Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle
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The Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle (in German, Niederrheinisch-Westfälischer Reichskreis) was an Imperial Circle of the Holy Roman Empire.
[edit] Composition
The circle was made up of the following states:
| Name | Type of entity | Comments |
|---|---|---|
| Aachen | Imperial City | |
| Anholt | Lordship | |
| Beilstein | Lordship | |
| Bentheim | County | |
| Bentheim-Steinfurt | County | |
| Berg | Duchy | |
| Blankenheim-Gerolstein | County | |
| Brakel | Imperial City | |
| Cambrai | Bishopric | |
| Cambrai | Imperial City | |
| Cleves | Duchy | |
| Cologne | Imperial City | |
| Corvey | Abbacy | |
| Delmenhorst | County | |
| Diepholz | County | |
| Dortmund | Imperial City | |
| Duisburg | Imperial City | status unclear |
| Düren | Imperial City | |
| East Frisia | Principality | |
| Echternach | Abbacy | |
| Essen | Abbacy | |
| Fagnolle | County | |
| Gemen | Lordship | |
| Gimborn | Lordship | |
| Gronsveld | County | |
| Hallermund | County | |
| Herford | Abbacy | |
| Herford | Imperial City | status unclear |
| Holzappel | County | |
| Hoya | County | |
| Jülich | Duchy | |
| Kerpen-Lommersum | County | |
| Kornelimünster | Abbacy | |
| Lemgo | Imperial City | |
| Liège | Bishopric | |
| Lingen | County | |
| Lippe | Principality | |
| Luxembourg | Duchy | unclear, later to Burgundian Circle |
| Malmedy | Abbacy | |
| Manderscheid | County | |
| Mark | County | |
| Myllendonk | Lordship | |
| Minden | Principality, Bishopric | |
| Moers | Principality | |
| Münster | Bishopric | |
| Nassau-Diez | Principality | |
| Nassau-Dillenburg | County | |
| Nassau-Hadamar | County | |
| Oldenburg | County | |
| Osnabrück | Bishopric | |
| Paderborn | Bishopric | |
| Pyrmont | County | |
| Ravensberg | County | |
| Reckheim | County | |
| Reichenstein | Lordship | |
| Rietberg | County | |
| Salm-Reifferscheid-Dyck | County | status unclear |
| Sayn | County | |
| Schaumburg | County | |
| Schaumburg-Hesse | County | |
| Schaumburg-Lippe | County | |
| Schleiden | County | |
| Soest | Imperial City | |
| Spiegelberg | County | |
| Stavelot | Abbacy | |
| Steinfurt | County | |
| Tecklenburg | County | |
| Thorn | Abbacy | |
| Utrecht | Bishopric | later to Burgundian Circle |
| Verden | Bishopric | Secularized as a principality held by the King of Sweden from 1648 |
| Verden | Imperial City | status unclear |
| Virneburg | County | |
| Warburg | Imperial City | |
| Werden | Abbacy | |
| Wesel | Imperial City | status unclear |
| Wickrath | County | To Prussia in 1814 |
| Wied | County | |
| Winneburg | Lordship | |
| Wittem | Lordship |
[edit] References
- The list of states making up the Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle is based in part on that in the German Wikipedia article Niederrheinisch-Westfälischer Reichskreis.
- (German) List of the imperial circles of 1532
Holy Roman Empire - Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle (1500-1806)Aachen | Anholt | Beilstein | Bentheim | Berg | Blankenheim and Gerolstein | Cambrai | Cleves | Cologne | Corvey | Delmenhorst | Diepholz | Dortmund | East Frisia | Essen | Fagnolle | Gemen | Gimborn | Gronsfeld | Hallermund | Herford | Holzapfel | Hoya | Jülich | Kerpen-Lommersum | Kornelimünster | Liège | Lingen | Lippe | Malmedy | Mark | Minden | Moers | Münster | Myllendonk | Nassau-Diez | Nassau-Dillenburg | Nassau-Hadamar | Oldenburg | Osnabrück | Paderborn | Pyrmont | Ravensberg | Reckheim | Reichenstein | Rietberg | Sayn | Schaumburg | Schaumburg-Hesse | Schaumburg-Lippe | Schleiden | Spiegelberg | Stavelot | Steinfurt | Tecklenburg | Thorn | Verden | Virneburg | Werden | Wickrath | Wied | Winneburg | Wittem
| Circles of the Holy Roman Empire after the Imperial Reform |
 |
|---|---|
| Created in 1500: Bavarian Circle · Franconian Circle · (Lower Rhenish-)Westphalian Circle · Lower Saxon Circle · Swabian Circle · Upper Rhenish Circle Created in 1512: Austrian Circle · Burgundian Circle · Electoral Rhenish Circle · Upper Saxon Circle |
