Editing Hesse (section)

== History ==
{{Main|History of Hesse}}
The territory of Hesse was delineated only in 1945, as [[Greater Hesse]], under [[American occupation zone in Germany|American occupation]]. It corresponds loosely to the medieval [[Landgraviate of Hesse]].
In the 19th century, prior to the [[unification of Germany]], the territory of what is now Hesse comprised the territories of [[Grand Duchy of Hesse]] (also known as Hesse-Darmstadt), the [[Duchy of Nassau]], the free city of [[Frankfurt]], the [[Electorate of Hesse]] (also known as Hesse-Kassel), the [[Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont|Principality of Waldeck]] and the [[Hesse-Homburg|Landgraviate of Hesse-Homburg]].<ref>{{cite web|url=https://hessen.de/Wissen/Geschichte-des-Landes/19-Jahrhundert|title=19. Jahrhundert|website=hessen.de|access-date=6 November 2024|language=de}}</ref>

=== Early history ===
{{further|Chatti|Austrasia}}
The Central Hessian region was inhabited in the [[Upper Paleolithic]]. Finds of tools in southern Hesse in Rüsselsheim suggest the presence of Pleistocene hunters about 13,000 years ago. A [[Rhünda Skull|fossil hominid skull]] that was found in northern Hesse, just outside the village of Rhünda, has been dated at 12,000 years ago. The [[Züschen (megalithic tomb)|Züschen tomb]] (German: Steinkammergrab von Züschen, sometimes also Lohne-Züschen) is a prehistoric burial monument, located between [[Lohne, Germany|Lohne]] and [[Züschen, Fritzlar|Züschen]], near [[Fritzlar]], Hesse, Germany. Classified as a gallery grave or a Hessian-Westphalian stone [[cist]] (''hessisch-westfälische Steinkiste''), it is one of the most important [[megalithic]] monuments in Central Europe. Dating to {{Circa|3000 BC}}, it belongs to the Late [[Neolithic]] [[Wartberg culture]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

An early [[Celt]]ic presence in what is now Hesse is indicated by a mid-5th-century BC [[La Tène culture|La Tène]]-style burial uncovered at [[Glauberg]]. The region was later settled by the [[Germanic peoples|Germanic]] [[Chatti]] tribe around the 1st century BC, and the name ''Hesse'' is a continuation of that tribal name.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

The [[Ancient Rome|ancient Romans]] had a military camp in Dorlar, and in Waldgirmes directly on the eastern outskirts of Wetzlar was a civil settlement under construction. Presumably, the provincial government for the occupied territories of the right bank of Germania was planned at this location. The governor of Germania, at least temporarily, likely had resided here. The settlement appears to have been abandoned by the Romans after the devastating [[Battle of the Teutoburg Forest]] failed in the year AD 9. The Chatti were also involved in the [[Revolt of the Batavi]] in AD 69.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

Hessia, from the early 7th century on, served as a buffer between areas dominated by the [[Saxons]] (to the north) and the [[Franks]], who brought the area to the south under their control in the early sixth century and occupied [[Thuringia]] (to the east) in 531.<ref>Clay 125-27, 137–39.</ref> Hessia occupies the northwestern part of the modern German state of Hesse; its borders were not clearly delineated. Its geographic center is [[Fritzlar]]; it extends in the southeast to [[Hersfeld]] on the river Fulda, in the north to past [[Kassel]] and up to the rivers Diemel and Weser. To the west, it occupies the valleys of the rivers Eder and Lahn (the latter until it turns south). It measured roughly 90 kilometers north–south, and 80 north-west.<ref>Clay 120.</ref>

The area around Fritzlar shows evidence of significant pagan belief from the 1st century on. Geismar was a particular focus of such activity; it was continuously occupied from the Roman period on, with a settlement from the Roman period, which itself had a predecessor from the 5th century BC. Excavations have produced a [[horse burial]] and bronze artifacts. A possible religious cult may have centered on a natural spring in Geismar, called ''Heilgenbron''; the name "Geismar" (possibly "energetic pool") itself may be derived from that spring. The village of {{Interlanguage link|Maden, Gudensberg|de|3=Maden (Gudensberg)}}, now a part of [[Gudensberg]] near Fritzlar and less than ten miles from Geismar, was likely an ancient religious center; the basaltic outcrop of Gudensberg is named after Wodan, and a two-meter tall [[quartzite]] [[megalith]] called the ''[[Wotanstein (Hesse)|Wotanstein]]'' is at the center of the village.<ref>Clay 132–137.</ref>

By the mid-7th century, the Franks had established themselves as overlords, which is suggested by archeological evidence of burials, and they built fortifications in various places, including [[Christenberg]].<ref>Clay 143–155.</ref> By 690, they took direct control over Hessia, apparently to counteract expansion by the Saxons, who built fortifications in [[Diemelstadt|Gaulskopf]] and [[Eresburg]] across the river Diemel, the northern boundary of Hessia. The [[Büraburg]] (which already had a Frankish settlement in the sixth century<ref>Rau 141.</ref>) was one of the places the Franks fortified to resist the Saxon pressure, and according to John-Henry Clay, the Büraburg was "probably the largest man-made construction seen in Hessia for at least seven hundred years". Walls and trenches totaling one kilometer in length were made, and they enclosed "8 hectares of a spur that offered a commanding view over Fritzlar and the densely-populated heart of Hessia".<ref>Clay 157–158.</ref>

Following Saxon incursions into Chattish territory in the 7th century, two ''[[Gau (country subdivision)|gau]]e'' had been established; a Frankish one, comprising an area around [[Fritzlar]] and [[Kassel]], and a Saxonian one. In the 9th century, the Saxon [[Hessengau]] also came under the rule of the Franconians.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Holy Roman Empire {{!}} Definition, History, Maps, & Significance {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Holy-Roman-Empire |access-date=2025-03-10 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref>

=== Holy Roman Empire ===
{{further|Duchy of Franconia|Duchy of Thuringia|Landgraviate of Hesse|Free City of Frankfurt|Upper Rhenish Circle|Hesse-Marburg|Hesse-Rheinfels|Hesse-Homburg|Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel|Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt}}
{{further|Ludovingians|House of Hesse|List of rulers of Hesse}}
[[File:Arms of the house of Hesse.svg|thumb|upright=0.6|The Ludovingian coat of arms with its ''lion rampant barry argent and gules'', the so-called [[Coat of arms of Hesse|lion of Hesse]]]]
From 962 the land which would become Hesse was part of the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. In the 10th and 11th centuries it was mostly encompassed by the [[Rhenish Franconia|Western or Rhenish]] part of the [[stem duchy]] of [[Duchy of Franconia|Franconia]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

In the 12th century, [[Hessengau]] passed to the [[Landgraviate of Thuringia]]. As a result of the [[War of the Thuringian Succession]] (1247–1264) the former Thuringian lands were partitioned between the [[House of Wettin|Wettin]] [[Margraviate of Meissen]], which gained Thuringia proper, and the new [[Landgraviate of Hesse]], which remained with the [[Ludovingians]]. From that point on the Ludovingian coat of arms came to represent both Thuringia and Hesse.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

It rose to prominence under Landgrave [[Philipp I of Hesse|Philip the Magnanimous]], who was one of the leaders of German [[Protestantism]]. After Philip's death in 1567, the territory was divided among his four sons from his first marriage (Philip was a [[Polygamy|bigamist]]) into four lines: [[Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel|Hesse-Kassel]] (or Hesse-Cassel), [[Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt|Hesse-Darmstadt]], [[Hesse-Rheinfels]], and the also previously existing [[Hesse-Marburg]]. As the latter two lines died out quite quickly (1583 and 1605, respectively), Hesse-Kassel and Hesse-Darmstadt were the two core states within the Hessian lands. Several collateral lines split off during the centuries, such as in 1622, when [[Hesse-Homburg]] split off from Hesse-Darmstadt, and in 1760 when [[Hesse-Hanau]] split off from Hesse-Kassel. In the late 16th century, Kassel adopted [[Calvinism]], while Darmstadt remained [[Lutheran]] and consequently the two lines often found themselves on opposing sides of conflicts, most notably in the disputes over Hesse-Marburg and in the [[Thirty Years' War]], when Darmstadt fought on the side of the Emperor, while Kassel sided with [[Swedish Empire|Sweden]] and [[Kingdom of France|France]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

[[File:Arms of the house of Hesse-Darmstadt.svg|thumb|upright=0.6|Coat of arms of Hesse-Darmstadt]]
The Landgrave [[Frederick II, Landgrave of Hesse-Cassel|Frederick II]] (1720–1785) ruled Hesse-Kassel as a benevolent despot, from 1760 to 1785. He combined [[The Enlightenment|Enlightenment]] ideas with Christian values, [[Cameralism|cameralist]] plans for central control of the economy, and a militaristic approach toward diplomacy.<ref>Ingrao, Charles W. (2003). ''The Hessian Mercenary State: Ideas, Institutions, and Reform under Frederick II, 1760–1785''.</ref> He funded the depleted treasury of the poor government by loaning 19,000 soldiers in complete military formations to [[Great Britain]] to fight in North America during the [[American Revolutionary War]], 1776–1783. These soldiers, commonly known as [[Hessian (soldiers)|Hessians]], fought under the British flag. The British used the Hessians in several conflicts, including in the [[Irish Rebellion of 1798]]. For further revenue, the soldiers were loaned to other places as well. Most were conscripted, with their pay going to the Landgrave.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

=== Modern history ===
{{further|Electorate of Hesse|Grand Duchy of Hesse|Hesse-Nassau|People's State of Hesse|Province of Kurhessen|Greater Hesse}}
[[File:Coat of Arms of the Grand Duchy of Hesse 1806-1918.svg|thumb|upright=0.6|Coat of arms of the [[Grand Duchy of Hesse]]]]

==== French Revolution and Napoleonic Wars ====
In 1789 the [[French Revolution]] began and in 1794, during the [[War of the First Coalition]], the [[First French Republic|French Republic]] occupied the [[Left Bank of the Rhine]], including part of Lower Katzenelnbogen ({{lang|de|{{ill|Niedergrafschaft Katzenelnbogen|de}}}}, Hesse-Kassel's part of the former [[County of Katzenelnbogen]] which was held by the [[appanage]] [[Landgraviate of Hesse-Rotenburg|Hesse-Rotenburg]]). [[Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor|Emperor Francis II]] formally recognised the annexation of the Left Bank in the 1801 [[Treaty of Lunéville]]. This led in 1803 to the {{lang|de|[[Reichsdeputationshauptschluss]]}}, a substantial reorganisation ([[German mediatisation|mediatisation]]) of the states and territories of the Empire. Several [[exclave]]s of [[Electorate of Mainz|Mainz]] were mediatised to [[Hesse-Kassel]] and [[Hesse-Darmstadt]], and Hesse-Darmstadt also gained the [[Duchy of Westphalia]] from [[Electorate of Cologne|Cologne]], the parts of [[Prince-Bishopric of Worms|Worms]] on the right-bank of the Rhine, and the former [[Free Imperial City|Free City]] of [[Friedberg, Hesse|Friedberg]]. [[Nassau-Weilburg]] gained the right-bank territories of [[Electorate of Trier|Trier]] among other territories. [[Principality of Orange-Nassau|Orange-Nassau]] gained the [[Prince-Bishopric of Fulda]] (as the [[Principality of Nassau-Orange-Fulda]]). The [[Landgrave]] of Hesse-Kassel was also elevated to the status of [[Prince-Elector]] ({{lang|de|Kurfürst}}), with his state thereby becoming the [[Electorate of Hesse]] or Electoral Hesse ({{langx|de|Kurhessen|link=no}}, {{lang|de|Kur}} being the German-language term for the Empire's [[Electoral College (Holy Roman Empire)|College of Electors]]).{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

In July 1806 Hesse-Darmstadt, Nassau-Weilburg, [[Nassau-Usingen]], and the newly merged [[Principality of Isenburg]] became founding members of [[Napoleon]]'s [[Confederation of the Rhine]]. Hesse-Darmstadt expanded further in the resulting mediatisation, absorbing numerous small states (including [[Hesse-Homburg]] and much of the territory of the Houses of {{ill|House of Solms|lt=Solms|de|Solms (Adelsgeschlecht)}}, {{ill|House of Erbach|de|lt=Erbach|Erbach (Adelsgeschlecht)}} and [[Sayn-Wittgenstein]]). It was also elevated by Napoleon to the status of [[Grand Duchy]], becoming the [[Grand Duchy of Hesse]]. Orange-Nassau, which refused to join the Confederation, lost [[Nassau-Siegen|Siegen]], [[Nassau-Dillenburg|Dillenburg]], [[Nassau-Hadamar|Hadamar]] and [[Beilstein, Hesse|Beilstein]] to [[Grand Duchy of Berg|Berg]] and Fulda to the [[Prince-primate#Germany - Confederation of the Rhine|Prince-Primate]] of the Confederation (and former Elector of Mainz) [[Karl Theodor Anton Maria von Dalberg|Karl Theodor von Dalberg]]; the remainder of its territory was merged with that of Nassau-Usingen and Nassau-Weilburg in August 1806 to form the [[Duchy of Nassau]]. [[Principality of Waldeck and Pyrmont|Waldeck]] also joined the Confederation in 1807.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

[[Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire|The Holy Roman Empire was dissolved in August 1806]], rendering Hesse-Kassel's electoral privilege meaningless. Hesse-Kassel was occupied by the French in October 1806 and the remainder of Lower Katzenelnbogen was annexed to the [[First French Empire|French Empire]] as {{lang|fr|{{ill|Pays réservé de Catzenellenbogen|de}}}}. The rest of its territory was annexed to the [[Kingdom of Westphalia]] in 1807; [[Hesse-Hanau]] (a [[secundogeniture]] of Hesse-Kassel) was annexed to the [[Grand Duchy of Frankfurt]] in 1810 along with the other territories held by the Prince-primate: Frankfurt, Fulda, [[Principality of Aschaffenburg|Aschaffenburg]] and [[Wetzlar#Free Imperial City|Wetzlar]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

As a result of the [[German campaign of 1813]] the Kingdom of Westphalia and the Grand Duchy of Frankfurt were dissolved and Hesse-Kassel and Hesse-Hanau were restored; Orange-Nassau was also restored in its territories previously lost to Berg.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

As a result of the 1815 [[Congress of Vienna]] Hesse-Kassel gained Fulda (roughly the western third of the former Prince-Bishopric, the rest of which went to [[Kingdom of Bavaria|Bavaria]] and [[Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach]]) from Frankfurt and part of Isenburg, while several of its small northern [[exclave]]s were absorbed into [[Kingdom of Hanover|Hanover]], some small eastern areas were ceded to Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach and Lower Katzenelnbogen was ceded to Nassau. Hesse-Darmstadt lost the Duchy of Westphalia and the Sayn-Wittgensteiner lands to the [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussia]]n [[Province of Westphalia]] but gained territory on the left bank of the Rhine centred on Mainz, which became known as [[Rhenish Hesse]] ({{lang|de|Rheinhessen}}), and the remainder of Isenburg. Orange-Nassau, whose ruler was now also King [[William I of the Netherlands|William I]] of [[United Kingdom of the Netherlands|the Netherlands]] and Grand Duke of Luxembourg, was ceded to Prussia but most of its territory aside from Siegen was then ceded on to Nassau. Hesse-Homburg and the [[Free City of Frankfurt]] were also restored.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

While the other former Electors had gained other titles, becoming either Kings or [[Grand Duke]]s, the Elector of Hesse-Kassel alone retained the anachronistic title of Prince-Elector; a request to be recognised as "King of the [[Chatti]]" ({{lang|de|König der Katten}}) was rejected by the Congress.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

Following mediation, the Congress of Vienna had significantly fewer states remained in the region that is now Hesse: the Hessian states, Nassau, Waldeck and Frankfurt. The Kingdoms of Prussia and Bavaria also held some territory in the region. The Congress established the [[German Confederation]], of which they all became members. Hesse-Hanau was (re-)absorbed into Hesse-Kassel in 1821.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

==== German Empire ====

In the 1866 [[Austro-Prussian War]] the states of the region allied with [[Austrian Empire|Austria]] were defeated during the [[Campaign of the Main]]. Following Prussia's victory and dissolution of the German Confederation, Prussia annexed Electoral Hesse, Frankfurt, Hesse-Homburg, Nassau and small parts of Bavaria and the Grand Duchy of Hesse, which were then combined into the [[Province of Hesse-Nassau]]. The name {{lang|de|Kurhessen}} survived, denoting the region around Kassel. The Grand Duchy of Hesse retained its autonomy in defeat because a greater part of the country was situated south of the river [[Main (river)|Main]] and it was feared that Prussian expansion beyond the Main might provoke France. However, [[Upper Hesse]] ({{langx|de|Oberhessen|link=no}}: the parts of Hesse-Darmstadt north of the Main around the town of [[Gießen]]) was incorporated into the [[North German Confederation]] ({{lang|de|Norddeutscher Bund}}), a tight federation of German states established by Prussia in 1867, while also remaining part of the Grand Duchy. In 1871, after France's defeat in the [[Franco-Prussian War]], the whole of the Grand Duchy joined the [[German Empire]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

Around the turn of the 20th century, Darmstadt was one of the centres of the [[Jugendstil]]. Until 1907, the Grand Duchy of Hesse used the Hessian red and white lion ''barry'' as its coat-of-arms.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

==== Weimar and Nazi periods ====
The [[German Revolution of 1918–1919|revolution of 1918]] following the German defeat in [[WWI]] transformed Hesse-Darmstadt from a monarchy to a republic, which officially renamed itself the [[People's State of Hesse]] ({{lang|de|Volksstaat Hessen}}). The state parliament, or ''[[Landtag]]'' consisted of 70 deputies elected on the basis of [[proportional representation]]. There were six [[Hessian Landtag elections in the Weimar Republic|Landtag elections]] between 1919 and 1932. Following the [[Nazi seizure of power]] in Berlin, the ''Landtag'' was formally abolished as a result of the "[[Law on the Reconstruction of the Reich]]" of 30 January 1934, which replaced the German [[federal system]] with a [[unitary state]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

The parts of Hesse-Darmstadt on the left bank of the Rhine (Rhenish Hesse), as well as those right-bank areas of Hesse-Darmstadt and Hesse-Nassau within {{convert|30|km|abbr=on}} of Koblenz or Mainz [[Occupation of the Rhineland|were occupied by French troops]] until 1930 under the terms of the [[Treaty of Versailles|Versailles peace treaty]] that officially ended World War I in 1919. The Kingdom of Prussia became the [[Free State of Prussia]], of which Hesse-Nassau remained a province.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

In 1929 the [[Free State of Waldeck]] was dissolved and incorporated into Hesse-Nassau. In 1932 [[Wetzlar]] ({{lang|de|{{ill|Landkreis Wetzlar|de}}}}), formerly an exclave of the Prussian [[Rhine Province]] situated between Hesse-Nassau and the Grand Duchy's Upper Hesse, was transferred to Hesse-Nassau. The former Hessian exclave of [[Rinteln]] ({{lang|de|{{ill|Landkreis Grafschaft Schaumburg|de|lt=Kreis Rinteln}}}}, the Hessian part of the former [[County of Schaumburg]]) was also detached and transferred to the [[Province of Hanover]].{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

On 1 July 1944 the Prussian Province of Hesse-Nassau was formally divided into the provinces of [[Province of Kurhessen|Kurhessen]] and [[Province of Nassau|Nassau]]. At the same time the former Hessian [[Schmalkalden]] exclaves ({{lang|de|{{ill|Landkreis Herrschaft Schmalkalden|de}}}}), together with the {{lang|de|{{ill|Regierungsbezirk Erfurt|de}}}} of the [[Province of Saxony]], were transferred to [[Thuringia]]. The territories of the new provinces did not directly correspond with their pre-1866 namesakes but rather with the associated NSDAP {{lang|de|[[Administrative divisions of Nazi Germany|Gau]]e}}: [[Gau Electoral Hesse]] and [[Gau Hesse-Nassau]] (excluding the areas which were part of the People's State of Hesse).{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

==== Post-World War II ====
After [[World War II]], the Hessian territory west of the Rhine [[French occupation zone in Germany|was again occupied by France]], while the rest of the region was part of the [[American occupation zone in Germany|US occupation zone]]. On 17 September 1945 the [[Wanfried agreement]] adjusted the border between American-occupied Kurhessen and [[Soviet occupation zone in Germany|Soviet-occupied]] Thuringia. The United States proclaimed the state of [[Greater Hesse]] ({{lang|de|Groß-Hessen}}) on 19 September 1945, out of the People's State of Hesse and most of what had been the Prussian Provinces of Kurhessen and Nassau. The French incorporated their parts of Hesse (Rhenish Hesse) and Nassau (as {{lang|de|[[Regierungsbezirk Montabaur]]}}) into the newly founded state of [[Rhineland-Palatinate]] ({{lang|de|Rheinland-Pfalz}}) on 30 August 1946.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}

On 4 December 1946, Greater Hesse was officially renamed {{lang|de|Hessen}}.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://60stolzejahre.hessen.de/dynasite.cfm?dssid=77&dsmid=1898 |title=Hessen – 60 stolze Jahre – Zeittafel 1945/1946 |access-date=1 December 2006 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20061017144544/http://60stolzejahre.hessen.de/dynasite.cfm?dssid=77&dsmid=1898 |archive-date=17 October 2006 }}</ref>
Hesse in the 1940s received more than a million [[Heimatvertriebene|displaced ethnic Germans]].

Due to its proximity to the [[Inner German border]], Hesse became an important location of [[NATO]] installations in the 1950s, especially military bases of the US [[V Corps (United States)|V Corps]] and [[United States Army Europe]].

The first elected minister president of Hesse was [[Christian Stock]], followed by [[Georg-August Zinn]] (both [[Social Democratic Party of Germany|Social Democrats]]). The German Social Democrats gained an absolute majority in 1962 and pursued progressive policies with the so-called {{lang|de|Großer Hessenplan}}. The [[Christian Democratic Union of Germany|CDU]] gained a relative majority in the 1974 elections, but the Social Democrats continued to govern in a coalition with the [[Free Democratic Party (Germany)|FDP]]. Hesse was first governed by the CDU under [[Walter Wallmann]] during 1987–1991, replaced by a SPD-Greens coalition under [[Hans Eichel]] during 1991–1999. From 1999, Hesse was governed by the CDU under [[Roland Koch]] (retired 2010) and [[Volker Bouffier]] (incumbent as of 2020).
[[Frankfurt]] during the 1960s to 1990s developed into one of the major cities of West Germany. As of 2016, 12% of the total population of Hesse lived in the city of Frankfurt.{{Citation needed|date=August 2024}}