Duchy of Franconia
Encyclopedia
The Duchy of Franconia was one of the stem duchies of Germany
during the formative period of the Holy Roman Empire
in the 10th century, part of former Frankish Austrasia
.
But unlike the others Franconia
did not evolve into a stable political entity. Its first duke was elected to the King of the Germans in 911 and was succeeded by his brother who died in 939 when he revolted against another German king.
This king did not appoint a new duke of Franconia, the duchy was fragmented into several counties and bishoprics
, which were subordinated to the German kings directly.
In the western part of Franconia (Rheinfranken) were there several counties that belonged to the Salian dynasty
. Its members were sometimes mentioned as dukes of Franconia and they became Germany's royal dynasty in 1024. Their Franconian territories were in 1093 granted as a fief to the palatine count of Aachen
, which would evolve into the important German principality of Electoral Palatinate (Kurpfalz).
The Franconian stem duchy was seized by King Otto I of Germany
after the unsuccessful revolt of the Conradine duke Eberhard had shattered at the 939 Battle of Andernach
. With the advancement of Count Conrad the Red
, Rhenish Franconia became the heartland of the Imperial Salian dynasty
, which provided four emperors in the 11th and 12th centuries: Conrad II
, Henry III
, Henry IV
, and Henry V
. It contained the cities of Mainz
, Speyer
and Worms, the latter two being the administrative centres of countships within the hands of the Salian descendants of Conrad the Red. These counts were sometimes referred to informally, on account of the great power in the region, as Dukes of Franconia.
Emperor Conrad II was last to bear the ducal title. When he died in 1039, Rhenish Franconia was governed as a constellation of small states, like the cities of Frankfurt, Speyer and Worms, the Prince-bishop
rics of Mainz
, Speyer
, and Worms
, as well as the Landgraviate of Hesse
, then part of Thuringia
. Alongside these powerful entities there were many smaller, petty states.
In 1093, Emperor Henry IV gave the Salian territories in Rhenish Franconia as a fief to Henry of Laach
, the Count palatine
of Lower Lorraine
at Aachen
, his lands then would evolve into the important principality of the Electoral Palatinate. While Emperor Frederick Barbarossa
in 1198 granted the ducal title to the Prince-Bishops of Würzburg
in Eastern Franconia, Rhenish Franconia was divided and extinguished.
Its territories became part of the Imperial Upper Rhenish Circle
in 1500.
Kingdom of Germany
The Kingdom of Germany developed out of the eastern half of the former Carolingian Empire....
during the formative period of the Holy Roman Empire
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
in the 10th century, part of former Frankish Austrasia
Austrasia
Austrasia formed the northeastern portion of the Kingdom of the Merovingian Franks, comprising parts of the territory of present-day eastern France, western Germany, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands. Metz served as its capital, although some Austrasian kings ruled from Rheims, Trier, and...
.
But unlike the others Franconia
Franconia
Franconia is a region of Germany comprising the northern parts of the modern state of Bavaria, a small part of southern Thuringia, and a region in northeastern Baden-Württemberg called Tauberfranken...
did not evolve into a stable political entity. Its first duke was elected to the King of the Germans in 911 and was succeeded by his brother who died in 939 when he revolted against another German king.
This king did not appoint a new duke of Franconia, the duchy was fragmented into several counties and bishoprics
Diocese
A diocese is the district or see under the supervision of a bishop. It is divided into parishes.An archdiocese is more significant than a diocese. An archdiocese is presided over by an archbishop whose see may have or had importance due to size or historical significance...
, which were subordinated to the German kings directly.
In the western part of Franconia (Rheinfranken) were there several counties that belonged to the Salian dynasty
Salian dynasty
The Salian dynasty was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages of four German Kings , also known as the Frankish dynasty after the family's origin and role as dukes of Franconia...
. Its members were sometimes mentioned as dukes of Franconia and they became Germany's royal dynasty in 1024. Their Franconian territories were in 1093 granted as a fief to the palatine count of Aachen
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
, which would evolve into the important German principality of Electoral Palatinate (Kurpfalz).
The Franconian stem duchy was seized by King Otto I of Germany
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
after the unsuccessful revolt of the Conradine duke Eberhard had shattered at the 939 Battle of Andernach
Battle of Andernach
The Battle of Andernach, between the followers and the opponents of King Otto I of Germany, took place at 2 October 939 in Andernach on the Rhine river and ended with a decisive defeat of the rebels and the death of their leaders....
. With the advancement of Count Conrad the Red
Conrad, Duke of Lorraine
Conrad the Red was a Duke of Lorraine from the Salian dynasty.He was the son of Werner V, Count of the Nahegau, Speyergau, and Wormsgau. His mother was a sister of Conrad I of Germany. In 941, he succeeded his father in his counties and obtained an additional territory, the Niddagau...
, Rhenish Franconia became the heartland of the Imperial Salian dynasty
Salian dynasty
The Salian dynasty was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages of four German Kings , also known as the Frankish dynasty after the family's origin and role as dukes of Franconia...
, which provided four emperors in the 11th and 12th centuries: Conrad II
Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor
Conrad II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1027 until his death.The son of a mid-level nobleman in Franconia, Count Henry of Speyer and Adelaide of Alsace, he inherited the titles of count of Speyer and of Worms as an infant when Henry died at age twenty...
, Henry III
Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry III , called the Black or the Pious, was a member of the Salian Dynasty of Holy Roman Emperors...
, Henry IV
Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry IV was King of the Romans from 1056 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 until his forced abdication in 1105. He was the third emperor of the Salian dynasty and one of the most powerful and important figures of the 11th century...
, and Henry V
Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry V was King of Germany and Holy Roman Emperor , the fourth and last ruler of the Salian dynasty. Henry's reign coincided with the final phase of the great Investiture Controversy, which had pitted pope against emperor...
. It contained the cities of Mainz
Mainz
Mainz under the Holy Roman Empire, and previously was a Roman fort city which commanded the west bank of the Rhine and formed part of the northernmost frontier of the Roman Empire...
, Speyer
Speyer
Speyer is a city of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany with approximately 50,000 inhabitants. Located beside the river Rhine, Speyer is 25 km south of Ludwigshafen and Mannheim. Founded by the Romans, it is one of Germany's oldest cities...
and Worms, the latter two being the administrative centres of countships within the hands of the Salian descendants of Conrad the Red. These counts were sometimes referred to informally, on account of the great power in the region, as Dukes of Franconia.
Emperor Conrad II was last to bear the ducal title. When he died in 1039, Rhenish Franconia was governed as a constellation of small states, like the cities of Frankfurt, Speyer and Worms, the Prince-bishop
Prince-Bishop
A Prince-Bishop is a bishop who is a territorial Prince of the Church on account of one or more secular principalities, usually pre-existent titles of nobility held concurrently with their inherent clerical office...
rics of Mainz
Archbishopric of Mainz
The Archbishopric of Mainz or Electorate of Mainz was an influential ecclesiastic and secular prince-bishopric in the Holy Roman Empire between 780–82 and 1802. In the Roman Catholic Church hierarchy, the Archbishop of Mainz was the primas Germaniae, the substitute of the Pope north of the Alps...
, Speyer
Bishopric of Speyer
The Bishopric of Speyer was a state, ruled by Prince-Bishops, in what is today the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate. It was secularized in 1803...
, and Worms
Bishopric of Worms
The Bishopric of Worms was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire. Located on both banks of the Rhine around Worms just north of the union of that river with the Neckar, it was largely surrounded by the Palatinate. Worms had been the seat of a bishop from Roman times...
, as well as the Landgraviate of Hesse
Landgraviate of Hesse
The Landgraviate of Hesse was a Landgraviate of the Holy Roman Empire. It existed as a unity from 1264 to 1567, when it was divided between the sons of Philip I, Landgrave of Hesse.-History:...
, then part of Thuringia
Thuringia
The Free State of Thuringia is a state of Germany, located in the central part of the country.It has an area of and 2.29 million inhabitants, making it the sixth smallest by area and the fifth smallest by population of Germany's sixteen states....
. Alongside these powerful entities there were many smaller, petty states.
In 1093, Emperor Henry IV gave the Salian territories in Rhenish Franconia as a fief to Henry of Laach
Henry of Laach
Henry of Laach was the first count palatine of the Rhine . Henry was the son of Herman I, count of Gleiberg. Henry was a follower of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor...
, the Count palatine
Count palatine
Count palatine is a high noble title, used to render several comital styles, in some cases also shortened to Palatine, which can have other meanings as well.-Comes palatinus:...
of Lower Lorraine
Lower Lorraine
The Duchy of Lower Lorraine or Lower Lotharingia , established in 959 was a stem duchy of the medieval German kingdom, which encompassed part of modern-day Belgium, the Netherlands, the northern part of the German Rhineland and a part of northern France east of the Schelde river.It was created out...
at Aachen
Aachen
Aachen has historically been a spa town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Aachen was a favoured residence of Charlemagne, and the place of coronation of the Kings of Germany. Geographically, Aachen is the westernmost town of Germany, located along its borders with Belgium and the Netherlands, ...
, his lands then would evolve into the important principality of the Electoral Palatinate. While Emperor Frederick Barbarossa
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick I Barbarossa was a German Holy Roman Emperor. He was elected King of Germany at Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March, crowned King of Italy in Pavia in 1155, and finally crowned Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV, on 18 June 1155, and two years later in 1157 the term...
in 1198 granted the ducal title to the Prince-Bishops of Würzburg
Bishopric of Würzburg
The Bishopric of Würzburg was a prince-bishopric in the Holy Roman Empire, located in Lower Franconia, around the city of Würzburg, Germany. Würzburg was a diocese from 743. In the 18th century, its bishop was often also Bishop of Bamberg...
in Eastern Franconia, Rhenish Franconia was divided and extinguished.
Its territories became part of the Imperial Upper Rhenish Circle
Upper Rhenish Circle
The Upper Rhenish Circle was an Imperial Circle of the Holy Roman Empire established in 1500 on the territory of the former Duchy of Upper Lorraine and large parts of Rhenish Franconia including the Swabian Alsace region and the Burgundian duchy of Savoy....
in 1500.