Germany, Italy and Other Kingdoms

In other parts of Europe, particularly in the coastal areas of the Atlantic and the western side, the formation of the kingdoms and the development of national identities continued. The Swedes, Danes, and Norwegians, who were formerly part of the tribes that roamed the frontiers of the Roman Empire, had by now formed their own kingdoms. The Slavs were united under the leadership of the Czechs, while the Poles rallied behind the Duchy of Poland. The Magyars formed what we now call Hungary.

The Germans and Italians had not reached the level of political development that their neighbors had attained at this time. This was die to some antecedent events that could be traced as far back as 850 A.D.

After Charlemagne’s empire broke up late n the ninth century, Germany was composed of a group of independent tribes in the eastern Franklands. These tribes developed a language that separated them from their cousins in the western Franklands (France).

Germany had an elected king; but he was merely a feudal lord who led other feudal lords. Italy, part of which had also belonged to Charlemagne’s empire, was in a similar feudal state.

Like the rest of the rulers in other kingdoms, the monarchs of Germany tried to adopt a centralized authority over the other groups. They successfully repulsed the invading  Hungarian and Slavic Tribes, a development that led many German nobles to finally pledge allegiance to their king.

In 900 A.D., Henry the Fowler, a Saxon, became king of the eastern Franklands. Henry was able to persuade the different Germanic tribes to unite under his leadership. The tribal leaders accepted Henry, on condition that they could switch allegiance to a more powerful lord if circumstances warranted, and that they would be allowed to strengthen their own groups.

Henry’s kingdom attained recognition under the leadership of his son, Otto the Great. Otto defeated the Hungarians in the battle of Lechfeld in 955 A.D and was acknowledge as the most powerful king in the region. However, still dissatisfied with his accomplishments, he proceeded to Italy and persuaded the Pope to proclaim him emperor in 962. Since the Germans considered themselves heirs to the glory of the Roman Empire, Otto thought of himself as the successor of the Roman Caesars. He started calling his kingdom the “Holy Roman Empire”.

This Holy Roman Empire, as many historians have noted, was neither holy nor an empire. Otto was deluding himself when he was crowded emperor. His kingdom was composed of feudal states that were independent of his control. Many of them are city-states -as in case of Italy- which did not recognize any supreme ruler. The power of the emperor was virtually nil, and his scope of authority was limited to a small area. In truth, power rested in the Electors, a group of seven vassals whose task was to appoint the emperor.

Though Otto was an emperor only in name, he inspired his successors to dream of an empire ruled by Germany. Frederick Barbarossa, founder of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, tried to bring Germany and Italy together under one empire. In 1155, he had himself crowned as emperor in Rome. His reign lasted only up to 1190, when the Italian city-states revolted with the help of the Pope.

Germany did not succeeded in developing a strong kingdom similar to England and France  because the German rulers failed to strengthen their kingdoms first before venturing into other conquests. Their frequent intrusions on Italy also prevented the Italians from developing their own unified kingdom. It was only in 1820 that a single ruler governed the Germanic states and Italian city-states.

The Papal States and the city-states of Naples, Sicily, Milan, Florence, and Genoa flourished in Italy. Each state had its own government, and its own army. These city-states would have their own contributions to history. They would be the setting of the Renaissance period.