Frederick I Barbarossa (8 giug 1155 anni – 30 giug 1190 anni)

Descrizione:

He was the son of Duke Frederick II of the Hohenstaufen dynasty and Judith, daughter of Henry IX, Duke of Bavaria, from the rival House of Welf. Frederick, therefore, descended from the two leading families in Germany, making him an acceptable choice for the Empire's prince-electors. Historians consider him among the Holy Roman Empire's greatest medieval emperors. He combined qualities that made him appear almost superhuman to his contemporaries: his longevity, his ambition, his extraordinary skills at organization, his battlefield acumen, and his political perspicacity. His contributions to Central European society and culture include the reestablishment of the Corpus Juris Civilis, or the Roman rule of law, which counterbalanced the papal power that dominated the German states since the conclusion of the Investiture Controversy.
The reigns of Henry IV and Henry V had left the status of the German empire in disarray, its power waning under the weight of the Investiture controversy. For a quarter of a century following the death of Henry V in 1125, the German monarchy was largely a nominal title with no real power. The royal title was passed from one family to another (Welfs vs. Hohenstaufens) to preclude the development of any dynastic interest in the German crown. The only real claim to wealth lay in the rich cities of northern Italy, which were still within the nominal control of the German king. Eager to restore the Empire to the position it had occupied under Charlemagne and Otto I the Great, Frederick saw clearly that the restoration of order in Germany was a necessary preliminary to the enforcement of the imperial rights in Italy. Issuing a general order for peace, he made lavish concessions to the nobles. He succeeded in isolating his Welf rival and cousin Henry the Lion.
Frederick died in 1190 in Asia Minor while leading an army in the Third Crusade.

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