Holy Roman Empire
European Dynasties 962-1946)
​​European Dynasties 962-1946
The (second) medieval revival of the Western Roman Empire was referred to as The Holy Roman Empire which lasted from 962 AD to 1806. By the year 1250, much of its power had vanished and by ca. 1650 the empire had lost virtually all power. Nevertheless, the Empire endured until 1806, when it was abolished by Emperor Francis II.
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Francis II ruled thereafter as Francis I of the Austrian Empire (established in 1804). Usually, the king of Germany became emperor -considered by Europeans the title of most prestige- as soon as he was crowned by the pope.
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Given the many successes of the dukes of Saxony in fighting the Hungarians during the 10th century, most were chosen kings of Germany. The first Saxonian to become king was Henry the Fowler (919-936). He was followed by his son Otto who became King Otto I in 936 and the first Holy Roman Emperor from 962 to 973.
Saxon Dynasty
Franconian (Salian) Dynasty
962-973
973-983
983-1002
1002-1024
Otto I
Otto II
Otto III HenryII
1027-1039
1046-1056
1056-1106
1106-1125
1125-1137
Conrad II
Henry III
Henry IV
Henry V
Lothar II
Hohenstaufen Dynasty
Henry V’s nephews, The Hohenstaufen of Swabia were not always supported by the Church who favored candidates of the “Guelph” i.e. the “Welf” family of Bavaria and Saxony. The on-going feud between these families and the intervention of the papacy drastically weakened the empire, culminating in the “Age of the Princes” in Germany and the “Great Interregnum” in the Holy Roman Empire.​
1138-1152
1152-1190
1190-1197
1198-1208
Conrad III
Frederic I (Barbarossa)
Henry VI
Philip of Swabia
The Anti King Era
The "anti King" era represented a time when individuals proclaimed themselves to king and against the sitting king. This revolutionary trend lasted from 1198 through 1273
1198-1208
1208-1212
1212-1250
1250-1254
1254-1273
Otto IV
Otto IV
Frederick II
Conrad IV
Interregnum
When the Empire was restored in 1273, the princes refused to establish any one dynasty and during the following 150 years, candidates from four families were elected.
1273-1291
1292-1298
1298-1308
1308-1313
1314-1346
1346-1378
1378-1400
1400-1410
1410-1437
Rudolf I (Habsburg)
Adolf (Nassau)
Albert I (Habsburh)
Henry VII (Luxemburg)
Lotus IV (Wittelsbach)
Charles IV (Luxemburg
Wenceslas (Luxemburg)
Rupert (Wittelsbach)
Sigismund (Luxemburg)
Kings of Italy
The House of Habsburg (who derived its name from their castle “Habichtsburg” in Switzerland), was the most illustrious European dynasty. Beginning in the 15th century, the Habsburgs became hereditary rulers of the Empire. Through a sequence of “strategic marriages” they gained (by inheritance) the Netherlands, the Spanish kingdoms and Spain’s Empire in the “New World”, Hungary and Bohemia.
The Habsburgs
1440-1493
1440-1493
1493-1519
1519-1556
1556-1564
1564-1576
1576-1612
1612-1619
1619-1637
1637-1657
1658-1705
1705-1711
1711-1740
1740-1742
1742-1745
Albert II
Frederick III
Maximilian I
Charles V
Ferdinand I
Maximilian II
Rudolf mII
Mattias
Ferdinand II
Ferdinand III
Leopold I
Joseph I
Charles VI
Interregnum
Charles VII
The Habsburgs - Lorraine
1745-1765
1765-1790
1790-1792
1792-1806
Francis I
Joseph II
Leopold II
Francis II
House of Savoy Carignano
King of Italy
Piemonte, Nice and Sardinia were ruled by the Dukes of Savoy until the year 1831. This line died out and a very distant cousin, Carlo Alberto (Charles Albert) ascended to the throne.
His son, Vittorio Emanuele II (Victor Emmanuel the 2nd) of Savoy led the armies that conquered what is now known as Italy over the years 1858 through 1871. As a consequence, Vittorio Emanuele was proclaimed King of Italy in 1861; a dynasty that would fall with the end of WW2.
1861-1878
1878-1900
1900-1946
1946-1946
Victor Emmanuel II
(Umberto) Humbert I
Victor Emmanuel III
Humbert II