Free state is a term occasionally used in the official titles of some states.

In principle the title asserts and emphasises the freedom of the state in question, but what this actually means varies greatly in different contexts:

• Sometimes it asserts sovereignty or independence.
• Sometimes it asserts autonomy within a larger nation-state.
• Sometimes it is used as a synonym for republic but not all "free states" have been republics. While the historical German free states and the Orange Free State were republican in form, the Congo and Irish Free States were governed under forms of monarchy.
• In the unusual case of the Congo Free State, it emphasised the new state's freedom from major colonial powers and the Belgian parliament, as a domain under the paradoxically "free" control of the Belgian king. In the equally unusual case of the Irish Free State, the term Free State was intentionally ambiguous.

Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      For other uses, see Republic (disambiguation). ... Flag of the Orange Free State Capital Bloemfontein Language(s) Afrikaans, English Religion Dutch Reformed Church Government Republic President  - 1854 - 1855 Josias P. Hoffman  - 1855 - 1859 Jacobus Nicolaas Boshoff  - 1859 - 1863 Marthinus Wessel Pretorius (also President of the South African Republic from 1857 to 1871). ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A monarchy, from the Greek μονος, one, and αρχειν, to rule, is a form of government that has a monarch as head of state. ...

Overview

Germany

Flag of the modern Free State of Bavaria

In Germany the term free state (in German, Freistaat) was part of the full names of most Länder (federal states) during the inter-war period. The term was synonymous with republic and was introduced to emphasise the transition of Imperial Germany to the Weimar Republic after the defeat in World War I and the fact of the German Revolution, which deposed all German monarchs. Just as Free Cities (Freistadt), such as the Imperial Free Cities of Hamburg, Bremen, and Lübeck, were ruled not by a hereditary monarch but by an elected council of burghers, so all of the free states were no longer to be ruled by a noble or royal head of state but by elected representatives of the citizens. The term Freistaat is still used for the states of Bavaria, Saxony and Thuringia. Image File history File links Flag_of_Bavaria_(striped). ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Bavaria_(striped). ... Germany is a Federal Republic made up of 16 States, known in German as Länder (singular Land). ... This article or section should include material from German Monarchy The term German Empire (the translation from German of Deutsches Reich) commonly refers to Germany, from its consolidation as a unified nation-state on January 18, 1871, until the abdication of Kaiser (Emperor) Wilhelm II on November 9, 1918. ... Anthem: Das Lied der Deutschen The Länder of Germany during the Weimar Republic, with the Free State of Prussia (Freistaat Preußen) as the largest Capital Berlin Language(s) German Government Republic President  - 1919-1925 Friedrich Ebert  - 1925-1933 Paul von Hindenburg Chancellor  - 1919 Philipp Scheidemann  - 1933 Adolf Hitler... Combatants Allied Powers: Russian Empire France British Empire Italy United States Central Powers: Austria-Hungary German Empire Ottoman Empire Bulgaria Commanders Nikolay II Aleksey Brusilov Georges Clemenceau Joseph Joffre Ferdinand Foch Robert Nivelle Herbert H. Asquith D. Lloyd George Sir Douglas Haig Sir John Jellicoe Victor Emmanuel III Luigi Cadorna... Karl Liebknecht on 9 November 1918 in the Berliner Tiergarten The German November Revolution was one of many Revolutions across Europe at the end of World War I in 1918-1919. ... A city-state is a region controlled exclusively by a city. ... In the Holy Roman Empire, an imperial free city (in German: freie Reichsstadt) was a city formally responsible to the emperor only — as opposed to the majority of cities in the Empire, which belonged to a territory and were thus governed by one of the many princes (Fürsten) of... Hamburg from above Hamburgs motto: May the posterity endeavour with dignity to conserve the freedom, which the forefathers acquired. ... The Free Hanseatic City of Bremen (official name in German: Freie Hansestadt Bremen) is the smallest of Germanys 16 Federal States (Bundesländer). ... The title of this article contains the character ü. Where it is unavailable or not desired, the name may be represented as Luebeck. ... Look up monarch in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ... Burgher can refer to: a title; in the European Middle Ages, a burgher was any freeman of a burgh or borough; or any inhabitant of a borough, a person who lives in town (in Dutch the word for citizen is burger and the German cognate is Bürger). ... Queen Elizabeth II, is the Head of State of 16 countries including: the United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, Jamaica, New Zealand and the Bahamas, as well as crown colonies and overseas territories of the United Kingdom. ... The word citizen may refer to: A person with a citizenship Citizen Watch Co. ... Germany is a Federal Republic made up of 16 States, known in German as Länder (singular Land). ... The geographic region and Free State of Bavaria (German: Freistaat Bayern), with an area of 70,553 km² (27,241 square miles) and 12. ... The Free State of Saxony (German: Freistaat Sachsen; Sorbian: Swobodny Stat Sakska) has a land area of 18,413 km² and a population of 4. ... The Free State of Thuringia (German: Freistaat Thüringen) is located in central Germany and is considered one of the smaller of Germanys sixteen Bundesländer (federal states), with an area of 16,200 km² and 2. ...

Flag of the now defunct Orange Free State

Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Orange_Free_State. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_the_Orange_Free_State. ... Flag of the Orange Free State Capital Bloemfontein Language(s) Afrikaans, English Religion Dutch Reformed Church Government Republic President  - 1854 - 1855 Josias P. Hoffman  - 1855 - 1859 Jacobus Nicolaas Boshoff  - 1859 - 1863 Marthinus Wessel Pretorius (also President of the South African Republic from 1857 to 1871). ...

Africa

In South Africa the term free state was used in the title of the nineteenth century Orange Free State (Oranje Vrystaat in Afrikaans) and is today used in the title of its successor, Free State province; both entities were established as republican in form. In contrast, the Congo Free State came into being between 1877 and 1884 as a private kingdom or dictatorship of King Léopold II of Belgium. Flag of the Orange Free State Capital Bloemfontein Language(s) Afrikaans, English Religion Dutch Reformed Church Government Republic President  - 1854 - 1855 Josias P. Hoffman  - 1855 - 1859 Jacobus Nicolaas Boshoff  - 1859 - 1863 Marthinus Wessel Pretorius (also President of the South African Republic from 1857 to 1871). ... Afrikaans is a West Germanic language mainly spoken in South Africa and Namibia. ... Capital Bloemfontein Largest city Bloemfontein Area  - Total Ranked 3rd 129,480 km² Premier Beatrice Marshoff (ANC) Population   - 2001   - 1996   - Density Ranked 8th 2,706,776 2,633,504 21/km² (2001) Languages Sotho (62%) Afrikaans (14%) isiXhosa (9. ... Flag Capital Boma Government Monarchy Ruler and owner Leopold II of Belgium Historical era New Imperialism  - Established 1885  - Annexation by Belgium 15 November, 1908 The Congo Free State was a corporate state privately owned by King Leopold II of Belgium (not in his role as monarch) that included the entire... 1877 (MDCCCLXXVII) was a common year starting on Monday (see link for calendar). ... 1884 (MDCCCLXXXIV) is a leap year starting on Tuesday (click on link to calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      A dictatorship is an autocratic form of government in which the government is ruled by a dictator. ... King Léopold II His Majesty King Léopold II of the Belgians (Louis Philippe Marie Victor) (April 9, 1835–December 17, 1909), succeeded his father, Léopold I of Belgium, to the Belgian throne in 1865 and remained king until his death. ...

Flag of Azad Kashmir; the modern Kashmiri Free state

Image File history File links Flag_of_Azad_Kashmir. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Azad_Kashmir. ...

Asia

In Pakistan-administered Kashmir the term free state was together used in the title of the provisional government of Azad Kashmir and the Northern Areas of the Himalayan disputed territory of Kashmir as opposed to "Occupied Kashmir" in Jammu and Kashmir region illegally held under foreign rule of India since 1947 Partition. Shown in green is the Kashmiri region under Pakistani control. ... A provisional government is an emergency or interim government set up when a political void has been created by the collapse of a previous administration or regime. ... Azad Kashmir (Urdu: ‎, English: ), is part of the Pakistani administered section of the state of Jammu and Kashmir, along with the Northern Areas; its official name is Azad Jammu and Kashmir. ... Shown in green is the Kashmiri region under Pakistani control. ... Himalayan can refer to: Himalaya, the mountains: Himalayan (cat), the type of cat Himalayan, the breed of rabbit This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. ... A territorial dispute is a disagreement over the possession/control of land between two or more states, or over the possession/control of land by one state after it has conquered it from a former state no longer currently recognized by the occupying power. ... Kashmir (or Cashmere) may refer to: Kashmir region, the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent India, Kashmir conflict, the territorial dispute between India, Pakistan, and the China over the Kashmir region. ... Jammu and Kashmir   (IPA: , Kashmiri:ज्वम त॒ कॅशीर جۄم تٕہ کٔشِیر, Hindi:जम्मू और कश्मीर, Urdu:جموں Ùˆ کشمیر) (often abbreviated as Kashmir), is the northern-most state of India, lying mostly in the Himalayan mountains. ... The flag of British India British India, circa 1860 The British Raj (Raj in Hindi meaning Rule; from Sanskrit Rajya) was the British rule between 1858 and 1947 of the Indian Subcontinent, which included the present-day India, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and Burma (Myanmar), whereby these lands were under the colonial... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ... Look up partition in Wiktionary, the free dictionary. ...

The modern Republic of Ireland was known from 1922-1937 as the Irish Free State.

Image File history File links Flag_of_Ireland. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Ireland. ... Territory of the Irish Free State Capital Dublin Language(s) Irish, English Government Constitutional monarchy Monarch  - 1922–1936 George V  - 1936–1936 George VI President of the Executive Council  - 1922–1932 W.T. Cosgrave  - 1932–1937 Eamon de Valera Legislature Oireachtas  - Upper house Seanad Éireann  - Lower house Dáil Éireann...

Irish Free State

The Irish Free State of 1922-1937 was a form of constitutional monarchy under the British monarch. The Irish state was a special case because the term free state was deliberately chosen as a literal translation of the Irish word saorstát. At the time in which Irish nationalists were negotiating the secession of most of Ireland from the United Kingdom the word saorstát was a commonly used Irish word for republic. The British did not wish to permit the creation of an Irish republic (which would mean severing all links with the British crown) and so insisted that the literal translation of saorstát be used in the new state's English title instead. Territory of the Irish Free State Capital Dublin Language(s) Irish, English Government Constitutional monarchy Monarch  - 1922–1936 George V  - 1936–1936 George VI President of the Executive Council  - 1922–1932 W.T. Cosgrave  - 1932–1937 Eamon de Valera Legislature Oireachtas  - Upper house Seanad Éireann  - Lower house Dáil Éireann... Year 1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar). ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... This does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... The British monarch or Sovereign is the head of state of the United Kingdom and in the British overseas territories. ...

Puerto Rico

Flag of the Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico ("Associated Free State of Puerto Rico")

The official Spanish name of the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico is Estado Libre Asociado de Puerto Rico, literally, "Associated Free State of Puerto Rico", expressing a "politically organized community” or “State,” which is simultaneously connected by a compact to a larger political system and hence does not have an independent and separate status. However, according to the United States Supreme Court, Puerto Rico is not free, nor associated and certainly not a state. According to consistent U.S. Supreme Court jurisprudence, Puerto Rico belongs to, but is not an integral part of, the United States. Moreover, said jurisprudence has determined that regardless of what nominal or cosmetic veneer has moted Puerto Rico's political status, it is essentialy a U.S. colonial territory, since it is under the plenary powers of the U.S. Congress. At its most basic, this Supreme Court doctrine expresses that Puerto Rico is more like property, far from a free-governing community or nation, and thus "domestic in a foreign sense" (not for the taking or meddling by free-foreign nations), but "foreign in a domestic sense" (i.e., not a partner or equal.) In the Insular Cases, the Court ruled that the United States Constitution does not automatically apply in Puerto Rico. Image File history File links Flag_of_Puerto_Rico. ... Image File history File links Flag_of_Puerto_Rico. ... The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C. The Supreme Court Building, Washington, D.C., (large image) The Supreme Court of the United States, located in Washington, D.C., is the highest court (see supreme court) in the United States; that is, it has ultimate judicial authority within the United States... The Insular Cases are several U.S. Supreme Court cases decided early in the 20th century. ... Wikisource has original text related to this article: Constitution of the United States of America Page one of the original copy of the Constitution. ...

Republican England

Parliament, in the act forming the Commonwealth of England of 1649 to 1660, declared England "[is] confirmed to be a Commonwealth and free State And shall from henceforth be Governed as a Commonwealth and Free State." The Commonwealth had a republican constitution. Motto: PAX QUÆRITUR BELLO (English: Peace is sought through war) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Language(s) English Government Republic Lord Protector  - 1649-1658 Oliver Cromwell Legislature Rump Parliament Barebones Parliament History  - Declaration of Commonwealth May 19, 1649  - Declaration of Breda April 4, 1660 Area 130,395... // Events January 30 - King Charles I of England, Scotland and Ireland is beheaded. ... // Events January 1 - Colonel George Monck with his regiment crosses from Scotland to England at the village of Coldstream and begins advance towards London in support of English Restoration. ... Motto: (French for God and my right) Anthem: God Save the King/Queen Capital London (de facto) Largest city London Official language(s) English (de facto) Unification    - by Athelstan AD 927  Area    - Total 130,395 km² (1st in UK)   50,346 sq mi  Population    - 2006 est. ... Forms of government Part of the Politics series Politics Portal This box:      For other uses, see Republic (disambiguation). ...

List of 'free states'

Extant

• Free State of Bavaria
• Free State of Saxony
• Free State of Thuringia
• Free State, South Africa

The geographic region and Free State of Bavaria (German: Freistaat Bayern), with an area of 70,553 km² (27,241 square miles) and 12. ... The Free State of Saxony (German: Freistaat Sachsen; Sorbian: Swobodny Stat Sakska) has a land area of 18,413 km² and a population of 4. ... The Free State of Thuringia (German: Freistaat Thüringen) is located in central Germany and is considered one of the smaller of Germanys sixteen Bundesländer (federal states), with an area of 16,200 km² and 2. ... Capital Bloemfontein Largest city Bloemfontein Area  - Total Ranked 3rd 129,480 km² Premier Beatrice Marshoff (ANC) Population   - 2001   - 1996   - Density Ranked 8th 2,706,776 2,633,504 21/km² (2001) Languages Sotho (62%) Afrikaans (14%) isiXhosa (9. ...

Historical

• Commonwealth of England (1649 - 1660)
• Congo Free State (1884 - 1908)
• Free State of Fiume (1920 - 1924)
• Free State of Prussia (1920 - 1947)
• Free Territory of Trieste (1945 - 1977)
• Irish Free State (1922 - 1937)
• Orange Free State (1854 - 1900)
• Kamchatka Free State (1921 - 1922)
• Chukotka Free State (1922 - 1923)

Motto: PAX QUÆRITUR BELLO (English: Peace is sought through war) Anthem: Multiple unofficial anthems Capital London Language(s) English Government Republic Lord Protector  - 1649-1658 Oliver Cromwell Legislature Rump Parliament Barebones Parliament History  - Declaration of Commonwealth May 19, 1649  - Declaration of Breda April 4, 1660 Area 130,395... // Events January 30 - King Charles I of England, Scotland and Ireland is beheaded. ... // Events January 1 - Colonel George Monck with his regiment crosses from Scotland to England at the village of Coldstream and begins advance towards London in support of English Restoration. ... Flag Capital Boma Government Monarchy Ruler and owner Leopold II of Belgium Historical era New Imperialism  - Established 1885  - Annexation by Belgium 15 November, 1908 The Congo Free State was a corporate state privately owned by King Leopold II of Belgium (not in his role as monarch) that included the entire... 1884 (MDCCCLXXXIV) is a leap year starting on Tuesday (click on link to calendar) of the Gregorian calendar (or a leap year starting on Thursday of the 12-day-slower Julian calendar). ... 1908 (MCMVIII) was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... It has been suggested that this article or section be merged with Free state of rijeka. ... Year 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... 1924 (MCMXXIV) was a leap year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar). ... Motto: Suum cuique Latin: To each his own Prussia at its peak, as leading state of the German Empire Capital Königsberg, later Berlin Political structure Duchy, Kingdom, Republic Duke1  - 1525–68 Albert I  - 1688–1701 Frederick III King1  - 1701–13 Frederick I  - 1888–1918 William II Prime Minister1,2... Year 1920 (MCMXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday. ... 1947 (MCMXLVII) was a common year starting on Wednesday (the link is to a full 1947 calendar). ... Zone A and Zone B of the Free Territory of Trieste Capital Trieste Language(s) Italian, Slovenian, Croatian Government Republic Historical era Cold War  - Established September 15, 1947  - Partition October 26, 1954  - Treaty of Osimo October 11, 1977 Area  - 1947 738 km2 285 sq mi Population  - 1947 est. ... 1945 (MCMXLV) was a common year starting on Monday. ... For the album by Ash, see 1977 (album). ... Territory of the Irish Free State Capital Dublin Language(s) Irish, English Government Constitutional monarchy Monarch  - 1922–1936 George V  - 1936–1936 George VI President of the Executive Council  - 1922–1932 W.T. Cosgrave  - 1932–1937 Eamon de Valera Legislature Oireachtas  - Upper house Seanad Éireann  - Lower house Dáil Éireann... Year 1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar). ... Year 1937 (MCMXXXVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will take you to calendar). ... Flag of the Orange Free State Capital Bloemfontein Language(s) Afrikaans, English Religion Dutch Reformed Church Government Republic President  - 1854 - 1855 Josias P. Hoffman  - 1855 - 1859 Jacobus Nicolaas Boshoff  - 1859 - 1863 Marthinus Wessel Pretorius (also President of the South African Republic from 1857 to 1871). ... 1854 (MDCCCLIV) was a common year starting on Sunday (see link for calendar). ... Year 1900 (MCM) was an exceptional common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Gregorian calendar, but a leap year starting on Saturday of the Julian calendar. ... Year 1921 (MCMXXI) was a common year starting on Saturday (see link for full calendar). ... Year 1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar). ... Year 1922 (MCMXXII) was a common year starting on Sunday (link will display full calendar). ... {{year nav|1939 1923 (MCMXXIII) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar). ...

See also

• List of extinct states

This page attempts to list the many extinct states, countries, nations, lands or territories that have ceased to exist as political entities, grouped geographically and by constitutional nature. ...

External Links

Modern Definition of a Free State