German Awards - German States - Würzburg - Grand Duchy

Würzburg existed as a grand duchy from 1806 to 1814. The Grand Duke was Habsburg Ferdinand III, formerly Grand Duke of Tuscany. It arose from the former bishopric or imperial bishopric of Würzburg. Already in 1168, the bishops received ducal power in Franconia. After secularization in 1802, Würzburg became part of the Elector of Bavaria. According to the Pressburg Peace of 1805, Bavaria in exchange for Tyrol transferred the Duchy of Würzburg to Ferdinand III. On December 26, 1805, Würzburg was transformed into Elector. On September 30, 1806, Elector Ferdinand joined the Rhine Union and became the Grand Duke of Würzburg. After the defeat of Napoleon and the Peace of Paris on 30 May 1814, existence as a grand duchy ended. Most of the territory again went to Bavaria.