The Lordship of Myllendonk (sometimes spelled "Millendonk") was an estate 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 ...

, located in western

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia (german: Nordrhein-Westfalen, ; li, Noordrien-Wesfale ; nds, Noordrhien-Westfalen; ksh, Noodrhing-Wäßßfaale), commonly shortened to NRW (), is a state (''Land'') in Western Germany. With more than 18 million inha ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. It was bordered by the Duchy of Jülich to the west and north, the Lordship of Dyck to the south, and the

Archbishopric of Cologne The Archdiocese of Cologne ( la, Archidioecesis Coloniensis; german: Erzbistum Köln) is an archdiocese of the Catholic Church in western North Rhine-Westphalia and northern Rhineland-Palatinate in Germany. History The Electorate of Colo ...

to the east and southeast. The lordship contained

Grevenbroich Grevenbroich () is a town in the Rhein-Kreis Neuss, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. It is situated on the river Erft, approximately 15 km southwest of Neuss and 15 km southeast of Mönchengladbach. Cologne and Düsseldorf are in a 3 ...

and the Castle of Myllendonk. From 1700, Myllendonk was an

Imperial Estate 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 ...

with a vote in the

Bench of Counts of Westphalia The Bench of Counts of Westphalia, a historical title of nobility, was one of the four Count, comital benches of the Reichstag (Holy Roman Empire), Reichstag in the Holy Roman Empire. Collectively, the Counts exercised one vote. Territories which b ...

. The Lords of Myllendonk are first mentioned in 1166 as belonging to one of the most important lines in the

Lower Rhine The Lower Rhine (german: Niederrhein; kilometres 660 to 1,033 of the river Rhine) flows from Bonn, Germany, to the North Sea at Hook of Holland, Netherlands (including the Nederrijn or "Nether Rhine" within the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta); al ...

. The Dukes of Guelders gained overlordship of the territory in 1268, and overlordship passed to the Archbishopric of Cologne in 1279. The line was annexed to the Pesch Myllendonk family in 1263, and in c. 1350 passed to the House of Mirlaer which renamed itself to Myllendonk-Mirlaer. Myllendonk was eventually inherited by

Johann Jakob, Count of Bronckhorst and Anholt Johann Jakob von Bronckhorst (Burg Anholt, 12 February 1582 - Freiburg im Breisgau, 19 October 1630), named ''Graf Anholt'', was Count of Bronckhorst-Batenburg and Imperial fieldmarshal during the Thirty Years' War. Life He was the second son of ...

, the Dukes of Croÿ in 1682, the Countess of Berlepsch in 1694, and through the female inheritance to the Counts of Ostein in 1700. Myllendonk was also raised to the

in 1700 as an immediate Imperial Estate. The Counts of Ostein ruled Myllendonk until 1794 when the French conquered 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 **Ge ...

territory on the western side of the

Rhine River ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...

. The Counts of Ostein were compensated with the secularised Abbacy of Buchau in 1803. Myllendonk itself remained French until the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon B ...

awarded the territory to

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 ...

in 1814. The following year the Lordship was abolished and the territory was annexed into the newly created Province of Rhineland.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Myllendonk, Lordship of Lordships of the Holy Roman Empire States and territories disestablished in 1814 History of the Rhineland Former states and territories of North Rhine-Westphalia