admittance to the German Confederation in deference to Tsar Alexander I, who wished to see the territory annexed by his cousin, the Grand Duke of Oldenburg. Count Bentinck fought for his little state, however, and at the Congress of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1818, the Great Powers agreed that the Count's territory should be granted limited sovereignty. The Frankfurt Convention of 10 July 1819 recognised In- and Kniphausen as sovereign within its own borders but under the protection of Oldenburg. The Treaty of Berlin on 8 June 1825 finalized the terms. In- and Kniphausen was permitted its own commercial flag, which its vessels bore on the high seas. Nevertheless, there was a long dispute between the Oldenburg and the Bentinck families in the latter's inheritance. This dispute was not ended until 1854 with a settlement in which the Bentinck family renounced its sovereignty for financial compensation and certain property rights. The Counts of Bentinck no longer claimed sovereignty over In- and Kniphausen. Even before the final settlement, Oldenburg and Prussia had negotiated the Treaty of Jade of 1853 in which Oldenburg agreed to sell 340 hectares of Kniphausen territory to Prussia as a naval station for its North Sea Fleet. The cession became the city of Wilhelmshaven. Today The Dutch estate of the Bentinck family since the 16th century, , is situated between the villages Heeten and Raalte in Overijssel. The area contains 5 square kilometres of forests and cultivated land. Nowadays, the family mainly earns its living by forestry, agriculture and renting holiday houses. The British branch of the family owns Bothal Castle (Bothal Estates) in Northumberland and Welbeck Abbey (Welbeck Estates), the ancestral seat of the Dukes of Portland in Nottinghamshire. Gary Ramsay Bentinck, Baron Bentinck (1964), is head of both the British baronial branch and the Dutch family. Notable members (c. 1397–1477) Henrich Bentinck (died 1502) (c. 1468–1538), Dutch steward of the Veluwe region, and diplomat Willem Bentinck (died 1576) Eusebius Bentinck (died 1584) Hendrik Bentinck (1563–1639) Berent Bentinck (1597–1668) Eusebius Borchart Bentinck (1643–1710) Willem Bentinck (1673–1747) Berend Hendrik Bentinck (1702–1773) Derk Bentinck (1741–1813) Berend Hendrik Wolter Jan Bentinck (1781–1849) Walter Theodore Edward Bentinck (1840–1901) Reginald Joseph Bentinck (1866–1937) Moyra de Vere Bentinck (1917–1997), married to Dom Mintoff, Prime Minister of Malta Yana Mintoff (born 1951) Sir Rudolph Walter Bentinck (1868–1947), Royal Navy admiral Wolf Walter Rudolph Bentinck (1903–1992) Vivian Mark Bentinck (born 1945) Alice Bentinck (born 1986), British