Henry II, Holy Roman Emperor
| Henry II | |
|---|---|
King of Germany | |
| Reign | 7 June 1002 – 13 July 1024 |
| Coronation | 7 June 1002 Mainz, Kingdom of Germany |
| Predecessor | Otto III |
| Successor | Conrad II |
| Duke of Bavaria | |
| Reign | 28 August 995 – 21 March 1004 1009 – December 1017 |
| Predecessor | Henry II |
| Successor | Henry V |
| Born | 6 May 973 Abbach,[1] Bavaria, Germany, Holy Roman Empire |
| Died | 13 July 1024 (aged 51) near Göttingen, Germany, Holy Roman Empire |
| Burial | |
| Spouse | Cunigunde of Luxembourg |
| House | Ottonian |
| Father | Henry II, Duke of Bavaria |
| Mother | Gisela of Burgundy |
| Religion | Chalcedonian Christianity |
Henry II (German: Heinrich II; Italian: Enrico II; 6 May 973 – 13 July 1024), also known as Saint Henry the Exuberant,
The son of
Unlike his predecessor Otto III, who had imposed plans on sovereign administration and active political involvement in Italy, Henry spent most of his reign concerned with the renovation of the imperial territories north of the Alps, a policy summed up on his seal as Renovatio regni Francorum, which replaced Otto's Renovatio imperii Romanorum.[4] A series of conflicts with the Polish Duke Bolesław I, who had already conquered a number of countries surrounding him, required Henry II's full attention and years of political and military maneuvering. Henry did, however, lead three expeditions into Italy to enforce his feudal claim (Honor Imperii): twice to suppress secessionist revolts and once to address Byzantine attempts to obtain dominance over southern Italy. On 14 February 1014, Pope Benedict VIII crowned Henry Holy Roman Emperor in Rome.
The rule of Henry II has been characterized as a period of centralized authority throughout the
Early life and marriage
Henry was born in May 973,
The elder Henry came into conflict with his cousin
During his father's exile, the younger Henry lived in Hildesheim. As a child he was educated in the Christian faith by Bishop Wolfgang of Regensburg,[7] and then studied at the Hildesheim Cathedral. The Emperor himself ensured the younger Henry received an ecclesiastical education in order that by becoming a religious official he would be prevented from participating in the Imperial government.
The death of Otto II in 983 allowed the elder Henry to be released from custody and to return from exile. The elder Henry claimed
In 999 Henry married
Reign as king
Disputed succession
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In 1001,
As the
So it was without the support of the kingdom's nobility that Henry took the radical action of having himself anointed and crowned
Shortly after gaining the support of the Saxons, Henry arranged for Archbishop Willigis to crown his wife, Cunigunde of Luxembourg as Queen of Germany on 10 August 1002 in Paderborn, in present-day Germany.[10][11]
Consolidation of power
Henry II spent the next several years consolidating his political power within his borders.
Unable to decisively defeat Herman in Swabia, Henry II attempted to legitimize his seizing the throne by traveling throughout the various duchies of his kingdom –
In 1003
First Italian expedition
The death of Otto III in 1002 and the resulting political turmoil over his successor allowed
In 1004 Henry II responded to calls for aid from Italian bishops and led an invasion into Italy against Arduin. Henry II gathered his troops at
After the coronation a dispute arose between some of the residents and Henry's people. It escalated to where the residents attacked the palace where the king was dining. The army encamped outside the city swiftly moved to protect the king, and in the onslaught the city caught fire and many residents were killed.[16]
After receiving the homage of the remaining Italian nobles, Henry returned to Germany in the early summer of 1004 without first traveling to Rome to claim the Imperial crown. This is most likely due to opposition from Pope John XVIII. Henry would not return to Italy for a decade, leaving the Kingdom to govern itself. Henry returned to Germany to take military action against the rebellious Bolesław I of Poland.
Conflict with Poland
Polish relations
The untimely death of Emperor Otto III at age 21 in 1002 upset the young Emperor's ambitious renovatio plans, which were never fully implemented. Henry II reversed Otto III's eastern policies,[17] damaging the excellent relationship Germany and Bolesław I of Poland had enjoyed during Otto III's reign. Bolesław I had been a loyal supporter of Otto III, but Henry II's actions caused Bolesław I to seek new German allies. Of the major candidates seeking to succeed to the German throne, Bolesław I supported Margrave Eckard I of Meissen over Henry. Only after Eckard was assassinated by Saxon nobles in April 1002 did Bolesław I lend his support to Henry II.[18]
Bolesław I traveled to Merseburg on 25 July 1002 and paid homage to the new German king. Bolesław I had taken advantage of Germany's internal strife following Otto III's death, occupying important German territories west of the Oder River: the March of Meissen and the March of Lusatia. Bolesław I took control of these territories following the assassination of Margrave Eckard I. Henry II accepted Bolesław I's gains, allowing the Polish Duke to keep Lusatia as a fief, with Bolesław I recognizing Henry II as his overlord. Henry II refused to allow Bolesław I to keep possession of Meissen, however. Shortly after Bolesław I's departure from Merseburg, an assassination attempt was made against him. Though the attempt failed, Bolesław I was seriously injured. The Polish Duke accused Henry II of instituting the attack, and relations between the two countries were severed.[19] Bolesław I also refused to pay tribute to Germany.
Prior to open rebellion in 1004, Boleslaus III, Duke of Bohemia, was ousted in a revolt in 1002. Bolesław I intervened in the Bohemian affair and reinstalled Boleslaus III upon the Bohemian throne in 1003. Boleslaus III soon undermined his own position, however, by ordering a massacre of his leading nobles. Bohemian nobles secretly sent a messenger to Bolesław I, requesting his direct intervention in the crisis. The Polish duke willingly agreed and invited the Bohemian duke to Poland. There, Boleslaus III was captured, blinded, and imprisoned, where he would remain until his death some thirty years later. Claiming dominion over Bohemia for himself, Bolesław I invaded Bohemia in 1003 and conquered the duchy without any serious opposition. Bohemia had previously been under the influence and protection of Germany, with the Polish invasion further increasing tension between Germany and Poland.
Bolesław I openly rebelled against Henry II's rule in 1004, burning down the castle in Meissen in an act of war. Returning from Italy after reclaiming the Italian throne, Henry II launched a military campaign against Poland in 1004 that would last until 1018, spanning three wars and several smaller campaigns.[20]
First Polish War
Returning from his first expedition to Italy, in 1004 Henry II gathered an army to march against Poland. The previous year in 1003, Henry II had formed an alliance with the
In preparation for Henry II's coming military invasion, Bolesław I developed a similar alliance with other Slavic peoples. With his conquest west of the Oder River in 1002, his domain stretched from the Baltic Sea to the Carpathian Mountains. Furthermore, the Polish Duke was connected by kinship to numerous princes of Scandinavia.
Henry II answered Bolesław I's rebellion by invading in the summer of 1004, reaching the Ore Mountains in northern Bohemia. He then conquered the castle at Žatec and wiped out the Polish army left there. At the same time, Jaromir (the younger brother of the deposed Bohemian Duke Boleslaus III) invaded Bohemia with German military support. At Merseburg, Jaromír promised to hold Bohemia as a vassal under Henry II, definitively incorporating Bohemia into the Holy Roman Empire. Forcing Bolesław I to flee, Jaromír occupied Prague with a German army and proclaimed himself Duke. The state he regained was a small one, however, as Polish forces would hold Moravia, Silesia, and Lusatia until 1018.[18]
During the next part of the offensive, Henry II retook Meissen and, in summer 1005, his army advanced deep into Poland, suffering significant losses along the way. At the Polish city of Poznań, the German forces were ambushed by the Polish army and suffered significant losses. Meeting in Poznań, Henry II and Bolesław I signed a peace treaty.[21] According to its terms, Bolesław I lost Lusatia and Meissen and was forced to give up his claim to the Bohemian throne. The peace lasted only two years as neither party recognized the claims of the other.
Second Polish War
In 1007, Henry II denounced the Peace of Poznań, resulting in Bolesław I's attack on the
Reign as emperor
Imperial coronation
Near the end of 1013, Henry II gathered his army at Augsburg to march into Italy. Earlier in 1013, Henry signed a peace treaty with Duke Bolesław of Poland at Merseburg. The peace with Poland gave Henry opportunity to address affairs in Italy. On the march across the Alps, Henry was accompanied by his wife, Queen Cunigunde, and a number of clerics. Upon reaching Pavia other bishops and abbots joined him. Henry's forces trapped the King of Italy Arduin in his capital of Ivrea, where he remained until 1015.
Henry II arrived in Rome in early 1014, restoring Benedict VIII as pope. On 14 February 1014, the Pope crowned Henry II as
In 1015 the conflict with Arduin came to a close when Arduin became ill and sought peace with Henry II. He resigned the office of
Third Polish War
The peace agreement of 1013 between Henry II and Bolesław I of Poland quickly deteriorated. In 1014, with Henry II absent from Germany, Bolesław I sent his son Mieszko II Lambert to the Duchy of Bohemia in order to persuade the new Bohemian Duke Oldřich into an alliance against Henry II. The mission failed and Oldřich imprisoned Mieszko II. He was released only after the intervention of the Emperor, who, despite the planned invasion of Poland, loyally acted on behalf of his nominal vassal Bolesław I. As a result, Mieszko II was sent to Henry II's imperial court in Merseburg as a hostage. Henry II probably wanted to force the presence of Bolesław I in Merseburg and make him explain his actions. The plan failed, however, because, under pressure from his relatives, the Emperor soon agreed to release Mieszko II.[23]
At the same time, Henry II entertained
Henry II returned to Germany in 1015 after being crowned Emperor by
As the Imperial army crossed the Oder river and marched across Poland, Henry II's forces killed or captured several thousand Poles, including women and children. But the Imperial army suffered heavy losses throughout the campaign. Bolesław I sent a detachment of
Henry II and Bolesław I then opened peace negotiations and a ceasefire was declared in summer 1017. As negotiations failed by autumn 1017, Henry II again marched his army into Poland. His army reached Głogów, where Bolesław I was entrenched, but it was unable to take the city. Henry II then besieged Niemcza, but was likewise unable to capture the city. As his army besieged Niemcza, disease brought about from the winter cold devastated the Imperial forces. His attacks unsuccessful, Henry II was forced to retreat back to Merseburg in Germany. With this defeat, Henry II was ready to end the war and begin serious peace negotiations with Bolesław I.
On 30 January 1018, Henry II and Bolesław I signed a fourth peace treaty, known as the Peace of Bautzen.[24] The Polish duke was able to keep the contested marches of Lusatia and Meissen on purely nominal terms of vassalage, with Bolesław I recognizing Henry II as his feudal lord.[25] Henry II also promised to support Bolesław I in the Polish ruler's expedition to Kiev to ensure his son-in-law, Sviatopolk, claimed the Kievan throne.[26] To seal the peace, Bolesław I, then a widower, reinforced his dynastic bonds with the German nobility by marrying Oda of Meissen, daughter of the Saxon Margrave Eckard I of Meissen.[20]
Conflict with Byzantium
Henry II's involvement in Italian politics and his coronation as emperor inevitably brought him into conflict with the
Under Otto I and Otto II, the Lombard leader Pandulf Ironhead expanded Western imperial control over central and southern Italy. Originally appointed by Otto I as Prince of Benevento and Capua in 961, Pandulf waged war against the Byzantines as a loyal lieutenant of Otto II. By 978, Pandulf had incorporated all three of the southern Lombard principalities – Benevento, Capua, and Salerno – into the Holy Roman Empire.[27] Pandulf's death in 981, however, weakened Western dominance over the Byzantine Empire in southern Italy.[28] By 982, the entire area once ruled by Pandulf had collapsed. The Byzantines still claimed sovereignty over the Lombard principalities, and the lack of single leader to prevent their advances into Lombard territory allowed the Byzantines to make inroads further north. While in Byzantine territory, Otto II encountered a large Muslim army brought into the region by Abu al-Qasim, Emir of Sicily, and was soundly defeated in the ensuing battle of Stilo on 14 July 982. The defeat shifted the balance of power in southern Italy into Byzantine favor. While preparing to counterattack the Byzantine advance, Otto II suddenly died while in Rome, with his infant son Otto III succeeding him. With an infant as ruler and a political crisis to address, the Western Empire was unable to challenge Byzantine dominance. This allowed Basil II to build of his defense forces in preparation for a future Western counterattack.
In 1017, aided by
In 1022, Henry II set out down the
Imperial Policies
Upon assuming the German throne, Henry II revised many policies of his predecessor,
Henry II's absence from Italy was primarily due to his continued conflict with Bolesław I Chrobry of Poland. During the reign of Otto III, Bolesław I had been a loyal ally of the Empire. However, the protracted German-Polish wars brought the two nations into open warfare for over sixteen years.
Ecclesiastical affairs
Henry II inherited several unresolved
- The Diocese of Merseburg had been established by bishop.[30]
- In 987, during the regency of Otto III's mother Bishop of Hildesheim claimed authority over the Abbey, including the authority to invest the Abbey's nuns. Otto III and Theophanu's intervention eased the tensions between the parties, but did not permanently settle the issue. Henry II only succeeded in suppressing the argument in 1007, and again in 1021. Still unsolved after his death in 1024, a compromise was pushed at an Imperial synod in 1030 in the presence of his successor Emperor Conrad II. Hildesheim was eventually given jurisdiction.[31]
In May 1017, Empress Cunigunde became seriously ill, while staying at the imperial estates in Kaufungen. Henry II vowed to found a monastery on the site if she recovered. Upon her recovery in 1018, Henry ordered the construction of the Kaufungen Abbey. After Henry II's death in 1024, Cunigunde retreated to the Abbey, where she remained until her own death in 1040.
Sincerely religious, Henry II supported service to the Church (he was
Henry II wished to become a monk, and in virtue of his imperial power he ordered the Abbot of Verdun to accept him in his monastery. Thereupon, the Abbot ordered him, in virtue of the vows he had professed, to continue the administration of the empire. Henry II fulfilled his duties in the spirit of humility and service, being convinced that temporal power was given by God for the good of the people.[7]
Henry II succeeded in persuading
Empire–Church relations
The Ottonian dynasty's traditional policy of investing celibate clerics in the secular governance of the empire – the
Under Henry II, an increasing number of counties were assigned to secular rulership by bishops. He granted numerous and lavish donations of imperial regalia and land to the monasteries and dioceses of the Empire; in fact, no other Holy Roman sovereign was named as often in the memorial records.
Diocese of Bamberg
In 1003,
Henry II held a
Policy towards the nobility
As under his predecessors Otto II and Otto III, the various German dukes of the Empire grew increasingly independent from Henry II. A "German" identity had begun to develop. South of the Alps, Italy also saw the various regional lords grow independent. Increasingly, the Empire's duchies were becoming personal possessions of their respective ducal families as opposed to component parts of the Empire.
Henry II's policy towards the nobles was focused on overcoming these family structures within the duchies in order to restore imperial dominance. Henry II, as well as the other Ottonians, relied upon his connection with the Church to justify his power over the dukes. However, unlike under Otto I and Otto II, the various German dukes were no longer bound to Henry II by close family ties. While the Duchy of Franconia and the Duchy of Saxony formed the core imperial support, the Duchy of Swabia and the Duchy of Bavaria had grown increasingly rebellious.
Unlike his predecessors, Henry II was unwilling to show clemency to those dukes who had rebelled against his authority. This caused a sharp rise in conflict with the secular nobility, which forced Henry II to reinforce the position the clergy enjoyed in the governance of the Empire. It was only through the support of the clergy that Henry II survived the numerous noble revolts against his rule during the first decade of his reign. Even his relatives, such as his brothers-in-law Duke Henry V of Bavaria, and Count Frederick of Moselle, rebelled. As a result, Henry II systematically reduced the internal power structures of the Bavarian and Swabian dukes. Henry II's lack of sensitivity to the secular nobility also resulted in the series of wars against Poland. Under Otto III, Polish Duke Bolesław I Chrobry had been viewed as a valued ally; Henry II, however, saw him only as a subject.
In 1019, the once loyal Duke Bernard II of Saxony, grandson of Emperor Otto I's trusted lieutenant Hermann Billung, rebelled against Henry II, having grown frustrated at his lack of respect for the secular nobility.
Death and successor
Returning to
Empress Cunigunde arranged for Henry to be interred at Bamberg Cathedral. Though he left the Empire without significant problems, Henry II also left the Empire without an heir. Some speculate that both he and Cunigunde had taken mutual vows of chastity, because of their piety and the fact that they had no royal issue, but this is disputed. Their marriage being childless, the Saxon dynasty of the Ottonians died with Henry.[38]
In early September 1024, the German nobles gathered in Kamba and began negotiations for selecting a new king. The nobles elected the Franconian noble Conrad II as Henry II's successor, who became the first member of the Salian dynasty.
Canonization and veneration
Henry II was
Henry's name, which does not appear in the Tridentine calendar, was inserted in 1631 in the Roman Calendar as a commemoration within the celebration of Saint Anacletus on 13 July, the day of his death and the traditional day for his celebration on a local level. In 1668, it was moved to 15 July for celebration as a Semidouble. This rank was changed by Pope Pius XII in 1955 to that of Simple, and by Pope John XXIII in 1960 to that of Third-Class Feast. In 1969, it was returned to its original date of 13 July as an optional Memorial.[40]
During his lifetime, Henry II became an
Two online sources suggest that Henry is venerated as a Confessor in the Eastern Orthodox Church (either on 13 July[41] or 15 July).[42] However, Henry II does not appear in any Orthodox synaxaria, and was only canonised in the West almost a century after the East–West Schism; indeed, he is perhaps best known in most Orthodox circles for his introduction of the filioque to Rome.
Family
Henry II was a member of the
.Sources
Between 1012 and 1018 Thietmar of Merseburg wrote a Chronicon, or Chronicle, in eight books, which deals with the period between 908 and 1018. For the earlier part he used Widukind's Res gestae Saxonicae, the Annales Quedlinburgenses and other sources; the latter part is the result of personal knowledge. The chronicle is nevertheless an excellent authority for the history of Saxony during the reigns of the emperors Otto III and Henry II. No kind of information is excluded, but the fullest details refer to the bishopric of Merseburg, and to the wars against the Wends and the Poles.
See also
Saints portal- Kings of Germany family tree
- Saint Henry, patron saint archive
Notes
- Order of Saint Benedict"
- ^ Frank N. Magill (ed.), The Middle Ages: Dictionary of World Biography, Volume 2, Routledge, 2012, p. 449.
- ^ Bryce, James (1871). The Holy Roman Empire. p. 536.
- ^ Germany (1740). The Right of Succession to the Empire of Germany, hereditary and elective. the Booksellers. pp. 11–.
- ISBN 0-8122-1386-6.
- ^ Bernd Schneidemüller. "Heinrich II. und Kunigunde Das heilige Kaiserpaar des Mittelalters" (PDF). CORE. Retrieved 28 January 2020.
- ^ a b c "Catholic Encyclopedia: St. Henry II".
- ^ ISBN 971-91595-4-5.
- ^ C. W. Previté-Orton, Cambridge Medieval History, Shorter: Volume 1, The Later Roman Empire to the Twelfth Century, (Cambridge University Press, 1979), 433.
- ^ "Saint Kunigunde", New Catholic Dictionary, Saints.SQPN.com, 7 October 2012, [1]
- ^ "Saint Cunegundes". Catholic Saints Info. 2 March 2019. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
- ^ "St. Cunegundes, Empress". Garden Of Mary. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
- ^ ISBN 978-3-05-006048-4.
- ^ Arnulf of Milan, Liber gestorum recentium I.14
- ^ "Heinrich II. und Arduin". Monumenta Germaniae Historica. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
- ^ Elliott, Gillian. "Representing Royal Authority at San Michele Maggiore in Pavia". Zeitschrift fur Kunstgeschichte 77 (2014). Retrieved 30 July 2022.
- ^ Greenwood, Thomas. Cathedra Petri: A Political History of the Great Latin Patriarchate United Kingdom, Thickbroom Brothers, 1861. p. 14
- ^ S.Rosik, Bolesław Chrobry i jego czasy, 2001
- ^ a b "Feldzüge Heinrichs II. gegen den Polenherzog Boleslaw Chrobry". Landesausstellung 2002. Archived from the original on 3 March 2016. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
- ^ K. Jasiński, Rodowód pierwszych Piastów, 1992
- ^ ISBN 978-0-521-36447-8.
- ^ a b Thietmar of Merseburg, Thietmari merseburgiensis episcopi chronicon, 1018
- ^ James Bryce (4 November 2013). "THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE – The Emperors Henry II and Conrad II p. 150". Project Gutenberg. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
- ^ ISBN 978-1-317-21700-8.
- ^ Knefelkamp (2002), p. 125
- ^ Previte-orton, pg. 451
- ^ Jasienica (2007), p. 86
- ^ Wickham, Chris. Early Medieval Italy: Central Power and Local Society 400–1000. MacMillan Press: 1981, pg 156, "from Ancona to the fringes of Calabria"
- ^ Sismondi, pg. 29
- ^ a b "Heinrich II". Merseburger Dom. 6 August 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
- ^ "Thietmar von Merseburg". Merseburger Dom. 6 August 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-271-04818-5.
- ISBN 978-0-8091-4334-4. Retrieved 22 December 2011.
The question of the primacy of the Roman [P]ope has been and remains, together with the question of the Filioque, one of the main causes of separation between the Latin Church and the Orthodox churches and one of the principal obstacles to their union.
- ^ Wetterau, Bruce. World history. New York: Henry Holt and company. 1994.
- S2CID 159994750. Retrieved 27 January 2020.
- ISBN 978-0-521-31980-5.
- ISBN 978-0-472-13139-6.
- ^ Benjamin Joseph Wand (6 August 2018). "Thietmar of Merseburg's Views on Clerical Warfare". Portland State University. Retrieved 29 January 2020.
- Martyrologium Romanum, entry for St. Henry on 13 July.
- ^ Bernd Schneidmüller. "NEUES ÜBER EINEN ALTEN KAISER? HEINRICH II. IN DER PERSPEKTIVE DER MODERNEN FORSCHUNG" (PDF). Uni Heidelberg. Retrieved 19 January 2020.
- ^ Calendarium Romanum (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 1969), pp. 97 and 130
- ^ "О почитании святых, просиявших на западе". Православная церковь в Гамбурге. 13 January 2012. Retrieved 22 June 2021.
- ^ "A Western Rite Calendar" (PDF).
References
- Knefelkamp, Ulrich (2002). Das Mittelalter. UTB M (in German). Vol. 2105 (2 ed.). UTB. ISBN 3-8252-2105-9.
- Jasienica, Pawel (2007). Polska Piastow (in Polish). Proszynski Media. ISBN 978-83-7648-284-2.
External links
- Charter given by Emperor Henry for Marburg University
- Henry II at Patron Saints Index
- Die Chronik des Thietmar von Merseburg
- Gospel Book from the Bamberg Cathedral (Reichenau Gospel) PDF 67MB
- Emperor Henry II – Diplomata, Urkunden Monumenta Germaniae Historica
