The Teutons (919 to 1250)
The origin of Germany
traces back to the crowning of Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor in 800. Upon
his death the empire was split into three parts that gradually coalesced into
two: the western Frankish kingdom that became France
and the eastern kingdom that became Germany.
The title of Holy Roman Emperor remained in Charlemagne's family until the
tenth century when they died out. In 919 Henry, Duke of Saxony, was elected
king of Germany
by his fellow dukes. His son Otto became emperor in 962.
The Holy Roman Empire that Otto
I controlled extended over the German plain north to the Baltic, eastward
into parts of modern Poland, and southward through modern Switzerland, modern
Austria, and northern Italy. From the outset, the emperors had a difficult
problem keeping control of two disparate regions-Germany and Italy-that
were separated by the Alps.
The Holy Roman
Empire was successful at first because it benefited the
principal members, Germany
and Italy.
The Germans were not far removed from the barbarian condition. They had been
conquered by Charlemagne only a century earlier. They benefited greatly from
Italian culture, technology, and trade. The Italians welcomed the relative
peace and stability the empire ensured. Italy
had been invaded time and again for the previous 500 years. The protection of
the empire defended the papacy and allowed the city-states of Italy
to begin their growth.
The imperial armies were manned
partially by tenants of church lands who owed service to the emperor. A
second important contingent were the ministriales, a corps of serfs who
received the best training and equipment as knights but who were not free
men. These armies were used to put down revolts or interference by local
nobles and peasants or to defend against raids by Vikings from the north and
Magyars from the east.
Because Germany
remained a collection of independent principalities in competition, German
warriors became very skilled. The most renowned German soldiers were the
Teutonic Knights, a religious order of warriors inspired by the Crusades. The
Teutonic Knights spread Christianity into the Baltic region by conquest but
were eventually halted by Alexander Nevsky at the battle on frozen Lake
Peipus.
A confrontation between the
emperors and the church over investiture of bishops weakened the emperors in
both Germany
and Italy.
During periods of temporary excommunication of the emperor and outright war
against Rome, imperial authority
lapsed. The local German princes solidified their holdings or fought off the
Vikings with no interference or help from the emperor. In Italy,
the rising city-states combined to form the Lombard League and refused to
recognize the emperor.
Political power in both Germany
and Italy
shifted from the emperor to the local princes and cities. The ministriales
rebelled, taking control of the cities and castles they garrisoned and
declaring themselves free. During desperate attempts to regain Italy,
more concessions were given to the local princes in Germany.
By the middle of the thirteenth century, the Holy Roman Empire
existed in name only. The throne remained empty for 20 years. The German
princes cared only about their own holdings. The Italian city-states did not
want a German ruler and were strong enough to defend themselves.
Future emperors in the Middle
Ages were elected by the German princes but they ruled in name only,
controlling little more than their own family estates. Germany
remained a minor power in Europe for centuries to
come.
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