Ducal Bavaria (also known as the "Old Stem duchy") Agilolfing dynasty Around 548 the kings of the
Franks placed the border region of Bavaria under the administration of a duke—possibly Frankish or possibly chosen from amongst the local leading families—who was supposed to act as a regional governor for the Frankish king. The first duke we know of, and likely the first, was Gariwald, or
Garibald I, a member of the powerful
Agilolfing family. This was the beginning of a series of Agilolfing dukes that was to last until 788.
Carolingian dynasty and dominion from the Holy Roman Empire The kings (later emperors) of the Franks now assumed complete control, placing Bavaria under the rule of non-hereditary governors and civil servants. They were not dukes but rather kings of Bavaria. Emperor
Louis the Pious divided control of the Empire among his sons, and the divisions became permanent in the decades following his death in 840. The Frankish rulers controlled Bavaria as part of their possessions.
Ducal Bavaria (also known as the "Younger Stem duchy") Ruled by an array of dukes from an array of rivaling houses, individually appointed to office.
Luitpolding dynasty, 911–947 : Luitpold, founder of the
Luitpolding dynasty, was not a duke of Bavaria but a
margrave of Carinthia under the rule of Louis the Child. Frankish power had waned in the region due to Hungarian attacks, allowing the local rulers greater independence. Luitpold's son, Arnulf, claimed the title of duke (implying full autonomy) in 911 and was recognized as such by King
Henry the Fowler of Germany in 920.
German kings, 947–1070 : From 947 until the 11th century, the kings of Germany repeatedly transferred Bavaria into different hands (including their own), never allowing any one family to establish itself. Bavaria was ruled by a series of short-lasting, mostly unrelated dynasties.
Houses of Welf and Babenberg, 1070–1180 : In 1070,
Emperor Henry IV deposed Duke Otto, granting the duchy instead to
Welf I, a member of the Italo-Bavarian family of
Este. Welf I subsequently quarreled with King Henry and was deprived of his duchy for nineteen years, during which it was directly administered by the German crown. Welf I recovered the duchy in 1096, and was succeeded by his sons Welf II and Henry IX—the latter was succeeded by his son Henry X, who also became
Duke of Saxony.
Ducal and Electoral Bavaria (Hereditary dukes) In 1180,
Henry XII the Lion and
Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor, fell out. The emperor consequently dispossessed the duke and gave his territory to
Otto I, Duke of Bavaria of the
House of Wittelsbach. From now on, Bavaria remained in the possession of various branches of the family for 738 years until the end of the First World War.
First partition, 1253–1340 In 1253, on Otto II's death, Bavaria was divided between his sons. Henry became Duke of Lower Bavaria and Louis of Upper Bavaria. From this point until the beginning of the 16th century, the territories were frequently divided between brothers, making the dukes difficult to list. In
Lower Bavaria, Henry XIII was succeeded by his three sons, Otto III, Louis III, and Stephen I ruling jointly. Otto III's successor in the joint dukedom was his son Henry XV. Stephen's successors were his sons Otto IV and Henry XIV. Henry XIV's son was John I. In
Upper Bavaria, Louis II was succeeded by his sons Rudolf I and Louis IV. The latter was elected King of Germany in 1314. After John I's death in 1340, Louis IV unified the Bavarian duchy. The dukes of Upper Bavaria served also as Counts Palatinate of the Rhine. In 1329 Louis IV released the Palatinate of the Rhine including the Bavarian
Upper Palatinate to the sons of Rudolf I. The Upper Palatinate would be reunited with Bavaria in 1623, the Lower Palatinate in 1777.
Second partition 1349–1503 From 1349 until 1503 the second partition of Bavaria took place. In 1349, the six sons of Louis IV partitioned Bavaria into Upper and Lower Bavaria again. In 1353, Lower Bavaria was partitioned into
Bavaria-Landshut and
Bavaria-Straubing. Upper Bavaria was partitioned between Bavaria-Straubing and Bavaria-Landshut in 1363. After the death of
Stephan II in 1392, Bavaria-Landshut was broken into three duchies,
John II gained
Bavaria-Munich,
Frederick, Duke of Bavaria-Landshut received a smaller Bavaria-Landshut, and in
Bavaria-Ingolstadt ruled
Stephen III, Duke of Bavaria. Following the
Landshut War (1503–1505), the Duke of Bavaria-Munich
Albert IV the Wise became ruler of Bavaria. In 1506 Albert decreed that the duchy should pass according to the rules of
primogeniture. In 1623
Maximilian I was granted the title
Prince-elector (German:
Kurfürst) of the Rhenish Palatinate.
House of Wittelsbach Partitions of Bavaria under Wittelsbach rule Table of rulers (Note: Here the numbering of the dukes is the same for all duchies, as all were titled Dukes of Bavaria, despite the different parts of land and its particular numbering of the rulers. The dukes are numbered by the year of their succession.)
Kingdom of Bavaria In 1805 under the
Peace of Pressburg between
Napoleonic France and the
Holy Roman Empire several duchies were elevated to kingdoms. The Wittelsbach rulers of Bavaria held the title
King of Bavaria from 1806 until 1918. The
prince-elector of Bavaria, Maximilian IV Joseph formally assumed the title King
Maximilian I of Bavaria on 1 January 1806. The well-known so called
Märchenkönig (Fairy tale king)
Ludwig II constructed
Neuschwanstein Castle,
Herrenchiemsee, and
Linderhof Palace during his reign (1864–1886), threatening not only to go bankrupt in person, but also to bankrupt the country in the process. In 1918
Ludwig III lost his throne in the
German Revolution of 1918–1919. ==Post-monarchy==