The County of Stolberg (german: Grafschaft Stolberg) was a

county A county is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesChambers Dictionary, L. Brookes (ed.), 2005, Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, Edinburgh in certain modern nations. The term is derived from the Old French ...

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 ...

located in the

Harz The Harz () is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' derives from the Middle High German ...

mountain range in present-day

Saxony-Anhalt Saxony-Anhalt (german: Sachsen-Anhalt ; nds, Sassen-Anholt) is a state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of and has a population of 2.18 million inhabitants, making it the ...

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 ruled by a branch of the

House of Stolberg The House of Stolberg is the name of an old and large German dynasty of the former Holy Roman Empire's high aristocracy ('' Hoher Adel''). Members of the family held the title of ''Fürst'' and ''Graf''. They played a significant role in feudal ...

The town of Stolberg was probably founded in the 12th century as a mining settlement. The Counts of Stolberg (''Grafen zu Stolberg'') probably derived from a branch of the counts of Hohnstein castle near

Nordhausen Nordhausen may refer to: * Nordhausen (district), a district in Thuringia, Germany ** Nordhausen, Thuringia, a city in the district **Nordhausen station, the railway station in the city * Nordhouse, a commune in Alsace (German: Nordhausen) * Narost ...

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 ...

. The castle of Stolberg was first mentioned in 1210 as ''Stalberg'', then the seat of one count Henry originally from nearby

Voigtstedt Voigtstedt () is a village and a former municipality in the district Kyffhäuserkreis, in Thuringia, Germany. Since 1 January 2019, it is part of the town Artern Artern is a town in the Kyffhäuserkreis district, Thuringia, Germany. The form ...

. It remained a property of the comital family until its expropriation in 1945. The Stolberg lands, which were located mostly east of the Harz, included Stolberg, Hayn, the lower County of Hohnstein (1417), as well as

Kelbra Kelbra () is a town the Mansfeld-Südharz district, in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It is situated north of the Kyffhäuser mountains, approx. 20 km west of Sangerhausen, and 20 km east of Nordhausen. Kelbra is part of the ''Verbandsgemeind ...

and

Heringen Heringen (Werra) is a small town in Hersfeld-Rotenburg district in eastern Hesse, Germany lying right at the boundary with Thuringia. Geography Location The nearest major towns and cities are Bad Hersfeld (28 km to the west), Eisenach ...

(1413/17), the two latter territories being ruled alongside the

House of Schwarzburg The House of Schwarzburg was one of the oldest noble families of Thuringia. Upon the death of Prince Friedrich Günther in 1971, a claim to the headship of the house passed under Semi-Salic primogeniture to his elder sister, Princess Marie An ...

. The Counts of Stolberg could significantly enlarge their territory when they inherited the

County of Wernigerode The County of Wernigerode (german: Grafschaft Wernigerode) was a state of the Holy Roman Empire which arose in the Harzgau region of the former Duchy of Saxony, at the northern foot of the Harz mountain range. The comital residence was at Werniger ...

in 1429, the

County of Königstein The County of Königstein was an imperially immediate territory of the Holy Roman Empire within the Upper Rhenish Circle. House of Eppstein On 6 August 1505 Maximilian I granted the titles of lords of Königstein, Eppstein and Munzenberg to t ...

in 1535, and the County of Rochefort in 1544. The

Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and in ...

was introduced into their territory in 1539. On 19 March 1548 the line was split between a Harz line (

Stolberg-Stolberg Stolberg-Stolberg was a county of the Holy Roman Empire located in the southern Harz region. Its capital was the town of Stolberg, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was ruled by a branch of the House of Stolberg. In 1429, the County of Wernigero ...

) and a Rhenish line with the possessions in

Rochefort Rochefort () may refer to: Places France * Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department ** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard * Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department * Rochefort-du-Gard, in the Ga ...

( Stolberg-Rochefort) and

Königstein im Taunus Königstein im Taunus () is a health spa and lies on the thickly wooded slopes of the Taunus in Hesse, Germany. The town is part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. Owing to its advantageous location for both scenery and transport on the edg ...

( Stolberg-Königstein).

References

* *

External links

Stolberger-Geschichte.de
1548 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire States and territories established in 1210 Former states and territories of Saxony-Anhalt Harz 1210s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1210 establishments in Europe Counties of the Holy Roman Empire {{Germany-hist-stub

See also

References

External links