Brabant

Brabant is a former duchy in the Low Countries, and a former province of Belgium.

Duchy of Brabant

From the 13th century on, the territory of the Duchy of Brabant corresponded approximately to that of the present Dutch province North Brabant and the three Belgian provinces Antwerp, Walloon Brabant and Flemish Brabant.

Related Topics:
Dutch - North Brabant - Antwerp - Walloon Brabant - Flemish Brabant

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The Duchy of Brabant was formally erected in 1183/1184. The title "Duke of Brabant" was created by the German Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in favor of Henry I of Brabant, son of Godfrey III of Louvain (who was Duke of Lower Lotharingia at that time). The Duchy of Brabant was a feudal elevation of the already existing title of Landgrave of Brabant. This was an Imperial fief which was assigned to Count Henry III of Louvain about 1085/1086, more exactly after the death of the preceding Count of Brabant, Count Palatine Herman II of Lotharingia (+ September 20, 1085).

Related Topics:
Duke of Brabant - Frederick - Henry I of Brabant - Godfrey III of Louvain - Landgrave - Henry III of Louvain - September 20 - 1085

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Although the corresponding county was quite small (limited to the territory between the rivers Dender en Zenne, situated to the west of Brussels) its name was applied to the entire country under control of the Dukes from the 13th century on.

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In 1190, after the death of Godfrey III, Henry I of Brabant also became Duke of Lotharingia (a title practically without territorial authority). According to protocol, all his successors where therefore called Dukes of Brabant and Lotharingia.

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After the Battle of Worringen in 1288, the dukes of Brabant also acquired the Duchy of Limburg. In 1354 the Joyeuse Entree, or charter of liberty was granted to the citizens of Brabant by John III, Duke of Brabant. In 1430, the Duchies of Lotharingia, Brabant and Limburg were inherited by Philip the Good of Burgundy. In 1477 the titles fell to the Habsburgs by dowry of Mary of Burgundy. The subsequent history of Brabant is part of the history of the Low Countries (Seventeen Provinces).

Related Topics:
Battle of Worringen - 1288 - Duchy of Limburg - 1354 - Joyeuse Entree - John III, Duke of Brabant - 1430 - Philip the Good - Burgundy - 1477 - Habsburg - Mary of Burgundy - Seventeen Provinces

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The Eighty Years' War (1568 - 1648) brought independence from the Habsburgs for the northern provinces. After the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648, the United Provinces' de jure independence was confirmed, and the northern part of Brabant, which was already under Dutch military control, was ceded to the United Provinces as Staats-Brabant, a federally governed territory (the present North Brabant). The southern part remained in Habsburg hands as a part of the Southern Netherlands. It was transferred to the Austrian branch of that family in 1714. At the French occupation of the Southern Netherlands in 1795 the duchy of Brabant was dissolved. It was divided between the départements of Deux-Nèthes (present province of Antwerp) and Dyle (the later province of Brabant).

Related Topics:
Eighty Years' War - 1568 - 1648 - Treaty of Westphalia - United Provinces - Staats-Brabant - North Brabant - Southern Netherlands - Austrian - 1714 - 1795 - Département - Deux-Nèthes - Province of Antwerp - Dyle

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