County of Drenthe

The County of Drenthe, (In Dutch Landschap Drenthe), was the name given to the present Dutch province of Drenthe between 1528 and 1795.

In the early Middle Ages, a County of Drenthe existed between 1024 and 1046. But after that period, Drenthe was always part of the Bishopric of Utrecht, and more particularly of the Oversticht, the eastern part of the Bishopric.

When the Bishopric of Utrecht was abolished in 1528, and became an integral part of the Habsburg dominions, Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor divided the Bishopric and made Drenthe a separate county, ruled by a Habsburg Stadtholder. Because Drenthe was only sparsely populated, it had the same Stadtholder as the Lordship of Groningen.

Drenthe supported from the start the Dutch Revolt, but again wasn't treated like the other Counties. It had no voting rights in the Union of Utrecht and wasn't considered as one of the Seven Provinces.

Only in 1815, it became a full province in the United Kingdom of the Netherlands.

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