Prince-Provost
Encyclopedia
Prince-Provost is a rare title for a monastic superior with the ecclesiastical style of provost
who is a Prince of the Church
in the sense that he also ranks as a secular 'prince' (lato sensu: ruler), notably a Reichsfürst
of the Holy Roman Empire
, holding a direct vote in the Reichstag
assembly coequal to an actual Prince-abbot
, as in each case treated below.
Berchtesgaden Provostry
The monastery of Augustinian
Canons Regular
at Berchtesgaden
, established about 1102, had already enjoyed an immediate status within the Bavarian Circle
, equal to an Imperial abbey. In 1559 the provosts were elevated to the rank of a Prince of the Empire in chief of the small lordship. The full style of the office became Fürst, Pröpste, und Herr zu Berchtesgaden. In the course of the German Mediatisation
in 1803, Berchtesgaden was annexed by the Electorate of Salzburg
, it finally fell to the Kingdom of Bavaria
in 1810.
Ellwangen Abbey
The abbots of the Benedictine Abbey known as Stift Ellwangen founded in 764 had become Princes of the Empire (style Reichsabt
) in 1215 with a direct vote in the Reichstag. Since its conversion into a college of secular canons in 1460, the superiors retained that status, with their full style changed to Fürstliche Pröpste zu Ellwangen ("Princely Provosts of Ellwangen") in the Swabian Circle
. During the German Mediatisation on 27 April 1803 it was incorporated into the Duchy of Württemberg
.
(...)
(...)
Wissembourg Abbey
The Benedictine abbey established at Alsacien Wissembourg
(Weißenburg) about 660 after a long-time delay was converted into a collegiate monastery in 1524 and unified with the Bishopric of Speyer
in 1546. The Speyer Prince-Bishop
s ruled as Provosts of Wissembourg in personal union
, thereby holding two direct votes in the Reichstag assembly. As Wissembourg had fallen to the Kingdom of France
according to the 1648 Peace of Westphalia
, the provostry was finally disestablished in the course of the French Revolution
in 1789.
Provost (religion)
A provost is a senior official in a number of Christian churches.-Historical Development:The word praepositus was originally applied to any ecclesiastical ruler or dignitary...
who is a Prince of the Church
Prince of the Church
The term Prince of the Church is nowadays used nearly exclusively for Catholic Cardinals. However the term is historically more important as a generic term for clergymen whose offices hold the secular rank and privilege of a prince or are considered its equivalent...
in the sense that he also ranks as a secular 'prince' (lato sensu: ruler), notably a Reichsfürst
Princes of the Holy Roman Empire
The term Prince of the Holy Roman Empire denoted a secular or ecclesiastical Imperial State, who ruled over an immediate fief directly assigned by the Holy Roman Emperor...
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...
, holding a direct vote in the Reichstag
Reichstag (Holy Roman Empire)
The Imperial Diet was the Diet, or general assembly, of the Imperial Estates of the Holy Roman Empire.During the period of the Empire, which lasted formally until 1806, the Diet was not a parliament in today's sense; instead, it was an assembly of the various estates of the realm...
assembly coequal to an actual Prince-abbot
Prince-abbot
A Prince-Abbot is a title for a cleric who is a Prince of the Church , in the sense of an ex officio temporal lord of a feudal entity, notably a State of the Holy Roman Empire. The secular territory ruled by the head of an abbey is known as Prince-Abbacy or Abbey-principality...
, as in each case treated below.
Berchtesgaden ProvostryBerchtesgaden ProvostryBerchtesgaden Provostry or the Prince-Provostry of Berchtesgaden was an immediate principality of the Holy Roman Empire, held by a canonry, i.e...
The monastery of AugustinianAugustinians
The term Augustinians, named after Saint Augustine of Hippo , applies to two separate and unrelated types of Catholic religious orders:...
Canons Regular
Canons Regular
Canons Regular are members of certain bodies of Canons living in community under the Augustinian Rule , and sharing their property in common...
at Berchtesgaden
Berchtesgaden
Berchtesgaden is a municipality in the German Bavarian Alps. It is located in the south district of Berchtesgadener Land in Bavaria, near the border with Austria, some 30 km south of Salzburg and 180 km southeast of Munich...
, established about 1102, had already enjoyed an immediate status within the Bavarian Circle
Bavarian Circle
The Bavarian Circle was an Imperial Circle of the Holy Roman Empire.The most significant state by far in the circle was the Duchy of Bavaria , with the states of the Upper Palatinate, the Archbishopric of Salzburg, and the imperial city of Regensburg having a secondary importance.- Composition...
, equal to an Imperial abbey. In 1559 the provosts were elevated to the rank of a Prince of the Empire in chief of the small lordship. The full style of the office became Fürst, Pröpste, und Herr zu Berchtesgaden. In the course of the German Mediatisation
German Mediatisation
The German Mediatisation was the series of mediatisations and secularisations that occurred in Germany between 1795 and 1814, during the latter part of the era of the French Revolution and then the Napoleonic Era....
in 1803, Berchtesgaden was annexed by the Electorate of Salzburg
Electorate of Salzburg
The Electorate of Salzburg , occasionally known as the Grand Duchy of Salzburg, was an electoral principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1803–05. Its capital was Salzburg.- History :...
, it finally fell to the Kingdom of Bavaria
Kingdom of Bavaria
The Kingdom of Bavaria was a German state that existed from 1806 to 1918. The Bavarian Elector Maximilian IV Joseph of the House of Wittelsbach became the first King of Bavaria in 1806 as Maximilian I Joseph. The monarchy would remain held by the Wittelsbachs until the kingdom's dissolution in 1918...
in 1810.
Prince-Provosts of Berchtesgaden
- 1559 - 1567 Wolfgang Griesstätter zu Haslach; 1541 - 1559 Provost and Imperial prelate (German: ‘Reichsprälat’) in Berchtesgaden
- 1567 - 1594 Jakob Pütrich
- 1594 - 1650 Ferdinand of Bavaria, also ElectorPrince-electorThe Prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire were the members of the electoral college of the Holy Roman Empire, having the function of electing the Roman king or, from the middle of the 16th century onwards, directly the Holy Roman Emperor.The heir-apparent to a prince-elector was known as an...
and Prince-ArchbishopPrince-BishopA 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...
of Cologne, Prince-Bishop of HildesheimBishopric of HildesheimThe Diocese of Hildesheim is a diocese or ecclesiastical territory of the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church in Germany. Founded in 815 as a missionary diocese by King Louis the Pious, his son Louis the German appointed the famous former archbishop of Rheims, Ebbo, as bishop...
, Liège and Münster from 1612, as well as Prince-Bishop of Paderborn from 1618. - 1650 - 1688 Maximilian Henry of BavariaMaximilian Henry of Bavariathumb|154 px|Maximilian Heinrich of BavariaMaximilian Henry of Bavaria was the third son and fourth child of Albert VI, landgrave of Leuchtenberg and his wife, Mechthilde von Leuchtenberg. In 1650, he was named Archbishop of Cologne, Bishop of Hildesheim and Bishop of Liège succeeding his uncle,...
, also Elector of Cologne and Prince-Bishop of Hildesheim and Liège as well as Prince-Bishop of Münster from 1683 - 1688 - 1723 Joseph Clemens of BavariaJoseph Clemens of BavariaJoseph Clemens of Bavaria was a member of the Wittelsbach dynasty of Bavaria and Archbishop-Elector of Cologne from 1688 to 1723.-Biography:...
, Prince-Bishop of FreisingRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Munich and FreisingThe Archdiocese of Munich and Freising is an ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Roman Catholic Church in Bavaria, Germany. It is led by the prelature of the Archbishop of Munich, who administers the see from the mother church in Munich, the Frauenkirche, also known as Munich Cathedral...
and RegensburgBishopric of RegensburgThe Bishopric of Regensburg was a small prince-bishopric of the Holy Roman Empire, located in what is now southern Germany. It was elevated to the Archbishopric of Regensburg in 1803 after the dissolution of the Archbishopric of Mainz, but became a bishopric again in 1817.-History:The diocese...
from 1685 to 1694, Elector of Cologne from 1688, Prince-Bishop of Liège (from 1694) and Hildesheim (from 1702) - 1723 - 1732 Julius Henry von Rehlingen-Radau
- 1732 - 1752 Cajetan Anton von Notthaft
- 1752 - 1768 Michael Balthasar von Christallnigg
- 1768 - 1780 Francis Anton Joseph von Hausen-Gleichenstorff
- 1780 - 1803 Joseph Conrad von Schroffenberg-Mös (d. 1803), also Prince-Bishop of Freising and Regensburg from 1789
Ellwangen AbbeyEllwangen AbbeyEllwangen Abbey was the earliest Benedictine monastery established in the Duchy of Swabia, at the present-day town of Ellwangen an der Jagst, Baden-Württemberg about 100 km north-east of Stuttgart.-Imperial abbey:...
The abbots of the Benedictine Abbey known as Stift Ellwangen founded in 764 had become Princes of the Empire (style ReichsabtPrince-abbot
A Prince-Abbot is a title for a cleric who is a Prince of the Church , in the sense of an ex officio temporal lord of a feudal entity, notably a State of the Holy Roman Empire. The secular territory ruled by the head of an abbey is known as Prince-Abbacy or Abbey-principality...
) in 1215 with a direct vote in the Reichstag. Since its conversion into a college of secular canons in 1460, the superiors retained that status, with their full style changed to Fürstliche Pröpste zu Ellwangen ("Princely Provosts of Ellwangen") in the Swabian Circle
Swabian Circle
The Swabian Circle was an Imperial Circle of the Holy Roman Empire established in 1500 on the territory of the former German stem-duchy of Swabia. However, it did not include the Habsburg home territories of Swabian Austria, the member states of the Swiss Confederacy nor the lands of the Alsace...
. During the German Mediatisation on 27 April 1803 it was incorporated into the Duchy of Württemberg
Württemberg
Württemberg , formerly known as Wirtemberg or Wurtemberg, is an area and a former state in southwestern Germany, including parts of the regions Swabia and Franconia....
.
Prince-Provosts of Ellwangen
(incomplete)- 1521 - 1552 Henry of the PalatinateHenry of the Palatinate (bishop)Henry of Bavaria or Henry of the Palatinate was bishop of Utrecht from 1524 to 1529, bishop of Worms from 1523 to 1552 and bishop of Freising from 1541 to 1552....
, also Prince-Bishop of WormsBishopric of WormsThe 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...
from 1523 and of Utrecht from 1524 to 1529, Prince-Bishop of Freising from 1541 - 1552 - 1573 Cardinal Otto Truchsess von WaldburgOtto Truchsess von WaldburgOtto Truchsess von Waldburg was Prince-Bishop of Augsburg from 1543 until his death and a Cardinal of the Catholic Church.-Childhood and Education:...
, also Prince-Bishop of AugsburgPrince-Bishopric of AugsburgThe Prince-Bishopric of Augsburg was one of the prince-bishoprics of the Holy Roman Empire, which belonged to the Swabian Circle.-Early period:...
since 1543
(...)
- 1660 - 1674 Johann Christoph von Freyberg-AllmendingenJohann Christoph von Freyberg-AllmendingenJohann Christoph Reichsritter von Freyberg-Allmendingen was the Prince-Provost of Ellwangen Abbey from 1660 to 1674, and the Prince-Bishop of Augsburg from 1665 to 1690.-Biography:...
(...)
- 1689 - 1694 Count Palatine Louis Anton of Neuburg, also Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights since 1684 and Prince-Bishop of Worms from 1691
- 1694 - 1732 Count Palatine Francis Louis of Neuburg, also Grand Master of the Teutonic Knights and Prince-Bishop of Worms, Elector and Archbishop of Trier from 1716 and of MainzArchbishopric of MainzThe 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...
from 1729 - 1732 - 1756 Franz Georg von Schönborn-BuchheimFranz Georg von Schönborn-BuchheimFranz Georg von Schönborn was the Archbishop-Elector of Trier from 1729 until 1756, and the Prince-Bishop of Worms and Prince-Provost of Ellwangen from 1732 until 1756.-Biography:...
, Elector of Trier since 1729, also Prince-Bishop of Worms from 1732 - 1756 - 1787 Anton Ignaz Joseph Graf von Fugger-Glött, also Prince-Bishop of Regensburg from 1769
- 1787 - 1803 Prince Clemens Wenceslaus of Saxony (d. 1812), Prince-Bishop of Freising 1763–1768 and of Regensburg 1763–1769, Elector of Trier and Prince-Bishop of Augsburg since 1768
Wissembourg AbbeySt. Peter and St. Paul's Church, WissembourgSt. Peter and St. Paul's Church of Wissembourg is frequently, but incorrectly, referred to as the second largest Gothic church of Alsace after Strasbourg Cathedral. However, the building, with its interior ground surface area of 1320 m² most probably is the second largest Gothic church in...
The Benedictine abbey established at Alsacien WissembourgWissembourg
Wissembourg is a commune in the Bas-Rhin department in Alsace in northeastern France.It is situated on the little River Lauter close to the border between France and Germany approximately north of Strasbourg and west of Karlsruhe. Wissembourg is a sub-prefecture of the department...
(Weißenburg) about 660 after a long-time delay was converted into a collegiate monastery in 1524 and unified with the Bishopric of 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...
in 1546. The Speyer 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...
s ruled as Provosts of Wissembourg in personal union
Personal union
A personal union is the combination by which two or more different states have the same monarch while their boundaries, their laws and their interests remain distinct. It should not be confused with a federation which is internationally considered a single state...
, thereby holding two direct votes in the Reichstag assembly. As Wissembourg had fallen to the Kingdom of France
Early Modern France
Kingdom of France is the early modern period of French history from the end of the 15th century to the end of the 18th century...
according to the 1648 Peace of Westphalia
Peace of Westphalia
The Peace of Westphalia was a series of peace treaties signed between May and October of 1648 in Osnabrück and Münster. These treaties ended the Thirty Years' War in the Holy Roman Empire, and the Eighty Years' War between Spain and the Dutch Republic, with Spain formally recognizing the...
, the provostry was finally disestablished in the course of the French Revolution
French Revolution
The French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
in 1789.