Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor

Leopold I Habsburg (June 9, 1640 – May 5, 1705), Holy Roman emperor, was the second son of the emperor Ferdinand III and his first wife Maria Anna, daughter of Philip III of Spain.

The Holy Roman Empire

During this reign some important changes were made in the constitution of the Empire. In 1663, the imperial diet entered upon the last stage of its existence, and became a body permanently in session at Regensburg. In 1692, the duke of Hanover was raised to the rank of an elector, becoming the ninth member of the electoral college. In 1700, Leopold, greatly in need of help for the impending war with France, granted the title of king of Prussia to the elector of Brandenburg. The net result of these and similar changes was to weaken the authority of the emperor over the members of the Empire and to compel him to rely more and more upon his position as ruler of the Austrian archduchies and of Hungary and Bohemia. Leopold was the first to have realized this altered state of affairs and to have acted in accordance with it.

Related Topics:
1663 - Regensburg - 1692 - Hanover - 1700 - Prussia

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