Province of Jülich-Cleves-Berg
Encyclopedia
The Province of Jülich-Cleves-Berg was a province
of the Kingdom of Prussia
from 1815–22. The province was largely made up of the land held by the former United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg. Its capital was Cologne
.
, the Congress of Vienna
restored the duchy of Cleves
to the Kingdom of Prussia
, which combined them with the other Rhenish lands restored from France
(Prussian Guelders
and the principality of Moers) with the Rhenish lands gained at Vienna — the old duchy of Jülich
and county of Berg along with parts of the Electorate of Cologne and the Free
and Hanseatic
City of Cologne
and some other smaller territories.
On 30 April 1815, Prussian authorities reorganised the states of the kingdom into 10 provinces
with the (Regulation for the establishment of improved provincial authorities), of which Jülich-Cleves-Berg was one.
The provincial government was headquartered in Cologne, with the province subdivided into (districts) of Düsseldorf
, Cleves and Cologne from 22 April 1816. The provincial president was Frederick, Count of Solms-Laubach
.
On 22 June 1822, an order of the Prussian cabinet united the province with the Grand Duchy of the Lower Rhine
province, headquartered in Koblenz
.
Linguistically these territories, except for Ripuarian Cologne, belonged to the South Guelderish
and Limburgish dialects of Dutch
. After the annexation by Prussia they were forcefully Germanized.
Provinces of Prussia
The Provinces of Prussia constituted the main administrative divisions of Prussia. Following the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and the Congress of Vienna in 1815 the various princely states in Germany gained their nominal sovereignty, but the reunification process that culminated in...
of the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
from 1815–22. The province was largely made up of the land held by the former United Duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg. Its capital was Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
.
History
After the Napoleonic WarsNapoleonic Wars
The Napoleonic Wars were a series of wars declared against Napoleon's French Empire by opposing coalitions that ran from 1803 to 1815. As a continuation of the wars sparked by the French Revolution of 1789, they revolutionised European armies and played out on an unprecedented scale, mainly due to...
, the Congress of Vienna
Congress of Vienna
The Congress of Vienna was a conference of ambassadors of European states chaired by Klemens Wenzel von Metternich, and held in Vienna from September, 1814 to June, 1815. The objective of the Congress was to settle the many issues arising from the French Revolutionary Wars, the Napoleonic Wars,...
restored the duchy of Cleves
Duchy of Cleves
The Duchy of Cleves was a State of the Holy Roman Empire. It was situated in the northern Rhineland on both sides of the Lower Rhine, around its capital Cleves and the town of Wesel, bordering the lands of the Prince-Bishopric of Münster in the east and the Duchy of Brabant in the west...
to the Kingdom of Prussia
Kingdom of Prussia
The Kingdom of Prussia was a German kingdom from 1701 to 1918. Until the defeat of Germany in World War I, it comprised almost two-thirds of the area of the German Empire...
, which combined them with the other Rhenish lands restored from France
First French Empire
The First French Empire , also known as the Greater French Empire or Napoleonic Empire, was the empire of Napoleon I of France...
(Prussian Guelders
Prussian Guelders
Prussian Guelders or Prussian Gelderland was the part of the Duchy of Guelders ruled by the Kingdom of Prussia from 1713. Its capital was Geldern....
and the principality of Moers) with the Rhenish lands gained at Vienna — the old duchy of Jülich
Duchy of Jülich
The Duchy of Jülich comprised a state within the Holy Roman Empire from the 11th to the 18th centuries. The duchy lay left of the Rhine river between the Electorate of Cologne in the east and the Duchy of Limburg in the west. It had territories on both sides of the river Rur, around its capital...
and county of Berg along with parts of the Electorate of Cologne and the Free
Free Imperial City
In the Holy Roman Empire, a free imperial city was a city formally ruled by the emperor only — as opposed to the majority of cities in the Empire, which were governed by one of the many princes of the Empire, such as dukes or prince-bishops...
and Hanseatic
Hanseatic League
The Hanseatic League was an economic alliance of trading cities and their merchant guilds that dominated trade along the coast of Northern Europe...
City of Cologne
Cologne
Cologne is Germany's fourth-largest city , and is the largest city both in the Germany Federal State of North Rhine-Westphalia and within the Rhine-Ruhr Metropolitan Area, one of the major European metropolitan areas with more than ten million inhabitants.Cologne is located on both sides of the...
and some other smaller territories.
On 30 April 1815, Prussian authorities reorganised the states of the kingdom into 10 provinces
Provinces of Prussia
The Provinces of Prussia constituted the main administrative divisions of Prussia. Following the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806 and the Congress of Vienna in 1815 the various princely states in Germany gained their nominal sovereignty, but the reunification process that culminated in...
with the (Regulation for the establishment of improved provincial authorities), of which Jülich-Cleves-Berg was one.
The provincial government was headquartered in Cologne, with the province subdivided into (districts) of Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf
Düsseldorf is the capital city of the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and centre of the Rhine-Ruhr metropolitan region.Düsseldorf is an important international business and financial centre and renowned for its fashion and trade fairs. Located centrally within the European Megalopolis, the...
, Cleves and Cologne from 22 April 1816. The provincial president was Frederick, Count of Solms-Laubach
Solms-Laubach
Solms-Laubach was a County of southern Hesse and eastern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It was originally created as a partition of Solms-Lich. Solms-Laubach partitioned between itself and Solms-Sonnenwalde 1561; between itself, Solms-Baruth and Solms-Rödelheim 1607; and between itself and...
.
On 22 June 1822, an order of the Prussian cabinet united the province with the Grand Duchy of the Lower Rhine
Grand Duchy of the Lower Rhine
The Grand Duchy of the Lower Rhine , or simply known as the Lower Rhine Province was a province of the Kingdom of Prussia and existed from 1815 to 1822....
province, headquartered in Koblenz
Koblenz
Koblenz is a German city situated on both banks of the Rhine at its confluence with the Moselle, where the Deutsches Eck and its monument are situated.As Koblenz was one of the military posts established by Drusus about 8 BC, the...
.
Linguistically these territories, except for Ripuarian Cologne, belonged to the South Guelderish
South Guelderish
South Guelderish refers to a group of dialects of the Dutch language which are spoken along the Nederrijn in the Netherlands and around the city of Cleves in Germany...
and Limburgish dialects of Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
. After the annexation by Prussia they were forcefully Germanized.