#charles v of the holy roman empire

[felipe-v-fanblog]

Charles V by Christopher Amberger (forced to upload it on bad quality by tumblr im going to die)

[elymaiis]

Holy Roman Empire circa 1556: boy howdy, it sure is expensive to put down all these rebellions — I hope nobody decides to give away our main cash cows, Spain and Naples Charles V, gouty and dying: hee hoo hee, guess what I'm about to do :)

[illustratus]

Equestrian Portrait of Charles V (also Emperor Charles V on Horseback or Charles V at Mühlberg)

by Titian

[little-candy-store-of-horrors]

oh to ask your (21 M, twink) brother (18 M, twink) to help chase down a (38 M) bear bc you are young and stupid and screwed up in public what could possibly go wrong. except that it's not a regular night at the club it's the Holy Roman Empire and you are the emperor your brother is your regent and the bear you teenage twinks are after is religious dissident Martin Luther

[whats-in-a-sentence]

This particular crown, an odd relic of Europe's messy Middle Ages, was a mixed blessing; as Voltaire famously remarked in the 1750s, the Holy Roman Empire "was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire."

"Why the West Rules – For Now: The patterns of history and what they reveal about the future" - Ian Morris

[roehenstart]

Charles V by Albrecht de Vriendt.

[fotograrte]

La armadura de Carlos V por Francesco Negroli y hermanos (Galería de las Colecciones Reales)

Armadura del emperador Carlos V por Francesco Negroli. Galería de las Colecciones Reales. Milán, hacia 1550-1553. Acero damasquinado en oro y plata dorada, pavonado y grabado. Continue reading La armadura de Carlos V por Francesco Negroli y hermanos (Galería de las Colecciones Reales)

[solnunquamoccidit]

Ritratto di Carlo V

by Tiziano Vecellio (Venetian, 1490 – 1576) oil on canvas (71 × 98), 1549

Reggia di Capodimonte

[droegeboycreations]

Charles V in LOC

[instantkingjustaddtea]

Shout out to the Holy Roman Empire for the funniest assembly name ever, Charles V for convening it and Martin Luther for refusing to recant his writings, causing the name of it to feature several times in my textbook.

[artifacts-archive]

Serpent Labret with Articulated Tongue

Aztec, 1300–1521 CE

Superbly crafted in the shape of a serpent ready to strike, this labret—a type of plug inserted through a piercing below the lower lip—is a rare survival of what was once a thriving tradition of gold-working in the Aztec Empire. Gold, in Aztec belief, was teocuitlatl, a godly excrement, closely associated with the sun’s power, and ornaments made of it were worn by Aztec rulers and nobles. Historical sources describe a variety of objects made of gold, including a serpent labret sent by Hernán Cortés as a gift to the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V, yet nearly all of these objects were melted down at the time of the Conquest and shortly thereafter, converted to gold ingots for ease of transport and trade.

[felipe-v-fanblog]

Holy Roman Emperor Charles V by Jan Cornelisz Vermeyen.

[mapsontheweb]

The Empire of Charles V

« Le grand atlas de l’histoire mondiale », Encyclopædia Universalis, 1979

by cartesdhistoire

Charles of Habsburg was a Burgundian duke who became king of Spain in 1516 and later Holy Roman Emperor in 1520. During his early years, the Burgundian heritage remained the primary cultural influence on the future Charles V, who was raised in the Netherlands. However, within him, all the legacies converged: Roman and Carolingian successions, messianism, crusading duty, the reestablishment of imperial supremacy, and the fulfillment of the latter through the conquest of the New World.

The title of Charles V reflects the complexity of his personal empire while exalting its grandeur. He is commonly referred to as "Cesarea Catholica Majestas," and he often described himself in documentation as "emperor and king," succinctly expressing a dual sovereignty consolidated under one ruler.

Contrary to the fears of his contemporaries, who perceived him as possessing implacable power and harboring ambitions of conquering Europe and the world, Charles V's imperial project did not aim for such dominion. Throughout his life, the emperor defended against such aspirations, as evidenced by his actions. However, he did have a plan for his title to be more than just an honorific designation but a functional role in its own right. The individual who received the imperial crown theoretically held the highest temporal authority after God – second only to the pope – and had no earthly superior. Charles V envisioned leading humanity along the path outlined by the Gospels, even if it required war against pagans and infidels.

This was the true vision of Charles V: to unite Christians in a quest symbolized by his throne without subjugating them. While he aimed to lead Christendom, he did not intend to completely merge it with the empire he governed personally. Such an endeavor would have been burdensome for all involved and required the systematic use of force, which did not align with the emperor's character.

[warsofasoiaf]

The Holy Roman Empire was still a major political power in Europe at the in the late 1400s and 1500s, how come it didn’t establish any new world colonies?

Well, it's worth noting that the Holy Roman Emperor, in his capacity as King of Spain, did establish colonies in the New World, it's just that they were Spanish, not German. But there was a German attempt at a colony in South America, called Klein Venedig, or Little Venice.

The Holy Roman Emperor Karl V (also known as Charles V or Carlos V of Spain) did allow South German bankers to establish a colonial territory in Venezuela in order to reduce his debt to the Welser lending house. Their first attempt had German bankers attempt to establish a settlement where they all quickly died of tropical diseases. Their second attempt was an attempt to set up a sugar plantation with African slaves, which actually did work for a time. There were colonial governors, Nikolaus Federman and Philipp von Hutton. Philipp von Hutton was enthralled by the notion of El Dorado, disappeared into the jungles attempting to find it for five years, was declared dead, and when he came back, he was court-martialed for dereliction of duty. Federman attempted to find a southwest passage to the Pacific, failed, and had his financial backers sue him for 100,000 ducats. His died during his legal appeals in 1541, but his notebooks and journals were published in 1557, which are some of the earliest recorded instances of European exploration of that region ever published.

Thanks for the question, Anon.

SomethingLikeALawyer, Hand of the King

[tercessketchfield]

MEN THINK ABOUT ROMAN EMPIRE. WOMEN THINK ABOUT HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE

JUDITH OF BAVARIA (797-843) — Daughter of Count Welf I of Bavaria, Judith was a Carolingian Empress as the second wife of Louis I the Pious. Mother of Gisela and Charles the Bald, she foght for both her own influence at court and for the succession of her son over the claims of his elder half-brothers, the sons of Louis I from his first marriage. Charles became the Emperor in 875, after the death of Louis II, his nephew and a son of his half-brother Lothair / fancast: Annabel Scholey

MARIA OF AUSTRIA (1528-1603) — Daughter of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, and Isabella of Portugal. She served as Regent of Spain both jointly with her husband, Maximilian (before their accession to the imperial throne), and in person, for her father, and brother, Philip II. Her children include two Holy Roman Emperors, Rudolf II and Matthias, over whom she held great influence, and queens consorts of Spain, and France / fancast: Olivia Cooke

EMPRESS MAUD (1102-1167) — Daughter of Henry I of England and Matilda of Scotland. Her first marriage to the Holy Roman Emperor, Henry V, gave her the title under which she came down into history, and was a source of great pride to Maud. Rightful heiress of Henry I, she confronted her cousin, King Stephen, in the civil war, known as the Anarchy, fighting ferociously for her rights. She failed in this for herself but won for her son Henry, who became king and established the Plantagenet dynasty in England / cast: Alison Pill in The Pillars of the Earth (2010)

MARIA THERESA (1717-1780) — She succeded her father Charles VI as the ruler of Habsburg monarchy in 1740, and devoutedly defended it against its enemies in the War of Austrian Succession and the Seven Year's War. Wife of the Holy Roman Emperor, Francis I, she was a forceful personality and a competent ruler herself, reigning first in her own right, and later, jointly with her son Empreror Joseph II. Her children include two Holy Romam Emperors (Joseph II and Leopold II), queens consorts of Naples ans Sicily, and France / cast: Marie-Luise Stockinger in Maria Theresia (2017)

[skitskatdacat63]

catie I NEED more vettonso lore for your au. please. (love u)

Aaaaaaaaaaa!!!!!! C!!! Thank you so much for asking!! This took me a bit cause there’s a lot of stuff I want to cover and I had to figure out how to balance the explanation of the historical context and how I apply it to my AU. But seriously thank you for asking because I did more research to write this post and learned a lot of things that make me feel deranged but I cannot bring any of this up to anyone irl without sounding like a lunatic. I’d apologize for the length but you should expect this from me by now! (I realized this doc for this was 1.5k+ my god)

Basic Info: early 1700s historical AU with arranged marriage plot 

Historical Context:

Okay, so this AU is based on a real historical event: The War of The Spanish Succession. Which is when the Spanish Throne was without a clear line of succession because the bloodline(Spanish Habsburgs) died out. So then, even though the previous Spanish King named his successor(Philip V, a Duke related to the French Royal family - representing Fernando in this AU), the Habsburgs still thought they should be allowed to keep the throne within their dynasty, thus offering up the second son(Charles VI - representing Seb in this AU) of the Holy Roman Emperor. So obviously they had to start a war because of it. But then the end result ended up being that because Charles VI’s older brother, the Holy Roman Emperor at the time, died during the war(because of illness though so it would have happened regardless), he became the next Emperor and Philip V ended up becoming the Spanish King after all, rendering it all pointless imo.

How does this relate to Vettonso?:

I'm not overly interested in either Charles VI and Philip V as people, but rather the roles they fulfill in this conflict, but obv I can’t help but draw on details from their lives. As I mentioned, Fernando is now Fernando I of Renault/France Spain and Seb is Sebastian I of Red Bull Austria. This is supposed to be like 2010-2012!Vettonso with Ferrari!Fernando and RBR!Seb(but like Fernando's title of Duke coming from France, because of his championships with Renault.) This AU is kinda just me looking at this historical event and thinking: wouldn’t a gay arranged marriage solve this succession quandary? But also just that it reminds me of Fernando and Seb’s rivalry, and the nationalities/kingdoms fit pretty well!!

Think about the throne of Spain as akin to winning a race, but becoming Holy Roman Emperor as winning the whole entire competition.(Also side note: real life Charles VI didn’t become a king until he became Emperor and adopted all of his brother’s titles, but I want Seb to be a boy king in this AU, so he can have a title as a treat.) Imagine you’re competing for something and you win it, but the only reason you win is because the other competitor won an even bigger prize!!!! Yay you got what you wanted but the boy king is now the emperor of most of Europe. And now you are stuck with him through lawfully wedded arranged marriage because they let you have what you wanted but only under the condition that the two kingdoms are still united. Yeah Fernando got the title, but Seb gained even more titles(get it???) 

They probably have a lot of animosity coming into the marriage, like “how could I ever build a relationship with the man who tried to steal my birthright?” but then realize they’re pretty similar after all. Though obviously Fernando has a lot more resentment than Seb because Seb won the whole damn thing! He would have control over Spain as he’s the king but since it's still within the domain of the empire, Seb would always have the final say. And Seb tries to be magnanimous like “Don’t worry, I won’t interfere”, and Fernando is all snide with comments like “Oh thank you great imperial majesty, can I really? Would you really allow me to do so?” But eventually become loving co-rulers that still constantly snipe at each other over different decisions the other makes. 

Some headcanons(I guess you’d still call it headcanons even if it's your own AU bcs it still comes from your head) + some fun facts from real life that have brainrotted me so I’m putting them in:

Their dynamic is just Seb being a very righteous, bratty boy king emperor who is unabashed about being that way, because he feels that it is his right, but still has a heart of gold and wants to treat his husband well no matter the circumstances leading to their marriage. And then Fernando is like a stray cat that keeps hissing and scratching because it’s really hard for him to accept the circumstances because he still feels humiliated, even though he got everything he wanted, but he still can’t help but be charmed by this baby emperor because he sees attributes of himself in Seb, and can’t really fault him because he would be the exact same, flaunting his power, if he were in Seb’s shoes. 

They would have to speak in French to each other because that’s their shared language but eventually attempt to learn each other’s native languages! Imagine Seb has to travel to Spain to give some Emperor speech and Fernando then bullies him for his bad Spanish. 

They would probably split where they live based on a schedule or by need. Yes, Fernando is the King of Spain but he is also the Emperor’s husband so he does have to spend time in the capital, Vienna. And then since Spain is a part of the empire, Seb has to go routinely, but y’know also to spend time with his husband. They find that their marriage as well as their politics is full of having to make concessions and compromises in order to make it work. 

Something I find funny is that as compensation for not getting the Spanish throne back, Spain had to cede some Italian territories to the Empire. That is literally the Ferrari plot with the transfer from Fernando to Seb!!

I’m not sure how the titles would work in this AU because obviously a m/m political marriage has not ever happened(as far as I know.) But I guess Fernando would just be King Fernando I of Spain and then Seb would be Holy Roman Emperor Sebastian I with the million titles that come with being in that role(though like most importantly Archduke of Austria and King of Bohemia and Hungary, etc.) I like the idea that Seb tries to share some titles with Fernando as a show of good will but Fernando is so affronted, mostly just from embarrassment, like “oh you think I need your good will?? I can’t be happy with what I earned in my own right??” But their kids would receive both titles and would be split in the traditional way, like first kid getting it all mostly, but the others still being nobility obv(yes.. there would be mpreg because of the plot need for succession….don’t ask who…)

They bond through their love of horses, particularly fast horses. The first time they go riding together, they’re both like awkwardly trying to act very proper as a sense of showmanship to the other like “I’m more mature than you”, but then can’t stop trying to get ahead of the other person and eventually break into a full-on race. Their aids are mutually like “oh god, they’re both the same type of insane.” 

Irl Charles VI was so salty about losing the throne that he wouldn’t stop dressing like a traditional Spanish monarch. I can totally see Seb doing that and Fernando getting so pissed with him like “you became emperor!! What more could you possibly want???’ and Seb then fixing him with his biggest pout and saying “your throne!” But also Fernando being weirdly into it because it’s basically Seb presenting himself blatantly as Fernando’s spouse. 

In that same vein, I’m going crazy over how there’s a painting from before the war, of Philip V wearing vestments from both the French order of chivalry and the Habsburg order of chivalry. Like basically stating the desire to see those two lines combined into one kingdom, which fits so well into this AU. Just Seb going crazy over how Fernando is willingly branding himself as belonging to Seb’s house. 

A testimony of Philip V’s personality is that he was a “neurotic, vacillating ruler, concerned with outward decorum and brave only in battle,” god can you not sense the energy of Fernando in that statement???

Very important to me that Charles VI reportedly had many male lovers, and that his soulmate was one of his courtiers. Maybe there can be a bit of Martian or Sebson cheating plot with them being his courtiers hahaha  

Not very relevant in this AU but there’s something about how Philip V had the longest ever reign of a Spanish monarch. Is that not Fernando??? Old man who will rule on forever, or should I say, forever keep his seat 

I already obv posted the wip for this but I'll include it here again as visual rep hehehe:

I've spent way too much time lately trying to research the fashion of the time ugh. But this, as I said, is like first joint portrait session into the marriage. And I guess I kind of want them to be wearing their corronation clothing, which I'm pretty solid on for Seb but still need to research more for Fernando. I think I'll maybe try and just put him in the afformentioned traditional Spanish monarch clothing, but the fact that it's all black kinda bores me, I'd rather he wear red!! This is like a typical royal couple type pose, except they're being more tactile. Also there's something to be said about the symbolism of Fernando being the one standing and Seb being the one sitting hehehe....