| Native Name: | German: Grafschaft der Rheingau
|
| Conventional Long Name: | County of the Rhine district; The Rhinegraviate |
| Common Name: | Rheingau |
| Era: | Middle Ages |
| Status: | Vassal |
| Status Text: | State of the Frankish Empire State of the Holy Roman Empire |
| Empire: | Holy Roman Empire |
| Government Type: | Principality |
| Year End: | 1866 |
| Event1: | Donation of Verona given to Abp Mainz |
| Date Event1: | 983 |
| Event2: | Archbishopric dissolved; to Duchy of Nassau |
| Date Event2: | 1806 |
| Event End: | Prussia annexes Nassau into Hesse-Nassau |
| P1: | Kingdom of the Franks |
| S1: | Kingdom of Prussia |
| Flag S1: | Flag of the Kingdom of Prussia (1803-1892).svg |
| Image Map Caption: | The Rheingau shown on a 1905 map of Hesse-Nassau |
| Capital: | Rheingrafenstein in Kreuznach; later Eltville |
The Rheingau (pronounced as /de/;) 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]
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.