The Principality of Reuss-Greiz (german: Fürstentum Reuß-Greiz), called the Principality of the Reuss Elder Line (german: Fürstentum Reuß älterer Linie) after 1848, was a

sovereign state A sovereign state or sovereign country, is a polity, political entity represented by one central government that has supreme legitimate authority over territory. International law defines sovereign states as having a permanent population, defin ...

in modern Germany, ruled by members of the

House of Reuss Reuss (german: Reuß , ) was the name of several historical states located in present-day Thuringia, Germany. Several lordships of the Holy Roman Empire which arose after 1300 and became Imperial Counties from 1673 and Imperial Principalities in ...

. The Counts Reuss of Greiz, Lower-Greiz and Upper-Greiz (german: Reuß zu Greiz, Untergreiz und Obergreiz) were elevated to

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. Th ...

ly status in 1778 and thereafter bore the title of ''Prince Reuss, Elder Line'', or ''Prince Reuss of Greiz''. Similarly to the more numerous Reuss Junior Line, the male members of this house were all named "Heinrich", in honour of Emperor

Heinrich VI Henry VI (German: ''Heinrich VI.''; November 1165 – 28 September 1197), a member of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, was King of Germany (King of the Romans) from 1169 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1191 until his death. From 1194 he was also King of Sic ...

, who had benefited the family. They were numbered sequentially by birth, rather than by reign, with the last series beginning with Heinrich I (born 1693) and ending with Heinrich XXIV (1878–1927). The territory had an area of 317 km² and over 72,000 inhabitants in 1910. RG preserved the Frankfurt Parliament flag, which later became the

Flag of Germany The national flag of Germany is a tricolour (flag), tricolour consisting of three equal horizontal bands displaying the national colours of Germany: Sable (heraldry), black, Gules, red, and Or (heraldry), gold (german: :de:Schwarz-Rot-Gold, Sc ...

Territory

In 1919, in the aftermath of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

, the territory of the Elder Line was merged with that of the Junior Line as the

People's State of Reuss The People's State of Reuss (german: Volksstaat Reuß) was a short-lived state in what is now Thuringia. The state was formed on 4 April 1919 after the reigning princes of the two Reuss principalities abdicated and elections were held in both ...

, which was incorporated into the new state of

Thuringia Thuringia (; german: Thüringen ), officially the Free State of Thuringia ( ), is a state of central Germany, covering , the sixth smallest of the sixteen German states. It has a population of about 2.1 million. Erfurt is the capital and larg ...

in 1920. The Elder Line died out in 1927 with the death of the childless Heinrich XXIV, after which its claims were passed to the Junior Line. File:Blick zum "Oberen Schloß" vom "Weißen Kreuz".jpg, The Upper Castle at Greiz File:Unteres Schloss Greiz.JPG, The Lower Castle at Greiz

Princes of Reuss-Greiz (1778–1918)

Princes post-monarchy

Heinrich XXIV, 6th Prince 1918–1927 (1878–1927) ''To Reuss Junior Line on the death of Prince Heinrich XXIV''

Notable figures

Princess Hermine Reuss of Greiz Princess Hermine Reuss of Greiz (german: Hermine, Prinzessin Reuß zu Greiz;Montgomery-Massingberd, Hugh (editor). Burke's Guide to the Royal Family, Burke's Peerage, London, 1973, pp. 248-249,302. "Almanach de Gotha", ''Russie'', (Gotha: Justus ...

, second wife of former

German Emperor Wilhelm II , house = Hohenzollern , father = Frederick III, German Emperor , mother = Victoria, Princess Royal , religion = Lutheranism (Prussian United) , signature = Wilhelm II, German Emperor Signature-.svg Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor ...

Princess Caroline Reuss of Greiz Princess Caroline Elizabeth Ida Reuss of Greiz (13 July 1884 – 17 January 1905) was the first wife of Wilhelm Ernst, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach. Biography Early life Caroline was a daughter of Heinrich XXII, the reigning Prince Re ...

, wife of

Wilhelm Ernst, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach Wilhelm may refer to: People and fictional characters * William Charles John Pitcher, costume designer known professionally as "Wilhelm" * Wilhelm (name), a list of people and fictional characters with the given name or surname Other uses * Mount ...

Prince Heinrich XV of Reuss-Plauen Heinrich XV, Prince Reuss of Greiz (22 February 1751 – 30 August 1825) was the fourth of six sons born into the reigning family of the Principality of Reuss. At the age of fifteen he joined the army of the Habsburg monarchy and later fought again ...

, Generalfeldmarschall of 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 ...

Territory

Princes of Reuss-Greiz (1778–1918)

Princes post-monarchy

Notable figures

See also