Duchy of Westphalia

Duchy of Westphalia
*Herzogtum Westfalen* (German)
Duchy of Westphalia Herzogtum Westfalen (German)
1102–1803
	Coat of arms
	The Duchy of Westphalia and other western German states c. 1645
Status	Subordinate to Electorate of Cologne; State of the Holy Roman Empire;
Capital	Feudal monarchy
Historical era	Middle Ages
• Established	1102
• Annexed by Hesse-Darmstadt	1803
Preceded by	Succeeded by
	Duchy of Saxony
County of Lippe
Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt

The Duchy of Westphalia (

secularization

in 1803.

Geography

The duchy roughly comprised the territory of the present-day

Duchy of Cleves-Mark after the Soest Feud

in 1449.

The duchy bordered on the territory of the

Waldeck in the southeast were part of the former stem duchy of Franconia. The Rhenish Duchy of Berg and the Westphalian County of Mark in the west remained an obstacle to a land connection with the Cologne territory on the Lower Rhine

river.

The Westphalian duchy formed the largest part of the Cologne electorate. Apart from the fertile Hellweg Börde north of the Haar hill range, part of the Westphalian Lowland, the ducal lands primarily comprised mountainous and densely forested areas, with some significant metal deposits and brine springs. The Hellweg section connecting the towns of Werl, Erwitte and Geseke was part of an important trade route from Aachen to Goslar.

History

Formerly part of the Saxon stem duchy along with Angria and Eastphalia, the Westphalian lands were Christianized by the Cologne archbishops at the behest of the Frankish ruler Charlemagne upon his conquests in the Saxon Wars. First parishes were established east of the Rhenish estates around Soest, where the archbishops extended their episcopal territory. Numerous monastery foundations, like Grafschaft Abbey in 1072 by Anno II of Cologne, stabilized the ecclesiastical rule.

Creation of the duchy (1102–1180)

In the fierce

Frederick Barbarossa presented the Archbishop of Cologne, Philip of Heinsberg

with these territories and the southwest of the former Duchy of Saxony as the 'Duchy of Westphalia'.

Expansion (1180–1445)

Weser River

became the official border of their spheres of influence. In 1277 the archbishops managed to defeat a large confederation of Westphalian and Lower Rhenish opponents, but further action in 1288 forced the archbishops to abandon intentions on much of the greater territory of Westphalia. The purchase and annexation of Werl-Arnsberg in 1368 united the territories of the north and south of the Sauerland.

Archbishop

Cleves and Marck. The financial burden placed upon the knights and cities of the Duchy of Westphalia led them into union in 1437. Cologne made peace with Cleves in 1441: this led Soest, the richest town of Westphalia, to refuse recognising Colognian supremacy in 1444 in the Soest Feud, that lasted until 1449. Soest had become a part of the Duchy of Cleves. Thereafter the town of Arnsberg

became the administrative capital of Westphalia. Economically the loss of Soest had weakened the duchy. Especially as the surroundings of the town were very fertile and the grain was needed for the mountainous regions in the South. Peace with Marck was made in 1445 which witnessed territorial concessions from both sides.

Westphalia until the end of the Empire (1445–1806)

After the

Waldeck and Hesse

. The Duchy of Westphalia was again confirmed as integral territory of the archbishopric in 1590.

Like most other territories of Germany, Westphalia suffered during the

secularisation of 1803 the Duchy of Westphalia became part of Hesse-Darmstadt

.

After the Empire (1806–1815)

In 1807 the Kingdom of Westphalia was created although it did not include the Duchy and had its capital in Hesse at Kassel. In 1815 the Congress of Vienna awarded the Duchy of Westphalia to Prussia in exchange for important lands west of the Rhine, and the Duchy was incorporated into the Province of Westphalia the same year.

Sources

This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). "Westphalia". Catholic Encyclopedia. New York: Robert Appleton Company.

External links

Map of the Duchy of Westphalia in 1789