duchy · Germany and Central Europe
Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg
Origins
After the fall of Henry the Lion in 1180, the Saxon ducal title passed to the Ascanian Bernhard of Anhalt, whose heirs held lands around Wittenberg on the Elbe and around Lauenburg in the north. In 1296 the inheritance was partitioned: Albert II kept Wittenberg, while his nephews received the Duchy of Saxe-Lauenburg.
Rule and society
The duchy was small, but its Ascanian dukes claimed the full dignity of the old Duchy of Saxony, including the office of imperial arch-marshal and a vote in royal elections, which Lauenburg disputed. Rudolf I was a close ally of Emperor Charles IV. The territory was agrarian, with Wittenberg a modest residence town at an important Elbe crossing.
Decline and legacy
The Golden Bull of 1356 settled the dispute in Wittenberg's favour, recognising Rudolf I as prince-elector and creating the Electorate of Saxony. When the Ascanian line died out in 1422, the electorate passed to the Wettin margraves of Meissen.
Lineage
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/duchy-of-saxe-wittenberg
- MLA
- “Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/duchy-of-saxe-wittenberg. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/duchy-of-saxe-wittenberg.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Duchy of Saxe-Wittenberg’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/duchy-of-saxe-wittenberg (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻