Holy Roman Empire Timeline
Table of Contents
- Holy Roman Empire From the Imperial Coronation of Otto the Great to the Election of Rudolph of Habsburg as King of Germany
- Holy Roman Empire From the Battle of Marchfeld to the Second Defenestration of Prague
- Holy Roman Empire From the Election of Ferdinand II to the End of the War of the Austrian Succession
- Holy Roman Empire From the Seven Years' War to its Dissolution
Holy Roman Empire From the Imperial Coronation of Otto the Great to the Election of Rudolph of Habsburg as King of Germany
February 2, 962 - King of Germany, Otto the Great is crowned Emperor of the Romans by Pope John XII. The event is traditionally viewed as the foundation of the Holy Roman Empire.
May 7, 973 - Otto the Great, the first Holy Roman Emperor dies aged 60. He is succeed by his son Otto II who was crowned joined Emperor in 967.
May 21, 996 - Otto III, son and successor of Otto II is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Gregory V.
January 24, 1002 - Otto III dies in Rome without a male heir. He is succeeded by his cousin Henry II (the Saint).
July 13, 1024 - On the death of Henry II (the Saint) the Ottonian dynasty becomes extinct.
March 26, 1027 - Conrad II, the first King of Germany of the Salian dynasty is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope John XIX.
October 5, 1056 - Holy Roman Emperor Henry III dies aged 38. He is succeeded by his minor son Henry IV, while his mother Agnes of Poitou becomes his regent.
January 24, 1076 - The Diet of Worms presided by Henry IV declares Pope Gregory VII deposed, while the latter answers with excommunication of the German King. The conflict between the Henry IV and Pope Gregory VII over the appointment of church officials provokes the Investiture Controversy.
March 31, 1084 - Henry IV is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by antipope Clement III.
December 1105 - Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV is forced to abdicate in favor of his son Henry V.
September 23, 1122 - Henry V reaches an agreement with Pope Calixtus II (the Concordat of Worms) and ends the Investiture Controversy.
May 23, 1125 - Holy Roman Emperor Henry V (crowned Emperor in 1111) dies without a male heir and the Salian dynasty becomes extinct. The Prince-electors choose Lothair III Supplinburg as King of Germany.
December 3-4, 1137 - Holy Roman Emperor Lothair III (crowned Emperor in 1133) dies without a legitimate male heir. The Prince-electors choose his opponent Duke Conrad of Franconia (Conrad III) as King of Germany. He becomes the first King of Germany of the House of Hohenstaufen as well as the first ruler of the Holy Roman Empire who is not crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
March 4, 1152 - Frederick I Barbarossa is elected King of Germany after death of his uncle Conrad III.
June 10, 1190 - Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa (crowned Emperor in 1555) dies during the Third Crusade. He is succeeded by his son Henry VI.
December 25, 1194 - Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI (crowned Emperor in 1191) is crowned King of Sicily.
1198 - The German princes refuse to recognize Frederick II as successor of the deceased Emperor Henry V and elect two rival kings - Otto IV of Brunswick and Philip of Swabia.
June 21, 1208 - Assassination of Philip of Swabia ends the civil war in the Holy Roman Empire. Otto IV of Brunswick is re-elected King of Germany on November 11, 1028, while Pope Innocent III crowns him Holy Roman Emperor one year later.
December 9, 1212 - Frederick II is crowned King of Germany.
July 27, 1214 - Phillip II of France decisively defeats the forces of Otto IV and his ally John of England in the Battle of Bouvines resulting in Otto’s replacement by Frederick II.
November 22. 1220 - Frederick II is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
March 18, 1228 - Frederick II launches the Sixth Crusade despite being excommunicated by Pope Gregory IX for postponing his pledge to go to crusade. He has himself crowned King of Jerusalem and signs a treaty with Egyptian sultan Al-Kamil winning Jerusalem, Bethlehem and Nazareth for the Christians.
1238 - Frederick II is excommunicated by the pope for the fourth time.
July 17, 1245 - Pope Innocent IV declares Frederick II deposed as Holy Roman Emperor.
August 5, 1246 - Henry Raspe, Landgrave of Thuringia who is elected anti-king to Frederick II (May 22, 1246) defeats Frederick’s son Conrad IV in the Battle of Nidda but he dies several months later.
October 3, 1247 - William II of Holland is elected anti-king to Frederick II.
December 13, 1250 - Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II dies in Puglia, Italy. His son Conrad IV, King of Jerusalem (from 1228) succeeds him as King of Germany and King of Sicily.
May 21, 1254 - The death of Conrad IV marks the beginning of the period of Interregnum during which no ruler managed to establish an undisputed authority in the Holy Roman Empire. Conrad is succeeded by anti-king William II of Holland and the Hohenstaufen rule in Germany comes to an end.
1257 - The German princes elect two kings after the death of William II of Holland (January 28, 1256): Richard of Cornwall (brother of Henry III of England) and Alfonso X of Castile.
September 11, 1273 - Election of Rudolf of Habsburg as King of Germany ends the period of Interregnum.
Holy Roman Empire From the Battle of Marchfeld to the Second Defenestration of Prague
August 26, 1278 - Rudolph of Habsburg decisively defeats his rival Ottokar II of Bohemia in the Battle of Marchfeld. He acquires the Duchies of Austria and Styria and lays the foundation for the future rise of the Habsburg dynasty.
June 23, 1298 - The successor of Rudolph of Habsburg, Adolf of Nassau is deposed as King of Germany and replaced by Rudolph’s son Albert I of Habsburg.
August 4, 1306 - Albert I of Habsburg secures the Bohemian crown for his son Rudolph II on the death of the last male Premyslid ruler of Bohemia, Wenceslaus III.
May 1, 1308 - Albert I of Habsburg is assassinated by his nephew John “the Parricide“ for depriving him of his inheritance.
November 27, 1308 - Henry VII of the House of Luxembourg is elected King of Germany.
June 29, 1312 - Henry VII is crowned Holy Roman Emperor becoming the first Holy Roman Emperor of the House of Luxembourg and the first King of Germany to receive papal coronation after Frederick II (crowned Emperor in 1220).
October 19/20, 1314 - Two king are elected after the death of Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII: Louis IV the Bavarian of the House of Wittelsbach and Frederick the Fair of the House of Habsburg.
September 28, 1322 - Louis IV the Bavarian defeats Frederick the Fair in the Battle of Mühldorf and wins the German throne. He is crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1328.
July 11, 1346 - Charles IV of the House of Luxembourg is elected rival king to Louis IV the Bavarian. After Louis’ death (October 11, 1347), he is re-elected King of Germany.
April 5, 1355 - Charles IV is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by a cardinal in Rome.
August 20, 1400 - Wenceslaus, son and successor of Charles IV is deposed as King of Germany and replaced by Rupert of the House of Wittelsbach. Wenceslaus remains King of Bohemia.
September 20, 1410 - Wenceslaus’ brother Sigismund, King of Hungary is elected King of Germany.
July 27, 1420 - Sigismund is crowned King of Bohemia after the death of his brother Wenceslaus but the Czechs refuse to accept him as king for his role at the Council of Constance that ordered execution of the Czech reformer Jan Hus and proclaim him deposed in 1421.
May 31, 1433 - Sigismund is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Eugene IV.
July 5, 1436 - The so-called Compactata end the Hussite Wars (started on July 30, 1419). Sigismund is finally recognized as King of Bohemia.
March 18, 1438 - Albert II of the House of Habsburg succeeds Sigismund as King of Germany. He also gains the crowns of Hungary and Bohemia.
October 27, 1438 - Albert II dies during a campaign against the Turks at Neszmely, Hungary.
February 2, 1440 - Albert’s cousin Frederick III is elected King of Germany, while Albert’s posthumously born son Ladislaus the Posthumous succeeds his father as Duke of Austria and King of Hungary and Bohemia.
March 9, 1452 - Frederick III becomes the last Holy Roman Emperor to be crowned in Rome.
August 19, 1493 - Frederick III is on his death succeeded by his son Maximilian I.
September 22, 1499 - Maximilian I grants independence to Switzerland with the Treaty of Basel.
February 6, 1508 - With Pope Julius II’s consent, Maximilian I proclaims himself elected Holy Roman Emperor.
July 22, 1515 - Maximilian I arranges marriage of his grandchildren Mary and Ferdinand (I) to children of Ladislaus II of Hungary and Bohemia, Louis and Anne. The double marriage wins Hungary and Bohemia for the House of Habsburg.
October 31, 1517 - Martin Luther posts his 95 theses on the door of All Saints’ Church in Wittenberg, Germany, which marks the beginning of the Reformation.
June 28, 1519 - Maximilian I is succeeded by his grandson and King of Spain, Charles I as Charles V.
May 28, 1521 - Charles V signs the Edict of Worms declaring Martin Luther an outlaw.
February 24, 1525 - The Spanish-Imperial army decisively defeats the French in the Battle of Pavia winning the Italian War of 1521-1526.
December 16, 1526 - Brother of Charles V and the future Holy Roman Emperor Ferdinand I inherits the crown of Hungary after the death of Louis II of Hungary in the Battle of Mohacs against the Turks (August 29, 1526). One year later he also wins the Bohemian throne.
September 27, 1529 - Ottoman Sultan Suleiman I (the Magnificent) lays siege to Vienna. The Turks are forced to withdraw on October 14, 1529.
February 24, 1530 - Charles V becomes the last Holy Roman Emperor to receive papal coronation. He is crowned Emperor by Pope Clement VII at Bologna, Italy.
August 26, 1542 - The Duchy of Lorraine becomes independent from the Holy Roman Empire
1546-47 - Charles V defeats the Lutheran Schmalkaldic League in the so-called Schmalkaldic War.
January 15, 1552 - Maurice, Elector of Saxony allies himself with Henry II of France against Charles V and cedes Verdun, Metz, Toul and Cambrai to France.
September 25, 1555 - Charles V is forced to accept the Peace of Augsburg granting religious freedom to the Lutherans and temporary ending the religious struggles in the Holy Roman Empire.
September 12, 1556 - Charles V abdicates as Holy Roman Emperor in favor of his bother Ferdinand I. His son Philip II succeeds him as King of Spain, King of Naples and Lord of the Netherlands.
September 21, 1558 - Ferdinand I formally becomes Holy Roman Emperor on the death of Charles V.
July 25, 1564 - Maximilian II succeeds his deceased father Ferdinand I as Holy Roman Emperor.
October 12, 1576 - Maximilian II is on his death succeeded by his son Rudolph II.
January 20, 1612 - Rudolph II dies without a male heir. He is succeeded by his brother Matthias who de facto rules Holy Roman Empire since 1606.
May 23, 1618 - Two Roman Catholic Imperial officials are thrown out of the window in Prague Castle. The so-called Second Defenestration of Prague marks the beginning of the Thirty Years’ War.
Holy Roman Empire From the Election of Ferdinand II to the End of the War of the Austrian Succession
August 28, 1619 - Matthias is after his death (March 20, 1619) succeeded by his ultracatholic cousin Ferdinand II.
March 6, 1629 - Ferdinand II issues the Edict of Restitution ordering the return of all secularized Roman Catholic properties to the Roman Catholic Church.
July 6, 1630 - Gustavus II Adolph, King of Sweden invades the Duchy of Pomerania and intervenes the Thirty Years’ War against Ferdinand II.
September 11, 1631 - Electorate of Saxony joins Sweden against Ferdinand II.
November 16, 1632 - The Imperial army is defeated by the Swedes at the Battle of Lützen but Gustavus II Adolph is killed during the battle.
September 6, 1634 - The Swedes retreat to north Germany after the defeat against the Imperial-Spanish forces in the Battle of Nördlingen.
May 30, 1635 - The Peace of Prague ends the war between Electorate Saxony and Holy Roman Empire.
September 18, 1635 - Ferdinand II declares war on France resulting in the direct French intervention in the Thirty Years’ War.
February 15, 1637 - Ferdinand III becomes Holy Roman Emperor on the death of his father Ferdinand II.
October 24, 1648 - Ferdinand III signs the Peace of Westphalia which ends the Thirty Years’ War and severely weakens power and influence of the House of Habsburg in Europe.
April 2, 1657 - Ferdinand III dies and is succeeded by his second son Leopold I who is elected Holy Roman Emperor on July 18, 1658.
September 12, 1683 - The Imperial forces aided by the Poles under the command of Jan II Sobieski decisively defeat the Ottoman Turks and force them to abandon the Siege of Vienna (laid on July 14, 1683).
July 9, 1686 - Leopold I forms an anti-French coalition known as the League of Augsburg or the Grand Alliance joining the Holy Roman Empire, Spain, Sweden, Bavaria, Saxony and the Palatinate.
September 2, 1686 - The Imperial army captures Buda (the western part of modern Budapest) from the Ottomans.
August 12, 1687 - The Imperial army commanded by Prince Eugene of Savoy decisively defeats the Ottoman Turks in the Battle of Mohacs and drives them out of Hungary shortly thereafter.
December 9, 1687 - Leopold I’s son, Joseph I is crowned hereditary King of Hungary.
January 26, 1699 - The Peace of Karlowitz ends the Austro-Ottoman War of 1683-1697. The Habsburg dynasty receives the entire Hungary and Transylvania except the Banat.
September 30, 1702 - Leopold I enters the War of the Spanish Succession with an aim to win the Spanish crown for his son Charles (VI).
May 5, 1705 - Joseph I is elected Holy Roman Emperor on the death of his father Leopold I.
October 12, 1711 - Charles VI succeeds his deceased brother Joseph I as Holy Roman Emperor. At the same time he loses the English support in the War of the Spanish Succession. He is forced to give up his claims to the Spanish throne with the Treaties of Rastatt and Baden in 1714.
April 19, 1713 - Charles VI promulgates the Pragmatic Sanction declaring his lands indivisible and abolishing the male-only succession.
July 21, 1718 - The Treaty of Passarowitz ends the Austro-Turkish War of 1716-1718. The Ottoman Empire is forced to cede the Banat of Temeswar, north Serbia, a part of northern Bosnia and Lesser Wallachia to Austria.
September 18, 1739 - The Treaty of Belgrade ends the Austro-Turkish War of 1737-1739. Austria is forced to return Serbia south of the Danube and Sava rivers to the Ottoman Empire and Oltenia to the Turkish subject of Wallachia.
October 20, 1740 - Maria Theresa, the daughter of the deceased Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI inherits the Habsburg lands, however, she is challenged by a number of European sovereigns.
December 16, 1740 - Frederick II of Prussia invades Silesia starting the First Silesian War and the War of the Austrian Succession.
January 24, 1742 - Charles Albert, Prince-elector of Bavaria and son-in-law of the deceased Emperor Joseph I is elected Holy Roman Emperor as Charles VII becoming the only non-Habsburg Holy Roman Emperor since 1438.
July 28, 1742 - The Treaty of Berlin ends the First Silesian War between Austria and Prussia. Maria Theresa is forced to cede most of Silesia to Frederick II of Prussia.
June 27, 1743 - Austrian forces capture Prague and occupy Bavaria.
August 16, 1744 - Frederick II of Prussia invades Bohemia which marks the beginning of the Second Silesian War.
January 20, 1745 - Holy Roman Emperor Charles VII dies in Munich. Electorate of Bavaria renounces the claim to the Austrian throne shortly thereafter.
September 13, 1745 - Maria Theresa’s husband Francis I, Duke of Lorraine is elected Holy Roman Emperor. De facto ruler becomes, however, Empress Maria Theresa.
December 25, 1745 - The Treaty of Dresden ends the Second Silesian War. Frederick II of Prussia recognizes Francis I as Holy Roman Emperor and retains his territorial gains from the First Silesian War.
October 18, 1748 - The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, also known as the Treaty of Aachen ends the War of the Austrian Succession. The European great powers confirm the Pragmatic Sanction, while Maria Theresa is forced to cede Silesia to Prussia and the Duchy of Parma to Spain. French conquests in the Netherlands are returned to Austria.
Holy Roman Empire From the Seven Years’ War to its Dissolution
August 29, 1756 - Frederick II of Prussia invades Saxony which marks the beginning of the Seven Years’ War.
August 12, 1759 - Combined Imperial-Russian forces decisively defeat the Prussian army in the Battle of Kunersdorf (Kunowice).
February 15, 1763 - The Treaty of Hubertusburg ends the Seven Years’ War between the Holy Roman Empire and Prussia without any territorial changes.
August 18, 1765 - Joseph II, the eldest son of Maria Theresa and Francis I succeeds his father as Holy Roman Emperor on his death. The real power, however, remains in the hands of his mother.
August 5, 1772 - Austria, Prussia and Russia reach an agreement about partition of Poland (the First Partition of Poland). Austria gains south Galicia and Lodomeria (the later Kingdom of Galicia and Lodomeria).
July 5, 1778 - The death of Maximilian III Joseph, Elector of Bavaria and the last of the junior House of Wittelsbach provokes the War of the Bavarian succession between Austria on one side and Prussia and Saxony on the other.
May 13, 1779 - With the Treaty of Teschen, Austria is forced to renounce the claim to the Duchy of Bavaria. The Duchy of Bavaria passes to the Elector of Palatine and Maximilian’s brother Charles Theodore.
November 29, 1780 - Empress Maria Theresa dies in Vienna aged 63.
February 20, 1790 - Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II dies childless. He is succeeded by his younger brother Leopold II (elected on September 30, 1790).
March 1, 1792 - Leopold II dies suddenly. He is succeeded by his son Francis II who is the last Holy Roman Emperor.
April 20, 1792 - Revolutionary France declares war on the Holy Roman Empire starting the War of the First Coalition.
October 16, 1793 - Marie Antoinette, wife of Louis XVI of France and the daughter of the deceased Holy Roman Emperor, Francis I and Maria Theresa is executed by guillotine.
October 24, 1795 - Austria, Prussia and Russia partition the remnants of Poland among themselves (the Third Partition of Poland).
October 17, 1797 - The Peace of Campo Formio ends the War of the First Coalition. The Holy Roman Empire gives up the Austrian Netherlands, the Duchy of Milan, and the lands on the left bank of the Rhine River in return for Venice, Istria and Dalmatia.
March 1, 1799 - Revolutionary France declares war on the Holy Roman Empire starting the War of the Second Coalition.
December 3, 1800 - The Imperial forces are decisively by the French in the Battle of Hohenlinden.
February 9, 1801 - The Treaty of Luneville ends the War of the Second Coalition between France and the Holy Roman Empire. Austria is required to enforce the terms of the Peace of Campo Formio and cede some lands in Germany to France.
August 11, 1804 - Holy Roman Emperor, Francis II proclaims himself hereditary Emperor of Austria.
November 6, 1804 - Francis II concludes anti-French alliance with Alexander I of Russia.
September 8, 1805 - Austrian forces invade Bavaria starting the War of the Third Coalition.
December 2, 1805 - Napoleon decisively defeats combined Austrian-Russian forces in the Battle of Austeritz.
December 26, 1805 - The Peace of Pressburg ends the War of the Third Coalition between France and the Holy Roman Empire. The latter is forced to cede Venice, Istria an Dalmatia to Kingdom of Italy, recognize the French Emperor Napoleon as King of Italy, cede some lands to Bavaria and Württemberg, and recognize both dukes of Bavaria and Württemberg as kings. With the Peace of Pressburg, the Holy Roman Empire virtually comes to an end.
July 12, 1806 - Napoleon establishes the Confederation of Rhine encompassing nearly all German states except for Austria and Prussia.
August 6, 1806 - Francis II gives up his title of Holy Roman Emperor and declares the Holy Roman Empire dissolved.
