Holy Roman Emperor: Did you mean...?

The Holy Roman Empire officially lasted from 962 to 1806. It was one of Europe’s largest medieval and early modern states, but its power base was unstable and continually shifting. The Holy Roman Empire was not a unitary state, but a confederation...

"The Holy Roman Empire was in no way holy, nor Roman, nor an empire," wrote Voltaire, and this interpretation still dominates the popular imagination, so the Holy Roman Empire is treated as a bad joke, a pale parody of the glory of Rome...

Roman emperors ruled the Roman Empire starting with Augustus in 27 BCE and continuing in the West until the late 5th century CE and in the Eastern Roman Empire up to the mid-15th century CE. The emperors took titles such as Caesar and Imperator...

The emperors of ancient China had tremendous power and responsibility. Called the 'Son of Heaven', he (and once she) was given a divine right to rule over all people but was expected to promote their best interest and not his own. An absolute...

A medieval manuscript illustration depicting the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI (r. 1191-1197 CE). (Codex Manesse, 1305-1315 CE)

Woodcut portrait of Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor (r. 1084-1105) by Christoffel Jegher, c. 1631-1633. The British Museum, London.

Depiction of Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian II (r. 1564-1567 CE) on a medal created by Antonio Abondio, 1575 CE. From the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, United States

The Byzantine Emperor ruled as an absolute monarch in an institution which lasted from the 4th to 15th century CE. Aided by ministers, high-ranking nobility, and key church figures, the emperor (and sometimes empress) was commander-in-chief...

The Peace of Westphalia, the name given to the multiple treaties, marked the conclusion of the Thirty Years' War. Signed on 24 October 1648, it aimed to secure political autonomy for the multitude of small states that made up the Holy Roman...

Portrait of Emperor Leopold I as a young man, wearing the Order of the Golden Fleece, oil on canvas by Benjamin Block, 1631-1689. Private collection. This portrait of the young monarch is rare as it depicts Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor...