The Principality of Reuss-Greiz (), officially called the Principality of the Reuss Elder Line () after 1848, was a state in the

German Empire The German Empire (),; ; World Book, Inc. ''The World Book dictionary, Volume 1''. World Book, Inc., 2003. p. 572. States that Deutsches Reich translates as "German Realm" and was a former official name of Germany. also referred to as Imperia ...

, ruled by members of the

House of Reuss 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 Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, Imperial ...

. The Counts Reuss of Greiz, Lower-Greiz and Upper-Greiz () 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. The ...

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, 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. Reuss-Greiz 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 (). The flag was first sight ...

Territory

In 1919, in the aftermath of

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the territory of the Elder Line was merged with that of the Junior Line as the People's State of Reuss, which was incorporated into the new state of

Thuringia Thuringia (; officially the Free State of Thuringia, ) is one of Germany, Germany's 16 States of Germany, states. With 2.1 million people, it is 12th-largest by population, and with 16,171 square kilometers, it is 11th-largest in area. Er ...

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)

Notable figures

* Princess Hermine Reuss of Greiz, second wife of former German Emperor Wilhelm II * Princess Caroline Reuss of Greiz, wife of Wilhelm Ernst, Grand Duke of Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach * Prince Heinrich XV of Reuss-Plauen, Generalfeldmarschall of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

Territory

Princes of Reuss-Greiz (1778–1918)

Notable figures

See also