The question of in which country the imperial cities existed is asked by many people interested in history. And in order to answer it, you need to understand what it is in general and turn to history. And this term is directly related to Rome.
The name "Germany" was given by the Romans to the territory located east of the Rhine and north of the upper and middle Danube. The Romans borrowed the term from the Gauls, but no one knows where the name came from, or why the Gauls called their neighbors across the Rhine that way.
What is this
The Imperial City is the name given to the settlements that paid taxes not to the local government. Their population paid taxes directly to the emperor, hence the name. Imperial was Nuremberg in Germany, for example. But there were also cities free from such duties. And to understand how it happened, you need to turn to history again.
History
Germany was inhabited mainly by tribes of the same name. They were beautifully described in the work of Tacitus from the 1st century AD. e. called Germany. This is one of the tribes that have never been fullysubject to the Roman Empire. Only a couple of times the Romans managed to cross the Rhine, but they never succeeded in subjugating the territory of the modern country for a long time. The Rhine became the conditional border of Rome in the east, many emperors tried to expand the territory in this direction. The provinces that were created here were called: Germania Superior (Upper) and Germania Inferior (Lower), which were created at the end of the 1st century AD. e. on the left bank of the Rhine.
The Germans were a group of Indo-European peoples who came at the turn of the 2nd and 1st millennium BC. e. from the territory of the Jutland peninsula, Denmark and southern Scandinavia. From these territories they began to expand to the north (Scandinavia) and south (Germania). These peoples reached the Rhine and the upper Danube.
Germany covered an area of about 500 thousand square kilometers, located between the B altic Sea from the north, the Danube from the south, the Vistula from the east and the Rhine from the west.
The population of these lands in the 1st century A. D. e. was about 5 million people. The history of imperial cities originates in interaction with the Roman Empire. And the first contacts of this people with the Romans began at the end of the 2nd century AD. e. In the 1st century A. D. e. they occupied central Europe and fought with representatives of Rome, who sought to master the area between the Rhine and the Elbe. In 15 BC. e. Roman legions occupied the south of Germany through the winning campaigns of the sons of Emperor Octavian Augustus. Then imperial settlements appeared.
Long neighborhood of Romeinfluenced the Germans, in particular, the development of the economic, social and cultural level, which was manifested in the acceptance of many conquests of ancient civilization. This set the stage for tax systems, the creation of imperial cities.
Over time, Rome began to weaken. In the years 260-455 AD. e. he de alt with the growing onslaught of the Germans. At the end of the 4th century, the Huns, Goths, and then other Germans rose up, successfully making attempts to break through the borders of the Roman Empire; the great migrations of the peoples of Germany led to their gradual settlement on the territory of the Roman Empire and the creation of independent kingdoms over many modern states of Europe. Also, the settling of tribes on the borders of the Empire led to the creation of future European states with imprints of Roman culture. In 410 a.d. e. Rome was taken by the Visigoths, and in 455 by the Vandals. It was the triumph of the Germans over the Romans and a symbol of change.
Cities
In the era of Rome, the imperial cities were subject to the emperor. And in the Middle Ages, some of them increasingly gained their independence. In fact, the rulers redeemed it and began to collect taxes from the population, regardless of the prince. This is how the difference between free cities and imperial cities appeared. Basel, Worms, Strasbourg and a number of other cities became free. While Frankfurt, Augsburg, for example, remained imperial.
Status
Over the centuries, such legal aspects have changed repeatedly. However, initially in a more advantageous position were free settlements, which had morefreedom of choice. In addition, the status of cities changed many times: it could be taken away or granted. Free settlements, among other things, had their own defense, an army, and generally enjoyed great privileges. And therefore, the issuance of this status soon became a political tool that was used very actively. In the 16th century, for example, 85 cities in the country were imperial.
