Imperial Count

Empire Graf was a - not official - professional title within the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. On the one hand, holders of a direct imperial county were thus sometimes referred to (which you also called gefürstete Count has ) and as " lords " by the mediatization lost most of the early 19th century, their sovereignty and kingdom stand shaft, but still belonged to the high nobility; the other hand, sometimes the ordinary counts were so designated, provided that the title bestowed as a registrar increasing by the Holy Roman Emperor and therefore the whole empire was valid. It never acted in this form an official title.

Imperial Count as proprietor of a direct imperial territory

The holder of a county that directly subordinate to the emperor and otherwise no other worldly authority was subject ( an imperial county), were referred to as rich direct counts. Your special political position was formed out since the Middle Ages and remained until the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation in 1806 consist.

Origin

In Merovingian and Frankish Empire was a royal Graf official who in an administrative unit (county, district) exercised the royal sovereign rights and in certain areas (Mark, royal castle, Pfalz, royal estate ) was representative of the king or emperor. After formation of the younger tribal duchies the previous Count vassals of the dukes were in their tribal area. Since the Ottos, the meaning of the title Earl walked by his increasing heritability and the integration into the feudal system from the original office to the term for the combined rights of a nobleman in a particular area. The Count rights were treated more and more private law by exchange, sale and distribution of estates. Thus the old counties fragmented more and were combined with other rights to new downsized counties. In addition, many counties were given away to bishops and archbishops, so that the direct rule of the king withdrawn and distributed among several vassals. As an outward sign of this trend continued increases the designation of the county after the reign midpoint of the count rather than by the situation in a district for the county through. As the kings and emperors in addition to these titles also had different own possessions such as counties, duchies or royal estate, but left many territories that could become rich immediately after the end of the Hohenstaufen dynasty. Also succeeded many counts, who were vassals of tribal dukes or bishops in the early period, to part with the time of their suzerainty. For all these, many counties that were assumed with time only as the Emperor immediately developed, and their owners were Imperial Count and Count rich immediate and seat and a vote received in the Reichstag.

Power and political role

Seat and vote in the Reichstag made ​​him rich and immediate civil magnificent Count. In 1521 there was the Holy Roman Empire 144 Empire counties, in 1792 only 99 Reasons for this decrease are able surveys, extinction of gender and media coverage by more powerful princes of the empire. Empire Direct, unable beautiful counties existed especially in the so-called royal nearby areas such as Swabia and Franconia, but were also in the northwest of the kingdom to find.

In order to enforce their political interests more effectively and to preserve their independence, the civil magnificent Count Count organized in clubs and held from Count days. On Empire days, starting in the 16th century, and in the Perpetual Reichstag unable magnificent Count formed within the Imperial Prince Council Count benches, also known as Imperial Count colleges. Beginning of the 16th century saw the wetterauische and the Swabian Imperial Count College, which in 1640 still the Frankish and 1653 the Westphalian Reichsgraf college came. In 1792 there were four Reichsgraf banks ( sorted by number of internally -voting members):

End of imperial immediacy

With the Act of Confederation, and dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation 1806, the most direct imperial counties were mediated and fell to adjacent larger German states.

The affected, direct imperial until then, unable magnificent earls retained according to the agreement of the Vienna Congress, however, expressly their rank as lords and so were the reigning houses as an equal.

A few exceptions existed within the Confederation of the Rhine a few more years, usually after survey principalities by Napoleon, and were later than 1815 mediated by the Congress of Vienna. This date in turn, took only the former imperial counties lip, Reuss (several lines) and Schaumburg -Lippe, which continued to exist as a principality until 1918.

Reichsgraf as a holder of a valid throughout the Empire title

As Reichsgrafen also such carriers of the noble title Graf were called, who had received their earldom conferred by a certificate of the Holy Roman Emperor or an Imperial Vicar. A pronounced by the emperor able increase was to the extent otherwise expressly provided, recognized throughout the empire and needed no further naturalization by the sovereign ruler. In contrast, were able increases, which were not made ​​by the Emperor, in principle only on the lands of the ennobling sovereign. In this way about a King of Prussia could only confer a title with validity within his dominions; the electors or lesser imperial estates had, however, seek to survey always with the Emperor. Could, however, the Roman-German emperors of the House of Habsburg either a erbländisch - Austrian title status ( in his capacity as ruler of the Habsburg lands, especially as King of Bohemia and Hungary, with validity of the title only for this area ), or a title of Holy Roman Empire ( in its capacity as the emperor, with validity of the title throughout the Holy Roman Empire).

A higher position in relation levied by other monarchs ( non- civil magnificent ) Count was not connected, no empire state stem or membership of the nobility. In the 17th and 18th century, the name was therefore (for example, in documents ) occasionally "The Holy Roman Empire Count of ... ". The term imperial count is usually come up until the 19th century, against the backdrop of a romantic nostalgia for the defunct imperial unity, and did not seek to officially leading titles that have but served only - einordnend and descriptive - of distinguishing such Graf surveys that are not by the Holy Roman Emperor were done at the time of the Old Kingdom. From the Herald offices the leadership of the was ( so non-existing) title " Imperial Count " forbidden, even the German nobility Legal Committee contradicts the most gullible, but traditionally adverse guide this never officially awarded title, also found as part of the family name hardly ever entrance into the passport expected. The German Adelsblatt can therefore generally the Reich in all family announcements out.

The " kingdom of Gegraften " had usually no imperial state stem ( like the "rich immediate "); However, there were up to the middle of the 17th century also exceptions, the so-called Persona lists: Until 1653, the Empire state stem could be imparted by the emperor also those persons who did not have a rich immediate territory. Later was to acquire the Empire state stem exception of owning a direct imperial territory, the agreement of the College and the consent of the emperor required ( co-option and Admission ).

• Count
• Title of nobility
• Empire County