The Palatinate (German: Pfalz; Pfälzer dialect Palz), historically also Rhenish Palatinate (Latin: palatinatum Renensis; German: Rheinpfalz), is a region in south-western Germany. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. The German language (de ''Deutsch'') is a West Germanic language and one of the world's major languages. Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany ( ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant is a Country in Central Europe. It occupies more than a quarter of the German federal state (Bundesland) of Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz). Germany (Deutschland is a Federal Republic consisting of sixteen States, known in German as Länder (singular Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz is one of the 16 federal states (German Bundesländer) of Germany.
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Geography
The western and northern part of the Palatinate is densely forested and mountainous. The highest point is the Donnersberg (687 m) near Kirchheimbolanden. Kirchheimbolanden, the capital of Donnersbergkreis, is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, south-western Germany. The Palatinate forest (Pfälzerwald) covers more than a third of the region and is the largest coherent forest in Germany. The Palatinate Forest (Pfälzerwald is a low-mountain region in southwestern Germany, located in Palatinate in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. The eastern part is lower, and is a well known wine region, the Palatinate wine region through which the German Wine Route (Deutsche Weinstrasse) passes. Palatinate (Pfalz is a German wine -growing region ( Weinbaugebiet) in the area of Bad Dürkheim, Neustadt an der Weinstraße, and The German Wine Route or Wine Road (Deutsche Weinstraße is the oldest of Germany 's tourist Wine routes Located in the Palatinate region Most of the cities of the Palatinate (Ludwigshafen, Speyer, Landau, Frankenthal, Neustadt) lie in the plain rhine rift in the east of the region, near the Rhine, which forms the eastern border of the Palatinate. The Upper Rhine valley (Oberrheinische Tiefebene describes the Upper Rhine area on the earth's surface while the Upper Rhine Rift ( Oberrheingraben The Rhine (Rhein Rijn Rhin Reno Rain Rhenus is one of the longest and most important Rivers in Europe at 1320 kilometres (820 mi with an average discharge
Traditionally, the Palatinate is divided into the regions of Anterior Palatinate (Vorderpfalz), West Palatinate (Westpfalz), North Palatinate (Nordpfalz), and South Palatinate (Südpfalz).
Administratively, The following districts and independent cities are part of the Palatinate:
Districts:
- Bad Dürkheim
- Donnersbergkreis
- Germersheim
- Kaiserslautern (district)
- Kusel
- Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis
- Südliche Weinstraße
- Südwestpfalz
Independent cities:
- Frankenthal
- Kaiserslautern
- Landau
- Ludwigshafen
- Neustadt an der Weinstraße
- Pirmasens
- Speyer
- Zweibrücken
History
From the Middle Ages until the end of the 18th century, the Palatinate was divided into several big and small states. German districts (de ''Kreise'' or de ''Landkreise'' in the states of Nordrhein-Westfalen and Schleswig-Holstein, singular de ''Kreis'' and de ''Landreis'' Bad Dürkheim is a district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The Donnersbergkreis is a district ( Kreis) in the middle of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Germersheim is a district ( Kreis) in the south-east of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Kaiserslautern is a district ( Kreis) in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Kusel is a district ( Kreis) in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The Rhein-Pfalz-Kreis is a district ( Kreis) in the east of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Südliche Weinstraße is a district ( Kreis) in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Südwestpfalz is a district ( Kreis) in the south of Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Frankenthal is a City in southwestern Germany, in the state of Rhineland-Palatinate. (kaɪzɐsˈlaʊtɐn is a City in southwest Germany, located in the Bundesland State of Rhineland-Palatinate ( Rheinland-Pfalz) at Landau or Landau in der Pfalz (pop 41821 is an autonomous ( kreisfrei) city surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route" Ludwigshafen am Rhein is a City in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Neustadt an der Weinstraße is a city located in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. Pirmasens is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France. Speyer (English formerly Spires) is a City in Germany ( Rhineland-Palatinate) with approx Zweibrücken is a City in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Schwarzbach river at the border of the Palatinate forest. The 18th century lasted from 1701 to 1800 in the Gregorian calendar, in accordance with the Anno Domini / Common Era numbering system The most important of these were the Electoral Palatinate (Kurpfalz), the Duchy of Palatinate-Zweibrücken and the Bishopric of Speyer. The Palatinate of the Rhine (Pfalzgrafschaft bei Rhein later the Electoral Palatinate (Kurpfalz was a historical territory of the Holy Roman Empire Palatinate-Zweibrücken (Pfalz-Zweibrücken is a former state of the Holy Roman Empire. The Bishopric of Speyer until the Secularization of 1803 was the wordly realm of the prince-bishops of Speyer in what is today the German state of The prince-elector (Kurfürst) of the Electoral Palatinate was one of the few nobles with the privilege of electing the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. The Prince-Electors (or simply Electors) of the Holy Roman Empire ( German: Kurfürst ( pl The Holy Roman Empire ( HRE; German Heiliges Römisches Reich (HRR, Latin Sacrum Romanum Imperium (SRI was a union of territories in
After the period of French occupation (see French Revolutionary Wars, Napoleonic Wars and Mont-Tonnerre), a significant stretch of land on the left bank of the Rhine, which included greater parts of the former electoral Palatinate became part of the Kingdom of Bavaria in 1816. This article is about the country For a topic outline on this subject see List of basic France topics. The French Revolutionary Wars were a series of major conflicts from 1792 until 1802 fought between the French Revolutionary government and several European states The Napoleonic Wars (1803-1815 involved Napoleon's French Empire and a shifting set of European allies and opposing coalitions Mont-Tonnerre is the name of a département of the First French Empire in present Germany. The Kingdom of Bavaria (Königreich Bayern was a German state that existed from 1806&ndash1918 Year 1816 ( MDCCCXVI) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year Although the territory was geographically separate from Bavaria, it was ruled together with proper Bavaria as a single state for the next 130 years.
After 1808 the administrative regions in Bavaria were named after their main rivers. Thus the region after its annexation to Bavaria was officially called the "Rheinkreis". In 1835 the romantic-minded King Ludwig I of Bavaria ordered the administrative regions to be named by historical allusions. Ludwig I (also rendered in English as Louis I) ( August 25 1786 in Strasbourg &ndash February 29, 1868 in Nice So the region officially became the "Palatinate" (Pfalz). It should be noted here, that the historic Electoral Palatinate was centered on the right bank of the Rhine with Heidelberg and Mannheim as its capitals, while the new "Palatinate," that was established in 1815/16 was solely on the left bank of the Rhine, and included territories that had never been part of the historic Palatinate (e. The Palatinate of the Rhine (Pfalzgrafschaft bei Rhein later the Electoral Palatinate (Kurpfalz was a historical territory of the Holy Roman Empire Heidelberg is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. As of 2006 over 140000 people live within the city's area Mannheim is a City in Germany. With 327318 inhabitants it is the second-largest city in the state of Baden-Württemberg after the capital Stuttgart g. , the former bishopric of Speyer or Kirchheimbolanden, which had formerly belonged to Weilburg branch of Nassau). Speyer (English formerly Spires) is a City in Germany ( Rhineland-Palatinate) with approx Kirchheimbolanden, the capital of Donnersbergkreis, is a town in Rhineland-Palatinate, south-western Germany. Nassau was a German state within the Holy Roman Empire and later in the German Confederation. In order not to confuse the new Palatinate with the historic one (and with the Upper Palatinate), the name Rhenish Palatinate was common, but never official. The Upper Palatinate (German Oberpfalz) is one of the seven administrative regions of Bavaria, Germany, located in the east of Bavaria The term Rhenish Bavaria (Rheinbayern) can also be found sometimes in older maps.
The French had introduced their system of administration and the Code Napoleon in the Palatinate. The Napoleonic Code, or Code Napoléon (originally called the Code civil des Français) is the French Civil code, established under The Bavarian government preserved both after 1816, which gave the Palatinate a distinct legal status within the Bavarian kingdom. The royal family tried to symbolize the unity with Bavaria by erecting a royal palace in Edenkoben and by the restoration of Speyer Cathedral under direct supervision of King Ludwig I. Edenkoben is a municipality in the Südliche Weinstraße district in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. The Speyer Cathedral is a very large and imposing Basilica of red Sandstone in Speyer, Germany. himself. The town Ludwigshafen was named after the king. Ludwigshafen am Rhein is a City in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. On the other hand the Palatinate's representatives to the common Bavarian Parliament always prided themselves of their origin from a more progressive region and tried to expand the liberalism, which the French had introduced in the Palatinate, to the whole kingdom. The German Historian Heiner Haan described the special status of the Palatinate within Bavaria as a relation of "Hauptstaat" (main state, i. e. Bavaria) and "Nebenstaat" (alongside state, i. e. the Palatinate).
During the revolution of 1848 a separatist movement tried to establish a "Palatinate Republic," which collapsed under a bloody Prussian military intervention.
The union persisted after Bavaria became part of the German Empire in 1871, and after the Wittelsbach dynasty was deposed and Bavaria became a Free state in 1918. The German Empire is the name commonly used in English to describe Germany from 1871 to 1918 when it was a semi- Constitutional monarchy: beginning with the Unification Year 1871 ( MDCCCLXXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common The Wittelsbach family is a European Royal family and a German dynasty from Bavaria. History See also Orange Free State Geography The Free State is situated on flat boundless plains in the heart of South Africa Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common
After the First World War French troops occupied the Palatinate under the terms of the treaty of Versailles. The Treaty of Versailles was one of the peace treaties at the end of World War I. The western districts St. Ingbert and Homburg were separated from the Palatinate and became part of the newly established Saarland, which according to peace treaty was governed by the League of Nations. Saarland (ˈzaːɐ̯lant in German; French: Sarre) is one of the 16 federal states (German Bundesländer) of Germany. In a clear breach of the treaty the French in 1923 encouraged a separatist movement for a Rhenish Republic in the remainder of the Rhenish Palatinate and the Prussian Rhineland. The Rhenish Republic (Rheinische Republik was proclaimed at Aachen (Aix-la-Chapelle in October 1923 during the Occupation of the Ruhr by troops from France The Rhineland ( Rheinland in German) is the general name for the land on both sides of the river Rhine in the west of Germany. The Bavarian government reacted sharply and even had the leading separatist Franz Josef Heinz assassinated at the Wittelsbacher Hof in Speyer in January 1924. In February 1924 members of the separatist movement were killed in a shooting in Pirmasens. Pirmasens is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, near the border with France. Also in February 1924 a treaty between Bavaria in the inter-allied commission of the Rhineland (the supreme council of the Allied occupation forces) recognised and reassured the Palatinate being a part of Bavaria.
The union with Bavaria was finally dissolved following the reorganisation of German states after World War II during the occupation of Germany. World War II, or the Second World War, (often abbreviated WWII) was a global military conflict which involved a majority of the world's nations, including Whereas proper Bavaria was part of the US occupation Zone, the Palatinate was occupied by French Forces. The French reorganised their occupation Zone by founding new states and in 1947, the Palatinate was combined with Rheinhessen (a part of Hesse), a part of the Prussian Province of Nassau, and the southern part of the Prussian Rhine Province to form the German federal state of Rhineland-Palatinate. Year 1947 ( MCMXLVII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display full 1947 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. Hesse (Hessen is a state of Germany with an area Prussia ( Latin: Borussia, Prutenia; Prūsija Prūsija Prusy Old Prussian: Prūsa) was most recently a historic state The Province of Nassau (Provinz Nassau was a province of Prussia from 1944-1945 The Rhine Province (Rheinprovinz also known as Rhenish Prussia ( Rheinpreußen) was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and the Free Rhineland-Palatinate (Rheinland-Pfalz is one of the 16 federal states (German Bundesländer) of Germany.
See also
External links
- Rhenish Palatinate - Catholic Encyclopedia article
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