The Principality of Leyen was a

Napoleonic Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...

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 ...

state which existed 1806–1814 in

Hohengeroldseck Hohengeroldseck was a state of the Holy Roman Empire. It was founded by the House of Geroldseck, a German noble family which arrived in the Ortenau region of Swabia reputedly in 948, though the first mention of the family is documented in the 1080 ...

, in the west of modern

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

. The

House of Leyen The House von der Leyen und zu Hohengeroldseck is an ancient German noble family of princely and historically sovereign rank. As a former ruling and mediatized family, it belongs to the Hochadel (high nobility). History The origin can be ...

had acquired many districts in western Germany, and eventually these were inherited by the Leyen line of counts at Adendorf. In 1797,

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 area ...

defeated 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 ...

and all lands west of the

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

were lost. Following the defeat of

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

in December 1805, most of the smaller German princely states were

mediatized Mediatization or mediatisation may refer to: * German mediatisation German mediatisation (; german: deutsche Mediatisierung) was the major territorial restructuring that took place between 1802 and 1814 in Germany and the surrounding region by ...

, with the glaring exception of Leyen, which was spared because the ruling Count was nephew to

Archchancellor An archchancellor ( la, archicancellarius, german: Erzkanzler) or chief chancellor was a title given to the highest dignitary of the Holy Roman Empire, and also used occasionally during the Middle Ages to denote an official who supervised the wo ...

Karl Theodor von Dalberg Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg (8 February 1744 – 10 February 1817) was Prince- Archbishop of Regensburg, Arch-Chancellor of the Holy Roman Empire, Bishop of Constance and Worms, prince-primate of the Confederation of the Rhine and ...

,Heinrich von Treitschke, ''History of Germany in the Nineteenth Century, Volume 1'', page 270. a close collaborator of Napoleon's. In 1806, Count Philip Francis of Adendorf was raised to a Prince, and his lands were renamed to the 'Principality of Leyen'. The territory formed an enclave surrounded by

Baden Baden (; ) is a historical territory in South Germany, in earlier times on both sides of the Upper Rhine but since the Napoleonic Wars only East of the Rhine. History The margraves of Baden originated from the House of Zähringen. Baden i ...

. Prince Philip Francis, like many other members of the

Confederation of the Rhine The Confederated States of the Rhine, simply known as the Confederation of the Rhine, also known as Napoleonic Germany, was a confederation of German client states established at the behest of Napoleon some months after he defeated Austria an ...

became largely a French puppet, so following Napoleon's defeat at the Battle of Leipzig in 1813, 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 ...

opted to mediatize his realm and give it to Austria. In 1819, Austria traded it to

Prince of Leyen

* Philip Francis (1806–14), previously count of Adendorf''

Heads of the House after Mediatization

* Philip Franz, 1st Prince 1806-1829 (1766-1829) ** Erwein, 2nd Prince 1829-1879 (1798-1879) *** Philip, 3rd Prince 1879-1882 (1819-1882) **** Erwein, 4th Prince 1895-1938 (1863-1938) ***** Erwein, 5th Prince 1938-1970 (1894-1970) ****** ''Wolfram Erwein, Hereditary Prince of Leyen and zu Hohengeroldseck (1924-1945)'' ****** ''Princess Marie-Adelheid (1932-2015)'' ******* Philipp Erwein, 7th Prince 1971–present (b.1967) ******** Wolfram, Hereditary Prince of Leyen and zu Hohengeroldseck (b.1990) ********* Prince Roch (b.2018) ******** Prince Georg (b.1992) ********* Prince Leo (b.2016) ********* Prince Antonius (b.2018) ***** Ferdinand, 6th Prince 1970-1971 (1898-1971)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leyen, Principality Lists of princes Former states and territories of Baden-Württemberg 1806 establishments in Europe 1814 disestablishments in Europe 19th century in Germany by state States of the Confederation of the Rhine