Prince-abbot

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A Prince-abbott is a cleric (in casu a regular prelate) who is a prince of the church (like a prince-bishop) in the sense of an ex offico temporal lord of a feudal entity known as prince-abbacy of abbey-principality is an area that is ruled by the head of an abbey.

The designated abbey may be a monastery or a convent. Thus, because of the possibility of it being a convent, an abbey-principality is one of the only cases in which the rule can be restricted to female incumbents, styled princess-abbess.

In many cases they were prince of the empire of a Reichsabtei in or near Germany, with a seat in the Reichstag (imperial diet).

Other examples include the abbot nullius of Pinerolo in Piedmont

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