Otto of Nordheim

He led a successful expedition into Hungary in 1063 to reinstall King Solomon (betrothed to Henry's sister, Judith of Swabia), who had been driven out by his uncle Béla I.

He crossed the Alps in the royal interests on two other occasions and in 1069 shared in two expeditions into the lands of the Polabian Slavs (Wends) east of Germany.

However, he neglected his Bavarian duchy and instead added to his Saxon allodial possessions in the southern Harz range, which ultimately led into conflict with Henry IV, who aimed at the consolidation of his royal domains in this region.

[4] He obtained no support in Bavaria, but raised an army among the Saxons and carried out a campaign of plunder against Henry until at Pentecost 1071, when he submitted.

In the following year he was released from custody and received back his private estates,[3] though not the Bavarian ducal title, which had been granted to his former son-in-law Welf I, the divorced husband of Otto's daughter Ethelinde.

[citation needed] Defeated in the Battle of Langensalza on June 9, he surrendered and was again pardoned by King Henry who made him administrator of the Saxon duchy.

After Richenza, German queen from 1125 and Holy Roman Empress from 1133, died in 1141, the allodial lands were inherited by her daughter Gertrude and her husband, the Welf duke Henry the Proud.