It consisted of the city of Marburg and the surrounding towns of Gießen, Nidda and Eppstein, approximately what is today called Upper Hesse (Oberhessen).

When the daughter of St. Elizabeth of Hungary, Sophie of Brabant, was able to secure the Western parts of Thuringia for her son Henry the Child in 1265, therefore founding the state of Landgraviate of Hesse, the Marburg area became its core territory.

As the two lines argued over the details of the division, Maurice, Landgrave of Hesse-Kassel annexed the whole territory and introduced Calvinism.

After a long dispute and armed conflict, Maurice — who had enemies at home as well — resigned in 1627 and left his part of the territory to the Landgraviate of Hesse-Darmstadt.

This war led to the loss of life of up to two-thirds of the civilian population, one of the highest death toll in any German region in history.