The name �Bittmann� is found in church records spelled in several variations, including Bittmann (used today in Germany), Bittman, Bitman, Bidman, Biedemann, and Bietmann. Michelbachers today believe the name derives from the word �B�tte� or �Buette�, which was a square barrel used in the wine-making process. A �b�ttemann� would be a man who makes those barrels. There are many examples in church records of a name with a ��� being converted over time to an �i� � including K�stner becoming Kistner (Rotenfels), D�llinger becoming Dillinger (Michelbach), and F�tterer becoming Fitterer (Rotenfels and Michelbach). There are several forms of this occupational name, including B�denmeker, B�ddenbender, B�deker, B�tenbender, Butgenmaker, Buttgenmaker, B�tmacher, B�tner, B�ttemacher, B�ttenmacher, B�ttenmaker, B�ttekenmaker, B�ttenbinder, Butticher, B�ttichenbinder, B�ttger, B�ttler, B�ttner, P�ttner, P�tner, Puttner, Putner, Pitman, Pittmann, Bittner, Pittner, Wei�b�ttner.
"Bittmann" is not a common name in Germany (less than 500 listings in the telephone directory). There are several strong clusters of Bittmanns today (indicated by the red in the graphic). The largest cluster is centered on Gaggenau, in Baden-W�rttemberg (Bittmann records are found in Ittersbach starting in 1588). The next largest cluster is in the Worms area of Rheinland-Pfalz. There are Bittmann records from Framersheim starting in the late 1600s, but the earliest Pfalz record appears to be in Frankenthal in 1628 (although this may be Wiedemann).
There are also a few Bittmanns found in Talheim in 1543, Hohebach in 1559, and Babenhausen in 1580. Today there are also Bittmann clusters in Nordrhein-Westfalen, but the earliest church records of Bittmanns in the area start in 1710.
In the Gaggenau area, there are two specific clusters of Bittmanns in the 1700s, about ten miles apart: (1) The villages of Ittersbach and Spielberg, and (2) The villages of Rotenfels and Michelbach. Today, Ittersbach and Spielberg are primarily Lutheran, while Rotenfels and Michelbach are primarily Catholic.
There are also Catholic Bittmanns found in two locations in Hungary as early as 1730s.
It is very possible that the Bittmanns in the Framersheim, Gaggenau, Spielberg areas - as well as the Hungarian and Romanian Bittmanns - are all related. Here is a possible scenario:
Marx Bittmann was born about 1555, and married Dorothea Vogel in Ittersbach (Lutheran) in 1588. Together, they had seven children, including the boys Johannes (1592), Georg (1595), and Valentin (1598). After Dorothea died, Marx married Sara, and had Michael (1606). Marx and Sara died in 1615 and 1616, respectively - just before the outbreak of the Thirty Years War (1618-1648). Like many villages in the area, Ittersbach suffered greatly during the Thirty Years War.
It is likely that the cluster of Bittmanns in the Spielberg/Karlsbad area (two miles from Ittersbach - also Lutheran) are descended from one of these boys. For Spielberg, the records don't start until 1752, so it will be difficult to bridge that 136-year gap - but it makes logical sense.
In 1622, Georg Friederich of Baden-Durlach formed an army from his lands, which included Ittersbach (transferred to Baden in 1604). The Bittmann boys were exactly of the right age to participate in the Baden-Durlach army, although they could have simply been displaced by the war, famines, etc.
In 1632, a Georg Bittmann appeared in Rotenfels (Catholic), and through two marriages, he had at least six children from 1632-1660. It is possible that this is the same Georg Bittmann who was born in 1595 in Ittersbach - although that would mean he would have been 65 years old when his last child was born. Possible, but not very likely.
Georg became one of the town leaders in Rotenfels. He apparently had ties to Michelbach, because several of his children's godparents were from Michelbach. In nearby Michelbach (two miles away), Jacob Bittmann was married in 1651, and had four children (one of whom becomes the stabhalter - village leader - of Michelbach). It seems likely that Jacob and Georg were related - in fact, Jacob could be Georg's son (born before 1632, somewhere else).
For 59 years, there are no church records for Michelbach. However, when the Michelbach records begin in 1730, there are six Bittmann families there - most likely, descendants of Jacob's sons. Rotenfels records, however, show that only one Bittmann family exists in the early 1700s - either an extremely low survival rate, or several Bittmann men emigrated.
There was a major emigration wave that affected southwestern Germany after the Ottoman Empire was defeated at the Battle of Vienna in 1683. Until about 1790, at least 100,000 Germans were resettled in present day Hungary, Romania and Serbia - large tracts of land were essentially empty, and the Hapsburg Empire wanted to fill it with industrious farmers. The immigrants were called Danube Swabians, because many of them came from the Swabian (southwestern) portions of Germany, and they arrived by large flatboats on the Danube River. Three sons of Michael Bittmann of Rotenfels emigrated with their families to the Banat area (probably a portion of the Banat in present-day Romania) about 1790, and founded the population of Romanian (but Germanic) Bittmanns. In the early 1700s, there were also two Bittmann families in the Veszpr�m area of present day Hungary - Georg Bittmann in Zirc, and Michael Bittmann in Bakonyoszlop. Both have large families that have many descendants today. Given names are often a genealogical fingerprint - they point to prominent and common family names. Every name of Georg's and Michael's 14 children sounds like typical Bittmann names in Rotenfels and Michelbach. These Hungarian Bittmanns are undoubtedly descended from Georg Bittmann of Rotenfels (most likely) or Jacob Bittmann of Michelbach.
The Lutheran Bittmanns in the Framersheim area are much more difficult to connect to Marx Bittmann of Ittersbach. They may not be related. However, there are some intriguing hints. In 1628, Anna Maria Biedemann was born to Georg Biedemann and Margaretha in Frankenthal. It is possible this is the same Georg and Margaretha Bittmann who appear in Rotenfels in 1632, but I doubt it. It seems more likely that the name was misspelled in the records, and is actually Wiedemann. The only rationale for a connection at this point is that Baden's army fought in Wiesloch - which is actually closer to Frankenthal than Ittersbach. It is certainly possible that a Lutheran son of Marx decided to settle in that area in the early 1600s, but this is pure guesswork.
The Thirty Years War displaced populations and changed religions. We can be sure that Bittmanns were impacted significantly by the war. It is also interesting how newcomer Georg Bittmann becomes a village leader in Rotenfels. Could he have been a leader in Baden's army? Probably no way of knowing.
The Thirty Years War was really a series of mini-wars involving many different parties, with interests both political and religious, mainly (but not entirely) contained within Germany. One of the hallmarks of the war was the use of mercenary armies that supported themselves by plundering the countryside. Even "friendly" armies would plunder the locals for shelter and food. The generals also made plunder an incentive to their soldiers - promising an opportunity to plunder if they won a certain battle, for example. Many more people died from starvation and disease than from battle - the loser throughout the conflict was the civilian population (estimates are that 15 to 20 percent of the population died during the conflicts). The Lower Palatinate (between Speyer and Mainz) was particularly ravaged throughout the thirty years.
Southwest Germany was impacted the most during three phases of the war:
The Spanish Invade the Lower Palatinate (1620-1623)
The Swedes Invade (1630-1634)
French Involvement Grows (1635-1644)
Bittmanns emigrated from Germany to Poland, Hungary, Canada and the United States. Austrian-Hungarian Bittmanns also emigrated to the United States, but the roots of these Bittmanns appear to be in the Rotenfels/Gaggenau area (although a few may have also left the Pfalz). Almost all Bittmanns in the United States today have roots back to Ittersbach or the Worms area.
From B�hl:
From Gaggenau:
From Gernsbach:
From Karlsbad:
From Karsruhe:
From Malsch:
From Michelbach:
From M�hlburg:
From Spielberg:
The religion change from Lutheran to Catholic is not unexpected - forced religion changes were the norm of the Thirty Years War. Until 1624, Michelbach was Lutheran (and had been for about 80 years). The Thirty Years War was difficult for both Rotenfels and Michelbach. The Michelbach church was reported in serious disrepair, and from about 1637 to 1671, Michelbachers attended church in Rotenfels, and the people in the towns appear to be close (based on godparents and marriages). During those 34 years � a full generation � 83 Michelbachers were born. It appears that the population of the village dropped to near zero, and many immigrants and displaced persons settled there. In addition, Georg Bittmann appears to be the only Bittmann in Rotenfels in 1632, and Jacob Bittmann (based on parish records) is apparently the only Bittmann in Michelbach in 1651.
The Thirty Years War in Southwest Germany
In September 1620, the Spanish (Catholic) invaded and conquered the lower Palatinate. English volunteers garrisoned and held Frankenthal and Mannheim, while German/Dutch/English held Heidelberg - but the rest of the Palatinate fell into Spanish hands. Spain laid siege to Frankenthal until October 1621, when Mansfeldt's Protestant Army arrived in relief. In 1622, Georg Friederich of Baden-Durlach (a Calvinist) raised an army of 11,000 from his territories. In April 1622, Baden-Durlach�s army joined with Mansfeldt�s and defeated the Catholic League under Tilly at Wiesloch. After the armies split, Baden-Durlach was defeated at Wimpfen in May 1622 by the joint armies of Spain and the Catholic League. Georg and the remnants of his army fled to Stuttgart. The Catholic League under Tilly took Heidelberg (September) and Mannheim (November). In March 1623, the English surrendered the besieged Frankenthal to the Spanish - making the Palatinate completely controlled by Catholic forces. Tilly left the Lower Palatinate to pursue Protestant forces in the Lower Saxon Circle.
Gustavus Adolphus and the Swedes invaded Germany, with subsidies from the French. The treaty with the French required that they stay in Germany, not attack forces of the Catholic League, and not interfere with Catholic worship where it was already established. In the Battle of Breitenfeld, the Swedes utterly destroyed the Imperial army led by Tilly. In late 1631, as a reward to the troops, Gustavus and the Swedes plundered the Catholic towns in the Main and Rhine valleys (W�rzberg in October, Mainz in November). They took up winter quarters in Mainz. In 1632, the Swedes moved east to invade Bavaria (capturing Munich in May 1632). In September, 1634, the Heilbronn League traded the fortress Philippsburg to the French in exchange for assistance against Spanish and Imperial forces. That same month, the Swedes were destroyed at N�rdlingen, and were pursued by the Imperial army into southwest Germany, stopping south of Mainz. Deaths from epidemics were high along the Rhine River. Imperial forces took Stuttgart.
In October 1634, the Swedes and Heilbronn League entered into a treaty with France in order to defend the Rhineland from Imperial forces. In January 1635, Imperial forces took Philippsburg, and in February, Speyer. Franco-Swedish forces regained Speyer in March. Imperial forces took Kaiserslautern and Heidelberg, and laid siege to Mainz. In August 1635, the French finally raised the siege, but were forced to retreat behind the Rhine, and Mainz fell in December 1635. In August 1637, Bernhard of Saxe-Weimar recrossed the Rhine and defeated Imperial forces at Ettenheim - then returned to the west bank. Saxe-Weimar then took a number of Forest towns along the Rhine, notably Rheinfelden. From August through December 1638, Saxe-Weimar laid siege to the fortress of Breisach, defeating Bavarian and Imperial forces sent to relieve the siege, and starving the fortress into surrender. Saxe-Weimar's forces joined the French, who then marched down the Rhine, taking Germersheim, Bingen and Kreuznach. In November 1643, Bavarians defeated French forces in Tuttlingen, and the French were forced to retreat to the Rhine (after losing about two-thirds of their army). In April 1644, Imperial forces again crossed through the Black Forest area, laying siege to Freiburg, which fell in July 1644. Bloody battles in August reduced French and Bavarian forces by half. The main French Army moved down the Rhine to the Lower Palatinate, taking all of its fortresses except Frankenthal. They also captured Philippsburg and Mainz.
Bittmanns Emigrating From Baden
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