The County of Blankenburg (German: Grafschaft Blankenburg) was a state of the Holy Roman Empire. Its capital was Blankenburg, it was located in and near the Harz mountains.
History
Counts of Blankenburg are documented since 1123; the county is assumed to have developed out of the Hartingau, original a fief of the Duchy of Saxony, since 1180 of the Bishopric of Halberstadt. In 1599 the counts became extinct, and it fell back to the Bishopric, which at the time was held by the Wolfenbüttel line of Brunswick-Lüneburg. Even though Halberstadt was given to Brandenburg-Prussia by the Peace of Westphalia, Blankenburg remained with Wolfenbüttel. In 1690, it was given to the younger son of the duke of Wolfenbüttel, Louis Rudolph. In 1703, it was raised to a principality. Since 1731, it was held in personal union by the princes of Wolfenbüttel. Blankenburg remained an exclave of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel until the dissolution of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel in 1945/46, when its territory was split between the newly-founded states of Lower Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt.
Geography
As of 1789, Blankenburg was surrounded by (from the north clockwise): Brandenburg (County of Stolberg-Wernigerode and Principality of Halberstadt), Anhalt-Bernburg, Brandenburg (County of Hohnstein), and Brunswick-Grubenhagen. Cities were Blankenburg and Hasselfelde.
References
- Köbler, G. (2007). Historisches Lexikon der Deutschen Länder. ISBN 3406549861.
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