A map showing the Gaue of the Kingdom of Germany around the beginning of the 11th century
A map showing the Gaue/pagi of the Duchy of Swabia and Upper Burgundy around the beginning of the 11th century

The following is a list of German Gaue which existed during the Middle Ages.

It lists the names of the Frankish or German Gaue, many of which are still used today regionally, primarily in local traditions. Their locations are often no longer widely known, but are known from publications.

Duchy of Bavaria

Margraviate of the Nordgau

Margraviate of Austria

Duchy of Carinthia

March of Styria

March of Verona and Aquileia

Duchy of Franconia

East Franconia

West Franconia

Frisia

Lotharingia

Lower Lotharingia

Upper Lotharingia

  • Albegau: on the right bank of the upper Meurthe[4]
  • Alzettegau: along the Alzette[4]
  • Arelgau or Arlenais: along the headlands of the upper Semois, west of Luxembourg
  • Barrois: along the Ornain, between the Marne and Meuse, southwest of Verdun
  • Blois: along the upper Meuse, south of Verdun
  • Bidgau or Bitgau: south Eifel around Bitburg[4]
  • Bliesgau: along the Blies[4]
  • Carosgau or pagus Caroscus: along the upper Kyll and the upper Prüm, around the town of Prüm; possibly named from the Belgic tribe of the Caeroesi
  • Pagus Castricius: along the upper Meuse, around Charleville-Mézières
  • Chaumontois: along the upper Meurthe and Moselle, southwest of Nancy
  • Dulcomensis: between the Aisne and Meuse, northwest of Verdun
  • Eichelgau: along the Eichel (Saar), southeast of Saarbrücken[4]
  • Hunsrückgau: in the western Hunsrück, along the Moselle, northeast of Trier
  • Karosgau: along the Prüm in western Eifel[4]
  • Maifeld: at the confluence of the Middle Rhine and Moselle rivers, southwest of Koblenz
  • Methingau: along the upper Alzette, around Luxembourg City[4]
  • Metzgau: along the middle Moselle, the area surrounding Metz[4]
  • Moselgau: along the lower/middle Moselle between Cochem and Metz[6]:484; largely overlapping with territories in Bidgau, Metzgau, and Wavergau and possibly replaced early on by them
  • Mosomensis: along the upper Meuse in the Ardennes, north of Verdun
  • Niedgau: along the Nied, east of Metz [4]
  • Ornois: along the river Ornain between Lorraine and Champagne
  • Rizzigau: along the midde Moselle, around Thionville[4]
  • Saargau: along the Saar, sometimes divided into Upper Saargau around Sarrebourg and Lower Saargau around Wallerfangen[4]
  • Saintois: between the upper Meuse and Moselle, south of Toul
  • Salingau or Saulnois; along the Seille
  • Sauergau: along the Sauer in Luxembourg [4]
  • Scarponagau or Scarponois: along the middle Moselle, roughly between Toul and Metz [4]
  • Soulossois: along the upper headlands of the Meuse, southwest of Toul
  • Toulois: on the upper Moselle, around Toul
  • Trechirgau: between the lower Moselle and the left bank of the Middle Rhine, in the eastern Hunsrück
  • Triergau: on the right banks of the Saar and Moselle, southeast of Trier [4]
  • Verdungau or Verdunois: along the upper Meuse, around Verdun [4]
  • Wavergau or Woëvregau: between the Meuse and Moselle; Woëvre region in the southwest and Luxembourg in the northeast [4]

Duchy of Saxony

Angria

Eastphalia

Nordalbingia

Westphalia

Sclavonia

Billung March

Northern March

  • Gau Desseri or Dassia, on the Dosse; possible extent eastward along the upper Havel
  • Groswin: south of the Peene and southwest of Usedom, around Anklam
  • Heveller: along the lower Havel, Havelland plus northern Zauche
  • Gau Liezizi: between the lower Havel and Elbe
  • Linones or Linagga: northern Prignitz, between the Elde and Elbe
  • Meseritz: south of the Peene, northeast of Neubrandenburg
  • Moraciani: on the eastern shore of the Elbe from Magdeburg up to Schartau
  • Gau Murizzi: around the southern half of Lake Müritz
  • Nielitizi or Brizanen: at the confluence of the Elbe and Havel rivers, southern Prignitz; the Brizanen are described as inhabiting the same area, though Nielitizi is more commonly attested as the name of the area/gau; sometimes confused with Neletizi
  • Plote or Ploth: between the Peene and Tollensee, east of Demmin
  • Redarier: southeast of Neubrandenburg and northeast of Neustrelitz
  • Gau Retschanen or Rizani: eastern Brandenburg, northeast of Berlin
  • Sprevane: along the lower Spree, the majority of Berlin and the area east
  • Tollensians or Tholenz: north of the Tollensesee, northwest of Neubrandenburg, southeast of Lake Kummerow
  • Ukrani: along the Ucker, roughly coterminous with the Uckermark
  • Gau Zemzizi: along the Havel river, north of Brandenburg

Saxon Eastern March

  • March of Lusatia: created in 965; gradually replaced title of Saxon East March
    • Gau Zerwisti or Ciervisti: at the confluence of the Elbe and Saale around Zerbst
    • Gau Coledizi: in Saxony-Anhalt, between Halle and Köthen
    • Lusitzi: roughly coterminous with Lower Lusatia
    • Gau Neletizi: east of the Saale around Nehlitz including the castle Giebichenstein (Halle)
    • Gau Nice: along the lower Neisse at the confluence with the Oder; poorly attested
    • Gau Nizizi: territory between the Elbe, Mulde and Black Elster
    • Gau Nudzici: east of the Saale between Halle and Bernburg
    • Gau Ploni or Planegau: southern Zauche and eastern Fläming, along the Plane; poorly attested, territory sometimes considered an extension south of the Heveller
    • Gau Selpuli: along the lower Spree and lower Neisse rivers, southeast of Berlin; northern portion of territory sometimes considered extension south of the Sprevane
    • Gau Serimunt: between the Saale, Mulde, Elbe and Fuhne
    • Gau Siusili or Susali: in the Leipzig Basin on the Mulde in Saxony
    • Gau Sorau or Zara: between the lower Bóbr and lower Neisse rivers, east of Cottbus
    • Gau Wolauki: along the middle Elbe, north of the Dübener Heide and south of Wittenberg; very poorly attested
    • Gau Zitizi or Citice: along the Mulde near the confluence with the Elbe, around Dessau; poorly attested, either a sub-gau of or split between Serimunt and Nizizi
  • March of Meissen: created in 965; sometimes referred to as part of the Saxon East March, gradually seen as separate
  • March of Merseburg: created in 965; sometimes referred to as part of the Saxon East March, gradually seen as separate
  • March of Zeitz: created in 965; sometimes referred to as part of the Saxon East March, gradually seen as separate

Duchy of Swabia

Duchy of Thuringia

  • Altgau: along the Helbe river, between the upper Wipper and middle Unstrut, north of Erfurt and east of Mühlhausen; some sources indicate Altgau extending south of the Unstrut towards Erfurt, and north of the Wipper towards Nordhausen[1]
  • Eichsfeld: between the upper Unstrut and lower Werra, along the Hainich hills, around Heiligenstadt; larger than the modern region but without the Low Saxon territory around Duderstadt; some sources indicate Eichsfeld extending west of the Werra to include Eschwege[1]
  • Gau Engilin: along the lower Unstrut and the Finne hills, west of Naumburg
  • Germar-Mark: along the lower Werra and upper Unstrut, centered on and named after Görmar, now in Mühlhausen; likely established as a mark to defend against the Saxons in the 9th century, gradually lost importance and was superseded by the gaues of Eichsfeld, Westergau, and Altgau
  • Helmegau: along the Helme, around Nordhausen
  • Husitingau or Usitigau: between the Ilm and Saale, southeast of Weimar; some sources describe as a sub-gau of Ostergau[5]
  • Längwitzgau: along the upper Ilm, around Ilmenau and Arnstadt
  • Nabelgau: between the lower Wipper and Helme, along the Kyffhäuser hills, around Frankenhausen; some sources indicate Nabelgau extending west along the Wipper to include the territory of Wippergau as a sub-gau[1]
  • Natergau or Watergau: along the Notter, east of Mühlhausen; sub-gau of Altgau
  • Ohmfeldgau or Ohnfelt: along the sources of the Leine and Wipper rivers, around Leinefelde; sub-gau of Eichsfeld
  • Orlagau: along the upper Saale, around Saalfeld; some sources indicate it as a territory of the March of Zeitz, separated from Thuringia[1]
  • (Thuringian) Ostergau: along the lower Ilm, around Weimar; some sources indicate Ostergau extending west towards Erfurt and including the territory of Thüringgau[1]
  • Ringgau: along the middle Werra, southwest of Eisenach; sub-gau of Westergau
  • Thüringgau or Südthüringgau: on the south bank of the middle Unstrut, along the Gera, around Erfurt; some sources omit this gau entirely and show its territory split between Westergau in the west, Ostergau in the east, and Altgau in the north[1]
  • (Thuringian) Westergau: along the middle Werra and the Hörsel, around Eisenach and Gotha
  • Wiehegau or Wigsezi: between the lower Unstrut and Finne hills; some sources describe as a sub-gau of Engilin[5]
  • Wippergau: along the upper Wipper, around Sondershausen; some sources describe as a sub-gau of Nabelgau[1]

Outside the Kingdom of Germany

Duchy of Bohemia

Kingdom of Burgundy

Margraviate of Flanders

  • List of medieval gau in Flanders

West Francia/Kingdom of France

  • List of medieval pagi

Unknown or Mythological Gaue

  • Gau Jom: controversial historical territory settled by and subject to the Jomsvikings as well as a Danish exclave on the Pomeranian coast
  • Winidon: a supposed gau in eastern Thuringia listed in many sources; first listed in sources by error due to a hole in a historical document[10]:223-225

See also

Sources

  • August von Wersebe: Beschreibung der Gaue between Elbe, Saale und Unstrut, Weser und Werra, insofern solche zu Eastphalia mit Nord-Thuringia und zu Ost-Engern gehört haben, und wie sie im 10ten und 11ten Jahrhundert befunden sind. Hahn, Hannover 1829, Digitalisat.
  • Wachter, Ferdinand (1852). "1: A – G. Theil 54: Gargano – Gauhe.". In Ersch, Johann S.; Gruber, Johann G. (eds.). Allgemeine Encyclopädie der Wissenschaften und Künste [General Encyclopedia of the Sciences and Arts] (in German). Leipzig: Brockhaus. pp. 405–449.
  • Boettger, Heinrich. Diöcesan- and Gau-Grenzen Norddeutschlands zwischen Oder, Main, jenseits des Rheins, der Nord- und Ostsee. Von Ort zu Ort schreitend festgestellt [Diocese and Gau borders of northern Germany between the Oder, Main, beyond the Rhine, the North Sea and the Baltic Sea] (in German). Buchhandlung des Waisenhauses u. a., Halle u. a. 1875–1876:
    • Volume 1: Von Ort zu Ort schreitende Begrenzung von 31 Gauen und 10 Untergauen in 7 Bisthümern und 108 geistlichen Bezirken in Franken, nebst einer Gau- und einer dieselbe begründenden Diöcesankarte [From place to place progressing boundaries of 31 Gaue and 10 sub-Gaue in 7 bishoprics and 108 ecclesiastical districts in Franconia, in addition to a Gau map and a corresponding diocese map], 1875
    • Volume 2: Von Ort zu Ort schreitende Begrenzung von 40 Gauen und 39 Untergauen in 6 Bisthümern und 130 geistlichen Bezirken im Umfange der Provinz Hannover, nebst einer Gau- und einer dieselbe begründenden Diöcesankarte. [From place to place progressing boundaries of 40 Gaue and 39 sub-Gaue in 6 bishoprics and 130 ecclesiastical districts in the province of Hanover, in addition to a Gau map and a corresponding diocese map], 1874
    • Volume 3: Von Ort zu Ort schreitende Begrenzung von 43 Gauen und 24 Untergauen in 6 Bisthümern und 110 geistlichen Bezirken in Altsachsen und Friesland, nebst einer Gau- und einer dieselbe begründenden Diöcesankarte. [From place to place progressing boundaries of 43 Gaue and 24 sub-Gaue in 6 bishoprics and 110 ecclesiastical districts in Old Saxony and Frisia, in addition to a Gau map and a corresponding diocese map], 1875
    • Volume 4: Von Ort zu Ort schreitende Begrenzung von 60 Gauen and 11 Untergauen in 7 Bisthümern und 148 geistlichen Bezirken im Umfange des Slavenlandes, nebst einer Gau- und einer dieselbe begründenden Diöcesankarte. [From place to place progressing boundaries of 60 Gaue and 11 sub-Gaue in 7 bishoprics and 148 ecclesiastical districts in the lands of the Slavs, in addition to a Gau map and a corresponding diocese map], 1876
    • Gaukarte und eine dieselbe begründende Diöcesankarte zu den Diöcesan- und Gaugrenzen Norddeutschlands. [Gau map and a corresponding diocese map of the diocese and Gau borders of northern Germany], 1876
  • Schultze, Walther (1896). Die fränkischen Gaue Badens [The Frankish Gaue of Baden] (in German). Stuttgart: Strecker & Moser.
  • Müller, Ferdinand (1842). Die deutschen Stämme und ihre Fürsten, oder historische Entwickelung der Territorial-Verhältnisse Deutschlands im Mittelalter [The German Tribes and their Princes, or the Historical Development of German Territorial Conditions in the Middle Ages] (in German). Berlin.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 Hand-Atlas für die Geschichte des Mittelalters und der neueren Zeit (on Wikisource in German: 'Hand Atlas for the History of the Middle Ages and Modern Times)
  2. Norbert Herler (Red.): Laibstadt – Ein Dorf verändert sich. Zum 25-jährigen Bestehen des Heimat- and Verschönerungsvereins Laibstadt 1976–2001. Heimat- and Verschönerungsverein Laibstadt, Laibstadt 2001, S. 19.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40 "Geschichtlicher Atlas von Hessen: Die Gaue vor 900" [Historical Atlas of Hesse: The Gaue before 900]. Landesgeschichtliches Informationssystem Hessen (in German). 2006.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 Puhl, Roland W. L. Die Gaue and Grafschaften des frühen Mittelalters im Saar-Mosel-Raum: Philologisch-onomastische Studien zur frühmittelalterlichen Raumorganisation anhand der Raumnamen and der mit ihnen spezifizierten Ortsnamen [The Gaue and Counties of the early middle ages in the Saar-Mosel area: Philological-onomastic studies of early medieval territorial organisation based on the territory names and their broken-down place names] (in German). Vol. 13. Beiträge zur Sprache im Saar-Mosel-Raum. Saarbrücker Druck und Verlag, Saarbrücken, 1999 -and- Saarbrücken Universität, Dissertation, 1996. ISBN 3-930843-48-X.
  5. 1 2 3 4 Droysens, Gerhard (1886). Allgemeiner Historischer Handatlas [General Historical Hand Atlas] (in German).
  6. 1 2 Köbler, Gerhard (2014). Historische Enzyklopädie der Länder der Deutschen [Historical Encyclopedia of the German Lands] (PDF) (in German) (14 ed.). C.H.Beck. ISBN 3406549861.
  7. Heimatkalender für den Landkreis Verden. Bd. 31, 1988, ISSN 0948-9584, S. 158.
  8. 1 2 3 Beschreibung des Oberamts Ehingen § Geschichtliche Denkwürdigkeiten (on Wikisource in German: 'Description of the Oberamt of Ehingen § Historically Notabilities')
  9. Marie-Claire Gérard-Zai / GL: Ogoz in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
  10. Dobenecker, Otto (1892). Hat es in Thüringen einen Gau Winidon gegeben?: Zeitschrift des Vereins für Thüringische Geschichte und Altertumskunde [Was there a Gau Winidon in Thuringia? : Journal of the Association for Thuringian History and Archeology] (in German) (15 ed.). pp. 223–225.
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