Germany: Henry VI (1165-1197), 21st Holy Roman emperor, granting a pardon to Richard Lionheart, King of England, from the book Liber ad honorem Augusti sive de rebus Siculis by Petrus de Ebulo, 1196

Henry VI (1165-1197) was the second son of Emperor Frederick I, and married the daughter of the late Norman king Roger II of Sicily, Constance of Sicily, in 1186. When his father died in 1190, he became King of Germany and Holy Roman Emperor in 1191.

In 1193, Henry had a stroke of good fortune when he was handed a prominent prisoner by Duke Leopold V of Austria, none other than King Richard the Lionheart of England himself, on his way back from the Third Crusade. Richard had supported the claims of Tancred of Lecce, a rival claimant to the crown of Sicily, which had infuriated Henry. He ransomed the king for a hefty price and used him as a bargaining chip against his rival princes, making him a vassal and ally as well as making the Holy Roman Empire a mediating voice between England and France.

Copyright:

Supplier: CPA Media Co. Ltd.

Credit:

Pictures From History