Editing Prince-elector (section)

== History ==
[[File:Philipp Veit 008.jpg|thumb|Coats of arms representing the seven original electors with the figure of [[Germania (personification)|Germania]]. Original colours were vivid. Germania's gown was gold, not beige, and the blue-grey was purple. Also, the browns were painted as vivid red and the muted grey in Saxony's arms was a brilliant green.]]

The German practice of electing [[monarch]]s began when ancient [[Germanic peoples|Germanic tribes]] formed ''ad hoc'' coalitions and elected the leaders thereof. Elections were irregularly held by the [[Franks]], whose [[successor state]]s include [[France]] and the [[Holy Roman Empire]]. The [[List of French monarchs|French monarchy]] eventually became [[Heredity|hereditary]], but the Holy Roman Emperors remained elective. While all free men originally exercised the right to vote in such elections, suffrage eventually came to be limited to the leading men of the realm. In the election of [[Lothar II, Holy Roman Emperor|Lothar III]] in 1125, a small number of eminent [[nobility|noble]]s chose the monarch and then submitted him to the remaining magnates for their approbation.

Soon, the right to choose the monarch was settled on an exclusive group of princes, and the procedure of seeking the approval of the remaining nobles was abandoned. The college of electors was mentioned in 1152 and again in 1198. The composition of electors at that time is unclear, but appears to have included bishops and the [[duke]]s of the [[Stem duchy|stem duchies]].

=== 1257 to Thirty Years' War ===

The electoral college is known to have existed by 1152, but its composition is unknown. A letter written by [[Pope Urban IV]] in 1265 suggests that by "[[time immemorial|immemorial custom]]", seven princes had the right to elect the King and future Emperor. The pope wrote that the seven electors were those who had just voted in the election of 1257, which resulted in the election of two kings.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bryce |first1=James |title=The Holy Roman Empire |date=1866 |publisher=Macmillan |location=London |page=252 |edition=Revised}}</ref>

* Three ecclesiastical Electors:
** The [[Archbishopric of Mainz|Archbishop of Mainz]]
** The [[Electorate of Trier|Archbishop of Trier]]
** The [[Electorate of Cologne|Archbishop of Cologne]]
* Four secular Electors:
** The [[King of Bohemia]]
** The [[Electorate of the Palatinate|Count Palatine of the Rhine]]
** The [[Electorate of Saxony|Duke of Saxony]]
** The [[Margraviate of Brandenburg|Margrave of Brandenburg]]

The three Archbishops oversaw the most venerable and powerful [[Episcopal see|see]]s in Germany. Since 1214, the Palatinate and Bavaria were held by the same individual, but in 1253, they were divided between two members of the [[House of Wittelsbach]]. The other electors refused to allow two princes from the same dynasty to have electoral rights, so a heated rivalry arose between the Count Palatine and the Duke of Bavaria over who should hold the Wittelsbach seat.

Meanwhile, the King of Bohemia, who held the ancient imperial office of Arch-Cupbearer, asserted his right to participate in elections. Sometimes he was challenged on the grounds that his kingdom was not German, though usually he was recognized, instead of Bavaria, which, after all, was just a younger line of Wittelsbachs.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wolf |first=Armin |date=2020-04-23 |title=Electors |url=https://www.historisches-lexikon-bayerns.de/Lexikon/EN:Electors |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211105094712/https://www.historisches-lexikon-bayerns.de/Lexikon/EN:Electors |archive-date=2021-11-05 |access-date=2022-05-16 |website=Historisches Lexikon Bayerns}}</ref>

The [[Declaration of Rhense]] issued in 1338 had the effect that election by the majority of the electors automatically conferred the royal title and rule over the empire, without papal confirmation. The [[Golden Bull of 1356]] finally resolved the disputes among the electors. Under it, the Archbishops of [[Archbishop of Mainz|Mainz]], [[Archbishop of Trier|Trier]], and [[Electorate of Cologne|Cologne]], as well as the [[King of Bohemia]], the [[Electorate of the Palatinate|Count Palatine of the Rhine]], the [[Duke of Saxony]], and the [[Margrave of Brandenburg]] held the right to elect the King.

The college's composition remained unchanged until the 17th century, although the Electorate of Saxony was transferred from the senior to the junior branch of the Wettin family in 1547, in the aftermath of the [[Schmalkaldic War]].

=== Thirty Years' War to Napoleon ===

In 1623, the Elector Palatine, [[Frederick V, Elector Palatine|Frederick V]], came under the [[imperial ban]] after participating in the [[Thirty Years' War#The Bohemian Revolt|Bohemian Revolt]] (a part of the [[Thirty Years' War]]). The Elector Palatine's seat was conferred on the Duke of Bavaria, the head of a junior branch of his family. Originally, the Duke held the electorate personally, but it was later made hereditary along with the duchy. When the Thirty Years' War concluded with the [[Peace of Westphalia]] in 1648, a new electorate was created for the Count Palatine of the Rhine. Since the Elector of Bavaria retained his seat, the number of electors increased to eight; the two Wittelsbach lines were now sufficiently estranged so as not to pose a combined potential threat.

In 1685, the religious composition of the College of Electors was disrupted when a Catholic branch of the Wittelsbach family inherited the Palatinate. A new Protestant electorate was created in 1692 for the Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg, who became known as the Elector of Hanover (the [[Imperial Diet (Holy Roman Empire)|Imperial Diet]] officially confirmed the creation in 1708). The Elector of Saxony converted to Catholicism in 1697 so that he could become King of Poland, but no additional Protestant electors were created. Although the Elector of Saxony was personally Catholic, the Electorate itself remained officially Protestant, and the Elector even remained the leader of the [[Imperial Diet (Holy Roman Empire)#Religious bodies|Protestant body in the Reichstag]].

In 1706, the Elector of Bavaria and Archbishop of Cologne were [[Imperial ban|outlawed]] during the [[War of the Spanish Succession]], but both were restored in 1714 after the [[Treaty of Baden (1714)|Peace of Baden]]. In 1777, the number of electors was reduced to eight when the Elector Palatine inherited Bavaria.

Many changes to the composition of the college were necessitated by [[Napoleon I of France|Napoleon]]'s aggression during the early 19th century. The [[Treaty of Lunéville]] (1801), which ceded territory on the [[Rhine]]'s left bank to [[France]], led to the abolition of the archbishoprics of Trier and Cologne, and the transfer of the remaining spiritual Elector from Mainz to [[Principality of Regensburg|Regensburg]]. In 1803, electorates were created for the [[Duchy of Württemberg|Duke of Württemberg]], the [[Margraviate of Baden|Margrave of Baden]], the [[Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel|Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel]], and the [[Duchy of Salzburg|Duke of Salzburg]], bringing the total number of electors to ten. When [[Austria]] annexed Salzburg under the [[Treaty of Pressburg (1805)]], the Duke of Salzburg moved to the [[Grand Duchy of Würzburg]] and retained his electorate. None of the new electors, however, had an opportunity to cast votes, as the Holy Roman Empire was abolished in 1806, and the new electorates were never confirmed by the Emperor.

In 1788, the ruling family of [[Savoyard state|Savoy]] pushed to receive an electoral title. Their ambition was backed by Brandenburg-Prussia. Nonetheless, the French Revolution and subsequent Coalition Wars soon rendered this a moot point.<ref>Peter Wilson. ''Heart of Europe: A History of the Holy Roman Empire.'' Cambridge: 2016. p. 227. {{ISBN?}}</ref>

=== After the Empire ===

After the abolition of the Holy Roman Empire in August 1806, the Electors continued to reign over their territories, many of them taking higher or alternative titles. The Electors of Bavaria, Württemberg, and Saxony styled themselves Kings, while the Electors of Baden, [[Principality of Regensburg|Regensburg]], and [[Grand Duchy of Würzburg|Würzburg]] became [[Grand duke|Grand Dukes]]. The Elector of Hesse-Kassel, however, retained the meaningless title "[[Electorate of Hesse|Elector of Hesse]]", thus distinguishing himself from other Hessian princes (the [[Grand Duchy of Hesse|Grand Duke of Hesse(-Darmstadt)]] and the Landgrave of [[Hesse-Homburg]]). Napoleon soon exiled him and Kassel was annexed to the [[Kingdom of Westphalia]], a new creation. The King of Great Britain remained at war with Napoleon and continued to style himself Elector of Hanover, while the Hanoverian government continued to operate in London.

The [[Congress of Vienna]] accepted the Electors of Bavaria, Württemberg, and Saxony as Kings, along with the newly created Grand Duke of Baden. The Elector of Hanover finally joined his fellow Electors by declaring himself the [[King of Hanover]]. The restored Elector of Hesse tried to be recognized as the King of the [[Chatti]]. The European powers refused to acknowledge this title at the [[Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle (1818)]], however, and instead listed him with the Grand Dukes as a "Royal Highness".<ref name="satow1932">{{cite book |last1=Satow |first1=Ernest Mason |title=A Guide to Diplomatic Practice |url=https://archive.org/details/guidetodiplomati00satouoft |date=1932 |publisher=Longmans |location=London}}</ref> Believing the title of Prince-Elector to be superior in dignity to that of Grand Duke, the Elector of Hesse-Kassel chose to remain an Elector, even though there was no longer a Holy Roman Emperor to elect. Hesse-Kassel remained the only Electorate in Germany until 1866, when the country backed the losing side in the [[Austro-Prussian War]] and was absorbed into Prussia.