Osnabrück

Osnabrück was an ecclesiastical principality of the Holy Roman Empire in Westphalia, centered on its cathedral city. In 1337 its bishop was Godfrey of Arnsberg.

The Reformation divided its people. The 1648 Peace of Westphalia made the city bi-confessional and provided for Catholic and Protestant bishops to alternate. The bishopric was dissolved in 1803 and given to Hanover; after periods of Prussian, Westphalian and French rule, it returned to Hanover in 1814.