
Stolberg-Stolberg was a
county
A county () is a geographic region of a country used for administrative or other purposesL. Brookes (ed.) '' Chambers Dictionary''. Edinburgh: Chambers Harrap Publishers Ltd, 2005. in some nations. The term is derived from the Old French denoti ...
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 southern
Harz
The Harz (), also called the Harz Mountains, is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' der ...
region. Its capital was the town of
Stolberg, now in
Saxony-Anhalt
Saxony-Anhalt ( ; ) is a States of Germany, state of Germany, bordering the states of Brandenburg, Saxony, Thuringia and Lower Saxony. It covers an area of
and has a population of 2.17 million inhabitants, making it the List of German states ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
. It was ruled by a branch of the
House of Stolberg
The House of Stolberg is an old and large German dynasty of the former Holy Roman Empire's Uradel, high aristocracy (''German nobility#Hochadel, Hoher Adel''). Members of the family held the title of ''Prince of the Holy Roman Empire, Fürst'' an ...
.
In 1429, the
County of Wernigerode
The County of Wernigerode () was a state of the Holy Roman Empire which arose in the Harzgau region of the former Duchy of Saxony, at the northern foot of the Harz mountain range. The comital residence was at Wernigerode, now part of Saxony-Anhal ...
passed to the
Counts of Stolberg
The County of Stolberg () was a county of the Holy Roman Empire located in the Harz mountain range in present-day Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was ruled by a branch of the House of Stolberg.
The town of Stolberg was probably founded in the 12th c ...
, who ruled Wernigerode through a
personal union
A personal union is a combination of two or more monarchical states that have the same monarch while their boundaries, laws, and interests remain distinct. A real union, by contrast, involves the constituent states being to some extent in ...
. In 1548, the line was split between a Harz line (Stolberg-Stolberg) and a Rhenish line which had possessions in
Rochefort
Rochefort () may refer to:
Places France
* Rochefort, Charente-Maritime, in the Charente-Maritime department
** Arsenal de Rochefort, a former naval base and dockyard
* Rochefort, Savoie in the Savoie department
* Rochefort-du-Gard, in the G ...
(
Stolberg-Rochefort) and
Königstein im Taunus
Königstein im Taunus (, ) is a health spa and lies on the thickly wooded slopes of the Taunus in Hesse, Germany. The town is part of the Frankfurt Rhein-Main Regional Authority, Frankfurt Rhein-Main urban area. Owing to its advantageous location ...
(
Stolberg-Königstein).
With the death of Count Wolf Georg zu Stolberg in 1631, Stolberg-Stolberg was inherited by members of the Rhenish line. On 31 May 1645, Stolberg-Stolberg was divided between a senior
Stolberg-Wernigerode
The County of Stolberg-Wernigerode () was a county of the Holy Roman Empire located in the Harz region around Wernigerode, now part of Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. It was ruled by a branch of the House of Stolberg.
History
The Counts of Wernigerode h ...
line and a junior Stolberg-Stolberg line. In 1706, Stolberg-Stolberg divided again, with
Stolberg-Rossla
The County of Stolberg-Rossla () was a county of the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Rossla, now in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The territory was owned and ruled by a branch of the House of Stolberg from 1341 until 1803, when the county became m ...
being created.
Stolberg-Stolberg was forced to recognize the suzerainty of the
Electorate of Saxony
The Electorate of Saxony, also known as Electoral Saxony ( or ), was a territory of the Holy Roman Empire from 1356 to 1806 initially centred on Wittenberg that came to include areas around the cities of Dresden, Leipzig and Chemnitz. It was a ...
in 1738. It was awarded to 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 ...
in the 1815
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...
.
The children of ''
Fürst
' (, female form ', plural '; from Old High German ', "the first", a translation of the Latin ') is a German language, German word for a ruler as well as a princely title. ' were, starting in the Middle Ages, members of the highest nobility who ...
en'' and ''Erbprinzen'' zu Stolberg-Wernigerode bore the title of Prince
s(''Prinz
ssin') zu Stolberg-Wernigerode and were styled
Serene Highness
His/Her Serene Highness (abbreviation: HSH, second person address: Your Serene Highness) is a style (manner of address), style used today by the reigning families of Liechtenstein, Monaco and Thailand. Until 1918, it was also associated with the p ...
. Other members of this line bore the title of Count
ss(''
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 ...
/Gräfin'') zu Stolberg-Wernigerode, with the style of
Illustrious Highness
His/Her Illustrious Highness (abbreviation: H.Ill.H.) is the usual English-language translation of the German word , a style historically attributed to certain members of the European nobility. It is not a literal translation, as the German word ...
.
Rulers of Stolberg-Stolberg
Counts of Stolberg-Stolberg
* Christoph Friedrich (1704-1738)
* Christoph Ludwig II (1738-1761), son
* Karl Ludwig (1761-1815), son,
mediatised in 1803
* Joseph (1815-1839), son
* Alfred (1839-1903), ''
Fürst
' (, female form ', plural '; from Old High German ', "the first", a translation of the Latin ') is a German language, German word for a ruler as well as a princely title. ' were, starting in the Middle Ages, members of the highest nobility who ...
'' from 1893 on
Princes of Stolberg-Stolberg
* Alfred, 1st Prince 1893-1903 (1820-1903)
** Wolffgang, 2nd Prince 1903 (1849-1903)
*** Wolff-Heinrich, 3rd Prince 1903-1972 (1903-1972)
**** Jost-Christian, 4th Prince 1972-''present'' (b.1940)
***** Christoph, Hereditary Prince of Stolberg-Stolberg (b.1982)
***** Prince Heinrich-Victor (b.1986)
References
*
*
{{coord missing, Germany
States and territories established in 1548
States and territories established in 1638
States and territories established in 1706
1548 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1631 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1638 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1706 establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1631 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1684 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire
1803 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire
Former states and territories of Saxony-Anhalt