U povijesti grada Nürnberga ostao je zapamćen »prvi markgrofov rat« (1449–1453) u kojem je brandenburški markgrof Albert Ahilej pokušao ostvariti dugogodišnje pretenzije svoje dinastije o vlasti nad slobodnim carskim gradom. Za hrvatsku je historiografiju od posebite važnosti što se u Nürnberškoj kronici nalazi lista saveznika moćnog markgrofa koji su gradu objavili rat u jesen 1449. godine, a među kojima nalazimo i trojicu Frankopana: Sigismunda, Dujma i Martina. Oni su navedeni kao saveznici grofa Ulrika Celjskog, tada jednog od najmoćnijih velikaša u Ugarsko-hrvatskom kraljevstvu. Ova kratka i lokalizirana epizoda u povijesti Svetog rimskog carstva ocrtava složen kolorit političkih odnosa u kojima su se Frankopani nalazili sredinom petnaestog stoljeća kada je knez Stjepan, Bernardinov otac, postupno stjecao primat među svojom monogobrojnom braćom. Iako su i Stjepan i Bernardin ostali upamćeni kao vjerni saveznici i pristaše Matije Korvina, to nikako nije bio slučaj sa svim prvacima frankopanske dinastije, niti je ta vjernost bila neprekidna. Prvi markgrofov rat samo je djelić mozaika koji se u desetljećima od smrti Sigismunda Luksemburškog do smrti Matije Korvina sastoji od stalnih previranja među Frankopanima koji pokušavaju pronaći modus vivendi u trokutu između svetorimskog cara, ugarsko-hrvatskog kralja i Venecije s jedne, te rastuće osmanske opasnosti s druge strane.Three members of the Frankopan dynasty, a prominent Croatian noble family, were mentioned in a Nuremberg chronicle from the mid fifteenth century as allies of Albert III Achilles, the margrave of Brandenburg in his war against the city, a conflict with which he had hoped to bring about the restoration of the duchy of Frankonia and extend his reign over a great part of central Germany. The feud, a form of self help and a legal institution dating back to old Germanic times which allowed for an armed resolution of conflicts between interested parties with the exclusion of a higher authority, spread to most parts of the empire, with the margrave soliciting aid, be that actual physical assistance or moral and political support even from the southernmost reaches of the empire, including the powerful counts of Cilli with estates in Carniola, Styria and Croatia who, according to the chronicle, brought with them the support of their many vassals and allies, among which we find the three Frankopan brothers, Martin, Sigmund and Dujam. The Frankopans, at the time split into eight branches, were frequently squabbling among themselves and during Margrave Albert’s war against Nuremberg these three seem to have sided with the margrave and their cousin Ulrich II of Cilli despite the emperor’s efforts to prevent the outbreak of the war. The chronicle is an outstanding source for Croatian historiography because it shows that the Frankopans were not only recognized as higher nobility by the inhabitants of the empire and accorded a status equal to that of imperial counts—even though they did not belong to it politically — but were also self conscious enough to participate in political events far beyond their immediate sphere of influence. Thus, a small entry in the list of the parties that declared a feud with the city of Nuremberg has greatly contributed to our knowledge of the Frankopan family as well as to the extent of influence that a powerful noble likeMargrave Albert III Achilles could achieve through a network of political alliances
