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72-683: The Dill is a 55 km (34 mi) long river, flowing through central Hesse in Germany . It is a tributary to the Lahn , joining it on the right bank at the town of Wetzlar . The Dill flows exclusively through the Lahn-Dill-Kreis district in Hesse . The river originates at about 567 m above sea-level north of Haiger -Offdilln on the eastern slope of the Haincher Höhe (heights that reach 606 m), where

144-526: A Hessian-Westphalian stone cist ( hessisch-westfälische Steinkiste ), it is one of the most important megalithic monuments in Central Europe. Dating to c.  3000 BC , it belongs to the Late Neolithic Wartberg culture . An early Celtic presence in what is now Hesse is indicated by a mid-5th-century BC La Tène -style burial uncovered at Glauberg . The region was later settled by

216-467: A considerable degree of home rule . The state is divided into three administrative provinces ( Regierungsbezirke ): Kassel in the north and east, Gießen in the centre, and Darmstadt in the south, the latter being the most populous region with the Frankfurt Rhine-Main agglomeration in its central area. The administrative regions have no legislature of their own, but are executive agencies of

288-597: A means of improving the finances of his principality. William V was succeeded by Landgraves William VI and William VII . Frederick I of Sweden , the next landgrave , became by marriage King of Sweden . Although the Landgraviate was in personal union with Sweden from 1730 to 1751, the King's younger brother, Prince William , ruled in Kassel as regent until he succeeded his brother as William VIII. On Frederick I's death in 1751, he

360-573: A million displaced ethnic Germans . Due to its proximity to the Inner German border , Hesse became an important location of NATO installations in the 1950s, especially military bases of the US V Corps and United States Army Europe . The first elected minister president of Hesse was Christian Stock , followed by Georg-August Zinn (both Social Democrats ). The German Social Democrats gained an absolute majority in 1962 and pursued progressive policies with

432-432: A parliamentary republic since 1918, except during Nazi rule (1933–1945). The German federal system has elements of exclusive federal competences, shared competences, and exclusive competences of the states. Hesse is famous for having a rather brisk style in its politics with the ruling parties being either the center-right Christian Democratic Union (CDU) or the center-left Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD). Due to

504-670: A part of Gudensberg near Fritzlar and less than ten miles from Geismar, was likely an ancient religious center; the basaltic outcrop of Gudensberg is named after Wodan, and a two-meter tall quartzite megalith called the Wotanstein is at the center of the village. By the mid-7th century, the Franks had established themselves as overlords, which is suggested by archeological evidence of burials, and they built fortifications in various places, including Christenberg . By 690, they took direct control over Hessia, apparently to counteract expansion by

576-718: A readily available reserve for other European nations. During the American Revolutionary War , the Kingdom of Great Britain rented thousands of German troops to fight in the Thirteen Colonies , half of whom came from Hesse-Kassel and nearby Hesse-Hanau . Due to this, American colonists in the colonies referred to all German troops serving with the British with the synecdoche " Hessian ". The village of Hessen Cassel, Indiana , near Fort Wayne , founded by German immigrants,

648-536: A spur that offered a commanding view over Fritzlar and the densely-populated heart of Hessia". Following Saxon incursions into Chattish territory in the 7th century, two gaue had been established; a Frankish one, comprising an area around Fritzlar and Kassel , and a Saxonian one. In the 9th century, the Saxon Hessengau also came under the rule of the Franconians. From 962 the land which would become Hesse

720-592: A substantial built environment such as the country's largest airport, contrasting with the more forested, hillier middle and northern thirds of Hesse. The longest rivers in Hesse are the Eder and moreover its distributary the Fulda draining most of the north, the Lahn in the centre-west and, as to those navigable by large vessels, the Main and very broad Rhine in the south. The countryside

792-737: A tight federation of German states established by Prussia in 1867, while also remaining part of the Grand Duchy. In 1871, after France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War , the whole of the Grand Duchy joined the German Empire . Around the turn of the 20th century, Darmstadt was one of the centres of the Jugendstil . Until 1907, the Grand Duchy of Hesse used the Hessian red and white lion barry as its coat-of-arms. The revolution of 1918 following

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864-470: Is a state in Germany . Its capital city is Wiesbaden , and the largest urban area is Frankfurt , which is also the country's principal financial centre . Two other major historic cities are Darmstadt and Kassel . With an area of 21,114.73 square kilometers and a population of over six million, it ranks seventh and fifth, respectively, among the sixteen German states. Frankfurt Rhine-Main , Germany's second-largest metropolitan area (after Rhine-Ruhr ),

936-889: Is hilly and the topographical map, inset, names 14 short, low to medium-height mountain ranges including the Rhön , the Westerwald , the Taunus , the Vogelsberg , the Knüll and the Spessart . The notable range forming the southern taper of Hesse (shared with a narrowing of the Ried, the Rhine's eastern plain) and briefly spanning the middle Neckar valley which begins directly east of Heidelberg (thus also in Baden-Württemberg )

1008-433: Is mainly located in Hesse. As a cultural region , Hesse also includes the area known as Rhenish Hesse (Rheinhessen) in the neighboring state of Rhineland-Palatinate . The German name Hessen , like the names of other German regions ( Schwaben "Swabia", Franken "Franconia", Bayern "Bavaria", Sachsen "Saxony"), derives from the dative plural form of the name of the inhabitants or eponymous tribe ,

1080-615: Is the Odenwald . Forming a mid-eastern tiny projection into mostly Thuringia is the uppermost part of the Ulster , commanding the west valley side of which is the Hessian highest point, Wasserkuppe at 950m above sea level – in the Rhön. The Rhine forms the long southwest border of Hesse. Two notables oxbow lakes , the Stockstadt-Erfelder Altrhein and Lampertheimer Altrhein are in

1152-509: The Chatti . The ancient name Chatti by the 7th century is recorded as Chassi , and from the 8th century as Hassi or Hessi . An inhabitant of Hesse is called a "Hessian" (German: Hesse (masculine), plural Hessen , or Hessin (feminine), plural Hessinnen ). The American English term "Hessian" for 18th-century British auxiliary troops originates with Landgrave Frederick II of Hesse-Kassel hiring out regular army units to

1224-672: The Chatti . However, he was rebuffed by the Great Powers, who listed him as a "Royal Highness" along with the other grand dukes. To secure his pre-eminence over his cousin, the Grand Duke of Hesse in the former Hesse-Darmstadt, William chose to keep his title of Prince-Elector. The rulers of the Electorate of Hesse became the only Prince-Electors in the German Confederation , even though there

1296-620: The Duchy of Westphalia from Cologne , the parts of Worms on the right-bank of the Rhine, and the former Free City of Friedberg . Nassau-Weilburg gained the right-bank territories of Trier among other territories. Orange-Nassau gained the Prince-Bishopric of Fulda (as the Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda ). The Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel was also elevated to the status of Prince-Elector ( Kurfürst ), with his state thereby becoming

1368-630: The Electorate of Hesse or Electoral Hesse (German: Kurhessen , Kur being the German-language term for the Empire's College of Electors ). In July 1806 Hesse-Darmstadt, Nassau-Weilburg, Nassau-Usingen , and the newly merged Principality of Isenburg became founding members of Napoleon 's Confederation of the Rhine . Hesse-Darmstadt expanded further in the resulting mediatisation, absorbing numerous small states (including Hesse-Homburg and much of

1440-650: The French Empire as Pays réservé de Catzenellenbogen  [ de ] . The rest of its territory was annexed to the Kingdom of Westphalia in 1807; Hesse-Hanau (a secundogeniture of Hesse-Kassel) was annexed to the Grand Duchy of Frankfurt in 1810 along with the other territories held by the Prince-primate: Frankfurt, Fulda, Aschaffenburg and Wetzlar . As a result of the German campaign of 1813

1512-685: The Germanic Chatti tribe around the 1st century BC, and the name Hesse is a continuation of that tribal name. The ancient Romans had a military camp in Dorlar, and in Waldgirmes directly on the eastern outskirts of Wetzlar was a civil settlement under construction. Presumably, the provincial government for the occupied territories of the right bank of Germania was planned at this location. The governor of Germania, at least temporarily, likely had resided here. The settlement appears to have been abandoned by

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1584-823: The Irish Rebellion of 1798 . For further revenue, the soldiers were loaned to other places as well. Most were conscripted, with their pay going to the Landgrave. In 1789 the French Revolution began and in 1794, during the War of the First Coalition , the French Republic occupied the Left Bank of the Rhine , including part of Lower Katzenelnbogen ( Niedergrafschaft Katzenelnbogen  [ de ] , Hesse-Kassel's part of

1656-708: The War of the First Coalition , against the First French Republic. In 1801, they would cede territories on the west bank of the Rhine to France. Following the reorganization of the German states during the German mediatisation of 1803, the Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel gained land and was raised to the Electorate of Hesse and Landgrave William IX was elevated to Imperial Elector , taking the title William I, Elector of Hesse . The principality thus became known as Kurhessen (aka Kurfürstentum Hessen ), although still usually referred to as Hesse-Kassel. In 1806, William I

1728-553: The north and Limburg an der Lahn in the west. All of the "on the river" suffixes are locally and, informally far beyond, omitted of these cities. The plain between the rivers Main, Rhine, and lower Neckar, and the Odenwald ridge of low mountains or very high hills is called the Ried which continues to north, across the Main, as the Wetterau. Both plains which are quite densely populated also have

1800-590: The 1866 Austro-Prussian War the states of the region allied with Austria were defeated during the Campaign of the Main . Following Prussia's victory and dissolution of the German Confederation, Prussia annexed Electoral Hesse, Frankfurt, Hesse-Homburg, Nassau and small parts of Bavaria and the Grand Duchy of Hesse, which were then combined into the Province of Hesse-Nassau . The name Kurhessen survived, denoting

1872-540: The 1960s to 1990s developed into one of the major cities of West Germany. As of 2016, 12% of the total population of Hesse lived in the city of Frankfurt. The only state to straddle west and central portions of Germany where the eight ordinal directions (compass points) and the centre is considered, Hesse borders six other states. These are, from north, clockwise: Lower Saxony , Thuringia , Bavaria , Baden-Württemberg , Rhineland-Palatinate , and North Rhine-Westphalia . The most populous towns and cities of Hesse are in

1944-630: The 1st century on. Geismar was a particular focus of such activity; it was continuously occupied from the Roman period on, with a settlement from the Roman period, which itself had a predecessor from the 5th century BC. Excavations have produced a horse burial and bronze artifacts. A possible religious cult may have centered on a natural spring in Geismar, called Heilgenbron ; the name "Geismar" (possibly "energetic pool") itself may be derived from that spring. The village of Maden, Gudensberg  [ de ] , now

2016-647: The German defeat in WWI transformed Hesse-Darmstadt from a monarchy to a republic, which officially renamed itself the People's State of Hesse ( Volksstaat Hessen ). The state parliament, or Landtag consisted of 70 deputies elected on the basis of proportional representation . There were six Landtag elections between 1919 and 1932. Following the Nazi seizure of power in Berlin, the Landtag

2088-469: The Grand Duchy's Upper Hesse, was transferred to Hesse-Nassau. The former Hessian exclave of Rinteln ( Kreis Rinteln  [ de ] , the Hessian part of the former County of Schaumburg ) was also detached and transferred to the Province of Hanover . On 1 July 1944 the Prussian Province of Hesse-Nassau was formally divided into the provinces of Kurhessen and Nassau . At the same time

2160-561: The Hessian electoral laws, the biggest party normally needs a smaller coalition partner. Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel During the Napoleonic reorganisation of the Empire in 1803, the Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel was elevated to an Electorate and Landgrave William IX became an Imperial Elector . Many members of the House of Hesse -Kassel served in the Danish military gaining high ranks and power in

2232-509: The Hessians ( Hessen , singular Hesse ). The geographical name represents a short equivalent of the older compound name Hessenland ("land of the Hessians"). The Old High German form of the name is recorded as Hessun (dative plural of Hessi ); in Middle Latin it appears as Hassonia , Hassia , Hessia . The name of the Hessians ultimately continues the tribal name of

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2304-643: The Kingdom of Westphalia and the Grand Duchy of Frankfurt were dissolved and Hesse-Kassel and Hesse-Hanau were restored; Orange-Nassau was also restored in its territories previously lost to Berg. As a result of the 1815 Congress of Vienna Hesse-Kassel gained Fulda (roughly the western third of the former Prince-Bishopric, the rest of which went to Bavaria and Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach ) from Frankfurt and part of Isenburg, while several of its small northern exclaves were absorbed into Hanover , some small eastern areas were ceded to Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach and Lower Katzenelnbogen

2376-531: The People's State of Hesse and most of what had been the Prussian Provinces of Kurhessen and Nassau. The French incorporated their parts of Hesse (Rhenish Hesse) and Nassau (as Regierungsbezirk Montabaur ) into the newly founded state of Rhineland-Palatinate ( Rheinland-Pfalz ) on 30 August 1946. On 4 December 1946, Greater Hesse was officially renamed Hessen . Hesse in the 1940s received more than

2448-750: The Romans after the devastating Battle of the Teutoburg Forest failed in the year AD 9. The Chatti were also involved in the Revolt of the Batavi in AD 69. Hessia, from the early 7th century on, served as a buffer between areas dominated by the Saxons (to the north) and the Franks , who brought the area to the south under their control in the early sixth century and occupied Thuringia (to

2520-517: The Saxons, who built fortifications in Gaulskopf and Eresburg across the river Diemel, the northern boundary of Hessia. The Büraburg (which already had a Frankish settlement in the sixth century ) was one of the places the Franks fortified to resist the Saxon pressure, and according to John-Henry Clay, the Büraburg was "probably the largest man-made construction seen in Hessia for at least seven hundred years". Walls and trenches totaling one kilometer in length were made, and they enclosed "8 hectares of

2592-444: The State of Hesse since 1946 due to divisions in the aftermath of World War II. This province is now part of the State of Rhineland-Palatinate . It is a hilly countryside largely devoted to vineyards; therefore, it is also called the "land of the thousand hills". Its larger towns include Mainz , Worms , Bingen , Alzey , Nieder-Olm , and Ingelheim . Many inhabitants commute to work in Mainz, Wiesbaden, or Frankfurt. Hesse has been

2664-410: The aid of another ruler. Hesse-Kassel took the practice to an extreme, maintaining 5.3% to 7.3% of its population under arms in peacetime in its history, however was known to double that in times of war. This was a higher proportion than even Prussia , a country that was so heavily militarized that it was described as "not a country with an army, but an army with a country". The Hessian army served as

2736-501: The also previously existing Hesse-Marburg . As the latter two lines died out quite quickly (1583 and 1605, respectively), Hesse-Kassel and Hesse-Darmstadt were the two core states within the Hessian lands. Several collateral lines split off during the centuries, such as in 1622, when Hesse-Homburg split off from Hesse-Darmstadt, and in 1760 when Hesse-Hanau split off from Hesse-Kassel. In the late 16th century, Kassel adopted Calvinism , while Darmstadt remained Lutheran and consequently

2808-463: The areas which were part of the People's State of Hesse). After World War II , the Hessian territory west of the Rhine was again occupied by France , while the rest of the region was part of the US occupation zone . On 17 September 1945 the Wanfried agreement adjusted the border between American-occupied Kurhessen and Soviet-occupied Thuringia. The United States proclaimed the state of Greater Hesse ( Groß-Hessen ) on 19 September 1945, out of

2880-544: The east) in 531. Hessia occupies the northwestern part of the modern German state of Hesse; its borders were not clearly delineated. Its geographic center is Fritzlar ; it extends in the southeast to Hersfeld on the river Fulda, in the north to past Kassel and up to the rivers Diemel and Weser. To the west, it occupies the valleys of the rivers Eder and Lahn (the latter until it turns south). It measured roughly 90 kilometers north–south, and 80 north-west. The area around Fritzlar shows evidence of significant pagan belief from

2952-412: The economy, and a militaristic approach toward diplomacy. He funded the depleted treasury of the poor government by loaning 19,000 soldiers in complete military formations to Great Britain to fight in North America during the American Revolutionary War , 1776–1783. These soldiers, commonly known as Hessians , fought under the British flag. The British used the Hessians in several conflicts, including in

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3024-471: The former County of Katzenelnbogen which was held by the appanage Hesse-Rotenburg ). Emperor Francis II formally recognised the annexation of the Left Bank in the 1801 Treaty of Lunéville . This led in 1803 to the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss , a substantial reorganisation ( mediatisation ) of the states and territories of the Empire. Several exclaves of Mainz were mediatised to Hesse-Kassel and Hesse-Darmstadt , and Hesse-Darmstadt also gained

3096-442: The former Hessian Schmalkalden exclaves ( Landkreis Herrschaft Schmalkalden  [ de ] ), together with the Regierungsbezirk Erfurt  [ de ] of the Province of Saxony , were transferred to Thuringia . The territories of the new provinces did not directly correspond with their pre-1866 namesakes but rather with the associated NSDAP Gaue : Gau Electoral Hesse and Gau Hesse-Nassau (excluding

3168-437: The future. However, her health was ruined by the stresses of the war, and she died in 1651. William VI , who came of age in 1650, was an enlightened patron of learning and the arts. He was succeeded by his son William VII, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel , then an infant, who died in 1670. He was succeeded by his brother Charles I . Charles' chief claim to fame is that he hired out his soldiers to foreign powers as auxiliaries, as

3240-427: The government of Great Britain to fight in the American Revolutionary War . The English form Hesse was in common use by the 18th century, first in the hyphenated names of the states of Hesse-Cassel and Hesse-Darmstadt , but the latinate form Hessia remained in common English usage well into the 19th century. The European Commission uses the German form Hessen , even in English-language contexts, due to

3312-465: The interests of Hesse-Kassel. After expelling Imperial troops from Hesse-Kassel, she sent troops to take the city of Marburg , which her father-in-law had lost to their Hesse-Darmstadt relatives. At the Peace of Westphalia in 1648, Hesse-Kassel was further rewarded with most of the County of Schaumburg and the newly secularized Hersfeld Abbey . Amalie Elisabeth also introduced the rule of primogeniture to prevent Hesse-Kassel from being divided again in

3384-424: The mountain ranges Rothaargebirge and Westerwald meet. During its course, roughly from north to south, the Dill passes the towns of Haiger , Dillenburg , Herborn , Aßlar , and finally empties into the Lahn at Wetzlar . Many places on the banks of the river draw their names from it. On the river's upper reaches these are Offdilln, Dillbrecht, Fellerdilln, Dillenburg, and further downstream Dillheim. Dillenburg

3456-504: The new Landgraviate of Hesse , which remained with the Ludovingians . From that point on the Ludovingian coat of arms came to represent both Thuringia and Hesse. It rose to prominence under Landgrave Philip the Magnanimous , who was one of the leaders of German Protestantism . After Philip's death in 1567, the territory was divided among his four sons from his first marriage (Philip was a bigamist ) into four lines: Hesse-Kassel (or Hesse-Cassel), Hesse-Darmstadt , Hesse-Rheinfels , and

3528-426: The policy of leaving regional names untranslated. The synthetic element hassium , number 108 on the periodic table , was named after the state of Hesse in 1997, following a proposal of 1992. The territory of Hesse was delineated only in 1945, as Greater Hesse , under American occupation . It corresponds loosely to the medieval Landgraviate of Hesse . In the 19th century, prior to the unification of Germany ,

3600-416: The presence of Pleistocene hunters about 13,000 years ago. A fossil hominid skull that was found in northern Hesse, just outside the village of Rhünda, has been dated at 12,000 years ago. The Züschen tomb (German: Steinkammergrab von Züschen, sometimes also Lohne-Züschen) is a prehistoric burial monument, located between Lohne and Züschen , near Fritzlar , Hesse, Germany. Classified as a gallery grave or

3672-418: The realm because many Landgraves were married to Danish princesses. Members of the family who are known to have served Denmark-Norway include Prince Frederik of Hesse -Kassel, Prince Frederick of Hesse-Kassel , and Prince Charles of Hesse-Kassel . It had two votes to the Reichstag : one for itself and one for Hersfeld Abbey . In 1801, Hesse was forced to cede land to Revolutionary France , but in 1803 it

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3744-445: The region around Kassel. The Grand Duchy of Hesse retained its autonomy in defeat because a greater part of the country was situated south of the river Main and it was feared that Prussian expansion beyond the Main might provoke France. However, Upper Hesse (German: Oberhessen : the parts of Hesse-Darmstadt north of the Main around the town of Gießen ) was incorporated into the North German Confederation ( Norddeutscher Bund ),

3816-412: The remainder of its territory was merged with that of Nassau-Usingen and Nassau-Weilburg in August 1806 to form the Duchy of Nassau . Waldeck also joined the Confederation in 1807. The Holy Roman Empire was dissolved in August 1806 , rendering Hesse-Kassel's electoral privilege meaningless. Hesse-Kassel was occupied by the French in October 1806 and the remainder of Lower Katzenelnbogen was annexed to

3888-465: The so-called Großer Hessenplan . The CDU gained a relative majority in the 1974 elections, but the Social Democrats continued to govern in a coalition with the FDP . Hesse was first governed by the CDU under Walter Wallmann during 1987–1991, replaced by a SPD-Greens coalition under Hans Eichel during 1991–1999. From 1999, Hesse was governed by the CDU under Roland Koch (retired 2010) and Volker Bouffier (incumbent as of 2020). Frankfurt during

3960-413: The south-west fringe. Hesse, 42% forest, is by that measure the greenest state in Germany. Hesse is a unitary state governed directly by the Hessian government in the capital city Wiesbaden, partially through regional vicarious authorities called Regierungspräsidien . Municipal parliaments are, however, elected independently from the state government by the Hessian people. Local municipalities enjoy

4032-424: The southwest, the Frankfurt Rhein-Main Region namely Frankfurt am Main , Wiesbaden , Darmstadt , Offenbach , Hanau , Giessen , Wetzlar , and Rüsselsheim am Main . Outside, but very near the south-west corner of Hesse are four populous, highly technologised, places: Worms , Ludwigshafen , Mannheim , and Heidelberg . Other large Hessian towns are Fulda in the east , Kassel and Marburg an der Lahn in

4104-419: The state government. [REDACTED] Hesse is divided into 21 districts (Kreise) and five independent cities, each with their own local governments. They are, shown with abbreviations as used on vehicle number plates: Independent cities: The term "Rhenish Hesse" ( German : Rheinhessen ) refers to the part of the former Grand Duchy of Hesse-Darmstadt located west of the Rhine . It has not been part of

4176-431: The terms of the Versailles peace treaty that officially ended World War I in 1919. The Kingdom of Prussia became the Free State of Prussia , of which Hesse-Nassau remained a province. In 1929 the Free State of Waldeck was dissolved and incorporated into Hesse-Nassau. In 1932 Wetzlar ( Landkreis Wetzlar  [ de ] ), formerly an exclave of the Prussian Rhine Province situated between Hesse-Nassau and

4248-454: The territory of the Houses of Solms  [ de ] , Erbach  [ de ] and Sayn-Wittgenstein ). It was also elevated by Napoleon to the status of Grand Duchy , becoming the Grand Duchy of Hesse . Orange-Nassau, which refused to join the Confederation, lost Siegen , Dillenburg , Hadamar and Beilstein to Berg and Fulda to the Prince-Primate of the Confederation (and former Elector of Mainz) Karl Theodor von Dalberg ;

4320-427: The territory of what is now Hesse comprised the territories of Grand Duchy of Hesse (also known as Hesse-Darmstadt), the Duchy of Nassau , the free city of Frankfurt , the Electorate of Hesse (also known as Hesse-Kassel), the Principality of Waldeck and the Landgraviate of Hesse-Homburg . The Central Hessian region was inhabited in the Upper Paleolithic . Finds of tools in southern Hesse in Rüsselsheim suggest

4392-903: The territory, with Kassel as his capital. Hesse-Kassel expanded in 1604 when Maurice, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel inherited the Landgraviate of Hesse-Marburg from his childless uncle, Louis IV, Landgrave of Hesse-Marburg (1537–1604). In 1605, Maurice became Calvinist . When the Thirty Years' War began, on the Protestant side. After being forced to cede some of his territories to Hesse-Darmstadt , Maurice abdicated in 1627 in favour of his son William V . His younger sons received appanages , which created several cadet lines in yet another partition of Hesse . William V allied himself with Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden and then France , losing most of Hesse-Kassel when Imperial troops invaded. He died in exile in 1637, leaving his widow Amalie Elisabeth of Hanau-Münzenberg to act as regent for their eight-year-old son William VI . Amalie Elisabeth vigorously advanced

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4464-450: The two lines often found themselves on opposing sides of conflicts, most notably in the disputes over Hesse-Marburg and in the Thirty Years' War , when Darmstadt fought on the side of the Emperor, while Kassel sided with Sweden and France . The Landgrave Frederick II (1720–1785) ruled Hesse-Kassel as a benevolent despot, from 1760 to 1785. He combined Enlightenment ideas with Christian values, cameralist plans for central control of

4536-408: Was ceded to Nassau. Hesse-Darmstadt lost the Duchy of Westphalia and the Sayn-Wittgensteiner lands to the Prussian Province of Westphalia but gained territory on the left bank of the Rhine centred on Mainz, which became known as Rhenish Hesse ( Rheinhessen ), and the remainder of Isenburg. Orange-Nassau, whose ruler was now also King William I of the Netherlands and Grand Duke of Luxembourg,

4608-423: Was ceded to Prussia but most of its territory aside from Siegen was then ceded on to Nassau. Hesse-Homburg and the Free City of Frankfurt were also restored. While the other former Electors had gained other titles, becoming either Kings or Grand Dukes , the Elector of Hesse-Kassel alone retained the anachronistic title of Prince-Elector; a request to be recognised as "King of the Chatti " ( König der Katten )

4680-401: Was compensated with land around the former Electorate of Mainz and was elevated to the status of Electorate as the Electorate of Hesse , officially ending the Landgraviate. The Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel was founded by William IV the Wise, the eldest son of Philip I . On his father's death in 1567, the Landgraviate of Hesse was divided into four parts. William IV received about half of

4752-463: Was dispossessed by Napoleon Bonaparte for his support of the Kingdom of Prussia in the War of the Fourth Coalition . Kassel was designated as the capital of a new Kingdom of Westphalia , where Napoleon appointed his brother Jérôme Bonaparte as king. Following Napoleon's defeat in 1813, the elector was restored. At the Congress of Vienna , a number of Napoleonic electorates were elevated to kingdoms, and William tried to secure recognition as King of

4824-421: Was formally abolished as a result of the " Law on the Reconstruction of the Reich " of 30 January 1934, which replaced the German federal system with a unitary state . The parts of Hesse-Darmstadt on the left bank of the Rhine (Rhenish Hesse), as well as those right-bank areas of Hesse-Darmstadt and Hesse-Nassau within 30 km (19 mi) of Koblenz or Mainz were occupied by French troops until 1930 under

4896-491: Was no longer a Holy Roman Emperor for them to elect. The Landgraves of Hesse-Kassel were famous for renting out their army to other European nations during the 17th and 18th centuries. It was a widespread practice at the time for small countries to rent out troops to larger countries in exchange for subsidies. International jurists drew a distinction between mercenaries and auxiliaries. Mercenaries served in foreign armies as individuals, while auxiliaries were sent by their ruler to

4968-434: Was part of the Holy Roman Empire . In the 10th and 11th centuries it was mostly encompassed by the Western or Rhenish part of the stem duchy of Franconia . In the 12th century, Hessengau passed to the Landgraviate of Thuringia . As a result of the War of the Thuringian Succession (1247–1264) the former Thuringian lands were partitioned between the Wettin Margraviate of Meissen , which gained Thuringia proper, and

5040-426: Was rejected by the Congress. Following mediation, the Congress of Vienna had significantly fewer states remained in the region that is now Hesse: the Hessian states, Nassau, Waldeck and Frankfurt. The Kingdoms of Prussia and Bavaria also held some territory in the region. The Congress established the German Confederation , of which they all became members. Hesse-Hanau was (re-)absorbed into Hesse-Kassel in 1821. In

5112-399: Was succeeded by his brother William VIII , who fought as an ally of Kingdom of Great Britain during the Seven Years' War . His successor, Frederick II , converted to Catholicism after a long line of Protestant Landgraves. When the American Revolutionary War broke out, Frederick II leased Hessian troops to Great Britain for service in America. Hesse fought on the side of Coalition in

5184-526: Was the seat of the former Dillkreis district and residence town of the House of Orange-Nassau . Going downstream, the Dill's largest tributaries are: Roßbach, Haigerbach, Aubach , Donsbach, Dietzhölze , Nanzenbach, Schelde , Aar , Ambach, Rehbach, Lemp , and Blasbach. Hesse Hesse or Hessia ( German : Hessen [ˈhɛsn̩] ), officially the State of Hesse (German: Land Hessen ),

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