Pre-Empire German States

Last modified: 1998-01-07 by rob raeside
Keywords: germany | bergedorf | braunschweig | hannover | lubeck | mecklenburg-schwerin | mecklenburg-strelitz | oldenburg | prussia | rhine republic | schleswig-holstein | thurn & taxis | würtetemburg |
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States

• Alsace-Lorraine
• See Anhalt
• See Baden
• See Bavaria
• See Brandenburg
• Braunschweig (Brunswick)
• Hannover (Hanover)
• See Hesse and Hesse-Nassau
• Hohenzollern
• Lubeck
• Mecklenburg-Schwerin
• Mecklenburg-Strelitz
• Oldenburg
• Palatinate
• Pomerania
• Posen
• Preussen (Prussia)
• Rhine Republic
• see Saxony
• Schleswig and Holstein
  • See Hamburg
  • Bergedorf
• Silesia
• Waldeck
• Westphalia
• Thuringian States
• Württemberg

Other early German flags

• Thurn & Taxis

Bergedorf

Bergedorf was a district of Hamburg. It was annexed by Lubeck in 1420, and belonged to Hamburg since 1868, becoming part of this town in 1937. Flag is green over white.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Braunschweig (Brunswick)

Braunschweig used blue over yellow - this is still in use.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Hannover (Hanover)

The colours of the province adopted in 1887 were the same as the ones of the former kingdom: yellow over white. This flag can still be seen today, but is rarely used.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Lubeck

White over read with eagle in the canton.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz

Both of these had blue over yellow over red, with different coats of arms. Shown here is the banner of the Duke of Mecklenburg-Schwerin.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Oldenburg

Red cross on blue - still in use.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Prussia

The colours of the Land, and since 1921 the flag of the Land, are black over white, coming originally from the little flag of the Cavalry. The national flag and merchant ensign (1823-1867), the flag of the Land (1867-1918), the flag of the authorities (1922-1936) were white with (narrow) black stripes on top and bottom and the black eagle in the middle. The eagle has varied several times. The naval ensign (1816) was white, swallow-tailed, with, in the middle, the black eagle and in the canton, the Iron Cross.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Rhine Republic

I remember seeing the Rhine Republic flag as being a horizontal tricolor of green-white-black.
V. Ward, 1996-09-07

I have seen an image of the flag of the short-lived Rhenanian Republic in an old book, but I'm not sure of the first colour (blue or green - it was difficult to distinguish). The details of this flag were published in the Flag Bulletin, but the issue is now out of print. This may be the flag of the Rhenanian Confederation (not Republic) of 1806.
Jaume Oll�, 1996-09-11

Schleswig-Holstein

Blue over white over red. These colours were used in the XIX Century against the Danish colours. It is also the flag of the Land of Schleswig-Holstein.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Württemberg

The Kingdom of Wüttemberg has had since 1816 black over red.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Thurn & Taxis

Thurn & Taxis have never been states, but were a dynasty.
Pascal Vagnat, 1996-09-09

Thurn & Taxis had the privilege of post transport in many of the old German states, and they are listed in many postage stamp catalogues as a separate state, without any explanation. Their postal service might have used a flag, though looking in my stamp catalogue I found that their stamps didn't have any arms-like design on them, so maybe they didn't use flags either.
Zeljko Heimer, 1996-09-09

In 1801 the Imperial Princes of Thurn and Taxis, with some territories through Germany, Belgium and Italy, received the territories of Marchtal, Neresheim, and Buchau. These were later transferred to Dalberg (1806), and to Bavaria (1810). The title was abolished on 1867-01-28. The Princes of Thurn and Taxis now carry the title of Dukes of Worth and Donaustausf. I have never seen a banner among collections of old German states, but all the images I have are after 1815.
Jaume Oll�, 1996-09-09

Near my town lives on of the descendants of this dynasty, in the beautiful Castle of Duino. When the prince is in, over the castle flies a red over blue flag. Mario Fabretto, 1996-09-15

See also: Germany