Kurheinischer Reichskreis

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The Kurheinische Reichskreis at the beginning of the 16th century.
Map of the Kurrheinische Reichskreis von Reilly , after Büsching, 1787
Map of the four Rhenish electorates by Johann Baptist Homann (1720)

The Kurrheinische Reichskreis was one of the ten imperial circles that were formed in the course of the imperial reform of Emperor Maximilian I in order to counteract the fragmentation of the empire .

Origin and tasks

As early as the 14th century, the electors and archbishops of Cologne , Mainz and Trier and the elector and count palatine of the Rhine often acted together. The Kurrheinische Reichskreis, founded by Maximilian I in 1502, was able to build on this and the various Kurvereine . Like the rest of the Reichskreis, the Kurheinische Reichskreis regulated the collection of the imperial tax and in case of war the position of a contingent in the imperial army . Above all, it served to preserve the Eternal Peace , proclaimed in 1495 , by enforcing the judgments of the Imperial Court of Justice.

Territory and membership structure

Overall, the composition was somewhat special, because membership was only based on the geographical location and primarily on the quality of the class, as a union of the electors. The imperial circle also included the neighboring electoral states , some of which were in Westphalia ( Vest Recklinghausen , Duchy of Westphalia ) or in central Germany (such as the Mainz possessions around Erfurt and Eichsfeld ). As a result, too, the area was severely fragmented and partly lay within other imperial circles. In the Rhineland the area extended from northern Alsace to the Lower Rhine . The area stretched along the Moselle from the border with Lorraine to the mouth. It was also from the mouth to the middle reaches of the Main .

In addition to the Rhenish electoral principalities, the imperial circle also included a few mostly smaller Rhenish territories. The Ballei of the German Order in Koblenz was without any significant territory . Another peculiarity was that the Counts of Thurn und Taxis , because they had lent considerable sums of money to the emperor, personally became members of the imperial circle. The small territories did not have any significant significance for district politics. Some of the small members lost their affiliation over time. This applies to Salm-Reifferscheid , the Selz provost , the pledged imperial city of Gelnhausen , the imperial abbey of St. Maximin in Trier. Some areas remained disputed between different imperial circles. This included the Upper Palatinate or the Duchy of Arenberg . In total, the number of stands had fallen to seven or, with restrictions for Nieder-Isenburg, 8 members. This was less than in most other imperial circles.

Structures

The Archbishop of Mainz acted as the district prince and district director. He also issued the district provisions. The unification of both offices in one hand was unusual, but resulted from the prominent position of the Archbishop of Mainz as Imperial Chancellor . The district chancellery and the district archive were also located in Mainz. Kreisobrist was the secular elector of the Palatinate. This was highly problematic with the religious division, as the district troops were under the command of a Protestant prince.

At first, the district meetings took place in different places. Ultimately, the Dominican monastery in Frankfurt became a regular conference venue. One reason for the conference on the territory of the Upper Rhine Reichskreis was the close cooperation between the two groups. Among other things, the Elector of Mainz was often also Bishop of Worms in personal union and the Elector of the Palatinate, as Duke of Simmern, was also a member of the Upper Rhine district. The district treasury was also located in Frankfurt. The district cashier came from the local merchant community or was a local banker since 1681.

The central consultation points at the district assemblies were specified by the invitation to tender by the Elector of Mainz. In contrast to most other imperial circles, there was no subdivision into banks, for example the ecclesiastical or secular princes. Rather, people gathered at a round table. Nevertheless, there was a clear hierarchy. There was a fixed sequence for the votes at the district assemblies: Kurtrier began, Kurköln and the Electoral Palatinate followed, then the smaller stands followed and Kurmainz received the final and decisive vote. The large imperial estates were represented by deputies at the district assemblies, while the smaller estates had their interests represented by one of the electoral envoys. The small estates did not have a full vote, but were only able to lodge relatively ineffective protests in case of doubt. Ultimately, only the electoral votes counted. A majority was achieved with three electors.

After the Electoral Palatinate passed over to the Palatinate-Neuburg family , this area was also ruled by Catholicism. Overall, the Reichskreis was predominantly Catholic in the 18th century and comprised around 1 million inhabitants. The Catholics made up a share of 79%.

history

The Kurrheinische Reichskreis mostly fulfilled its obligations regarding the troop position for the district troops, especially after the decree of the Reich Execution Ordinance of 1555.

The denominational division had a disadvantageous effect. The Palatinate was Protestant from 1556 to 1685, while the other three electoral principalities remained Catholic. This made joint action difficult, especially in the run-up to and during the Thirty Years' War . The district assemblies were interrupted during the Thirty Years' War and only resumed in 1679. After that it met annually almost every year.

As already indicated, the Kur- and Upper Rhine districts worked closely together in many areas. This applied to coinage, economic and customs policy. But this also applied to imperial and external politics. In 1651 there was the first official association between the two circles. Since the time of Louis XVI. the circle belonged to the amalgamation of the front imperial circles to defend against French expansion efforts.

In fact, after the French occupation and the official annexation in 1801, the Reichskreis ceased to exist on the left bank of the Rhine.

structure

The circle, which was created at the Reichstag of Cologne in 1512 and lasted until 1803, mainly comprised the four Rhenish electorates :

Furthermore the territories:

Also represented at the district assemblies since 1704 and 1724:

The following important information is missing from this article or section:
In the article, further aspects of the Imperial Circle must be presented, see Wikipedia: WikiProjekt early modern times / Imperial circles
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literature

  • Winfried Dotzauer: The German imperial circles in the constitution of the old empire and their own life. 1500-1806 . Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, Darmstadt 1989, ISBN 3-534-04139-9 , pp. 285ff.
  • Winfried Dotzauer: The German imperial circles (1383-1806): history and file edition. Stuttgart 1998 (partially digitized)
  • Michael Müller: The development of the Kurrheinische Kreis in its connection with the Upper Rhine District in the 18th century. Lang, Frankfurt am Main 2008, ISBN 978-3-631-58222-0
  • Peter Claus Hartmann: Regions in the early modern period: The Kurrheinische and the Upper Rhine Reichskreis. In. Michael Matheus (Ed.): Regions and Federalism. 50 years of Rhineland-Palatinate. Stuttgart 1997, pp. 31-48.

Web links

Wikisource: Topographia Colonia et al.  - Sources and full texts
Wikisource: Print from 1532 and digitization of a directory of the imperial districts and the associated territories with details of the troops to be deployed for Turkish aid  - sources and full texts

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Martin Dallmeier, Martha Schad: The Princely House of Thurn and Taxis, 300 years of history in pictures . Friedrich Pustet, Regensburg 1996, ISBN 3-7917-1492-9 , p. 17.
  2. ↑ Cf. Gerhard Köbler : Historical Lexicon of the German Lands. The German territories from the Middle Ages to the present . 7th, completely revised edition. Beck, Munich 2007, ISBN 978-3-406-54986-1 . P. 712. (partially digitized)
  3. ↑ Review: Max Plassmann in: Sehepunkte. Review journal for the historical sciences, issue 9 (2009)