Waldeck (state)
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Waldeck (or later Waldeck-Pyrmont) was a souvereign principality in the German Empire and German Confederation and, until 1929, a constituent state of the Weimar Republic. It comprised territories in present-day Hesse and Lower Saxony (Germany).
Waldeck was a county within the Holy Roman Empire from about 1200. In 1655 its seat and the chief residence of its rulers shifted from the castle and small town of Waldeck, overlooking the Eder river and first mentioned in 1120, to Arolsen. In 1625 the small county of Pyrmont became part of the county through inheritance. In January 1712 the count of Waldeck and Pyrmont was elevated to prince by Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor. For a brief period, 1805 to 1812, Pyrmont was a separate principality as a result of inheritance and partition after the death of the previous prince, but the two parts were united again in 1812. The independence of the principality was confirmed in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, and Waldeck-Pyrmont became a member of the German Confederation. From 1868 onward, the principality was administered by Prussia, but retained its legislative sovereignty. Prussian administration served to reduce administrative costs for the small state and was based on a 10-year contract that was continuously renewed until Waldeck was formally absorbed into Prussia in 1929. In 1871 the principality became a constituent state of the new German Empire. At the end of World War I, the prince abdicated and Waldeck-Pyrmont became a Free State within the Weimar Republic.
On 30 November 1921, following a local plebiscite, the city and district of Pyrmont were detached and incorporated into the Prussian province of Hanover. The remainder of the Free State of Waldeck was incorporated into Prussia in 1929, following another plebiscite, and became part of the province of Hesse-Nassau. This territory is today part of the District of Waldeck-Frankenberg in Hesse.
In 1905, Waldeck-Pyrmont had an area of 1121 km² and a population of 59,000.
The princely house of Waldeck-Pyrmont is closely related to the royal family of the Netherlands: the last ruling prince, Frederick, was the brother of Dutch Queen Emma.
Princes of Waldeck and Pyrmont since 1712
- 1712-1728: Friedrich Anton Ulrich; elevated 1712 to hereditary prince by Emperor Karl VI
- 1728-1763: Carl August
- 1763-1806: ?
- 1806-1812: Friedrich Carl August
- 1812-1813: Georg I
- 1813-1845: Georg II
- 1845-1893: Georg Victor
- 1893-1918: Friedrich; brother of the Dutch Queen Emma
External links
- Principality of Waldeck (German) (http://www.deutsche-schutzgebiete.de/fuerstentum_waldeck.htm)
- Waldeck Free State (German) (http://www.gonschior.de/weimar/Waldeck/index.htm)de:Waldeck