other · France and the Low Countries
Décapole
Origins
In 1354 Emperor Charles IV joined ten free imperial cities of Alsace in an alliance: Haguenau, Colmar, Wissembourg, Turckheim, Obernai, Kaysersberg, Rosheim, Munster, Sélestat and Mulhouse. They were placed under the imperial bailiff at Haguenau to defend their rights against local lords.
Rule and society
The cities governed themselves but pledged mutual aid, shared costs and met in diets. Mulhouse left in 1515 to ally with the Swiss and Landau joined in 1521. Members were wine and market towns, and some, like Colmar, adopted Lutheranism while others stayed Catholic. The league had no army or capital of its own.
Decline and legacy
The Peace of Westphalia in 1648 transferred imperial rights in Alsace to France ambiguously, and Louis XIV occupied the cities in 1673. The Treaty of Nijmegen of 1679 confirmed French control, ending the league.
On the connections map
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- Décapole was part of Holy Roman Empire1354 CE – 1679 CE
- Décapole was conquered by Kingdom of France1673 CE – 1679 CE
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Décapole. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/decapole
- MLA
- “Décapole.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/decapole. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Décapole.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/decapole.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Décapole’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/decapole (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻