Elector of Mainz

Coat of arms of Mainz

Albert, Cardinal Elector of Mainz at the foot of the Cross

TheElector of Mainzwas one of the sevenPrince-electorsof theHoly Roman Empire.As both the Archbishop of Mainz and the ruling prince of theElectorate of Mainz,the Elector of Mainz held a powerful position during theMiddle Ages.The Archbishop-Elector was president of the electoral college,archchancellorof the empire, and thePrimateof Germany as thepapal legatenorth of the Alps, until thedissolutionof the empire in 1806.

The origin of the title dates back to 747, when the city ofMainzwas made the seat of an archbishop, and a succession of able and ambitious prelates made the district under their rule a strong and vigorous state. Among these men were important figures in the history of Germany such asHatto I,Adalbert of Mainz,Siegfried III,Peter of AspeltandAlbert of Brandenburg.There were several violent contests between rivals for the archbishopric, and their power struggles occasionally moved the citizens of Mainz to revolt. The lands of the elector lay around the city ofMainzon both banks of theRhine;their area reached 3200 sq. miles by the end of the Empire. The last elector wasKarl Theodor von Dalberg,who lost his temporal power when the archbishopric was secularized in 1803.

Elector of Mainz (1356–1803)

The Archbishop of Mainz was an influential ecclesiastic and secularprincein theHoly Roman Empirebetween 780–782 and 1802. In Church hierarchy, the Archbishop of Mainz was theprimas Germaniae,the substitute for the Pope north of the Alps. Aside from Rome, the See of Mainz is the only other see referred to as a "Holy See", although this usage became rather less common.

This archbishopric was a substantialecclesiastical principalityof the Holy Roman Empire. The ecclesiastical principality included lands nearMainzon both the left and right banks of theRhine,as well as territory along theMainaboveFrankfurt(including the district ofAschaffenburg), theEichsfeldregion in Lower Saxony and Thuringia, and the territory aroundErfurtinThuringia.The archbishop was also, traditionally, one of the ImperialPrince-Electors,theArch-chancellorofGermany,and presiding officer of theelectoral collegetechnically from 1251 and permanently from 1263 until 1803.

Theseewas established inancient Roman times,in the city ofMainz,which had been a Romanprovincial capitalcalled Moguntiacum, but the office really came to prominence upon its elevation to anarchdiocesein 780/82. The first bishops before the 4th century have legendary names, beginning withCrescens.The first verifiable Bishop of Mainz was Martinus in 343. The ecclesiastical and secular importance of Mainz dates from the accession of St.Bonifaceto the see in 747. Boniface was previously an archbishop, but the honor did not immediately devolve upon the see itself until his successor Lullus.

In 1802, Mainz lost its archiepiscopal character. In the secularizations that accompanied theReichsdeputationshauptschluss( "German mediatization") of 1803, the seat of the elector,Karl Theodor von Dalberg,was moved toRegensburg,and the electorate lost its left bank territories toFrance,its right bank areas along the Main below Frankfurt toHesse-Darmstadtand theNassauprinces, and Eichsfeld and Erfurt toPrussia.Dalberg retained the Aschaffenburg area however, and when the Holy Roman Empire finally came to an end in 1806, this became the core of Dalberg's newGrand Duchy of Frankfurt.Dalberg resigned in 1813 and in 1815 theCongress of Viennadivided his territories between the King ofBavaria,theElector of Hesse,the Grand Duke ofHesse-Darmstadtand the Free City ofFrankfurt.

The modernDiocese of Mainzwas founded in 1802, within the territory ofFranceand in 1814 its jurisdiction was extended over the territory of Hesse-Darmstadt. Since then it has had twocardinalsand via variousconcordatswas allowed to retain the mediæval tradition of thecathedral chapterelecting a successor to thebishop.

Bishops and archbishops

Bishops of Moguntiacum, 80–745

• Crescensc. 80–103
• Marinus c. 103–109
• St. Crescentius c. 109–127
• Cyriacus c. 127–141
• Hilarius c. 141–161
• Martin I c. 161–175
• Celsus c. 175–197
• Lucius c. 197–207
• Gotthard c. 207–222
• Sophron c. 222–230
• Heriger I c. 230–234
• Ruther c. 234–254
• Avitus c. 254–276
• Ignatius c. 276–289
• Dionysius c. 289–309
• Ruprecht I c. 309–321
• Adalhard c. 320s
• Lucius Annaeus c. 330s
• Martin II c. 330s – c. 360s
• Sidonius I c. late 360s – c. 386
• Sigismund c. 386 – c. 392
• Theonistusor Thaumastus
• Maximus
• Lupold c. 392 – c. 409
• Nicetas c. 409 – c. 417
• Marianus c. 417 – c. 427
• Aureusc. 427 – c. 443
• Eutropius c. 443 – c. 467
• Adalbald
• Nather
• Adalbert (I)
• Lantfried
• Sidonius II? – c. 589
• Siegbert I c. 589–610
• Ludegastc. 610–615
• Rudwald c. 615
• Lubald? fl. c. 625
• Rigibert708-724
• Gerold 724–743
• Gewilipc. 744 – c. 745

Archbishops of Mainz, 745–1251

• Saint Boniface745–754
• Lullus754–786 (First archbishop)
• Richholf787–813
• Adolf813–826
• Odgar826–847
• Rabanus Maurus848–856
• Karl856–863
• Ludbert863–889
• Sunderhold889–891
• Hatto I891–913
• Herigar913–927
• Hildebert927-937
• Frederick937–954
• William954–968
• Hatto II968–970
• Rudbrecht970–975
• Willigis975–1011
• Erkanbald1011–1021
• Aribo1021–1031
• Bardo1031–1051
• Luitpold1051–1059
• Siegfried I1060–1084
• Wezilo1084–1088
• Rudhart1088–1109
• Adalbert I von Saarbrücken1111–1137
• Adalbert II von Saarbrücken1138–1141
• Markholf1141–1142
• Henry I1142–1153
• Arnold von Selenhofen1153–1160
• Christian I1160–1161
  • RudolfofZähringen1160–1161 (opposing)
• Conrad I of Wittelsbach1161–1165
• Christian I1165–1183
• Conrad I of Wittelsbach (restored) 1183–1200
• Luitpold von Scheinfeld1200–1208
• Sigfried II von Eppstein1200–1230 (in opposition until 1208)
• Sigfried III von Eppstein1230–1249
• Christian III von Weisenau1249–1251

Archbishops-Electors of Mainz, 1251–1803

Lothar Franz Schönborn, Elector of Mainz (1695-1729)

Old boundary stone showing theWheel of Mainz(Mainzer Rad), the coat of arms of the Electorate

• Gerhard I von Daun-Kirberg 1251–1259
• Werner II von Eppstein 1260–1284
• Heinrich II von Isny 1286–1288
• Gerhard II von Eppstein 1286–1305
• Peter of Aspelt1306–1320
• Matthias von Bucheck 1321–1328
• Heinrich III von Virneberg 1328–1337
  • Baldwin of Luxembourg1328–1336, administrator
• Gerlach von Nassau1346–1371
• Johann I von Luxemburg-Ligny 1371–1373
• Louis of Meissen1374–1379
• Adolf I von Nassau1379–1390
• Konrad II von Weinsberg 1390–1396
• Joffrid von Leiningen 1396–1397
• Johann II von Nassau 1397–1419
• Conrad III of Dhaun,Wild- andRhinegravezum Stein 1419–1434
• Dietrich Schenk von Erbach1434–1459
• Dieter von Isenburg1459–1461
• Adolf II von Nassau(or Adolf III) 1461–1475
• Dieter von Isenburg(restored) 1476–1482
• Adalbert III of Saxony1482–1484
• Bertold von Henneberg-Römhild1484–1504
• Jakob von Liebenstein1504-1508
• Uriel von Gemmingen1508–1514
• Albert III of Brandenburg1514–1545
• Sebastian von Heusenstamm1545–1555
• Daniel Brendel von Homburg1555–1582
• Wolfgang von Dalberg1582–1601
• Johann Adam von Bicken1601–1604
• Johann Schweikhard von Kronberg1604–1626
• Georg Friedrich von Greiffenklau1626–1629
• Anselm Casimir Wambold von Umstadt1629–1647
• Johann Philipp von Schönborn1647–1673
• Lothar Friedrich von Metternich-Burscheid1673–1675
• Damian Hartard von der Leyen-Hohengeroldseck1675–1678
• Karl Heinrich von Metternich-Winneburg1679
• Anselm Franz von Ingelheim1679–1695
• Lothar Franz von Schönborn1695–1729
• Franz Ludwig von Pfalz-Neuburg1729–1732
• Philipp Karl von Eltz-Kempenich1732–1743
• Johann Friedrich Karl von Ostein1743–1763
• Emmerich Joseph von Breidbach zu Bürresheim1763–1774
• Friedrich Karl Joseph von Erthal1774–1802
• Karl Theodor von Dalberg1802–1803