Holy Roman Empire

multi-ethnic complex of territories in Western and Central Europe (800/962–1806)

215 dated entries naming Holy Roman Empire, drawn from 188 separate years between 816 CE and 1806 CE. Nothing here is written by us: each line is the sentence a Wikipedia year article used, and the link beside it opens the exact revision.

JSON Wikipedia article Wikidata Q12548

9th century

816October 5 – King Louis the Pious (son of Charlemagne) is crowned emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, by Pope Stephen IV at Reims. He also crowns the emperor's wife Ermengarde as Holy Roman Empress. The ceremony in Reims re-establishes the principle of papal supremacy, by recognising the importance of the pope in imperial coronations. Louis gives the pope many gifts, including the estate tax Vendeuvre, near Troyes (Northern France).source
823April 5 – Lothair I, eldest son of Emperor Louis I, is crowned co-emperor again by Pope Paschal I at Rome (initiating the papal practice of handing the imperial sword over, as a symbol of temporal power in the Holy Roman Empire).source
842February 14 – Oaths of Strasbourg: King Louis the German, ruler of East Francia, and his half-brother Charles the Bald, ruler of West Francia, meet with their armies at Strasbourg. They agree to swear allegiance (recorded in vernacular languages) to each other, and to support each other against their brother Lothair I (nominal emperor of all the Frankish kingdoms and the Holy Roman Empire).source
876August 28 – King Louis the German dies at Frankfurt, while preparing for war against his brother Charles II ("the Bald"), ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. The East Frankish Kingdom is divided among his three sons: Carloman receives Bavaria and styles himself "King of Bavaria". Louis the Younger receives Saxony (with Franconia and Thuringia), and Charles the Fat receives Swabia (with Raetia).source

10th century

912November 23 – Otto I, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 973)source
923August 27 – Ageltrude, queen of Italy and Holy Roman Empresssource
924March 24 – Hungarian Magyar forces led by General Szalárd, capture Pavia, capital of the Kingdom of Italy within the Holy Roman Empire, at the request of the Holy Roman Emperor Berengar. Later, after crossing the Alps via the St. Bernard Pass, the Magyars pillage Provence, Septimania and Nismes in southern France).source
931Adelaide, empress regent of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 999)source
955Theophanu, empress consort of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 991)source
962February 2 – King Otto I (the Great) is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope John XII at the Old St. Peter's Basilica, ending Rome's feudal anarchy. Otto's wife Adelaide is anointed as empress; the East Frankish Kingdom and the Kingdom of Italy are unified into a common realm, called the Roman Empire.source
966Spring – King Lothair of France marries Princess Emma of Italy (the only daughter of Adelaide of Burgundy—second wife of Emperor Otto the Great, from her first marriage with King Lothair II, member of the Bosonid dynasty). Lothair strengthens his ties with the Holy Roman Empire. He temporarily remains in control of the cities of Arras and Douai. The latter becomes a flourishing textile market centre during the Middle Ages.source
967Winter – Otto I returns to Rome. On Christmas day, John XIII crowns Otto II as co-emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. Although Otto II is nominated as co-ruler, he exercises no real authority.source
973May 6 – Henry II, emperor of the Holy Roman Empire (d. 1024)source
973May 7 – Emperor Otto I (the Great) dies at Memleben in Thuringia (modern Germany) after a 37-year reign. He is succeeded by his 18-year-old son Otto II (the Red), who becomes absolute ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. His mother Adelaide will exert great influence on Otto, although her lavish philanthropies will be a source of contention. Otto's succession leads to conflicts in the south German duchies and in Lotharingia.source
976July – Emperor Otto II (the Red) occupies Regensburg, forcing his rebellious cousin Henry II (the Wrangler) (who claims rulership over the Holy Roman Empire) to flee to Bohemia. Henry is deposed and Bavaria is handed over to Otto I of Swabia (a grandson of the late Emperor Otto I). He sets up the new "Grand Duchy of Carinthia" covering modern-day Austria.source
977August – Otto II appoints his cousin Charles, illegitimate son of the late King Louis IV (d'Outremer), as duke of Lorraine. King Lothair III – who claims the duchy as his own territory – declares war to the Holy Roman Empire. He leads an expedition into Lorraine accompanied by Hugh Capet. Lothair crosses the Meuse River and takes Aachen, sacking the imperial palace.source
980Notker (or Notger), Frankish Benedictine monk and bishop, founds the Prince-Bishopric of Liège (modern Belgium) which will remain an independent state inside the Holy Roman Empire for more than 800 years.source
983Great Slav Rising: The Polabian Slavs (Wends), mainly Lutici and Obotrite tribes living east of the Elbe River revolt against Christianity and their subjugation to the German (former East Frankish) realm of the Holy Roman Empire. They invade northern Germany, sacking the cities of Havelberg, Brandenburg and Hamburg.source
985Summer – Henry II (the Wrangler) is restored as duke of Bavaria by Empress Theophanu and her mother-in-law Adelaide at an Hoftag assembly in Rohr (Thuringia). King Otto III (5-years old) remains under the regency of the two empresses in the Holy Roman Empire and in the Kingdom of Italy.source
986Mieszko I, duke (de facto) ruler of Poland, pledges his allegiance to Otto III and the Holy Roman Empire. He promises assistance in Otto's war against the Slavs.source
989Winter – Theophanu arrives with her son, King Otto III in Rome to meet John XV. Crescentius II (the Younger) offers his submission to the Holy Roman Empire, in return for which she confirms his title as patrician of Rome.source
992May 25 – Mieszko I, prince (duke) of the Polans, dies after a reign of more than 30 years at Poznań. He is succeeded by his son Bolesław I the Brave who becomes ruler of Poland. Having inherited the principality (located between the Oder and the Warta rivers), Bolesław forms an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire.source
996May 21 – Otto III, 16, is crowned Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire at St. Peter's Basilica, and claims also the title of King of Italy. His grandmother, Adelaide, retires to a convent she has founded at Seltz (Alsace). Otto puts down a Roman rebellion; a number of nobles (including Crescentius II) are banished for their crimes.source
997Winter – Emperor Otto III travels to Italy, leaving the government of the Holy Roman Empire in the hands of his aunt, Matilda of Quedlinburg. He is accompanied by Bishop Gilbert of Aurillac, his teacher and advisor.source
998Fall – Otto III makes Rome the administrative capital of the Holy Roman Empire and begins the construction of his imperial palace on the Palatine Hill. He restores the ancient Roman Senate to its position of prominence and adopts the title of "Emperor of the Romans". To this Otto adds the apostolic devotion formula servus Jesu Christi ('Servant of Jesus Christ').source
999December 16 – Adelaide of Italy, empress regent of the Holy Roman Empire (b. 931)source
1000In continental Europe, the Holy Roman Empire established itself as the most powerful state. The Holy Roman Emperor Otto III made a pilgrimage from Rome to Aachen and Gniezno (Gnesen), stopping at Regensburg, Meissen, Magdeburg, and Gniezno. The Congress of Gniezno (with Bolesław I the Brave) was part of his pilgrimage. In Rome, he built the basilica of San Bartolomeo all'Isola, to host the relics of St. Bartholomew.source

11th century

1018January 30 – The Peace of Bautzen: Emperor Henry II signs a peace treaty with Bolesław I the Brave, Duke of Poland, ending the German–Polish War. Poland keeps Lusatia – the Holy Roman Empire keeps Bohemia. With this peace agreement, Bolesław redirects his forces on an offensive against the Kievan Rus'.source
1025March 6 – In the Duchy of Aquitaine in France, the Aquitanian barons and prelates meet at Maillezais, to discuss the claims by William the Fat, son of the Duke of Aquitaine Guillaume le Grand (William the Great) to rule the vacant throne of the Kingdom of Italy (primarily Lombardy and Tuscany) within the Holy Roman Empire. The title is eventually claimed by Conrad the Salic.source
1031Summer – After a failed invasion in the previous year, the Holy Roman Empire concludes a peace with the Kingdom of Hungary; Emperor Conrad II is forced to cede the lands between Leitha and Fischa to King Stephen I.source
1033February 2 – Emperor Conrad II (the Elder) holds an assembly at the Abbey of Payerne and is crowned King of Burgundy. He claims dominion over the Kingdom of Burgundy which is incorporated into the Holy Roman Empire.source
1034Franche-Comté becomes subject to the Holy Roman Empire.source
1035Emperor Conrad II ("the Elder") grants the city of Koper (modern Slovenia) town rights, and some degree of self-government, within the Holy Roman Empire.source
1037February – At an Imperial Diet in Pavia (assembled by Conrad II), Aribert is accused of fomenting a revolt against the Holy Roman Empire, Conrad orders his arrest.source
1044July 6 – Battle of Ménfő: German troops under King Henry III ("the Black") defeat the Hungarian army, led by King Samuel Aba, who flees the field but is captured and killed. Peter Orseolo ("the Venetian") becomes (for the second time) king of Hungary, and a vassal of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1061June 28 – Count Floris I is ambushed on a retreat from Zaltbommel and killed by German troops at Nederhemert. Most of West Frisia (later part of the County of Holland) is conquered and annexed by the Holy Roman Empire.source
1085Emperor Henry IV declares the Peace of God in all the imperial territories of the Holy Roman Empire to quell any sedition.source

12th century

1107Spring – Duke Bolesław III along with his ally King Coloman of Hungary, invades Bohemia in order to aid Duke Svatopluk in gaining the Bohemian throne. The Polish expedition is a complete success: on May 14 Svatopluk is installed as Duke of Bohemia in Prague. King Henry V demands tribute from Svatopluk as his overlord and vassal of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1110Henry V, King of Germany, invades Italy with a large army and concludes an agreement with Pope Paschal II at Sutri. Henry renounces the right of investiture (a dispute with the former Henry IV). In return, Paschal promises to crown him emperor and to restore to the Holy Roman Empire all the lands given to the German church (since the time of Charlemagne).source
1114January 7 – Emperor Henry V marries Matilda (or Maude), 11-year-old daughter of King Henry I of England, at Worms (modern Germany). A political conflict breaks out across the Holy Roman Empire after the marriage, triggered when Henry arrests Chancellor Adalbert and various other German princes.source
1122September 23 – The Concordat of Worms: Emperor Henry V recognizes freedom of election of the clergy and promises to restore all Church property. This brings an end to the power struggle between the papacy and the Holy Roman Empire, known as the Investiture Controversy. In the aftermath, Cappenberg Abbey is founded by Count Gottfried II for the new order of Premonstratensians.source
1138Summer – A civil war breaks out in the Holy Roman Empire, a struggle begins between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, while the family name Welf of Henry X will be corrupted into Guelph.source
1140Spring – King Conrad III enfeoffs Henry II ("Jasomirgott"), a member of the House of Babenberg, with the County Palatine of the Rhine (belonging to the Holy Roman Empire).source
1142Duke Władysław II the Exile attempts to subject his younger (half)-brothers to re-unite Poland. He is supported by the alliances with the Kievan Rus' and the Holy Roman Empire.source
1156June 9 – Emperor Frederick I (Barbarossa) marries Beatrice I, daughter of Reginald III, adding the County of Burgundy to the Holy Roman Empire.source
1182May 12 – King Valdemar I (the Great) dies after a 28-year reign in which he has gained independence from the Holy Roman Empire. He is succeeded by his 19-year-old son Canute VI, who becomes ruler of Denmark.source
1184The papal bull Ad Abolendam is issued against several European heretical groups: the Cathars, the Waldensians, the Patarines, Josephines and the Humiliati. It is created after a landmark meeting in Verona, between the Holy Roman Empire under Frederick I and the Catholic Church under Pope Lucius III.source
1191April 15 – Henry VI, son of the late Emperor Frederick I (Barbarossa), is crowned as Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, together with his wife Constance by Pope Celestine III, on Easter Monday at Rome. Henry marches south and begins a campaign in Apulia. He besieges Naples, but encounters the resistance of Sicilian forces under Margaritus of Brindisi, who come to support the city's defense. Tusculum is destroyed by the rebel army of the Commune of Rome, on April 17.source
1194December 25 – Henry VI deposes the 8-year-old William III (son of Tancred de Lecce) and is crowned king of Sicily. The next day, Constance I, who stays in the town of Iesi, gives birth to Frederick II, the future emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1196Spring – Henry VI persuades a diet at Würzburg. He manages to convince the majority of the German nobles and clergy to recognize his 2-year-old son, Frederick II, as king of the Romans and heir to the imperial throne. However, Archbishop Adolf of Cologne thwarts the will of the diet and arouses the resistance of several Saxon and Thuringian nobles against Henry, who realizes that he is unable to establish a hereditary monarchy (his Erbreichsplan) in the Holy Roman Empire without resistance.source
1200Spring – Boniface I, Marquis of Montferrat, sends envoys to Venice, Genoa and other city-states to negotiate a contract for transport to the Levant. Meanwhile, Boniface and various nobles are mustering an expeditionary army (mainly forces from France and the Holy Roman Empire) at Paris. On February 23, Baldwin IX, count of Flanders and his brother Henry of Flanders take the cross at Bruges (modern Belgium), and agree to take part in the Fourth Crusade called by Pope Innocent III (see 1199).source

13th century

1201Pope Innocent III recognizes Otto IV as the only legitimate ruler of the Holy Roman Empire, against his rival King, Philip of Swabia. In return, Otto promises to support the pope's interests in Italy.source
1207February 2 – Terra Mariana (or Medieval Livonia), comprising modern-day Estonia and Latvia, is established as a principality of the Holy Roman Empire. During its existence there is a constant struggle over supremacy between the lands ruled by the Teutonic Order, the secular German nobility, and the citizens of the Hanseatic towns of Riga and Reval.source
1209October 21 – Innocent III crowns Otto IV as emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in St. Peter's Basilica at Rome.source
1215Summer – Emperor Otto IV is excommunicated and forced to abdicate as ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. The German nobles, supported by Innocent III, again elect the 20-year-old Frederick II as King of the Romans who is crowned in Aachen, on July 25. The same day, Frederick takes the Cross and promises to go on Crusade.source
1224March 1 – Pope Honorius III sends a letter to the Roman Catholic Patriarch of Jerusalem, Francisco Clemente Pérez Capera, notifying him that the armies and navies of the Holy Roman Empire, the Teutonic Knights and the Kingdom of Sicily will be departing soon to begin the Sixth Crusade to recapture Jerusalem from the Arab rulers.source
1227July 22 – Battle of Bornhöved: Count Adolf IV of Holstein – leading a coalition army from the cities of Lübeck and Hamburg, defeats the Danish-German forces of King Valdemar II, and the Welf nobleman Otto I (the Child). Adolf shakes off Danish supremacy and accepts an overlordship by the Archbishopric of Bremen under Archbishop Gerhard II of Lippe. Adolf expands his power and establishes new frontiers within the Holy Roman Empire.source
1236July – At a diet (princely convention) in Piacenza, Emperor Frederick II proclaims his wish to recover all Italy for the Holy Roman Empire.source
1239Summer – A German expeditionary force under Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, invades the Romagna and Tuscany, hoping to capture Rome. He appoints his 21-year-old son, Enzo of Sardinia, as imperial vicar general for Northern Italy. Frederick also threatens with war against Venice, which has sent ships to blockade the harbors on Sicily. In order to finance his growing need for arms, he institutes an administrative reorganization of the Holy Roman Empire (among others, the formation of 10 vice regencies in Italy).source
1241May – Battle of Giglio: an Imperial fleet defeats a Genoan fleet in the Tyrrhenian Sea.source
1242Spring – Siege of Esztergom: The Mongols under Batu Khan assault and destroy most of the Hungarian city of Esztergom. Batu Khan sends a reconnaissance party against the Holy Roman Empire.source
1244October 5 – Innocent IV flees to France and travels to Lyon, where he arrives on November 29. Although the city is nominally subject to the Holy Roman Empire, Innocent falls under the protection of Louis IX.source
1253October – Pope Innocent IV returns to Rome, after being deposed for 9 years by former Emperor Frederick II, whose clash forms an important chapter in the conflict between the Papal States and the Holy Roman Empire.source
1257January 13 – At the first recorded meeting of the college of the seven Electors of the Holy Roman Empire, the 48-year-old Richard of Cornwall (the brother of King Henry III of England) is elected King of the Romans. He is crowned at Aachen, on May 17. His candidacy is opposed by King Alfonso X of Castile ("the Wise"), Pope Alexander IV and King Louis IX of France ("the Saint") who favour Alfonso, but both are ultimately convinced by Richard's sister-in-law, Queen Eleanor of Provence, to support Richard.source
1262March 8 – Battle of Hausbergen: The bourgeois of Strasbourg defeat a German army of knights (some 5,000 men) under Bishop Walter of Geroldseck. Strasbourg becomes an imperial Free City of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1264Winter – The War of the Thuringian Succession ends after 17 years with the state of Hesse gaining its independence from Thuringia and becoming the Landgraviate of Hesse, a principality of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1268August 23 – Battle of Tagliacozzo: The army of Charles of Anjou defeats the Ghibellines supporters of Conradin of Hohenstaufen, marking the fall of the Hohenstaufen Family from the Imperial and Sicilian thrones, and leading to the new chapter of Angevin domination in Southern Italy.source
1269King Ottokar II of Bohemia inherits Carinthia and part of Carniola, making him the most powerful German prince within the Holy Roman Empire; the empire lacking an emperor during the ongoing “Great Interregnum”.source
1270Edmund, 2nd Earl of Cornwall, donates to the Cistercian Hailes Abbey in England (his father's foundation) a phial held to contain the Blood of Christ, acquired in the Holy Roman Empire; this becomes such a magnet for pilgrimage that within 7 years the monks are able to rebuild their abbey on a magnificent scale.source
1288June 5 – War of the Limburg Succession – Battle of Worringen: Brabantian forces under Duke John I defeat the coalition army of Cologne, Luxemburg, and Nassau at Worringen (in a struggle to conquer the Duchy of Limburg). John liberates the city of Cologne from rule by the Electorate of Cologne, which has previously been one of the major ecclesiastical principalities of the Holy Roman Empire.source

14th century

1302December 31 – Theobald II of the House of Metz becomes the new Duke of Lorraine within the Holy Roman Empire after the death of his father, Frederick III.source
1302June 14 – Matteo I Visconti, Lord of Milan (Signore di Milano), the semi-independent Italian region within the Holy Roman Empire, is deposed by Guido della Torre, but will return in 1311.source
1303March 17 – Joan II of the Anscarids becomes the Countess and ruler of Burgundy, a free state within the Holy Roman Empire (now the département of Jura in France), upon the death of her father Otto IV.source
1309March 9 – Pope Clement V officially transfers the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Pontiff from Rome to the French city of Avignon, his residence and at this time part of the Kingdom of Arles, starting the Avignon Papacy. Since 1305, the papal court had been at Poitiers, and the move is justified by violence in Rome. The papal seat becomes part of the Holy Roman Empire, and its absence from Rome is referred to as the "Babylonian captivity of the Papacy".source
1312June 29 – Henry VII is crowned emperor of the Holy Roman Empire in the Lateran Palace, since St Peter's Basilica is occupied by Romans hostile to him.source
1313August 24 – A week after contracting malaria during the siege of the Tuscan city of Siena, the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VII dies of malaria at Buonconvento. His 17-year-old son, John of Bohemia, will succeed him and will become one of the seven prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire. Upon learning of the Henry's death, Louis, Duke of Bavaria goes to war against his cousin, Frederick the Fair, Duke of Austria and Styria, as both compete to be elected the new Emperor, a competition which will eventually be resolved in favour of Louis.source
1323March 6 – Treaty of Paris: Count Louis I relinquishes Flemish claims over the County of Zeeland. He acknowledges William II the Good as count of Avesnes, Holland, and Zeeland as a state within the Holy Roman Empire. William occupies most of the Bishopric of Utrecht and tries to conquer Friesland (or Frisia) but is repelled by Governor Hessel Martena.source
1326February 10 – The Raid on Brandenburg begins as Polish-Lithuanian forces led by Władysław I Łokietek, "the elbow-high", King of Poland, and of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania under Gediminas, raid the territories of the Margraviate of Brandenburg (within the Holy Roman Empire), with the sanction of Pope John XXII. Władysław regards the Neumark (East Brandenburg) as Polish territory.source
1338Hundred Years' War: Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor appoints Edward III of England as a vicar-general of the Holy Roman Empire. Louis supports Edward's claim to the French throne, under the terms of the Treaty of Koblenz.source
1356December 25 – Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor, promulgates the Golden Bull, a constitution for his empire.source
1372March 8 – In the Holy Roman Empire, the Archbishop-Elector of Trier, Kuno II von Falkenstein and the Archbishop-Elector of Köln, Friedrich III. von Saarwerden, become co-founders of their own mint abd begin production of being the minting of coins, including the "Weisspfennig" (the "white penny").source
1376January 23 – In the Holy Roman Empire, Wenceslaus I, Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg and Elector of Saxony, marries Cecilia da Carrara, daughter of Francesco I da Carrara, Lord of Padua.source
1390February 16 – At Heidelberg (now in Germany) Ruprecht II of the House of Wittelsbach becomes the new Elector of the Palatinate in the Holy Roman Empire upon the death of his uncle, Rupert I.source
1396September 12 – The Crusaders, with more than 17,000 troops from France, Hungary, the Knights Hospitaler, Wallachia and the Holy Roman Empire , arrive at the outskirts of Nicopolis (now Nikopol in Bulgaria).source
1396September 25 – Battle of Nicopolis: The Ottomans defeat a joint crusade by Hungary, France, the Holy Roman Empire, and Wallachia, led by King Sigismund of Hungary. This is the last large-scale crusade of the Middle Ages.source
1397August 28 – As part of a division of the state of Holstein, the northernmost member of the Holy Roman Empire, between Count Albert II and his brother Count Gerhard VI (following the death of their uncle, Nicholas), Gerhard receives the Duchy of Schleswig and nearly all of Rendsburg, while Albert receives HOlstein-Segeberg.source
1398January 6 – In Amberg, Ruprecht III "the Righteous" of the House of Wittelsbach becomes the new Elector of the Palatinate within the Holy Roman Empire upon the death of his father, Ruprecht II "the Hard".source
1400May 22 – Meeting in Frankfurt, three of the prince-electors of the Holy Roman Empire (Rupert, elector of the Palatinate, Rudolf III, Duke of Saxe-Wittenberg, elector of Saxony, and Jobst of Moravia, elector of Brandenburg) meet in an attempt to replace the Emperor, Wenceslaus, King of the Romans because of his failure to stamp out civil unrest or to resolve the Western Schism. They select Frederick I, Duke of Brunswick-Lüneburg as the replacement for Wenceslaus.source

15th century

1408April 8 – Appenzell Wars: In the Appenzell region of Switzerland, the alliance of the region with St. Gallen, thesource
1411July 21 – Sigismund is formally elected unanimously as King of the Romans by the seven electors of the Holy Roman Empire present.source
1417April 18 – Frederick I, Elector of Brandenburg, is appointed to an additional position as Archchamberlain of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1428November 11 – The Battle of Kratzau takes place in Bohemia in what is now the city of Chrastava in the Czech Republic, as the Silesian troops of the Bohemian Crown Lands under of the Holy Roman Empiresource
1433May 17 – The Principality of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel becomes the first state in the Holy Roman Empire to abolish serfdom as the Duke Heinrich der Friedfertige ("Heinrich the Peaceful") ends the fedual system there by decree.source
1440September 21 – The Burgraviate of Nuremberg, a member nation-state of the Holy Roman Empire, comes to an end after more than three centuries when the two sons of the last Burgrave, Frederick V, divide the territory into two separate principalities. Frederick VI (who is also Elector of Brandenburg) becomes the ruler of the Principality of Ansbach, while John III becomes the ruler of the Principality of Bayreuthsource
1446March 21 – In the Holy Roman Empire in Germany, the Electors of Cologne, Trier, Mainz, and the Palatinate, along with representatives of the Electors of Saxony and Brandenburg, assemble at Frankfurt-am-Main and create a mutual defense alliance to resist Pope Eugene IV.source
1448February 17 – The Concordat of Vienna is signed between the Holy Roman Empiresource
1448May 3 – The Treaty of Prenzlau is signed between in Germany by the Margraviate of Brandenburg and the Duchy of Pomerania, both principalities within the Holy Roman Empire. The treaty partitions the disputed territory of the Uckermark, with Brandenburg receiving the southern part and Pomerania the northern part, with rights for Brandenburg to receive the north if Pomerania's ruling house should become extinct.source
1463February 6 – Otto II, Duke of Brunswick-Göttingen, a semi-independent principality within the Holy Roman Empire, dies after a reging of more than 68 years. Because Otto has no heirs, the Principality of Göttingen comes to an end and is annexed by the principality of Calenberg.source
1463June 18 – The free imperial city of Rottweil, part of the Holy Roman Empire and now a part of Germany, becomes an associate state of the Swiss Confederacy.source
1471May 27 – Two months after the death of King George of Poděbrady, the Diet of Bohemian nobles meets at Kutná Hora and elects Vladislaus Jagiello as the new King of Bohemia. The papal legate, Lorenzo Roverella, Bishop of Ferrara, declares the election void with the approval of Pope Paul II, and endorses Matthias Corvinus, King of Hungary, to be the new King of Bohemia, which the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire refuses to approve.source
1473July 27 – René II, Count of Vaudémont becomes the new Duke of Lorraine, at the time an independent principality within the Holy Roman Empire, upon the death of his cousin, Nicholas I. after his mother, the Duchess Yolande gives up her rights to the throne.source
1475June 27 – After an 11-month siege, Charles the Bold abandons the Siege of Neuss when an imperial relief army from the Holy Roman Empire approaches; a papal legate of Pope Sixtus IV threatens excommunication of both Charles and Emperor Frederick III should the fighting continue, allowing both rulers to withdraw without loss of honor.source
1475September 9 – The city of Köln (Cologne), already separate from the surrounding Köln is granted the status of a "free imperial city" by the Holy Roman Empire, with representation in the Imperial Diet and self-government within the Empire.source
1476December 12 – Philip the Upright becomes the new Elector of the Palatinate within the Holy Roman Empire, upon the death of his adoptive father, the Elector Frederick I.source
1477August 18 – Mary, Duchess of Burgundy, marries Prince Maximilian, son of the Holy Roman Emperor, in Ghent, bringing her Flemish and Burgundian lands into the Holy Roman Empire, and detaching them from France.source
1482August 30 – The reign of Louis de Bourbon, Bishop of Liège over the Principality of Liège, a semi-independent eccleasitic state within the Holy Roman Empire in parts of what are now Belgium, France, Germany and the Netherlands, comes to an end when he is assassinated on orders of William de La Marcksource
1484May 11 – The Kingdom of Hungary defeats the army of the Holy Roman Empire at the Battle of Leitzersdorf.source
1485January 29 – The siege of Vienna, capital of the Holy Roman Empire, is started by the Black Army of the Kingdom of Hungary in the ninth year of the ongoing Austrian-Hungarian War. Vienna is defended by a force of only 3,000 soldiers and cavalry, against 28,000 soldiers and cavalry of the Black Army, and the city falls to Hungary within four months.source
1487August 10 – The County of Tyrol within the Holy Roman Empire defeats the attack of the Republic of Venice at the Battle of Calliano, with 1,400 of the Venetians and 700 of the Tyroleans killed.source
1495The Reichskammergericht of the Holy Roman Empire is founded in Frankfurt.source
1495March 26 – The inaugural session of the Diet of Worms (Wormser Reichstag), a gathering of the electors and princes of the Holy Roman Empire to discuss reforms of the government, is opened at Worms, Germany, by Maximilian I, the acting Holy Roman Emperor.source
1496October 20 – Joanna of Castile, second daughter of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabella I of Castile, heiress to Castile, marries the archduke Philip, heir through his mother to the Burgundian Netherlands, and through his father to the Holy Roman Empire.source

16th century

1502In Germany, Peter Henlein of Nuremberg uses iron parts and coiled springs to build a portable timepiece.source
1507April 27 – In Germany, the Imperial Diet of the Holy Roman Empire convenes at Konstanz and begins a series of reforms.source
1509August 10 – Maximillian I of the Holy Roman Empire along with French allies begins a siege of Padua that would last for months to retake the city.source
1514April 29 – After a month of negotiations at Linz between the Holy Roman Empire and the Kingdom of Denmark, representatives of the two nations sign an alliance agreement, to be secured by the marriage of the Emperor's 13-year-old daughter Isabella, to the new King of Denmark, Christian II, along with payment of a dowry to King Christian of 250,000 Rhenish gulden, equivalent to $118,000,000 USD 500 years later.source
1516December 4 – Treaty of Brussels: Peace is declared between the Kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire.source
1521November 23 – Spanish–German–Papal forces under Prospero Colonna force French Marshal Odet de Lautrec to abandon Milan.source
1522August 27 – The Knights' War erupts within the Holy Roman Empire as Franz von Sickingen leads a revolt against the Prince-Bishop of Trier and to seize the church properties within the Electorate of Triersource
1522November 17 – The second Diet of Nuremberg opens to discuss various matters of the Holy Roman Empire, including the Protestant Reformation.source
1525April 4 – German Peasants' War in the Holy Roman Empire: Battle of Leipheim – The peasants suffer great losses when they are attacked by Georg, Truchsess von Waldburg and the town of Leipheim is forced to surrender. Four peasant leaders are beheaded, including Jakob Wehe and Ulrich Schoen.source
1525March 20 – In the German town of Memmingen, the pamphlet The Twelve Articles: The Just and Fundamental Articles of All the Peasantry and Tenants of Spiritual and Temporal Powers by Whom They Think Themselves Oppressed is published, the first human rights related document written in Europe.source
1527May 6 – Sack of Rome: Spanish and German troops led by the Duke of Bourbon sack Rome, forcing the Medici Pope Clement VII to make peace with Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, marking the end of the High Renaissance. The Pope grows a beard in mourning.source
1531February 27 – Lutheran princes in the Holy Roman Empire form an alliance known as the Schmalkaldic League.source
1532August 5 – The siege of Güns in the Austrian Empire begins as the Ottoman army, under Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent, attempts to take the city of Güns (now Kőszeg in Hungary) with 100,000 troops in order to mount a larger invasion of the Austrian city of Vienna, capital of the Holy Roman Empire. The defenders, less than 800 Croatian soldiers commanded by Nikola Jurišić, puts up a successful resistance despite being outnumbered by more than 100 to 1.source
1538January 31 – General Johann Katzianer of the Holy Roman Empire, on trial in Vienna for the disastrous Imperial campaign against the Ottoman Empire and for desertion during the Battle of Gorjani, escapes and flees to Kostajnica Fortress in Ottoman-controlled Croatia. After 14 months, Nikola IV Zrinski has Katzianer murdered.source
1539April 17 – At Dresden in Germany, Heinrich IV of the House of Wettin, nicknamed "Heinrich der Fromme" (Henry the Pious) becomes the new Duke of Saxony within the Holy Roman Empire upon the death of his older brother, Georg der Bärtige ("George the Bearded").source
1542August 27 – Citizens of Hildesheim in the Holy Roman Empire profess themselves to the Lutheran teachings, thus joining the Schmalkaldic League. As a pledge owner, the city provides for the carrying out of the Protestant Reformation in the city and Peine. Priests from the localities of Clauen, Hohenhameln, Soßmar, Schmedenstedt, Lengede and Rosenthal resume their offices in the interest of the Reformation.source
1544April 11 – Battle of Ceresole: French forces under the Comte d'Enghien defeat forces of the Holy Roman Empire, under the Marques Del Vasto, near Turin.source
1544August 17 – In France, Saint-Dizier surrenders to the Holy Roman Empire after a siege of more than a month.source
1544July 10– Troops of the Holy Roman Empire begin the six-week siege of Saint-Dizier in eastern France.source
1544March 16 – Friedrich II becomes the new Elector Palatine of Germany's Rhineland within the Holy Roman Empire upon the death of his brother Ludwig V at Heidelberg.source
1544May 23 – The Treaty of Speyer is signed between the Holy Roman Empire and the Kingdom of Denmark (which includes Norway). Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor agrees to recognize Christian III as the ruler of Denmark and Norway, and abandons further attempts to restore King Christian II to the throne. In return, Denmark and Norway agree to support the Habsburg monarchy in the Empire.source
1545November 10 – A truce is signed between the Holy Roman Empire and the Ottoman Empire following the Siege of Nice, as Emperor Charles V acknowledges the Ottoman conquests.source
1547May 23 – The Protestant Schmalkaldic League defeats the Catholic Army of the Holy Roman Empire at the Battle of Drakenburg. Of 6,000 Imperial troops, 2,500 are killed and another 2,500 are taken prisoner by the Protestants.source
1548June 30 – The Augsburg Interim, approved May 15, is codified into law in the Holy Roman Empire.source
1550The first book in Slovene, Catechismus, written by Protestant reformer Primož Trubar, is printed in Schwäbisch Hall, Holy Roman Empire.source
1554August 2 – Battle of Marciano: Senese–French forces are defeated by the Florentine–Imperial army.source
1555April 17 – After 18 months of siege, the Republic of Siena surrenders to the Florentine–Imperial army.source
1557German adventurer Hans Staden publishes a widely translated account of his detention by the Tupí people of Brazil, Warhaftige Historia und beschreibung eyner Landtschafft der Wilden Nacketen, Grimmigen Menschfresser-Leuthen in der Newenwelt America gelegen ("True Story and Description of a Country of Wild, Naked, Grim, Man-eating People in the New World, America").source
1558February 2 – The University of Jena is founded in Thuringia, Germany.source
1561Between 1561 and 1670, 3,229 alleged witches are executed in southwestern Germany, most by burning.source
1566May 1 – Suleiman the Magnificent, the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, begins his last campaign, departing from Constantinople at the head of one of the largest armies he has ever commanded, with a plan to attack Vienna, capital of the Holy Roman Empire. However, he dies in September.source
1581July 26 – A meteorite strikes the Earth in Thuringia in the Holy Roman Empire.source
1590November 29 – A truce is signed between representatives of the Holy Roman Empire (ruled by Emperor Rudolf II) and the Ottoman Empire (ruled by Sultan Murad III).source

17th century

1601October 26 – Johannes Kepler, assistant to Tycho Brahe, is promoted to the position of Royal Mathematician of the Holy Roman Empire after Brahe's sudden death.source
1601September 20 – The siege of Székesfehérvár, an Ottoman occupied Hungarian fortress, is completed by troops of the Holy Roman Empire after 16 days. The Ottomans will recapture Székesfehérvár a year later.source
1605The first issue of Relation aller Fürnemmen und gedenckwürdigen Historien by Johann Carolus in Strasbourg (Holy Roman Empire), generally regarded as the world's first newspaper, is published. De Nieuwe Tijdinghen, a Dutch proto-newspaper, is also published this year.source
1606November 11 – The Peace of Zsitvatorok is signed between the Ottoman and Holy Roman Empires. The independence of Transylvania is recognized by both sides, and Austria's annual tribute to the Ottomans is abolished.source
1609January 15 – One of the world's first newspapers, Avisa Relation oder Zeitung, begins publication in Wolfenbüttel (Holy Roman Empire).source
1609July 10 – The German Catholic League is formed in Munich by Maximilian I, Elector of Bavaria to counteract the Protestant Union. Maximilian assembles representatives from Augsburg, Konstanz, Passau, Regensburg, and Würzburg in an alliance "for the defense of the Catholic religion and peace" within the Holy Roman Empire.source
1610July 28 – War of the Jülich Succession: The Siege of Jülich, a walled city within the Holy Roman Empire (now in Germany), is started by a combined force of troops from the Dutch Republic, the Kingdom of France and the Margraviate of Brandenburg.source
1614The Fama Fraternitatis is published, the first of three allegorical Rosicrucian manifestoes in the Holy Roman Empire.source
1622January 7 – The Holy Roman Empire and Transylvania sign the Peace of Nikolsburg.source
1628April 21 – Generalissimo Albrecht von Wallenstein of the Holy Roman Empire is made Admiral of the Baltic Sea by Emperor Ferdinand II.source
1630July 18 – War of the Mantuan Succession: Mantua is sacked by an army of the Holy Roman Empire, led by Count Johann von Aldringen.source
1631May 20 – Thirty Years' War: After a two-month siege, the Imperial Army of the Holy Roman Emperor, under the command of Johann Tserclaes, Count of Tilly sacks the Protestant German city of Magdeburg, and massacres over 20,000 inhabitants. Shocked by the massacre, many Protestant states in the Holy Roman Empire decide to ally with Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, and support his ongoing invasion.source
1631September 17 – Thirty Years' War – Battle of Breitenfeld: Tilly's Holy Roman Imperial army is decisively defeated by Gustavus II Adolphus of Sweden, shattering the imperial army of the Holy Roman Empire, and marking the first significant victory for the Protestants in the war.source
1633July 8 – Thirty Years' War: Battle of Oldendorf – Sweden defeats the Holy Roman Empire near Hessisch Oldendorf.source
1639April 14 – In the Battle of Chemnitz, Swedish forces under Johan Banér inflict a crushing defeat on the army of the Holy Roman Empire, prolonging the Thirty Years' War and allowing the Swedes to occupy Pirna and advance into Bohemia.source
1641September 18 – In Germany, the Siege of Dorsten by the Holy Roman Empire ends after nine weeks with the surrender of the Landgraviate of Hesse-Kassel after the Hessians suffer 1,350 casualties.source
1643November 24 – Thirty Years' War: Battle of Tuttlingen – France is defeated by forces of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1644November 23 – Battle of Jüterbog (December 3 New Style): Sweden's forces defeat those of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1647August 22 – Battle of Triebl: Imperial forces defeat the Swedes in a surprise attack in Bohemia.source
1656December 1 – A treaty of alliance is signed between the Holy Roman Empire and the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.source
1660May 27 – William Morice takes office as the first Secretary of State for the Northern Department in Great Britain, with responsibility for conducting foreign relations with the Netherlands, Scandinavia, Poland, Russia, and the Holy Roman Empire. Relations with France, Spain, Portugal, Switzerland, the Italian states, and the Ottoman Empire are assigned to the Secretary of State for the Southern Department. The position will eventually evolve into the office of the Foreign Secretary.source
1666May 21 – The Holy Roman Empire, ruled by Leopold I, repurchases the territory of the Duchy of Opole and Racibórz (Oppeln und Ratibor), which it had ceded to Poland in 1645, for the sum of 120,000 guldens and consolidates it with Upper Silesia. The territory will be ceded from Germany to Poland in 1945 at the end of World War II.source
1670March 18 – Petar Zrinski, the Viceroy of Croatia within the Holy Roman Empire, issues a proclamation urging Croatians to rebel against the Habsburg rulers. The uprising fails and Zrinski and his brother-in-law, Krsto Frankopan, are quickly arrested. Both are beheaded in Vienna on April 30, 1671.source
1672September 26 – General Raimondo Montecuccoli, commander of the army of the Holy Roman Empire, joins forces with the Brandenburg troops commanded by Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg and the two groups assemble at Halberstadt, to attack the French and the bishops of Münster and Cologne.source
1678July 23 – The Battle of Ortenbach, one of the last major engagements of the Franco-Dutch War, takes place near Offenburg at the Rhine river in southwestern Germany, as French forces under the command of François de Créquy overwhelm a larger force of Holy Roman Empire troops commanded by the Duke of Lorraine, Karl V Leopold.source
1681September 30 – France annexes the city of Strasbourg (German: Strassburg), previously a free imperial city of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1683April 10 – Charles V, Duke of Lorraine is appointed commander of the Imperial Army of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1683March 31 – Authorized representatives of King John III Sobieski of Poland and Emperor Leopold I of the Holy Roman Empire sign a military alliance treaty in Warsaw.source
1686December 22 – Frederick William, Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia, head of the House of Hohenzollern, enters into an alliance with the Holy Roman Empire.source
1686July 9 – The Grand Alliance (League of Augsburg) is founded, in response to claims made by Louis XIV of France on the Electorate of the Palatinate in western Germany. It comprises the Holy Roman Empire, the Netherlands, Sweden, Spain, the electors of Bavaria, Saxony and the Electorate of the Palatinate.source
1688September 24 – Louis XIV publishes his manifesto Memoire de raisons, which lists his grievances and demands. He cites three major things as grievances: Wilhelm Egon von Fürstenberg, who had been earlier elected to be the coadjutor-archbishop of Cologne with support of Louis being vetoed by the pope, the continued aggressions and forming of alliances against France and providing an alternative to Fürstenberg in the Cologne election by the Holy Roman Empire, and Philip William becoming Elector Palatine and seizing the territory, which he believed belonged to Elizabeth Charlotte.source
1688September 27 – The Nine Years' War begins in Europe and America after Louis XIV attacks Philippsburg in the Holy Roman Empire.source
1689The Holy Roman Empire wins the Battle of Niš, fought against the Ottoman Empire.source
1691August 19 – The Battle of Slankamen takes place between the Ottoman Empire and the Holy Roman Empire and allies at Syrmia (now the Serbian province of Vojvodina), and 25,000 Ottomans are killed, including Köprülüzade Fazıl Mustafa Pasha, the Grand Vizier.source
1697July 4 – A Byzantine icon, the "Weeping Madonna of Pócs", arrives in Vienna after a five-month journey following its forced removal from the Hungarian village of Pócs by order of the Holy Roman Emperor, Leopold I. It has been housed for more than 320 years in St. Stephen's Cathedral.source
1697November 30 – Prince Eugene of Savoy, a field marshal within the Holy Roman Empire, purchases a large tract of land in Vienna for construction of the Belvedere Palace.source
1699January 26 – The Republic of Venice, Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth and Holy Roman Empire sign the Treaty of Karlowitz with the Ottoman Empire, marking an end to the major phase of the Ottoman–Habsburg wars. The treaty marks a major geopolitical shift, as the Ottoman Empire subsequently abandons its expansionism and adopts a defensive posture while the Habsburg monarchy expands its influence.source
1700February 22 (Gregorian), February 12 (Julian) – The Great Northern War begins with a joint invasion of Swedish territory in Germany and Latvia, by Denmark and Poland/Saxony. Sweden has control of the Baltic Sea and holds territory that includes Finland, Estonia, Latvia and parts of northern Germany. To challenge its power, an alliance is formed between Tsar Peter I of Russia, King Frederick IV of Denmark and Augustus II the Strong, King of Poland and Elector of Saxony. Sweden's ruler is the militaristic Charles XII, known as the "Swedish Meteor".source
1700March 1 (Gregorian) – Protestant Germany and Denmark–Norway adopt the Gregorian calendar.source

18th century

1701January 18 – The electorate of Brandenburg–Prussia becomes the Kingdom of Prussia, as Elector Frederick III is proclaimed King Frederick I. Prussia remains part of the Holy Roman Empire. It consists of Brandenburg, Pomerania and East Prussia. Berlin is the capital.source
1702August 15 – War of the Spanish Succession: Battle of Luzzara – Forces of the Holy Roman Empire fail to break through the French-Savoyard position in Lombardy.source
1702May 14 (N.S.) – War of the Spanish Succession: War is declared on France by the Grand Alliance (Kingdom of England, Dutch Republic and Holy Roman Empire).source
1702October 14 – War of the Spanish Succession: Battle of Friedlingen – France defeats forces of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1702September 12 – The Siege of Landau (War of the Spanish Succession) ends after 3 months with forces of the Holy Roman Empire capturing the fortress town in the Rhineland-Palatinate from a French garrison.source
1703February 20–March 10 – War of the Spanish Succession: Siege of Kehl – French forces under the command of the Duc de Villars capture the fortress of the Holy Roman Empire at Kehl, opposite Strasbourg on the Rhine.source
1705May 5 – Joseph I succeeds his father Leopold I as Holy Roman Emperor.source
1715November 15 – The Third Barrier Treaty is signed by Britain, the Holy Roman Empire and the Dutch Republic.source
1717August 22 – Spanish troops arrive on the island of Sardinia, at this time a part of the Holy Roman Empire, beginning the conquest of the island, completed by October 30.source
1717October 30 – The Spanish conquest of Sardinia, at this time part of the Holy Roman Empire, is finished two months after Spanish forces had landed on the island on August 22, as the last Sardinian outpost, Castelsardo, surrenders.source
1718December 17 – The Holy Roman Empire, Kingdom of Great Britain and Dutch Republic join the Kingdom of France in formally declaring war on Spain, launching the War of the Quadruple Alliance.source
1719January 23 – The Principality of Liechtenstein is created, within the Holy Roman Empire.source
1726January 26 – The First Treaty of Vienna is signed between Austria, the Holy Roman Empire and Spain, creating the Austro-Spanish Alliance in advance of a war against Great Britain.source
1729May 8 – A fire breaks out inside the fully walled town of Haiger within the Holy Roman Empire (in the modern-day state of Hesse in Germany) and destroys all the buildings.source
1731March 16 – The Treaty of Vienna is signed between the Holy Roman Empire, Great Britain, the Dutch Republic and Spain.source
1737January 5 – Spain and the Holy Roman Empire sign instruments of cession at Pontremoli in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany in Italy, with the Empire receiving control of Tuscany and the Grand Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, in return for Don Carlos of Spain being recognized as King of Naples and King of Sicily.source
1750July 9 – Traveller Jonas Hanway leaves St. Petersburg to return home, via Germany and the Netherlands. Later the same year, Hanway reputedly becomes the first Englishman to use an umbrella (a French fashion).source
1756The first chocolate-candy factory begins operations in Germany.source
1761Faber-Castell Company is founded by Kasper Faber in Nuremberg, Germany.source
1764June 29 – One of the strongest tornadoes ever recorded hits Woldegk, Germany.source
1764March 27 – The prince-electors, a group of nine German princes who select the next leader of the Holy Roman Empire, vote for the last time as the health of the Emperor Francis I declines. The electors (including Britain's King George III, who also rules as Elector of Hanover) approve Francis's son, Prince Joseph of Austria as King of the Romans. Upon the death of Francis in 1765, Prince Joseph becomes the Holy Roman Emperor Joseph II.source
1784October 8 – "Kettle War", a 1-day action on the Scheldt in which a ship of the Dutch Republic repels forces of the Holy Roman Empire.source
1785December 11 – An edict is issued limiting Masonic lodges throughout the Holy Roman Empire by Emperor Joseph II. With the exception of Vienna, Budapest and Prague, no Empire province may have more than one lodge.source
1790December 2 – Holy Roman Empire forces recapture Brussels, bringing an end to the short-lived United States of Belgium and restoring the Austrian Netherlands.source
1791January 12 – Holy Roman troops reenter Liège, heralding the end of the Liège Revolution, and the restoration of its Prince-Bishops.source
1793February 1 – French Revolutionary Wars: The French First Republic declares war on Great Britain, the Dutch Republic and (on March 7) Spain. During the year, the War of the First Coalition is joined by Portugal, the Holy Roman Empire, Naples and Tuscany in opposition to France.source
1797April 18 – Armistice of Leoben: On behalf of the French Republic, a delegation under Napoleon Bonaparte signs a peace treaty with the Holy Roman Empire at Leoben.source
1798Nathan Mayer Rothschild moves from Frankfurt in the Holy Roman Empire to England, settling up in business as a textile trader and financier in Manchester.source

19th century

1803February 25 – A major redistribution of territorial sovereignty within the Holy Roman Empire is enacted, via an act known as the Reichsdeputationshauptschluss.source
1806August 6 – Francis II, the last Holy Roman Emperor, abdicates, thus ending the Holy Roman Empire after 844 years.source
1806July 12 – Sixteen German Imperial States leave the Holy Roman Empire and form the Confederation of the Rhine, leading to the collapse of the Empire. Liechtenstein is given full sovereignty.source

Named in the same entries

Rome (10)
Kingdom of Italy (Holy Roman Empire) (10)
Dutch Republic (8)
Adelaide of Italy (7)
Vienna (7)
Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor (6)
Ottoman Empire (6)
Thuringia (6)
Spain (5)
Thirty Years' War (5)
Strasbourg (5)
Kingdom of France (5)