Grand Duchy of Hesse followed by People's State of Hesse
First World War and end of the Grand Duchy (1914–1918)
Under the German Empire's military constitution, Hessian troops participated in World War I as part of the Prussian Army. Grand Duke Ernest Louis was nominally an infantry general, but he did not exercise an active command. He did visit the headquarters of the Grand Ducal Hessian (25th) Division in France several times. A total of 32,000 men from this unit died during the war. In summer 1918, Darmstadt was hit by allied airstrikes.During the November Revolution, Grand Duke Ernest Louis was removed from power on 9 November 1918 by the Darmstadt Workers' and Soldiers' Council. In 1919, the Grand Duke released the officials of Hesse from their oaths of service to him, but he never issued an explicit abdication. The Grand Duchy received a republican constitution and was renamed the People's State of Hesse (Volksstaat Hessen).Landstände
The Landstände (national estates) was the bicameral legislature which linked the subjects of the Grand Duchy to the Grand Duke and his government. It was created by the Hessian constitution of 1820 and survived until the November Revolution in 1918, when it was succeeded by the Landtag of the People's State of Hesse.