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What hopes did German humanists have when Maximilian I became ruler?

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When Maximilian I ascended to the German throne in 1493, his dynamic and imaginative reputation inspired significant hope among German humanists.1

They anticipated a revival of the "old imperial idea"—a vision of the empire as the political manifestation of a united Christendom. In this ideal, the emperor would serve as God’s deputy, presiding over a universal realm characterized by peace and order. Following the long, perceived neglect of imperial issues during the reign of his father, Frederick III, many humanists and other Germans viewed Maximilian’s arrival as an opportunity to restructure the "Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation" and restore imperial authority, which had been in disarray since the 13th century.1

This surge of anticipation led to an outpouring of reform agendas aimed at addressing the empire's governing institutions, though these hopes were eventually tempered by the persistent political friction between the emperor and the empire's estates.12