The Nordthüringgau was a medieval county (german: Gau) in the Eastphalian region of the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

stem duchy of

Saxony Saxony (german: Sachsen ; Upper Saxon: ''Saggsn''; hsb, Sakska), officially the Free State of Saxony (german: Freistaat Sachsen, links=no ; Upper Saxon: ''Freischdaad Saggsn''; hsb, Swobodny stat Sakska, links=no), is a landlocked state of ...

Geography

The county was located on both sides of the upper

Aller Aller may refer to: Places Rivers * Aller (Germany), a major river in North Germany *Aller (Asturian river), a river in Asturias, Spain *River Aller, a small river on Exmoor in Somerset, England Inhabited places in the United Kingdom *Aller, Devo ...

river in present-day

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making it the ...

. It was bounded by the

Lappwald The Lappwald is a heavily wooded range of hills, 20 km long and up to 5 km wide, in central Germany. It stretches northwards from the town of Helmstedt. The border between Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt runs through the woods, of which a ...

hill range and the Drömling swamp in the northwest, the River Bode in the southwest, and the

Elbe The Elbe (; cs, Labe ; nds, Ilv or ''Elv''; Upper and dsb, Łobjo) is one of the major rivers of Central Europe. It rises in the Giant Mountains of the northern Czech Republic before traversing much of Bohemia (western half of the Czech Repu ...

and

Saale The Saale (), also known as the Saxon Saale (german: Sächsische Saale) and Thuringian Saale (german: Thüringische Saale), is a river in Germany and a left-bank tributary of the Elbe. It is not to be confused with the smaller Fränkische Saale, ...

Rivers in the east, where it bordered on the lands settled by the

Polabian Slavs Polabian Slavs ( dsb, Połobske słowjany, pl, Słowianie połabscy, cz, Polabští slované) is a collective term applied to a number of Lechitic ( West Slavic) tribes who lived scattered along the Elbe river in what is today eastern German ...

. Towns included the

Imperial Imperial is that which relates to an empire, emperor, or imperialism. Imperial or The Imperial may also refer to: Places United States * Imperial, California * Imperial, Missouri * Imperial, Nebraska * Imperial, Pennsylvania * Imperial, Texa ...

residence of

Magdeburg Magdeburg (; nds, label=Low Saxon, Meideborg ) is the capital and second-largest city of the German state Saxony-Anhalt. The city is situated at the Elbe river. Otto I, the first Holy Roman Emperor and founder of the Archdiocese of Magdebur ...

as well as Haldensleben, Oschersleben, and

Calbe Calbe (official name: ''Calbe (Saale)'') is a town in the district of Salzlandkreis, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. Geography It is situated on the river Saale, approx. north of Bernburg, and southeast of Magdeburg. It is known as Calbe an der ...

. Neighboring Saxon counties were

Osterwalde Osterwalde is a medieval shire ( Gau) in the Eastphalia region of the Duchy of Saxony. In present-day terms, it is located in northern Saxony-Anhalt. It was bordered by the River Ohre to the west and by the River Dumme to the north; its eastern bor ...

and

Balsamgau The Balsamgau (or Belcsem, Balsami) was an early medieval Gau (shire) in the Eastphalia region of the Duchy of Saxony. It was centered on Stendal and located on the West bank of the River Elbe. Other towns in the Balsamgau include Arneburg, Döb ...

in the north,

Derlingau The Derlingau was an early medieval county ('' Gau'') of the Duchy of Saxony. Geography The Derlingau approximately consisted of the area between the river Oker in the west and the Lappwald forest in the east. It was bordered by (from the north, ...

in the west, as well as Harzgau and Schwabengau in the south. Beyond Elbe and Saale it bordered on the Morazena, Ciervisti and Serimunt counties, administrative parts of the vast '' marca Geronis'' from 937.

History

The Saxon count Christian, probably a scion of the

Billung The House of Billung was a dynasty of Saxon noblemen in the 9th through 12th centuries. The first known member of the house was Count Wichmann, mentioned as a Billung in 811. Oda, the wife of Count Liudolf, oldest known member of the Liudolf ...

dynasty, was mentioned in the Nordthüringgau about 937. He also ruled in the adjacent Schwabengau and upon the implementation of the '' marca Geronis'' in from 945 also over the adjacent Serimunt region beyond the Elbe River, being the brother-in-law of Margrave

Gero Gero I ( – 20 May 965), sometimes called the Great ( la, magnus),Thompson, 486. Also se was a German nobleman who ruled an initially modest march centred on Merseburg in the south of the present German state of Saxony-Anhalt, which he expande ...

. Upon his death in 950 he was succeeded by his son Count Thietmar (d. 979), who after the exile of Gunther of Merseburg was appointed Margrave of

Meissen Meissen (in German orthography: ''Meißen'', ) is a town of approximately 30,000 about northwest of Dresden on both banks of the Elbe river in the Free State of Saxony, in eastern Germany. Meissen is the home of Meissen porcelain, the Albrecht ...

in 976. Count Christian' s grandson

Gero II Gero II (c. 975 – 1 September 1015 at Krosno Odrzańskie) was the eldest son of Thietmar, Margrave of Meissen, and Schwanehilde (Suanhild), daughter of Herman, Duke of Saxony. He was therefore probably a grandson of Hidda and Christian of ...

(d. 1015) was not able to retain Meissen, but in 993 succeeded his uncle

Odo Odo or ODO may refer to: People * Odo, a given name; includes a list of people and fictional characters with the name * Franklin Odo (born 1939), Japanese-American historian * Seikichi Odo (1927–2002), Japanese karateka * Yuya Odo (born 1990), J ...

as margrave of the

Saxon Eastern March The Saxon Eastern March (german: Sächsische Ostmark) was a march of the Holy Roman Empire from the 10th until the 12th century. The term "eastern march" stems from the Latin term ''marchia Orientalis'' and originally could refer to either a march ...

. The last count in the Nordthüringgau from the Billung dynasty was Thietmar II, Margrave of the Saxon Eastern March from 1015 to 1030. Upon his death, Schwabengau, Harzgau and Nordthüringgau as well as Serimunt were enfeoffed to

Esico of Ballenstedt Esico of Ballenstedt (died around 1060) is the progenitor of the House of Ascania, (i.e., the oldest known member of his dynasty). Esico was the count of Ballenstedt (r. 1036-1060), and his possessions became the nucleus of the later Principality ...

, a maternal grandson of Margrave Odo. Esico became the progenitor of the

House of Ascania The House of Ascania (german: Askanier) was a dynasty of German rulers. It is also known as the House of Anhalt, which refers to its longest-held possession, Anhalt. The Ascanians are named after Ascania (or Ascaria) Castle, known as ''Schloss ...

and his lands over the following generations evolved into the state of

Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making it the ...

. After the deposition of the Saxon duke

Henry the Lion Henry the Lion (german: Heinrich der Löwe; 1129/1131 – 6 August 1195) was a member of the Welf dynasty who ruled as the duke of Saxony and Bavaria from 1142 and 1156, respectively, until 1180. Henry was one of the most powerful German p ...

in 1180, the lands of the former Nordthüringgau were replaced by the

Archbishopric of Magdeburg The Archbishopric of Magdeburg was a Roman Catholic archdiocese (969–1552) and Prince-Archbishopric (1180–1680) of the Holy Roman Empire centered on the city of Magdeburg on the Elbe River. Planned since 955 and established in 968, the Roma ...

, the Bishopric of Halberstadt and the Altmark territory of

Brandenburg Brandenburg (; nds, Brannenborg; dsb, Bramborska ) is a states of Germany, state in the northeast of Germany bordering the states of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Saxony, as well as the country of Poland. With an ar ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Nordthuringgau Carolingian counties Former states and territories of Saxony-Anhalt