HOHENLOHE, a German princely family which took its name from the
district of Hohenlohe in Franconia. At first a countship, its two
branches were raised to the rank of principalities of the Empire in 1744
and 1764 respectively; in 1806 they lost their independence and their
lands now form part of the kingdoms of Bavaria and of Wurttemberg. At
the time of the mediatization the area of Hohenlohe was 680 sq. m. and
its estimated population was 108,000. The family is first mentioned in
the 12th century as possessing the castle of Hohenloch, or Hohenlohe,
near Uffenheim, and its influence was soon perceptible in several of the
Franconian valleys, including those of the Kocher, the Jagst and the
Tauber. Henry I. (d. 1183) was the first to take the title of count of
Hohenlohe, and in 1230 his grandsons, Gottfried and Conrad, supporters
of the emperor Frederick II., founded the lines of Hohenlohe-Hohenlohe
and Hohenlohe-Brauneck, names taken from their respective castles. The
latter became extinct in 1390, its lands passing later to Brandenburg,
while the former was divided into several branches, only two of which,
however, Hohenlohe-Weikersheim and Hohenlohe-Uffenheim-Speckfeld, need
be mentioned here. Hohenlohe-Weikersheim, descended from Count Kraft I.
(d. 1313), also underwent several divisions, that which took place after
the deaths of Counts Albert and George in 1551 being specially
important. At this time the lines of Hohenlohe-Neuenstein and
Hohenlohe-Waldenburg were founded by the sons of Count George.
Meanwhile, in 1412, the family of Hohenlohe-Uffenheim-Speckfeld had
become extinct, and its lands had passed through the marriages of its
heiresses into other families.
The existing branches of the Hohenlohe family are descended from the
lines of Hohenlohe-Neuenstein and Hohenlohe-Waldenburg, established in
1551. The former of these became Protestant, while the latter remained
Catholic. Of the family of Hohenlohe-Neuenstein, which underwent several
partitions and inherited Gleichen in 1631, the senior line became
extinct in 1805, while in 1701 the junior line divided itself into
three branches, those of Langenburg, Ingelfingen and Kirchberg.
Kirchberg died out in 1861, but members of the families of
Hohenlohe-Langenburg and Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen are still alive, the
latter being represented by the branches of Hohenlohe-Ingelfingen and
Hohenlohe-Ohringen. The Roman Catholic family of Hohenlohe-Waldenburg
was soon divided into three branches, but two of these had died out by
1729. The surviving branch, that of Schillingsfurst, was divided into
the lines of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfurst and Hohenlohe-Bartenstein; other
divisions followed, and the four existing lines of this branch of the
family are those of Waldenburg, Schillingsfurst, Jagstberg and
Bartenstein. The family of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfurst possesses the
duchies of Ratibor and of Corbie inherited in 1824.
The principal members of the family are dealt with below.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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