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Lordship of AnholtHerrschaft Anholt (German)
1169–1802
Coat of arms
Status	Lordship
Capital	Anholt
Common languages	Low Rhenish
Historical era	Middle Ages
• First mentioned	1169
• gained Reichsfreiheit	14th century
• To Lords of Gemen	1372
• To Lords of Bronckhorst	1402
• Inherited by Salm	1641
• Incorporated into Salm	1802
Preceded by Succeeded by Prince-Bishopric of Utrecht Principality of Salm

The Lordship of Anholt was a small state of the Holy Roman Empire. It was an imperial estate and a member of the Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle.

Geography

The state consisted only of the City of Anholt in the present-day District of Borken in the German state of North Rhine Westphalia. It had received town privileges in 1347 and finally was incorporated into the City of Isselburg in 1975. The Lordship bordered three larger states: the Duchy of Guelders, the Bishopric of Münster, and the Duchy of Cleves.

History

The Lords of Anholt, originally liegemen of the Utrecht bishops, reached independence as Freiherren by the early 14th century. In 1402, their territory fell to the Lords of Bronckhorst through marriage. These acquired a comital title and in 1431 had Anholt recognized by King Sigismund of Luxembourg as an imperial estate with a seat in the Reichstag.

In 1512 the forces of Guelders under Duke Charles of Egmond occupied Anholt, as the Bronckhorst counts had sided with his rival Philip I of Castile, and could not be induced to release it until in 1537 they were paid a significant ransom. The counts stayed loyal to the House of Habsburg, therefore their lordship had to suffer in the Eighty Years' War, when it was attacked by the Geuzen of the Utrecht Union, as well as in the Thirty Years' War.

In 1641, again by marriage, Anholt was acquired by the princes of Salm, and passed to the Salm-Salm division of Salm. When Salm-Salm was annexed by France in 1793, Anholt became the seat and main possession of the princes of Salm-Salm. In 1802, the princes of Salm-Salm, together with their relatives, the princes of Salm-Kyrburg, received the newly created Principality of Salm as a compensation for their losses from the Empire; this much larger new Principality was adjacent to Anholt and eventually incorporated it.

v t e Lower Rhenish–Westphalian Circle (1500–1806) of the Holy Roman Empire
Prince-bishops	Cambrai (until 1678) Corvey Liège Minden Münster Osnabrück Paderborn Utrecht (until 1548) Verden (until 1648)
Prince-abbots	Corvey Essen Herford Kornelimünster Stavelot–Malmedy Thorn Werden
Secular	Arenberg Cleves with Mark East Frisia Jülich–Berg Guelders (until 1548) Luxemburg (until 1548) Minden Moers Nassau-Dillenburg Verden
Counts / Lords	From 1500 Bentheim Bronkhorst (until 1719) Diepholz Drenthe (until 1548) East Frisia (until 1667) Groningen (until 1548) Guelders (until 1548) Horne (until 1614) Hoya Lingen Lippe Manderscheid (until 1546) Moers (until 1541) Nassau Diez Hadamar Dillenburg (until 1664) Oldenburg Overijssel (until 1548) Pyrmont Ravensberg Reichenstein Rietberg Salm-Reifferscheid Sayn Schaumburg Tecklenburg Virneburg Wied Winneburg and Beilstein Zutphen (until 1548) From 1792 Anholt Blankenheim and Gerolstein Gemen Gimborn Gronsfeld Hallermund Holzappel Kerpen-Lommersum Myllendonk Reckheim Schleiden Wickrath Wittem Utrecht (until 1548) Status uncertain Delmenhorst Fagnolle Schaumburg Hesse Lippe Spiegelberg Steinfurt
Cities	Aachen Cologne Dortmund Duisburg Herford Verden (until 1648) Warburg
from 1648     until 1648     without seat in Imperial Diet     status uncertain Circles est. 1500: Bavarian, Swabian, Upper Rhenish, Lower Rhenish–Westphalian, Franconian, (Lower) Saxon Circles est. 1512: Austrian, Burgundian, Upper Saxon, Electoral Rhenish     Unencircled territories

• Lordships of the Holy Roman Empire
• Lower Rhenish-Westphalian Circle
• 1160s establishments in the Holy Roman Empire
• 1169 establishments in Europe
• 1802 disestablishments in the Holy Roman Empire