Nassau-Siegen was a
principality within the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...
that existed between 1303 and 1328, and again from 1606 to 1743. From 1626 to 1734, it was subdivided into
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and
Protestant
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
parts. Its capital was the city of
Siegen
Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly sho ...
, founded in 1224 and initially a
condominium
A condominium (or condo for short) is an ownership structure whereby a building is divided into several units that are each separately owned, surrounded by common areas that are jointly owned. The term can be applied to the building or complex ...
jointly owned by the
archbishopric of Cologne
The Archdiocese of Cologne ( la, Archidioecesis Coloniensis; german: Erzbistum Köln) is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and northern Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany.
History
The Electorate of Colo ...
and
Nassau
Nassau may refer to:
Places Bahamas
*Nassau, Bahamas, capital city of the Bahamas, on the island of New Providence
Canada
*Nassau District, renamed Home District, regional division in Upper Canada from 1788 to 1792
*Nassau Street (Winnipeg), ...
. It was located some 50 km east of Cologne, and it contained the modern localities of
Freudenberg,
Hilchenbach,
Kreuztal,
Siegen
Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly sho ...
, and
Wilnsdorf
Wilnsdorf is a municipality in the district of Siegen-Wittgenstein, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany.
Geography
The southern municipal limits, with the Kalteiche peak, part of the Rothaargebirge, form not only the community's highest point, at ...
.
First Nassau-Siegen (1303-1328)
Nassau-Siegen was first created when the sons of
Otto I
Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), traditionally known as Otto the Great (german: Otto der Große, it, Ottone il Grande), was East Frankish king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the oldest son of He ...
divided their inheritance:
*
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People
*Henry (given name)
* Henry (surname)
* Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry
Royalty
* Portuguese royalty
** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal
** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
received Nassau-Siegen
*
Emicho received
Nassau-Hadamar
Nassau-Hadamar is the name of two side lines of the Ottonian main line of the House of Nassau. The older line of the counts of Nassau-Hadamar existed from 1303 to 1394; the younger line existed from 1607 to 1711 and received the hereditary title o ...
*
John
John is a common English name and surname:
* John (given name)
* John (surname)
John may also refer to:
New Testament
Works
* Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John
* First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John
* Secon ...
received
Nassau-Dillenburg
The County of Nassau was a German state within the Holy Roman Empire and later part of the German Confederation. Its ruling dynasty, the male line of which is now extinct, was the House of Nassau.
Origins
Nassau, originally a county, developed ...
John died childless in 1328 and Henry inherited Nassau-Dillenburg. Henry moved to Dillenburg and his descendants are known as the Nassau-Dillenburg line.
Second Nassau-Siegen (1606-1743)
After
John VI of Nassau-Dillenburg
Count John VI of Nassau-Dillenburg (22 November 1536 – 8 October 1606) was the second son of William the Rich and the younger brother of William the Silent. He has a special place in the history of the Netherlands because he is the male-lin ...
died in 1606, Nassau-Dillenburg was divided among his five surviving sons:
*
William Louis received a rather reduced Nassau-Dillenburg
*
George
George may refer to:
People
* George (given name)
* George (surname)
* George (singer), American-Canadian singer George Nozuka, known by the mononym George
* George Washington, First President of the United States
* George W. Bush, 43rd Presid ...
received
Nassau-Beilstein
*
John VII received Nassau-Siegen
*
Ernest Casimir received
Nassau-Dietz
The House of Nassau is a diversified aristocratic dynasty in Europe. It is named after the lordship associated with Nassau Castle, located in present-day Nassau, Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The lords of Nassau were originally titled "Count ...
*
John Louis received
Nassau-Hadamar
Nassau-Hadamar is the name of two side lines of the Ottonian main line of the House of Nassau. The older line of the counts of Nassau-Hadamar existed from 1303 to 1394; the younger line existed from 1607 to 1711 and received the hereditary title o ...
This division created a new principality of Nassau-Siegen. It belonged to the
Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle
The Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle (german: Niederrheinisch-Westfälischer Reichskreis, nl, Nederrijns-Westfaalse Kreits) was an Imperial Circle of the Holy Roman Empire. It comprised territories of the former Duchy of Lower Lorraine, Fri ...
.
After John VII died in 1628, the country was divided:
* His eldest son,
John VIII, who had converted to Catholicism, received the part of the county south of the river
Sieg
The Sieg is a river in North Rhine-Westphalia and Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a right tributary of the Rhine.
The river is named after the Sicambri. It is in length.
The source is located in the Rothaargebirge mountains. From h ...
and the original castle in Siegen (which after 1695 was called the "Upper Castle"). John VIII was the founder of the Catholic line of Nassau-Siegen.
*
John Maurice, who remained Protestant, received the part of the county north of the Sieg. He was the founder of the Protestant line of Nassau-Siegen and he converted the former Franciscan monastery into a new residence, called the "Lower Castle", which was reconstructed after having burnt down at large parts in 1695. John Maurice spent most of his time away from Siegen, since he was governor of
Dutch Brazil
Dutch Brazil ( nl, Nederlands-Brazilië), also known as New Holland ( nl, Nieuw-Holland), was a colony of the Dutch Republic in the northeastern portion of modern-day Brazil, controlled from 1630 to 1654 during Dutch colonization of the America ...
and later of the Prussian province of Cleves, Mark, and Ravensberg.
In 1652,
John Francis Desideratus of the Catholic line was elevated to
Imperial Prince
Prince of the Holy Roman Empire ( la, princeps imperii, german: Reichsfürst, cf. ''Fürst'') was a title attributed to a hereditary ruler, nobleman or prelate recognised as such by the Holy Roman Emperor.
Definition
Originally, possessors o ...
. Count
Henry
Henry may refer to:
People
*Henry (given name)
* Henry (surname)
* Henry Lau, Canadian singer and musician who performs under the mononym Henry
Royalty
* Portuguese royalty
** King-Cardinal Henry, King of Portugal
** Henry, Count of Portugal, ...
of the Protestant line married Marie Elisabeth of Limburg-Styrum, who brought the Lordship of
Wisch in the
County of Zutphen
The County of Zutphen, located in modern-day Gelderland, a province of the Netherlands, was formed in the eleventh century as a fief of the Bishop of Utrecht. It was ruled by the Counts of Zutphen between 1046 and 1138, and then formed a per ...
into the marriage. In 1652,
John Maurice of the Protestant line was also elevated to Imperial Prince.
In 1734, the Protestant line died out with the death of
Frederick William II. Nassau-Siegen was reunited under
William Hyacinth, the last ruler of the Catholic line. When he died in 1743, Nassau-Siegen had died out in the male line, and the territory fell to Prince
William IV
William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded h ...
of the Orange-Nassau-Dietz line, who thereby reunited all the lands of the
Ottonian
The Ottonian dynasty (german: Ottonen) was a Saxon dynasty of German monarchs (919–1024), named after three of its kings and Holy Roman Emperors named Otto, especially its first Emperor Otto I. It is also known as the Saxon dynasty after the ...
line of the House of Nassau.
After 1743
The
Rheinbundakte, the treaty of July 12, 1806, that created the
Confederation of the Rhine
The Confederated States of the Rhine, simply known as the Confederation of the Rhine, also known as Napoleonic Germany, was a confederation of German client states established at the behest of Napoleon some months after he defeated Austria an ...
,
mediatised Nassau-Siegen and placed it under the sovereignty of the newly created
Grand Duchy of Berg
The Grand Duchy of Berg (german: Großherzogtum Berg), also known as the Grand Duchy of Berg and Cleves, was a territorial grand duchy established in 1806 by Emperor Napoleon after his victory at the Battle of Austerlitz (1805) on territories be ...
. In 1808, Prince
William VI of Orange-Nassau lost his remaining German possessions, as a punishment for his opposition to
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
. In 1813, after the
Battle of Leipzig
The Battle of Leipzig (french: Bataille de Leipsick; german: Völkerschlacht bei Leipzig, ); sv, Slaget vid Leipzig), also known as the Battle of the Nations (french: Bataille des Nations; russian: Битва народов, translit=Bitva ...
, he regained his territories. In a treaty signed on May 31, 1815, he ceded his German possessions to
Prussia
Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an em ...
, in return for Prussia supporting the creation of the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands
The United Kingdom of the Netherlands ( nl, Verenigd Koninkrijk der Nederlanden; french: Royaume uni des Pays-Bas) is the unofficial name given to the Kingdom of the Netherlands as it existed between 1815 and 1839. The United Netherlands was cr ...
, where he ruled as King
William I
William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 10 ...
.
Extent of Nassau-Siegen
The principality consisted of the districts of
Siegen
Siegen () is a city in Germany, in the south Westphalian part of North Rhine-Westphalia
North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly sho ...
,
Netphen
Netphen () is a town in the Siegen-Wittgenstein district, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It lies on the river Sieg, roughly 7 km northeast of Siegen.
Geography
Location
Netphen lies on the Rothaargebirge's southern slope and forms the ...
,
Hilchenbach, and
Freudenberg. From 1628-1734, the Protestant part consisted of the districts of Hilchenbach and Freudenberg and a half the district of Siegen. At the time, the Catholic half of the district of Siegen was called the district of Hayn. The Catholic part of the county consisted of the district of Netphen and the other half of the district of Siegen.
In the north, it bordered the
Duchy of Westphalia. In the west, it bordered Wildenburg and
Sayn-Altenkirchen
Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn-Altenkirchen (sometimes called Sayn-Altenkirchen) was a German county located in what is now Rhineland-Palatinate, near the river Sieg.
When Count William III of Sayn-Wittgenstein-Sayn died in 1623 without clear heirs, the ...
. In the south, it bordered
Nassau-Dillenburg
The County of Nassau was a German state within the Holy Roman Empire and later part of the German Confederation. Its ruling dynasty, the male line of which is now extinct, was the House of Nassau.
Origins
Nassau, originally a county, developed ...
and in the east Wittgenstein-Wittgenstein.
History
Rulers of Nassau-Siegen
Undivided
Catholic line
Protestant line
Notes
References
A.J. Weidenbach: ''Nassauische Territorien'', 1870
External links
*
History of Nassau-Siegen
{{Authority control
House of Nassau
*
Principalities of the Holy Roman Empire
Former countries in Europe
Former states and territories of North Rhine-Westphalia
Nassau-Siegen
Nassau-Siegen was a principality within the Holy Roman Empire that existed between 1303 and 1328, and again from 1606 to 1743. From 1626 to 1734, it was subdivided into Catholic and Protestant parts. Its capital was the city of Siegen, found ...