became extinct in the person of Count Lothar. The heritage of the Counts of Wied then fell to Bruno, Count of Isenburg, who was married to the heiress of the House of Wied and took the name. At the death of Count William in 1462 the inheritance fell, in default of a male heir, to Frederick of Runkel, of the House of Leiningen-Westerburg. His mother was Anastasia of Isenburg-Wied, a niece of Count William.
Count Frederick of Runkel-Wied then became the founder of the now flourishing dynasty of the Princes of Wied.
Amongst his descendants, let us first mention Herman of Wied, Elector and Archbishop of Cologne from 1515 to 1547. He was born on the 14th January 1477, and was the fourth son of Count Frederick of Wied-Runkel and the Countess Agnes of Virneburg: already in his sixth year he received a benefice in the Chapter of the Cologne Cathedral. At fifteen he became Canon of the Cathedral, and on the 15th of March 1515 he was elected Archbishop of Cologne. He reigned during the time of the most bitter religious strife. Although at first an implacable enemy of the Reformation, he was soon overcome by the power of the Gospel. Archbishop Herman declared himself a believer in the doctrines of Luther, sent for Protestant preachers, and corresponded actively with Luther and Melancthon. Martin Butzer, the Strasburg Reformer, was invited by him to Bonn, to work out a plan for the ordering of the doctrines of the Reformation. At Easter 1543 Archbishop Herman dispensed the Holy Communion according to the rites of the Lutheran Church. A few weeks later Melancthon came from Wittenburg, and Pistorius from Hesse to confer with the Archbishop. His rivals and enemies now denounced him to the Pope and to the Emperor. He, however, declared calmly and decidedly that “at his age, and with one foot in the grave, he had held it to be his Christian duty to study the Bible and religious works himself, and to seek the advice of the learned. He could by no means depart from the conclusions he had thus come to, nor deny his convictions, which were of the greatest importance to his salvation and that of all true seekers after God. Whether unjustifiable machinations should succeed in dethroning him he would leave in God’s hands. If the worst should befall him, he would close his life as he was born, a simple Count of Wied, but he would never cease to be the champion of the true faith.”
After this he was excommunicated by Paul III. In order to preserve the country committed to his charge from the misery of war, which must otherwise inevitably have arisen, Count Herman renounced the Archbishopric. For thirty-one years he had gloriously fulfilled the duties of his difficult office, and accomplished the arduous task with true German conscientiousness and Christian piety. He now returned to Altwied, the cradle of his race. In our days one can still see the extensive ruins of the old Castle, which crown a rocky summit, standing isolated in the valley of the Wiedbach, surrounded by mountains clothed with mighty forests. On the 15th of August 1552 Count Herman died there, and was buried in the neighbouring church of the village of Niederbiber. The fatherly solicitude with which he had ruled those committed to his care was treasured in the memory of the people for many years. Up to the end of the sixteenth century the saying was current among them:—
“When we had noble Herman of Wied,
God, gold and peace were ours indeed.”
Frederick, Count of Wied, 1618–1698, increased the well-being of his country under most difficult circumstances. The House of Wied had become Protestant. Count Frederick made up his mind to found a city of refuge for all Christians who were persecuted on account of their religion. The town of Neuwied was founded in the year 1649 upon the ruins of the village of Langendorf, which stood on the banks of the Rhine, and was destroyed during the Thirty Years’ War. The toleration displayed by the Count towards the most conflicting opinions was, at that time of ruthless persecution, a bright example of Christian charity.
His son Frederick William, 1706–1737, built the Palace of Neuwied, in which Princess Elizabeth was born. From the lofty windows of the saloons, which are decorated in the style of Louis XV., the view extends far over the flowing Rhine, and the many picturesquely situated towns and villages, and the wide chains of mountains which encircle the river on both sides. At sunset, when the last beams of the sun are reflected in a hazy mist, it is a picture of magical beauty.
The park lies close behind the Palace. For a long way it stretches along the Rhine to the mouth of the river Wied. Magnificent old trees form shady avenues and groves. They are so arranged as to heighten the effect of the beautiful landscape, which constantly develops new charms in the ever-changing light.
Frederick Alexander succeeded his father from 1737–1791. During his reign Neuwied became an asylum for religious sects of the most various views, who built churches and founded lasting congregations there. Thither came the Moravians, Mennonites, Jews, Catholics, members of reformed Churches, Lutherans, and the mystic sects of the Inspirationists. Frederick Alexander took them all under his immediate protection, and allowed them the free exercise of their religion.
In order to improve the condition of his country, he attracted foreign manufacturers and artists. Thus an industrial population was gradually formed at Neuwied, which has steadily increased. Frederick Alexander founded institutions for the good of the community, encouraged mining, built foundries, and interested himself in everything connected with the prosperity of the town of Neuwied. Practical reforms were carried out in the administration of the country and its agriculture. It was Frederick Alexander who erected the country-house of Monrepos, that “Paradise” of Queen Elizabeth, on a height of Westerwald.