Principality of Göttingen

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Arms of the Dukes of Brunswick-Lüneburg

The principality of Göttingen was a subdivision of the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg in the Holy Roman Empire with Göttingen as its capital. It was split off from the principality of Brunswick in 1279 in the course of an estate division among members of the House of Welf. In 1463, it fell to the principality of Calenberg, with which it stayed united until the end of the Duchy.

After the death of Otto the Child in 1257 AD, his sons Albert I of Brunswick (the Great) and Johann inherited their father's territories. Duke Albrecht I first governed for his brother, a minor. Subsequently the brothers agreed to divide the territory between them in 1267, effective 1269. The city of Göttingen went to Albert I, and was inherited by his son Duke Albert II "the Fat" in 1286. Albert II chose Göttingen as his residence and moved into the Welf residency, which he rebuilt into a fortress.

After Albert the Fat's death in 1318, Göttingen passed to Otto the Mild (d. 1344), who governed over both the "principality of Göttingen" (German: Fürstentum Göttingen) and the territory of Brunswick. These dukes joined Göttingen and surrounding towns in battles against aristocratic knights in the surroundings of Göttingen, in the course of which the citizens of Göttingen succeeded in destroying the fortress of Grone between 1323 to 1329 AD, as well as the fortress of Rosdorf. Since Otto the Mild died without leaving children, his brothers Magnus and Ernest divided the land between themselves. Ernest I received Göttingen, the poorest of all the Welf principalities, which was to remain separate from Brunswick for a long time to come. At this time, the territory consisted of the regions formerly owned by Northeim, the towns Göttingen, Uslar, Dransfeld, Münden, Gieselwerder and half of Moringen. Not much is known about the rule of Duke Ernest I, but it is generally assumed that he continued to fight against aristocratic knights.

Ernest I was succeeded after his death in 1367 by his son Otto I of Göttingen (the Evil; German: der Quade) (d 1394), who initially lived in the city's fortress and attempted to make it a permanent Welf residency. The epithet the Evil came from Otto I's incessant feuds. Breaking with the policies of his predecessors, he frequently aligned himself with the aristocratic knights of the neighborhood in battles against the cities, whose growing power disturbed him. Under Otto the Evil Göttingen gained a large degree of independence. After losing control of the provincial court at the Leineberg in to Göttingen in 1375, Otto finally tried to impose his influence on Göttingen in 1387 AD, but with little success. In April 1387 Göttingen's citizens stormed and destroyed the fortress within the city walls. In retaliation, Otto destroyed villages and farms in the town's surroundings. However, Göttingen's citizens gained a victory over the Duke's army in a battle between the villages of Rosdorf and Grone, under their leader Moritz of Uslar, forcing Otto to acknowledge the independence of the town and its surrounding properties. 1387 thus marks an important turning point in the history of the town. Göttingen's relative autonomy was further strengthened under Otto's successor Otto II "the One-eyed" of Göttingen (German: Cocles/der Einäugige), not least because the Welf line of Brunswick-Göttingen died out with Otto II, and the resulting questions surrounding his succession after his abdication in 1435 destabilized the regional aristocracy.

The trend towards ever diminishing Welf influence over the town continued until the end of the 15th century, although the town officially remains a Welf property. Nevertheless it is counted in some contemporaneous documents among the Imperial Free Cities.

After several dynastic splits and shifts in power that followed the death of Otto the One-eyed, Duke Eric I "the Elder" of Calenberg annexed the principality of Göttingen, which became an integral part of the Calenberg duchy. The town refused to pay homage to Eric I in 1504, and as a result, Eric I had the Emperor Maximilian I, declare the town of Göttingen outlawed. The subsequent tensions economically weakened Göttingen, leading to the town finally paying its homage to Eric I in 1512. Afterward the relationship between Eric and the town improved, because of Eric's financially dependence on Göttingen.

Woodcut showing the town in the year 1585 as viewed from the west

In 1584 the city came into possession of the dukes of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, also of the Welf dynasty, and in 1635 it passed to the house of Lüneburg, which ruled it thenceforth. In 1692 it was named as part of the indivisible territory of the Electoral state of Hanover.