principality · Germany and Central Europe
Principality of Thurn and Taxis
Origins
The Taxis family of Lombard origin had run the imperial postal service since around 1500 and became hereditary postmasters general, raised to princes in 1695. To gain a seat in the Council of Princes they needed land, so in 1785 they bought the county of Friedberg-Scheer on the Danube, raised in 1786 to a princely county.
Rule and society
The Swabian territory was a small Catholic rural district; the family's wealth and power came from the Imperial Post, which carried letters across the Empire and the Netherlands. The princes lived in Regensburg, where they represented the emperor as principal commissioner at the Perpetual Imperial Diet, and from 1812 resided in the former St Emmeram Abbey.
Decline and legacy
In 1806 the territory was mediatised under the Kingdom of Württemberg. The family kept its postal business in many German states until selling it to Prussia in 1867 and remains among the largest landowners in Germany.
Lineage
On the connections map
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- Principality of Thurn and Taxis was part of Holy Roman Empire1786 CE – 1806 CE
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Cite this page
- APA
- The Epoch Institute. (2026). Principality of Thurn and Taxis. In The Epoch Institute States Register. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-thurn-and-taxis
- MLA
- “Principality of Thurn and Taxis.” The Epoch Institute States Register, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-thurn-and-taxis. Accessed .
- Chicago
- The Epoch Institute. “Principality of Thurn and Taxis.” The Epoch Institute States Register. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-thurn-and-taxis.
- Harvard
- The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘Principality of Thurn and Taxis’, The Epoch Institute States Register. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/state/principality-of-thurn-and-taxis (Accessed: ).
Last reviewed October 2026Random state ↻