In old German law the nobles and cities that gained local independence by shaking off the control of the local potentate were termed immediate, because they owed allegiance directly to the Emperor, without any feudal intermediary: if by mischance they fell under that hated control they were said to be Mediatized.
"The Life of Napoleon I (Volumes, 1 and 2)"
John Holland Rose
Instead of shaking a "mailed fist" at the world, young William of Hohenzollern might have been a Mediatized princelet on the lookout for an American heiress; there might never have been a Leipzig or a Waterloo, as there certainly would not have been a Sedan, and the heirs of Napoleon might now have been ruling over an empire covering all Central Europe, from the Tiber to the Baltic.
"Editorials-from-the-Hearst-Newspapers"
Brisbane, Arthur
The Princess had the blood of Polish kings in her veins, mingled with that of several Mediatized princes, but that was no reason why she should treat a friend like a servant; especially as the friend's husband practically owned the palace and its contents, and had lent the money with which the high and mighty lady and her son had finally ruined themselves.
"The Heart of Rome"
Francis Marion Crawford