Nassau (duchy)

From Freepedia

For other uses, see Nassau (disambiguation).

Nassau was a German state within the Holy Roman Empire.

It emerged on the lower Lahn river in what is today Rhineland-Palatinate. The town of Nassau was founded in 915. The castle of Nassau was built in 1125, and since 1160 the county was named after the town where the castle was located.

In 1255 Nassau was divided for the first time. During the next centuries several states named Nassau emerged. One of those counties was Nassau-Dillenburg, from where the House of Orange-Nassau originated. An other was Nassau-Weilburg, whose reigning house now reigns in Luxembourg.

Due to the extinction of most lines, Nassau became a united duchy again in 1806. In 1866 it was annexed by Prussia and incorporated into the province of Hesse-Nassau. Today, all Houses of Nassau are extinct in their original male line.