Hero Oomkens von Esens

Hero Oomkens von Esens (c. 1455 – 1522) was a Frisian nobleman, Earl of Harlingerland, who inherited the title on the death of his father, Sibet Attena von Esens, in 1473. He is usually referred to as Hero Oomkens "the Younger" to distinguish him from his maternal grandfather, Hero Oomkens the Elder. As with most names of this period, Hero Oomkens von Esens is referred to in contemporary texts by a plethora of variations. Hero, Here, Heer, Her; Omken, Omcken, Oemkens, Omkens, etc. Moreover, given that he held various lordships, he is also referred to, in addition to von or zu Esens, as von Wittmund, von Harlingerland, von Stedesdorf, etc. The Oomkens family were established in East Frisia (now part of Niedersachsen in Germany) and in the Frisian Oldambt, in the Groninger Ommelanden (now part of Groningen in the Netherlands). The family prided itself on its direct descent from Radbod, King of the Frisians.

Hero Oomkens von Esens' marriage to Armgard Countess of Oldenburg in 1489 helped to cement the alliance of the old Frisian aristocracy with the Counts of Oldenburg in their struggle against the rise of the Cirksena family.

Hero Oomkens von Esens had five sons, named Balthasar, Melchior, Caspar, Johann and Sibo, and two daughters, Onna (or Anna) who married Otto von Rietberg, and Adelaide, who married her distant cousin Eppo Hayo Heres Oomkens van Ommeland, of the Oldambt in the Groninger Ommeland. Balthasar Oomkens von Esens succeeded his father on the latter's death in 1522. Sibo and Caspar joined their cousin, the King of Denmark, and died on active service with the Danes, Caspar dying during the storming of Königsberg in 1521.

Hero Oomkens von Esens' heraldic symbol was two crossed tournament lances (sometimes incorrectly referred to as whips or scourges), which have been incorporated into the arms of the city of Wittmund (district) and also feature in the arms of East Frisia.

References

*Ubbo Emmius, Rerum Frisicarum Historia, Leiden 1616
*H. Perizonius, Geschichte Ostfrieslands, Weener 1868
*G.A. von Halem, Geschichte des Herzogtums Oldenburg, Bremen 1794
*Allgemeine/Neue Deutsche Biographie
*Biographisches Lexikon für Ostfriesland
*Anonymous, Chronika van den Groten Daden der Graven van Oldenborch, circa 1537, published by Isensee Verlag, Oldenburg, 1993.