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HohenzollernHechingen

Hohenzollern-Hechingen was a historic state of the Holy Roman Empire, belonging to the Swabian branch of the House of Hohenzollern. It was centered around Hechingen in Swabia, in what is today Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The entity arose in 1575 when the Hohenzollern holdings were divided between the younger line at Hechingen and the Sigmaringen branch, creating a separate territorial state that maintained its own administration and sovereignty within the empire.

Geographically, Hohenzollern-Hechingen comprised towns and lands around the county seat of Hechingen. The rulers used Hechingen

In the Napoleonic era, the German mediatization of 1806 dissolved Hohenzollern-Hechingen’s sovereignty. The territory was mediatised

as
their
residence
and
seat
of
power,
with
the
Hohenzollern
Castle
on
a
nearby
hill
serving
as
a
symbolic
and
practical
center
of
the
family’s
estate.
The
state
was
part
of
the
Swabian
Circle
and
participated
in
imperial
affairs
as
a
distinct
Hohenzollern
territory
while
maintaining
ties
to
the
broader
Catholic
Hohenzollern
family
network.
to
the
Kingdom
of
Württemberg,
and
its
lands
were
incorporated
into
Württemberg’s
administrative
structure
(later
forming
part
of
its
Oberamt
system).
The
ruling
line
continued
to
exist
as
a
noble
branch
of
the
Hohenzollerns,
though
no
longer
ruling
a
sovereign
state.
The
legacy
of
Hohenzollern-Hechingen
lives
on
in
historical
records,
architectural
sites
associated
with
the
family,
and
its
role
within
the
broader
history
of
Swabia
and
the
Hohenzollern
dynasty.