Principality of Reuss-Greiz

The Principality of Reuss-Greiz was a small German state ruled by the House of Reuss. The counts of Greiz, Lower Greiz and Upper Greiz were elevated to princely status in 1778, after which the rulers styled themselves Prince Reuss, Elder Line, or Prince Reuss of Greiz. From 1848 the state was officially called the Principality of Reuss Elder Line. Like the more numerous Junior Line, the house named every male Heinrich in honour of Emperor Henry VI, and the princes were numbered by birth rather than by reign. The territory covered 317 square kilometres and had more than 72,000 inhabitants in 1910. Reuss-Greiz preserved the flag adopted by the Frankfurt Parliament, which later became the national flag of Germany. After the First World War the Elder Line's territory was merged with that of the Junior Line in 1919 as the People's State of Reuss, which was incorporated into Thuringia in 1920. The Elder Line died out in 1927.