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81-578: The village of Zehlendorf was first mentioned as Cedelendorp in a 1245 contract between the Margraves John I and Otto III of Brandenburg and the Lehnin Abbey . Probably a German foundation, the name Cedelen appears to be a dialect word for "settlement" (modern German Siedlung ), or "noble" ( Cedelendorp = Cedelen + dorp , "noble village" (see Jahresbericht über die Erscheinungen auf dem Gebiete der germanischen Philologie ). In

162-669: A Mark or march because it was a border county of the Holy Roman Empire (see also Margraviate of Meissen ). The Mark is defined by two uplands and two depressions. The depressions are taken up by rivers and chains of lakes with marsh and boggy soil along the shores; once used for peat collection, the riverbanks are now mostly drained and dry. The Northern or Baltic Uplands of the Mecklenburg Lake Plateau have only minor extensions into Brandenburg. The approximately 230 km-long range of hills in

243-628: A burgrave of the House of Hohenzollern , was granted hereditary control over Brandenburg in 1411. Rebellious landed nobility such as the Quitzow family opposed his appointment, but Frederick overpowered these knights with artillery . Some nobles had their property confiscated, and the Brandenburg estates gave allegiance at Tangermünde on 20 March 1414. Frederick was officially recognized as Margrave and Prince-elector Frederick I of Brandenburg at

324-580: A personal union which came to be known as Brandenburg-Prussia . In this way, the fortuitous marriage of John Sigismund to Anna of Prussia, and the deaths of her maternal uncle in 1609 and her father in 1618 without immediate male heirs, proved to be the key events by which Brandenburg acquired territory both in the Rhineland and on the Baltic coast. Prussia lay outside the Holy Roman Empire and

405-488: A claim-holder to Brandenburg, controlled Brandenburg with Polish help, and ruled the land of the Stodorans. Older historical research dates this conquest to 1153, although there are no definite sources for the date. More recent researchers (such as Lutz Partenheimer) date it to spring 1157, as it is doubtful that Albert would not have responded to Jaxa's actions for four years. With bloody victories on 11 June 1157, Albert

486-591: A convinced Nazi. Helfenstein was responsible for erecting a memorial to the antisemitic publisher Theodor Fritsch (1853–1933), described as "the first antisemitic memorial in Germany" in Zehlendorf in 1935. The memorial was the first memorial sculpted by the artist Arthur Wellmann (1885–1960), who was a Zehlendorf resident (and who, after producing other Nazi memorials, including one to the SA , eventually emigrated to

567-649: A direct ancestor of the present-day Federal Republic of Germany , The territory of the former margraviate, commonly known as the Mark Brandenburg , lies in present-day eastern Germany and western Poland. Geographically it encompassed the majority of the present-day German states of Brandenburg and Berlin, the Altmark (the northern third of Saxony-Anhalt ), and the Neumark (now divided between Poland's Lubusz and West Pomeranian Voivodeships ). Parts of

648-502: A feudal polity (often a former secular principality in the broad sense) held ex officio — the closest possible equivalent to hereditary succession — by a prince of the church , styled more precisely according to his ecclesiastical rank, such as prince-bishop , prince-abbot or, especially as a form of crusader state, grand master . Some of these instances were merely religious offices without sovereign power over any territory, while others, such as Salzburg and Durham , shared some of

729-584: A fief from Emperor Frederick II in 1231. The middle of the 13th century was a time of important developments for the Ascanian House, as it won Stettin (Szczecin) and the Uckermark (1250), although the former was later lost to the Duchy of Pomerania . Also around 1250 it took over Lubusz Land from then-fragmented Poland and subsequently conquered northwestern parts of the Duchy of Greater Poland in

810-525: A modest summer maximum. By the eighth century, Slavic Wends , such as the Sprewane and Hevelli (Havolane or Stodorans), started to move into the Brandenburg area. They intermarried with Saxons and Bohemians. The Bishoprics of Brandenburg and Havelberg were established at the beginning of the tenth century (in 928 and 948, respectively). They were suffragan to the Archbishopric of Mainz ;

891-522: A monarch of a lesser rank than a king, such as a Fürst (usually translated in English as "prince"), as in Liechtenstein, or a Grand Duke . No sovereign duchy currently exists, but Luxembourg is a surviving example of a sovereign grand duchy. Historically there have been sovereign principalities with many styles of ruler, such as Countship , Margraviate and even Lordship , especially within

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972-456: A monarch with another title considered to fall under the generic meaning of the term prince . Most of these states have historically been a polity , but in some occasions were rather territories in respect of which a princely title is held. The prince's estate and wealth may be located mainly or wholly outside the geographical confines of the principality. Generally recognised surviving sovereign principalities are Liechtenstein , Monaco , and

1053-480: A new powerful rival prompted the previously warring parties to make peace with each other and cooperate. Bavarian forces soon entered the region, but in October 1323 Pope John XXII called Louis IV to annul the grant of Brandenburg to Louis V, declaring it unlawful. As a consequence of the murder of Provost Nikolaus von Bernau in 1325, Brandenburg was punished with a papal interdict . Bavarian forces gradually seized

1134-727: A pivotal role in the history of Germany and that of Central Europe as core of the Prussian kingdom . Brandenburg developed out of the Northern March founded in the territory of the Slavic Wends . It derived one of its names from this inheritance, the March of Brandenburg ( Mark Brandenburg ). Its ruling margraves were established as prestigious prince-electors in the Golden Bull of 1356 , allowing them to vote in

1215-528: A population of 400,000. Under Hohenzollern leadership, Brandenburg grew rapidly in power during the 17th century and inherited the Duchy of Prussia . The resulting Brandenburg-Prussia was the predecessor of the Kingdom of Prussia , which became a leading German state during the 18th century. Although the electors' highest title was " King in/of Prussia ", their power base remained in Brandenburg and its capital Berlin . The Margraviate of Brandenburg ended with

1296-705: A portion of the Uckermark were occupied by Rudolf I of Saxe-Wittenberg. In 1320 the allied forces of Pomerania and Jawor clashed with Mecklenburg in the Uckermark, and war between Pomerania and Mecklenburg continued in 1321–1322 on the Oder River and in Mecklenburg. By February 1322, eastern outskirts of the Lubusz Land with Torzym and Sulęcin and the Międzyrzecz castellany were controlled by Duke Henry IV

1377-662: Is subdivided into 6 zones: Visitors can stop at the Dahlem Church, where the vicar, Pastor Martin Niemöller , served from 1931 through 1937. Niemöller's sermons against the Nazis led to his imprisonment and the publication of them in English during the war helped shape discussion of the nature of National Socialism in Christian circles. Many walking trips are available in and around Zehlendorf. Popular destinations include

1458-404: Is the best vehicle to realise the aspirations of a people, became popular in the late 19th century. A characteristic of nationalism is an identity with a larger region such as an area sharing a common language and culture. With this development, principalities fell out of favour. As a compromise, many principalities united with neighbouring regions and adopted constitutional forms of government, with

1539-484: The A 115 Autobahn (the former AVUS racing track) at the Hüttenweg junction . Margraviate of Brandenburg The Margraviate of Brandenburg (German: Markgrafschaft Brandenburg ) was a major principality of the Holy Roman Empire from 1157 to 1815 that, having electoral status although being quite poor, grew rapidly in importance after inheriting the Duchy of Prussia in 1618 and then came to play

1620-588: The Ascanians . From 1123 to 1125 Albert developed contacts with Pribislav, who served as the godfather for the Ascanian's first son, Otto , and gave the boy the Zauche region as a christening present in 1134. In the same year, Emperor Lothair III named Albert margrave of the Northern March and raised Pribislav to the status of king, although that was later rescinded. Also in 1134, Albert succeeded in securing for

1701-559: The Brandenburg Gate is located. The newer portion of the borough of Zehlendorf developed around extended U-Bahn service in the first third of the 20th century. It may be reached via the U3 line at the station Onkel Toms Hütte and the terminus Krumme Lanke . The Bundesstraße 1 federal highway runs through the locality along the streets Berliner Straße , Potsdamer Straße and Potsdamer Chaussee . Zehlendorf has also access to

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1782-725: The Brandenburger Gold Coast , and Saint Thomas . The electors succeeded in acquiring full sovereignty over Prussia in the treaties of Wehlau and Bromberg in 1657. The territories of the Hohenzollerns were opened to immigration by Huguenot refugees by the Edict of Potsdam in 1685. In return for aiding Emperor Leopold I during the War of the Spanish Succession , Frederick William's son, Frederick III ,

1863-560: The Council of Constance in 1415. Frederick's formal investiture with the Kurmark , or electoral march, and his appointment as Archchamberlain of the Holy Roman Empire occurred on 18 April 1417, also during the Council of Constance. Frederick made Berlin his residence, although he retired to his Franconian possessions in 1425. He granted governance of Brandenburg to his eldest son John

1944-560: The Crown of Bohemia . The Landbuch ("land book", i.e. estate register) of Charles IV, a source for the history of medieval settlement in Brandenburg, originated during this time. Charles chose the castle of Tangermünde to be the electoral residence. The power of the Luxembourgs in Brandenburg declined during the reign of Charles's nephew Jobst of Moravia . In 1402, the Luxembourgs reached an agreement with Poland , by which Poland

2025-523: The Holy Roman Empire . While the preceding definition would seem to fit a princely state perfectly, the European historical tradition is to reserve that word for native monarchies in colonial countries, and to apply "principality" to the European monarchies. Though principalities existed in antiquity, even before the height of the Roman Empire , the principality as it is known today developed in

2106-530: The Middle Ages between 750 and 1450 when feudalism was the primary economic and social system in much of Europe. Feudalism increased the power of local princes within a king's lands. As princes continued to gain more power over time, the authority of the king was diminished in many places. This led to political fragmentation as the king's lands were broken into mini-states ruled by princes and dukes who wielded absolute power over their small territories. This

2187-816: The Napoleonic Wars . The Prussian kings, however, continued to use the title "Margrave of Brandenburg" in their formal style. Brandenburg, along with the rest of Prussia, became part of the German Empire in 1871 during the Prussian-led unification of Germany . During the Gleichschaltung of provinces by Nazi Germany during the 1930s, the Province of Brandenburg and the Free State of Prussia lost all practical relevancy. The region

2268-510: The Protestant Reformation in 1539. The population has remained largely Lutheran since, although some later electors converted to Calvinism . The Hohenzollerns of Brandenburg sought to expand their power base from their relatively meager possessions, although this brought them into conflict with neighboring states. John William, Duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg died childless in 1609. His eldest niece, Anna, Duchess of Prussia ,

2349-530: The Thirty Years' War in 1648, Brandenburg-Prussia acquired Farther Pomerania and made it the Province of Pomerania by the Treaty of Stettin (1653) . In the second half of the 17th century, Frederick William , the "Great Elector", developed Brandenburg-Prussia into a major power. The state constructed Brandenburg's first navy ( Kurbrandenburgische Marine ), leading to short-lived colonies at Arguin ,

2430-511: The dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806. It was replaced after the Napoleonic Wars with the Prussian Province of Brandenburg in 1815. The Hohenzollern Kingdom of Prussia was the primary driving force behind the unification of Germany . The Prussian-dominated North German Confederation later transformed in 1871 into the German Empire ; it was the legal predecessor of the united German Reich of 1871–1945, and as such

2511-670: The "Soldier-King", modernized the Prussian Army , while his son Frederick the Great achieved glory and infamy with the Silesian Wars and Partitions of Poland . The feudal designation of the Margraviate of Brandenburg ended with the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, which made the Hohenzollerns de jure as well as de facto sovereigns over it. It was replaced with the Province of Brandenburg in 1815 following

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2592-570: The 1160s, Flemish and Dutch settlers from flooded regions in Holland used their expertise to build dikes in Brandenburg. Initially, the Ascanians protected the country by settling knights in villages; castles fortified with knights were mostly located in the border region of the Neumark. After a 14th-century decline in imperial power, however, knights began constructing castles throughout

2673-530: The 11th century, the Holy Roman Empire government through bishoprics and marches came nearly to a standstill for approximately 150 years, even though the bishopric was retained. Prince Pribislav of the Hevelli came to power at the castle of Brenna ( Brandenburg an der Havel ) in 1127. During Pribislav's reign, in which he cultivated close connections with the German nobility , Germans succeeded in binding to

2754-684: The Alchemist , while retaining the electoral dignity for himself. The next elector, Frederick II , forced the submission of Berlin and Cölln , setting an example for the other towns of Brandenburg. He reacquired the Neumark from the Teutonic Knights by the Treaties of Cölln and Mewe and began its rebuilding. Years of warfare with the Duchy of Pomerania were ended by the treaties of Prenzlau (1448, 1472, and 1479). Brandenburg accepted

2835-479: The Ascanians the inheritance of the childless Pribislav. After the latter's death in 1150, Albert received the Havolane residence of Brenna. The Ascanians also began to build the castle of Spandau . In contrast to their leaders who had accepted Christianity, the Havolane population still worshipped old Slavic deities and opposed Albert's assumption of power. Jaxa of Köpenick , a possible relative of Pribislav and

2916-844: The Baltic uplands, is defined by the lowlands of the Noteć and Warta Rivers, the Oderbruch , the valley of the Finow , the Havelland moor , and the Oder River . Between these two depressions is a low plateau that extends from the Poznań area westward to Brandenburg through Torzym (Sternberg) , the Spree plateau, and the Mittelmark . From southeast to northwest, this plateau is intersected by

2997-551: The Bear was able to reconquer Brandenburg, exile Jaxa, and found a new lordship. Because he already held the title of margrave, Albert styled himself as Margrave of Brandenburg ( Adelbertus Dei gratia marchio in Brandenborch ) on 3 October 1157, thereby beginning the Margraviate of Brandenburg. The territorial limits of the original margraviate differed from the area of the current Bundesland Brandenburg , consisting merely of

3078-697: The Bishopric of Brandenburg reached to the Baltic Sea . King Henry the Fowler started governing in the region in 928–929, allowing Emperor Otto I to establish the Northern March under Margrave Gero in 936 during the German Ostsiedlung . However, the march and the bishoprics were overthrown by a Slavic rebellion in 983 ; until the collapse of the Liutizian alliance in the middle of

3159-557: The Bourbons due to their support for the Habsburg pretender. "Principality of Asturias" is the official name of autonomous community of Asturias , however, the term "Principality of Catalonia" or simply "Principality" remains in popular and informal contexts to refer to the autonomous community of Catalonia . The term "principality" is also sometimes used generically for any small monarchy, especially for small sovereign states ruled by

3240-492: The Faithful of Żagań. After heavy fights between Pomerania and Saxe-Wittenberg around Kostrzyn nad Odrą in 1322–1323, a peace between the two parties was signed in December 1323. Having defeated the Habsburgs , the Wittelsbach Emperor Louis IV , an uncle of Henry II, formally granted Brandenburg to his oldest son, Louis I (the "Brandenburger") in 1323, although various portions of the margraviate were still controlled by various neighbouring principalities. The emergence of

3321-478: The Great . After the middle of the 14th century, Emperor Charles IV attempted to secure Brandenburg for the House of Luxembourg . Control over the electoral vote of Brandenburg would help assure the Luxembourgs of election to the imperial throne, as they already held the vote of Bohemia . Charles succeeded in purchasing Brandenburg from Margrave Otto for 500,000 guilders in 1373 and, at a Landtag in Guben , he attached (but did not incorporate) Brandenburg to

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3402-402: The Grunewald trails north from the Onkel Toms Hütte U-Bahn station and neighborhood shopping center, the walk from Krumme Lanke U-Bahn station to the lake of the same name, and the cross-Zehlendorf walk from the end of the U-Bahn at Krumme Lanke to the S-Bahn station in the center of old Zehlendorf. Zehlendorf shopping center has undergone major changes with plenty of new construction centering on

3483-422: The Havelland and Zauche regions. In the following 150 years the Ascanians succeeded in winning the Uckermark , Teltow , and Barnim regions east of the Havel and Nuthe, thereby extending the Mark to the Oder River . The Neumark ("New March") east of the Oder was acquired gradually through purchases, marriages, and aid to the Piast dynasty of Poland . Because of the sandy soil prevalent in Brandenburg,

3564-425: The Holy Roman Empire the Havolane region from Brandenburg an der Havel to Spandau . The disputed eastern border continued between the Hevelli and the Sprewane, recognized as the Havel-Nuthe line. Prince Jaxa of Köpenick ( Jaxa de Copnic ) of the Sprewane lived in Köpenick east of the dividing line. During the second phase of the German Ostsiedlung , Albert the Bear began the expansionary eastern policy of

3645-421: The Mark's south begins in the Lusatian Highlands (near Żary (Sorau) ) and continues past Trzebiel (Triebel) and Spremberg , then to the northwest through Calau , and ends in the bare and dry Fläming . The southern depression is generally to the north of this ridge and appears strikingly in the Spreewald (between Baruth/Mark and Plaue an der Havel ). The northern depression, lying almost directly south of

3726-591: The Rauen Hills near Fürstenwalde (112 to 152 m, 367 to 499 ft). The region is predominantly marked by dry, sandy soil, wide stretches of which have pine trees and erica plants, or heath. However, the soil is loamy in the uplands and plateaus and, when farmed appropriately, can be agriculturally productive. Mark Brandenburg has a cool, continental climate, with temperatures averaging near 0 °C (32 °F) in January and February and near 18 °C (64 °F) in July and August. Precipitation averages between 500 mm and 600 mm annually, with

3807-491: The S-Bahn station "Zehlendorf." When American forces occupied Berlin and later were stationed in Berlin during the Cold War , Zehlendorf with the "Steuben Barracks", Dahlem and Lichterfelde were the areas where most of those forces were centered, including elements of the Berlin Brigade stationed at the McNair Barracks . There is direct access to central Berlin via road and S-Bahn . The S1 line makes 3 stops in Zehlendorf and runs right through Unter den Linden , where

3888-407: The United States). The Fritsch memorial was melted down in 1943 to make armaments for the war. Mayor Helfenstein committed suicide on 24 April 1945 as the Red Army took Berlin. Helfenstein's death is referred to in the novel Berlin by the anti-Nazi novelist Theodor Plievier . In 1944, Zehlendorf was the location of a subcamp of the Sachsenhausen concentration camp for Polish women. Zehlendorf

3969-409: The affluent and well-educated environment of Zehlendorf, top World War II figures mingled with opponents of the Nazi regime. Express S-Bahn trains, known as the "Banker Trains", whisked them at 120 km/h (75 mph) to the financial and government centers until the service was disrupted towards the end of World War II. During the Nazi period, Zehlendorf's mayor was Walter Helfenstein (1890–1945),

4050-403: The agriculturally meager principality was denigrated as "the sandbox of the Holy Roman Empire ". Albert invited colonists to settle the new territory , many of whom came from the Altmark ("Old March", a later name for the original Northern March), the Harz , Flanders (hence the Fläming region), and the Rhineland . After the capture of territory along the Elbe and Havel Rivers in

4131-446: The alliances formed, such as the Jawor-Pomeranian and Mecklenburg-Saxe-Wittenberg alliances, and kings of Bohemia, Poland and Denmark also entered alliances with various parties. In 1319, Wartislaw IV of Pomerania took control of the New March with Torzym Land, the Międzyrzecz castellany, annexed from Greater Poland by Brandenburg in 1297, and northern Lubusz Land , in the north-east, Henry II of Mecklenburg captured Prignitz in

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4212-454: The ceremonial title of Arch-Chamberlain of the Empire ( Latin : Archi-Camerarius Imperii ). When Louis the Roman died in 1365, Otto took over the rule of Brandenburg, although he quickly neglected the march. He sold Lower Lusatia , which he had already pledged to the Wettin dynasty, to Emperor Charles IV in 1367. A year later he lost the town Deutsch Krone (Wałcz) , annexed from Greater Poland by Brandenburg in 1296, to Polish King Casimir

4293-440: The characteristics of secular princes. Prior to the European colonialism, South Asia and South East Asia were under the influence of the Indosphere , where numerous Indianized principalities and empires flourished for several centuries in Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Philippines, Cambodia and Vietnam. The influence of Indian culture into these areas was given the term indianization . George Coedes defined it as

4374-416: The co-principality of Andorra . Extant royal primogenitures styled as principalities include Asturias (Spain). The Principality of Wales existed in the northern and western areas of Wales between the 13th and 16th centuries; the Laws in Wales Act 1535 which legally incorporated Wales within England removed the distinction between those areas and the March of Wales . The Principality of Catalonia

4455-476: The death of Emperor Louis IV in 1347, the margrave was confronted with the False Waldemar , an imposter of the deceased Margrave Waldemar . The pretender was recognized as Margrave of Brandenburg on 2 October 1348 by the new emperor, Charles IV of Luxembourg , but was exposed as a fraud after a peace between the Wittelsbachs and Luxembourgs at Eltville . In 1351 Louis gave the Mark to his younger half-brothers Louis II (the "Roman") and Otto V in exchange for

4536-410: The districts of Cottbus , Frankfurt (Oder) , Potsdam , Schwerin , and Neubrandenburg Berlin was divided between East Berlin and West Berlin . This division of Brandenburg continued until the German reunification in 1990. The GDR districts were dissolved and replaced with the state of Brandenburg with its capital in Potsdam. The 850th anniversary of the foundation of the March of Brandenburg

4617-446: The election of the Holy Roman Emperor . The state thus became additionally known as Electoral Brandenburg or the Electorate of Brandenburg ( Kurbrandenburg or Kurfürstentum Brandenburg ). The House of Hohenzollern came to the throne of Brandenburg in 1415. In 1417, Frederick I moved its capital from Brandenburg an der Havel to Berlin . By 1535, the electorate had an area of some 10,000 square miles (26,000 km ) and

4698-414: The electors of Brandenburg held it as a fief of the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth , to which the electors paid homage. The electors of Brandenburg spent the next two centuries attempting to gain lands to unite their separate territories (the Mark Brandenburg, the territories in the Rhineland and Westphalia, and Ducal Prussia) to form one geographically contiguous domain. In the Peace of Westphalia ending

4779-449: The empire acted more or less as de facto sovereign states, and only acknowledged the emperor's overlordship over them in a formal way. Thus, Brandenburg came to be treated as de facto part of the Prussian kingdom rather than a separate entity. From 1701 to 1946, Brandenburg's history was largely that of the state of Prussia, which established itself as a major power in Europe during the 18th century. King Frederick William I of Prussia ,

4860-405: The expansion of an organized culture that was framed upon Indian originations of royalty, Hinduism and Buddhism and the Sanskrit dialect . This can be seen in the spread of Hinduism and Buddhism . Indian honorifics also influenced the Malay , Thai , Filipino and Indonesian honorifics. In the colonial context, the term princely states was used, especially for those that came under

4941-479: The first millennium, and this trend subsequently led to the creation of such states as France , Portugal , and Spain . Another form of consolidation was orchestrated in Italy during the Renaissance by the Medici family. A banking family from Florence , the Medici took control of governments in various Italian regions and even assumed the papacy . They then appointed family members as princes and assured their protection. Prussia also later expanded by acquiring

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5022-441: The inheritance, comprising the Duchy of Cleves in the Rhineland and the Counties of Mark and Ravensberg in Westphalia . These territories, which were more than 100 kilometers from the borders of Brandenburg, formed the nucleus of the later Prussian Rhineland . When Albert Frederick, Duke of Prussia , died without a son in 1618, his son-in-law John Sigismund inherited the Duchy of Prussia . He then ruled both territories in

5103-437: The late 13th century, moving the border east of the Oder river. Henry II , the last Ascanian margrave, died in 1320. The death of Magrave Waldemar in 1319 sparked a conflict between the neighbouring principalities of Brunswick-Lüneburg , Mecklenburg , Saxe-Wittenberg , Pomerania-Wolgast , Jawor and Żagań , for control of different parts of the Margraviate. The war was periodically fought between various factions due to

5184-408: The lowland of the Leniwa Obra and the Oder River below the confluence of the Lusatian Neisse , the lower Spree Valley, and the Havel Valley. Between these valleys rise a series of hills and plateaus, such as the Barnim , the Teltow , the Semmelberg near Bad Freienwalde (157 m, 515 ft), the Müggelberge in Köpenick (115 m, 377 ft), the Havelberge (97 m, 318 ft), and

5265-417: The margraviate. King Władysław I Łokietek of Poland actively joined the ongoing war, invading Frankfurt (Oder) in 1326, and the Międzyrzecz castellany was ultimately reintegrated with Poland. From 1328 onwards, Louis was in war against Pomerania which he claimed as a fiefdom and the conflict did not end before 1333. The rule of Margrave Louis I was rejected by the domestic nobility of Brandenburg, and, after

5346-450: The monarch acting as a mere figurehead while administration was left in the hands of elected parliaments. The trend in the 19th and 20th centuries was the abolition of various forms of monarchy and the creation of republican governments led by popularly elected presidents. Several principalities where genealogical inheritance is replaced by succession in a religious office have existed in the Roman Catholic Church , in each case consisting of

5427-430: The north-west and Uckermark in the north, Rudolf I of Saxe-Wittenberg captured the Mittelmark , Teltow and Barnim , i.e. the central part, Otto the Mild of Brunswick-Lüneburg captured the Old March in the west. In 1320, a large portion of the Lubusz Land passed to Duke Henry I of Jawor , who tried to reclaim it as a region lost by his grandfather Bolesław II the Horned , and afterwards its western outskirts and

5508-405: The present-day federal state Brandenburg, such as Lower Lusatia and territory which had been Saxon until 1815, were not parts of the Mark. Colloquially but not accurately, the federal state Brandenburg is sometimes identified as the Mark or Mark Brandenburg. The region was formed during the ice age , and characterized by moraines , glacial valleys, and numerous lakes. The territory is known as

5589-477: The principality, granting them more independence. After Albert's death in 1170, his son succeeded him as Otto I, Margrave of Brandenburg . The Ascanians pursued a policy of expanding to the east and the northeast with the goal of connecting their territories through Pomerania to the Baltic Sea . This policy brought them into conflict with the Kingdom of Denmark. After the Battle of Bornhöved (1227) , Margrave John I staked his claim to Pomerania, receiving it as

5670-505: The services provided to their citizens. Princes and dukes developed their lands, established new ports and chartered large thriving cities. Some used their new-found wealth to build palaces and other institutions now associated with sovereign states. While some principalities prospered in their independence, less successful states were swallowed by stronger royal houses. Europe saw consolidation of small principalities into larger kingdoms and empires . This had already happened in England in

5751-453: The sole rule over Upper Bavaria . Louis the Roman forced the False Waldemar to renounce his claims to Brandenburg and succeeded in establishing the Margraves of Brandenburg as prince-electors in the Golden Bull of 1356 . Brandenburg therefore became a Kurfürstentum (literally "electoral principality" or "electorate") of the Holy Roman Empire and had a vote in the election of the Holy Roman Emperor . The Margrave of Brandenburg also held

5832-759: The sway of a European colonising power: for example the British Indian and neighbouring or associated (e.g., Arabian) princely states were ruled by monarchs called Princes by the British, regardless of the native styles, which could be equivalent to royal or even imperial rank in the Indigenous cultures. Principalities have also existed in ancient and modern civilizations of Africa , Pre-Columbian America and Oceania . Several micronations , which de facto have few characteristics of sovereign states and are not recognized as such, more or less seriously claim

5913-401: The territories of many other states. However, in the 17th to 19th centuries, especially within the Holy Roman Empire, the reverse was also occurring: many new small sovereign states arose as a result of transfers of land for various reasons. Notable principalities existed until the early 20th century in various regions of Germany and Italy . Nationalism , the belief that the nation-state

5994-604: Was a state located in the north-eastern area of the Iberian Peninsula and southern France between the late 12th and early 18th centuries, as the term for the political entity ruled by the Catalan Courts (the parliament) as a member of the composite monarchy of the Crown of Aragon , until the defeat of the Habsburgs in the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714), when these institutions were abolished by

6075-823: Was administered as the Gau March of Brandenburg . The state of Prussia was de jure abolished in 1947 after the defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II; the Gau March of Brandenburg was replaced with the Land Brandenburg. Brandenburg west of the Oder–Neisse line lay in the Soviet occupation zone ; it became part of the German Democratic Republic . In 1952 the region was divided among

6156-551: Was allowed to elevate Prussia to the status of a kingdom. On 18 January 1701, Frederick crowned himself Frederick I, King in Prussia . Prussia, unlike Brandenburg, lay outside the Holy Roman Empire, within which only the emperor and the ruler of Bohemia could call themselves king. As king was a more prestigious title than prince-elector , the territories of the Hohenzollerns became known as the Kingdom of Prussia , although their power base remained in Brandenburg. Legally, Brandenburg

6237-461: Was celebrated officially on 11 June 2007, with preliminary celebrations at the Knights' Academy of Brandenburg an der Havel on 23 June 2006. Principality List of forms of government A principality (or sometimes princedom ) can either be a monarchical feudatory or a sovereign state , ruled or reigned over by a regnant- monarch with the title of prince and/or princess , or by

6318-809: Was especially prevalent in Europe , and particularly with the Princes of the Holy Roman Empire . During the Late Middle Ages from 1200 to 1500, principalities were often at war with each other as royal houses asserted sovereignty over smaller principalities. These wars caused a great deal of instability and economies were destroyed. Episodes of bubonic plague also reduced the power of principalities to survive independently. Eventually, agricultural progress and development of new trade goods and services boosted commerce between principalities. Many of these states became wealthy, expanded their territories and improved

6399-462: Was still part of the Holy Roman Empire, ruled by the Hohenzollerns in personal union with the Prussian kingdom over which they were fully sovereign. For this reason, the Hohenzollerns continued to use the additional title of Elector of Brandenburg for the remainder of the empire's run. However, by this time the emperor's authority over the empire had become merely nominal. The various territories of

6480-461: Was the wife of John Sigismund, Elector of Brandenburg , who promptly claimed the inheritance and sent troops to take hold of some of John William's holdings in the Rhineland . Unfortunately for John Sigismund, this effort became tied up with the Thirty Years' War and the disputed succession of Jülich. At the end of the war in 1648, Brandenburg was recognized as the possessor of approximately half

6561-611: Was to purchase and reincorporate the New March , which it previously lost to Brandenburg in the 13th century, however in the same year the Luxembourgs pawned the region to the Teutonic Knights , who neglected the border region. Under the Wittelsbach and Luxembourg margraves, Brandenburg fell increasingly under the control of the local nobility as central authority declined. In return for supporting Sigismund as Holy Roman Emperor at Frankfurt in 1410, Frederick VI of Nuremberg ,

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