Maximilian I

Introduction
Territorial expansion
Consolidation of power
Legacy

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Illuminated manuscript page with Latin text in gold and black ink, featuring large gold letters at top and bottom and smaller black text in the center, from a 1505 Roman inscription collection.

At a Glance

Maximilian I summary

Quizzes

Temple ruins of columns and statures at Karnak, Egypt (Egyptian architecture; Egyptian archaelogy; Egyptian history)

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Napoleon Bonaparte. Napoleon in Coronation Robes or Napoleon I Emperor of France, 1804 by Baron Francois Gerard or Baron Francois-Pascal-Simon Gerard, from the Musee National, Chateau de Versailles.

Kings and Emperors (Part III) Quiz

Related Questions

How did Maximilian I regain the regency for his son Philip in the Netherlands?
How did Maximilian I use relations with Russia to pressure Poland, Bohemia, and Hungary?
How did Maximilian I’s marriage alliances connect the Habsburgs to Spain?
How did Maximilian I’s marriage strategy help make Charles V ruler of a vast Habsburg realm?
How did Maximilian I’s marriage to Mary of Burgundy expand Habsburg lands?
How did Maximilian I’s policies shape the rise of the Habsburgs in 16th-century Europe?
How did Tirol’s silver mines strengthen the Habsburgs?
How did the Eternal Peace of 1495 try to reduce violence in the Holy Roman Empire?
How did the Habsburg marriage agreements of 1515 strengthen claims to Bohemia and Hungary?
How did the Landsknechte compare with the Swiss Reisläufer mercenaries?
How did the title Roman emperor-elect change the pope’s role in future imperial coronations?
How had territorial rulers and independent cities weakened imperial authority before Maximilian I’s reign?
How long was Maximilian I held captive in Brugge?
How was the Common Penny intended to support the Holy Roman Empire?
What did the Peace of Basel mean for Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire?
What happened at the Battle of Guinegate in 1479?
What hopes did German humanists have when Maximilian I became ruler?
What succession rights did the Habsburgs gain through the Treaty of Pressburg in 1491?
What was Maximilian I’s role in the Battle of the Spurs in 1513?
What was the outcome of Maximilian I’s campaign in Italy in 1496?
What was the role of the Imperial Chamber Court created in 1495?
What were Maximilian I’s goals for reviving the Holy Roman Empire?
Where was Maximilian I born?
Which Burgundian territories came under Habsburg control through Mary of Burgundy?
Who were the Landsknechte created by Maximilian I?
Why could Maximilian I not travel to Rome for an imperial coronation?
Why did Anne of Brittany become queen of France instead of Maximilian I’s wife?
Why did Maximilian I adopt the title Roman emperor-elect in 1508?
Why did Maximilian I join the Holy League against France in 1495?
Why did Maximilian I join the League of Cambrai against Venice?
Why did Maximilian I marry Anne of Brittany by proxy?
Why did Maximilian I plan a crusade against the Turks?
Why did Maximilian I struggle with financial problems despite his military and political ambitions?
Why did Maximilian I’s ambitions bring the Habsburgs into long conflict with France?
Why did Maximilian I’s proposed crusade against the Turks never take place?
Why did Maximilian I’s war against the Swiss Confederation fail in 1499?
Why did the States General govern the Netherlands after Mary of Burgundy died?
Why was Innsbruck an important centre for Maximilian I?
Why was Maximilian I imprisoned by the citizens of Brugge in 1488?
How did Joseph Goebbels rise to power in the Nazi Party?
How did Joseph Goebbels affect the Nazi movement?
What was Maria Theresa’s childhood like?
How was Hermann Göring captured?
What were Wilhelm II’s main policies as German emperor?
What role did Wilhelm II play in World War I?
Where was Angela Merkel educated?
What did Angela Merkel accomplish?
What did Angela Merkel do to help the world?
Why was Adolf Hitler significant?

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External Websites

The World of the Habsburgs - Maximilian I, 'the last knight'
Luminarium Encyclopedia - Biography of Maximilian I
Holy Roman Emperor Association - Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I - 1493-1519

Maximilian I

Holy Roman emperor

Written by

Hermann Wiesflecker

Emeritus Professor of Austrian History, University of Graz, Austria. Author of Maximilian I, Österreich, das Reich und Europa an der Wende zur Neuzeit (vol. 1–3) and others.

Hermann WiesfleckerAll

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Britannica Editors

Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....

Britannica Editors

History

Maximilian I (born March 22, 1459, Wiener Neustadt, Austria—died January 12, 1519, Wels) was the archduke of Austria, German king, and Holy Roman emperor (1493–1519) who made his family, the Habsburgs, dominant in 16th-century Europe. He added vast lands to the traditional Austrian holdings, securing the Netherlands by his own marriage, Hungary and Bohemia by treaty and military pressure, and Spain and the Spanish empire by the marriage of his son Philip. He created the...

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