Antiking
An antiking (German: Gegenkönig, French: antiroi, Czech: protikrál) is a would-be king who, due to succession disputes or simple political opposition, declares himself king in opposition to a reigning monarch. Antikings are more often found in elective monarchies like the Holy Roman Empire than in hereditary monarchies like those of England and France; such figures in hereditary monarchies are more frequently referred to as pretenders or claimants.
Monarchies
Antikings are most commonly referred to in the politics of the Holy Roman Empire, until the Golden Bull of 1356 issued by Emperor Charles IV defined the provisions of the Imperial election. The term is comparable to antipope, a rival would-be Pope, and indeed the two phenomena are related; just as German kings (Kings of the Romans) and Holy Roman Emperors from time to time raised up antipopes to politically weaken Popes with whom they were in conflict, so too Popes sometimes sponsored antikings as political rivals to emperors with whom they disagreed.
Several antikings succeeded in vindicating their claims to power, and were recognized as rightful kings: for example, King Conrad III of Germany, Emperor Frederick II, and Emperor Charles IV (see table below). The status of others as antikings is still disputed to this day: e.g. in the case of Duke Henry II of Bavaria and Margrave Egbert II of Meissen.
Other nations that produced antikings included Bohemia and Hungary.
List of antikings
Germany
German double elections
Bohemia
England
Scotland
France
References