The County of Rietberg () was a

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

, located in the present-day

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

state of

North Rhine-Westphalia North Rhine-Westphalia or North-Rhine/Westphalia, commonly shortened to NRW, is a States of Germany, state () in Old states of Germany, Western Germany. With more than 18 million inhabitants, it is the List of German states by population, most ...

. It was situated on the upper

Ems Ems or EMS may refer to: Places and rivers * Domat/Ems, a Swiss municipality in the canton of Grisons * Ems (river) (Eems), a river in northwestern Germany and northeastern Netherlands that discharges in the Dollart Bay * Ems (Eder), a river o ...

Westphalia Westphalia (; ; ) is a region of northwestern Germany and one of the three historic parts of the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. It has an area of and 7.9 million inhabitants. The territory of the region is almost identical with the h ...

, between the

Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn The Prince-Bishopric of Paderborn () was an ecclesiastical principality (Hochstift) of the Holy Roman Empire from 1281 to 1802. History The Diocese of Paderborn was founded in 799 by Pope Leo III. In the early years it was subordinated to t ...

and the

Prince-Bishopric of Münster The Prince-Bishopric of Münster (, or ) was a large ecclesiastical principality in the Holy Roman Empire, located in the northern part of today's North Rhine-Westphalia and western Lower Saxony. From the sixteenth to the eighteenth centuries, ...

. It existed as an independent territory from 1237 to 1807, when it was mediatised to the

Kingdom of Westphalia The Kingdom of Westphalia was a client state of First French Empire, France in present-day Germany that existed from 1807 to 1813. While formally independent, it was ruled by Napoleon's brother Jérôme Bonaparte. It was named after Westphalia, ...

History

Rietberg was first mentioned as ''Rietbike'' around the year 1100. This name refers to the German words ''ried'' (an old name for "

reed Reed or Reeds may refer to: Science, technology, biology, and medicine * Reed bird (disambiguation) * Reed pen, writing implement in use since ancient times * Reed (plant), one of several tall, grass-like wetland plants of the order Poales * Re ...

") and ''bach'' (" creek"). There was a castle that dated back to the 11th century. From 1237 until 1807, Rietberg was an independent German territory, although very small. Nevertheless, the county had its own militia, its own currency and its own laws; even foreign policy, on a small scale, was conducted independently. Until the 17th century, Rietberg coined its own money. In 1699, the County of Rietberg came into the possession of the Moravian noble family of the Counts of Kaunitz () through the marriage of heiress Maria Ernestine Franziska of Ostfriesland, Countess von Rietberg (1687-1758) with Count Maximilian Ulrich von Kaunitz, and that family subsequently renamed itself as ''Kaunitz-Rietberg''. Under the rule of this

comital Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

(later

prince A prince is a male ruler (ranked below a king, grand prince, and grand duke) or a male member of a monarch's or former monarch's family. ''Prince'' is also a title of nobility (often highest), often hereditary, in some European states. The ...

ly) family, the territory remained independent until the end of the Holy Roman Empire. In 1807, Rietberg became mediatised to the

. After the dissolution of that kingdom in 1813, the territory of Rietberg became part of the

Kingdom of Prussia The Kingdom of Prussia (, ) was a German state that existed from 1701 to 1918.Marriott, J. A. R., and Charles Grant Robertson. ''The Evolution of Prussia, the Making of an Empire''. Rev. ed. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1946. It played a signif ...

, which integrated it into its

Province of Westphalia The Province of Westphalia () was a Provinces of Prussia, province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free State of Prussia from 1815 to 1946. In turn, Prussia was the largest component state of the German Empire from 1871 to 1918, of the Weimar ...

Comital title

The title of Count of Rietberg (''

Graf (; feminine: ) is a historical title of the German nobility and later also of the Russian nobility, usually translated as "count". Considered to be intermediate among noble ranks, the title is often treated as equivalent to the British title ...

zu Rietberg'') remains extant in the

House of Liechtenstein The House of Liechtenstein (), from which the principality takes its name, is the family which reigns by hereditary right over the principality of Liechtenstein. Only Dynasty#Dynast, dynastic members of the family are eligible to inherit the thro ...

, which has claimed it since 1848, when the last member of the Moravian branch of the Kaunitz family (Prince Aloys von Kaunitz-Rietberg) died.

Hans-Adam II, Prince of Liechtenstein Hans-Adam II (Johannes Adam Ferdinand Alois Josef Maria Marco d'Aviano Pius; born 14 February 1945) is the Prince of Liechtenstein, reigning since 1989. He is the son of Prince Franz Joseph II and his wife, Countess Georgina von Wilczek. He a ...

, and all

dynastic A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. Historians ...

members of his family (and their dynastic wives) bear the title currently.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rietberg States and territories established in 1237 Counties of the Holy Roman Empire 1807 disestablishments Former states and territories of North Rhine-Westphalia Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle