Stamboom Bas » Otto III van Saksen-Ludolf (980-1002)

Persoonlijke gegevens Otto III van Saksen-Ludolf 

• Hij is geboren juni 980.
• (Geschiedenis) .Bron 1

  Otto III (Kessel, Reichswald, juni of juli, 980 - Civita Castellana, 23 januari of 24 januari 1002), een koning van Duitsland, was de vierde heerser uit het Saksische Huis of de Liudolfingen van het Heilige Roomse Rijk. Hij werd verkozen tot koning in 983 bij de dood van zijn vader, Otto II en werd gekroond tot Rooms-Duitse keizer in 996.
  
  Onzeker begin
  
  Otto III was de zoon van keizer Otto II en diens vrouw Theophanu. Hij had drie zusters: Adelheid, Sophia en Mathilde. Reeds op driejarige leeftijd, nog tijdens het leven van zijn vader, werd hij op een hofdag in Verona in mei 983 door de rijksgroten van Duitsland en Italië tot Duits koning gekozen.
  De reden, waarom juist op dat moment de troonsopvolging door een driejarige koningszoon zeker moest worden gesteld, wordt niet vermeld in de bronnen. Samen met een deel van de deelnemers aan de hofdag trok de kleine Otto III over de Alpen om in de traditionele kroningsstad van de Ottonen, in Aken de koningswijding te ontvangen. Toen hij op eerste kerstdag 983 door de aartsbisschoppen Willigis van Mainz en Johannes van Ravenna tot koning werd gekroond was zijn vader Otto II al drie weken dood. Kort na de kroningsceremonie bereikte het nieuws van zijn dood Aken en maakte "een einde aan de feestvreugde".[1]
  
  De toestand in het Rijk was zeer onstabiel. In juli 982 werd het Duitse leger in de slag bij Kaap Colonna vernietigend verslagen. Een jaar later werd het succes van de christelijke missiepolitiek door de opstand van de Slaven ten oosten van de Elbe in een klap ongedaan gemaakt.[2] De dood van Otto II leidde in Italië tot een groot aantal opstanden tegen de Ottoonse heerschappij. Deze precaire situatie maakte veel bisschoppen terughoudend om voor een lange regering van een driejarige te kiezen.
  
  Tijdens zijn minderjarigheid nam zijn moeder tot haar dood in 991 het regentschap voor haar rekening. Vervolgens was zijn grootmoeder Adelheid van Italië tot bij zijn meerderjarigheid in 994 regent. Hij was toen veertien jaar.
  
  Als lid van de Beierse lijn was hertog Hendrik II van Beieren de naaste mannelijk verwant. De wegens gewapende conflict in Utrecht gevangen zittende Hendrik werd onmiddellijk nadat de dood van Otto II in Utrecht bekend was geworden door bisschop Folcmar van Utrecht vrijgelaten. De aartsbisschop van Keulen gaf hem conform het verwantschaprecht (ius propinquitatis) in bewaring bij de net gekroonde jonge koning. Hiertegen werd geen bezwaar gemaakt, want behalve Otto's moeder Theophanu bevonden ook zijn grootmoeder Adelheid van Bourgondië en zijn tante Mathilde zich nog in Italië.
  
  De verdere activiteiten van Hendrik II ("de Ruziezoeker") van Beieren waren niet zozeer gericht op een plichtsgetrouwe invulling van de voogdijschap. In plaats daarvan probeerde hij zelf koning te worden. Hendrik II sprak al snel een bijeenkomst in Breisach af met de West-Frankische koning Lotharius, die in dezelfde graad verwant was aan de jonge Otto III als Hendrik II.[3] Om onbekende redenen zag Hendrik echter van de geplande ontmoeting met Lotharius af. Hij vertrok onmiddellijk vanuit Keulen, waar hij de jonge Otto III in zijn macht had genomen via Corvey naar het hertogdom Saksen.[4] In Saksen nodigde Hendrik alle groten van het hertogdom in Magdeburg uit voor de viering van Palmzondag. Hier voerde hij openlijk campagne voor zijn koningschap, echter met weinig succes. Toch waren zijn aanhangers nog steeds talrijk genoeg om naar Quedlinburg te trekken om daar in aansluiting op de Ottoonse traditie, het paasfeest te vieren. Hier probeerde in hij onderhandelingen de instemming van de aanwezigen te verkrijgen om tot koning te worden verheven. Hij slaagde er in dat velen hem "hun steun toezegden door hem middels een eed als koning en heer te erkennen".[5] Onder degenen die Hendrik ondersteunden waren Mieszko I van Polen, Boleslav II van Bohemen en de Slavische prins Mistui.
  
  Om het koningschap van Hendrik II te voorkomen, verlieten zijn tegenstanders Quedlinburg. Op de Asselburg kwamen zij in een zweerverbond (coniuratio) bijeen. Toen Hendrik II hiervan op de hoogte werd gesteld, trok hij met militaire eenheden van Quedlinburg naar Werla, in de buurt van zijn tegenstanders, om zij ofwel uit een te drijven ofwel een regeling met hen te treffen. Ook stuurde hij bisschop Folcmar van Utrecht naar hen toe om middels onderhandelingen tot een oplossing van het probleem te komen. In deze onderhandelingen werd duidelijk dat de tegenstanders van Hendrik II niet bereid waren om "af te zien van hun gezworen trouw aan hun koning." [6] Hendrik kreeg slechts een garantie voor toekomstige vredesonderhandelingen in Seesen. Daarop vertrok Hendrik II plotseling naar Beieren; daar werd hij door alle bisschoppen en een aantal graven erkend. Na zijn mislukkingen in Saksen en successen in Beieren hing nu alles af van de beslissing van de Frankische groten. Dezen bleken echter onder geen enkele omstandigheid afstand te nemen van en troonopvolging door Otto III. Hendrik II vreesde nu een militaire conflict. Hier schrok hij voor terug. Op 29 juni 984 gaf hij het koninklijke kind in het Thüringse Rohr terug aan zijn moeder en grootmoeder.
  Regentschap van de keizerinnen (985-994)
  
  De lange periode van het regentschap van de keizerinnen bleef grotendeels vrij van conflicten. Vanaf 985 tot haar dood oefende Otto's moeder Theophanu de regeringsmacht uit. Tijdens haar regentschap zette zij in voor het hernieuwd instellen van het bisdom Merseburg, dat door haar man Otto II in 981 was opgeheven. Verder nam Theophanu de hofkapelaans van de kapel van Otto II over. De leiding bleef in handen van de kanselier bisschop Hildebold van Worms en aartskapelaan Willigis van Mainz. Beide bisschoppen ontwikkelden zich door regelmatige interventies tot co-regenten van de keizerin.
  
  In 986 vierde de vijfjarige Otto III het paasfeest in Quedlinburg. De vier hertogen Hendrik II ("de Ruziezoeker") van Beieren als aartsdrossaard, Koenraad I van Zwaben als kamenier, Hendrik de Jongere van Karinthië als schenker en Bernhard I van Saksen als maarschalk[7] oefenden hier de hofambten uit. Deze dienst door de hertogen werd al bij de kroonsbestijgingen van Otto I de Grote in 936 in Aken en ook die van Otto II in 961 verleend. Door middel van deze dienst symboliseerden de hertogen bij het feest hun bereidheid om de jonge koning te dienen. Daarnaast symboliseerde de dienst van Hendrik II ("de Ruziezoeker") van Beieren op de plaats waar hij twee jaar eerder zijn mislukte usurpatie was gestart, zijn volledige onderwerping aan de koninklijke genade. Otto III ontving van graaf Hoico en van Bernward, de later bisschop van Hildesheim, een uitgebreide opleiding in hoofs- en ridderlijkheid, als ook een geestelijke opleiding en opvoeding.
  
  Tijdens het regentschap van Theophanu brak het zogenaamde Gandersheimse conflict uit. Dit ging om de vraag of de abijd van Gandersheim onder het bisdom Hildesheim of onder het bisdom Mainz ressorteerde. Het startpunt van het geschil was de vraag in welke vorm de inhuldiging van zijn zuster Sophia als Sanctimoniale moest worden gegoten. Zij wilde zich niet onder leiding van de bevoegde Hildesheimse bisschop Osdag van Hildesheim stellen en wendde zich in diens plaats tot de Mainzse aartsbisschop, Willigis. Een dreigende escalatie van dit conflict werd in aanwezigheid van koning Otto III en zijn keizerlijke moeder Theophanu eerst daardoor vermeden, dat Sophia onder beide bisschoppen zou ressorteren, terwijl de rest van Sanctimonialen alleen onder Osdag zou vallen.[8]
  
  Aan de oostgrens was het tijdens de maanden van het geschil om de troon met Hendrik II weliswaar rustig gebleven, maar al eerder, in 1983, had de opstand van de Liutizen grote tegenslagen voor het Ottoonse missionaire beleid met zich meegebracht. Bijgevolg ondernamen Saksische legers in de jaren 985, 986 en 987 campagnes tegen de Elbe-Slaven. In 1986 nam de zesjarige Otto zelf aan de veldtocht deel. De Poolse hertog Mieszko ondersteunde de Saksen ??meerdere keren met een groot leger en zou tijdens deze campagne hommage hebben gedaan aan Otto. Hij eerde Otto onder andere door het geven van een kameel.[7] In september 991 trok de elfjarige Otto tegen Brandenburg op. Dit gebied werd korte tijd ingenomen. In 992 leed Otto bij een nieuwe veldtocht tegen de Slaven in Brandenburg echter zware verliezen.[9] In de tijd van deze gevechten aan de oostgrens zou door Theophanu een concept voor een oostpolitiek gepostuleerd zijn dat doelbewust zou hebben aangestuurd op de kerkelijke onafhankelijkheid van Polen. In plaats van Magdeburg maakte zij de abdij van Memleben tot centrale plaats voor de hernieuwde missiepolitiek. Daarmee zette zij zich bewust af tegen de aanspraken van Magdeburg, welk bisdom er naar streefde om de nieuw gekerstende gebieden onder het eigen bisdom te laten vallen. Voor deze stelling is echter geen bewijs in de bronnen te vinden.[10]
  
  In het jaar 989 ondernam Theophanu zonder haar koninklijke zoon een expeditie naar Italië, met als voornaamste doel om tijdens de sterfdag van haar man, Otto II, te bidden voor zijn ziel. In Pavia belastte zij haar vertrouweling Johannes Philagathos, die zij tot aartsbisschop van Piacenza had verheven, met de leiding over de centrale regering. In Italië vaardigde Theophanu een aantal oorkonden in eigen naam uit, waarbij in één geval haar naam in de mannelijke vorm werd geschreven: "Theophanis gratia divina imperator augustus". Toch zijn uit de weinige overgeleverde bronnen nauwelijks inhoudelijke contouren voor een beleid ten aanzien van Italië te herkennen. Een jaar na haar terugkeer uit Italië overleed Theophanu in aanwezigheid van haar zoon Otto III op 15 juni 991 in Nijmegen. Zij werd in het klooster van Sint-Pantaleon in Keulen begraven. Wat Theophanus's laatste adviezen en instructies aan Otto zijn geweest, is niet overgeleverd. een herdenkingsstichting van Theophanu voor Otto II, waarvan zij de uitvoering aan de abdis van Essen had opgedragen, werd door de overdracht van de relieken van de heilige Marsus pas na 999 door Otto III gerealiseerd. De koning heeft voor het zieleheil van zijn moeder geen moeite gespaard. In zijn oorkonden spreekt hij van zijn "geliefde moeder" en aan het sticht Keulen deed hij rijke schenkingen.
  
  Voor de laatste drie jaren van zijn minderjarigheid nam Otto's grootmoeder Adelheid van Bourgondië het regentschap op zich. Zij werd daarin ondersteund door de abdis Mathilde van Quedlinburg. Onder haar bewind bereikte de Ottoonse muntslag zijn hoogtepunt. Terwijl Theophanu er nog naar streefde om de opheffing van het bisdom Merseburg ongedaan te maken, was Adelheid hiertoe niet bereid.
  Begin van Otto's bestuur
  
  In 994 werd Otto III veertien jaar oud. In overeenstemming met de gebruiken van zijn tijd was hij nu volwassen. In de hoge Middeleeuwen werd deze gebeurtenis met een rituele handeling, een ridderslag kracht bijgezet. In het geval van Otto is van een dergelijke rituele handeling, als symbool van het bereiken van de meerderjarigheid, niets uit de bronnen bekend. In een op 6 juli 994 gedateerde oorkonde[11], waarin Otto zijn zuster Sophia, het goed Eschwege schonk, werd onlangs als het begin van zijn zelfstandige bestuur geïnterpreteerd.[12] Otto gaf in oorkonden overigens een overvloed aan schenkingen weg - ook aan zijn zuster - toen hij nog minderjarig was.
  
  Al in 994 nam Otto zijn eerste onafhankelijke beslissingen. Met zijn vertrouweling Heribert van Keulen benoemde hij een Duitser tot hoofd van de Italiaanse afdeling van de kanzelarij - een positie die tot dan alleen voor Italianen was gereserveerd. In Regensburg verhief Otto in hetzelfde jaar, in plaats van de gekozen Regensburgse geestelijke Tagino, zijn eigen kapelaan Gebhard tot bisschop van Regensburg. In de zomer van 995 hield hij een hofdag in Quedlinburg. Met hulp van Boheemse en Poolse troepen voerde hij zowel in de winter van 994/95 als ook in de herfst van 995 een nu bijna jaarlijks plaatsvindende veldtocht tegen de noordelijk wonende Elbe-Slaven.[13] Na zijn terugkeer heeft hij het bisdom Meissen aanzienlijk uitgebreid. Hierdoor werd de tienden-inkomsten van dit bisdom verveelvoudigd.
  
  In september 995 vertrokken aartsbisschop Johannes Philagathos en bisschop Bernward van Würzburg naar Byzantium om daar een bruid voor Otto III te zoeken.[14] De onderhandelingen met Byzantium zouden pas kort voor Otto's dood tot een succesvolle afsluiting komen. Welke prinses hem werd beloofd is overigens niet bekend.
  Bewind
  
  Otto zorgde er voor dat zijn neef Bruno van Karinthië, een zoon van Otto I van Karinthië als paus Gregorius V de eerste Duitse paus werd. Zijn neef kroonde Otto III tot keizer in 996. Otto stierf op 22 jarige leeftijd ongehuwd en zonder nakomelingen.

• (Levens event) .Bron 2

  Otto III (June, 980 - January 23, 1002) was Holy Roman Emperor from 996 to his death in 1002. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto III was the only son of Emperor Otto II and Theophanu.
  
  Otto III was crowned King of Germany in 983 at age of three shortly after his father's death in southern Italy while campaigning against the Byzantine Empire and the Muslim Emirate of Sicily. Though the nominal ruler of Germany, Otto III's minor status ensured his various regents held power over the Empire. His cousin Henry II, Duke of Bavaria, initially claimed regency over the young king and attempted to seize the throne for himself in 984. When his rebellion failed to gain the support of Germany's aristocracy, Henry II was forced to abandon his claims to the throne and to allow Otto III's mother Theophanu, who would serve as regent until 991. Still only a child, Otto III's grandmother, the Dowager Empress Adelaide of Italy, served as regent until Otto III reached adulthood in 994.
  
  In 996, Otto III marched to Italy to claim the titles King of Italy and Emperor which had been left unclaimed since Otto II's death in 983. Otto III also sought to reestablish Imperial control over the city of Rome, which had revolted under the leadership of Crescentius II, and through it the papacy. Crowned as Emperor, Otto III put down the Roman rebellion and installed his cousin as the Pope Gregory V, the first Pope of German descent. After pardoning him and leaving the city, Crescentius II again rebelled against the Emperor, deposing Gregory V and installing John XVI as Pope. Otto III returned to the city in 998, reinstalled Gregory V, and executed both Crescentius II and John XVI. When Gregory V died in 999, Otto III installed Sylvester II as the new Pope. Otto III's actions throughout his life further strengthened Imperial control over the Catholic Church.
  
  For the beginning of his reign, Otto III faced opposition from the Slavic peoples along Germany's eastern border. Following the death of his father in 983, the Slavs rebelled against Imperial control, forcing the Empire to abandon its territories east of the Elbe river. Otto III would fight to regain the Empire's lost territories throughout his reign with only limited success. While in the east, Otto III strengthened the Empire's relations with Poland, Bohemia, and Hungary. Through his affairs in Eastern Europe in 1000, Otto III was able to extend the influence of Christianity by supporting mission work in Poland and through the crowning of Stephen I as the first Christian king of Hungary.
  
  Returning to Rome in 1001, Otto III faced a rebellion from the Roman aristocracy which forced him to flee the city. While marching to reclaim the city in 1002, however, Otto III suffered a sudden fever and died in a castle near Civita Castellana at the age of 21. With no clear heir to succeed him, his early death threw the Empire into political crisis.
  Contents
  Early life
  
  Otto III was born in June or July 980 somewhere between Aachen and Nijmegen (modern day North Rhine-Westphalia). The only son of Emperor Otto II and his wife Theophanu, Otto III was the youngest of the couple's four children. Immediately prior to Otto III's birth, his father had completed military campaigns in France against King Lothar.
  
  On July 14, 982, Otto II's army suffered a crushing defeated against the Muslim Emirate of Sicily at the battle of Stilo. Otto II had been campaigning in southern Italy with hopes of annexing the whole of Italy into the Holy Roman Empire. Otto II himself escaped the battle unharmed but many important imperial officials were among the battle's casualties. Following the defeat and at the insistence of the Empire's nobles, Otto II called an assembly of the Reichstag in Verona on Pentecost in 983. Otto II proposed to the assembly to have the three-year-old Otto III "elected" King of Germany, becoming Otto II's clear heir apparent. This was the first time a German ruler was elected on Italian soil. When the assembly was concluded, Otto III and his mother Theophanu travelled across the Alps in order for Otto III to receive his coronation at Aachen, the traditional site for the coronation of the German kings. Otto II stayed behind to address military action against the Muslims. While still in central Italy, however, Otto II suddenly died on November 7, 983, and was buried in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome.
  
  Otto III was crowned as king on Christmas Day in 983, three weeks after his father's death. Otto III was crowned by Willigis, the Archbishop of Mainz, and John, the Archbishop of Ravenna.[1] News of Otto II's death first reached Germany shortly after Otto III's coronation.[1] The unresolved problems in southern Italy and the Slavic uprising on the Empire's eastern border made the Empire's political situation extremely unstable. With a minor on the throne, the Empire was thrown into confusion, with Otto III's mother Theophanu assuming the role of regent for her young son.[2]
  Child King
  Regency of Henry II
  Henry II, Duke of Bavaria, served as Otto III's regent from 983 to 984. Following a failed rebellion to claim the throne from himself, Henry II was forced to pass the regency to Otto III's mother Theophanu.
  
  Otto III's cousin Henry II, who had been deposed as Duke of Bavaria by Otto II in 976 following his failed rebellion, had been imprisoned under the Bishopric of Utrecht since his failed rebellion. Following Otto II's death, Henry was released from prison. As Otto III's nearest male Ottonian relative, Henry II claimed the regency over his infant cousin.[2] Archbishop of Cologne Warin granted Henry II the regency without substantial opposition. Only Otto III's mother Theophanu objected, as well as Otto III's grandmother, the Dowager Empress Adelaide of Italy, and his aunt, Abbess Matilda of Quedlinburg. Adelaide and Matilda, however, were both in Italy and unable to press their objections.
  
  As regent, Henry II took actions which were aimed less at guardianship of his infant cousin and more at claiming the throne for himself. According to Gerbert of Aurillac, Henry II adopted a Byzantine-style joint-kingship. Towards the end of 984, Henry II sought to form alliances between himself and other important figure in the Ottonian world, chief among them being his cousin King Lothar of France. In exchange for agreeing to make Henry II king of Germany, Henry II agreed to relinquish Lotharingia to Lothar.[3] The two agreed to join their armies on February 1, 985, in order to take the city of Breisach, but at the last minute, Henry’s resolve weakened. Nevertheless, Lothair continued to campaign into German lands and succeeded in overrunning the Verdun by March 985.[4]
  
  Henry II took the young Otto III and traveled to Saxony. In Saxony, Henry II invited all the kingdom's great nobles to celebrate Palm Sunday at Magdeburg for 985. He then campaigned openly for claim to the German throne, but with limited success. Among those who did supported Henry II's claims, however, were Duke Mieszko I of Poland and Duke Boleslaus II of Bohemia.[3] Henry II was also supported by Archbishop Egbert of Trier, Archbishop Gisilher of Magdeburg, and Bishop Dietrich I of Metz.[3]
  
  Those in opposition to Henry II's claims fled to Quedlinburg in Saxony to conspire against Henry II. When Henry II became of this conspiracy, he moved his army towards Quedlingburg in hopes of crushing the conspiracy. Henry II sent Folcmar, the Bishop of Utrecht, ahead of him in order to attempt a peace negotiation between him and the conspirators. The negotiations failed when the conspirators refused to swore allegiance to anyone other than Otto III, with Duke Bernard I of Saxony maintaining allegiance to the child king. In response his failure to gain control over Saxony, Henry II promise to hold future peace negotiations and then headed for the Duchy of Bavaria. With his long-standing familial ties in the region, many bishops and counts recognized him as the rightful heir to the throne. Duke Henry III of Bavaria, who had been installed as Duke by Otto II, refused to recognize Henry II and remained loyal to Otto III.
  
  With his successes and failures in Saxony and Bavaria, Henry II's claims depended on him gaining support in the Duchy of Franconia (which was a direct possession of the German kings). The Franconian nobles, led by Archbishop Willigis of Mainz (the Primate of Germany) and Duke Conrad I of Swabia, refused to abandon Otto III.[2] Fearing outright civil war, Henry II relinquished Otto III to the joint-regency of his mother and grandmother on June 29, 985.[3] In return for his submission, Henry II was restored as the Duke of Bavaria, replacing Henry III who become the new Duke of Carinthia.[5]
  Regency of Theophanu
  Otto III's mother Theophanu would serve as his regent from 984 until her death in 991.
  
  Theophanu's regency was largely spared internal revolt. She served as Otto III's regent from 984 until her death in 991. She struggled throughout her regency to reinstate the Diocese of Merseburg, which her husband Otto II had absorbed into the Archdiocese of Magdeburg in 981. Theophanu also retained Otto II's court chaplains, in particular Count Bernward of Hildesheim and Archbishop Willigis, who, as the Archbishop of Mainz, was ex officio the secular Archchancellor of Germany. Though Theophanu was Otto III's regent, Willigis was given considerable leeway in administering the kingdom. One of the Empress's greatest achievements was her success in maintaining German supremacy over Bohemia, as Duke Boleslaus II of Bohemia was forced to accept the authority of Otto III.[5]
  
  In 986 the five-year-old Otto III celebrated Easter at Quedlinburg. The four major dukes of Germany (Henry II of Bavaria, Conrad I of Swabia, Henry III of Carinthia, and Bernard I of Saxony) also paid tribute to the child king. Imitating similar ceremonies carried out under Otto I in 936 and Otto II in 961, the dukes served Otto III as his ceremonial stward, chamberlain, cupbearer, and marshal, respectively. This service symbolized the dukes' loyalty to Otto III and their willingness to serve him. Most significant was the submission of Henry II, who demonstrated his loyalty to his consign despite his failed rebellion two years earlier. The next year, from the age of six onward, Otto III would receive education and training from Bernward of Hildesheim and Gerbert d'Aurillac.
  
  During Theophanu's regency the Great Gandersheim Conflict broke out. The conflict centered over control of Gandersheim Abbey and its estates. Both the Archbishop of Mainz and the Bishop of Hildesheim claimed authority over the Abbey, including the authority to anoint the Abbey's nuns. The conflict began in 989 when Otto III's older sister Sophia became a nun in the Abbey. Sophia refused to accepted the Bishop of Hildesheim's authority, instead recognizing only that of the Archbishop of Mainz. The conflict escalated until it was brought before the royal court of Otto III and Theophanu. The royal intervention eased the tensions between the parties by providing that both bishops would anoint Sophie while the anointing of the Abbey's remaining nuns would be left to the Bishop of Hildesheim alone.
  
  In 989 Theophano and Otto III made a royal expedition to Italy to visit the grave of Otto II in Rome. After crossing the Alps and reaching Pavia in northern Italy, the Empress had his longtime confidant John Philagathos appointed as Archbishop of Piacenza. After a year in Italy, the royal court returned to Germany, where Theophanu would die in Nijmegen on June 15, 991, at the age of 31. She was buried in the Church of St. Pantaleon in Cologne.
  
  Because Otto III was still a child (only eleven when his mother died), his grandmother, the Dowager Empress Adelaide of Italy, became regent, together with Archbishop Willigis of Mainz, until he became old enough to rule on his own in 994.[6]
  Independent Reign
  
  As Otto III grew in age, the authority of his grandmother gradually waned until 994 when Otto III reached the age of 14. At an assembly of the Reichstag held in Solingen in September 994, Otto III was granted the ability to fully govern the kingdom without the need of a regent. With her grandson no longer in need of a regent, Adelaide retired to a nunnery she had founded at Selz in Alsace. Though she never became a nun, she spent the rest of her days there in service to the Church and to acts of charity. As Otto III was still unmarried, 995 until 997, his older sister Sophia would accompany him and act as his consort.
  
  One of Otto III's first actions as an independent ruler was to appointed Heribert of Cologne as his chancellor over Italy, a position he would hold until Otto III's death in 1002. In summer 995, Otto III sent Archbishop of Piacenza John Philagathos to Constantinople as his representative to arrange a marriage between himself and a Byzantine princess.
  War against the Slavs
  The Northern March (outlined in red) and the Billung March were abandoned by the Empire following the Great Slav Rising in 983.
  
  The Lutici federation of West Slavic Polabian tribes had remained quite during the early years of Otto III's reign, even during Henry II's failed rebellion. In 983, following Otto II's defeat at the battle of Stilo, the Slavs revolted against Imperial control, forcing the Empire to abandon its territories east of the Elbe Rivier in the Northern March and the Billung March.[7] With the Christianization process halted, the Slavs left the Empire in peace. With Henry II's rebellion put down, beginning in 985, Theophanu would launch multiple military campaigns to re-conquer the lost eastern territories. Even though he was only six at the time, Otto III personally participated in these campaigns. During the 986 expedition against the Slavs, Otto III received the homage of Duke Meiszko I of Poland, who provided the German army with military assistance and provided Otto III himself a gift of a camel.[5] Although the Lutici were subdued for a time in 987, they would continued to occupy the young king’s attention.
  
  In September 991, Slavonic raiders captured Brandenburg when Otto III was eleven. This invasion, as well as an incursion of Viking raiders, forced Otto III to led his army against the invaders in 992, during which he would suffer a crushing defeat.[8] In 993, Germany suffered an outbreak of disease, famine, and pestilence. In 994 and 995, Otto III would lead fruitless campaigns against the northern Slavs and the Vikings.[8] Otto III did successfully re-conqueror Brandenburg in 993 and managed to subdue the Obotrite Slavs in 995.[8]
  
  When Otto III reached is majority he again took to the field against the Lutici in the fall of 995, aided by the Polish Duke Boleslaw I Chrobry.[9] Then in 997, he had to deal with a new Lutici incursion against Arneburg on the Elbe, which they managed to retake for a short while.[9]
  Reign as Emperor
  Roman instability
  
  Prior to his sudden death in December 983, Otto II had installed Pope John XIV, a non-Roman who had served as Otto II's chancellor in Italy, on the chair of St. Peter. With Otto II dead and Otto III being only three years old at the time, the Roman aristocracy desired to remove the non-Roman John XIV and install a pope from among themselves. The Antipope Boniface VII, who had spent nine years in exile in the Byzantine Empire, joined forces with Byzantine nobles in southern Italy and marched on Rome in April 984 in order to claim the papal throne for himself. With the aid of the sons of Crescentius the Elder, Crescentius II and John Crescentius, Boniface VII was about to imprison John XIV in the Tomb of Hardian. Four months later, on August 20, 984, John XIV died in his prison either due to starvation or poison, or under order from Boniface VII.[10]
  
  With Otto III still a child and his regent, his mother the Empress Theophanu, absent from Italy, Crescentius II took the title of Patricius Romanorum (Patrician of the Romans) and became the effective ruler of the city, though he did not act entirely independently of the imperial authority, presenting himself as a lieutenant of the emperor. When Boniface VII died in 985, Pope John XV was elected to succeed him. Though the particulars of the election are unknown, it is likely Crescentius II played a key role in the process. For a number of years, Crescentius II exercised authority over the city, severely limiting the autonomy of the pope in the process. When the Empress Theophanu was in Rome between 989 and 991, Crescentius II nominally subordinated himself to her, though he maintained his position as ruler of the city.[11]
  First expedition into Italy
  The Imperial Crown of the Holy Roman Empire. Otto III was crowned as Emperor in 996 by Pope Gregory V.
  
  In 996, with northern Slavic rebellion settled down, Otto III turned his attention to Italy.[9] Otto III not only intended to be crowned Emperor but also to come to the aid of Pope John XV, who had been forced to flee Rome by the city's de facto ruler Crescentius II. Otto III responded to the Pope's plea and set out for Italy from Ratisbon in March 996. In Verona, Otto III became the patron of Otto Orseolo, the son of Venetian Doge Pietro II Orseolo. Otto III pledged to support Otto Orseolo as the next Doge of Venice, leading to a period of good relations between the Holy Roman Empire and the Republic of Venice after years of conflict under Otto II.
  
  Reaching Pavia for Easter, 996, Otto III was declared King of Italy and crowned with the Iron Crown of the Lombards.[11] The king failed, however, to reach Rome before Pope John XV died of fever.[12] While Otto III was in Pavia, Crescentius II, fearing the king's march on Rome, reconciled with Otto III and agreed to accept his nominee as pope.[11] While in Ravenna, Otto III nominated his his cousin and court chaplain Bruno, who was then only twenty-three years old, and sent him to Rome with Archbishop Willgis of Mainz to secure the city. In early May 996, Bruno was consecrated as Gregory V, being the first pope of German nationality.[13] Despite submitting to Otto III, Crescentius shut himself in his family's stronghold, the Tomb of Hadrian, out of fear of retribution.[14]
  
  The new supreme pontiff crowned Otto III as Emperor on May 21, 996, in Rome at St. Peter's Basilica. The Emperor and Pope then held a synod at St. Peter's on May 25 to serve as the Empire's highest judicial court. The Romans nobles who had rebelled against Pope John XV were summoned before the synod to give an account of their actions. A number of the rebels, including Crescentius II, were banished for their crimes. Pope Gregory V, however, wished to inaugurate his papal reign with acts of mercy and pleaded for clemency from the Emperor, who issued pardons to those he convicted. In particular, while Crescentius II was pardoned by Otto III, he was deprived of his title of Patricius but was permitted to live out his life in retirement at Rome.[15]
  
  Following the synod, Otto III appointed Gerbert of Aurillac, the Archbishop of Reims, to be his tutor.[9] Counseled by Gerbert and Bishop Adalbert of Prague,[16] Otto III set out to reorganize the Empire. Influenced by the ruin of ancient Rome and perhaps by his Byzantine mother,[15] Otto III dreamed of restoration of the glory and power of the ancient Roman Empire, with himself at the head of a theocratic state.[9] He also introduced some Byzantine court customs.[17]
  
  Through the election of Gregory V, Otto III exercised greater control over the Church than his grandfather Otto I had decades earlier. The Emperor quickly demonstrated his intentions to withdraw Imperial support for the Holy See’s privileges as laid out by Otto I. Under the Diploma Ottonianum issued by Otto I, the Emperor could only veto papal candidates. Otto III, however, had nominated and successfully installed his own candidate. The Emperor also refusing to acknowledge the Donation of Constantine which Otto III declared a forgery.[17] Under a decree supposedly issued by Roman Emperor Constantine the Great, the Pope was granted secular authority over western Europe. These actions resulted in increased tensions between the Roman nobility and Church, who had traditionally reserved to right to name the pope from among their own members.[17]
  
  After his coronation, Otto III returned to Germany in December 996, staying along the Lower Rhine (especially in Aachen) until April 997. His specific activities during this time are not known. In summer 997, Otto III campaigned against the Elbe Slavs in order to secure Saxony's eastern border.
  Second expedition into Italy
  The Tomb of Hadrian, stronghold of the Crescentii family, was besieged by Otto III in 998. Otto III's soldiers breached the stronghold and executed the rebellious Crescentius II.
  
  When Otto III left Italy for Germany, the situation in Rome remained uncertain. In September 996, a few months after receiving a pardon from Otto III, Crescentius II meet with the Archbishop of Piacenza John Philagathos, a former adviser to the late Empress Theophanu, to devise a plan to depose the newly installed Pope Gregory V. In 997, with the active support of Byzantine Emperor Basil II, Crescentius II led a revolt against Gregory V, deposed him, and installed John Philagathos as Pope John XVI, an antipope, in April 997.[18] Gregory fled to Pavia in northern Italy, held a synod, and excommunicated John.
  
  Putting down the Slavic forces in eastern Saxony, Otto III began his second expedition into Italy in December 997. Accompanied by his sister Sophia into Italy, Otto III named his aunt Matilda, Abbess of Quedlinburg, as his regent in Germany, becoming the first non-duke or bishop to serve in that capacity while the Emperor was away in Italy. Otto III peacefully retook Rome in February 998 when the Roman aristocracy agreed to a peace settlement. With Otto III in control of the city, Gregory V was reinstated as pope.[19] John XVI fled, but the Emperor's troops pursued and captured him, cut off his nose and ears, cut out his tongue, broke his fingers, blinded him, and then brought him before Otto III and Gregory V for judgement. At the intercession of Saint Nilus the Younger, one of his countrymen, Otto III spared John XVI's life. Instead, he was sent to a monastery in Germany, where he would die in 1001.
  
  Crescentius II retreated to the Tomb of Hardian, the Crescentii's traditional stronghold, and was then besieged by Otto III's imperial army. Towards the end of April, the stronghold was breached, and Crescentius II was taken prisoner and executed by decapitation. His body was put on public display at Monte Mario.
  Reign from Rome
  
  Otto III made Rome the administrative capital of his Empire and revived elaborate Roman customs and Byzantine court ceremonies. During his time in Italy, the Emperor and the Pope attempted to reform the Church. Confiscated church property was returned to the respective religious institutions. Additionally, after the death of the Bishop of Halberstadt in November 996, who had been one of the masterminds behind the abolition of the bishopric of Merseburg, Otto III and Pope Gregory V began to process of reviving the Diocese. Otto I had established the Diocese in 968 following his victory against the Hungarians in order to Christianize the Polbian Slavs but had been effectively destroyed in 983 with the Great Slav Rising following the death of Otto II in 983.
  
  Otto III arranged for his imperial palace to be built on the Palatine Hill,[17] and planned to restore the ancient Roman Senate to its position of prominence.[20] He revived the city's ancient government system, including appointing a City Patrician, a City Prefect, and a body of judges whom he commanded to recognize only Roman law.[21] In order to strengthen his title to both the Roman Empire and announce his position as the protector of Christendom, Otto III took for himself the titles "the Servant of Jesus Christ," "the Servant of the Apostles",[17] "Consul of the Senate and People of Rome," and "Emperor of the World".[20]
  
  Between 998 and 1000, Otto III made several pilgrimages. In 999, Otto made a pilgrimage from Gargano to Benevento, where he met with the hermit monk Romuald and the Abbot Nilus the Younger (then a highly venerated religious figure) in order to atone for having executed Crescentius II after promising his safety.[19] During this particular pilgrimage, his cousin Pope Gregory V died in Rome after a brief illness. Upon learning of Gregory V's death, Otto III installed his long-time tutor Gerbert of Aurillac as Pope Sylvester II.[19] The use of this papal name was not without cause: it recalled the first pope of this name, who had allegedly created the "Christian Empire" together with Roman Emperor Constantine the Great.[9] This was part of Otto III's campaign to further link himself with both the Roman Empire and the Church.
  
  Like his grandfather before him, Otto III strongly aspired to be the successor of Charlemagne. In 1000, he visited Charlemagne's tomb in Aachen, removing relics from it and transporting them to Rome.[20] Otto III also carried back parts of the body of Bishop Adalbert of Prague, which he placed in a splendid new church he had built on the Tiber Island in Rome. Otto III also added the skin of Saint Bartholomew to the relics housed there.
  Affairs in Eastern Europe
  Polish relations
  
  Around 960, the Polish Piast dynasty under Mieszko I had extended Duchy of Poland beyond the Oder River, in an effort to conquer the Polbian Slavs who lived along the Elbe River. This brought the Polans into Germany's sphere of influence and into conflict with Otto I's Kingdom of Germany, who also desired to conquer the Polbian Slavs. The German king sent his trusted lieutenant, the Saxon Margrave Gero, to address the Polan threat while Otto I traveled to Italy to be crowned as Emperor. Gero defeated Mieszko I in 963 and forced him to recognize Otto I as his overlord.[22] In return for submitting tribute to the newly crowned Emperor, Otto I granted Mieszko I the title of amicus imperatoris ("Friend of the Emperor") and acknowledged his position as dux Poloniae ("Duke of Poland").
  
  Mieszko I remained a powerful ally of Otto I for the remainder of his life. He strengthened his alliance with the Empire by marrying Oda, the daughter of the Saxon Margrave Dietrich of Haldensleben, in 978 and by marrying his son Boleslaw I to a daughter of Margrave Rikdag of Meissen. Mieszko I, then a pagan, would married Boleslaus I's Christian daughter Dobrawa in 965, and would convert to Christianity in 966, bringing Poland closer to the Christian states of Bohemia and the Empire. Following Otto I's death in 973, Mieszko I's sided with Duke Henry II of Bavaria against Emperor Otto II during Henry's failed revolt in 977. After the revolt was put down, Mieszko I swore loyalty to Otto II.[23] When Otto II died suddenly in 983 and was succeeded by the three-year old Otto III, Mieszko I again supported Henry II in his bid for the German throne.[3] When Henry's revolt failed, Mieszko I swore loyalty to Otto III.
  
  Mieszko I's son Boleslaw I succeeded him as Duke in 992 and Poland continued its alliance with the Empire. Polish forces joined the Empire's campaigns to put down the revolt led by the Polabian Lutici tribes during the 980s and 990s.
  Bohemian relations
  
  Germany and the Duchy of Bohemia came into significant contact with one another in 929, when German King Henry I had invaded the Duchy to force Duke Wenceslaus I to pay regular tribute to Germany. When Wenceslaus I was assassinated in 935, his brother Boleslaus I succeeded him as Duke and refused to continue paying the annual tribute to Germany. This action caused Henry I's son and successor Otto I to launch an invasion of Bohemia. Following the initial invasion, the conflict deteriorated into a series of border raids which lasted until 950 when Otto I and Boleslaus I signed a peace treaty. Boleslaus I agreed to resume paying tribute and to recognize Otto I as his overlord. The Duchy was then incorporated into the Otto I's empire as a constitute state.
  
  Bohemia, as a constituent state of the Empire, would be a major factor in the many battles along the Empire's eastern border. Boleslaus I helped Otto I crush an uprising of Slavs along the Lower Elbe in 953 and in 955 the two joined forces to defeat the Hungarians at the battle of Lechfeld. Otto I would in 973 establish the bishopric of Prague, subordinated to the archbishopric of Mainz, in order to Christianize the Czech territory. To strengthen the Bohemian-Polish alliance, Boleslaus I's daughter Dobrawa was married to the pagan Mieszko I of Poland in 965. The marriage helped bring Christianity to Poland. He died in 972 and was succeeded as Duke by his oldest son Boleslaus II.
  
  After initially siding with Duke Henry II of Bavaria against Emperor Otto II during Henry's failed revolt in 977, Boleslaus II swore loyalty to Otto II.[24] When Otto II died suddenly in 983 and was succeeded by the three-year old Otto III, Boleslaus II again supported Henry II in his bid for the German throne.[3] As in 977, when Henry's bid failed, Boleslaus II swore loyalty to Otto III.
  Hungarian relations
  
  Otto I's defeat of the Hungarians at the battle of Lechfeld in 955 ended the century's long Hungarian invasions of Europe. The Hungarian Grand Price Fajsz was deposed following the defeat and was succeeded by Taksony. Taksony adopted the policy of isolation from the West. He was succeeded by his son Géza in 972, who sent envoys to Emperor Otto I in 973.[25] The same year, Géza was baptised in 972, and Christianity spread among the Hungarians during his reign.[25]
  
  Géza expanded his rule over the territories west of the Danube and the Garam, but significant parts of the Carpathian Basin still remained under the rule of local tribal leaders.[25] In 997, Géza died and was succeeded by his Stephen (originally called Vajk). Stephen, who was baptized by Bishop Adalbert of Prague, married Gisela, the daughter of Bavarian Duke Henry II and distant niece of Otto III.[25] Stephen had to face the rebellion of his relative, Koppány who claimed Géza's inheritance based on the Hungarian tradition of agnatic seniority.[25] He was able to defeat Koppány with assistance from the Empire.[25]
  
  When Otto III traveled to Poland in 1000, he brought with him a crown from Pope Sylvester II. With Otto III's approval, Stephen was crowned as the first Christian king of Hungary on Christmas Day, 1000.[26]
  Congress of Gniezno
  Main article: Congress of Gniezno
  Duke Boleslaw I of Poland was given a Holy Lance in 1000 following the Congress of Gniezno.
  
  In 996, Duke Boleslaw I of Poland sent Adalbert, the longtime Bishop of Prague, to Christianize the Prussian people. He was martyred by the Prussians for his efforts in 997.[27] Boleslaw I, who had bought Adalbert's body from the Prussians for its weight in gold, had Adalbert laid to rest in Gniezno Cathedral, which became the ecclesiastical center of Poland. Together, Otto III and Boleslaw I worked to canonize Adalbert, becoming the first Slavic bishop to become a saint.[28] In December 999, Otto III left Italy to make a pilgrimage from Rome to Gniezno in Poland. Otto III desired to pray at the grave of Adalbert, the former Bishop of Prague, who had been a friend of the Emperor.[28]
  
  Otto III's pilgrimage allowed the Emperor to extend the influence of Christianity in Eastern Europe and strengthened the Empire's relations with Poland and Hungary by naming them federati ("allies").[29] On the pilgrimage to Gniezno, the Emperor was received by Boleslaw I at the Polish border on the Bobr River near Malomice. Between 7 and 15 March 1000, Otto III invested Boleslaw I with the titles frater et cooperator Imperii ("Brother and Partner of the Empire") and populi Romani amicus et socius ("Friend and ally of Rome").[29] Otto III gave Boleslaw a replica of his Holy Lance (part of the Imperial Regalia) and Boleslaw presented the Emperor with a relic, an arm of Saint Adalbert in exchange.
  
  On the same foreign visit, Otto III raised Gniezno to the rank of an archbishopric and installed Radzim Gaudenty, a brother of Saint Adalbert, as its first archbishop.[28] Otto III also established three new subordinate dioceses under the Archbishop of Gniezno: the Bishopric of Kraków (assigned to Bishop Poppo), the Bishopric of Wroclaw (assigned to Bishop Jan) and the Bishopric of Kolobrzeg in Pomerania (assigned to Bishop Reinbern).[28]
  
  Boleslaw I subsequently accompanied Otto III on his way back to Germany. Both proceeded to the grave of Charlemagne at Aachen Cathedral, where Boleslaw received the Charlemagne's throne as a gift. Both arranged the betrothal of Boleslaw's son Mieszko II Lambert with the Emperor's niece Richeza of Lotharingia.
  Final years
  Return to Rome
  Italy around 1000, short before Otto III's death in 1002.
  
  The Emperor spent the remainder of 1000 in Italy without any notable activities. In 1001, the people of the Italian city of Tibur revolted against Imperial authority. Otto III besieged the city and quickly put down the revolt with easy, but spared its inhabitants. This action angered the people of Rome, who viewed Tibur was a rival and wanted the city destroyed.[20] In a change of policy towards the papacy, Otto III bestowed the governance of the city upon Pope Sylvester II as part of the Papal States but under the overlordship of the Holy Roman Empire. Previously, Otto III had revoked the Pope's rights as secular ruler by denying the Donation of Constantine and by amending the Diploma Ottonianum.
  
  In the weeks after Otto III's actions at Tibur the Roman people rebelled against their Emperor. The rebellious citizens, headed by Count Gregory I of Tusculum, besieged Otto III in his palace on the Palatine Hill and then drove him from the city.[19] Accompanied by Bishop Bernward of Hildesheim and the German chronicler Thangmar, Otto III returned to the city to conduct peace negotiations between the Emperor and the rebellious Romans. Though both sides agreed to a peaceful settlement with the Romans respecting Otto III's rule over the city, feelings of mistrust characterized the city. Otto III's advisors urged the Emperor wait outside the city under military reinforcements could arrive to ensure his safety.
  
  Otto III, accompanied by Pope Sylvester II, traveled to Ravenna to do penance in the monastery of Sant'Apollinare in Classe and to summon his army. While in Ravenna, Otto III received ambassadors from Duke Boleslaw I of Poland and approved of King Stephen of Hungary's plans to establish the Archdiocese of Esztergom in order to convert Hungary to Christianity. Otto III also strengthened the Empire's relation with the Venetian Doge Pietro II Orseolo. Since 996, the Emperor had been to godfather to Pietro II's son Otto Orseolo and in 1001 the Emperor arranged for Pietro II's daughter to be baptized.
  Death
  
  After having summoned his army in late 1001, Otto III headed south to Rome to ensuring his rule over the city. During the travel south, however, Otto III suffered a sudden and severe fever. He died in a castle near Civita Castellana on January 24, 1002.[30] He was 21 years old and had reigned as an independent ruler for just under six years, having nominally reigned for under 19 years. The Byzantine princess Zoe, second daughter of Emperor Constantine VIII) had just disembarked in Puglia, on her way to marry him.[31] Otto III's death has been attributed to various causes. Medieval sources speak of malaria, which he had caught in the unhealthy marshes that surrounded Ravenna.[19] Following his death, the Roman people suggested that Stefania, the widow of Crescentius II, had made Otto III fall in love with her and then poisoned him.[20]
  
  The Emperor's body was carried back to Germany by his soldiers, as all the while his route was lined with Italians who hurled abuses at his remains.[26] He was buried in Aachen Cathedral alongside the body of Charlemagne.[32]
  Succession crisis
  
  Otto III, having never married, died without any child, leaving the Empire without a clear successor. As the funeral procession moved through the Duchy of Bavaria in February 1002, Otto III's cousin Henry IV, son of Henry II and the new Duke of Bavaria, asked the bishops and nobles to elect him as the new king of Germany. With the exception of the Bishop of Augsburg, Henry IV received no support for his claims. At Otto III's funeral on Easter, 1002, in Aachen, the German nobles repeated their opposition to Henry IV. Several rival candidates for the throne - Count Ezzo of Lotharingia, Margrave Eckard I of Meissen, and Duke Herman II of Swabia - strongly contested Henry IV's succession,
  
  Without an Emperor on the throne, Italy began to break away from German control. On February 15, 1002, the Lombard Margrave of Ivrea Arduin, an opponent of the Ottonian dynasty, was elected King of Italy in Pavia.
  Character
  
  Otto's mental gifts were considerable, and were carefully cultivated by Bernward, afterwards bishop of Hildesheim, and by Gerbert of Aurillac, archbishop of Reims.[6] He spoke three languages and was so learned that contemporaries called him "the wonder of the world."[33] Enamoured as he was of Greek and Roman culture, he ended up being contemptuous of his German subjects.[33]
  Family and Children
  German royal dynasties
  Ottonian dynasty
  Chronology
  Henry I 919 – 936
  Otto I 936 – 973
  Otto II 973 – 983
  Otto III 983 – 1002
  Henry II 1002 – 1024
  Family
  Family tree of the German monarchs
  Succession
  Preceded by
  Conradine dynasty Followed by
  Salian dynasty
  Main article: Ottonian dynasty
  
  Otto III was a member of the Ottonian dynasty of kings and emperors who ruled the Holy Roman Empire (previously Germany) from 919 to 1024. In relation to the other members of his dynasty, Otto III was the great-grandson of Henry I, grandson of Otto I, son of Otto II, and a second-cousin to Henry II.
  
  Otto III never married and never fathered any children due to his early death. At the time of his death, the Byzantine princess Zoe, second daughter of Emperor Constantine VIII was traveling to Italy to marry him.[31]
  Accounts of his reign
  
  Between 1012 and 1018 Thietmar of Merseburg wrote a Chronicon, or Chronicle, in eight books, which deals with the period between 908 and 1018. For the earlier part he used Widukind's Res gestae Saxonicae, the Annales Quedlinburgenses and other sources; the latter part is the result of personal knowledge. The chronicle is nevertheless an excellent authority for the history of Saxony during the reigns of the emperors Otto III and Henry II. No kind of information is excluded, but the fullest details refer to the bishopric of Merseburg, and to the wars against the Wends and the Poles.

• Hij is overleden in het jaar 1002, hij was toen 21 jaar oud.
• Een kind van Otto II "de Rode" van Saksen-Ludolf en Theophana van Byzantium
• Deze gegevens zijn voor het laatst bijgewerkt op 8 november 2012.

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