Duchy of Oldenburg

Coordinates: 53°8′38″N 8°12′50″E / 53.14389°N 8.21389°E / 53.14389; 8.21389
Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Duchy of Oldenburg
Herzogtum Oldenburg (German)
1774–1810
William
(last duke before French annexation)
History 
• Created on breakup of Saxony
1091
• Raised to duchy
1774
• Annexed by France
1810
• Re-established as a grand duchy
1815
Preceded by
Succeeded by
County of Oldenburg
First French Empire
Grand Duchy of Oldenburg
Today part ofGermany

The Duchy of Oldenburg (German: Herzogtum Oldenburg), named for its capital, the town of Oldenburg, was a state in the north-west of present-day Germany. The counts of Oldenburg died out in 1667, after which it became a duchy until 1810, when it was annexed by the First French Empire. It was located near the mouth of the River Weser.

When the main lineage of the

Rulers of Oldenburg
were his descendants.

Its ruling family, the House of Oldenburg, also came to rule in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Greece and Russia.[1] The heir of a junior line of the Greek branch, through Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, hold the thrones of the United Kingdom and the other Commonwealth realms after the passing of Queen Elizabeth II.

History

The first known count of Oldenburg was

Frederick I dismembered the Saxon duchy in 1180. At this time, the county of Delmenhorst formed part of the dominions of the counts of Oldenburg, but afterwards it was on several occasions separated from them to form an appanage for younger branches of the family. This was the case between 1262 and 1447, between 1463 and 1547, and between 1577 and 1617.[1]

During the early part of the 13th century, the counts carried on a series of wars with independent, or semi-independent, Frisian princes to the north and west of the county, which resulted in a gradual expansion of the Oldenburgian territory. The Free Hanseatic City of Bremen and the bishop of Münster were also frequently at war with the counts of Oldenburg.[1]

In 1440, Christian succeeded his father

exclave. The control over the town was left to the king's brothers, who established a short reign of tyranny.[1]

In 1450, Christian became

County of Holstein, an event of high importance for the future history of Oldenburg. In 1454, he handed over Oldenburg to his brother Gerhard (about 1430–99), a wild prince, who was constantly at war with the prince-bishop of Bremen and other neighbors. In 1483, Gerhard was compelled to abdicate in favor of his sons, and he died while on pilgrimage in Spain.[1]

Early in the 16th century, Oldenburg was again enlarged at the expense of the Frisians.

Christopher (about 1506–60), won some reputation as a soldier.[1]

Anthony's grandson,

Kniphausen and Varel to his lands, with which in 1647 Delmenhorst was finally united. By his neutrality during the Thirty Years' War and by donating valuable horses to the warlord, the Count of Tilly, Anthony Günther secured for his dominions an immunity from the terrible devastation to which nearly all the other states of Germany were exposed. He also obtained from the emperor the right to levy tolls on vessels passing along the Weser, a lucrative grant which soon formed a material addition to his resources. In 1607 he erected a schloss in the Renaissance architectural style.[1]
After the death of Anthony Günther, Oldenburg fell again under Danish authority.

Under the 1773

William, who succeeded his father in 1785, was a man of weak intellect, and his cousin Peter, Administrator of the Prince-Bishopric of Lübeck, acted as regent and eventually, in 1823, inherited the throne, holding the Prince-Bishopric of Lübeck and Oldenburg in personal union
.

By the

German Mediatisation of 1803, Oldenburg acquired the Oldenburg Münsterland and the Prince-Bishopric of Lübeck. Between 1810 and 1814, Oldenburg was occupied by Napoleonic France. Its annexation into the French Empire, in 1810, was one of the causes for the diplomatic rift between former allies France and Russia
, a dispute that would lead to war in 1812 and eventually to Napoleon's downfall.

Jewish history

The oldest documentation of

Holocaust, though some survived and returned after the war.[3]

The duchy was the last part of

Aftermath

In 1815, the Duchy acquired the Principality of Birkenfeld and became a grand duchy.[1] In 1871, Oldenburg joined the German Empire,[1] and in 1918, it became a free state within the Weimar Republic.

In 1937 (with the

Baltic coast and Birkenfeld in southwestern Germany to Prussia and gained the City of Wilhelmshaven. However, this was a formality, as the Hitler régime had de facto abolished the federal states in 1934. By the beginning of World War II
in 1939, as a result of these territorial changes, Oldenburg had an area of 5,375 square kilometres (2,075 sq mi) and 580,000 inhabitants.

In 1946, after World War II, Oldenburg merged into the newly founded state of Lower Saxony and formed, territorially unchanged, the administrative region (Verwaltungsbezirk) of Oldenburg. The Region and State both became a part of West Germany in 1949. The administrative region was abolished in 1978 and merged with neighbouring governorates (Regierungsbezirke) into the new region of Weser-Ems, which was dissolved in 2004.

Notes

  1. ^ a b c d e f g h i Chisholm 1911, pp. 72.
  2. ^ The presence of Jews in Oldenburg during the Middle Ages is proved by a very old bronze seal-ring, found in the immediate neighborhood, on which are depicted two swimming frogs together with the words: "Reuben, the son of R. Jeremiah—may his memory be blessed
  3. ^ a b Public Domain Deutsch, Gotthard; Lewinsky, Abraham (1905). "Oldenburg". In Singer, Isidore; et al. (eds.). The Jewish Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. New York: Funk & Wagnalls. p. 393.
  4. ^ From a document of the knight Leborius of Bremen
  5. ^ "Oldenburg". Jewish Virtual Library. Retrieved 8 June 2020.
  6. ^ Lars Menk: A Dictionary of German-Jewish Surnames. Avotaynu, Bergenfield, 2005. pp. 3–4

References

53°8′38″N 8°12′50″E / 53.14389°N 8.21389°E / 53.14389; 8.21389