History
The family comes from Castle Liechtenstein in Lower Austria, which the family possessed from at least 1140 to the 13th century, and from 1807 onwards. Through the centuries, the dynasty acquired vast swathes of land, predominantly in Moravia, Lower Austria, Silesia and Styria, though in all cases, these territories were held in fief under other more senior feudal lords, particularly under various lines of the Habsburg family, to whom several Liechtenstein princes served as close advisors. Thus, and without any territory held directly under the Imperial throne, the Liechtenstein dynasty was unable to meet a primary requirement to qualify for a seat in the Imperial Diet (Reichstag).
The family yearned greatly for the added power which a seat in the Imperial government would garner, and therefore searched for lands to acquire which would be immediate, or held without any feudal personage other than the Holy Roman Emperor himself having rights on the land. Eventually the head of the family was able to arrange the purchase from the Hohenems family of the minuscule Lordship of Schellenberg and county of Vaduz, in 1699 and 1712 respectively. Schellenberg and Vaduz possessed exactly the political status required, with no feudal lord other than their comital sovereign and the suzerain Emperor.
On 23 January 1719, after the purchase had been duly made, Charles VI as Holy Roman Emperor decreed Vaduz and Schellenberg to be united and raised to the dignity of a Principality by the name of "Liechtenstein", in honour of " true servant, Anton Florian of Liechtenstein". It is on this date that Liechtenstein became a member state of the Holy Roman Empire. Ironically, but as a testament to the pure political expediency of the purchases, the Princes of Liechtenstein did not set foot in their new principality for several decades.
According to the Constitution of the Princely House of Liechtenstein of 26 October 1993, all members other than the reigning prince shall bear the titles Prince or Princess of Liechtenstein and Count or Countess of Rietberg.
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Karl I, Prince of Liechtenstein (1569 - 1627), created Prince in 1608, Viceroy of Bohemia 1622
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Hans-Adam I, Prince of Liechtenstein (1662 - 1712), acquired the territory of the Principality
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Johann I Joseph, Prince of Liechtenstein (1760 - 1836), the last prince to rule under the Holy Roman Empire and the first ruler of a sovereign state from 1806
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Johann II, Prince of Liechtenstein (1840 - 1929), allied the principality with Switzerland after the downfall of the Habsburg Monarchy in 1918
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Franz Joseph II, Prince of Liechtenstein (1906 - 1989), remained neutral throughout World War II
Read more about this topic: Princely Family Of Liechtenstein
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