History of Saxony-Anhalt: Difference between revisions
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| image1 = German_Empire_-_Prussia_-_Saxony_(1871).svg |
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| caption1 = The Prussian province of Saxony within Prussia and the German Empire |
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The '''history of Saxony-Anhalt''' began with [[Old Saxony]], which was conquered by [[Charlemagne]] in 804 and transformed into the [[Duchy of Saxony]] within the [[Carolingian Empire]]. Saxony went on to become one of the so-called [[Stem duchy|stem duchies]] of the [[German Kingdom]] and subsequently the [[Holy Roman Empire]] which formed out of [[East Francia|the eastern partition of the Carolingian Empire]]. The duchy grew to become a powerful [[States of the Holy Roman Empire|state]] within the empire, ruling over much of what is now northern Germany, but following conflicts with the emperor it was partitioned into numerous minor states, including the [[Principality of Anhalt]], around the end of the 12th century and early 13th century. The territories of the Duchy of Saxony, the Principality of Anhalt, and their successors are now part of the modern German state of [[Saxony-Anhalt]]. |
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The '''Grand Duchy of Baden''' was up until [[1918]] a sovereign state of [[Germany]], which was bounded to the north by the kingdom of [[Bavaria]] and the Grand Duchy of [[Hesse-Darmstadt]] - to the west and practically throughout its whole length by the river [[Rhine]], which separated it from the Bavarian Palatinate and the [[Alsace]]; to the south by [[Switzerland]], and to the east by the kingdom of [[Wuerttemberg]] and partly by Bavaria. |
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The ducal title and [[Prince-elector|electoral dignity]] passed to the [[Ascanian]] [[Bernhard, Count of Anhalt|Bernhard of Anhalt]], but the title only came with a few small eastern parts of the former territory. Following his death in 1212 his possessions were divided between his sons: [[Henry I, Count of Anhalt|Henry]] established [[principality of Anhalt|Anhalt]] as a [[Graf|county]] while [[Albert I, Duke of Saxony|Albert I]] took on the ducal title and the remaining possessions. |
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The [[duchy]] had an area of 15,081 km² (5823 mi²) and consisted of a considerable portion of the eastern half of the fertile valley of the Rhine and of the mountains which form its boundary. |
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Anhalt was raised to a [[Fürstentum|principality]] in 1218 but was divided in 1252 between Henry's sons, forming [[Anhalt-Aschersleben]], [[Anhalt-Bernburg]] and [[Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst|Anhalt-Zerbst]]. Over the centuries, numerous additional divisions and reunifications of the Anhalt territory took place, resulting in the creation of [[Anhalt-Köthen]], [[Anhalt-Dessau]], [[Anhalt-Pless]] and [[Anhalt-Plötzkau]], as well as the recreation of several of the divisions; after 1252 it was only ruled as a single entity between 1570 and 1603. |
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The mountainous part was by far the most extensive, forming, indeed, nearly 80% of the whole area. From the [[Lake of Constance]] in the south to the river [[Neckar]] in the north is a portion of the [[Black Forest]] or ''Schwarzwald'', which is divided by the valley of the Kinzig into two districts of different elevation. To the south of the Kinzig the mean height is 945 m (3100 ft), and the loftiest summit, the Feldberg, reaches about 1493 m (4898 ft);, while to the north the mean height is only 640 m (2100 ft), and the Belchen, the culminating point of the whole, does not exceed 1365 m (4480 ft). To the north of the Neckar is the Odenwald Range, with a mean of 439 m (1440 ft), and in the Katzenbuckel, an extreme of 603 m (1980 ft). Lying between the Rhine and the [[Dreisam]] is the [[Kaiserstuhl]], an independent [[volcanic]] group, nearly 16 km in length and 8 in breadth, the highest point of which is 536 m (1760 ft). |
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Meanwhile, after Albert I's death in 1260, the Duchy of Saxony was co-ruled by his sons [[John I, Duke of Saxony|John I]] and [[Albert II, Duke of Saxony|Albert II]], and subsequently also by John I's sons. However, the geographic separation of the territories – [[Wittenberg]], [[Lauenburg]] and [[Hadeln]] – led to them being increasingly administered separately. In 1296 the duchy was officially separated into two separate duchies: John's sons became rulers of [[Saxe-Lauenburg]] (which also included the Hadeln exclave) while Albert II became ruler of [[Saxe-Wittenberg]]. In addition to the duchy, Albert had acquired the [[County of Gommern]] in 1295, and in 1290 his son and heir [[Rudolf I, Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg|Rudolph]] had been enfeoffed with the lands of the former [[County of Brehna]] on Wittenberg's southern border. The status of the electoral dignity was contested by both lines until it was officially settled in Saxe-Wittenberg's favour by the [[Golden Bull of 1356]], after which time it became known as the [[Electorate of Saxony]]. In 1423 the Electorate was inherited by the [[House of Wettin|Wettin]] [[Frederick I, Elector of Saxony|Frederick I]], who was also the [[Margraviate of Meissen|Margrave of Meissen]] and [[Landgraviate of Thuringia|Landgrave of Thuringia]]. Since Prince-elector was a higher rank than either landgrave or margrave, the whole of Frederick's territory became known as the Electorate of Saxony; the lands around Wittenberg, Brehna and Gommern became known as the ''{{lang|de|[[Kurkreis]]}}'' or "Electoral [[Circle (administrative division)|Circle]]". |
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The greater part of Baden belongs to the basin of the Rhine, which receives upwards of twenty tributaries from the highlands; the north-eastern portion of the territory is also watered by the [[Main]] and the Neckar. A part, however, of the eastern slope of the Black Forest belongs to the basin of the [[Danube]], which there takes its rise in a number of mountain streams. Among the numerous lakes which belonged to the duchy are the Mummel, Wilder, Eichener and Schluch, but none of them is of any size. The Lake of Constance (''Boden-See'') belongs partly to Bavaria and to Switzerland. |
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After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the remaining Anhalt divisions – Bernburg, Dessau and Köthen – were elevated to duchies by [[Napoleon]] while the Electorate of Saxony became [[Kingdom of Saxony|a Kingdom]]; all were part of Napoleon's [[Confederation of the Rhine]] until 1813. |
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Owing to its physical configuration Baden presents great extremes of heat and cold. The Rhine valley is the warmest district in Germany, but the higher elevations of the Black Forest record the greatest degrees of cold experienced in the South. The mean temperature of the Rhine valley is approximately 10° C and that, of the high table-land, 6° C. July is the hottest and January the coldest month. |
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In 1813 the [[Kingdom of Prussia]] occupied large amounts of Saxony's territory in the [[Battle of Leipzig]], including the Electoral Circle (which had been renamed the "Wittenberg Circle" in 1807); in May 1815 a treaty was signed in which Saxony ceded this territory to Prussia. In June 1815 they all became part of the [[German Confederation]]. In 1816 Prussia reorganised its annexed territory, merging it with the former [[Duchy of Magdeburg]], [[Principality of Halberstadt]], [[Principality of Erfurt]], the [[Eichsfeld]], and the former Imperial Cities of [[Mühlhausen]] and [[Nordhausen, Thuringia|Nordhausen]], along with the [[Altmark]] and other parts of [[Margraviate of Brandenburg|Brandenburg]] west of the Elbe, into the [[Province of Saxony]]. |
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The [[mineral]] wealth of Baden was not great, but [[iron]], [[coal]], [[lead]] and [[zinc]] of excellent quality were produced, and [[silver]], [[copper]], [[gold]], [[cobalt]], [[vitriol]] and [[sulphur]] were obtained in small quantities. Peat was found in abundance, as well as [[gypsum]], china [[clay]], potter's earth and [[salt]]. The [[mineral spring]]s of Baden are still very numerous and have acquired great celebrity, those of Baden-Baden, [[Badenweiler]], Antogast, Griesbach, Friersbach and Peterthal being the most frequented. |
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In 1863 the Anhalt duchies were finally reunited to form the [[Duchy of Anhalt]]. The duchy became part of the Prussian-led [[North German Confederation]] in 1867 and finally the [[German Empire]] in 1871. |
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In the valleys the soil is partcularly fertile, yielding luxuriant crops of [[wheat]], [[maize]], [[barley]], [[spelt]], [[rye]], [[bean]], [[potato]]es, [[flax]], [[hemp]], [[hop]]s, [[beetroot]], and [[tobacco]]; and even in the more montainous part, rye, wheat and oats are extensively cultivated. There is a considerable extent of pasture-land, and the rearing of [[cattle]], [[sheep]], [[pig]]s, and [[goat]]s is extensively practised. Of [[game]], [[deer]], [[boar]], [[snipe]] and wild partridges are fairly abundant, while the mountain streams yield [[trout]] of excellent quality. The culture of the vine increases, and the wines, which are charactised by a mildness of flavour, are in good demand. The gardens and the [[orchard]]s supply an abundance of fruit, especially [[almond]]s and [[walnut]]s, and bee-keeping is practised throughout the country. A greater proportion of Baden than any other south German state is occupied by forests. In these the predominant trees are fir and pine, but many others, such as the chestnut, are well-represented. A third, at least, of the annual timber production is exported. |
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Following Germany's defeat in World War I, Anhalt became the [[Free State of Anhalt]] while the Province of Saxony continued as a constituent of the [[Free State of Prussia]] (both within the [[Weimar Republic]]). During Nazi rule, all of the previous subdivisions, including Anhalt and the Province of Saxony, ceased to exist ''de facto'' as they were replaced with ''{{lang|de|[[Administrative divisions of Nazi Germany|Gaue]]}}'' in 1934. |
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''Population''- At the beginning of the [[19th century]], Baden was only a margravate, with an area of barely 1300 sq. mi.and a population of 210,000. Since then, it has acquired more territory, so that it now has 5823 sq. mi. and its population is 2,009,320, of whom 60% are [[Roman Catholics]], 37% [[Protestant]]s, 1.5% Jews, and the remainder of other confessions. Of the population about 1/2 may be said to be rural, living in communities of less than 2,000, while the density of the rest is about 330 to the sq. mi. |
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After World War II what had been Anhalt and the Province of Saxony formed the basis of the [[Soviet occupation zone|occupying Soviet administration]]'s state (''{{lang|de|Land}}'') of [[Saxony-Anhalt]]. Along with the other states of [[East Germany]], Saxony-Anhalt was dissolved in 1952 and replaced with various [[Administrative divisions of East Germany|districts]] (''{{lang|de|Bezirke}}''); Saxony-Anhalt roughly corresponds to the former [[Bezirk Magdeburg|Magdeburg]] and [[Bezirk Halle|Halle]] districts. However, the states, including Saxony-Anhalt, came back into being following [[German reunification]] in 1990, albeit with different borders than the original East German states. |
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The country was divided into the following districts: |
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== Duchy of Saxony == |
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[[Mannheim]] district had the towns [[Mannheim]] (162,607), and [[Heidelberg]] (49, 439) (as of 1900) |
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[[File:Saxony locator map (1000).svg|thumb|left|Saxony (red) within the German Kingdom around the beginning of the 11th century.]] |
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After Charlemagne's conquest of the Saxons (772–804), their land was incorporated into the Carolingian empire, and late in the 9th century, it became the first [[Duchy of Saxony]]. It occupied nearly all the territory between the Elbe and Saale rivers to the east and the Rhine to the west; it bordered on Franconia and Thuringia in the south. It was itself divided into four provinces: [[Westphalia]], [[Angria]], [[Eastphalia]], and [[Nordalbingia]], with modern Saxony-Anhalt mostly lying within Eastphalia. Duke Henry I ([[Henry the Fowler]]) of Saxony was elected German king in 919, and his son, Emperor Otto I, bestowed (961) Saxony on [[Hermann Billung]] (d. 973), a Saxon nobleman, whose descendants held the duchy until the extinction of the male line in 1106. [[Lothair of Supplinburg]] bestowed it on his [[House of Welf|Guelphic]] son-in-law, [[Henry the Proud]], who was already Duke of Bavaria. |
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[[File:Mark Lausitz, Karte Anno 1200.jpg|thumb|Anhalt (''{{lang|de|Gft. Anhalt}}'', orange) and the Wittenberg lands of the Duchy of Saxony (''{{lang|de|Hzm. Sachsen}}'', dark green) around the middle of the 13th century.]] |
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[[Karlsruhe]] district included Karlsruhe (111,200) and [[Pforzheim]] (39,307) (as of 1900.) |
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In 1142 the duchy passed to [[Henry the Lion]], son of [[Henry the Proud]]. The struggle between Henry the Lion and [[Emperor Frederick I]] ended with Henry's loss of all his fiefs in 1180. The stem duchy was broken up into numerous fiefs. The Guelphic heirs of Henry the Lion retained only their [[allodial]] lands, the Duchy of Brunswick. The ducal title of Saxony went to [[Bernhard, Count of Anhalt|Bernhard of Anhalt]], a younger son of [[Albert the Bear]] of Brandenburg and founder of the [[Ascanian]] line of Saxon dukes. Besides [[Anhalt]], Bernard received [[Lauenburg]] and the country around Wittenberg on the Elbe. These widely separate territories continued after 1260 under separate branches of the [[Ascanians]] as [[Saxe-Lauenburg]] and [[Saxe-Wittenberg]]. |
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== Electorate and Kingdom of Saxony == |
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[[Freiburg-im-Breisgau]] district included [[Freiburg]] (74,102, as of 1900) |
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The [[Golden Bull of 1356]] raised the Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg to the permanent rank of [[Prince-elector|elector]], with the right to participate in the election of the Holy Roman Emperor. Electoral Saxony, as his territory was called, was a relatively small area along the middle Elbe. Extending to the south of Electoral Saxony was the [[Margraviate of Meissen]], ruled by the increasingly powerful house of [[Wettin (dynasty)|Wettin]]. The margraves of Meissen acquired (13th–14th century) the larger parts of Thuringia, Lower [[Lusatia]] and the intervening territories, and in 1423 Margrave [[Frederick I, Elector of Saxony|Frederick the Warlike]] added Electoral Saxony; in 1425 he became Elector Frederick I. Thus, Saxony shifted to east-central and east Germany from northwest Germany. |
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In 1485 the Wettin lands were partitioned between two sons of Elector [[Frederick II, Elector of Saxony|Frederick II]]; the division came to be permanent. Ernest, founder of the Ernestine branch of Wettin, received Electoral Saxony with Wittenberg and most of the [[Thuringian]] lands. Albert, founder of the [[Ernestine and Albertine Wettins|Albertine]] branch, received a ducal rank and the Meissen territories, including Dresden and Leipzig. Duke Maurice of Saxony, a grandson of Albert and a Protestant, received the electoral title in the 16th century; it remained in the Albertine branch until the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806. |
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[[Constance]] district had Constance (24,818 as of 1900) |
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The rivalry between Saxony and Brandenburg (after 1701 the kingdom of Prussia) was a decisive factor in later Saxon history, as was the election in 1697 of [[Augustus II the Strong|Augustus II]] (who was Frederick Augustus I as Elector of Saxony) as King of Poland; the election led to an economic partnership between the declining Poland and Saxony, whose prestige was thereby diminished. In the [[War of the Austrian Succession]], Saxony adhered to what had become its traditional wavering policy, changing sides in the middle of the conflict. The death in 1763 of [[Augustus III of Poland|Augustus III]] ended the union with Poland. |
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The capital of the duchy was Karlsruhe, and among important towns other than the above, there are [[Rastatt]], [[Baden-Baden]], [[Bruchsal]] and [[Lahr]]. The population is most thickly clustered in the north and near the Swiss town of [[Basel]]. The inhabitants of Baden are of various origins, those to the north of Murg being descended from the Alemanni and those to the south from the Franks, while the [[Swabian Plateau]] derives its name and its population from another race. See [[Württemberg]]. |
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The period of Saxon rule in Poland marked a time of economic and social decay but also of cultural and artistic flowering. Augustus II and Augustus III were lavish patrons of art and learning and greatly beautified their capital, Dresden. The universities of Wittenberg and Leipzig had long been leading intellectual centers, and 18th-century Leipzig led in the rise of German literature as well as in music, which reached its first peak with Bach. |
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''Industries''- Of the area, 56.8% is cultivated and 38% is forest, but the agricultureal sector, which before 1870 yielded the bulk of the wealth, has been superseded by industrial production. The chief manufactures are machinery, woollen and cotton goods, silk ribbons, paper, tobacco, china, leather, glass, clocks, jewelry, and chemicals. Beet sugar is also largely manufactured, as are wooden ornaments and toys, music boxes and organs. |
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Saxony sided with Prussia against France early in the French Revolutionary Wars but changed sides in 1806. For this act its elector was raised to royal rank, becoming King Frederick Augustus I. His failure to change sides again before Napoleon's fall cost him (1815) nearly half his kingdom at the Congress of Vienna. The Kingdom of Saxony lost Lower Lusatia, part of Upper Lusatia, and all its northern territory including Wittenberg and [[Merseburg]] to Prussia. Its principal remaining cities were Dresden, Leipzig, Chemnitz, and Plauen. The larger part of the territories ceded in 1815 was incorporated with several other Prussian districts into the Prussian province of Saxony, with Magdeburg as its capital. This was united after 1945 with [[Anhalt]] to form the state of Saxony-Anhalt and became part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) in 1949. From 1952 to 1990 Saxony-Anhalt was divided into the East German districts of Halle and Magdeburg. In 1990, prior to German reunification, the districts were reintegrated as a state. |
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The exports of Baden consist mostly of the above goods, and are considerable, but the bulk of its trade consists of transit. The country has many railways and roads, as well as the Rhine. Railways were run by the state. A rail-line runs mostly parallel with the Rhine, with oblique branches from East to West. |
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== Counts of Anhalt == |
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Mannheim is the great emporium for export down the Rhine and has much river traffic. It was also the chief manufacturing town for the duchy, and an important administrative centre for the northern part of the country. |
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During the 9th century, the greater part of Anhalt was included in the [[Duchy of Saxony]]. In the 12th century, it came under the rule of [[Albert the Bear]], [[Margrave]] of Brandenburg. Albert was descended from [[Adalbert, Count of Ballenstedt]], whose son [[Esico of Ballenstedt|Esico]] (d. 1059 or 1060) appears to have been the first to bear the title of Count of Anhalt. Esico's grandson, [[Otto, Count of Ballenstedt|Otto the Rich]], Count of Ballenstedt, was the father of Albert the Bear, who united Anhalt with Brandenburg. When Albert died in 1170, his son [[Bernhard, Count of Anhalt|Bernard I]], who received the title of [[Duke of Saxony]] in 1180, became the first Count of Anhalt. Bernard I died in 1212, and Anhalt, separated from Saxony, passed to his son [[Henry I, Count of Anhalt|Henry]], who in 1218 took the title of prince and was the real founder of the house of Anhalt.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} Henry is included among the Minnesingers in the [[Codex Manesse]]. |
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== Princes of Anhalt == |
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On Henry's death in 1252 his three sons partitioned the principality, founding the lines of [[Anhalt-Aschersleben|Aschersleben]], [[Anhalt-Bernburg|Bernburg]] and [[Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst|Zerbst]]. The family ruling in Aschersleben became extinct in 1315, and this district was subsequently incorporated into the neighbouring [[Bishopric of Halberstadt]], thus dividing the territory of [[Anhalt-Bernburg]] into two separate pieces. The last prince of the original line of Anhalt-Bernburg died in 1468 and his lands were inherited by the princes of the sole remaining line, that of [[Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst|Anhalt-Zerbst]]. The territory belonging to this branch of the family had been divided in 1396, and after the acquisition of Bernburg, Prince [[George I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau|George I]] made a further partition of Zerbst (Zerbst and Dessau). Early in the 16th century, owing to the death or abdication of several princes, the family had narrowed down to the two branches of Anhalt-Köthen and Anhalt-Dessau (both issued from Anhalt-Dessau in 1471).{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} |
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''Education and Religion''- The educational institutions of Baden are numerous and flourishing, and public education is entirely in the hands of the government. There are two universities, the Protestant one at Heidelberg and the Roman-Catholic one at Freiburg-im-Breisgau, and a celebrated technical college at Karlsruhe. The grand-duke was a protestant; under him, the evangelical church was governed by a nominated council and a synod consisting of a "prelate", 48 elected and 7 nominated lay and clerical members. The Roman Catholic Archbishop of Freiburg is Metropolitan of the Upper Rhine. |
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[[Wolfgang, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen|Wolfgang of Anhalt]], called "The Confessor", who became prince of Anhalt-Köthen in 1508, was the second ruler in the world to introduce the [[Reformation]] in his territory. He was a co-signer of the [[Augsburg Confession]] in 1530, and after the [[Battle of Mühlberg]] in 1547 was placed under Imperial ban and deprived of his lands by [[Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor]]. After the [[peace of Passau]] in 1552 he bought back his principality, but as he was childless he surrendered it in 1562 to his kinsmen, the princes of Anhalt-Dessau. [[Ernest I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau]] (d. 1516), left three sons, [[John V, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst|John II]], [[George III, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau|George III]], and [[Joachim I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau|Joachim]], who jointly ruled their lands for many years and favoured the reformed doctrines, which thus became dominant in Anhalt. About 1546 the three brothers divided their principality and founded the lines of [[Principality of Anhalt-Zerbst|Zerbst]], [[Anhalt-Plötzkau|Plötzkau]] and Dessau. This division, however, was only temporary, as the acquisition of [[Anhalt-Köthen|Köthen]], and a series of deaths among the ruling princes, enabled [[Joachim Ernest, Prince of Anhalt|Joachim Ernest]], a son of John II, to unite the whole of Anhalt under his rule in 1570.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} |
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''Constitution and Government''- The government of Baden was a hereditary monarchy with executive power vested in the Grand Duke while the legislative authority was shared by him with a representative assembly (''Landtag'') consisting of two chambers. The upper chamber included all the princes of the ruling family of full age, the heads of all the mediatized families, the Archbishop of Freiburg, the president of the Protestant Evangelical Church, a deputy from each of the universities and the technical high school, eight members elected by the territorial nobility for four years, three representatives elected by the chamber of commerce, two by that of agriculture, one by the trades, two mayors of municipalities, amd eight members (two of them legal functionaries) nominated by the Grand Duke. The lower chamber consisted of 73 popular representatives, of whom 24 were elected by the burgesses of certain communities, and 49 by rural communities. Every citizen of 25 years of age, who had not been convicted and was not a pauper,had a vote. The elections were, however, indirect. The citizens selected the ''Wohlmanner'' (deputy electors), the latter selecting the representatives. The chambers met at least every two years. The lower chambers were elected for four years, half the members retiring every two years. The executive consisted of four departments: The interior, foreign and grand-ducal affairs, finance, and justice, and ecclesiastical affairs and education. The chief sources of revenue were direct and indirect taxes, the railways and domains. The railways were operateded by the state, and formed the only source of major public debt, about 22 million pounds sterling. The supreme courts lay in Karsruhe, Freiburg, Offenburg, Heidelberg, Mosach, Waldshut, Constance, and Mannheim, whence appeals passed to the ''Reichsgericht'' (the supreme tribunal) in Leipzig. By virtue of a convention with Prussia, the Baden army was part of the Prussian Army. |
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Joachim Ernest died in 1586, and his five sons ruled the land in common until 1603, when Anhalt was again divided, and the lines of Dessau, Bernburg, Plötzkau, Zerbst, and Köthen were re-established. The principality was ravaged during the [[Thirty Years' War]], and in the earlier part of this struggle [[Christian I of Anhalt-Bernburg]] took an important part. In 1635 an arrangement was made by the various princes of Anhalt to authorize the eldest member of the family to represent the principality as a whole. This action was probably due to the necessity of maintaining an appearance of unity in view of the disturbed state of European politics at the time.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} |
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''History'' - during the middle ages, the country that now forms Baden was ruled by various counts, prominent among whom where the counts and duchy of [[Zahringen (family)|Zahringen]] In [[1112]] Hermann, son of Hermann, Margrave of Verona (d. 1074) and grandson of Berthold, duke of Carinthia and count of [[Zahringen]], having inherited some of the German estates of his family, called himself Margrave of Baden, and from this date, the separate history of Baden may be said to begin. Hermann appears to have called himself margrave rather than count, because of the family connection to the margrave of Verona. His son and grandson, both called Hermann, added to their territories, which were then divided, and the lines of Baden-Baden and Baden-Hochberg were founded, the latter of which was divided about a century later into Baden-Hochberg and Baden-Sausenberg. The family of Baden-Baden was very successful in increasing the area of its holdings, which after several divisions were united by the margrave Bernard I in [[1391]]. Bernard, a soldier of some renown, continued the work of his predecessors, and obtained other districts, including Baden-Hochberg, the ruling family of which died out in [[1418]]. |
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In 1665 the Anhalt-Köthen branch became extinct, and according to a family compact, this district was inherited by [[Lebrecht, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen|Lebrecht, Prince of Anhalt-Plötzkau]], who surrendered Plötzkau to Bernburg and took the title of prince of Anhalt-Köthen. In the same year the princes of Anhalt decided that if any branch of the family became extinct its lands should be equally divided among the remaining branches. This arrangement was carried out after the death of [[Frederick Augustus, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst]], in 1793, and Zerbst was divided between the three remaining princes. During these years the policy of the different princes was marked, perhaps intentionally, by considerable uniformity. Once or twice [[Calvinism]] was favoured by one of the princes, but in general, the house was loyal to the doctrines of [[Martin Luther]]. The growth of [[Prussia]] provided Anhalt with a formidable neighbour, and the establishment and practice of [[primogeniture]] by all branches of the family prevented the further division of the principality.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} |
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During the 13th century, a war with the count palatine of the Rhine deprived the Margrave Charles I (d. 1475) of a part of his territories, but these losses were more than repaired by his son and successor, Christopher I of Baden. In 1503 the family Baden-Sausenberg became extinct, and the whole of Baden was united by Christopher, who divided it, however, before his death in 1527 among his three sons. One of these died childless in 1533, and in 1535 his remaining sons, Bernard and Ernest, having shared their brother?s territories, made a fresh division and founded the lines of Baden-Baden and Baden-Pforzheim, called after 1565 Baden-Durlach. Further divisions followed, and the weakness caused by these partitions was accentuated by a rivalry between the two main branches of the family. This culminated in open warfare, and from 1584 to 1622 Baden-Baden was in the possession of one of the princes of Baden-Durlach. Religious differences added to this rivalry. During the period of the Reformation some of the rulers of Baden adhered to the older and some adopted the newer faith, and the house was similarly divided during the Thirty Years? War. Baden suffered severely during this struggle, and both branches of the family were exiled in turn. The Treaty of Westphalia in 1648 restored the ''status quo'', and the family rivalry gradually died out. During the wars of the reign of Louis XIV the margravate was ravaged by French troops, and the margrave of Baden-Baden, Louis William (d. 1707), was prominent among the soldiers who resisted the aggressions of France. In 1771 Augustus George of Baden-Baden died without sons, and his territories passed to Charles Frederick of Baden-Durlach, who thus became ruler of the whole of Baden. |
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== 19th century duchies == |
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Although in 1771 Baden was united under a single ruler it did not form a compact territory, and its total area was only about 1350 square miles, consisting of a number of isolated districts lying on either bank of the upper Rhine. It was the work of Charles Frederick to acquire the intervening stretches of his land, and so to give territorial unity to his country. Beginning to reign in 1738 and coming of age in 1746, this prince is the most notable of the rulers of Baden. He was interested in the development of agriculture and commerce; sought to improve education and the administration of justice, and was in general a wise and liberal ruler. His opportunity for territorial aggrandizement came during the Napoleonic wars. When war broke out between France and Austria in 1792 the Badenese fought for Austria; consequently their country was devastated and in 1796 the margrave was compelled to pay an indemnity, and to cede his territories on the left bank of the Rhine to France. Fortune, however, soon returned to his side. In 1803, largely owing to the good offices of Alexander I., emperor of Russia, he received the bishopric of Constance, part of the Rhenish Palatinate, and other smaller districts, together with the dignity of a prince elector. Changing sides in 1805, he fought for Napoleon, with the result that by the peace of Pressburg in that year he obtained the Breisgau and other territories at the expense of the Habsburgs. In 1806 he joined the Confederation of the Rhine, declared himself a sovereign prince, became a grand-duke, and received other additions of territory. The Baden contingent continued to assist France, and by the peace of Vienna in 1809 the grand-duke was rewarded with accessions of territory at the expense of the kingdom of Wurttemberg. Having quadrupled the area of Baden, Charles Frederick died in June 1811, and was succeeded by his grandson, Charles, who was married to Stephanie de Beauharnais (died 1860), an adopted daughter of Napoleon. Charles fought for his father-in-law until after the battle of Leipzig In 1813, when he joined the Allies. |
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In 1806 [[Napoleon I of France|Napoleon]] elevated the remaining states of Anhalt-Bernburg, Anhalt-Dessau, and Anhalt-Köthen to duchies. (Anhalt-Plötzkau and Anhalt-Zerbst had in the meantime ceased to exist.) These duchies were united in 1863 to form a single [[Duchy of Anhalt]], again due to the extinction of the Köthen and Bernburg lines. The new duchy consisted of two large portions: Eastern and Western Anhalt, separated by the interposition of a part of the Prussian [[Province of Saxony]], and five exclaves surrounded by Prussian territory, namely [[Alsleben]], [[Muhlingen]], [[Dornburg]], [[Goednitz]] and [[Abberode|Tilkerode-Abberode]]. The eastern and larger portion of the duchy was enclosed by the Prussian government district of [[Potsdam]] (in the Prussian [[province of Brandenburg]]), and [[Magdeburg]] and [[Merseburg]] (belonging to the Prussian province of Saxony). The smaller western part (the so-called Upper Duchy or [[Ballenstedt]]) was also enclosed by the two latter districts as well as by the duchy of [[Brunswick-Lüneburg]].{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|pp=44-45}} |
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In 1815 Baden became a member of the Germanic confederation established by the Act of the 8th of June, annexed to the Final Act of the congress of Vienna of the 9th of June. In the hurry of the winding-up of the congress, however, the vexed question of the succession to the grand-duchy had not been settled. This was soon to become acute. By the treaty of the 16th of April 1816, by which the territorial disputes between Austria and Bavaria were settled, the succession to the Baden Palatinate was guaranteed to Maximilian I., king of Bavaria, in the expected event of the extinction of the line of Zahringen. As a counterblast to this the grand-duke Charles issued in 1817 a pragmatic sanction (''Hausgesetz'') declaring the counts of Hochberg, the issue of a morganatic marriage between the grand-duke Charles Frederick and Luise Geyer von Geyersberg (created countess Hochsberg), capable of succeeding to the crown. A controversy between Bavaria and Baden resulted, which was only decided favour of the Hochberg claims by the treaty signed by the four great powers and Baden at Frankfurt on the 10th of July 1819. Meanwhile the dispute had produced important effects in Baden. In order to secure popular support for the Hochberg heir, Charles in 1818 granted to the grand-duchy, under article xiii. of the Act of Confederation, a liberal constitution, under which two chambers were constituted and their assent declared necessary for legislation and taxation. The outcome was of importance far beyond the narrow limits of the duchy; for all Germany watched the constitutional experiments of the southern states. In Baden the conditions were not favourable to success. The people, belonging to the ?Celtic fringe? of Germany, had fallen during the revolutionary period completely under the influence of French ideas, and this was sufficiently illustrated by the temper of the new chambers, which tended to model their activity on the proceedings of the Convention in the earlier days of the [[French Revolution]]. On the other hand, the new Grand Duke Louis, who had succeeded in 1818, was unpopular, and the administration was in the hands of hide-bound and inefficient bureaucrats. The result was a deadlock; and even before the promulgation of the Carlsbad decrees in October 1819 the Grand Duke had prorogued the chambers, after three months of sterile debate. The reaction that followed was as severe in Baden as elsewhere in Germany, and culminated in 1823, when, on the refusal of the chambers to vote the military budget, the Grand Duke dissolved them and levied the taxes on his own authority. In January 1825, owing to official pressure, only three Liberals were returned to the chamber; a law was passed making the budget presentable only every three years, and the constitution ceased to have any active existence. |
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The capital of Anhalt (whenever it was a united state) was [[Dessau]]. |
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In 1830 Louis was succeeded as Grand Duke by his half-brother Leopold, the first of the Hochberg line. The [[July Revolution]] led to no disturbances in Baden; but the new Grand Duke from the first showed liberal tendencies. The elections of 1830 proceeded without interference; and resulted in the return of a Liberal majority. The next few years saw the introduction, under successive ministries, of Liberal reforms in the constitution, in criminal and civil law, and in education. In 1832 the adhesion of Baden to the Prussian ''[[Zollverein]]'' did much for the material prosperity of the country. With the approach of the revolutionary year of 1848, however, Radicalism once more began to lift up its head. A popular demonstration held at Offenburg on 12 September 1847 passed resolutions demanding the conversion of the regular army into a national militia which should take an oath to the constitution, a progressive income tax and a fair adjustment of the interests of capital and labour. |
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In 1918 Anhalt became a state within the [[Weimar Republic]] (see [[Free State of Anhalt]]). After [[World War II]] it was united with the former Prussian province of Saxony, forming the new state of [[Saxony-Anhalt]]. The state was dissolved in 1952 by the [[German Democratic Republic]] government, but was re-established prior to [[German reunification]] and is now one of the German {{lang|de|[[States of Germany|Bundesländer]]}}. |
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The news of the revolution of February 1848 in Paris brought this agitation to a head. Numerous public meetings occurred and adopted the Offenburg programme. and on the 4th of March, under the influence of the popular excitement, the lower chamber accepted this programme almost unanimously. As in other German states, the government bowed to the storm, proclaimed an amnesty and promised reforms. The ministry remodelled itself in a more Liberal direction; and sent a new delegate to the federal diet at Frankfort, empowered to vote for the establishment of a parliament for a united Germany. The disorders, fomented by republican agitators, none-the-less continued; and the efforts of the government to suppress them with the aid of federal troops led to an armed insurrection. For the time this was mastered without much difficulty; the insurgents lost at Kandern on 20 April 1848; Freiburg, which they held, fell on the 24th; and on the 27th a Franco-German ''legion'', which had invaded Baden from [[Strasbourg]], was routed at Dossenbach. |
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== State of Saxony-Anhalt == |
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At the beginning of 1849, however, the issue of a new constitution, in accordance with the resolutions of the Frankfurt parliament, led to more serious trouble. It did little to satisfy the Radicals, angered by the refusal of the second chamber to agree to their proposal for the summoning of a constituent assembly (10 February 1849). The new insurrection that now broke out proved a more formidable affair than the first. A military mutiny at Rastatt on 11 May 1849 showed that the army sympathized with the revolution, which was proclaimed two days later at Offenburg amid tumultuous scenes. On the same day (13 May) a mutiny at Karlsruhe forced the Grand Duke to flee, and the next day his ministers followed, while a committee of the diet under [[Lorenz Brentano]] (1813-1891), who represented the more moderate Radicals as against the republicans, established itself in the capital to attempt to direct affairs pending the establishment of a provisional government. This was accomplished on the 1 June 1849, and on 10 June the ''constituent diet'', consisting entirely of the most "advanced" politicians, assembled. It had little chance of doing more than make speeches; the country remained in the hands of an armed mob of civilians and mutinous soldiers; and, meanwhile, the Grand Duke of Baden had joined with Bavaria in requesting the armed intervention of Prussia, which Berlin granted on the condition that Baden should join the [[League of the Three Kings]]. |
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{{Main|Saxony-Anhalt (1945-1952)}} |
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[[File:Germany Laender 1947 1990 DDR.png|thumb|left|The states of the former East Germany. The modern borders are shown in red while the pre-1952 borders are shown in purple.]] |
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Saxony-Anhalt was formed as a province of [[Prussia]] in 1945, from the territories of the former Prussian [[Province of Saxony]] (except the ''{{lang|de|Regierungsbezirk}}'' Erfurt), the [[Free State of Anhalt]], the [[Free State of Brunswick]] ([[Calvörde]] and the eastern part of the former [[Blankenburg am Harz|Blankenburg]] district) and the formerly [[Thuringia]]n town [[Allstedt]]. See the respective articles for the history of the area before 1945. |
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When Prussia was disbanded in 1947, the province became the state of Saxony-Anhalt. It became part of the [[German Democratic Republic]] ([[East Germany]]) in 1949. From 1952 to 1990 Saxony-Anhalt was divided into the East German districts of [[Halle, Saxony-Anhalt|Halle]] and [[Magdeburg]]. In 1990, in the course of [[German reunification]], the districts were reintegrated as a state. |
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From this moment the revolution in Baden was doomed, and with it the revolution in all Germany. The Prussians, under Prince William (afterwards emperor [[William I of Germany]]), invaded Baden in the middle of June. The insurgent forces were under the command of the Pole, [[Ludwig von Mieroslawski]] ([[1814]] -[[1878]]), who reduced them to some semblance of order. On 20 June 1849 he met the Prussians at Waghausel, and sufferred complete defeat; on 25 June Prince William entered Karlsruhe; and at the end of the month the members of the provisional government, who had taken refuge at Freiburg, dispersed. Such of the insurgent leaders as were caught, notably the ex-officers, suffered military execution; the army was dispersed among Prussian garrison towns; and Prussian troops occupied Baden for a time. The Grand Duke returned on 10 August 1849, and at once dissolved the diet. The following elections resulted in a majority favourable to the new ministry, which passed a series of laws of a reactionary tendency with a view to strengthening the government. |
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== Geography == |
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The Grand Duke Leopold died on 24 April 1852, and was succeeded by his second son, Frederick, as regent, the eldest, Louis (d. 22nd of January 1858), being incapable of ruling. The internal affairs of Baden during the period that followed have comparatively little general interest. In the greater politics of Germany, Baden, between 1850 and 1866, was a consistent supporter of Austria; and in the war of 1866 her contingents, under Prince William, had two sharp engagements with the Prussian army of the Main. Two days before the affair of Werbach (24 July 1866), however, the second chamber had petitioned the Grand Duke to end the war and enter into an offensive and defensive alliance with Prussia. The Grand Duke had from the first opposed the war with Prussia, but had perforc yielded to popular resentment at the policy of Prussia in the [[Schleswig-Holstein]] question. The ministry, now at one, resigned; Baden announced her withdrawal from the German confederation; and on 17 August signed a treaty of peace and alliance with Prussia. [[Bismarck]] himself resisted the adhesion of Baden to the [[North German confederation]]: he had no wish to give [[Napoleon III]] so good an excuse for intervention; but the opposition of Baden to the formation of a South German confederation made the ultimate union inevitable. The troops of Baden took a conspicuous share in the war of 1870; and it was the Grand Duke of Baden, who, in the historic assembly of the German princes at [[Versailles]], was the first to hail the king of Prussia as German emperor. |
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The land is undulating in the west and mountainous in the extreme north-west, where it forms part of the [[Harz]] range, the [[Ramberg (Harz)|Ramberg]] peak marking the highest elevation at 1900 ft (579 m). From the Harz, the country gently shelves down to the [[Saale]] and is fertile between this river and the [[Elbe]]. East of the Elbe, the land is mostly a flat sandy plain, with extensive [[pine]] forests, interspersed with bog-land and rich pastures. The Elbe is the chief river, intersecting the eastern portion of the former duchy from east to west and joining the [[Mulde]] at [[Rosslau]]. The navigable Saale takes a northerly direction through the central portion of the territory and receives, on the right, the [[Fuhne]] and, on the left, the [[Wipper (Saale)|Wipper]] and [[Bode (river)|Bode]] rivers.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} |
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The climate is generally mild, less so in the higher regions to the south-west. The area of the former duchy is 906 sq mi (2300 km<sup>2</sup>), and the population in 1905 was 328,007, a ratio of about 351/sq mi (909/km<sup>2</sup>).{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} |
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The internal politics of Baden, both before and after 1870, centre in the main round the question of religion. The signing on 28 June 1859 of a concordat with the [[Holy See]], which placed education under the oversight of the clergy and facilitated the establishment of religious orders, led to a constitutional struggle which ended in 1863 with the victory of Liberal principles, making the communes responsible for education, though admitting the priests to a share in the management. The quarrel between Liberalism and Clericalism, however,did not end. In 1867, on the accession to the premiership of Julius von Jolly (1823-1891), several constitutional changes in a Liberal direction occurred: responsibility of ministers, freedom of the press, compulsory education. In the same year (6 September) a law compelled all candidates for the priesthood to pass government examinations. The archbishop of Freiburg resisted, and, on his death in April 1868, the see remained vacant, In 1869 the introduction of civil marriage did not tend to allay the strife, which reached its climax after the proclamation of the dogma of [[papal infallibility]] in 1870. The ''Kulturkampf'' raged in Baden, as in the rest of Germany; and here as elsewhere the government encouraged the formation of [[Old Catholic]] communities. Not till 1880, after the fall of the ministry of Jolly, did Baden reconcile with Rome; in 1882 the archbishopric of Freiburg was again filled. The political tendency of Baden, meanwhile, mirrored that of all Germany. In 1892 the National Liberals had but a majority of one in the diet; from 1893 they could maintain themselves only with the aid of the Conservatives; and in 1897 a coalition of Ultramontanes, Socialists, Social Democrats and Radicals (''Freisinnige'') won a majority for the opposition in the chamber. |
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== Political and religious structure of Anhalt in 1911 == |
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Amid all these contests the wise and statesmanlike moderation of the Grand Duke Frederick won him universal esteem. By the treaty under which Baden had become an integral part of the [[German Empire]] in 1871, he had reserved only the exclusive right to tax beer and spirits; the army, the post-office, railways and the conduct of foreign relations passed under the effective control of Prussia. In his relations with the German empire, too, Frederick proved himself rather a great German noble than a sovereign prince actuated by particularist ambitions; and his position as husband of the emperor [[William I of Germany | William I]]'s only daughter, Louise (whom he had married in 1856), gave him a peculiar influence in the councils of Berlin. When, on the 20th of September 1906, the Grand Duke celebrated at once the jubilee of his reign and his golden wedding anniversary, all Europe combined to do him honour. King [[Edward VII of the United Kingdom | Edward VII ]] sent him, by the hands of the Duke of Connaught, the order of the [[Garter]]. But more significant, perhaps, was the tribute paid by ''[[Le Temps]]'', the leading Parisian paper. ''Nothing more clearly demonstrates the sterile paradox of the Napoleonic work,'' it wrote, ''than the history of the Grand Duchy. It was Napoleon, and he alone, who created this whole state in 1803 to reward in the person of the little margrave of Baden a relative of the emperor of Russia. It was he who after Austerlitz aggrandized the margravate at the expense of Austria; transformed it into a sovereign principality and raised it to a Grand Duchy. It was he too who, by the secularization on the one hand and by the dismemberment of Wurttemberg on the other, gave the Grand Duke 500,000 new subjects. He believed that the recognition of the prince and the artificial ethnical formation of the principality would be pledges of security for France. But in 1813 Baden joined the coalition, and since then that nation created of odds and ends ("de bric et de broc") and always handsomely treated by us, had not ceased to take a leading part in the struggles against our country. The Grand Duke Frederick, Grand Duke by the will of Napoleon, has done France all the harm he could. But French opinion itself renders justice to the probity of his character and to the ardour of his patriotism, and nobody will feel surprise at the homage with which Germany feels bound to surround his old age.'' |
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As of 1911, Anhalt was divided into the districts of [[Dessau]], [[Köthen]], [[Zerbst]], [[Bernburg]] and [[Ballenstedt]], Bernburg being the most populous and Ballenstedt the least. Four towns – Dessau, Bernburg, Köthen, and Zerbst – had populations exceeding 20,000. The inhabitants of the former duchy, who mainly belonged to the upper [[Saxony|Saxon]] race, were, with the exception of about 12,000 [[Roman Catholic]]s and 1,700 [[Jew]]s, members of the [[Evangelical Church of the Union]]. The supreme ecclesiastical authority was the [[Consistory (Protestantism)|consistory]] in Dessau. A [[synod]] of 39 members, elected for six years, assembled periodically to deliberate on internal matters pertaining to the organization of the church. The Roman Catholics were under the [[bishop of Paderborn]].{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} |
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By virtue of a fundamental law proclaimed on September 17, 1859, and subsequently modified by various [[decree]]s, the duchy was a [[constitutional monarchy]]. The duke bore the title of "Highness" and wielded the executive power while sharing [[legislation|legislative powers]] with the [[Estates of the realm|estates]]. The [[diet (assembly)|diet]] ([[Landtag]]) was composed of thirty-six members, of whom two were appointed by the duke, eight were representatives of landowners paying the highest taxes, two were chosen from among the highest assessed members of the commercial and manufacturing classes, fourteen were [[Voting|elector]]s of the towns and ten represented the rural districts. These representatives were chosen for six years by indirect vote and had to be at least 25 years of age. The duke governed through a [[minister of state]], who was the head of all the departments: finance, home affairs, education, public worship, and statistics.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911|p=45}} |
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Grand Duke Frederick I died at Mainau on 28th September 1907: his son, the Grand Duke Frederick II, succeeded him. |
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==Notes== |
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Historical Summary |
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{{More citations needed|date=July 2017}} |
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{{reflist}} |
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==References== |
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The Lords of Baden benefited from the break-up of [[Swabia]], |
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* {{EB1911|wstitle=Anhalt|volume=2|pages=44-46}} This contains more detailed information on the fortunes of the Köthen and Bernburg branches until 1863. |
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and, raised to the dignity of Margrave in [[1112]], were able to take their |
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place as one of the four most important dynasts in southern Germany |
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(along with [[Habsburg]], [[Wittelsbach]], and [[Wuerttemberg]]). Baden was |
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fragmented from [[1190]]-[[1503]], [[1515]]-[[1620]], and [[1622]]-[[1771]], though the eras of |
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[[1415]]-[[1503]], [[1604]]-[[1620]], and [[1666]]-[[1771]] saw only two active branches each. |
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{{History of the States of Germany}} |
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After [[1771]] the only surviving branch retained full authority and in |
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return for compliance with Napoleon, was raised to Electoral dignity in |
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[[1803]], and then Grand Ducal status in [[1806]]. This list follows the various |
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lines in [[Baden-Baden]] and, after [[1771]], [[Baden-Durlach]]. |
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[[Category:History of Saxony-Anhalt| ]] |
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Rulers of Baden : |
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* '''ZAHRINGEN''' |
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** Berthold the Bearded..............................[[1061]]-[[1073]] d. [[1077]] |
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** Herman I..........................................[[1073]] d. [[1074]] |
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** Herman II.........................................[[1073]]-[[1130]] |
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** Herman III........................................[[1130]]-[[1160]] |
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** Herman IV.........................................[[1160]]-[[1190]] |
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** Herman V..........................................[[1190]]-[[1242]] |
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** Herman VI.........................................[[1242]]-[[1250]] |
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** [[Frederick I, Margrave of Baden | Frederick I]] .......................................[[1250]]-[[1268]] |
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** Rudolph I.........................................[[1250]]-[[1288]] |
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** Hesso.............................................[[1288]]-[[1297]] |
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** Rudolph II........................................[[1288]]-[[1295]] |
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** Herman VII the Awakener...........................[[1288]]-[[1291]] |
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** Rudolph III.......................................[[1288]]-[[1332]] |
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** Rudolph IV (in Pforzheim).........................[[1291]]-[[1348]] |
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** Herman VIII (in Pforzheim)........................[[1291]]-[[1300]] |
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** Rudolph Hesso.....................................[[1297]]-[[1335]] |
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** Frederick III.....................................[[1348]]-[[1353]] |
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** Rudolph VI the Tall...............................[[1353]]-[[1372]] |
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** Bernard I.........................................[[1372]]-[[1431]] |
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** Rudolph VII.......................................[[1372]]-[[1391]] |
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** James.............................................[[1431]]-[[1453]] |
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** Bernard II........................................[[1453]]-[[1458]] |
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** Charles I.........................................[[1453]]-[[1475]] |
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** Christopher I.....................................[[1475]]-[[1515]] |
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** Bernard III.......................................[[1515]]-[[1536]] |
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** Philibert.........................................[[1536]]-[[1569]] |
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** Philip II.........................................[[1569]]-[[1588]] |
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** Edward Fortunatus.................................[[1588]]-[[1596]] d. [[1600]] |
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** Ernest Frederick..................................[[1596]]-[[1604]] |
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** George Frederick..................................[[1604]]-[[1622]] |
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** William...........................................[[1622]]-[[1677]] |
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** Louis William.....................................[[1677]]-[[1707]] |
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** Louis George Simpert..............................[[1707]]-[[1761]] |
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** Augustus George Simpert...........................[[1761]]-[[1771]] |
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** Charles Frederick (in B.-Durlach from [[1738]])...[[1771]]-[[1811]] |
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** Charles...........................................[[1811]]-[[1818]] |
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** Louis I...........................................[[1818]]-[[1830]] |
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** Leopold...........................................[[1830]]-[[1852]] |
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** Louis II..........................................[[1852]]-[[1856]] |
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** Frederick I.......................................[[1856]]-[[1907]] |
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** Frederick II......................................[[1907]]-[[1918]] d. [[1928]] |
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BIBLIOGRAPHY : |
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* http://www.hostkingdom.net/ |
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* ''Das Grossherzogtum Baden in geographischer ... Hinsicht dargestellt'' (Karlsruhe, 1885); |
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* Wielandt, ''Des Staatsrecht des Grossherzogtums Baden'' (Freiburg, 1895); |
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* F. von Weech, * ''Badische Geschichte'' (Karlsruhe, 1890); |
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* op. cit. ''Die Zahringer in Baden'' (Karlsruhe, 1881); |
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* ''Baden unter den Grossherzogen Karl Friedrich. Karl Ludwig'' (Freiburg, 1863); |
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* op. cit. ''Geschichte der badischen Verfassung'' (Karlsruhe, I868); |
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* op. cit, ''Baden in den Jahren 1852 bis 1877'' (Karlsruhe, 1877); |
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* C. F. Nebenius,and F. von Weech, ''Karl Friedrich von Baden'' (Karlsruhe, 1868); |
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* L. H. Häusser, ''Denkwuerdigkeiten zur Geschichte der badischen Revolution'' (Heidelberg, 1851); |
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* L. Muller, ''Badische Landgeschichte'' (Berlin, 1899-1902); |
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* E. von Chrismar, ''Genealogie des Gesamthauses Baden 16. Jahrhundert bis heute'' (Gotha, 1892); |
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* E.H Meyer, ''Badische Volksleben im 19. Jahrhundert'' (Strassbourg, 1900); |
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* F.J. Mone, ''Quellensammlng zur badischen Landesgeschichte'' (Karlsruhe, 1848-1867); |
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* ''Badische Biographien'', Ed. F. von Weech, (Karlsruhe, 1875-1891) |
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(most text from the 1911 Encyc. Brit., which is long out of copyright) |
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Latest revision as of 21:04, 29 April 2024
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (July 2017) |
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The history of Saxony-Anhalt began with Old Saxony, which was conquered by Charlemagne in 804 and transformed into the Duchy of Saxony within the Carolingian Empire. Saxony went on to become one of the so-called stem duchies of the German Kingdom and subsequently the Holy Roman Empire which formed out of the eastern partition of the Carolingian Empire. The duchy grew to become a powerful state within the empire, ruling over much of what is now northern Germany, but following conflicts with the emperor it was partitioned into numerous minor states, including the Principality of Anhalt, around the end of the 12th century and early 13th century. The territories of the Duchy of Saxony, the Principality of Anhalt, and their successors are now part of the modern German state of Saxony-Anhalt.
The ducal title and electoral dignity passed to the Ascanian Bernhard of Anhalt, but the title only came with a few small eastern parts of the former territory. Following his death in 1212 his possessions were divided between his sons: Henry established Anhalt as a county while Albert I took on the ducal title and the remaining possessions.
Anhalt was raised to a principality in 1218 but was divided in 1252 between Henry's sons, forming Anhalt-Aschersleben, Anhalt-Bernburg and Anhalt-Zerbst. Over the centuries, numerous additional divisions and reunifications of the Anhalt territory took place, resulting in the creation of Anhalt-Köthen, Anhalt-Dessau, Anhalt-Pless and Anhalt-Plötzkau, as well as the recreation of several of the divisions; after 1252 it was only ruled as a single entity between 1570 and 1603.
Meanwhile, after Albert I's death in 1260, the Duchy of Saxony was co-ruled by his sons John I and Albert II, and subsequently also by John I's sons. However, the geographic separation of the territories – Wittenberg, Lauenburg and Hadeln – led to them being increasingly administered separately. In 1296 the duchy was officially separated into two separate duchies: John's sons became rulers of Saxe-Lauenburg (which also included the Hadeln exclave) while Albert II became ruler of Saxe-Wittenberg. In addition to the duchy, Albert had acquired the County of Gommern in 1295, and in 1290 his son and heir Rudolph had been enfeoffed with the lands of the former County of Brehna on Wittenberg's southern border. The status of the electoral dignity was contested by both lines until it was officially settled in Saxe-Wittenberg's favour by the Golden Bull of 1356, after which time it became known as the Electorate of Saxony. In 1423 the Electorate was inherited by the Wettin Frederick I, who was also the Margrave of Meissen and Landgrave of Thuringia. Since Prince-elector was a higher rank than either landgrave or margrave, the whole of Frederick's territory became known as the Electorate of Saxony; the lands around Wittenberg, Brehna and Gommern became known as the Kurkreis or "Electoral Circle".
After the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the remaining Anhalt divisions – Bernburg, Dessau and Köthen – were elevated to duchies by Napoleon while the Electorate of Saxony became a Kingdom; all were part of Napoleon's Confederation of the Rhine until 1813.
In 1813 the Kingdom of Prussia occupied large amounts of Saxony's territory in the Battle of Leipzig, including the Electoral Circle (which had been renamed the "Wittenberg Circle" in 1807); in May 1815 a treaty was signed in which Saxony ceded this territory to Prussia. In June 1815 they all became part of the German Confederation. In 1816 Prussia reorganised its annexed territory, merging it with the former Duchy of Magdeburg, Principality of Halberstadt, Principality of Erfurt, the Eichsfeld, and the former Imperial Cities of Mühlhausen and Nordhausen, along with the Altmark and other parts of Brandenburg west of the Elbe, into the Province of Saxony.
In 1863 the Anhalt duchies were finally reunited to form the Duchy of Anhalt. The duchy became part of the Prussian-led North German Confederation in 1867 and finally the German Empire in 1871.
Following Germany's defeat in World War I, Anhalt became the Free State of Anhalt while the Province of Saxony continued as a constituent of the Free State of Prussia (both within the Weimar Republic). During Nazi rule, all of the previous subdivisions, including Anhalt and the Province of Saxony, ceased to exist de facto as they were replaced with Gaue in 1934.
After World War II what had been Anhalt and the Province of Saxony formed the basis of the occupying Soviet administration's state (Land) of Saxony-Anhalt. Along with the other states of East Germany, Saxony-Anhalt was dissolved in 1952 and replaced with various districts (Bezirke); Saxony-Anhalt roughly corresponds to the former Magdeburg and Halle districts. However, the states, including Saxony-Anhalt, came back into being following German reunification in 1990, albeit with different borders than the original East German states.
Duchy of Saxony
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After Charlemagne's conquest of the Saxons (772–804), their land was incorporated into the Carolingian empire, and late in the 9th century, it became the first Duchy of Saxony. It occupied nearly all the territory between the Elbe and Saale rivers to the east and the Rhine to the west; it bordered on Franconia and Thuringia in the south. It was itself divided into four provinces: Westphalia, Angria, Eastphalia, and Nordalbingia, with modern Saxony-Anhalt mostly lying within Eastphalia. Duke Henry I (Henry the Fowler) of Saxony was elected German king in 919, and his son, Emperor Otto I, bestowed (961) Saxony on Hermann Billung (d. 973), a Saxon nobleman, whose descendants held the duchy until the extinction of the male line in 1106. Lothair of Supplinburg bestowed it on his Guelphic son-in-law, Henry the Proud, who was already Duke of Bavaria.
In 1142 the duchy passed to Henry the Lion, son of Henry the Proud. The struggle between Henry the Lion and Emperor Frederick I ended with Henry's loss of all his fiefs in 1180. The stem duchy was broken up into numerous fiefs. The Guelphic heirs of Henry the Lion retained only their allodial lands, the Duchy of Brunswick. The ducal title of Saxony went to Bernhard of Anhalt, a younger son of Albert the Bear of Brandenburg and founder of the Ascanian line of Saxon dukes. Besides Anhalt, Bernard received Lauenburg and the country around Wittenberg on the Elbe. These widely separate territories continued after 1260 under separate branches of the Ascanians as Saxe-Lauenburg and Saxe-Wittenberg.
Electorate and Kingdom of Saxony
[edit]The Golden Bull of 1356 raised the Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg to the permanent rank of elector, with the right to participate in the election of the Holy Roman Emperor. Electoral Saxony, as his territory was called, was a relatively small area along the middle Elbe. Extending to the south of Electoral Saxony was the Margraviate of Meissen, ruled by the increasingly powerful house of Wettin. The margraves of Meissen acquired (13th–14th century) the larger parts of Thuringia, Lower Lusatia and the intervening territories, and in 1423 Margrave Frederick the Warlike added Electoral Saxony; in 1425 he became Elector Frederick I. Thus, Saxony shifted to east-central and east Germany from northwest Germany.
In 1485 the Wettin lands were partitioned between two sons of Elector Frederick II; the division came to be permanent. Ernest, founder of the Ernestine branch of Wettin, received Electoral Saxony with Wittenberg and most of the Thuringian lands. Albert, founder of the Albertine branch, received a ducal rank and the Meissen territories, including Dresden and Leipzig. Duke Maurice of Saxony, a grandson of Albert and a Protestant, received the electoral title in the 16th century; it remained in the Albertine branch until the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806.
The rivalry between Saxony and Brandenburg (after 1701 the kingdom of Prussia) was a decisive factor in later Saxon history, as was the election in 1697 of Augustus II (who was Frederick Augustus I as Elector of Saxony) as King of Poland; the election led to an economic partnership between the declining Poland and Saxony, whose prestige was thereby diminished. In the War of the Austrian Succession, Saxony adhered to what had become its traditional wavering policy, changing sides in the middle of the conflict. The death in 1763 of Augustus III ended the union with Poland.
The period of Saxon rule in Poland marked a time of economic and social decay but also of cultural and artistic flowering. Augustus II and Augustus III were lavish patrons of art and learning and greatly beautified their capital, Dresden. The universities of Wittenberg and Leipzig had long been leading intellectual centers, and 18th-century Leipzig led in the rise of German literature as well as in music, which reached its first peak with Bach.
Saxony sided with Prussia against France early in the French Revolutionary Wars but changed sides in 1806. For this act its elector was raised to royal rank, becoming King Frederick Augustus I. His failure to change sides again before Napoleon's fall cost him (1815) nearly half his kingdom at the Congress of Vienna. The Kingdom of Saxony lost Lower Lusatia, part of Upper Lusatia, and all its northern territory including Wittenberg and Merseburg to Prussia. Its principal remaining cities were Dresden, Leipzig, Chemnitz, and Plauen. The larger part of the territories ceded in 1815 was incorporated with several other Prussian districts into the Prussian province of Saxony, with Magdeburg as its capital. This was united after 1945 with Anhalt to form the state of Saxony-Anhalt and became part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) in 1949. From 1952 to 1990 Saxony-Anhalt was divided into the East German districts of Halle and Magdeburg. In 1990, prior to German reunification, the districts were reintegrated as a state.
Counts of Anhalt
[edit]During the 9th century, the greater part of Anhalt was included in the Duchy of Saxony. In the 12th century, it came under the rule of Albert the Bear, Margrave of Brandenburg. Albert was descended from Adalbert, Count of Ballenstedt, whose son Esico (d. 1059 or 1060) appears to have been the first to bear the title of Count of Anhalt. Esico's grandson, Otto the Rich, Count of Ballenstedt, was the father of Albert the Bear, who united Anhalt with Brandenburg. When Albert died in 1170, his son Bernard I, who received the title of Duke of Saxony in 1180, became the first Count of Anhalt. Bernard I died in 1212, and Anhalt, separated from Saxony, passed to his son Henry, who in 1218 took the title of prince and was the real founder of the house of Anhalt.[1] Henry is included among the Minnesingers in the Codex Manesse.
Princes of Anhalt
[edit]On Henry's death in 1252 his three sons partitioned the principality, founding the lines of Aschersleben, Bernburg and Zerbst. The family ruling in Aschersleben became extinct in 1315, and this district was subsequently incorporated into the neighbouring Bishopric of Halberstadt, thus dividing the territory of Anhalt-Bernburg into two separate pieces. The last prince of the original line of Anhalt-Bernburg died in 1468 and his lands were inherited by the princes of the sole remaining line, that of Anhalt-Zerbst. The territory belonging to this branch of the family had been divided in 1396, and after the acquisition of Bernburg, Prince George I made a further partition of Zerbst (Zerbst and Dessau). Early in the 16th century, owing to the death or abdication of several princes, the family had narrowed down to the two branches of Anhalt-Köthen and Anhalt-Dessau (both issued from Anhalt-Dessau in 1471).[1]
Wolfgang of Anhalt, called "The Confessor", who became prince of Anhalt-Köthen in 1508, was the second ruler in the world to introduce the Reformation in his territory. He was a co-signer of the Augsburg Confession in 1530, and after the Battle of Mühlberg in 1547 was placed under Imperial ban and deprived of his lands by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor. After the peace of Passau in 1552 he bought back his principality, but as he was childless he surrendered it in 1562 to his kinsmen, the princes of Anhalt-Dessau. Ernest I, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau (d. 1516), left three sons, John II, George III, and Joachim, who jointly ruled their lands for many years and favoured the reformed doctrines, which thus became dominant in Anhalt. About 1546 the three brothers divided their principality and founded the lines of Zerbst, Plötzkau and Dessau. This division, however, was only temporary, as the acquisition of Köthen, and a series of deaths among the ruling princes, enabled Joachim Ernest, a son of John II, to unite the whole of Anhalt under his rule in 1570.[1]
Joachim Ernest died in 1586, and his five sons ruled the land in common until 1603, when Anhalt was again divided, and the lines of Dessau, Bernburg, Plötzkau, Zerbst, and Köthen were re-established. The principality was ravaged during the Thirty Years' War, and in the earlier part of this struggle Christian I of Anhalt-Bernburg took an important part. In 1635 an arrangement was made by the various princes of Anhalt to authorize the eldest member of the family to represent the principality as a whole. This action was probably due to the necessity of maintaining an appearance of unity in view of the disturbed state of European politics at the time.[1]
In 1665 the Anhalt-Köthen branch became extinct, and according to a family compact, this district was inherited by Lebrecht, Prince of Anhalt-Plötzkau, who surrendered Plötzkau to Bernburg and took the title of prince of Anhalt-Köthen. In the same year the princes of Anhalt decided that if any branch of the family became extinct its lands should be equally divided among the remaining branches. This arrangement was carried out after the death of Frederick Augustus, Prince of Anhalt-Zerbst, in 1793, and Zerbst was divided between the three remaining princes. During these years the policy of the different princes was marked, perhaps intentionally, by considerable uniformity. Once or twice Calvinism was favoured by one of the princes, but in general, the house was loyal to the doctrines of Martin Luther. The growth of Prussia provided Anhalt with a formidable neighbour, and the establishment and practice of primogeniture by all branches of the family prevented the further division of the principality.[1]
19th century duchies
[edit]In 1806 Napoleon elevated the remaining states of Anhalt-Bernburg, Anhalt-Dessau, and Anhalt-Köthen to duchies. (Anhalt-Plötzkau and Anhalt-Zerbst had in the meantime ceased to exist.) These duchies were united in 1863 to form a single Duchy of Anhalt, again due to the extinction of the Köthen and Bernburg lines. The new duchy consisted of two large portions: Eastern and Western Anhalt, separated by the interposition of a part of the Prussian Province of Saxony, and five exclaves surrounded by Prussian territory, namely Alsleben, Muhlingen, Dornburg, Goednitz and Tilkerode-Abberode. The eastern and larger portion of the duchy was enclosed by the Prussian government district of Potsdam (in the Prussian province of Brandenburg), and Magdeburg and Merseburg (belonging to the Prussian province of Saxony). The smaller western part (the so-called Upper Duchy or Ballenstedt) was also enclosed by the two latter districts as well as by the duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg.[2]
The capital of Anhalt (whenever it was a united state) was Dessau.
In 1918 Anhalt became a state within the Weimar Republic (see Free State of Anhalt). After World War II it was united with the former Prussian province of Saxony, forming the new state of Saxony-Anhalt. The state was dissolved in 1952 by the German Democratic Republic government, but was re-established prior to German reunification and is now one of the German Bundesländer.
State of Saxony-Anhalt
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Saxony-Anhalt was formed as a province of Prussia in 1945, from the territories of the former Prussian Province of Saxony (except the Regierungsbezirk Erfurt), the Free State of Anhalt, the Free State of Brunswick (Calvörde and the eastern part of the former Blankenburg district) and the formerly Thuringian town Allstedt. See the respective articles for the history of the area before 1945.
When Prussia was disbanded in 1947, the province became the state of Saxony-Anhalt. It became part of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) in 1949. From 1952 to 1990 Saxony-Anhalt was divided into the East German districts of Halle and Magdeburg. In 1990, in the course of German reunification, the districts were reintegrated as a state.
Geography
[edit]The land is undulating in the west and mountainous in the extreme north-west, where it forms part of the Harz range, the Ramberg peak marking the highest elevation at 1900 ft (579 m). From the Harz, the country gently shelves down to the Saale and is fertile between this river and the Elbe. East of the Elbe, the land is mostly a flat sandy plain, with extensive pine forests, interspersed with bog-land and rich pastures. The Elbe is the chief river, intersecting the eastern portion of the former duchy from east to west and joining the Mulde at Rosslau. The navigable Saale takes a northerly direction through the central portion of the territory and receives, on the right, the Fuhne and, on the left, the Wipper and Bode rivers.[1]
The climate is generally mild, less so in the higher regions to the south-west. The area of the former duchy is 906 sq mi (2300 km2), and the population in 1905 was 328,007, a ratio of about 351/sq mi (909/km2).[1]
Political and religious structure of Anhalt in 1911
[edit]As of 1911, Anhalt was divided into the districts of Dessau, Köthen, Zerbst, Bernburg and Ballenstedt, Bernburg being the most populous and Ballenstedt the least. Four towns – Dessau, Bernburg, Köthen, and Zerbst – had populations exceeding 20,000. The inhabitants of the former duchy, who mainly belonged to the upper Saxon race, were, with the exception of about 12,000 Roman Catholics and 1,700 Jews, members of the Evangelical Church of the Union. The supreme ecclesiastical authority was the consistory in Dessau. A synod of 39 members, elected for six years, assembled periodically to deliberate on internal matters pertaining to the organization of the church. The Roman Catholics were under the bishop of Paderborn.[1]
By virtue of a fundamental law proclaimed on September 17, 1859, and subsequently modified by various decrees, the duchy was a constitutional monarchy. The duke bore the title of "Highness" and wielded the executive power while sharing legislative powers with the estates. The diet (Landtag) was composed of thirty-six members, of whom two were appointed by the duke, eight were representatives of landowners paying the highest taxes, two were chosen from among the highest assessed members of the commercial and manufacturing classes, fourteen were electors of the towns and ten represented the rural districts. These representatives were chosen for six years by indirect vote and had to be at least 25 years of age. The duke governed through a minister of state, who was the head of all the departments: finance, home affairs, education, public worship, and statistics.[1]
Notes
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References
[edit]- This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Anhalt". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 2 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. pp. 44–46. This contains more detailed information on the fortunes of the Köthen and Bernburg branches until 1863.
