Instruct: Given a question, retrieve relevant documents that answer the question.
Query: Who was the last leader of the Holy Roman Empire?
The Holy Roman Emperor was widely perceived to rule by divine right, though he often contradicted or rivaled the Pope, most notably during the Investiture controversy. In theory, the Holy Roman Emperor was primus inter pares (first among equals) among other Catholic monarchs. In practice, a Holy Roman Emperor was only as strong as his army and alliances, including marriage alliances, made him. There was never a Holy Roman Empress regnant, though women such as Theophanu and Maria Theresa of Austria served as de facto Empresses regnant. Throughout its history, the position was viewed as a defender of the Roman Catholic faith. Until the Reformation, the Emperor elect (imperator electus) was required to be crowned by the Pope before assuming the imperial title. Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor was the last to be crowned by the Pope in 1530. Even after the Reformation, the elected Emperor always was a Roman Catholic. There were short periods in history when the electoral college was dominated by Protestants, and the electors usually voted in their own political interest.
Following the end of the Eastern Roman Empire after the Fall of Constantinople in 1453 and the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806, the title of "Emperor" became widespread among European monarchs. The Austrian Empire laid claim to be the heir of the Holy Roman Empire as Austria's Habsburgs attempted to unite Germany under their rule. The German Empire, established in 1871, also claimed to be a successor of Rome through the lineage of the Holy Roman Empire. Both of these empires used the imperial title "Kaiser" (derived from the Latin word "Caesar"), the German word for emperor. The German Empire and Austria-Hungary, successor of the Austrian Empire, would both fall in the aftermath of the First World War along with the Russian and Ottoman Empires who had both claimed succession from the Eastern Roman Empire.
Jovan Monasterlija (; fl. 1683–1706) was a Serbian "vice-voivode" (podvojvoda) and Austrian (Holy Roman Empire) imperial officer that led a Serbian Militia against the Ottoman Empire and other enemies of the Austrian Emperor. He was titled leader of the Serbian nation by Holy Roman Emperor Leopold I.
In the early modern period, the Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor the first of which was Otto I. The last was Francis II, who abdicated and dissolved the Empire in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. Despite its name, for much of its history the Empire did not include Rome within its borders.
In the 7th century, Maritime Southeast Asia witnessed the rise of a Buddhist thallasocracy, the Srivijaya Empire, which thrived for 600 years and was succeeded by the Hindu-Buddhist Majapahit Empire that ruled from the 13th to 15th centuries. In the Southeast Asian mainland, the Hindu-Buddhist Khmer Empire was centered in the city of Angkor and flourished from the 9th to 13th centuries. Following the demise of the Khmer Empire, the Siamese Empire flourished alongside the Burmese and Lan Chang Empires from the 13th through the 18th centuries. In Eastern Europe, during the year of 917, the Byzantine Empire was forced to recognize the Imperial title of Bulgarian rulers (who were called Tsars). The Bulgarian Empire remained a major power in the Balkans until its fall in the late 14th century.
At the time, in the Medieval West, the title "empire" had a specific technical meaning that was exclusively applied to states that considered themselves the heirs and successors of the Roman Empire. Among these were the "Byzantine Empire", which was the actual continuation of the Eastern portion of the Roman Empire, the Carolingian Empire, the largely Germanic Holy Roman Empire, and the Russian Empire. Yet, these states did not always fit the geographic, political, or military profiles of empires in the modern sense of the word. To legitimise their "imperium", these states directly claimed the title of "Empire" from Rome. The "sacrum Romanum imperium" (Holy Roman Empire), which lasted from 800 to 1806, claimed to have exclusively comprehended Christian principalities, and was only nominally a discrete imperial state. The Holy Roman Empire was not always centrally-governed, as it had neither core nor peripheral territories, and was not governed by a central, politico-military elite. Hence, Voltaire's remark that the Holy Roman Empire "was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire" is accurate to the degree that it ignores German rule over Italian, French, Provençal, Polish, Flemish, Dutch, and Bohemian populations, and the efforts of the ninth-century Holy Roman Emperors (i.e., the Ottonians) to establish central control. Voltaire's "nor an empire" observation applies to its late period.
The conflicts began with the minor Knights' Revolt (1522), followed by the larger German Peasants' War (1524–1525) in the Holy Roman Empire. Warfare intensified after the Catholic Church began the Counter-Reformation in 1545 against the growth of Protestantism. The conflicts culminated in the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648), which devastated Germany and killed one-third of its population. The Peace of Westphalia (1648) put an end to the war by recognising three separate Christian traditions in the Holy Roman Empire: Roman Catholicism, Lutheranism, and Calvinism. Although many European leaders were 'sickened' by the bloodshed by 1648, religious wars continued to be waged in the post-Westphalian period until the 1710s, and collective memory of the wars lasted even longer.
The Electorate of Baden was a State of the Holy Roman Empire from 1803 to 1806. In 1803, Napoleon bestowed the office of Prince-elector to Charles Frederick. This only lasted until 1806, when Francis II dissolved the Empire. When the Holy Roman Empire dissolved, Baden achieved sovereignty, and Charles Frederick became Grand Duke.
History of Germany Holy Roman Emperor List of Frankish kings List of German monarchs Carolingian Empire Francia Family tree of the German monarchs Gothic art List of states in the Holy Roman Empire Papal States and the Empire Third Rome Translatio imperii Roman Empire Western Roman Empire House of Habsburg-controlled empires: Habsburg Monarchy Austrian Empire Austria-Hungary German confederations and states: Confederation of the Rhine (controlled by the First French Empire) German Confederation German Empire (1848–49) German Empire (sometimes considered a successor) Third Reich (claims to succession of both HRE and the German Empire)
After several attempts by the Holy Roman Empire to prevent and contain the spread of Protestantism in Europe, King Gustav II Adolf of Sweden led an invasion of the Holy Roman Empire. Although he was killed in battle at Lützen, southwest of Leipzig, the Swedish armies managed to successfully defeat their Catholic enemies and established Sweden as one of the great powers of Europe for the next 100 years. His leadership of the Protestant powers of Germany and Europe was critical to the establishment of an alternative branch of Christianity recognized in Germany, and ensconced it in some forms of international law and custom. Additionally, it rolled back the gains the Habsburg family had made in re-centralizing political power in the Holy Roman Empire in the hands of the Holy Roman Emperor. The Swedish invasion confirmed the role of Holy Roman Emperor as a ceremonial, de jure position within the constitution of the Holy Roman Empire. The new European great power of Sweden would last for a hundred years before being overwhelmed by numerous enemies in the Great Northern War.
Beginning with the reign of Pietro II Candiano in 932, Venice saw a string of inept leaders such as Pietro III Candiano, Pietro IV Candiano, and Tribuno Memmo. The reputed arrogance and ambition of these Doges caused the deterioration of the relationship with the Holy Roman Empire in the west, the stagnancy of the relationship with the Byzantine Empire in the east, and discord at home in the Republic. However, in 991, Pietro II Orseolo became the Doge and spent his reign pushing the boundaries of the Republic further east down the western coast of the Balkan Peninsula with his conquests in Dalmatia in 1000. This strengthened the commercial bonds with the empires of the east, Sicily, Northern Africa, and the Holy Roman Empire, and put an end to the infighting among the citizens of Venice. Pietro II's negotiations with Byzantine Emperor Basil II to decrease tariffs on Venetian-produced goods helped foster a new age of prosperity in the Republic as Venetian merchants could undercut the competition in the international markets of the Byzantine Empire. Similarly, Pietro II had success developing a new relationship with Holy Roman Emperor Otto III, who displayed his friendship to him by restoring previously seized lands to Venice, opening up routes of free trade between the two states, and exempting all Venetians from taxes in the Holy Roman Empire.
The Duchy of Württemberg () was a duchy located in the south-western part of the Holy Roman Empire. It was a member of the Holy Roman Empire from 1495 to 1806. The dukedom's long survival for nearly four centuries was mainly due to its size, being larger than its immediate neighbors. During the Protestant Reformation, Württemberg faced great pressure from the Holy Roman Empire to remain a member. Württemberg resisted repeated French invasions in the 17th and 18th centuries. Württemberg was directly in the path of French and Austrian armies who were engaged in the long rivalry between the House of Bourbon and the House of Habsburg. In 1803, Napoleon raised the duchy to be the Electorate of Württemberg of the Holy Roman Empire. On 1 January 1806, the last Elector assumed the title of King of Württemberg. Later this year, on 6 August 1806, the last Emperor, Francis II, abolished (de facto) the Holy Roman Empire.
The legal and civic status of the Jews underwent a transformation under the Holy Roman Empire. Jewish people found a certain degree of protection with the emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, who claimed the right of possession and protection of all the Jews of the empire. A justification for this claim was that the Holy Roman Emperor was the successor of the emperor Titus, who was said to have acquired the Jews as his private property. The German emperors apparently claimed this right of possession more for the sake of taxing the Jews than of protecting them.
Alexander Vasilyevich Suvorov (, "Aleksandr Vasil‘evich Suvorov"; or 1730 – ) was a Russian military leader, considered a national hero. He was the Count of Rymnik, Count of the Holy Roman Empire, Prince of Italy, and the last Generalissimo of the Russian Empire.
The German Emperor ( ) was the official title of the head of state and hereditary ruler of the German Empire. A specifically chosen term, it was introduced with the 1 January 1871 constitution and lasted until the official abdication of Wilhelm II on 28 November 1918. The Holy Roman Emperor is sometimes also called "German Emperor" when the historical context is clear, as derived from the Holy Roman Empire's official name of "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation" from 1512.
The rulers of "Francia Orientalis", who soon claimed the imperial title and wanted to reunify the Frankish Empire, dropped the name "Francia Orientalis" and called their realm the Holy Roman Empire (see History of Germany). The kings of "Francia Occidentalis" successfully opposed this claim and managed to preserve "Francia Occidentalis" as an independent kingdom, distinct from the Holy Roman Empire. The Battle of Bouvines in 1214 definitively marked the end of the efforts by the Holy Roman Empire to reunify the old Frankish Empire by conquering France.
Holy Roman Empress or Empress of the Holy Roman Empire is the title given to the consort (wife) or regent of the Holy Roman Emperor. The elective dignity of Holy Roman Emperor was restricted to males only, therefore there was never a Holy Roman Empress regnant, though women such as Theophanu and Maria Theresa of Austria, who controlled the power of rule, served as de facto Empresses regnant.
In 1059 the same papal bull that restricted suffrage to the cardinals also recognised the authority of the Holy Roman Emperor (at the time Henry IV), but only as a concession made by the pope, declaring that the Holy Roman Emperor had no authority to intervene in elections except where permitted to do so by papal agreements.[29] Pope Gregory VII (in office 1073-1085) was the last Pope to submit to the interference of the Holy Roman Emperors. The breach between him and the Holy Roman Empire caused by the Investiture Controversy led to the abolition of the Emperor's role.[54] In 1122 the Holy Roman Empire acceded to the Concordat of Worms, accepting the papal decision.[55]
The story revolves around Artos, the young son of Baron Amalric of Cravant, a small fiefdom within the Holy Empire, the dominant power in a world called Orbis. The Holy Empire is a theocratic state (seemingly an amalgamation of the Roman Empire, Holy Roman Empire and the Papal States) devoted to a deity called 'The One God'. It is ruled by a spiritual and militant leader, the Patriarch and the Holy Protector respectively. The new Patriarch, Icthyus Granitas, is cruel and corrupt and the Holy Protector is nothing more than his henchman. As soon as he came to power he began accusing all those who spoke against his rule with false charges of heresy and treason to the state. These lords either changed their minds overnight about the Patriarch or disappeared entirely.
"Holy Roman Empire in Germany"
"Holy Roman Empire in Italy" "Southern Italy"
This is a list of those who were granted the rank of "Feldmarschall" by the Holy Roman Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, 1618–1806.
In addition to remaining as a concept for an administrative unit in the remaining Empire, the ideal of the Roman Empire as a mighty Christian Empire with a single ruler further continued to appeal to many powerful rulers in western Europe. With the papal coronation of Charlemagne as "Emperor of the Romans" in 800 AD, his realm was explicitly proclaimed as a restoration of the Roman Empire in Western Europe under the concept of "translatio imperii". Though the Carolingian Empire collapsed in 888 and Berengar, the last "Emperor" claiming succession from Charlemagne, died in 924, the concept of a papacy- and Germanic-based Roman Empire in the West would resurface in the form of the Holy Roman Empire in 962. The Holy Roman Emperors would uphold the notion that they had inherited the supreme power and prestige of the Roman Emperors of old until the downfall of the Holy Roman Empire in 1806.
The Corpus Evangelicorum was a league of Protestant imperial states within the Holy Roman Empire that came into existence on 22 July 1653. Its progenitor was King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden who proposed the Corpus as a body of Protestant states who were allies, or were potential allies, against Ferdinand II, the Holy Roman Emperor, during the Thirty Years' War. Gustavus Adolphus proposed that the Corpus Evangelicorum was to be the civil administration alongside the Corpus Bellicum which would be responsible for military concerns. The presidency of the Corpus Evangelicorum became associated with the Electorate of Saxony. The Corpus lasted until 1806 and the dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire during the Napoleonic Wars.
In 1804, Napoleon Bonaparte declared the First French Empire. In response to this, Holy Roman Emperor Francis II of the Habsburg dynasty declared his personal domain to be the Austrian Empire and became Francis I of Austria. Taking the colours of the banner of the Holy Roman Emperor, the flag of the Austrian Empire was black and gold. Francis II was the last Holy Roman Emperor, with Napoleon forcing the empire's dissolution in 1806. After this point, these colours continued to be used as the flag of Austria until 1918.
Charlemagne, crowned Roman Emperor in 800 AD, is sometimes considered as a forerunner of the Holy Roman Empire. Most historians today reject this view, arguing that the Holy Roman Empire had different antecedents and a different constitution, and the Holy Roman Emperor had a different status and role than Charlemagne and his successors. After the collapse of Charlemagne's empire, the Imperial crown was initially disputed among the Carolingian rulers of Western Francia (France) and Eastern Francia (Germany), with first the western king (Charles the Bald) and then the eastern (Charles the Fat) attaining the prize. However, after the death of Charles the Fat in 888, the empire broke asunder, never to be restored. According to Regino of Prüm, each part of the realm elected a "kinglet" from its own "bowels". After the death of Charles the Fat, those who were crowned Emperors by the Pope controlled only territories in Italy. The last of such Emperors was Berengar I of Italy, who died in 924.
The Electorate of Württemberg was a short-lived State of the Holy Roman Empire on the right bank of the Rhine river. In 1803, Napoleon raised the Duchy of Württemberg to the Electorate of Württemberg, the highest form of a princedom in the Holy Roman Empire. However, soon afterward, on 1 January 1806 the last Elector assumed the title of King of Württemberg. Later, the last Emperor, Francis II, abolished (de facto) the Empire in 6 August 1806.