''Herzog'' (female ''Herzogin'') is a German hereditary title held by one who rules a territorial duchy, exercises

feudal Feudalism, also known as the feudal system, was the combination of the legal, economic, military, cultural and political customs that flourished in Middle Ages, medieval Europe between the 9th and 15th centuries. Broadly defined, it was a wa ...

authority over an

estate Estate or The Estate may refer to: Law * Estate (law), a term in common law for a person's property, entitlements and obligations * Estates of the realm, a broad social category in the histories of certain countries. ** The Estates, representat ...

called a

duchy A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a Middle Ages, medieval country, territory, fiefdom, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or Queen regnant, queen in Western European tradition. There once exis ...

, or possesses a right by law or tradition to be referred to by the ducal title. The word is usually translated by the English '' duke'' and the Latin '' dux''. Generally, a ''Herzog'' ranks below a king and above a count. Pine, L.G. Titles: How the King became His Majesty. ''Titles in Western Europe.''Barnes & Noble, Inc. 1992, pp. 70-73. . Whether the title is deemed higher or lower than titles translated into English as "prince" (''

Fürst ' (, female form ', plural '; from Old High German ', "the first", a translation of the Latin ') is a German word for a ruler and is also a princely title. ' were, since the Middle Ages, members of the highest nobility who ruled over states of ...

'') has depended upon the language, country and era in which the titles coexisted.

History

''Herzog'' is not related to ''

Herz Herz is the German word for ''heart''. It may refer to: * Herz (surname) * Herz Bergner (1907–1970), Polish-born Australian novelist * Herz Cerfbeer of Medelsheim (1730–1793), French Jewish philanthropist * Herz., author abbreviation of Germa ...

'' ('heart'), but is derived from German(ic) He(e)r (English: 'army') and zog (ziehen) (English: 'to move' or 'to pull', also: ''in die Schlacht ziehen'' – "to go into battle", related to the modern English verb '' to tug''), a military leader (compare to Slavic voivode). It may have originated from the Proto-Germanic title of '' Harjatugô'', who were elected by their tribes to lead them into battle. Thus, ''Herzog'' was a title borne by Germanic warriors who exercised military authority over a tribe by general acclaim among its members or warriors, especially in the

stem duchies A stem duchy (german: Stammesherzogtum, from '' Stamm'', meaning "tribe", in reference to the Franks, Saxons, Bavarians and Swabians) was a constituent duchy of the German Empire at the time of the extinction of the Carolingian dynasty (death of ...

. During the medieval era, some of the most powerful vassals whose territories lay within the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire took or were granted the title of ''Herzog'' by the Emperor. Several dynasties, such as the

Habsburgs The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

of Austria,

Hohenzollerns The House of Hohenzollern (, also , german: Haus Hohenzollern, , ro, Casa de Hohenzollern) is a German royal (and from 1871 to 1918, imperial) dynasty whose members were variously princes, electors, kings and emperors of Hohenzollern, Brandenbu ...

of Prussia,

Welfs The House of Welf (also Guelf or Guelph) is a European dynasty that has included many German and British monarchs from the 11th to 20th century and Emperor Ivan VI of Russia in the 18th century. The originally Franconian family from the Meuse ...

of Hanover, Wettins of Saxony, Wittelsbachs of Bavaria and the House of Württemberg, held the ''Herzogswürde'' (dukedom) before becoming kings. Although a ''Herzog'' ranked below a Prince Elector within the Empire, he also belonged by hereditary right to the ''Fürstenbank'' (Chamber of Princes) within the '' Reichstag'', exercised ''

Landeshoheit In the Holy Roman Empire, ''Landeshoheit'' or ''superioritas territorialis''Latin, sometimes ''ius territoriale''. (translated as territorial superiority, territorial supremacy or territorial sovereignty) was the authority possessed by the immedi ...

'' within his

Imperial state An Imperial State or Imperial Estate ( la, Status Imperii; german: Reichsstand, plural: ') was a part of the Holy Roman Empire with representation and the right to vote in the Imperial Diet ('). Rulers of these Estates were able to exercise si ...

and enjoyed ''

Reichsunmittelbarkeit Imperial immediacy (german: Reichsfreiheit or ') was a privileged constitutional and political status rooted in German feudal law under which the Imperial estates of the Holy Roman Empire such as Imperial cities, prince-bishoprics and secular prin ...

'' within the Empire. Therefore, ''Herzöge'' were regarded as members of the ''Hoher Adel'' ( reigning nobility) whose families inter-married with sovereign dynasties outside as well as within the Empire. They ranked as royalty, distinct from nobles who were subject to a lesser

suzerain Suzerainty () is the rights and obligations of a person, state or other polity who controls the foreign policy and relations of a tributary state, while allowing the tributary state to have internal autonomy. While the subordinate party is calle ...

than the Emperor. Occasionally, the Emperor conferred the title of ''Herzog'' on a nobleman who was not necessarily a Prince of the Holy Roman Empire and did not rule a duchy. Such a person ranked only as a ''Titularherzog'' (duke-by-title) in Germany's non-reigning nobility. File:T09 Herzog.svg, ''Herzogskrone'', the heraldic crown of a ''Herzog'' File:Ducal Hat.svg, ''Herzogshut'', the ducal hat of a ''Herzog''

Current usage

''Herzog'' was borrowed into other European languages, with the chief meaning of the word being "duke", such as Russian ''gertsog'' (''герцог''), Belarusian ''hertsag'', Croatian, Serbian and Bosnian ''herceg'' (''херцег''; e.g.,

Herzegovina Herzegovina ( or ; sh-Latn-Cyrl, Hercegovina, separator=" / ", Херцеговина, ) is the southern and smaller of two main geographical region of Bosnia and Herzegovina, the other being Bosnia. It has never had strictly defined geogra ...

), Bulgarian ''hertsog'', Latvian ''hercogs'', Lithuanian ''hercogas'', Estonian ''hertsog'', Finnish ''herttua'', Hungarian ''herceg'', Georgian ''herts’ogi'', Danish ''hertug'', Dutch and Afrikaans ''hertog'', Icelandic ''hertogi'', Luxemburgish ''Herzog'', Norwegian ''hertug'' and Swedish ''hertig''. The Slavic semantic equivalent of ''Herzog'' (for example in Polish) is '' voivode'', or Russian ''воевода'', where ''voi-'' (army) and ''-vode'' (to lead, to guide). Some historical territories of the former Yugoslavia have both names of

and Vojvodina. ''Herzog'' is not uncommon as a surname in German-speaking countries. The surname does not indicate an aristocratic origin (much like the family name "King" in English does not indicate a royal ancestry).

References

{{reflist German noble titles de:Herzog he:הרצוג (תואר)

History

Current usage

See also

References