Holy Roman Empire (800–1806)

Holy Roman Empire Heiliges Römisches Reich Sacrum Imperium Romanum
800/962–1806
Flag Coat of arms
The empire in 1789
Common languages	German Latin
Dominant mode of production	Feudalism
Government	Monarchy
Population
• 1800 estimate	29,000,000

The Holy Roman Empire (German: Heiliges Römisches Reich) was a political entity in Central Europe during the medieval and early modern periods. Its power base was in Austria, but it extended across what is now Germany, Czechia, Hungary, Italy, France, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, and Poland. It was deeply divided and had internal conflicts between the Emperor and local princes.

Contrary to its name for much of its history the Holy Roman Empire was neither holy, Roman nor an empire. The founding of the empire was also the height of its power, when it controlled most of Western Europe, since then it was in a state of slow decline, slowly losing territory and influence. By the time the Hapsburgs dissolved it in 1806 to prevent Napoleon from usurping it, the empire was little more than a loose confederation of squabbling princes with the more powerful states using it as a tool to control the smaller.

History

Carolingian Empire

Following the collapse of the Western Roman Empire, their territory was taken control of by German tribes, most importantly the Franks who controlled a large area of land from what is now France to Western Germany. The Papacy struggling with fighting for control of Italy requested the aid of the Franks and the Frankish kings assumed the role of protecting Christianity in the mid 8th century. This arrangement, which began the formation of the Holy Roman Empire, became official when Charlemagne, King of the Franks, was coronated as "Emperor of the Romans" in November 800 by Pope Leo III, transferring the title from the Byzantines to the Franks.

Ottonian rule

The Empire was solidified when Otto I was crowned emperor in 962 by Pope John XII.

Luxembourg Kings

The Czech population revolted in 1415 after the execution of the radical preacher Jan Hus. The rebellion included egalitarian Taborites who called for the elimination of exploitation and destruction of the feudal ruling class.

Hapsburg rule

Under the rule of the Hapsburg dynasty, the Holy Roman Empire fought with Spain against France from 1494 and 1559 in northern Italy.

Protestant Reformation

The Protestant Reformation began in what is now Germany in 1517. The Holy Roman Emperor summoned Martin Luther to the Diet of Worms in 1521 and threatened to execute him, but his teachings soon spread across the empire to two-thirds of German villages. Impoverished knights in southern Germany revolted from 1522 to 1523 followed by a peasant rebellion from 1524 to 1525 that threatened the entire feudal mode of production. Many German princes who opposed the Pope and Holy Roman Emperor converted to Protestantism.

Thirty Years' War

In the early 17th century, Spain launched a feudal counterrevolution against the Reformation. Anti-Catholic nobles in Bohemia threw three imperial officials out of a window in Prague in 1618 and then refused to recognize the new Catholic emperor Ferdinand, granting the crown of Bohemia to a German Protestant prince named Frederick of Palatine. Catholic forces defeated Frederick in 1620 and restored the Catholic imperial government. The Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden, and France intervened against Spain, defeating the Hapsburgs in 1648. The population reduced the German population by half between 1618 and 1648 and drained Spain's resources, allowing France to surpass it in military power.

Economy

Urban commodity production grew in the 14th and 15th centuries. Weaving was the most important industry, but goldsmithing, silversmithing, and wood engraving also existed for the benefit of the nobility. Commerce grew along with industry, and the Hanseatic League held a monopoly on sea trade for 100 years before falling to English and Dutch competition.

Agriculture lagged behind England and the Netherlands, and industry was behind Italy, Belgium, and England.

Class system

Clergy

The printing press ended the clergy's monopoly over writing. The aristocratic section of the clergy, including bishops and archbishops, were either princes or the vassals of princes and brutally exploited the serfs. There were also poor preachers who did not benefit from feudalism and sympathized with the peasantry and urban masses.

Nobility

The upper nobility was the princes who could declare war, organize local councils, and levy taxes without permission from the emperor. By 1600, most of the knights had become princes or lower nobles as the invention of guns made them unnecessary. Many knights owed money to the clergy and sought to become independent from their lords.

Burghers

The urban middle class, the ancestors of modern bourgeois liberals, controlled the guilds and wanted more legislative power. It criticized the urban aristocracy (patricians) for favorite elite families that had been rich for centuries.

Plebeians

The plebeians (future proletariat) were urban dwellers that had no citizenship rights. They included lumpenproletarians, day workers, and skilled journeymen. Some were former guild members while others were peasants.

Further reading

• The Peasant War in Germany