Stolberg-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 southern

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 ...

region. Its capital was the town of Stolberg, now in

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 ...

. In 1429, 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 ...

passed to the

Counts of Stolberg The County of Stolberg (german: Grafschaft Stolberg) was a county of the Holy Roman Empire located in the Harz mountain range in present-day Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was ruled by a branch of the House of Stolberg. The town of Stolberg was pro ...

, who ruled Wernigerode through a

personal union A personal union is the combination of two or more states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, would involve the constituent states being to some extent interlink ...

. In 1548, the line was split between a Harz line (Stolberg-Stolberg) and a Rhenish line which had 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). With the death of Count Wolf Georg zu Stolberg in 1631, Stolberg-Stolberg was inherited by members of the Rhenish line. On 31 May 1645, Stolberg-Stolberg was divided between a senior

Stolberg-Wernigerode The County of Stolberg-Wernigerode (german: Grafschaft Stolberg-Wernigerode) was a county of the Holy Roman Empire located in the Harz region around Wernigerode, now part of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was ruled by a branch of the House of Stolberg. ...

line and a junior Stolberg-Stolberg line. In 1706, Stolberg-Stolberg divided again, with

Stolberg-Rossla The County of Stolberg-Rossla (german: Grafschaft Stolberg-Roßla) was a county of the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Rossla, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was owned and ruled by a branch of the House of Stolberg from 1341 until 1803. Sto ...

being created. Stolberg-Stolberg was forced to recognize the suzerainty of the

Electorate of Saxony The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony (German: or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356–1806. It was centered around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. In the Golden Bull of 1356, Emperor Charles ...

in 1738. It was awarded to the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (german: Königreich Preußen, ) was a German kingdom that constituted the state of Prussia between 1701 and 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Re ...

in the 1815

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 ...

. The children of ''

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 ...

en'' and ''Erbprinzen'' zu Stolberg-Wernigerode bore the title of Prince s(''Prinz ssin') zu Stolberg-Wernigerode and were styled

Serene Highness His/Her Serene Highness ( abbreviation: HSH, second person address: Your Serene Highness) is a style used today by the reigning families of Liechtenstein, Monaco and Thailand. Over the past 400 years, it has also used as a style for senior members ...

. Other members of this line bore the title of Count ss(''

Graf (feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title of "earl" (whose female version is "coun ...

/Gräfin'') zu Stolberg-Wernigerode, with the style of

Illustrious Highness His/Her Illustrious Highness ( abbreviation: H.Ill.H.) is the usual English-language translation for ''Erlaucht'', a style historically attributed to certain members of the European aristocracy. It is not a literal translation, as the German wor ...

Rulers of Stolberg-Stolberg

Counts of Stolberg-Stolberg

* Christoph Friedrich (1704-1738) * Christoph Ludwig II (1738-1761), son * Karl Ludwig (1761-1815), son, mediatised in 1803 * Joseph (1815-1839), son * Alfred (1839-1903), ''

'' from 1893 on

Princes of Stolberg-Stolberg

* Alfred, 1st Prince 1893-1903 (1820-1903) ** Wolffgang, 2nd Prince 1903 (1849-1903) *** Wolff-Heinrich, 3rd Prince 1903-1972 (1903-1972) **** Jost-Christian, 4th Prince 1972-''present'' (b.1940) ***** Christoph, Hereditary Prince of Stolberg-Stolberg (b.1982) ***** Prince Heinrich-Victor (b.1986)

References

* * {{coord missing, Germany States and territories established in 1548 States and territories established in 1638 States and territories established in 1706 1548 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1631 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1638 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1706 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1631 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1684 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire 1803 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire Former states and territories of Saxony-Anhalt