German Franken
Former duchy, south-central Germany.
Today it is divided between Rhenish Franconia, now located in the Länder (states) of Rhineland-Palatinate, Baden -Württemberg, and Hesse , and East Franconia, now in the Länder of Baden-Württemberg and Bavaria . A medieval duchy, after AD 843 it was the German part of the former Conrad I . The duchy was then divided into Rhenish (west) and East Franconia, the latter alone retaining the name of Franconia after the 12th century. The name was abolished in 1806 but revived in 1837 by the kingdom of Bavaria in its subdivisions.