Hero Oomkens von Esens
Hero Oomkens von Esens was a Frisian nobleman, the Lord of Esens, Stedesdorf and Wittmund. He inherited the title upon the death of his father, Sibet Attena von Esens, in 1473.
Other names
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 by a plethora of variations in contemporary texts. Moreover, given that he had held various lordships, he is also referred to, in addition to von or zu Esens, as von Wittmund, von Harlingerland, von Stedesdorf, etc.Family
The Oomkens family was established in East Frisia and the Frisian Oldambt, in the Groninger Ommelanden. The family prided itself on its direct descent from Radbod, King of the Frisians.Hero Oomkens von Esens' marriage to Irmgard, daughter of Gerhard VI, Count 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: Balthasar, Melchior, Caspar, Johann, and Sibo. They had two daughters. Onna married Otto von Rietberg, and Adelaide 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, with Caspar dying during the storming of Königsberg in 1521.