The Province of Kurhessen () or Electoral Hesse was a province of

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 ...

within

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany (lit. "National Socialist State"), ' (lit. "Nazi State") for short; also ' (lit. "National Socialist Germany") (officially known as the German Reich from 1933 until 1943, and the Greater German Reich from 1943 to 1945) was ...

between 1944 and 1945. Although all German states, including Prussia, had ''de facto'' been dissolved since 1933, the Nazi government formally partitioned the Prussian

Province of Hesse-Nassau The Province of Hesse-Nassau () was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1868 to 1918, then a province of the Free State of Prussia until 1944. Hesse-Nassau was created as a consequence of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 by combining the p ...

into two provinces effective with a decree issued on 1 April 1944 and effective on 1 July 1944. The two new provinces were the province of Kurhessen and the

Province of Nassau The Province of Nassau () was a provinces of Prussia, province of Free State of Prussia, Prussia from 1944 to 1945. Although all Weimar Republic#Constituent states of Germany during the Weimar period, German states (including Prussia) had been ...

. Following the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Kurhessen fell under American administration. The province was dissolved by the occupying US forces on 19 September 1945 and formed part of the administrative zone of

Greater Hesse Greater Hesse (german: link=no, Groß-Hessen) was the provisional name given for a section of German territory created by the United States military administration in at the end of World War II. It was formed by the Allied Control Council on 19 ...

. Just over a year later, Greater Hesse became the modern German state of

Hesse Hesse (, , ) or Hessia (, ; german: Hessen ), officially the State of Hessen (german: links=no, Land Hessen), is a States of Germany, state in Germany. Its capital city is Wiesbaden, and the largest urban area is Frankfurt. Two other major histor ...

Etymology

The name ''Kurhessen'' comes from the former

Electorate of Hesse-Kassel The Electorate of Hesse (german: Kurfürstentum Hessen), also known as Hesse-Kassel or Kurhessen, was a landgraviate whose prince was given the right to elect the Emperor by Napoleon. When the Holy Roman Empire was abolished in 1806, its prin ...

(or Hesse-Cassel; 1803–1866) which, following the

Austro-Prussian War The Austro-Prussian War, also by many variant names such as Seven Weeks' War, German Civil War, Brothers War or Fraternal War, known in Germany as ("German War"), (; "German war of brothers") and by a variety of other names, was fought in 186 ...

, Prussia annexed to form part of the Province of Hesse-Nassau. This is also where its anglicized name ''Electoral Hesse'' comes from.

References

20th century in Hesse Former states and territories of Hesse 1944 establishments in Germany 1945 disestablishments in Germany Provinces of Prussia {{Hesse-geo-stub