GERMAN MONARCHY TAKES INTEREST IN THE HILL COUNTRY NATURAL TREASURES
In 1842 more than 30 German noblemen formed a stock company called the Adelsverein, the
Society of Noblemen, at the castle of Duke Adolph von Nassau in Biebrich on the Rhein River.
The Society opened its office in Mainz almost directly across the Rhein River from the Biebrich
Castle. The Adelsverein had many public and covert goals: to develop a trade colony in the vast
unsettled lands of the Texas Hill Country and West Texas -- where the gold and silver was waiting
to be mined; to provide free land in the Hill Country that would help them get rid of revolutionists
wanting to bring down the feudal system; to do something about the ever-growing number of
paupers as well as others not happy with the way things were. The Republic of Texas was delighted with the Adelsverein campaign across Germany advertising that Germans should come to its office to sign up for the voyage and apply for either city lots or country acreage which they could own just by showing up and taking possession. If the lots and acreages were taken up in New Braunfels, they could go on to Fredericksburg or even more toward the west to Bettina, Castell, Leiningen, Schoenburg, or Meerholz on the Llano River.
The German settlers would be a God-send for Texas. The Germans, hale, hearty, and good
with rifles, would help control the Indians and hopefully help keep the Mexicans on their side of the
Rio Grande River. And, if the Germans were slaughtered by Indians in the way the early
Spaniards were, so what. As far as the Adelsverein goes, after unloading the immigrants, their
supplies and other salable commodities, the ships would then immediately be loaded with bales of
cotton, hides, corn, herbs and plants and other goods to be sold to eager merchants at the busy
ports of Liverpool, Antwerp, and Bremen.
Quite naturally these German potentates would hardly let on that they had long since heard the
reports of their ancestors about the gold and silver mines of the Texas area as well as gold hidden
away in or around the various Spanish missions when Indians ran them over. Prince Johannes
Werner von Sachsen-Altenburg, present-day heir of the Duke of Saxony, was a special guest
lecturer in Fredericksburg, Texas, on Saturday, April 12, 2003. Prince Hans, as he prefers to be
called, is an avid historian and archeologist. His subject was the Adelsverein (Society of
Noblemen) and how its members, stockholders all and restricted only to royalty, were undoubtedly
influenced by the lure of the Texas Hill Country's ore. His research in his family archives included
information about how King Carlos of Spain had married Maria von Sachsen of Prince Hans'
lineage. Another report tells of the Marquis de Rubi, the inspector general for King Carlos III of
Spain, being sent to Mexico in 1766 to report on the condition and viability of the Spanish
penetrations into northernmost Mexico in what is now Texas and their search for gold and silver
mines. (1 MS I. I-h)
One of the investors in the Adelsverein project, Prince Carl von Solms-Braunfels, was directly
related in marriage to Queen Victoria and the royal family of England. Prince Carl's published
diaries show he reported about trade and the more sinister political aspects of Texas, the U. S. and
Mexico, to both German and English rulers. His main objective was to create an independent
German Republic which would help support England, Mexico, and the southern belt of states in
their quest to stifle the economic and territorial expansion of the Northern U.S. states. The
products of the South were imminently more valuable to them than those of the North. (1 MS I. I-i)
The Prussian rulers, too, had long taken careful note of Spain's preoccupation with the Texas
area and were undoubtedly in the background when on August 21, 1821, Mexico wrested itself
from Spain's rule that was affirmed by the Treaty of Cordoba. Germany stepped right up and has
been flirting with the Mexicans ever since. The possibility of precious metals in the Texas region
was and always has been an irresistible temptation to all rulers and treasure seekers no matter
from what country.
The rulers of Germany, and the leaders of Austrian-Hungarian Empire, accelerated and
polished up their spying and relationships with the newly independent and turbulent or
"inexperienced" Mexican nation. The regime of Augustin I de Iturbide, emperor of Mexico, lasted
only from May 19, 1822 to March 19, 1823. (1 MS I. I-j)
In 1844 the Adelsverein sent Prince Carl von Solms-Braunfels to be in charge of establishing
the German colony in Central West Texas and to get on with the colonization project without delay.
Prince Carl quietly set up his own port about ten miles south of what is today Port Lavaca. He did
not want to alarm the Texans or Americans in Galveston when steady streams of German
immigrants began arriving. He named the new port Carlshaven which later became known as
Indian Point and finally Indianola. But the Texans and the Americans were neither blind nor dumb.
Solms bought land 20 miles northeast of San Antonio at the foothills of Hill Country. His surveyors
laid out the lots which the initial group of immigrants began claiming on Good Friday, March 21,
1845. He named the new town in honor of his "lieblingsplatz" -- his favorite place, Braunfels, in
Hessia on the Lahn River. But, on December 29, 1845, something else became official: Texas
was the newest state in the Union. The Germans and the Mexicans got the message..."Finger
davon!"....which is Fredericksburg German for "Keep your fingers out of it".....or in today's Texas
term, "Don't mess with Texas!"
Despite the Adelsverein and Prince Carl of Solms seeing Texas embedded in the Union of
States and their goal of setting up a feudal state in West Texas thereby nixed, the interest of
Germans and other Europeans in the free land and opportunities in the new state of Texas did not
slow down the immigration process. It is interesting to note that the Fisher-Miller Land Grant for
which the Adelsverein had negotiated carefully contained all the areas in which were located the
Spanish garrison and mission outside the town of Menard as well as the gold and silver mines
areas along the Llano and San Saba Rivers and their tributaries.
In late 1845, as Texas was in the process of becoming a state, despite the objections and
efforts of England and Germany, Prince Solms announced his resignation and returned to
Germany. But the Adelsverein still had no choice but to honor the contracts of thousands of
immigrants who had booked passage and were signed up to be rightful claimants of lots and lands
in Texas. It must also complete the contracts with the ship owners. More than 60 ships already
were well into the process of bringing thousands of Germans to Texas.
Baron Ottfried Hans von Meusebach, an avid geologist and botanist, was fascinated by the
reports about the Texas Hill Country. Also a secret admirer of America's "democratic experiment",
he agreed to take Prince Carl's place and see the immigration process through. Only years later
would he let it be known that he intended never to return to Germany again. Everyone should
have deduced this since almost from the beginning he insisted on being called John O.
Meusebach, his titles, royalty and numerous educational degrees notwithstanding.
On May 8, 1846, Meusebach authorized the settling of Friedrichsburg about 75 miles
northwest of New Braunfels as another way-station half-way to the Llano River and the beginning
of the Fisher-Miller Land Grant. He and his family were friends of the Prussian rulers, the
Hohenzollerns. He was a friend of Prince Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig von Hohenzollern the highest
ranking German official, a nephew of the Prussian King, who had bought stock in the Adelsverein.
Meusebach named the new town Friedrichsburg in honor of the Prussian prince.
Meusebach made the Texas Hill Country his permanent home and eventually retired near the
Llano River in a place he named Loyal Valley, referring to his love of the ideals and constitution of
the United States of America, and being opposed to secession, slavery, and the Confederacy.
Meusebach's preoccupation was the geology and the flora and fauna of the Texas Hill Country.
Upon arriving in Texas he befriended Johann Heinrich Runge (1816-1873), later known as Henry
Runge, who organized the very first bank in Texas with offices in Galveston and later also in
Carlshaven (Indianola.) Runge's assistance was critical in helping Meusebach be able to work out
the horrendous problems with creditors he inherited from his predecessor, Prince Carl von Solms-
Braunfels. It must, though, be said in Solm's defense, that it was the rich members of the
Adelsverein who suddenly began cutting off their financial support when they learned that Texas
was definitely going to be annexed by the United States in December of 1845. The idea of fighting
the United States should the time come when the German Republic of West Texas rebelled or
seceded from the Republic of Texas did not sound too realistic to them. And, it is thought that
once the German Democratic Rebellion was put down sufficiently between 1845-1848, also known
as the Paulskirche National Democratic Assembly of Frankfurt-am-Main, the monarchists then felt
the "Texas Colony" was no longer a viable investment -- or an expense they needed anymore! In
less than a year from when Meusebach replaced Solms the Adelsverein withdrew its financial
support and simply just let the immigrants sink and swim on their own. Thanks to the ingenuity of
Meusebach and Runge, and others, too, the immigrants, despite much suffering, were able to get
a foothold and slowly but surely begin to make money with hard work, planting crops, raising cattle,
delivering supplies, etc. Each immigrant was able to be a stakehholder by owning property or
possessing a talent in work or service that was needed.
For Runge's friendship and assistance, Meusebach was happy to oblige Runge's special
request to find about the truth about the fabled ore of the Hill Country. Runge hoped to find coal
seams or openings which might provide an alternate fuel source for wood. Meusebach reported
he found no signs of coal in the central Hill Country but did find it in the nearby Permian Basin to
the west. There were signs of the Permian foundation in the Fisher-Miller Land Grant just outside
the Hill Country but mining techniques of the time could not get down to the very deep Permian
strata; perhaps someday. (1 MS I. I-k)
Meusebach's friend and fellow scientist, Dr. Ferdinand von Roemer of Hildesheim, in the latter
part of 1845, arranged with the Adelsverein, or visa-versa, to come to Texas to explore its fabled
terrain and flora. He was also to advise the Adelsverein about the further plausability of continuing
to finance the expensive Texas colony project. Von Roemer thrust himself into firsthand
observations for almost two years, well into 1847, before he returned to Germany. His report was
published in Germany in 1849 and is still considered one of the best narratives of scholarly
substance about pioneer Texas. He wrote about his visit to the presidio and mission near Menard,
"...the Spanish were supposed to have worked some rich silver mines here. The fort was
supposedly erected to protect a mine nearby. Our purpose in coming here was not only to
investigate whether the soil is suited for farming, but also to determine if the reports concerning the
silver mines were true. We therefore looked for smelting ovens and heaps of slag in the vicinity of
the fort....there appeared to be no deposits of precious metals." (1 MS I. I-l) From the Menard
area the Von Roemer party, with Delaware Indian chief, Jim Shaw, as his guide and translator,
traversed along the San Saba River valleys and hills until they reached the main camp of the
Comanches near the present-day town of San Saba. There they found John O. Meusebach and
other German leaders of Friedrichsburg who had already begun working out a treaty of peace.
This peace treaty, never broken, is celebrated the second weekend of May each year in
Fredericksburg with a colorful Intertribal Pow-Wow of prize dancing, booths of Indian food, and the
sale of Indian costumes, books, paintings and other traditional items in tribute to the Indian Way.
Incidentally, Von Roemer ended up in his report to the Adelsverein in Germany recommending that
the German settlements best not cross the Llano River. Outside of the heart of the Hill Country he
felt aridity and soil conditions did not bode well for farming and raising crops. For the most part his
advice was taken seriously. Of the four German settlements above Fredericksburg founded in
1847 along the Llano River: Castell, Leiningen, Meerholz, and Schoenburg, only Castell remains
today. The picturesque village of Castell is mostly on the south side of the Llano River, not on the
other side within the Fisher-Miller Land Grant boundaries. The Fisher-Miller Land Grant area
terms of settlement expired and attempts to renegotiate with the State of Texas officials, especially
after statehood, failed.

Notes are found on the last story of this series, http://texas-hill-country.com/issue/texas-hill-country/article/twentieth-century-the-lure-continues 

By Kenn Knopp

 Knopp, Kenn  http://www.kennknopp.com/
  Since 1956 this is a synergistic journalism and  public relations collective midrash of families, genealogy, and actual history encompassing Germany, Texas, and United States experiences.. It was begun at the University of Texas at Austin, M.A. degree program in strategic public relations in 1958 under the tutelage of Dr. Alan Scott of precious memory and has been ongoing ever since. Entitled: Protecting & Enchancing the German Heritage of Fredericksburg, Texas. The research has been bequeathed to the Special Collections Archives of Texas Tech University at Fredericksburg for the benefit and the use of all researchers. 
   This series of stories will become a regular feature of www.Texas-Hill-Country.com Online magazine with permission and all rights from Kenn Knopp, from the beginnings of the research to the end, check back regularly for the "rest of the story".

ger Manuskripte
Volume III
self-published,
Director- www.germanheritagefoundation.com
(Public Relations and Communications industry)
September 1982 — Present

Research about the Germans of the Texas Hill Country, their origins and
homeplaces, their life, times, and contribution to the United States.
Research and collections primarily at Texas Tech University at
Fredericksburg and at the author's home office at 407 Cora Street,
Fredericksburg TX 78624. email: alterstolz@gmail.com


Kenn Knopp’s Education
The University of Texas at Austin
1952 — 1956

Additional Information
Kenn Knopp’s Websites:
My Website http://www.kennknopp.com/
Kenn Knopp’s Interests:
German heritage, music and history, genealogy, spiritual retreats,
culinaria adventures, Stammtisch discussions, meditation, etc..

Kenn Knopp’s Groups:
Fredericksburg German Singers, Democratic Party, Catholic Permanent
Deacons of San Antonio Archdiocese, Old German Bakery/Restaurant Stammtisch