Holy League
Quick Summary
The Holy League was a European alliance sponsored by the papacy in the late 15th and early 16th centuries, primarily formed to protect Italy from French domination.1
There were two main Holy Leagues:
* The League of 1495: This alliance included Pope Alexander VI, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I, Ferdinand II of Aragon, Venice, and Milan. It opposed Charles VIII of France, who had invaded Italy. The allies successfully forced the French out of Italy in 1496.1
* The Holy League of 1511: Organized by Pope Julius II, this league was directed against Louis XII of France. Spain, Venice, the Holy Roman Empire, England, and the Swiss joined this anti-French coalition. They drove the French out of Milan, but internal disagreements among the allies led to separate peace agreements with France, causing the league to collapse.1
The League of Cambrai, formed in 1508, was initially an alliance against Venice but later shifted focus, with Pope Julius II eventually forming the Holy League of 1511 against French power in Italy.21
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