The Prince-Bishopric of Liège or Principality of Liège was an
ecclesiastical principality of the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...
that was situated for the most part in present-day
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...
. It was an
Imperial Estate, so the
bishop of Liège, as its prince, had a seat and a vote in the
Imperial Diet. The Prince-Bishopric of Liège should not be confused with the
Diocese of Liège, which was larger and over which the prince-bishop exercised only the usual responsibilities of a bishop.
The bishops of
Liège acquired their status as
prince-bishops between 980 and 985 when Bishop
Notker of Liège, who had been the bishop since 972, received secular control of the
County of Huy from
Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto II (955 – 7 December 983), called the Red (''der Rote''), was Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto II was the youngest and sole surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Ital ...
.
From 1500, the prince-bishopric belonged to the
Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle. Its territory included most of the present Belgian provinces of
Liège and
Limburg, and some exclaves in other parts of Belgium and the Netherlands.
It briefly became a republic (the
Republic of Liège) from 1789 to 1791, before reverting to a prince-bishopric in 1791. The role of the bishop as prince permanently ended when the state was annexed by France in 1795. In 1815 the territories it had held became part of the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands, and in 1830 they were within the part of that kingdom which split off to become
Belgium
Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...
.
The principality ruled by the bishops of Liège was never part of the
Seventeen Provinces
The Seventeen Provinces were the Imperial states of the Habsburg Netherlands in the 16th century. They roughly covered the Low Countries, i.e., what is now the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and most of the French departments of Nord (Fre ...
or the Spanish and Austrian
Southern Netherlands, but from the 16th century onwards its politics were strongly influenced by the
dukes of Burgundy and later the
Habsburgs.
In 1559 its 1,636
parish
A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or ...
es were grouped into eight
archdeacon
An archdeacon is a senior clergy position in the Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic Church, Syriac Orthodox Church, Anglican Communion, St Thomas Christians, Eastern Orthodox churches and some other Christian denominations, above that of m ...
ries, and twenty-eight councils, ' (
deaneries). The most important cities (') of the bishopric were: Liège,
Beringen,
Bilzen,
Borgloon,
Bree,
Châtelet,
Ciney,
Couvin,
Dinant,
Fosses-la-Ville,
Hamont
Hamont-Achel (; li, Haëmet-Achel) is a city and municipality located in the Belgian province of Limburg. It was founded in 1977 by a fusion of the city Hamont and the village Achel. On January 1, 2020, Hamont-Achel had a total population of 1 ...
,
Hasselt
Hasselt (, , ; la, Hasseletum, Hasselatum) is a Belgian city and municipality, and capital and largest city of the province of Limburg in the Flemish Region of Belgium. It is known for its former branding as "the city of taste", as well as ...
,
Herk-de-Stad,
Huy,
Maaseik,
Peer
Peer may refer to:
Sociology
* Peer, an equal in age, education or social class; see Peer group
* Peer, a member of the peerage; related to the term "peer of the realm"
Computing
* Peer, one of several functional units in the same layer of a net ...
,
Sint-Truiden,
Stokkem,
Thuin,
Tongeren,
Verviers
Verviers (; wa, Vervî) is a city and municipality of Wallonia located in the province of Liège, Belgium.
The municipality consists of the following districts: Ensival, Heusy, Lambermont, Petit-Rechain, Stembert, and Verviers. It is also ...
,
Visé and
Waremme.
The city of
Maastricht
Maastricht ( , , ; li, Mestreech ; french: Maestricht ; es, Mastrique ) is a city and a municipality in the southeastern Netherlands. It is the capital and largest city of the province of Limburg. Maastricht is located on both sides of the ...
fell under the
joint jurisdiction of the prince-bishop of Liège and the
duke of Brabant
The Duke of Brabant (, ) was the ruler of the Duchy of Brabant since 1183/1184. The title was created by the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in favor of Henry I of the House of Reginar, son of Godfrey III of Leuven (who was duke of ...
(later the
States-General of the United Provinces
The States General of the Netherlands ( nl, Staten-Generaal ) is the supreme bicameral legislature of the Netherlands consisting of the Senate () and the House of Representatives (). Both chambers meet at the Binnenhof in The Hague.
The Stat ...
). The second city of the prince-bishopric thus kept its special status throughout the '.
Medieval prince-bishopric
The large diocese of the medieval bishops was, until 1559, much larger than the princedom which was in their possession. However, the princely domain was gradually enlarged by donations and by acquisitions. In the 10th century, the bishops received
secular lordship over the
county of Huy, which lay within of the
diocese
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...
. Bishop
Notger (972–1008) and his successors are thus referred to as princes within the
Holy Roman Empire
The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars.
From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...
. This situation continued until the
French Revolution
The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are conside ...
, and throughout that period of nearly eight centuries the Prince-Bishopric of Liège succeeded in maintaining a level of autonomy, though it remained under the emperor. This virtual independence was owed largely to the ability of its bishops, who on several occasions played an important part in international politics, being strategically positioned between
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
and
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG),, is a country in Central Europe. It is the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany lies between the Baltic and North Sea to the north and the Alps to the sou ...
.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the prince-bishopric was further expanded with the
lordship of Bouillon in 1096 (ceded to France in 1678), the acquisition of the
county of Loon (french: Looz) in 1366 and the
county of Horne in 1568.
Notger, the founder of the principality, also rebuilt the cathedral of St Lambert, as well as the episcopal palace. He was also involved in other building activities in the city, which flourished under his rule (churches of St Paul, St. John the Evangelist, Sainte-Croix and St Denis). This bishop also strengthened the parochial organization of the city. He was one of the first church leaders to spread the observance of
All Souls' Day, which he authorized for his diocese. Under Notger's administration, following up on the work of Heraclius, educational institutions in Liège flourished. With these two bishops (and
Wazo) "The schools of Liège were, in fact, at that time one of the brightest literary foci of the period". In the 11th century the city was indeed known as the ''Athens of the North''. "Liège for more than a century occupied among the nations a position in regard to science which it has never recovered". Subsequent bishops, Balderic of Looz (1008–18),
Wolbodo (1018–21), Durandus (1021–25), Reginard (1025–38), Nitard (1038–42), the learned
Wazo, and Theoduin (1048–75), valiantly sustained the heritage of Notger. The schools formed many brilliant scholars, and gave the Catholic Church popes
Stephen IX and
Nicholas II. The diocese also supplied the
University of Paris
The University of Paris (french: link=no, Université de Paris), Metonymy, metonymically known as the Sorbonne (), was the leading university in Paris, France, active from 1150 to 1970, with the exception between 1793 and 1806 under the French Revo ...
with a number of important doctors —
William of Saint-Thierry
William of Saint-Thierry, O. Cist (French: ''Guillaume de Saint-Thierry''; Latin: ''Guillelmus S. Theodorici''; 1075/80/85–1148) was a twelfth-century Benedictine, theologian and mystic from Liège who became abbot of Saint-Thierry in France, ...
,
Gerard of Liège
Gerard is a masculine forename of Proto-Germanic origin, variations of which exist in many Germanic and Romance languages. Like many other early Germanic names, it is dithematic, consisting of two meaningful constituents put together. In this ca ...
and
Godfrey of Fontaines.
Alger of Liège (1055–1131) was an important intellectual of the period. He was first appointed deacon of
church of St Bartholomew and finally retired at the monastery of
Cluny
Cluny () is a commune in the eastern French department of Saône-et-Loire, in the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. It is northwest of Mâcon.
The town grew up around the Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, ...
.
In the reign of
Henry of Verdun (1075–91) a tribunal was instituted (') to prevent war and enforce the
Peace of God.
Otbert (1091–1119) increased the territory of the principality by purchasing the
Lordship of Bouillon. He remained faithful to emperor
Henry IV, who died as his guest. Henry of Namur (1119–21) was venerated as a martyr. During the administration of
Alexander of Juliers
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Ale ...
(1128–34) the
pope
The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...
, the
emperor
An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife ( empress consort), mother ( e ...
and
St Bernard of Clairvaux
Bernard of Clairvaux, O. Cist. ( la, Bernardus Claraevallensis; 109020 August 1153), venerated as Saint Bernard, was an abbot, mystic, co-founder of the Knights Templars, and a major leader in the reformation of the Benedictine Order through ...
visited Liège. The episcopate of
Raoul of Zachringen __NOTOC__
Raoul is a French variant of the male given name Ralph or Rudolph, and a cognate of Raul.
Raoul may also refer to:
Given name
* Raoul Berger, American legal scholar
* Raoul Bova, Italian actor
* Radulphus Brito (Raoul le Breton, di ...
was marked by the preaching of the reformer
Lambert le Bègue, who is credited with founding the
Béguines.
Albert of Louvain was elected Bishop of Liège in 1191, but
Emperor Henry VI, on the pretext that the election was doubtful, gave the see to Lothair of Hochstadt. Albero's election was confirmed by the pope but in 1192, shortly after he took office, he was assassinated by three German knights at
Reims
Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne.
Founded ...
. It is probable that the emperor was privy to this murder but Albero was canonized. In 1195, Albert de Cuyck (1195–1200) formally recognized the
political franchise
Suffrage, political franchise, or simply franchise, is the right to vote in public, political elections and referendums (although the term is sometimes used for any right to vote). In some languages, and occasionally in English, the right to v ...
of the people of Liège. During the 12th century, the cathedral
chapter, along with the bishop, assumed a more important role in the history of the principality.
The struggles between the upper and lower classes, in which the prince-bishops frequently intervened, developed through the 13th and 14th centuries, and culminate in the 15th century in the pillage and destruction of the episcopal city. In the reign of Robert of Thourotte (1240–46),
Saint Juliana — a nun of
Cornillon Abbey
Mont Cornillon Abbey (''L'Abbaye du Mont-Cornillon'' in French language, French) was a Premonstratensian monastery which occupied a site in Wallonia close to Liège, Belgium. In 1288 the abbey having moved to a new location, it became known as Beau ...
— was led by certain visions to the project of having a feast established in honour of the
Blessed Sacrament. After much hesitation, the bishop approved of her idea but death prevented the institution of the feast. The completion of the work was left to a former
prior of the
Dominicans in Liège,
Hugh of Saint-Cher, who returned to the city as papal legate. In 1252 Hugh made the feast of the
Blessed Sacrament an obligation throughout his diocese. John of Troyes, who, after having been archdeacon at Liège, was elected pope as
Urban IV
Pope Urban IV ( la, Urbanus IV; c. 1195 – 2 October 1264), born Jacques Pantaléon, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1261 to his death. He was not a cardinal; only a few popes since his time hav ...
, encouraged the observance of the feast of
Corpus Christi in the whole Church. Another archdeacon of Liège became pope under the name
Gregory X and deposed the unworthy Henry of
Gueldres
The Duchy of Guelders ( nl, Gelre, french: Gueldre, german: Geldern) is a historical duchy, previously county, of the Holy Roman Empire, located in the Low Countries.
Geography
The duchy was named after the town of Geldern (''Gelder'') in p ...
(1247–74). The
Peace of Fexhe
Peace is a concept of societal friendship and harmony in the absence of hostility and violence. In a social sense, peace is commonly used to mean a lack of conflict (such as war) and freedom from fear of violence between individuals or groups. ...
, signed in 1316 during the reign of
Adolph II de la Marck (1313–44), regulated the relations between the prince-bishop and his subjects. Nevertheless, internal discord continued and the episcopate of Arnold of
Horne (1378–89) was marked by the triumph of the popular party. In 1366, the
county of Loon was annexed to the bishopric.
Burgundian and Habsburg influence
Upon the death of
Louis of Male
Louis II ( nl, Lodewijk van Male; french: Louis II de Flandre) (25 October 1330, Male – 30 January 1384, Lille), also known as Louis of Male, a member of the House of Dampierre, was Count of Flanders, Nevers and Rethel from 1346 as wel ...
,
count of Flanders, in 1384, the Low Countries began their unification within the
Burgundian Netherlands
In the history of the Low Countries, the Burgundian Netherlands (french: Pays-Bas bourguignons, nl, Bourgondische Nederlanden, lb, Burgundeschen Nidderlanden, wa, Bas Payis borguignons) or the Burgundian Age is the period between 1384 and ...
. Though the principality was still nominally independent, the
Dukes of Burgundy have had an increasing influence on its government.
Louis of Bourbon (1456–82) was placed on the throne of Liège by the political machinations of
Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy
Philip III (french: Philippe le Bon; nl, Filips de Goede; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) was Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonge ...
. The population resisted Burgundian rule leading to the
Liège Wars, the destruction of
Dinant in 1466, and of Liège in 1468 by
Charles the Bold, marking the ending of democratic ascendancy in the principality.
Charles V completed the union of the
Seventeen Provinces
The Seventeen Provinces were the Imperial states of the Habsburg Netherlands in the 16th century. They roughly covered the Low Countries, i.e., what is now the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, and most of the French departments of Nord (Fre ...
in the 1540s, and unofficially also controlled the principality. He nominated
Érard de La Marck (1505–38) who brought a period of restoration. Erard was an enlightened protector of the arts. It was he who commenced the struggle against the
Protestant reformers, which his successors carried forth, especially Gerard of Groesbeeck (1564–80). With the object of assisting in this struggle,
Paul IV, by
Bull
A bull is an intact (i.e., not castrated) adult male of the species '' Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e., cows), bulls have long been an important symbol in many religions,
incl ...
(', 12 May 1559), created new bishoprics in the
Low Countries
The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...
. The new bishoprics were created largely at the expense of the diocese of Liège; many of its parishes were given to the dioceses of
Roermond,
's-Hertogenbosch
s-Hertogenbosch (), colloquially known as Den Bosch (), is a city and municipality in the Netherlands with a population of 157,486. It is the capital of the province of North Brabant and its fourth largest by population. The city is south of th ...
, and
Namur, or were added to the existing dioceses of
Mechelen
Mechelen (; french: Malines ; traditional English name: MechlinMechelen has been known in English as ''Mechlin'', from where the adjective ''Mechlinian'' is derived. This name may still be used, especially in a traditional or historical contex ...
and
Antwerp. The number of deaneries in the diocese of Liège was reduced to 13.
Liège formed the last link in the chain of Habsburg allies that made up the so-called
Spanish Road, a military corridor between Spanish-controlled
Lombardy and the
Spanish Netherlands. Completely encircled by Spanish territory, Liège was protected by treaties of neutrality which permitted the passage of Spanish troops through the prince-bishop's territory provided that they spent no more than two nights in one place. The importance of the prince-bishopric to Habsburg military logistics in the
Eighty Years War
The Eighty Years' War or Dutch Revolt ( nl, Nederlandse Opstand) ( c.1566/1568–1648) was an armed conflict in the Habsburg Netherlands between disparate groups of rebels and the Spanish government. The causes of the war included the Re ...
prompted Spanish intervention foiling a Dutch invasion in 1595.
Most of the bishops in the 17th century were foreigners, many of them holding several bishoprics at once. Their frequent absences gave free scope for those feuds of the
Chiroux and the
Grignoux to which
Maximilian Henry of Bavaria (
archbishop of Cologne, 1650–88) put a stop by the Edict of 1681. In the middle of the 18th century the ideas of the French
encyclopedists began to be received at Liège; Bishop
de Velbrück (1772–84), encouraged their propagation and thus prepared the way for the 1789
Liège Revolution. Partially connected with the French Revolution, a protest against the absolutist rule of prince bishop
César-Constantin-François de Hoensbroeck
César-Constantin-François de Hoensbroeck or Hoensbroech (28 August 1724 – 3 June 1792) was a German ecclesiastic of the Van Hoensbroeck family, most notable as prince-bishop of Liège from 1784 to 1792, in which post he was nicknamed the "re ...
developed into the Liège Revolution. At the beginning of 1791, the revolution was crushed by troops on the orders of the Holy Roman Empire.
The prince-bishopric was dissolved in 1795, when it was annexed by
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
. Its territory was divided amongst the départements of
Meuse-Inférieure,
Ourthe, and
Sambre-et-Meuse.
Timeline
DateFormat = yyyy
ImageSize = width:820 height:auto barincrement:45
PlotArea = left:10 right:10 bottom:20 top:2
Colors =
id:canvas value:rgb(0.97,0.97,0.97)
id:grid1 value:gray(0.83)
id:grid2 value:gray(0.92)
id:Timeperiod value:red
id:Timeperiod2 value:rgb(0.86,0.56,0.56)
id:gris value:gray(0.7)
id:noir value:black
id:guerre value:red
id:blanc value:white
Period = from:700 till:2010
TimeAxis = orientation:horizontal format:yyyy
ScaleMajor = unit:year increment:100 start:700 gridcolor:grid1
ScaleMinor = unit:year increment:50 start:1050 gridcolor:grid2
AlignBars = justify
BackgroundColors = canvas:canvas bars:canvas
BarData=
bar:Timeperiod
barset:Timeperiod2
PlotData=
width:20 fontsize:M textcolor:noir align:center
# Epochs
bar:Timeperiod color:Timeperiod shift:(0,0)
from:start till:end color:gris # Arrière plan
from:720 till:985 text: "Bishopric" color:yellow shift:(0,-5)
from:985 till:1789 text: "Prince-Bishopric" color:Timeperiod2 shift:(0,-5)
from:1789 till:1795 color:red
from:1795 till:1815 color:blue
from:1815 till:1830 color:orange
from:1830 till:end text: "Belgium" color:Timeperiod2 shift:(0,-5)
# Events
#alignment →
width:25 fontsize:S textcolor:black anchor:from align:left color:noir
barset:Timeperiod2
from:705 till:705 text:"705 ~St Lambert
Lambert of Maastricht, commonly referred to as Saint Lambert ( la, Lambertus; Middle Dutch: ''Sint-Lambrecht''; li, Lambaer, Baer, Bert(us); 636 – c. 705 AD) was the bishop of Maastricht-Liège ( Tongeren) from about 670 until his death. L ...
killed in Liège" shift:(2,3)
from:722 till:722 text:"722 ~St Hubert
Hubertus or Hubert ( 656 – 30 May 727 A.D.) was a Christian saint who became the first bishop of Liège in 708 A.D. He is the patron saint of hunters, mathematicians, opticians and metalworkers. Known as the "Apostle of the Ardennes", he was ...
transfers the seat of the ~Bishopric of Tongeren-Maastricht to Liège" shift:(2,3)
from:747 till:747 text:"ca 747 ~Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first Em ...
born close to Liège" shift:(2,3)
#alignment →
from:985 till:985 text:"985 ~Creation of Principality" shift:(2,3)
from:1366 till:1366 text:"1366 ~ County of Loon acquired" shift:(2,3)
#alignment ←
from:1568 till:1568 text:"1568 ~ County of Horne acquired" shift:(2,3)
barset:break
#alignment ←
width:25 fontsize:S textcolor:black anchor:from align:right color:noir
from:1789 till:1795 text:"1789–95 ~ Liège Revolution" shift:(0,0) color:red
from:1795 till:1815 text:"1795–1815 ~French government
The Government of France (French: ''Gouvernement français''), officially the Government of the French Republic (''Gouvernement de la République française'' ), exercises executive power in France. It is composed of the Prime Minister, wh ...
" shift:(0,0) color:blue
from:1815 till:1830 text:"1815–30 ~ Dutch government" shift:(0,0) color:orange
from:1830 till:1830 text:"1830 ~Belgian Revolution
The Belgian Revolution (, ) was the conflict which led to the secession of the southern provinces (mainly the former Southern Netherlands) from the United Kingdom of the Netherlands and the establishment of an independent Kingdom of Belgium.
...
" shift:(0,0) color:red
Notable people
*
Jean de Chokier de Surlet (1571-1656), canon lawyer and political writer
Gallery
See also
*
List of bishops and prince-bishops of Liège
*
Liège Revolution
Notes
References
Article Liège of the Catholic Encyclopedia (1910)
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liege, 985 Bishopric
980s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1795 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire
18th-century disestablishments in the Southern Netherlands
States and territories established in the 980s
Former polities in the Netherlands
Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle
980 establishments
Former monarchies of Europe