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Today we celebrate the topping out of the Habsburg empire. By the middle of the 16th century it reached its furthest extent as a political entity ruled by one man. Over the last 42 episodes we have seen this family of minor counts playing their game of snakes and ladders until they had amassed lordships over Austria, the Netherlands, Spain and large parts of Italy. Today we look at how they finally got hold of the last bits, Bohemia and Hungary.
The story features a dutiful younger brother, the most cruel execution I have ever heard of, a foolish duke and an even more foolish king, the collapse of a kingdom, a love story and the reason for the incessant Habsburg inbreeding. I hope that will be enough to fill the last episode of this season.
The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau under Common Creative Licence 3.0.
As always:
Homepage with maps, photos, transcripts and blog: www.historyofthegermans.com
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To make it easier for you to share the podcast, I have created separate playlists for some of the seasons that are set up as individual podcasts. they have the exact same episodes as in the History of the Germans, but they may be a helpful device for those who want to concentrate on only one season.
So far I have:
Salian Emperors and Investiture Controversy
Fredrick Barbarossa and Early Hohenstaufen
The Holy Roman Empire 1250-1356
The Reformation before the Reformation
The House of Habsburg once ruled Spain, Benelux, Austria, Hungary, Czechia, most of Italy, at times Portugal and all of Latin America, the Philippines and of course, the Holy Roman Empire. Most histories of the Habsburgs start out with Maximilian I, his marriage alliances that brought together this empire. But he was not the first Habsburg emperor, and by no means the first Habsburg ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. Their history goes back to the 13th century when they almost established their dynasty on the throne, had it not been for John Parricida murdering his uncle. In this show we follow the dramatic events that saw this dynasty rising and then falling hard, its struggles to recover, the feats and forgeries, the victories and terrible defeats that shaped this family and its lore. We take the story from Rudolf of Habsburgs’ ascent to the throne in 1273 to the election of Charles V in 1519.
This podcast is part of the broader History of the Germans podcast that aims to track the history of the German people from the Early Middle Ages to Reunification in 1991. If you enjoy this show, check out any of the other seasons or follow the main show.
So far I have the following seasons:
The Ottonians (919 AD-1024 AD)
Salian Emperors and Investiture Controversy (1024 AD-1125 AD)
Fredrick Barbarossa and Early Hohenstaufen (1125-1190)
Frederick II Stupor Mundi (1190-1268)
Saxony and Eastward Expansion
The Hanseatic League
The Teutonic Knights
The Holy Roman Empire (1250 AD -1356 AD)
The Reformation before the Reformation (1356AD -1439 AD)
The Empire in the 15th Century
The Fall and Rise of the Habsburgs (1439AD -1519 AD)