Rheingau

County of the Rhine district;
The Rhinegraviate
*Grafschaft der Rheingau*;
*Rheingrafschaft*
County of the Rhine district;; The Rhinegraviate Grafschaft der Rheingau;; Rheingrafschaft
c. 937–1866
	The Rheingau shown on a 1905 map of Hesse-Nassau
Status	State of the Frankish Empire; State of the Holy Roman Empire
Capital	Rheingrafenstein in Kreuznach; later Eltville
Government	Principality
Historical era	Middle Ages
• Established	c. 937
• Donation of Verona: given to Abp Mainz	983
• Archbishopric dissolved; to Duchy of Nassau	1806
• Prussia annexes Nassau into Hesse-Nassau	1866
Preceded by	Succeeded by
	Kingdom of the Franks
Kingdom of Prussia

The Rheingau (German: [ˈʁaɪnɡaʊ] ^ⓘ; lit. 'Rhine County') is a region on the northern side of the Rhine between the German towns of Wiesbaden and Lorch near Frankfurt, reaching from the Western Taunus to the Rhine. It is situated in the German state of Hesse and is part of the Rheingau-Taunus-Kreis administrative district. It is famous for Rheingau wines, especially the "Rheingauer Riesling," and its many taverns.^[1]

History

The Rheingau was a Gau or county of the Frankish Empire, bordered by the Niddagau, the Maingau, the Oberrheingau, and the Lahngau; the counts of the Rheingau were known as Rhinegraves. The first Rhinegrave on record is Hato VI (937–960).^[2] Since the Ingelheim Imperial Palace was on the other bank of the Rhine, important imperial assemblies have taken place in the region since Charlemagne.

In 983, Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor, gave the Rheingau, together with other territories, to the Archbishopric of Mainz during the Diet of Verona. When the Archbishopric was dissolved in 1806, the Rheingau was given to the Duchy of Nassau.

The Rheingau Musik Festival takes place every year in July and August in many locations throughout the region.
The Rheingau Wine Festival takes place in Wiesbaden every year in August.
Most towns celebrate their own annual wine festival.