Coat of arms of the Duchy of Cleves

The Duchy of Cleves (German: Herzogtum Kleve) was a state of the Holy Roman Empire in present Germany (part of North Rhine-Westphalia) and the Netherlands (parts of Limburg, Noord-Brabant and Gelderland). Its territory was situated on both sides of the river Rhine, around its capital Cleves and roughly covering today's districts of Cleves, Wesel and the City of Duisburg.

The County of Cleves (Grafschaft Kleve) was first mentioned in the 11th century. In 1417, the county became a duchy. Its history is closely related to that of its neighbours: the Duchies of Jülich, Berg and Guelders and the County of Mark. In 1368, Cleves and Mark were united. In 1521 Jülich, Berg, Cleves and Mark formed the united duchies of Jülich-Cleves-Berg. Anne of Cleves (1515-1557), Queen Consort of England in 1540, was a daughter of Duke John III.

When the last duke of Jülich-Cleves-Berg died issueless in 1609, a war broke out for the succession. The duchy was divided between Palatinate-Neuburg (Jülich and Berg) and Brandenburg (Cleves and Mark) in the Treaty of Xanten (1614). However, large parts of the Duchy of Cleves were occupied by the United Provinces until 1672. Part of the Kingdom of Prussia after 1701, Cleves was occupied by France in the Seven Years' War (1757-1762).

In 1795 the Duchy of Cleves left of the Rhine and Wesel was occupied by France, and became part of the French département of the Roer. The rest of the duchy was occupied between 1803 and 1805, and became part of the département Yssel-Supérieur and the puppet-state Grand Duchy of Berg (after 1811 the département Lippe). In 1815, after the defeat of Napoleon, the duchy became part of the Prussian Province of Jülich-Cleves-Berg (after 1822 the Prussian Rhine Province), except for a.o. the cities Gennep, Zevenaar, and Huissen which became part of the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.

Rulers of Cleves

Cleves

• 1092-1119 Dietrich I
• 1119-1147 Arnold I
• 1147-1172 Dietrich II
• 1172-1188 Dietrich III
• 1188-1198 Dietrich IV
• 1198-1201 Arnold II
• 1201-1260 Dietrich V
• 1260-1275 Dietrich VI
• 1275-1305 Dietrich VII von Meissen
• 1305-1311 Otto
• 1311-1347 Dietrich VIII
• 1347-1368 Johann
• 1368-1394 Adolf III-see De la Marck family
• 1394-1398 Dietrich IX

Cleves-Mark

• 1398-1448 Adolph IV
• 1448-1481 John I - father of Engelbert, Count of Nevers
• 1481-1521 John II "The Pious"

Cleves-Mark-Jülich-Berg-Ravensberg

• 1511-1539 Johann III "The Peaceful"
• 1539-1592 Wilhelm "The Rich"
• 1592-1609 Johann Wilhelm

External links

• Edicts of Jülich, Cleves, Berg, Grand Duchy Berg, 1475-1815 (Coll. Scotti) online
• Settlement of Dortmund between Brandenburg and Palatinate-Neuburg and the conflict of succession in Jülich, in full text
• Map of the Duchy of Cleves in 1789

Holy Roman Empire — Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle (1500–1806)
Ecclesiastical princes	Cambrai | Corvey** | Liège | Minden* | Münster | Stavelot–Malmedy** | Osnabrück | Paderborn | Utrecht (until 1548) | Verden (until 1648)
Imperial prelates	Corvey* | Essen | Herford | Kornelimünster | Stavelot–Malmedy* | Thorn | Werden
Secular princes	Cleves with Mark | East Frisia** | Jülich–Berg | Guelders (until 1548) | Minden** | Moers** | Nassau-Dillenburg** | Verden**
Counts and Lords	Bentheim | Bronkhorst (until 1719) | Diepholz | East Frisia (until 1667) | Horne† (until 1614) | Hoya | Lingen† | Lippe | Manderscheid (until 1546) | Moers (until 1541) | Nassau-Dillenburg (until 1664) | Oldenburg (until 1777) | Pyrmont | Ravensberg† | Reichenstein | Rietberg | Salm-Reifferscheid | Sayn | Schaumburg | Tecklenburg | Virneburg | Wied | Winneburg and Beilstein | Zimerauff
Counts and Lords (from 1792)	Anholt | Blankenheim and Gerolstein | Gemen | Gimborn | Gronsfeld | Hallermund | Holzapfel | Kerpen-Lommersum | Myllendonk | Reckheim | Schleiden | Wickrath | Wittem
Counts and Lords, status uncertain	Delmenhorst | Fagnolle | Nassau: Diez, Hadamar | Schaumburg: Hesse, Lippe | Spiegelberg | Steinfurt
Free Imperial Cities	Aachen | Cologne | Dortmund | Duisburg? | Herford? | Verden (from 1648) | Warburg?
* until 1792     ** from 1792     † without a seat in the Reichstag     ? status uncertain

Territories and Provinces of Prussia (1525 – 1947)
Before 1701	Duchy of Prussia · Margraviate of Brandenburg Farther Pomerania · Magdeburg · Halberstadt · Cleves · Mark · Ravensberg · Minden Colonies of Brandenburg-Prussia: Groß Friedrichsburg · Arguin · Crab Island · Tertholen
After 1701	Neuchâtel · Hither Pomerania · East Frisia · Silesia (1740) · Glatz (1763) · Polish Prussia, Netze District (1772) · South Prussia (1793) · New East Prussia, New Silesia (1795)
Reorder after 1814–5	East Prussia & West Prussia (1824–78 joined to Province of Prussia) · Brandenburg · Pomerania · Posen · Saxony · Silesia · Westphalia · Rhine Province (1822, Lower Rhine & Jülich-Cleves-Berg) · Hohenzollern (1850) · Schleswig-Holstein, Hanover, Hesse-Nassau (1866–8)
Territorial reforms after 1918	Lower Silesia, Upper Silesia (1919) · Greater Berlin, West Prussia (district) (1920) · Posen-West Prussia (1922) Halle-Merseburg, Magdeburg, Electoral Hesse, Nassau (1944)

ksh:Herzogtum Kleve

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