The history of the Winkelried family of Stans has been minutely worked out from the original documents by Hermann von Liebenau in 1854. According to his research, they were a knightly family when we first hear of them about 1250, though towards the end of the 14th century they seem to have been but simple men without the honours of knighthood, and not always using their prefix "von." Liebenau was the first to draw attention to one Erni Winkelried who signed as a witness on a document dated 1 May 1367.