breastplate armor of Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor, 1549. 170.2 cm (67.0 in), 24 kg. metropolitan museum of art, nyc.
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Few rulers have made an impact on history as significant as Charlemagne鈥檚. One of Europe鈥檚 greatest rulers, his reign shaped the continent for centuries to come.
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Francis II, Holy Roman Emperor. By聽Leopold Kupelwieser.
He was the last Holy Roman Emperor as Francis II (from 1792 to 1806), and the founder and Emperor of the Austrian Empire as Francis I (from 1804 to 1835). He assumed the title of Emperor of Austria in response to the coronation of Napoleon as Emperor of the French.
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Historical Misconceptions Pt. 2
pt 1. here
Edward I of England (Longshanks) was a Good King - Depends what you mean by a good king to be honest. Good King compared to his father, check! Good king in general, ehhhh. I don't mean morally, considering he was a typical medieval English King who warred with Scotland, but he was a pretty subpar leader. England was so used to the horrors of John Lackland and Henry III and the barons war, that Edward was a breath of fresh air because things weren't collapsing in his government 24/7. The economy was pretty average (somethings racking up debts because of crusades) and he made two pretty unpopular marriages to Eleanor of Castile and Margaret of France and ultimately raised a bad king himself, who would go on to produce another bad king with Isabella of France who would start the hundred years war.
Catherine of Aragon was close with her siblings - I'm bringing this up because the Spanish Princess has rewritten history in a pretty silly way. Catherine had four surviving siblings, Isabella of Aragon, Juan, Prince of Asturias, Joanna of Castile and Maria of Aragon, and she likely saw not much of them growing up. Isabella was already married, Juan older and the heir to the Spanish Crown meaning he'd grow up with a different education, Joanna was also married when Catherine was growing up and there isn't much known about Maria of Aragon's relationship to Catherine other than Maria was considered for James of Scotland. The Spanish Princess shows Joanna arriving in England and painting a faulty close relationship when that is simply not the case, Joanna went to England because she was stranded.
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor was powerful - Nope, more like tired. Yeah he ruled Spain, the Netherlands, parts of Italy and Germany and could pretty much bully Portugal into doing what he wants, but he wasn't as powerful as renaissance wank makes him out to be. Most of his reign was basically German Princes and the King of France questioning his authority, the reformation, the Pope undermining him (Thus he was forced to sack Rome) and even his own Uncle (Henry VIII) complicating his life. Even the dowry money he got from marrying Isabella of Portugal wasn't enough to stop Protestant Princes from rebelling. He was pretty unpopular in Spain because he was raised in Ghent and probably sounded like a Dutch stoner, and because he was ineffective in trying to stop the reformation. In the end, he got to rest after passing Spain to his son and Austria to his brother.
The Valois were powerful - No, not really. Compared to the Carolingian, Capetians and Bourbons, the Valois weren't all that powerful and had limited crown authority compared to their predecessors and successors. Heck even Charles V had more authority in his mess dome. The Valois barely even became rulers, it was only after Isabella of France ruined her brothers chances of having more kids by spreading tour de nesle did the Valois weakly gain prominence as the legacy of Charles of Valois after Jean the Posthumous died as the last male Capet, and since Jeanne II of Navarre could not become Queen of France due to Salic Law, it was universally understood that Edward III of England, the son of Isabella of France, was the most senior candidate to become King of France (I am quite Sure Isabella, her son, and the Plantagenets agreed), but the Valois pretty much seized the crown after escaping the loser basement, thus starting the hundred years war which was basically a hundred years of England annihilating France and destroying their economy (Along with Brittany and Burgundy) until Jeanne d'Arc started to smack everyone around, and even then, France remained pretty weak, relying on Venice during Cambrai and being annihilated during the second war. It was a blessing that the Bourbons came to save France.
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