The Prince-Bishopric of Liège or Principality of Liège[2] was an
ecclesiastical principality of the
Holy Roman Empire that was situated for the most part in present-day
Belgium. It was an
Imperial Estate, so the
bishop of Liège, as its prince, had a seat and a vote in the
Imperial Diet.[3] The Prince-Bishopric of Liège should not be confused with the
Diocese of Liège, which was larger and over which the prince-bishop exercised only the usual responsibilities of a bishop.
From 1500, the prince-bishopric belonged to the
Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle. Its territory included most of the present Belgian provinces of
Liège and
Limburg, and some exclaves in other parts of Belgium and the Netherlands.
It briefly became a republic (the
Republic of Liège) from 1789 to 1791, before reverting to a prince-bishopric in 1791. The role of the bishop as prince permanently ended when the state was annexed by France in 1795. In 1815 the territories it had held became part of the
United Kingdom of the Netherlands, and in 1830 they were within the part of that kingdom which split off to become
Belgium.
The principality ruled by the bishops of Liège was never part of the
Seventeen Provinces or the Spanish and Austrian
Southern Netherlands, but from the 16th century onwards its politics were strongly influenced by the
dukes of Burgundy and later the
Habsburgs.
The large diocese of the medieval bishops was, until 1559, much larger than the princedom which was in their possession. However, the princely domain was gradually enlarged by donations and by acquisitions. In the 10th century, the bishops received
secular lordship over the
county of Huy, which lay within the
diocese. Bishop
Notger (972–1008) and his successors are thus referred to as princes within the
Holy Roman Empire. This situation continued until the
French Revolution, and throughout that period of nearly eight centuries the Prince-Bishopric of Liège succeeded in maintaining a level of autonomy, though it remained under the emperor. This virtual independence was owed largely to the ability of its bishops, who on several occasions played an important part in international politics, being strategically positioned between
France and
Germany.[citation needed]
Throughout the Middle Ages, the prince-bishopric was further expanded with the
lordship of Bouillon in 1096 (ceded to France in 1678), the acquisition of the
county of Loon (
French: Looz) in 1366 and the
county of Horne in 1568.
Notger, the founder of the principality, also rebuilt the cathedral of St Lambert, as well as the episcopal palace. He was also involved in other building activities in the city, which flourished under his rule (churches of St Paul, St. John the Evangelist, Sainte-Croix and St Denis). This bishop also strengthened the parochial organization of the city. He was one of the first church leaders to spread the observance of
All Souls' Day, which he authorized for his diocese. Under Notger's administration, following up on the work of Heraclius, educational institutions in Liège flourished. With these two bishops (and
Wazo) "The schools of Liège were, in fact, at that time one of the brightest literary foci of the period". In the 11th century the city was indeed known as the Athens of the North. "Liège for more than a century occupied among the nations a position in regard to science which it has never recovered". Subsequent bishops, Balderic of Looz (1008–1018),
Wolbodo (1018–1021), Durandus (1021–1025), Reginard (1025–1038), Nitard (1038–1042), the learned
Wazo, and Theoduin (1048–1075), valiantly sustained the heritage of Notger. The schools formed many brilliant scholars, and gave the Catholic Church popes
Stephen IX and
Nicholas II. The diocese also supplied the
University of Paris with a number of important doctors —
William of Saint-Thierry,
Gerard of Liège and
Godfrey of Fontaines.
Alger of Liège (1055–1131) was an important intellectual of the period. He was first appointed deacon of
church of St Bartholomew and finally retired at the monastery of
Cluny.
Albert of Louvain was elected Bishop of Liège in 1191, but
Emperor Henry VI, on the pretext that the election was doubtful, gave the see to Lothair of Hochstadt. Albero's election was confirmed by the pope but in 1192, shortly after he took office, he was assassinated by three German knights at
Reims. It is probable that the emperor was privy to this murder but Albero was canonized. In 1195, Albert de Cuyck (1195–1200) formally recognized the
political franchise of the people of Liège. During the 12th century, the cathedral
chapter, along with the bishop, assumed a more important role in the history of the principality.
The struggles between the upper and lower classes, in which the prince-bishops frequently intervened, developed through the 13th and 14th centuries, and culminate in the 15th century in the pillage and destruction of the episcopal city. In the reign of Robert of Thourotte (1240–1246),
Saint Juliana — a nun of
Cornillon Abbey — was led by certain visions to the project of having a feast established in honour of the
Blessed Sacrament. After much hesitation, the bishop approved of her idea but death prevented the institution of the feast. The completion of the work was left to a former
prior of the
Dominicans in Liège,
Hugh of Saint-Cher, who returned to the city as papal legate. In 1252 Hugh made the feast of the
Blessed Sacrament an obligation throughout his diocese. John of Troyes, who, after having been archdeacon at Liège, was elected pope as
Urban IV, encouraged the observance of the feast of
Corpus Christi in the whole Church. Another archdeacon of Liège became pope under the name
Gregory X and deposed the unworthy Henry of
Gueldres (1247–1274). The
Peace of Fexhe, signed in 1316 during the reign of
Adolph II de la Marck (1313–1344), regulated the relations between the prince-bishop and his subjects. Nevertheless, internal discord continued and the episcopate of Arnold of
Horne (1378–1389) was marked by the triumph of the popular party. In 1366, the
county of Loon was annexed to the bishopric.
Burgundian and Habsburg influence
Upon the death of
Louis of Male,
count of Flanders, in 1384, the Low Countries began their unification within the
Burgundian Netherlands. Though the principality was still nominally independent, the
Dukes of Burgundy have had an increasing influence on its government.
Louis of Bourbon (1456–1482) was placed on the throne of Liège by the political machinations of
Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy. The population resisted Burgundian rule leading to the
Liège Wars, the destruction of
Dinant in 1466, and of Liège in 1468 by
Charles the Bold, marking the ending of democratic ascendancy in the principality.
Charles V completed the union of the
Seventeen Provinces in the 1540s, and unofficially also controlled the principality.[4] He nominated
Érard de La Marck (1505–1538) who brought a period of restoration. Erard was an enlightened protector of the arts. It was he who commenced the struggle against the
Protestant reformers, which his successors carried forth, especially Gerard of Groesbeeck (1564–1580). With the object of assisting in this struggle,
Paul IV, by
Bull (Super Universi, 12 May 1559), created new bishoprics in the
Low Countries. The new bishoprics were created largely at the expense of the diocese of Liège; many of its parishes were given to the dioceses of
Roermond,
's-Hertogenbosch, and
Namur, or were added to the existing dioceses of
Mechelen and
Antwerp. The number of deaneries in the diocese of Liège was reduced to 13.
Liège formed the last link in the chain of Habsburg allies that made up the so-called
Spanish Road, a military corridor between Spanish-controlled
Lombardy and the
Spanish Netherlands. Completely encircled by Spanish territory, Liège was protected by treaties of neutrality which permitted the passage of Spanish troops through the prince-bishop's territory provided that they spent no more than two nights in one place. The importance of the prince-bishopric to Habsburg military logistics in the
Eighty Years War prompted Spanish intervention foiling a Dutch invasion in 1595.[5]
Most of the bishops in the 17th century were foreigners, many of them holding several bishoprics at once. Their frequent absences gave free scope for those feuds of the
Chiroux and the
Grignoux to which
Maximilian Henry of Bavaria (
archbishop of Cologne, 1650–1688) put a stop by the Edict of 1681. In the middle of the 18th century the ideas of the French
encyclopedists began to be received at Liège; Bishop
de Velbrück (1772–1784), encouraged their propagation and thus prepared the way for the 1789
Liège Revolution. Partially connected with the French Revolution, a protest against the absolutist rule of prince bishop
César-Constantin-François de Hoensbroeck developed into the Liège Revolution. At the beginning of 1791, the revolution was crushed by troops on the orders of the Holy Roman Empire.
The prince-bishopric was dissolved in 1795, when it was annexed by
France. Its territory was divided amongst the départements of
Meuse-Inférieure,
Ourthe, and
Sambre-et-Meuse.
^The name of the city and prince-bishopric was spelled Liége until the early 20th century and that spelling is still occasionally found in the title of old newspapers, etc.
[1]
^Parker, Geoffrey (1972). The Army of Flanders and the Spanish Road, 1567–1659: The Logistics of Spanish Victory and Defeat in the Low Countries' Wars. London: Cambridge University Press. p. 61.