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Louis IV (1282-1347), also known as Louis the Bavarian, was the son of Duke Louis II of Upper Bavaria and Matilda, daughter of King Rudolf I. He was of House Wittelsbach, and was initially a close friend to his Habsburg cousin Frederick the Fair, but they later fell out and violently clashed. He became Duke of Bavaria in 1301 alongside his brother Rudolf I, but became sole ruler in 1317.<br/><br/> When Emperor Henry VII died in 1313, two kings were elected to succeed him, one being Louis himself and the other his cousin Frederick. They were quickly crowned and then fought each other in a bloody war for several years, with Frederick poised to win until a decisive defeat in 1322 saw him captured by Louis. Louis later freed him in 1325, after Frederick recognised him as the legitimate King of Germany, and when Frederick returned to Louis as a prisoner when he could have easily fled after promising to try and covince his brothers to submit, Louis was so impressed by Frederick that he named him co-ruler of the Holy Roman Empire.<br/><br/> To Frederick went the title of King of Germany, while Louis was crowned as King of Italy in 1327 and Holy Roman Emperor in 1328. Louis found himself in conflict with the papacy and the pope, and in 1346 Charles IV of Luxembourg was elected as anti-king, supported by Pope Clement VI as a papal puppet. He successfully resisted Charles' attempts at usurpation, but Louis' sudden death in 1347 from a stroke while bear-hunting prevented a longer civil war from occurring and gave Charles the crown.
Louis IV (1282-1347), also known as Louis the Bavarian, was the son of Duke Louis II of Upper Bavaria and Matilda, daughter of King Rudolf I. He was of House Wittelsbach, and was initially a close friend to his Habsburg cousin Frederick the Fair, but they later fell out and violently clashed. He became Duke of Bavaria in 1301 alongside his brother Rudolf I, but became sole ruler in 1317.<br/><br/> When Emperor Henry VII died in 1313, two kings were elected to succeed him, one being Louis himself and the other his cousin Frederick. They were quickly crowned and then fought each other in a bloody war for several years, with Frederick poised to win until a decisive defeat in 1322 saw him captured by Louis. Louis later freed him in 1325, after Frederick recognised him as the legitimate King of Germany, and when Frederick returned to Louis as a prisoner when he could have easily fled after promising to try and covince his brothers to submit, Louis was so impressed by Frederick that he named him co-ruler of the Holy Roman Empire.<br/><br/> To Frederick went the title of King of Germany, while Louis was crowned as King of Italy in 1327 and Holy Roman Emperor in 1328. Louis found himself in conflict with the papacy and the pope, and in 1346 Charles IV of Luxembourg was elected as anti-king, supported by Pope Clement VI as a papal puppet. He successfully resisted Charles' attempts at usurpation, but Louis' sudden death in 1347 from a stroke while bear-hunting prevented a longer civil war from occurring and gave Charles the crown.
Henry II (974-1024), also known as Henry IV and Saint Henry, was the son of Henry II, Duke of Bavaria and great-grandson of King Henry I, therefore making him part of the Bavarian branch of the Ottonian dynasty. Due to his father's rebellion against the two previous emperors, Henry was often in exile and became close with the Church. He succeeded his father as Duke of Bavaria in 995, taking the name Henry IV.<br/><br/> As Henry was returning home to claim his lands however, Emperor Otto III died of fever with no heir to succeed him. Political chaos gripped the Holy Roman Empire, and Henry defeated several other claimants to become King of Germany in 1002, and King of Italy in 1004. He subsumed the Duchy of Bohemia into the Holy Roman Empire, and fought a series of wars against Poland. He also led a series of expeditions into Italy to ensure Imperial dominance against secessionist forces and the Byzantine Empire. He was eventually crowned as Holy Roman Emperor in 1014.<br/><br/> Henry II's rule was centralised, power consolidated in his hands through personal and political ties with the Catholic Church, which would lead to his canonisation a century later in 1146, the only German monarch to become a saint. Henry eventually died in 1024, leaving no children behind and ending the Ottonian dynasty.
Otto III (980-1002) was the only son of Emperor Otto II and Empress Theophanu. Otto became King of Germany at the age of three in 983, after his father's death, but his young age meant that various regents ruled in his name. Initially his mother, Empress Theophanu served as regent for her son until her death in 991. His grandmother, Dowager Empress Adelaide of Italy served as regent until 994, when Otto was finally eligible to rule.<br/><br/> In 996, Otto marched to Italy and claimed the titles of Holy Roman Emperor and King of Italy for himself, as well as to reestablish Imperial control over the city of Rome, which had revolted. He quickly put down the rebellion and installed his own cousin as the new pope, but soon had to return when the papacy rebelled again, reinstalling his cousin and executing the traitors. His actions strengthened Imperial control over the Catholic Church.<br/><br/> Otto improved the Holy Roman Empire's relations with Bohemia, Hungary and Poland, extending the influence of Christianity into Eastern Europe. While he was returning to Rome in 1001, another rebellion by the Roman aristocracy occurred, forcing him to flee the city. He died of a sudden fever a year later while marching back to reclaim the city, leaving no clear heir to succeed him and throwing the Empire into political crisis once more.
Basilius Besler (1561–1629) was a respected Nuremberg apothecary and botanist, best known for his monumental botanical study <i>Hortus Eystettenis</i>, 1613.<br/><br/> He was curator of the garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria. The bishop was an enthusiastic botanist who derived great pleasure from his garden, which rivaled Hortus Botanicus Leiden among early European botanical gardens outside Italy.
Basilius Besler (1561–1629) was a respected Nuremberg apothecary and botanist, best known for his monumental botanical study <i>Hortus Eystettenis</i>, 1613.<br/><br/> He was curator of the garden of Johann Konrad von Gemmingen, prince bishop of Eichstätt in Bavaria. The bishop was an enthusiastic botanist who derived great pleasure from his garden, which rivalled Hortus Botanicus Leiden among early European botanical gardens outside Italy.