The Electorate of Mainz ( or , ), also known in English by its French name, , was the most prestigious and among the most influential states of the Holy Roman Empire from its creation to the dissolution of the HRE in the early years of the 19th century. In the Roman Catholic hierarchy, the Archbishop-Elector of Mainz was the Primate of Germany (), a purely honorary dignity that was unsuccessfully claimed from time to time by other Archbishops. There were only two other ecclesiastical Prince-electors in the Empire: the Electorate of Cologne and the Electorate of Trier.