A region and former grand duchy of west-central Germany. In medieval times the territory was expanded west to the Rhine River and south to the Main River, but after 1567 it was divided into four separate regions ruled by various branches of the Hesse family.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
