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> The churchmen who crowned the emperors, and thus actually sustained
> the Empire, considered it to be the church's secular arm, sharing
> responsibility for the welfare and spread of the Christian faith and
> duty-bound to protect the Papacy.
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The Holy Roman Empire
by Raymond H. Schmandt
The Holy Roman Empire was the medieval state that embraced
most of central Europe and Italy under the rule of the German kings
from 962 to 1806. It was considered to be a restoration and
continuation of the ancient Roman Empire, although in fact it had
little in common with its predecessor. Earlier, the
Frankish king Charlemagne had revived the same name. His
Roman Empire lasted
from 800 to 925. In 962, Otto I of Germany and Pope John XII
cooperated in a
second revival. Threatened in his possession of the Papal States
by Berengar
II, king of Italy, John begged Otto to come to his aid. Otto did so,
and the
pope solemnly crowned him Emperor of the Romans as a reward.
>From this time,
the German kings claimed the right to rule the empire.
The Theory of the Empire
In theory, the Holy Roman Empire (the word "Holy" was added
during the 12th century) reflected two important medieval values:
the unity of all Christians,
or at least all Western Christians, in a single state as the civil
counterpart
to the One Holy Catholic Church; and a concept of hierarchical
political
organization that called for one ultimate head over all existing
states. In
practice, the empire never fully conformed to either ideal. France
and
England, for example, never acknowledged any real subordination
to the emperor,
although they recognized a vague supremacy in him. The empire's
aims varied
according to the program and philosophy of the many emperors
and popes who
controlled its destiny. The German kings - who called themselves
kings of the
Romans, not kings of Germany, as soon as they were elected by
the German
princes - considered themselves entitled to become Roman
emperor as soon as
they could arrange the imperial coronation, which was supposed to
take place in
Rome at the hands of the Pope. (By later convention, they are
called kings of
Germany, however, and many of them never secured imperial
coronation.) From the
ruler's point of view, the imperial title established his right to control
Italy and Burgundy as well as Germany and was thus a potential
source of power,
wealth, and prestige. The Empire's vast size and the disparity of its
peoples,
however, were serious obstacles to effective rule and good
government.
The churchmen who crowned the emperors, and thus actually
sustained the Empire,
considered it to be the church's secular arm, sharing responsibility
for the welfare and spread of the Christian faith and duty-bound to
protect the Papacy. This view of the relationship between church
and state, which dated from the
reign of Roman emperor Constantine I, was generally accepted by
both emperors
and Popes. In practice, however, this partnership seldom worked
smoothly, as
one of the partners inevitably tried to dominate the other. Frequent
fluctuations in the actual power and vitality of each individual as
well as
changes in the prevailing political and theological theories gave a
fluid,
dynamic quality to the empire's history.
History
The history of the Holy Roman Empire can be divided into four
periods: the age
of emperors, the age of princes, the early Habsburg period, and the final
phase.
(i) Age of the Emperors
The first age, from 962 to 1250, was dominated by the strong emperors of the Saxon,
Salian (or Franconian), and Hohenstaufen dynasties. These emperors made serious
efforts to control Italy, which in practical political t
erms was the
most important part of the empire. Their power, however, depended on their
German resources, which were never great. Italy consisted of the Lombard area,
with its wealthy towns; the Papal States; scattered regions still claimed by
the Byzantine Empire; and the Norman kingdom of Naples and Sicily. The
emperors generally tried to govern through existing officials such as counts
and bishops rather than by creating a direct administrative system. The
papacy, weak and disturbed by the Roman aristocracy, needed the emperors, who,
during the Saxon and early Salian generations, thought of the Bishop of Rome as
subject to the same kind of control that they exercised over their own German
bishops. Henry III, for example, deposed unsatisfactory Popes and nominated
new ones as he deemed fit.
During the reigns of Henry IV and Henry V in the late 11th and early 12th centuries,
the papacy was influenced by a powerful reform movement that demanded an end to lay
domination. Popes Gregory VII and Urban II insisted
on independence for the papacy and for the church in general during the
Investiture Controversy. Later Popes continued jealously to guard their
freedom, and this produced conflict with the Hohenstaufen emperors Frederick I
and Frederick II, both of whom wanted to exercise control over all of Italy.
The later Hohenstaufen emperors gained control of the Norman kingdom in
southern Italy and declared it a fief of the popes, who nevertheless worried
about their independence and often supported the emperors' Lombard foes. In
the 13th century, Popes Innocent III, Gregory IX, and Innocent IV restricted
the authority of Otto IV and Frederick II in many bitter disputes.
(ii) Age of the Princes
During the age of the princes, from 1250 to 1438, the emperors were much weaker. They
exercised minimal authority in Italy, and many of them were never crowned emperor by
the pope. Even in Germany their power was reduce
d, for Frederick II had dissipated royal prerogatives and resources in his northern
lands while struggling to dominate Italy. The emperors were unable to restrain
the German nobles or to resist French encroachments on the western frontiers of
the empire, and the Slavic rulers in the east rejected all imperial
overlordship. The Guelphs, or anti-imperialists in Italy (see Guelfs and
Ghibellines), spoke of ending the empire or transferring it to the French
kings. Political theorists such as Engelbert of Admont (1250-1331), Alexander
of Roes (fl. late 13th century), and even Dante, however, insisted that the
German emperors were needed. Marsilius of Padua, in his Defensor pacis,
argued for the end of all papal influence on the empire.
At this time the practice of electing the German king, or emperor, was given
formal definition by the Golden Bull (1356) of Emperor Charles IV. This
document, which defined the status of the seven German princely electors, made
it clear that the emperor held office by election rather than hereditary right.
The electors usually chose insignificant rulers who could not interfere with
the electors' privileges, but such rulers could neither govern effectively nor
maintain imperial rights. Their power was largely limited to strengthening
their own families. The empire consequently began to disintegrate into nearly
independent territories or self-governing groups such as the Hanseatic League.
(iii) Early Habsburg Period
After 1438 the electors almost always chose a member of the Habsburg dynasty of
Austria as king; the one exception was the election (1742) of the Bavarian
Charles VII. The Habsburg FrederickIII was the last emperor to be crowned in
Rome; his great-grandson Charles V was the last to be crowned by a pope.
By this time a few of the more farsighted princes saw the need to strengthen
the empire's central government. From 1485 to 1555 these reformers strove to
create a federal system. The diet, originally a loose assembly of princes, had
been organized into three strata--electors, princes, and representatives of the
imperial cities--by the Golden Bull and came to resemble a legislature. In
1500 it was proposed that an executive committee (Reichsregiment) appointed by
the diet be given administrative authority. A system of imperial courts was
created, and permanent institutions to provide for defense and taxation were
also discussed. The various states were organized into ten districts or
circles.
These reform efforts seldom worked, however, because the princes would not relinquish
their jurisdiction. The situation was further complicated by the
advent of the Reformation, which fostered religious conflicts that divided the
principalities against one another. In addition, the princes became alarmed at
the sudden growth of power of the Habsburgs when that dynasty acquired Spain.
Under the guise of the Counter-Reformation, Ferdinand II and Ferdinand III
tried to concentrate power in their hands, but defeat in the Thirty Years' War
undid their efforts and proved that the empire could not reform itself.
(iv) Final Phase
After the Treaty of Westphalia (1648) the Holy Roman Empire was little more
than a loose confederation of about 300 independent principalities and 1,500 or
more semi-sovereign bodies or individuals. Threats from the Ottoman Empire or
from Louis XIV of France occasionally stimulated imperial cooperation, but
usually each state considered only its own welfare. The Austrian-Prussian
wars, Hanover's acquisition of the English throne, and Saxony's holding of the
Polish crown exemplify the particularism that prevailed.
Napoleon I finally destroyed the empire. After defeating Austria and its
imperial allies in 1797 and 1801, he annexed some German land and suggested
that the larger territories compensate themselves by confiscating the free
cities and ecclesiastical states. By the Diet's Recess (1803), 112 small
states were thus seized by their neighbors. Three years later
Napoleon
compelled 16 German states to form the Confederation of the
Rhine and to secede
from the empire. On March 6, 1806, Francis II, who had previously
assumed the
title of Emperor of Austria, abdicated as Holy Roman Emperor and
declared the old
empire dissolved.
Raymond H. Schmandt
Bibliography
Barraclough, Geoffrey, The Origins of Modern Germany, 2d rev.
ed. (1947;
repr. 1984)
Bryce, James, The Holy Roman Empire, rev. ed. (1978)
Heer, Friedrich, The Holy Roman Empire, trans. by Janet
Sondheimer (1968)
Zophy, Jonathan W., ed., Holy Roman Empire: A Dictionary
Handbook (1980)
>From the 1995 Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia
Copyright 1995 Grolier Incorporated
Futile armed intervention against the French Revolution constituted
the last important venture of the empire in European politics.
Because of well-founded fears that Napoleon I of France intended
to annex the imperial title, Francis II, the last of the emperors,
formally dissolved the empire on August 6, 1806, and established
the Empire of Austria. More recently, the concept of the Third
Reich (1934-45) held by Adolf Hitler asserted the empire's
continuity with the First Reich (962-1806) and the Second Reich
(1871-1918).
>From the article "Holy Roman Empire," Microsoft Encarta '95.
"The Empire never died." � Philip K. Dick
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Encyclopedia
Lateran Treaty
Lateran Treaty, concordat between the Holy See and the kingdom
of Italy signed in 1929 in the Lateran Palace, Rome, by Cardinal
Gasparri for Pius XI and by Benito Mussolini for Victor Emmanuel
III. One of the important negotiators was Cardinal Pacelli, later
Pope Pius XII. In 1871 the unity of Italy was perfected by restricting
the papal sovereignty to a few buildings and awarding to Pius IX
and his successors an annual indemnity for the lost Papal States.
The Roman Catholic Church never recognized this arrangement
and never accepted the indemnity, and the subsequent popes
considered themselves prisoners in the Vatican. The problems
involved were called the Roman Question, and they were solved by
the treaty. It states that Roman Catholicism is the only state
religion of Italy and that Italy recognizes the new state called
Vatican City as fully sovereign and independent. Italy guarantees
Vatican City public services and protection and recognizes as
parts of it certain buildings not actually inside Vatican City. The
Italian government will punish crimes committed within Vatican
City, when so requested, and the Holy See will extradite to Italy
persons accused of acts recognized by both parties as crimes. As
to the reestablishment of the canon law in Italy, matrimony is a
sacrament, and banns must be
published; nullity of marriages is a question for the Church, while
separations are adjudicated by the state. Religion is to be taught in
primary and secondary schools, and the Holy See guarantees that
Roman Catholic organizations will abstain from politics. The Italian
government is to consider the person of the pope sacred and
inviolable. The Holy See, pursuant to its perpetual mission of
peace, will remain apart from temporal competitions of other states
and from international congresses for peace, unless a unanimous
appeal is made to its mission; the
Holy See will use its moral and spiritual power to prevent warfare
when it sees fit. The Holy See announced in the treaty that it had
its proper liberty, that the Roman Question was closed, and that it
recognized the kingdom of Italy under the house of Savoy. The
Lateran Treaty remained in effect after the monarchy was abolished
at the end of World War II. However, a concordate put into effect in
1985 modified the treaty, most importantly stating that Roman
Catholicism is no longer the state religion of Italy. The sovereignty
of Vatican City is still recognized.
Lateran Council, Fifth
latex
The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia Copyright � 1994, 2000,
Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University
Press. All rights reserved.
� 2001. The Learning Network Inc. All rights reserved
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