landgrave, a title of nobility in Germany and Scandinavia, dating from the 12th century, when the kings of Germany attempted to strengthen their position in relation to that of the dukes (Herzoge). The kings set up “provincial counts” (Landgrafen) over whom the dukes would have no control and who would have rank and authority equivalent to those of dukes. Later—and more commonly—the title was given to counts in order to make them directly dependent on the king (or emperor).
The first landgraviate was Thuringia (conferred on the Ludowing family in 1130 by King Lothar II). The title survived into the 20th century in the House of Hesse and also in a branch of the House of Fürstenberg, which acquired the landgraviate of Stühlingen in 1639.