List of Hessian monarchs

{{Infobox former monarchy

| royal_title = Monarchy

| realm = Hesse

| border = state

| coatofarms = File:Coat of Arms of the Grand Duchy of Hesse 1806-1918.svg

| coatofarmscaption = Royal Coat of arms

| image = ErnstLouisHesse.jpg

| caption = Ernest Louis

| first_monarch = Henry I (as landgrave)

| last_monarch = Ernest Louis (as grand duke)

| style = His Royal Highness

| residence =

| appointer = Hereditary

| began = 1264

| ended = 9 November 1918

| pretender = Donatus

}}

File:Royal Standard of the Grand Duke of Hesse (1903–1918).svg

This is a list of monarchs of Hesse ({{langx|de|Hessen}}) during the history of Hesse on west-central Germany. These monarchs belonged to a dynasty collectively known as the House of Hesse and the House of Brabant,Burke's Royal Families of the World Volume I Europe & Latin America {{ISBN|0-85011-023-8}}, London 1977 p. 202 originally the Reginar. Hesse was ruled as a landgraviate, electorate and later as a grand duchy until 1918.

The title of all of the following monarchs was "landgrave" ({{langx|de|Landgraf}}) unless otherwise noted.

Landgraviate of Hesse

In the early Middle Ages the Hessengau territory (named after the Germanic Chatti tribes) formed the northern parts of the German stem duchy of Franconia along with the adjacent Lahngau. Upon the extinction of the ducal Conradines, these Rhenish Franconian counties were gradually acquired by Landgrave Louis I of Thuringia and his successors.

After the War of the Thuringian Succession upon the death of Landgrave Henry Raspe in 1247, his niece Duchess Sophia of Brabant secured the Hessian possessions for her minor son Henry the Child, who would become the first landgrave of Hesse and founder of the House of Hesse in 1246. The remaining Thuringian landgraviate fell to the Wettin margrave Henry III of Meissen. Henry I of Hesse was raised to princely status by King Adolf of Germany in 1292.

Rulers of Hesse

=[[Ludovingians|Ludovingian dynasty]] and [[House of Hesse]]=

==Partitions of Hesse under Ludowingian and Hesse families==

align="center" style="border-spacing: 0px; border: 1px solid black; text-align: center;"

colspan=7 style="background: #fff;" |Lordship of Hesse-Gudensberg
As part of the Landgraviate of Thuringia, inherited through marriage
Gudensberg separated in 1140-1157, 1172-1180 and 1227-1240)
(1123-1264)

colspan=7 style="background: #eee;" |War of the Thuringian Succession (1247-1264): Hesse was separated from Thuringia

colspan=7 style="background: #fff;" |Landgraviate of Hesse
Ludovingian matrilineal line;
Briefly divided in Lower Hesse and Upper Hesse in 1308-1311 and 1458-1500
(1264–1567)

colspan=4 style="background: #def;" |Landgraviate
of CasselBetter known as Hesse-Kassel
(1567–1803)

| colspan=1 style="background: #fbd;" |Landgraviate
of RheinfelsBetter known as Hesse-Rheinfels
(1st creation)
(1567–1583)

| colspan=1 style="background: #fea898;" |Landgraviate
of MarburgBetter known as Hesse-Marburg
(1567–1604)

| colspan=1 style="background: #ceb;" |Landgraviate
of DarmstadtBetter known as Hesse-Darmstadt
(1567–1806)

colspan=5 style="background: #def;" |

| colspan=2 style="background: #ceb;" |

colspan=3 style="background: #def;" |

| colspan=1 style="background: #aed;" |

| colspan=1 style="background: #fbd;" |Landgraviate
of Rheinfels
(2nd creation)
(1627–1658)

| colspan=1 rowspan="5" style="background: #dcb;" |Landgraviate
of HomburgBetter known as Hesse-Homburg
(1st creation)
(1622–1806)

| colspan=1 style="background: #ceb;" |

colspan=2 style="background: #dce;" |

| colspan=1 rowspan="4" style="background: #def;" |Raised to:
Electorate of
Hesse
(1st creation)
(1803–1807)

| colspan=2 style="background: #aed;" |

| colspan=1 style="background: #ceb;" |

colspan=1 rowspan="3" style="background: #ada;" |Landgraviate
of BarchfeldBetter known as Hesse-Barchfeld
(1st creation)
(1721–1807)

| colspan=1 rowspan="3" style="background: #dce;" |Landgraviate
of PhilippsthalBetter known as Hesse-Philippsthal
(1st creation)
(1663–1807)

| colspan=1 style="background: #aed;" |

| colspan=1 style="background: #ecf;" |Landgraviate
of WanfriedBetter known as Hesse-Wanfried
(1700–1755)

| colspan=1 style="background: #ceb;" |

colspan=2 rowspan="2" style="background: #aed;" |Landgraviate
of RotenburgBetter known as Hesse-Rotenburg
(1st creation)
(1627–1807)

| colspan=1 style="background: #ceb;" |

colspan=1 style="background: #ceb;" |Raised to:
Grand Duchy of
Hesse
(1806–1918)

colspan=5 style="background: #eee;" |Annexed to the Kingdom of Westphalia

| colspan=2 style="background: #ceb;" |

colspan=1 rowspan="2" style="background: #ada;" |Landgraviate
of Barchfeld
(2nd creation)
(1813–1866)

| colspan=1 rowspan="2" style="background: #dce;" |Landgraviate
of Philippsthal
(2nd creation)
(1813–1866)

| colspan=1 style="background: #def;" |Electorate
of Hesse
(2nd creation)
(1813–1866)

| colspan=2 style="background: #aed;" |Landgraviate
of Rotenburg
(2nd creation)
(1813–1834)

| colspan=1 rowspan="2" style="background: #dcb;" |Landgraviate
of Homburg
(2nd creation)
(1815–1866)

| colspan=1 rowspan="3" style="background: #ceb;" |

colspan=3 style="background: #def;" |

colspan=6 style="background: #eee;" |Annexed to the Kingdom of Prussia

==Table of rulers==

class="wikitable sticky-header"

! colspan=2 | Ruler!!Born!!Reign!!Ruling part!!Consort!!Death!!Notes

style="background:#ggg"

|colspan=8 align=center|Ludovingian dynasty

style="background:#fff"

| {{ill|Henry Raspe I, Lord of Gudensberg|de|Heinrich Raspe I.|lt=Henry Raspe I}}

|align=center|c.1090
Second son of Louis the Springer, count in Thuringia and Adelaide of Stade

|align=center|1123 – 1130

Lordship of Gudensberg
(in Hesse)

{{ill|Kunigunde of Bilstein|de|Kunigunde von Bilstein|lt=Kunigunde of Bilstein}}
1123
no children

|align=center|1130
aged 39-40

A second son, didn't inherit the main property of his family. First recorded Ludowingian ruler in the Hessian region, through marriage with the widow of Giso IV, Count of Gudensberg. As he didn't leave descendants, Gudensberg passed to his brother and his respective wife, who was Kunigunde and Giso's daughter.

style="background:#fff"

List of Hessian monarchs

Landgraviate of Hesse

Rulers of Hesse

=[[Ludovingians|Ludovingian dynasty]] and [[House of Hesse]]=

==Partitions of Hesse under Ludowingian and Hesse families==

==Table of rulers==

See also

References

External links