principality · France and the Low Countries

Principality of Dombes

1523 CE – 1762 CE · capital Trévoux

A small sovereign principality north of Lyon, with its own parliament and mint at Trévoux, held by royal relatives until it was sold to Louis XV.

Origins

The Dombes, a plateau of ponds east of the Saône, belonged to the lords of Beaujeu and then the dukes of Bourbon. After the confiscation of the Constable of Bourbon's lands in 1523 it was held by the crown, then restored in 1560 to the Bourbon-Montpensier family, who ruled it as a sovereign principality outside the Kingdom of France.

Rule and society

The princes kept a parliament at Trévoux, minted coin and taxed separately, though in practice the land was closely tied to France. Anne Marie Louise d'Orléans, La Grande Mademoiselle, held it and in 1681 ceded it to the Duke of Maine, Louis XIV's legitimised son. Jesuits at Trévoux published the Journal de Trévoux and the Dictionnaire de Trévoux.

Decline and legacy

In 1762 the Duke of Maine's son, the Count of Eu, exchanged the principality with Louis XV for lands in France, and it became part of the kingdom.

Lineage

Principality of DombesKingdom of France 987 CE – 1792 CE

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). Principality of Dombes. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-dombes
MLA
“Principality of Dombes.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-dombes. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “Principality of Dombes.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-dombes.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Principality of Dombes’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-dombes (Accessed: ).

Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻