page_title: Kotzebue (noble family)
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Kotzebue (noble family) / History
caption_attribution_description: Deutsch: Wohnhaus von August von Kotzebue, A2, 5, Mannheim
context_page_description: Kotzebue was a Baltic German noble family of Brandenburgish origin, tracing its origin back to Kossebau in Altmark. They held nobility status in the Russian Empire and the Kingdom of Bavaria.
context_section_description: The Kotzebue family was known around and mentioned as early as 1375. The first members of the family to appear was Henning Kossebu, a diplomat in Stendal and Arnd Cassebu, a councilor in Salzwedel. The first ancestor of the modern family was Jakob Kotzebue (died 1597), a citizen and council treasurer in Magdeburg. His son Johann (1591–1629) was a Lutheran theologian, rector in Quedlinburg and minister in St. Jakob's church in Magdeburg. Johann's son of the same name, was also a Lutheran theologian and an abbot in the Loccum Abbey.
  The most famous and prominent member of the family was the world famous playwright, writer and librettist  August von Kotzebue, renowned for his drama works that involved around politic that got attentions from all around over world including famous composers and writers such as Beethoven and Goethe. Such that he was ennobled into Russian nobility in 1786. However, he also made a lot of enemies which made him a much hated man in the eyes of many Germans, whom all seen him as a reactionary and spy. He was murdered by Karl Ludwig Sand in 1819, his murder allowed Prince von Metternich to issue the Carlsbad Decrees that imposed political restrictions in universities all over Germany.
  Almost all descendants of August von Kotzebue entered Russian service since he worked as a consul general in Russia and Germany. Some entered military service, including the famous explorer Otto von Kotzebue, others included Moritz and Paul Demetrius von Kotzebue, who was granted Russian comital title in 1876. In 1878, Paul Demetrius's daughter Countess Alexandrine Mathilde was married to Theodor Pilar von Pilchau, because Paul Demetrius did not have any male descendant, he chose Pilar von Pilchau to inherit the primogeniture, thus creating the joint family of Graf Kotzebue-Pilar von Pilchau.
  Many others also became diplomats or painters, which included Alexander von Kotzebue, whose son Wilhelm was ennobled into Bavarian nobility in 1906.
caption: A plague about August von Kotzebue in his residence in Mannheim.
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