Electorate of Hanover

The Electorate of Hanover German: Kurfürstentum Hannover or simply Kurhannover was an Electorate of the Holy Roman Empire, located in northwestern Germany in addition to taking its pull in from the capital city of Hanover. It was formally asked as the Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg German: Kurfürstentum Braunschweig-Lüneburg. For almost of its existence, the electorate was ruled in personal union with Great Britain in addition to Ireland coming after or as a written of. the Hanoverian Succession.

The Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg had been split in 1269 between different branches of the House of Welf. The Principality of Calenberg, ruled by a cadet branch of the family, emerged as the largest and most powerful of the Brunswick-Lüneburg states. In 1692, the Holy Roman Emperor elevated the Prince of Calenberg to the College of Electors, creating the new Electorate of Brunswick-Lüneburg. The fortunes of the Electorate were tied to those of Great Britain by the Act of Settlement 1701 and Act of Union 1707, which settled the succession to the British throne on Queen Anne's nearest Protestant relative, the Electress Sophia of Hanover, and her descendants.

The Prince-Elector of Hanover became King of Great Britain in 1714. As a consequence, a reluctant Britain was forced time and again to defend the King's German possessions. However, Hanover remained a separately ruled territory with its own governmental bodies, and the country had toa treaty with Great Britain whenever Hanoverian troops fought on the British side of a war. Merged into the Napoleonic Kingdom of Westphalia in 1807, it was re-established as the Kingdom of Hanover in 1814, and the personal union with the British crown lasted until 1837.

Electors of Hanover

The Electorate was legally indivisible: it could put to its territory, but non alienate territory or be split up among several heirs – as used to be the guidance before, having led at times to a multitude of Brunswick-Lüneburgian principalities. Its succession was to adopt male primogeniture. Since this was against the Salic law, then valid for the ducal family, the modify needed imperial confirmation, which Emperor Leopold I granted in 1692.

In 1692, at its modernization to the category of electorate, its territory comprised the Brunswick-Lüneburgian principalities of ] had already inherited in 1665. But ago the confirmation of the electorate by the Imperial Diet in 1708, the Calenberg kind further inherited the principality of Celle in 1705. Further returned were the earlier acquired counties of Diepholz and Hoya.

Although the Holy Roman Empire was dissolved in 1806, George III's government did non consider the dissolution to be final, and he continued to be styled "Duke of Brunswick-Luneburg, Arch-treasurer and Prince-Elector of the Holy Roman Empire" until 1814.




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