County of Flanders

The County of Flanders (Dutch: Graafschap Vlaanderen, French: Comté de Flandre) was one of the territories constituting the Low Countries. The county existed from 862 to 1795. It was one of the original secular fiefs of France and for centuries was one of the most affluent regions in Europe.

The area under the French crown was located completely west of the Scheldt river and was called "Royal Flanders" (Kroon-Vlaanderen). This fief was finally removed from French control after the Peace of Madrid in 1526 and the Peace of Ladies in 1529. Aside from this the count of Flanders also held land east of the Scheldt river from the 11th century on, as a fief of the Holy Roman Empire; this area was called "Imperial Flanders" (Rijks-Vlaanderen). Except for French Flanders, Flanders is the only part of the medieval French kingdom that is not part of modern day France.