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Where online can I find a map of the Landgraviate of Hesse-Rotenburg (aka the 'Rotenburger Quart') as it existed between 1648 (ie, after the Peace of Westphalia) and 1658 (when Hermann IV von Hessen-Rotenburg died).

I am in need of a list of the towns included in the Huldigung (homage) of the Rotenburger Quart conducted in 1656. A map seems the simplest way. I know Asmushausen and Braunhausen were included, but I need to also know whether Abterode, Hersfeld (now Bad Hersfeld), Dens, Diemerode, Harmuthsachsen, Heinebach, Herlefeld, Hetzerode, Hoheneiche, Niederbeisheim, Niederellenbach, Oberellenbach, Pfieffe, Rockensüß, Sandershausen, Sontra, Stölzingen (technically not a 'town'), Wahlershausen, and Weidelbach were included or not.

Update: From other records, I think these towns break down this way, but at least some of it is based only on which Amt it was part of. Niederbeisheim being part of Hesse-Rotenburg is the least solid entry here. Stölzingen was a very small farm estate, but based on location and proximity to Diemerode, it likely was part of Hesse-Rotenburg. If this breakdown is correct, it means that at least some part of the border on the right side of the center (beige with red border line) oval of the HStAM Fonds Karten No P II 20771 map is incorrect, or had changed between 1648 and 1702, as it would show Oberellenbach, Niederellenbach, and Niederbeisheim in the wrong quart.

Asmushausen: Hesse-Rotenburg (confirmed to be part of the homage)
Braunhausen: Hesse-Rotenburg (confirmed to be part of the homage)

Abterode - Hesse-Rotenburg
Dens: Hesse-Rotenburg
Diemerode: Hesse-Rotenburg
Niederbeisheim: Hessen-Rotenburg (not confirmed)
Niederellenbach: Hessen-Rotenburg
Oberellenbach: Hessen-Rotenburg
Rockensüß: Hessen-Rotenburg
Sontra:  Hessen-Rotenburg
Stölzingen: Hessen-Rotenburg (presumed)

Hersfeld - Hesse-Cassel
Harmuthsachsen: Hesse-Cassel
Heinebach: Hesse-Cassel
Herlefeld: Hesse-Cassel
Hetzerode: Hesse-Cassel
Hoheneiche: Hesse-Cassel
Pfieffe: Hesse-Cassel
Sandershausen: Hesse-Cassel
Wahlershausen: Hesse-Cassel
Weidelbach: Hesse-Cassel
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  • That is a bit unclear. As I understand it, the Rotenburger Quart after 1627 consisted of three possessions: Niedergrafschaft Katzenellenbogen/Rheinfels (Ernst I.), Eschwege (Friedrich) and Rotenburg (Hermann iV.), and were only under common ownership of Ernst after Hermann died. Which part(s) are you interested in?
    – ccprog
    Commented Dec 8, 2023 at 21:54
  • I am in need of a list of the towns included in the Huldigung (homage) of the Rotenburger Quart conducted in 1656. A map seemed the simplest way. I know Asmushausen and Braunhausen were included, but I need to also know whether Abterode, Hersfeld (now Bad Hersfeld), Dens, Diemerode, Harmuthsachsen, Heinebach, Herlefeld, Hetzerode, Hoheneiche, Niederbeisheim, Niederellenbach, Oberellenbach, Pfieffe, Rockensüß, Sandershausen, Sontra, Stölzingen (technically not a 'town'), Wahlershausen, and Weidelbach were included or not.
    – BrianFreud
    Commented Dec 8, 2023 at 22:55
  • Apparently the Rotenburger Geschichrsverein has a site with a bunch of resources: geschichtsverein-rotenburg.de/Familiengeschichte/…
    – Spencer
    Commented Dec 9, 2023 at 14:11
  • Also: geschichtsverein-rotenburg.de/Ortsgeschichte/Orte.htm
    – Spencer
    Commented Dec 9, 2023 at 14:15
  • Re Niederbeisheim: The Historisches Ortslexikon says "1528: Dorf Nieder-Beisheim ist Lehen des Heinz von Lüder, dann Verkauf an Otto Hund. 1544-1680: Dorf Nieder-Beisheim Lehen der Hund, dann Heimfall an Hessen." If it was already given to someone else, it could not have become part of the bequeath, I'd say.
    – ccprog
    Commented Dec 9, 2023 at 22:16

3 Answers 3

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The best map I found so far is

Landgraviatus Hassiae Inferioris nova Tabula, in qua praecipue Ditiones Hasso-Casselenses et Comitatus Waldeck cum infertis et vicinis alioris Statuum Praefecturis exhibentur, Homann, Nürnberg between 1702 and 1715. Hessisches Staatsarchiv Marburg Bestand Karten Nr. P II 20771

It has the Landgrafschaft Hessen in yellow and the Grafschaft Waldeck in red, but in the right half there is a second area colored in red, and while there is no identifying heading, it seems to cover the area of Rotenburg and Eschwege/Wanfried. A notable exception is that the area of Amt Witzenhausen is shown in yellow. Also the Ganerbschaft Treffurt to the right and Plesse to the north are shown in yellow.

Between 1676 and 1755 the Quart was split between the (Eschwege/) Wanfried line and the Rheinfels-Rotenburg line, but the map does definitely not show these two parts as separate. Instead the engraver seems to call the parts "Statuus Praefecturis", which to me sounds as if he thinks about the areas as administrative parts, not princely bequeaths.

The Rheinfels/Niedergrafschaft Katzenellenbogen posessions are not in that map. But there is one in another place:

PARTIE OCCIDENTALE DU TEMPOREL DE L'ARCHEVESCHÉ et ESLECTORAT DE MAYENCE et le Haut et Bas Comté de Catzenellenbog / Tirés des Memoires les plus Nouveaux, Paris, Sanson 1670. Hessisches Staatsarchiv Darmstadt Bestand P 1 Nr. 1181/1-2

Niedergrafschaft Katzenellenbogen is the yellow area to the left. (The Obergrafschaft is the lower part in yellow, already also marked as Landgraviat de Darmstadt.) A second page has an index of towns.

According to this, the area of the Quart did not change between 1648 and 1733. (Castle Rheinfels being a separate case.) The territory of Hessen-Eschwege 1632-1655 and of Hessen-Wanfried 1667–1755 were identical. If you leave out the extraterritorial parts Trefurt, Plesse and Katzenellenbogen, the following articles in German WP list the names of all towns and places included in the areas of Hessen-Eschwege/Wanfried and Hessen-Rotenburg until the dissolution under Napoleonic rule. Which Amt belonged to which half is not clear:

If you know the name of the place you are looking for, the Historisches Ortslexikon has detailed information on which terrritory it belonged to in which year under the heading "Verfassung".

Regarding your doubtfull cases, Niederellenbach and Oberellenbach are confirmed; Stölzingen and Niederbeisheim are falsified.

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  • The dates are off - but may be the best available. Triangulation is only developed in the early to mid 1500's, and really doesn't seem to take off anywhere in Germany (for national surveys) until the mid to late 1700's. Napoleon likely had access to the arge-scale Bavarian royal survey maps in 1809 (nearing completion as I recall), and possibly also 1805 as well.
    – Pieter Geerkens
    Commented Dec 8, 2023 at 23:51
  • @PieterGeerkens since the OP asked about towns, the maps are detailed in that regard. Topography is not an issue here.
    – ccprog
    Commented Dec 9, 2023 at 0:00
  • As I said: "The dates are off". Perhaps I should have added very considerably. I accept that this might be the best available imagery, but my addend noted that triangulation developed somewhat later, by a century or so, in Germany compared to France, Belgium, and Netherlands for example.
    – Pieter Geerkens
    Commented Dec 9, 2023 at 13:53
  • "the area of the Quart did not change between 1648 and 1733" - while technically correct, in that the Hesse-Rotenburg of 1648 and the Hesse-Rotenburg of 1658 are essentially the same, it's worth noting that in 1648 the quart was further split into three parts, which only were reunited as a whole after the deaths of two of the inheriting brothers of the split parts, with the third brother reuniting control of the split parts into 'Hesse-Rotenburg' in 1655 and then 1658.
    – BrianFreud
    Commented Dec 9, 2023 at 21:10
  • Yes, I tried to trace that, but as I said, I was not able to identify which Amt belonged to which bequeath. Only for Katzenellenbogen the case seems to be relatively clear. I can only guess that Eschwege, Wanfried and Witzenhausen (as it is situated downriver from Eschwege) made up the Friedrich bequeath, Rotenburg the Herrmann part, while Sontra remains unclear.
    – ccprog
    Commented Dec 9, 2023 at 21:46
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For your research, you might find useful this list of maps of Europe in 1500, 1600, 1700 to see the evolution of the area you're interested in (present day Germany).

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This is a map of Germany that year. Maybe you can find Hessen-Rotenburg on it:

Map of Germany in 1648

source: Gifex.com

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  • 3
    It doesn't appear that you drew this map yourself. Could you please cite the source?
    – shoover
    Commented Dec 8, 2023 at 16:19
  • seems like it comes from GifeX (OP had it on the first link posted in the answer where I saw it)
    – OldPadawan
    Commented Dec 8, 2023 at 16:22
  • I found it on google images. It was listed under "Gifex.com"
    – Anonymous
    Commented Dec 8, 2023 at 16:25
  • Is this any help?
    – Anonymous
    Commented Dec 8, 2023 at 20:53
  • 1
    Yes, but the map itself doesn't match that dating.
    – BrianFreud
    Commented Dec 9, 2023 at 3:54

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