duchy · Germany and Central Europe

Duchy of Thuringia

631 CE – 719 CE (approx.) · capital Würzburg

A Frankish frontier duchy in central Germany, set up against the Slavs, whose dukes briefly ruled almost independently before Carolingian absorption.

Origins

After the Franks destroyed the Kingdom of the Thuringians in 531, the area was ruled by Frankish officials. Around 633 King Dagobert I appointed Radulf duke to defend the eastern frontier against the Slavs of Samo's Empire, then raiding Thuringia. Radulf later defeated Dagobert's son Sigebert III in 641 and ruled as a near-independent king.

Later Thuringia was held by the Hedenid dukes, based at Würzburg on the Main. Duke Heden II supported the Anglo-Saxon missionary Willibrord, who received estates at Arnstadt in 704, and a church was founded on the Marienberg at Würzburg. The duchy guarded the border with the Saxons and the Sorbs.

Heden II disappears around 717 to 719, perhaps after the Battle of Vincy, and Charles Martel brought Thuringia under direct Frankish control. Saint Boniface reorganised its church, founding the bishopric of Würzburg in 742. The region later formed part of the Duchy of Saxony and the Landgraviate of Thuringia.

Few sources survive for this state; details are uncertain.

Cite this page

APA: The Epoch Institute. (2026). Duchy of Thuringia. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/duchy-of-thuringia
MLA: “Duchy of Thuringia.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/duchy-of-thuringia. Accessed .
Chicago: The Epoch Institute. “Duchy of Thuringia.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/duchy-of-thuringia.
Harvard: The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Duchy of Thuringia’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/duchy-of-thuringia (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻