Continuing from last time . . .
About 300 years after the fall of Rome, Charlemagne united a large territory in Europe through the typical means- conquest. On Christmas day 800AD, he was crowned in Rome as “Emperor of the Romans” by the Pope. He was the first to be crowned Emperor in 300 years in the West (the Eastern Roman Empire- the Byzantines- existed until 1453). His capital city was Aachen (worth a day trip), and his territory covered much of western Europe. His grandsons would divide the inherited kingdoms into lands that would eventually become Western Francia (France) and Eastern Francia (the Holy Roman Empire). Among other accomplishments, Charlemagne helped spread wine in Germany.
CULTURAL SIDEBAR: Wine
The Romans introduced wine to the Mosel region (and perhaps
elsewhere in Germany), but it was Charlemagne who noted the Rhein’s
characteristics and encouraged the spread of viticulture throughout the region
(his winter quarters were in Ingelheim, near Mainz, and he noticed the
southern-facing slopes of the Rhein River were suitable for growing- as the
snow melted earlier there than elsewhere).
Monasteries were centers of wine culture. Monks cultivated
the vineyards that are famous today, probably reaching their greatest extent
~1500, when 4x the present vineyard surface was planted in Germany. Quality
matters, and violators were punished: “in 1471, a vintner was entombed in a
wall for adding water to his wine.”
Today, Germany produces a lot of Riesling (we see first
mention of it in 1435), and Riesling vines originated in the Rhine region. The
Archbishop of Trier, in 1787, ordered all ‘bad vines’ be replaced by Riesling
within seven years. They have over 60% of the world’s market share today.
- Spatlese: in 1775, a messenger carrying permission to harvest orders to Johannisberg monks was delayed by two weeks, so harvesting began after grapes were affected by noble rot. Spatlese was born.
- Eiswein: in 1830, near Bingen, ice wine was born. “the winegrowers did not harvest the grapbes because of their poor quality, but then decided to pick them in winter to use as cattle feed. They then noticed that the frozen grapes turned into a very sweet and tasty juice . . . they pressed the grapes, and ice wine was born.”
HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE
The Holy Roman Empire (962-1806)- hereafter HRE- started
with Eastern Francia King Otto I. It was a shifting territory that included all
of present-day Germany and much adjoining territory besides. The HRE was not a
centralized state. Instead, it was a “decentralized, limited elective monarchy
composed of hundreds of sub-units: kingdoms, principalities, duchies, counties,
prince-bishoprics, Free Imperial Cities, and other domains. The power of the
emperor was limited, and while the various princes, lords, bishops, and cities
of the empire were vassals who owed the emperor their allegiance, they also
possessed an extent of privileges that gave them de facto independence within
their territories.” (wikipedia) Within the HRE, there were about 300 different
territories, some as small as a few square miles! Some of the larger areas
struck their own coin (but worked in other areas, like the Euro today), some
could raise their own army, have their own courts. So they had a degree of
sovereignty within the realm of Empire of a type not seen in kingdoms like
Britain or France. Yet “they were subordinate to the Emperor and they all
worked within the common framework of law, which was agreed jointly between the
Emperor and the princes as the Imperial Parliament- the Diet- on a regular
basis.” (Joachim Whaley)
Seven electors (3 religious, 4 secular) chose the Emperor, who was crowned in Aachen (900-1500s) or later Frankfurt cathedral (1500-1800). Electors could have rule elsewhere. The King of Great Britain, from 1714, had a seat in the Imperial Diet (he was elector of Hanover). The elector of Brandenburg was King of Prussia, and some Electors of Saxony were the kings of Poland. “Other, totally external, monarchs also held territories in Germany under the Emperor.” Once elected, the ruler was called “King in Germany” until they could be officially coronated by the Pope in Rome (hence “Holy Roman Empire.”). Some (like Adolf of Sonnenberg here in Wiesbaden) were King but never Emperor, as they died or were deposed before Papal coronation. Though elected, the Austrian house of Hapsburg would come to dominate the HRE, having a string of Emperors and moving the center of power to Vienna and Prague.
The HRE isn’t easy to explain, but it worked- for 800 years.
“One might describe the HRE as a triumph of creative fragmentation. The
fragments know how they belong together, are parts of a unit. The only
questions are how tightly they should fit together and who is in charge of the
process.” Ultimately, “the weakness of the central Imperial power meant that in
Germany, compromise won the day.” It was “a political unit that [eventually]
could accommodate religious differences.” (MacGregor)
CASTLES
Near the beginning of the HRE, we started to see those
wonderful fortifications: castles. They became increasingly prevalent from
about 1000AD. At one point, there were ~20,000 castles in Germany- the most in
Europe (that’s one castle every 7 square miles)!
Castles were popular for obvious reasons. They protected
people and goods from harm, and could oversee and protect important
lands/strategic spots. Gunpowder (in Europe from 1300s) and artillery advances
gradually made them obsolete in subsequent centuries (though still effective in
Napoleon’s time- some castles were destroyed by his army, ~1800).
Today, there are four types of castles: real, restored, ruined, and romantic (this delineation is my own and subject to criticism).
- Real: the castle exists today in a ‘natural’ state, perhaps expanded over the centuries (as most castles were) but never destroyed or appreciably altered for other purposes. (Marksburg is an example)
- Restored: the castle exists today but was destroyed and rebuilt (often in more modern styles or in accordance with fashions of the era); it has a degree of original authenticity but has been substantially changed. (Cochem is an example)
- Ruined: the castle was destroyed or abandoned and has decayed naturally, often helped by residents using the stone for other projects. (Eppstein is an example)
- Romantic: the castle was built after the age of fortification and never intended for use as a stronghold. (Neu Schwanstein is an example)
Today, only 20% of castles in Germany have roofs, 40% are in
a state of ruin, and 40% have only ground-level foundations (if that!). In
fact, some have disappeared; we know about them only through literature. Castles
were expensive to upkeep; when they became obsolete, they were abandoned,
auctioned off, used as local quarry, etc.
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