Following the death of Emperor Lothair III (Dec. 1137), the princes elected Conrad III at Koblenz, beginning Hohenstaufen rule at the head of the German kingship (often styled King of the Romans).
Conrad III’s coronation at Aachen formalized his accession and strengthened his claim amid rivalry with the Welf party.
Conrad took the cross and led a major German contingent on the Second Crusade, a move that shaped his reign by shifting attention (and resources) away from internal German conflicts.
Conrad’s death ended the first phase of Hohenstaufen kingship and opened the way for the election of his nephew Frederick of Swabia as king.
Frederick I (“Barbarossa”) was elected King of Germany (King of the Romans) at Frankfurt, anchoring a new, more assertive phase of Hohenstaufen imperial policy in Germany and Italy.
Frederick’s Aachen coronation quickly followed his election, helping consolidate elite support before launching major initiatives—especially in northern Italy.
Pope Adrian IV crowned Frederick Holy Roman Emperor, formalizing his imperial status and intensifying long-running disputes over authority between empire, papacy, and Italian communes.
At the Roncaglia assembly near Piacenza, Frederick sought to define and enforce imperial regalia (sovereign rights) in northern Italy, escalating conflict with the Lombard communes and contributing to the later Lombard League wars.
Frederick’s son Henry (later Henry VI) was chosen king in June 1169 and crowned at Aachen in August, strengthening dynastic continuity by associating the heir with royal authority during Frederick’s lifetime.
The Lombard League’s victory at Legnano was a decisive turning point: Frederick failed to subdue the northern Italian communes militarily and was pushed toward negotiation with the papacy and the League.
The Peace of Venice ended a major phase of Frederick’s conflict with the papacy: he acknowledged Alexander III as pope and agreed to key settlements that stabilized imperial-papal relations after years of schism and warfare.
Frederick issued the Peace of Constance as an imperial privilege, confirming substantial self-government for Lombard League cities while preserving a formal framework of imperial overlordship—an important compromise in imperial-Italian relations.
At the Mainz assembly later called the “Court of Christ,” Frederick took crusader vows, committing the empire’s leadership to the Third Crusade in response to events following Jerusalem’s fall (1187).
Frederick died while crossing the Saleph River in Anatolia, a catastrophic loss that weakened the German crusading effort and marked the end of his reign.
Henry VI was crowned emperor by Pope Celestine III in Rome, continuing Hohenstaufen central ambitions and setting the stage for intensified involvement in southern Italy and Sicily.
Henry’s early death ended his reign and precipitated a succession crisis in Germany; his son Frederick II’s minority helped trigger rivalry that reshaped imperial politics in the early 13th century.
Hohenstaufen Dynasty and the Staufen Empire (1138–1254)
