Holy Roman Emperor

The Holy Roman Emperor (German: Römisch-deutscher Kaiser, Latin: Romanorum Imperator) was the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. From an autocracy in Carolingian times the title evolved into an elected monarchy chosen by the Prince-electors. Until the Reformation the Emperor elect (imperator electus) was required to be crowned by the Pope before assuming the imperial title.

The title was held in conjunction with the rule of the Kingdom of Germany and the Kingdom of Italy (Imperial Northern Italy).^[1][2][3] In theory, the Holy Roman Emperor was primus inter pares (first among equals) among the other Roman Catholic monarchs; in practice, a Holy Roman Emperor was only as strong as his army and alliances made him.

Various royal houses of Europe, at different times, effectively became hereditary holders of the title, in particular in later times the Habsburgs. After the Reformation many of the subject states and most of those in Germany were Protestant while the Emperor continued to be Catholic. The Holy Roman Empire was dissolved by the last Emperor (who became simply the Emperor of Austria) as a result of the collapse of the polity during the Napoleonic wars.

Title

Replicas of the Crown jewels

From the time of Constantine I in the fourth century A.D. the Roman emperors had, with very few exceptions, taken on a role as promoters and defenders of Christianity. The title of Emperor became defunct in Western Europe after the deposition of Romulus Augustulus in 476 AD; both the title and connection between Emperor and Church continued in the Eastern Roman Empire until 1453 A.D, when it fell to the forces of the Ottoman Empire. In the west, the title of Emperor (Latin: "Imperator") was revived in 800 A.D, which also renewed ideas of imperial–papal cooperation. As the papacy's power grew during the Middle Ages, popes and emperors came into conflict over church administration. The best-known and most bitter conflict was that known as the Investiture Controversy, fought during the 11th century between Henry IV and Pope Gregory VII.

After Charlemagne was crowned Emperor of the Romans (Latin: Imperator Romanorum) by the Pope, his successors maintained the title until the death of Berengar I of Italy in 924. No pope appointed an emperor again until the coronation of Otto the Great in 962. Under Otto and his successors, much of the former Carolingian kingdom of Eastern Francia fell within the boundaries of the Holy Roman Empire. The various German princes elected one of their peers as King of the Germans, after which he would be crowned as emperor by the Pope. After Charles V's coronation, all succeeding emperors were called elected Emperor due to the lack of papal coronation, but for all practical purposes they were simply called emperors.

The term "sacrum" (i.e. "holy") in connection with the medieval Roman Empire was first used in 1157 under Frederick I Barbarossa.^[4] Charles V was the last Holy Roman Emperor to be crowned by the Pope (1530). The final Holy Roman Emperor-elect, Francis II, abdicated in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars that saw the Empire's final dissolution.

The standard designation of the Holy Roman Emperor was "August Emperor of the Romans" (Romanorum Imperator Augustus). When Charlemagne was crowned in 800, his was styled as "most serene Augustus, crowned by God, great and pacific emperor, governing the Roman Empire," thus constituting the elements of "Holy" and "Roman" in the imperial title. The word Holy had never been used as part of that title in official documents.^[5]

The word Roman was a reflection of the translatio imperii (transfer of rule) principle that regarded the (Germanic) Holy Roman Emperors as the inheritors of the title of Emperor of the Western Roman Empire, despite the continued existence of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Succession of the Holy Roman Emperors

Holy Roman Emperors of Habsburg dynasty and their families

Successions to the kingship were controlled by a variety of complicated factors. Elections meant the kingship of Germany was only partially hereditary, unlike the kingship of France, although sovereignty frequently remained in a dynasty until there were no more male successors. Some scholars suggest that the task of the elections was really to solve conflicts only when the dynastic rule was unclear, yet the process meant that the prime candidate had to make concessions, by which the voters were kept on side, which were known as Wahlkapitulationen (election capitulations).

The Electoral council was set at seven princes (three archbishops and four secular princes) by the Golden Bull of 1356. It remained so until 1648, when the settlement of the Thirty Years' War required the addition of a new elector to maintain the precarious balance between Protestant and Catholic factions in the Empire. Another elector was added in 1690, and the whole college was reshuffled in 1803, a mere three years before the dissolution of the Empire.

After 1438, the Kings remained in the house of Habsburg and Habsburg-Lorraine, with the brief exception of Charles VII, who was a Wittelsbach. Maximilian I (Emperor 1508–1519) and his successors no longer travelled to Rome to be crowned as Emperor by the Pope. Maximilian therefore named himself Elected Roman Emperor (Erwählter Römischer Kaiser) in 1508 with papal approval. This title was in use by all his uncrowned successors. Of his successors only Charles V, the immediate one, received a papal coronation.

List of emperors

This list includes all emperors of the Holy Roman Empire, whether or not they styled themselves Holy Roman Emperor. There are some gaps in the tally. For example, Henry the Fowler was King of Germany but not Emperor; Emperor Henry II was numbered as his successor as German King. The Guideschi follow the numeration for the Duchy of Spoleto.

Emperors of the Romans

Traditional historiography claims a continuity between the Carolingian Empire and the Holy Roman Empire. This is rejected by some modern historians, who date the foundation of the Holy Roman Empire to 962. The rulers who were crowned as Emperors in the West before 962 were as follows:

Carolingian dynasty

Image	Name	Life	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Coin
	Charles I (Charlemagne)	2 April 742 - 28 January 814	25 December 800	28 January 814	Founder of the Holy Roman Empire
	Louis I	778 - 20 June 840	1st 11 September 813 [6] 2nd 5 October 816	20 June 840	son of Emperor Charles I
	Lothair I	795 - 29 September 855	5 April 823	29 September 855	son of Emperor Louis I
	Louis II	825 - 12 August 875	1st Easter 850 2nd 18 May 872	12 August 875	son of Emperor Lothair I
	Charles II	13 June 823 - 6 October 877	29 December 875	6 October 877	son of Emperor Louis I
	Charles III	13 June 839 - 13 January 888	12 February 881	13 January 888	grandson of Emperor Louis I

Guideschi dynasty

Image	Name	Life	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Coin
	Guy	855 - 12 December 894	May 891	12 December 894	great-great grandson of Emperor Charles I	–
	Lambert	880 - 15 October 898	30 April 892	15 October 898	son of Emperor Guy	–

Carolingian dynasty

Image	Name	Life	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Coin
	Arnulph	850 - 8 December 899	22 February 896	8 December 899	nephew of Charles III and great-grandson of Emperor Louis I	–

Bosonid dynasty

Image	Name	Life	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Coin
	Louis III	880 - 28 June 928	22 February 901	21 July 905	grandson of Emperor Louis II	–

Unruoching dynasty

Image	Name	Life	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Coin
	Berengar	845 - 7 April 924	December 915	7 April 924	grandson of Emperor Louis I

There was no emperor in the west between 924 and 962.

Holy Roman Emperors

While earlier Germanic and Italian monarchs had been crowned as western Roman Emperors, the actual Holy Roman Empire is usually considered to have begun with the crowning of the Saxon king Otto I. It was officially an elective position, though at times it ran in families, notably the four generations of the Salian dynasty in the 11th century. From the end of the Salian dynasty through the middle 15th century, the Emperors drew from many different German dynasties, and it was rare for the throne to pass from father to son. That changed with the ascension of the Austrian House of Habsburg, as an unbroken line of Habsburgs would hold the Imperial throne until the 18th century, later a cadet branch known as the House of Habsburg-Lorraine would likewise pass it from father to son until the abolition of the Empire in 1806. Notably, the Habsburgs also dispensed with the requirement that emperors be crowned by the pope before exercising their office. Starting with Ferdinand I, all successive Emperors forwent the traditional coronation.

Ottonian (Saxon) dynasty

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Seal
1		Otto I	23 November 912 - 7 May 973	–	2 February 962	7 May 973	great-great-great grandson of Emperor Louis I
2		Otto II	955 - 7 December 983	961	25 December 967	7 December 983	son of Emperor Otto I
3		Otto III	980 - 23 January 1002	June 983	21 May 996	23 January 1002	son of Emperor Otto II
4		Henry II [7]	6 May 973 - 13 July 1024	7 June 1002	14 February 1014	13 July 1024	second cousin of Emperor Otto III and great-great-great-great-great grandson of Emperor Louis I

Salian (Frankish) dynasty

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Seal
5		Conrad II [8]	990 - 4 June 1039	1024	26 March 1027	4 June 1039	great-great-grandson of Emperor Otto I
6		Henry III	29 October 1017 - 5 October 1056	1028	25 December 1046	5 October 1056	son of Emperor Conrad II
7		Henry IV	11 November 1050 - 7 August 1106	1053	31 March 1084	December 1105	son of Emperor Henry III
8		Henry V [9]	8 November 1086 - 23 May 1125	6 January 1099	13 April 1111	23 May 1125	son of Emperor Henry IV

Supplinburg dynasty

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Seal
9		Lothair III [10]	9 June 1075 - 4 December 1137	1125	4 June 1133	4 December 1137	9th generation descendant of Emperor Otto I and also 11th generation descendant of Emperor Charles II

Staufen (or Hohenstaufen) dynasty

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Arms
10		Frederick I	1122 - 10 June 1190	4 March 1152	18 June 1155	10 June 1190	great-grandson of Emperor Henry IV
11		Henry VI	November 1165 - 28 September 1197	? April 1169	14 April 1191	28 September 1197	son of Emperor Frederick I

Welf dynasty

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Arms
12		Otto IV	1175 or 1176 - 19 May 1218	9 June 1198	4 October 1209	1215	great-grandson of Emperor Lothair III

Staufen (or Hohenstaufen) dynasty

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be Emperor	Descent from Emperor	Arms
13		Frederick II	26 December 1194 - 13 December 1250	1196 1215 re-election	22 November 1220	13 December 1250	son of Emperor Henry VI

House of Luxembourg

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be emperor	Descent from emperor	Arms
14		Henry VII	1275/1279 - 24 August 1313	1308	29 June 1312	24 August 1313	13th generation descendant of Emperor Louis III

House of Wittelsbach

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be emperor	Descent from emperor	Arms
15		Louis IV	1 April 1282 - 11 October 1347	October 1314	17 January 1328	11 October 1347	6th generation descendant of Emperor Lothair III and 7th generation descendant of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor

House of Luxembourg

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be emperor	Descent from emperor	Arms
16		Charles IV	14 May 1316 - 29 November 1378	11 July 1346/ 17 June 1349 re-election	5 April 1355	29 November 1378	grandson of Emperor Henry VII
17		Sigismund	14 February 1368 - 9 December 1437	10 September 1410/ 21 July 1411 re-election	31 May 1433	9 December 1437	son of Emperor Charles IV

House of Habsburg

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be emperor	Descent from emperor	Arms
18		Frederick III	21 September 1415 - 19 August 1493	1440	19 March 1452	19 August 1493	10th generation descendant of Emperor Lothair III
19		Maximilian I	22 March 1459 - 12 January 1519	16 February 1486		12 January 1519	son of Emperor Frederick III
20		Charles V	24 February 1500 - 21 September 1558	28 June 1519	February 1530	16 January 1556	grandson of Emperor Maximilian I
21		Ferdinand I	10 March 1503 - 25 July 1564	1531		25 July 1564	grandson of Emperor Maximilian I
22		Maximilian II	31 July 1527 - 12 October 1576	November 1562		12 October 1576	son of Emperor Ferdinand I
23		Rudolph II [11]	18 July 1552 - 20 January 1612	1575	30 June 1575	20 January 1612	son of Emperor Maximilian II
24		Matthias	24 February 1557 - 20 March 1619	1612	23 January 1612	20 March 1619	son of Emperor Maximilian II
25		Ferdinand II	9 July 1578 - 15 February 1637	1618	10 March 1619	15 February 1637	grandson of Emperor Ferdinand I
26		Ferdinand III	13 July 1608 - 2 April 1657	1636	18 November 1637	2 April 1657	son of Emperor Ferdinand II
27		Leopold I	9 June 1640 - 5 May 1705	18 July 1658	6 March 1657	5 May 1705	son of Emperor Ferdinand III
28		Joseph I	26 July 1678 - 17 April 1711	6 January 1690	1 May 1705	17 April 1711	son of Emperor Leopold I
29		Charles VI	1 October 1685 - 20 October 1740	12 October 1711	22 December 1711	20 October 1740	son of Emperor Leopold I

House of Wittelsbach

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be emperor	Descent from emperor	Arms
30		Charles VII	6 August 1697 - 20 January 1745	24 January 1742	12 February 1742	20 January 1745	great-great grandson of Emperor Ferdinand II and 12th generation descendant of Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor

House of Habsburg-Lorraine

#	Image	Name	Life	Election	Coronation	Ceased to be emperor	Descent from emperor	Arms
31		Francis I	8 December 1708 - 18 August 1765	13 September 1745		18 August 1765	great-grandson of Emperor Ferdinand III
32		Joseph II	13 March 1741 - 20 February 1790	after 18 August 1765	19 August 1765	20 February 1790	son of Emperor Francis I and maternal grandson of Emperor Charles VI
33		Leopold II	5 May 1747 - 1 March 1792	after 20 February 1790		1 March 1792	son of Emperor Francis I and maternal grandson of Emperor Charles VI
34		Francis II	12 February 1768 - 2 March 1835	after 1 March 1792	4 March 1792	6 August 1806	son of Emperor Leopold II

Coronation

The Emperor was crowned in a special ceremony, traditionally performed by the Pope in Rome. Without that coronation, no king, despite exercising all powers, could call himself Emperor. In 1508, Pope Julius II allowed Maximilian I to use the title of Emperor without coronation in Rome, though the title was qualified as Electus Romanorum Imperator ("elected Emperor of the Romans"). Maximilian's successors adopted the same titulature, usually when they became the sole ruler of the Holy Roman Empire.^[12] Maximilian's first successor Charles V was the last to be crowned Emperor.

See also

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Holy Roman Emperors.

• Concordat of Worms
• Emperor for other uses of the title "Emperor" in Europe.
• First Council of the Lateran
• Holy Roman Emperors family tree
• Holy Roman Empress
• King of the Romans
• List of German monarchs
• Holy Roman Empire
• King of Italy
• Kingdom of Italy (Holy Roman Empire)

References

Holy Roman Emperors Carolingian Empire Charles I (Charlemagne) Louis I Lothair I Louis II Charles II Charles III Guy Lambert Arnulf Louis III Berengar Holy Roman Empire Otto I Otto II Otto III Henry II Conrad II Henry III Henry IV Henry V Lothair II Frederick I Henry VI Otto IV Frederick II Henry VII Louis IV Charles IV Sigismund Frederick III Maximilian I Charles V Ferdinand I Maximilian II Rudolph II Matthias Ferdinand II Ferdinand III Leopold I Joseph I Charles VI Charles VII Francis I Joseph II Leopold II Francis II Book Category