Thuringian states

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Data in 1910
Surface: 12,325 km²
Residents : 1,585,356
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Thuringian states

The following German member states of the German Empire are referred to as Thuringian states :

territory

These countries bordered Prussian areas in the north and west , in particular the Erfurt administrative region , the Kassel administrative region and the Merseburg administrative region . There were also extensive Prussian exclaves in the mix with the Thuringian states: the Schleusingen district with the city of Suhl , the district of Herrschaft Schmalkalden with Barchfeld , the area around Wandersleben and Mühlberg , the district of Ziegenrück with the town of Ranis and, belonging to the district of Ziegenrück, but separated from it, the communities of Kamsdorf , Blankenberg , Sparnberg , Blintendorf and Gefell . Other Prussian exclaves were the villages of Abtlöbnitz (with Mollschütz) near Camburg and Kischlitz near Eisenberg .

In the east, Saxony was the neighboring state, which also had various exclaves on Thuringian territory. This included above all the Ziegenhierdsche Ländchen near Gera, consisting of several exclaves, with the communities and fields Lengefeld , Liebschwitz , Lietzsch , Niebra , Pösneck and Taubenpreskel as well as the neighboring communities Hilbersdorf , Loitzsch , Rückersdorf , Thonhausen and Grobsdorf . The communities of Bocka bei Altenburg and Kauritz bei Gößnitz should also be mentioned .

The Thuringian states were an example of the small German states and the territorial fragmentation inherited from the old Reich . At the beginning of the 20th century, there were eight small states, Prussian areas in several administrative districts and a few small Saxon exclaves on the area of ​​today's Free State of Thuringia . This was particularly exacerbated by the fact that the small state areas did not form closed territories, but were in a confusing conglomeration. An exchange of territory came about in 1913 between Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach and Sachsen-Meiningen . The Meiningische village Lichtenhain , which lies in front of Jena , was exchanged for areas of Kranichfeld , which belonged to Weimar. In principle, it does not make much sense: the borders were cleaned up in Kranichfeld, but the Meiningische Exclave Kranichfeld was not removed, but enlarged. Obviously, Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach did not want to offer any other exchange objects.

history

During the time of the German Empire , the Thuringian states each had one vote in the Federal Council - so a total of eight votes (the duchies of Coburg and Gotha together had only one vote). This made them a sizeable block when you consider that the Kingdom of Saxony, for example, only had four votes. However, the Thuringian states rarely agreed. Up until 1903, only five states were jointly represented by the Weimar Plenipotentiary in the Federal Council . Saxe-Coburg and Gotha had their own authorized representative, Saxe-Meiningen was represented by Bavaria and Reuss older line by Mecklenburg-Schwerin .

The Higher Regional Court in Jena was according to a new realm Judicature Act from 1 October 1878, the only institution that for almost all Thuringian States was responsible. Only Schwarzburg-Sondershausen belonged to the district of the Naumburg Higher Regional Court . A second joint institution was the University of Jena with the Ernestine Duchies as the preserving states. From 1817, however, the Duchy of Saxony-Coburg was no longer part of it.

In November 1918, the centuries-long era of strong territorial fragmentation came to an end for the Thuringian region. In the federal states, as in the entire German Empire , the republic was proclaimed and the ruling dukes and princes abdicated. The former Thuringian duchies and principalities subsequently became free states . The two Free States of Reuss a.L. and Reuss jL united on December 21, 1918 to form the People's State of Reuss . The union between Saxe-Gotha and Saxe-Coburg was dissolved on April 12, 1919; separate free states were formed.

The governments of the Free States of Saxe-Altenburg , Coburg , Saxe-Gotha , Saxe-Meiningen , Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach , Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt , Schwarzburg-Sondershausen and the People's State of Reuss started negotiations on an amalgamation of all Thuringian states, if possible including parts of Prussia . But since Prussia was not prepared to change its territory, the founding of the state was promoted as a so-called “Little Thuringia solution”. In the course of the founding negotiations, the state governments of Saxony-Meiningen and Coburg expressed concerns about whether a connection to the state to be formed would be advantageous for them, as the Franconian area south of the Rennsteig has leaned more closely to Bavaria since 1806, both in terms of language and country . For this reason, a referendum was held in the Free State of Coburg on November 30, 1919 , in which the majority of the population spoke out against an annexation to the state of Thuringia. The concerns of Saxony-Meiningen could be dispelled, among other things by a guarantee for the IHK Sonneberg and for the districts. In the Free State of Saxony-Meiningen there was no referendum on this question.

On May 1, 1920 , the state of Thuringia with the state capital Weimar was founded without the Free State of Coburg, which was united with the Free State of Bavaria on July 1, 1920 .

Religious conditions

The vast majority of the inhabitants of the Thuringian states belonged to the Evangelical Lutheran religion. As in the other Protestant monarchies, regional churches existed with the sovereign as summus episcopus and thus the highest spiritual dignitary. As a rule, a ministry for culture and an evangelical church council existed for church administration, and in Reuss older line there was also a consistory. After the abolition of the monarchy, on November 15, 1918, leading churchmen of the former duchies and principalities decided on a unified organization of church affairs. A first synod met on December 5, 1919 and decided to merge seven independent regional churches into a single regional church, the Thuringian Evangelical Church (the original name of the church until 1948). The seven regional churches were:

  • the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach
  • the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Saxony-Gotha
  • the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Saxony-Altenburg
  • the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Saxony-Meiningen
  • the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Reuss younger line
  • the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt
  • the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Schwarzburg-Sondershausen.

As with the political unification, the Evangelical Church in Saxony-Coburg went its own way and did not join the new regional church, but instead joined the Evangelical Lutheran regional church in Bavaria in 1921 . The Thuringian Evangelical Church was established on February 13, 1920 - three months before the state of Thuringia was founded on May 1, 1920. A state church office was established in Eisenach for the new regional church, and in 1924 the new church was given a constitution. In 1934, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of the former Principality of Reuss joined the older line as the eighth regional church of the Thuringian Evangelical Church, which thus reached its size until 2008 and was renamed the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thuringia in 1948 . The church joined the Evangelical Church in Germany (EKD). Since July 1, 2004, the Evangelical Church of the Church Province of Saxony and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Thuringia have formed the Federation of Evangelical Churches in Central Germany (EKM), which merged on January 1, 2009.

The Catholic Christians lived in the Thuringian states in the diaspora . Their share of the population was 2.8 percent in 1910. Due to the transfer (1815) of the former prince-bishop's office of Geisa with a Catholic population, it was 4.8 percent in the Grand Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach. The Vatican had set up a special organization to take care of the diaspora: the Apostolic Vicariate of the North was an Apostolic Vicariate of the Roman Catholic Church, which, after the fall of most of the North German Catholic dioceses during the Reformation, combined their areas. It was founded in 1667 and did not expire until 1929 with the Prussian Concordat . These areas, in which the open exercise of the Catholic faith was no longer possible, were called Nordic Missions and in 1622 they were subordinated to the Congregatio de Propaganda Fide in Rome . The Cologne Nuncio received the necessary faculties for Northern Germany. In the early years Hanover became the seat of the Apostolic Vicar , who was directly subordinate to the Cologne Nuncio. Often the Vicar Apostolic was also Auxiliary Bishop of another diocese , which did not facilitate the position. The secularization brought in 1803 the Vicariate new difficulties. If the financial losses were already painful, the abolition of the orders, which almost all pastors placed, became a question of existence. When the Catholic dioceses in Germany were rewritten after the Congress of Vienna in 1824, large areas of the Apostolic Vicariate fell to the dioceses of Hanover and Prussia . The Thuringian states were assigned to different dioceses:

The further development after the Second World War is described in the diocese of Erfurt .

There were also only a few Jewish communities in the Thuringian states. The share of the Israelite population was 0.3 percent in 1910. As with the Catholics, the incursion of Hessian and Episcopal Fulda territories in Saxony-Eisenach in 1815 brought the greatest increase. In Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach, with a share of Jewish citizens of 0.3 percent (for Saxony-Eisenach alone 1.2 percent), there were seven Israelite communities under a land rabbinate in Lengsfeld .

Without religion, 0.2 percent of the population was recorded in 1910.

Currencies

In the area of ​​currencies, the Thuringian states are divided into three parts. Once again, the Rennsteig turns out to be the main dividing line between northern and southern Germany; East Thuringia is subject to the economic attraction of the Kingdom of Saxony.

  • Sachsen-Weimar-Eisenach, Sachsen-Saalfeld (until 1826), the subordinates of the Schwarzburg principalities, the principalities of Reuss aligned their currencies with Prussia,
  • Saxony-Altenburg and (probably due to old dynastic ties with Altenburg) Saxony-Gotha followed the Kingdom of Saxony,
  • Saxe-Coburg, Saxe-Hildburghausen (until 1826), Saxe-Meiningen, the sovereigns of the Blackburg principalities took over the Bavarian monetary standard.

The Thuringian states joined the Dresden Coin Treaty in 1838 , but this did not abolish the existing three-way division. Two dollars in the Prussian 14-taler monetary standard now corresponded to 3 1 / 2   South German Gulden in 24 1 / 2  -Gulden-feet, which should be considered as common club coin of the "contra end here states". This club coin of "2 Taler = 3 1 ⁄ 2   Gulden" was legally valid in every Zollverein country - regardless of who the respective issuer of the club coin was. Own coins minted in the 19th and early 20th centuries:

  • Sachsen-Weimar Eisenach initially 1 Reichstaler at 24 groschen at 288 pfennigs, from 1838 1 taler at 30 silver groschen at 360 pfennigs. Mints existed in Eisenach until 1830, then in Berlin,
  • Sachsen-Coburg-Saalfeld for the Principality of Saalfeld 1 Reichstaler at 24 Groschen at 288 Pfennigs, Saalfeld Mint; In 1826, Saalfeld fell to Sachsen-Meiningen and took over the Guldenfuß introduced there,
  • Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt for the subordination of Frankenhausen 1 special thaler at 32 groschen at 384 pfennigs, then 1 Reichstaler at 24 groschen at 288 pfennigs, from 1838 1 taler at 30 silver groschen at 360 pfennigs, mints in Saalfeld until 1841, Berlin 1841–1889,
  • Schwarzburg-Sondershausen refrained from issuing its own coins for the subordinate Sondershausen until 1840 (Prussian coins were in circulation), then 1 thaler at 30 silver groschen at 360 pfennigs, Berlin mint 1841–1909,
  • All Reuss lines 1 Reichstaler at 24 groschen at 288 pfennigs, from 1838 1 taler at 30 silver groschen at 360 pfennigs, mints in Saalfeld before 1840, in Berlin since 1840,
    • Reuss older line (Reuss-Greiz) 1806-1909,
    • Reuss-Lobenstein-Selbitz 1807,
    • Reuss-Lobenstein-Ebersdorf 1812–1847,
    • Reuss younger line (Reuss-Schleiz-Gera) 1816–1884,
  • Sachsen-Altenburg 1 thaler at 30 new groschen at 300 pfennigs, mints in Dresden 1841–1869, in Berlin 1887–1903,
  • Saxony-Gotha 1 thaler at 30 groschen at 300 pfennigs, Gotha mint,
  • Sachsen-Coburg 1 gulden at 60 Kreuzers at 240 pfennigs, mints in Dresden 1841–1872, in Berlin 1886–1911,
  • Sachsen-Hildburghausen and Sachsen-Meiningen 1 guilder at 60 kreuzers at 240 pfennigs, mints in Hildburghausen 1786–1829, in Saalfeld 1828–1846, in Munich 1854–1915,
  • Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt for the sovereignty of Rudolstadt 1 gulden at 60 Kreuzers at 240 pfennigs, mint in Munich 1841–1861,
  • Schwarzburg-Sondershausen decided not to issue its own coins for the Arnstadt rulership (Rudolstadt coins were in circulation).

The very fact that in the Kingdom of Saxony ten pfennigs were paid for the groschen, in Prussia and the Thuringian states influenced by Berlin, but twelve pfennigs for the groschen, led to difficulties in the border area. The Prussian pfennig was considered a "bad pfennig" because it was less valuable. It was only with the introduction of the mark as imperial currency on January 1, 1876 under the law of December 4, 1871, that the fragmentation of the monetary system was lifted.

Mail shelf

The establishment of the Rhine Confederation on July 12, 1806 actually meant the end of the Holy Roman Empire and thus also the end of the Imperial Post Office and the Post Generalate of Thurn and Taxis . The Imperial Post Office , which was organized and directed by the Thurn and Taxis , no longer existed, but Therese Mathilde von Thurn and Taxis tried to keep the Thurn-und-Taxis-Post as a private company in negotiations with the Prince of the Rhine and Napoleon . The company signed an almost complete network of contracts with the Thuringian states, with which Thurn und Taxis secured the licenses to operate the postal service:

Post house sign of the Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt ( GDR 1990 )
  • May 2, 1807 with the Duchy of Saxony-Meiningen,
  • April 4, 1808 with the Duchy of Saxony-Hildburghausen,
  • March 17, 1809 with the principalities of Reuss-Lobenstein and Reuss-Ebersdorf,
  • March 21, 1809 with the Principality of Reuss-Greiz,
  • June 8, 1812 with the Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen for the sovereignty of Arnstadt,
  • March 1, 1816 with the Principality of Reuss-Schleiz,
  • June 30, 1816 with the Duchy of Saxony-Coburg-Saalfeld,
  • December 8, 1816 with the Grand Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach,
  • February 24, 1817 with the Duchy of Saxony-Gotha,
  • March 1, 1817 with the principalities of Reuss-Schleiz, Reuss-Lobenstein and Reuss-Ebersdorf because of the common rule of Gera,
  • August 23, 1817 with the Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt for the sovereignty of Rudolstadt,
  • October 26, 1817 with the Duchy of Saxony-Altenburg.

The sublords of Sondershausen and Frankenhausen of the principalities of Schwarzburg were administered by the Prussian post office. The Federal Act of 1815 recognized the feudal postal contracts concluded between 1806 and 1814 and thus created a reliable legal basis. Around 1820 there were 57 post offices in the Thuringian duchies and principalities, which were under the management of the post office in Eisenach. The border points of the Thuringian postal network were Sondershausen in the north, Coburg in the south, Vacha in the west and Altenburg in the east. After the Altenburg line of the Ernestines and the Ebersdorf and Lobenstein lines in the Reuss family died out in 1825 and the new territorial divisions associated with this, some of the contracts had to be renewed. On November 4, 1829 , Duke Bernhard II of Saxony-Meiningen concluded a new feudal mail contract with Prince Maximilian Karl von Thurn und Taxis .

The common administration could already be recognized from the outside by the name, the postal coat of arms and the uniforms, which differed by different collar colors. For example, the name of the Schwarzburg-Rudolstädtische Postanstalt was: “Fürstlich Schwarzburg-Rudolst., Fürstlich Thurn und Taxis'sche Lehenspostexpedition”. The postal coat of arms therefore combined both coats of arms, the ducal below and the princely Thurn and Taxissche above (see illustration). From 1852 to 1866, the Thurn-und-Taxis-Post issued its own postage stamps in two different currencies:

  • in the northern district in penny currency for Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, Saxe-Gotha, both lines Reuss,
  • in the southern district in kreuzer currency for Saxony-Meiningen, Saxony-Coburg, Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt (suzerainty), Schwarzburg-Sondershausen (suzerainty),

Royal Prussian post offices existed in the Weimar exclaves Allstedt and Oldisleben as well as the subordinates of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen and Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt. The Royal Saxon Post also supplied Sachsen-Altenburg. On August 1, 1847, the Duchy of Saxony-Altenburg handed over its nine post offices to the Royal Saxon Post after the opening of the railway line Leipzig-Altenburg (September 12, 1842) and Altenburg-Crimmitschau (March 15, 1844), as it is now cheaper with transport was connected to the Kingdom of Saxony. With the new means of transport, the Thurn-und-Taxis-Post business model fell into crisis. The larger states in Germany decided to run the post on their own territories, and after the German War in 1866 the Thurn-und-Taxis-Post officially came to an end. After lengthy negotiations, an agreement was reached on compensation of 5 million guilders or the equivalent of 2.9 million thalers, which was then ultimately set at 3 million thalers. The contract was signed on January 28, 1867, and on July 1, 1867, the entire Thurn and Taxis postal system was transferred to Prussia. After the handover, Prussia issued five postage stamps for the former Thurn and Taxis areas with Kreuzer currency. With entry into the North German Confederation on January 1, 1868, the postage stamps of the North German Confederation were valid, which continued the practice of stamps in Groschen and Kreuzer currency. The Deutsche Reichspost began its activities on May 4, 1871, the day the constitution of the German Empire came into force. This ended the mail shelf of the Thuringian states.

Judiciary

With the end of the old empire , the jurisdiction of the previous highest imperial courts also ended. It was therefore necessary for the states remaining in the German Confederation to receive a corresponding third and final instance to replace the former imperial courts. Article 12 of the Federal Act of 1815 therefore required the states to set up courts of appeal as the third and final instance in civil and criminal matters. Each state should have at least one such court, and states with fewer than 300,000 residents should form such a court with their relatives or other states. The Ernestine duchies and the principalities of Reuss-Greiz , Reuss-Lobenstein and Reuss-Schleiz founded the Jena Higher Appeal Court on January 7, 1817 as the final instance. The Anhalt and Schwarzburg states founded the Zerbst Higher Appeal Court, which existed until 1849 and then merged with the Jena Higher Appeal Court; Anhalt left the court parish.

After the founding of the empire in 1871, based on the state treaty of the states of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach , Saxony-Meiningen , Saxony-Altenburg , Saxony-Coburg and Gotha , Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt , Reuss older line , Reuss younger line led to this as a joint higher regional court on October 1, 1878 States of the German Empire continue the Jena Higher Regional Court. Initially, the court was also responsible for Schwarzburg-Sondershausen. With the entry into force of the Courts Constitution Act on October 1, 1879, the judicial offices in Schwarzburg-Sondershausen were dissolved or converted into local courts and at the same time subordinated to the regional court of Erfurt and the higher regional court of Naumburg .

Eight regional courts were set up below the Jena Higher Regional Court, which were responsible for either one or several federal states, including the Prussian enclaves:

The Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen judged the five district courts of Arnstadt and Gehren (for the sovereignty of Arnstadt ); Ebeleben , Greußen , Sondershausen (for the subordination Sondershausen ). The appeal went through the Prussian regional court in Erfurt to the higher regional court in Naumburg in the province of Saxony.

military

During the time of the German Confederation , from 1815 onwards, the eight Thuringian states provided contingents for the reserve division of the armed forces in the following strengths:

  • Grand Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach 2010 man infantry; they formed the 4th and 5th battalions,
  • Duchy of Saxony-Altenburg 982 infantry; they formed the 1st battalion,
  • Duchy of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha 1366 infantry; they formed the 2nd battalion,
  • Duchy of Saxony-Meiningen 1150 infantry; they formed the 3rd battalion,
  • Principality of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt 539 infantry; they belonged to the 10th battalion,
  • Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen 351 infantry men; they belonged to the 10th battalion,
  • Principality of Reuss older line 223 infantry men; they belonged to the 12th battalion,
  • Principality of Reuss younger line 522 infantry; they belonged to the 12th Battalion.
Anton Nissen : The sea battle of Eckernförde

After the German War in 1866, the German states placed their troops under the command of the Prussian King, first in the North German Confederation, and later under the German Empire, headed by the German Kaiser. In Thuringia, the Grand Duchy of Saxony-Weimar-Eisenach concluded the military convention with Prussia on February 4, 1867, along with the protocol of February 22, 1867; the other Thuringian states joined this in the years up to 1871; only Saxe-Coburg and Gotha concluded their own military convention with Prussia on June 6, 1867.

The Kingdom of Prussia began as early as 1860 to give the troops that were recruited from the area of ​​the Erfurt administrative district the designation "Thuringian". On July 4, 1860, the 31st Infantry Regiment (3rd Magdeburg) became the 1st Thuringian Infantry Regiment No. 31 (The Thuringian Guard) . The regiment was founded after the Wars of Liberation on March 25, 1815 as the 31st Infantry Regiment and was finally given the name of Infantry Regiment "Graf Bose" (1st Thuringian) No. 31 on August 11, 1894 . The regiment had been transferred from Erfurt to Altona in 1871 and left the Thuringian troops. The military conventions paved the way for the takeover or reorganization of further Thuringian troops, the heads of which belonged to the respective ruling royal houses. A total of eight infantry regiments, two cavalry regiments and three artillery regiments were put into service. In detail:

Residences

  • Weimar 1531-1918

  • Coburg 1541-1918

  • Altenburg 1586-1918

  • Gotha 1641-1918

  • Meiningen 1681-1918

  • Rudolstadt 1574-1918

  • Sondershausen 1571-1918

  • Greiz 1564-1918

See also

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ On the history of the archive , paragraph 2, on the homepage of the Landeskirchenarchiv Eisenach
  2. ↑ a b c d e Ulrich Hess: History of Thuringia 1866 to 1914. Hermann Böhlaus successor, Weimar 1991, ISBN 3-7400-0077-5 , p. 539.
  3. ↑ See Kurt Reum, Hans-Jürgen Salier: Thurn and Taxissche local posting stamp in Thuringia. Suhl / Hildburghausen 1977.
  4. ^ "Edict of November 4, 1829, concerning the postal loan relationships and the postal administration"
  5. ↑ Implementing Act to the Courts Constitution Act of May 16, 1879.
  6. ^ Heinrich Ambros Eckert, Dietrich Monten: Das deutsche Bundesheer, Volume II. Dortmund 1981, pp. 13-17.
  7. ↑ Ulrich Hess: History of Thuringia 1866 to 1914. Verlag Hermann Böhlaus Successor, Weimar 1991, ISBN 3-7400-0077-5 , p. 180.
  8. ↑ Ranking list of the active service status of the Royal Prussian Army and XIII. (Royal Württemberg) Army Corps. With the seniority lists of the generals and staff officers, an appendix containing the Reich Military Court, the Marine Infantry, the Imperial Protection Troops and the Gendarmerie Brigade in Alsace-Lorraine, and an annex containing the District Commands I to VI Berlin. As of October 6, 1912. By order of His Majesty the Emperor and King. Editor: Ministry of War, Secret War Chancellery, Ernst Siegfried Mittler and Son, Berlin 1913.
  9. ↑ In 1887 Ferdinand von Coburg-Gotha became Prince of Bulgaria, who in 1908 declared the complete separation from the Ottoman Empire and assumed the title of Tsar, with the result that the principality became Tsarist Bulgaria.

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