The Cultural Provinces Of Bavaria: A Regional Overview

Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a state in the southeast of Germany. It is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the country's total land area. Bavaria is divided into seven administrative regions: Upper Franconia, Middle Franconia, Lower Franconia, Bavarian Swabia, Upper Palatinate, Upper Bavaria, and Lower Bavaria.

The Kingdom of Bavaria

The foundation of the Kingdom of Bavaria dates back to the ascension of Maximilian IV Joseph of the House of Wittelsbach as King of Bavaria in 1806. The crown continued to be held by the Wittelsbachs until the kingdom came to an end in 1918. Most of the border of modern Germany's Free State of Bavaria were established after 1814 with the Treaty of Paris, in which the Kingdom of Bavaria ceded Tyrol and Vorarlberg to the Austrian Empire while receiving Aschaffenburg and Würzburg.

In 1918, Bavaria became a republic after the German Revolution, and the kingdom was thus succeeded by the current Free State of Bavaria.

During the rule of the Kingdom of Bavaria, the state was divided into 15 administrative government districts called Kreise. These were created in the fashion of the French departements, quite even in size and population, and named after their main rivers. They were:

• Altmühlkreis
• Eisackkreis
• Etschkreis
• Illerkreis
• Innkreis
• Isarkreis
• Lechkreis
• Mainkreis
• Naabkreis
• Oberdonaukreis
• Pegnitzkreis
• Regenkreis
• Rezatkreis
• Salzachkreis
• Unterdonaukreis

In 1816/17, the number of Kreise was reduced to 8:

• Isarkreis
• Obermainkreis
• Oberdonaukreis
• Regenkreis
• Rezatkreis
• Unterdonaukreis
• Untermainkreis
• Rheinkreis

In 1838, at the instigation of King Ludwig I, the Kreise were renamed after the former historical tribes and territories of the respective area. The town names of Neuburg, Regensburg, and Aschaffenburg were later dropped. The new names were:

• Upper Bavaria
• Lower Bavaria
• Swabia and Neuburg
• Upper Palatinate and Regensburg
• Middle Franconia
• Lower Franconia and Aschaffenburg
• Upper Franconia and Palatinate

The Duchy of Bavaria

The origins of the older Bavarian duchy can be traced to 551/555. In his Getica, the chronicler Jordanes writes: "That area of the Swabians has the Bavarii in the east, the Franks in the west ...". The first documented duke was Garibald I, a scion of the Frankish Agilolfings, who ruled from 555 onward as a largely independent Merovingian vassal.

During the decline of the Carolingian Empire in the late ninth century, a new duchy was created from this area. It became one of the stem duchies of the East Frankish realm, which evolved as the Kingdom of Germany and the Holy Roman Empire.

Over the centuries, several territories seceded from the Duchy of Bavaria, such as the County of Tyrol, the Archbishopric of Salzburg, the Duchy of Carinthia, and the Duchy of Styria. In 1806, the Duchy of Bavaria became the independent Kingdom of Bavaria.

The Free State of Bavaria

Bavaria has a distinct culture, largely due to its Catholic heritage and conservative traditions, which includes a unique language, cuisine, architecture, festivals, and Alpine symbolism. It also has the second-largest economy among the German states by GDP figures, making it a wealthy German region.

Bavaria's history includes its earliest settlement by Iron Age Celtic tribes, followed by the conquests of the Roman Empire in the 1st century BC, when the territory was incorporated into the provinces of Raetia and Noricum. It became the Duchy of Bavaria (a stem duchy) in the 6th century AD following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire. It was later incorporated into the Holy Roman Empire, became the independent Kingdom of Bavaria after 1806, joined the Prussian-led German Empire in 1871 while retaining its title of kingdom, and finally became a state of the Federal Republic of Germany in 1949.

Bavaria is divided into seven administrative regions: Upper Franconia, Middle Franconia, Lower Franconia, Bavarian Swabia, Upper Palatinate, Upper Bavaria, and Lower Bavaria.

Bavaria's Geography and Administrative Regions

Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a state in the southeast of Germany. It is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total land area of Germany. It is divided into seven administrative regions called Regierungsbezirke (singular Regierungsbezirk). Each of these regions has a state agency called the Bezirksregierung (district government).

The seven administrative regions are:

• Upper Palatinate (German: Oberpfalz)
• Upper Bavaria (Oberbayern)
• Lower Bavaria (Niederbayern)
• Upper Franconia (Oberfranken)
• Middle Franconia (Mittelfranken)
• Lower Franconia (Unterfranken)
• Swabia (Bayerisch Schwaben)

The administrative regions are further divided into 71 rural districts (Landkreise) and 25 independent cities (Kreisfreie Städte). The rural districts are then divided into 2,031 regular municipalities (Gemeinden).

The Regierungsbezirke were created in the fashion of the French departements, quite even in size and population, and named after their main rivers. The first such divisions were created in 1808, with 15 administrative government districts. This number was reduced to eight in 1816/17, and the names of the districts were changed to reflect the former historical tribes and territories of the respective areas.

Bavaria's History

Bavaria, officially the Free State of Bavaria, is a state in the southeast of Germany. It is the largest German state by land area, comprising roughly a fifth of the total land area of Germany.

Early History

The earliest inhabitants of Bavaria were Celtic tribes, such as the Boii, who settled the region in the Iron Age. In the 1st century BC, the territory was conquered by the Roman Empire and incorporated into the provinces of Raetia and Noricum. During the Roman period, the region now known as southern Bavaria was in the northern half of the Roman province of Raetia, with the main Roman city being Augusta Vindelicorum, now modern-day Augsburg.

Duchy of Bavaria

Following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, Bavaria became a stem duchy in the 6th century. The Bavarians soon came under the dominion of the Franks, who put the region under the administration of a duke. From around 554 to 788, the Duchy of Bavaria was ruled by the Agilolfing family. During this period, the Bavarians converted to Christianity, with the arrival of Saint Boniface in c. 734.

Kingdom of Bavaria

In 788, the last Agilolfing duke, Tassilo III, was deposed by Charlemagne. The Duchy of Bavaria changed hands several times over the following centuries, and in 976, it lost large territories in the south and southeast following the revolt of Henry II, Duke of Bavaria. In 1180, Henry the Lion was deposed as Duke of Saxony and Bavaria by his cousin, Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor. Bavaria was then awarded as a fief to the Wittelsbach family, who ruled from 1180 to 1918.

Electorate of Bavaria

In 1623, the Bavarian duke replaced his relative of the Palatinate branch, becoming a prince-elector with the power to determine the Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. During the early modern period, Bavaria was involved in several wars with Austria, resulting in occupations by Austrian forces.

Kingdom of Bavaria

When the Holy Roman Empire dissolved under Napoleon's onslaught in the early 19th century, Bavaria became a kingdom in 1806 and joined the Confederation of the Rhine. In 1871, it joined the Prussian-led German Empire while retaining its title of kingdom.

Free State of Bavaria

Following World War I, the Bavarian monarchy was the first to fall when, on November 8, 1918, Socialist politician Kurt Eisner proclaimed the Free State of Bavaria. Since 1949, Bavaria has been a state of the Federal Republic of Germany.

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