Editing Holy Roman Empire (section)

=== Early Middle Ages ===
==== Carolingian Empire ====
{{Main|Carolingian Empire}}
[[File:Francia 814.svg|thumb|A map of the Carolingian Empire within Europe, {{Circa|814 AD}}]]

As [[Western Roman Empire|Roman]] power in [[Gaul]] declined during the 5th century, local Germanic tribes assumed control.{{Sfn|Innes|2000|pp=167–170}} In the late 5th and early 6th centuries, the [[Merovingian dynasty|Merovingians]], under [[Clovis I]] and his successors, consolidated [[Franks|Frankish]] tribes and extended hegemony over others to gain control of northern Gaul and the middle [[Rhine]] river valley region.{{Sfn|Bryce|1890|pp=35}}{{Sfn|Davies|1996|pp=232, 234}} By the middle of the 8th century, the Merovingians were reduced to figureheads, and the [[Carolingian dynasty|Carolingians]], led by [[Charles Martel]], became the {{lang|la|de facto}} rulers.{{Sfn|Bryce|1890|pp=35–38}} In 751, Martel's son [[Pepin the Short|Pepin]] became King of the Franks, and later gained the sanction of the Pope.{{Sfn|McKitterick|2018|pp=48–50}}<ref name=EB.Pippin/> The Carolingians would maintain a close alliance with the Papacy.{{Sfn|Bryce|1890|pp=38–42}}

In 768, Pepin's son Charlemagne became King of the Franks and began an extensive expansion of the realm. He eventually incorporated the territories of present-day France, Germany, northern Italy, the Low Countries and beyond, linking the Frankish kingdom with Papal lands.{{Sfn|Johnson|1996|p=22}}{{Sfn|Kohn|2006|pp=113–114}}

Although antagonism about the expense of [[Byzantine Papacy|Byzantine domination]] had long persisted within Italy, a political rupture was set in motion in earnest in 726 by the [[Byzantine iconoclasm|iconoclasm]] of Emperor [[Leo III the Isaurian]], in what [[Pope Gregory II]] saw as the latest in a series of imperial heresies.{{Sfn|Duffy|1997|pp= 62–63}} In 797, the Eastern Roman Emperor [[Constantine VI]] was removed from the throne by his mother, Empress [[Irene of Athens|Irene]], who declared herself sole ruler. As the Latin Church only regarded a male Roman emperor as the head of [[Christendom]], Pope Leo III sought a new candidate for the dignity, excluding consultation with the [[patriarch of Constantinople]].<ref name="auto2">Bryce, pp. 44, 50–52</ref>{{Sfn|McKitterick|2018|p=70}}

Charlemagne's good service to the Church in his defense of Papal possessions against the [[Lombards]] made him the ideal candidate. On Christmas Day of 800, Pope Leo III crowned Charlemagne emperor, restoring the title in the West for the first time in over three centuries.<ref name="auto2"/>{{Sfn|McKitterick|2018|p=70}} This can be seen as symbolic of the papacy turning away from the declining [[Byzantine Empire]] toward the new power of [[Carolingian]] [[Francia]]. Charlemagne adopted the formula {{lang|la|[[Renovatio imperii Romanorum]]}} ("renewal of the Roman Empire"). In 802, Irene was overthrown and exiled by [[Nikephoros I]] and henceforth there were two Roman emperors.

After Charlemagne died in 814, the imperial crown passed to his son, [[Louis the Pious]]. Upon Louis' death in 840, it passed to his son [[Lothair I|Lothair]], who had been his co-ruler. By this point the territory of Charlemagne was divided into several territories (''cf''. [[Treaty of Verdun]], [[Treaty of Prüm]], [[Treaty of Meerssen]] and [[Treaty of Ribemont]]), and over the course of the later 9th century the title of emperor was disputed by the Carolingian rulers of the Western Frankish Kingdom or [[West Francia]] and the Eastern Frankish Kingdom or [[East Francia]], with first the western king ([[Charles the Bald]]) and then the eastern ([[Charles the Fat]]), who briefly reunited the Empire, attaining the prize.{{Sfn|Collins|2014|p=131}} In the 9th century, Charlemagne and his successors promoted the intellectual revival, known as the [[Carolingian Renaissance]]. Some, like Mortimer Chambers,<ref>{{Cite book|last=Chambers|first=Mortimer|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2AJaAAAAYAAJ|title=The Western Experience|date=1974|publisher=Knopf|isbn=978-0-3943-1806-6|page=204|language=en|access-date=6 February 2022}}</ref> opine that the Carolingian Renaissance made possible the subsequent renaissances (even though by the early 10th century, the revival already diminished).<ref>{{Cite book|last=Witt|first=Ronald G.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F8KXnDTwsZYC&pg=PA27|title=The Two Latin Cultures and the Foundation of Renaissance Humanism in Medieval Italy|date=2012|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-5217-6474-2|page=27|language=en|access-date=6 February 2022}}</ref>

After the death of Charles the Fat in 888, the Carolingian Empire broke apart, and was never restored. According to [[Regino of Prüm]], the parts of the realm "spewed forth kinglets", and each part elected a kinglet "from its own bowels".{{Sfn|Collins|2014|p=131}} The last such emperor was [[Berengar I of Italy]], who died in 924.

==== Post-Carolingian Eastern Frankish Kingdom ====
Around 900, East Francia's autonomous [[Stem duchy|stem duchies]] ([[Duchy of Franconia|Franconia]], [[Duchy of Bavaria|Bavaria]], [[Duchy of Swabia|Swabia]], [[Duchy of Saxony|Saxony]], and [[Lotharingia#Duchy of Lotharingia, 900–959|Lotharingia]]) reemerged. After the Carolingian king [[Louis the Child]] died without issue in 911, [[East Francia]] did not turn to the Carolingian ruler of West Francia to take over the realm but instead elected one of the dukes, [[Conrad of Franconia]], as {{lang|la|Rex Francorum Orientalium}}.{{Sfn|Taylor|Hansen-Taylor|1894|p=117}} On his deathbed, Conrad yielded the crown to his main rival, [[Henry the Fowler]] of Saxony ({{R.|919|936}}), who was elected king at the Diet of [[Fritzlar]] in 919.{{Sfn|Taylor|Hansen-Taylor|1894|p=118}} Henry reached a truce with the raiding [[Magyars]], and in 933 he won a first victory against them in the [[Battle of Riade]].{{Sfn|Taylor|Hansen-Taylor|1894|p=121}}

Henry died in 936, but his descendants, the [[Ottonian dynasty|Liudolfing (or Ottonian) dynasty]], would continue to rule the Eastern kingdom or the Kingdom of Germany for roughly a century. Upon Henry the Fowler's death, [[Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor|Otto]], his son and designated successor,{{Sfn|Hoyt|Chodorow|1976|p=197}} was elected king in [[Aachen]] in 936.{{Sfn|Magill|1998|p=706}} He overcame a series of revolts from a younger brother and from several dukes. After that, the king managed to control the appointment of dukes and often also employed bishops in administrative affairs.{{Sfn|Cantor|1993|pp=212–213}} He replaced leaders of most of the major East Frankish duchies with his own relatives. At the same time, he was careful to prevent members of his own family from making infringements on his royal prerogatives.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Bernhardt|first=John W.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iIiloa3-AlIC&pg=PA23|title=Itinerant Kingship and Royal Monasteries in Early Medieval Germany, C. 936–1075|date=2002|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-5215-2183-3|page=23|language=en|access-date=6 February 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Wickham|first=Chris|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Tp4qDQAAQBAJ&pg=PA131|title=Medieval Europe|date=2016|publisher=Yale University Press|isbn=978-0-3002-2221-0|page=131|language=en|access-date=6 February 2022}}</ref>

==== Formation of the Holy Roman Empire ====
[[File:Depiction of Leo VIII from the Nuremberg Chronicle. Published in 1493.png|thumb|[[Pope Leo VIII]] of the [[Holy Roman Church]]]]
[[File:Heiliges Römisches Reich 1000.jpg|thumb|The Holy Roman Empire during the [[Ottonian dynasty]]]]
[[File:Holy Roman Empire 11th century map-en.svg|thumb|The Holy Roman Empire between 972 and 1032]]

In 951, Otto came to the aid of Queen [[Adelaide of Italy]], defeating her enemies, marrying her, and taking control over Italy.{{Sfn|Cantor|1993|pp=214–215}} In 955, Otto won a decisive victory over the [[Magyars]] in the [[Battle of Lechfeld]].{{Sfn|Magill|1998|p=707}} In 962, Otto was crowned emperor by [[Pope John XII]],{{Sfn|Magill|1998|p=707}} thus intertwining the affairs of the German kingdom with those of Italy and the Papacy. Otto's coronation as emperor marked the German kings as successors to the empire of Charlemagne, which through the concept of {{lang|la|[[translatio imperii]]}}, also made them consider themselves as successors to Ancient Rome. The flowering of arts beginning with Otto the Great's reign is known as the [[Ottonian Renaissance]], centered in Germany but also happening in Northern Italy and France.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Tucker|first=Spencer C.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=h5_tSnygvbIC&pg=PA412|title=A Global Chronology of Conflict: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East [6 volumes]: From the Ancient World to the Modern Middle East|date=2009|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-8510-9672-5|page=412|language=en|access-date=6 February 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Geanakoplos|first=Deno John|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OtcYAAAAYAAJ|title=Medieval Western Civilization and the Byzantine and Islamic Worlds: Interaction of Three Cultures|date=1979|publisher=D. C. Heath|isbn=978-0-6690-0868-5|page=207|language=en|access-date=6 February 2022}}</ref>

Otto created the imperial church system, often called "Ottonian church system of the Reich", which tied the great imperial churches and their representatives to imperial service, thus providing "a stable and long-lasting framework for Germany".<ref name="Reindel">{{Cite web|title=Otto I – Legacy Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Otto-I/Legacy|access-date=2 March 2022|website=www.britannica.com|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|last=Biographie|first=Deutsche|title=Otto I. – Deutsche Biographie|url=https://www.deutsche-biographie.de/gnd118590758.html#ndbcontent|access-date=5 March 2022|website=www.deutsche-biographie.de|language=de}}</ref> During the Ottonian era, imperial women played a prominent role in political and ecclesiastic affairs, often combining their functions as religious leader and advisor, regent or co-ruler, notably [[Matilda of Ringelheim]], [[Eadgyth]], [[Adelaide of Italy]], [[Theophanu]], and [[Matilda of Quedlinburg]].<ref>{{Cite book|last=Davids|first=Adelbert|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Db9Z_BagLw8C&pg=PA188|title=The Empress Theophano: Byzantium and the West at the Turn of the First Millennium|date=2002|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-0-5215-2467-4|page=188|language=en|access-date=9 March 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Jansen|first=S.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fF6IDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA153|title=The Monstrous Regiment of Women: Female Rulers in Early Modern Europe|date=2002|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-0-2306-0211-3|page=153|language=en|access-date=9 March 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=MacLean|first=Simon|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=KAFLDgAAQBAJ&pg=PA169|title=Ottonian Queenship|date=2017|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-1988-0010-1|page=169|language=en|access-date=9 March 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Digby|first=Kenelm Henry|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fNBhAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA939|title=Mores Catholici: Books VII–IX|date=1891|publisher=P. O'Shea|page=939|language=en|access-date=9 March 2022}}</ref>

In 963, Otto deposed John XII and chose [[Leo VIII]] as the new pope (although John XII and Leo VIII both claimed the papacy until 964, when John XII died). This also renewed the conflict with the Byzantine emperor, especially after Otto's son [[Otto II]] ({{R.|967|983}}) adopted the designation {{lang|la|imperator Romanorum}}. Still, Otto II formed marital ties with the east when he married the Byzantine princess [[Theophanu]].{{Sfn|Magill|1998|p=708}} Their son, [[Otto III]], came to the throne only three years old, and was subjected to a power struggle and series of regencies until his age of majority in 994. Up to that time, he remained in Germany, while a deposed duke, [[Crescentius II]], ruled over Rome and part of Italy, ostensibly in his stead.

In 996 Otto III appointed his cousin [[Pope Gregory V|Gregory V]] the first German pope.{{Sfn|McBrien|2000|p=138}} A foreign pope and foreign papal officers were seen with suspicion by Roman nobles, who were led by [[Crescentius II]] to revolt. Otto III's former mentor [[Antipope John XVI]] briefly held Rome, until the Holy Roman emperor seized the city.{{Sfn|Sladen|1914}}

Otto died young in 1002, and was succeeded by his cousin [[Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry II]], who focused on Germany.{{Sfn|Cantor|1993|pp=215–217}}
Otto III's (and his mentor Pope Sylvester's) diplomatic activities coincided with and facilitated the Christianization and the spread of Latin culture in different parts of Europe.<ref>{{Cite book|last1=Bideleux|first1=Robert|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=59CEAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA119|title=A History of Eastern Europe: Crisis and Change|last2=Jeffries|first2=Ian|date=2006|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-1347-1985-3|page=119|language=en|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Lewis|first=Archibald Ross|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z4u9iIr-q1gC&pg=PA83|title=Nomads and Crusaders, A.D. 1000–1368|date=1988|publisher=Georgetown University Press|isbn=978-0-2533-4787-9|page=83|language=en|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref> They coopted a new group of nations (Slavic) into the framework of Europe, with their empire functioning, as some remark, as a "Byzantine-like presidency over a family of nations, centered on pope and emperor in Rome". This has proved a lasting achievement.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Fried|first=Johannes|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=jG0GBgAAQBAJ&pg=PT138|title=The Middle Ages|date=2015|publisher=Harvard University Press|isbn=978-0-6747-4467-7|page=138|language=en|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last1=Rowland|first1=Christopher|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CrcoAAAAYAAJ|title=Apocalyptic in History and Tradition|last2=Barton|first2=John|date=2002|publisher=Bloomsbury Academic|isbn=978-0-8264-6208-4|page=173|language=en|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last1=Arnason|first1=Johann P.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9xJYEAAAQBAJ&pg=PA100|title=Eurasian Transformations, Tenth to Thirteenth Centuries: Crystallizations, Divergences, Renaissances|last2=Wittrock|first2=Björn|date= 2005|publisher=Brill|isbn=978-9-0474-1467-4|page=100|language=en|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=JiABAAAAMAAJ|title=German Polish Dialogue: Letters of the Polish and German Bishops and International Statements|date=1966|publisher=Ed. Atlantic-Forum|page=9|language=en|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref> Though, Otto's early death made his reign "the tale of largely unrealized potential".<ref>{{Cite book|last=Emmerson|first=Richard K.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=LSCPAQAAQBAJ&pg=PA496|title=Key Figures in Medieval Europe: An Encyclopedia|date=2013|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-1367-7518-5|page=497|language=en|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book|last=Muldoon|first=J.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oXqJDAAAQBAJ&pg=PA35|title=Empire and Order: The Concept of Empire, 800–1800|date=1999|publisher=Springer|isbn=978-0-2305-1223-8|page=35|language=en|access-date=30 May 2022}}</ref>

[[Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor|Henry II]] died in 1024 and [[Conrad II]], first of the [[Salian dynasty]], was elected king only after some debate among dukes and nobles. This group eventually developed into the college of [[prince-elector|electors]].

The Holy Roman Empire eventually came to be composed of four kingdoms:
* [[Kingdom of Germany]] (part of the empire since 962),
* [[Kingdom of Italy (Holy Roman Empire)|Kingdom of Italy]] (from 962 until 1801),
* [[Kingdom of Bohemia]] (from 1002 as the [[Duchy of Bohemia]] and raised to a kingdom in 1198),
* [[Kingdom of Burgundy (from 933)|Kingdom of Burgundy]] (from 1032 to 1378).