Province of Hesse-Nassau

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Hessen-Nassau
Hesse-Nassau
Province of Prussia



1868 — 1944 Flag
Flag
Flag Coat of arms
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Hesse-Nassau
The Province of Hesse-Nassau (red), within the Kingdom of Prussia, within the German Empire
Capital Kassel
History
 - Established 1868
 - Disestablished 1944
Area
 - 1905 (?) 15,700 km2
6,062 sq mi
 - 1939 16,845 km2
6,504 sq mi
Population
 - 1905 (?) est. 2,070,076 
     Density 131.9 /km² 
341.5 /sq mi
 - 1939 est. 2,688,922 
     Density 159.6 /km² 
413.4 /sq mi
Political Subdivisions Cassel
Wiesbaden
Today part of Hesse
Rhineland-Palatinate

Hesse-Nassau (Hessen-Nassau in German) was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia from 1868 to 1918, then a province of the Free State of Prussia until 1944. It was created as a consequence of the Austro-Prussian War of 1866 by combining the previously independent Hesse-Kassel, the Duchy of Nassau, the Free City of Frankfurt, areas gained from the Kingdom of Bavaria, and areas gained from the Grand Duchy of Hesse (Hesse-Darmstadt; including part of the former Landgraviate of Hesse-Homburg). These regions were combined to form the province Hesse-Nassau in 1868 with its capital in Kassel and redivided into two administrative regions: Cassel and Wiesbaden.

On 1 April 1929, the Free State of Waldeck became a part of Hesse-Nassau after a popular vote and became part of the Cassel administrative region.

In 1935 the Nazi government abolished (de facto) all states, so the provinces held little meaning. In 1944, Hesse-Nassau was split into the provinces of Electoral Hesse (Kurhessen in German, capital: Kassel) and Province of Nassau (capital: Wiesbaden) as its capital. In 1945, after the end of World War II, these two provinces were remerged and combined with the neighbouring Hesse-Darmstadt to form the northern and western part of the newly founded state of Hesse. Parts of Nassau were also moved into the Rhineland-Palatinate.

[edit] Insignia

The flag of Hesse-Nassau is identical to that of the Netherlands. The Dutch royal house originates from the Duchy of Nassau.

The coat of arms is split into three parts, each part showing the coats of arms for the three entities that formed Hesse-Nassau:

  • a crowned, silver/red-striped lion on a blue background (Electorate of Hesse)
  • a crowned, golden lion, also on a blue background (Duchy of Nassau)
  • a silver eagle with golden talons on a red background (Free City of Frankfurt)


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