Church''. Freiburg belonged to the
Prince-Archbishopric of Bremen, a territory of
imperial immediacy established in 1180. In the mid-16th century Freiburg adopted Lutheranism. During the
Leaguist occupation under
Johan 't Serclaes, Count of Tilly (1628–1630), Freiburg suffered from attempts of re-Catholisation. In 1648 the prince-archbishopric was transformed into the
Duchy of Bremen, which was first ruled in
personal union by the Swedish and from 1715 on by the Hanoverian Crown. In 1807 the short-lived
Kingdom of Westphalia annexed the duchy, before
France annexed it in 1810. In 1813 the Duchy of Bremen was restored to the
Electorate of Hanover, which - after its upgrade to the
Kingdom of Hanover in 1814 - incorporated the duchy in a
real union and the ducal territory, including Freiburg, became part of the
Stade Region, established in 1823. ==Notes==