The oldest traces of human existence in what is now Liechtenstein date back to

the Middle Paleolithic era.[13] Neolithic farming settlements were initially founded in

the valleys around 5300 BC.
The Hallstatt and La Tène cultures flourished during the late Iron Age, from around
450 BC—possibly under some influence of both the Greek and Etruscan civilisations.
One of the most important tribal groups in the Alpine region were the Helvetii. In 58 BC,
at the Battle of Bibracte, Julius Caesar defeated the Alpine tribes, therefore bringing
the region under close control of the Roman Republic. By 15 BC, Tiberius—later the
second Roman emperor—with his brother, Drusus, conquered the entirety of the Alpine
area. Liechtenstein was then integrated into the Roman province of Raetia. The area
was maintained by the Roman military, who also maintained large legionary camps
at Brigantium (Austria), near Lake Constance, and at Magia (Swiss). A Roman
road which ran through the territory was also created and maintained by these groups.
In c.260, Brigantium was destroyed by the Alemanni, a Germanic people who settled
in the area in around 450 AD.
In the Early Middle Ages, the Alemanni settled the eastern Swiss plateau by the 5th
century and the valleys of the Alps by the end of the 8th century, with Liechtenstein
located at the eastern edge of Alemannia. In the 6th century, the entire region became
part of the Frankish Empire following Clovis I's victory over the Alemanni
at Tolbiac in 504 AD.[14][15]
The area that later became Liechtenstein remained under Frankish hegemony
(Merovingian and Carolingian dynasties), until the empire was divided by the Treaty
of Verdun in 843 AD, following the death of Charlemagne.[13] The territory of present-
day Liechtenstein was under the possession of East Francia. It would later be reunified
with Middle Francia under the Holy Roman Empire, around 1000 AD.[13] Until about
1100, the predominant language of the area was Romansch, but
thereafter German began to gain ground in the territory. In 1300, an Alemannic
population—the Walsers, who originated in Valais—entered the region and settled. The
mountain village of Triesenberg still preserves features of Walser dialect into the
present century.[16]
Foundation of a dynastyEdit
By 1200, dominions across the Alpine plateau were controlled by the Houses
of Savoy, Zähringer, Habsburg, and Kyburg. Other regions were accorded
the Imperial immediacy that granted the empire direct control over the mountain
passes. When the Kyburg dynasty fell in 1264, the Habsburgs under King Rudolph
I (Holy Roman Emperor in 1273) extended their territory to the eastern Alpine plateau
that included the territory of Liechtenstein.[14] This region was enfeoffed to
the Counts of Hohenems until the sale to the Liechtenstein dynasty in 1699.
In 1396 Vaduz (the southern region of Liechtenstein) gained imperial immediacy, i.e.
it became subject to the Holy Roman Emperor alone. [17]
The family, from which the principality takes its name, originally came
from Liechtenstein Castle in Lower Austria which they had possessed from at least
1140 until the 13th century (and again from 1807 onwards). The Liechtensteins
acquired land, predominantly in Moravia, Lower Austria, Silesia, and Styria. As these
territories were all held in feudal tenure from more senior feudal lords, particularly
various branches of the Habsburgs, the Liechtenstein dynasty was unable to meet a
primary requirement to qualify for a seat in the Imperial diet (parliament),
the Reichstag. Even though several Liechtenstein princes served several Habsburg
rulers as close advisers, without any territory held directly from the Imperial throne, they
held little power in the Holy Roman Empire.
For this reason, the family sought to acquire lands that would be classed
as unmittelbar (immediate) or held without any intermediate feudal tenure, directly
from the Holy Roman Emperor. During the early 17th century Karl I of
Liechtenstein was made a Fürst (prince) by the Holy Roman Emperor Matthias after
siding with him in a political battle. Hans-Adam I was allowed to purchase the
minuscule Herrschaft ("Lordship") of Schellenberg and county of Vaduz (in 1699 and
1712 respectively) from the Hohenems. Tiny Schellenberg and Vaduz had exactly the
political status required: no feudal lord other than their comital sovereign and
the suzerain Emperor.
PrincipalityEdit
On 23 January 1719,[18] after the lands had been purchased, Charles VI, Holy Roman
Emperor, decreed that Vaduz and Schellenberg were united and elevated the newly
formed territory to the dignity of Fürstentum (principality) with the name
"Liechtenstein" in honour of "[his] true servant, Anton Florian of Liechtenstein". It
was on this date that Liechtenstein became a sovereign member state of the Holy
Roman Empire. It is a testament to the pure political expediency of the purchase that
the Princes of Liechtenstein did not visit their new principality for almost 100 years.
By the early 19th century, as a result of the Napoleonic Wars in Europe, the Holy
Roman Empire came under the effective control of France, following the crushing defeat
at Austerlitz by Napoleon in 1805. Emperor Francis II abdicated, ending more than
960 years of feudal government. Napoleon reorganized much of the Empire into
the Confederation of the Rhine. This political restructuring had broad consequences
for Liechtenstein: the historical imperial, legal, and political institutions had been
dissolved. The state ceased to owe an obligation to any feudal lord beyond its borders.
[18]
Modern publications generally attribute Liechtenstein's sovereignty to these events. Its
prince ceased to owe an obligation to any suzerain. From 25 July 1806, when
the Confederation of the Rhine was founded, the Prince of Liechtenstein was a
member, in fact, a vassal, of its hegemon, styled protector, the French Emperor
Napoleon I, until the dissolution of the confederation on 19 October 1813.
 Soon afterward, Liechtenstein joined the German Confederation (20 June 1815 – 24
August 1866), which was presided over by the Emperor of Austria.
In 1818, Prince Johann I granted the territory a limited constitution. In that same
year Prince Aloys became the first member of the House of Liechtenstein to set foot in
the principality that bore their name. The next visit would not occur until 1842.
Developments during the 19th century included:

 1836, the first factory, for making ceramics, was opened.

 1861, the Savings and Loans Bank was founded along with the first cotton-
weaving mill.
 1866, the German Confederation is dissolved.
 1868, the Liechtenstein Army was disbanded for financial reasons.
 1872, a railway line between Switzerland and the Austro-Hungarian Empire
was constructed through Liechtenstein.
 1886, two bridges over the Rhine to Switzerland were built.