GERMANY. 
47S 
fefTed a g;ood fliare of wifdom, policy, and courage ; 
■but lie has been generally branded rvith the vices of 
c ruelty, pride, and avarice, and his unnatural behaviour 
to his fatlier lias lixed an indelible ftain upon his memory. 
It was generally luppofed that the fupreme dignity 
■crould be conierred upon one of the nephews of the 
deceafed emperor. But Albert archbidiop of Mentz 
prciyailed^ on the princes of tlie empire to give their 
juftrages in favour ot Lotharius duke of Saxe-Supplem- 
bourg, who was accordingly crowned at Aix-la-Cha- 
j^elle, in prelence o! the pope’s nuncio. His competi¬ 
tors made lomc vigorous exertions for the fupport of 
their pretenfions ; but, alter a fanguinary and unavail¬ 
ing contell, they took the oath of allegiance, and were 
liono'ured with particular marks of their fovereign’s 
liiendlliip. After a fuccefslul expedition againlt the 
Bohemians, Lotharius, in 1133, undertook to re-eftablifli 
pope Innocent II. wlio had been forced from the apof- 
tolic chair by Anacletus. This attempt anfw^ered his 
expedlation, and Innocent remunerated his fervices by 
performing the ceremony of his coronation with great 
riiagnilicence. Some time after thefe tranfadlions, his 
liolinefs was expofed to imminent danger by an hodile 
iiicur^on ot Roger king of Sicily: but Lotharius again 
advanced to his allitlance, and Roger’s infult was pu- 
niHied by the lols of ail his Italian poireflions.- On his 
return to Germany, Lotharius was feized with a dan¬ 
gerous diflemper, -cviiich terminated his life, ^ in the 
twelfth year of his reign. By command of this prince, 
the Jultinian code of laws, which had been difufed for 
upwards of five hundred years, was revived in the em¬ 
pire. 1 his reign was alfo rendered remarkable by 
Ibme exceilive heats in Germany, which withered the 
corn and fruits of the earth, dried up the molt confi- 
derable rivers, and occafioned a dreadful mortality 
among the cattle. 
Having paid the laff duties to the deceafed emperor, 
tlie princes and (fates affembled at Coblentz, A.D. 1139, 
and unanimoufy elected Conrad III. duke of Franconia, 
to fill the vacant throne. This meafure was warmly 
relented by Henry ot Bavaria, furnamed the Haughty, 
and lie politively refufed to furrender the regalia, 
which had been depolited in his liands by Lotharius : 
but after lome time he was compelled to fubmit, and 
I'lis grief on the lublequent alienation of his territories 
brought him to his grave. Upon the demife of this 
nobleman, his brother Guelplie, witli the alliftance of 
the king of Sicily, railed the Ifandard of rebellion, and 
made lome vigorous exertions for the recovery of the 
confilcaied duchies. After feveral indecifive engage- 
Hients, however, he was cJofely befieged by the empe¬ 
ror in the callle of Weinfberg, and compelled to furren¬ 
der at diferetion. Upon tiiis occafion, the duchefs pe¬ 
titioned that lierfelf and all the women belonging to the 
callle might come out with as much as each could 
carry, and be condudtad to a place of fafety. Conrad 
granted lier roquell, fuppofing that the ladies were 
anxious for the prefervation of their treafures; but 
when lie law tiiem flaggering under the weight of tlieir 
hulbands, who iiad incurred his refentment, he was 
overcome with adniirc;tion at the afrecling fpeftacle, 
and freely pardoned the objects of their conjugal af- 
fedlion. 
In 1147, Conrad was prevailed on by the admonitions 
of St. Bernard, to join the ciufade againll the Sara¬ 
cens, for the defence of the Holy Land; and he ac¬ 
cordingly fet out for Paletiine, at the head of nodefs than 
lixty thoufaiid cavalry. But moit of his forces were 
facriliced to the treachery of the Greek emperor, and 
the irrefiftibie fury of the Turks; and lie was foon 
compelled to return with difgrace into his own domi¬ 
nions. The death of the emperor’s eldeft fon, who had 
been elected king of llie Romans, added to the abov'e 
misfortune, feems to have made a very deep impreflion 
«m his fpirits, and confiderably affected his health. 
However, being anxious to provide for the fuCceffioiv 
he convened a diet at Bamberg, and recommended Iris 
nephew, Frederic Barbaroffa, to the flates of the era- 
pire, as a prince of known courage and capacitv. This 
recommendation was univerfally approved ; and Con¬ 
rad, III. died foon afterward at Bamberg, iiv tlie four¬ 
teenth year of his reign. He left one fon by his em- 
prefs Gertrude, but his tender age precluded him from 
afeending the throne. 
Frederic I. furnamed Barbarofla, was folemnly croivn- 
ed at Aix-la-Chapelle, A.D. 1152, in the twenty-ninth 
year ot his age ; and he had the latisfadlion of receiving 
congi atulatory addrelfes from almofl: all the princes of 
Europe. Having compromifed fome differences be- 
tiveen the princes of the empire, and compelled Sueno 
to do homage for the kingdom of Denmark, Frederic 
put liunfelf at the head of a numerous army, and 
marched into Italy, where feveral cities had thrown ofF 
their allegiance, and the Romans had made an infur- 
redlion againll the pope’s fovereignty. This expedition 
was attended with complete fucccl's : for the revolted 
towns were quickly reduced ; the Romans were obliged 
to acknowledge tlieir pontifi ’s fupremacy ; and tlie vic¬ 
torious emperor was folemnly crowned with the Lom¬ 
bard and imperial diadems. Some time after th. fc 
tranfaclions, a quarrel broke out between Frederic and 
his holinefs, refpedling the imperial authority ; and a 
letter of Adrian iV. which audacioully intimated his 
power of tranterring the empire from the Germans to 
tlie Greeks, occalioned an univerfal conflernation. Fre¬ 
deric, however, acted witli fuch fpirit and refolution, 
tliat his adverfary thought proper to elude chaflife- 
ment, by writing a fecond letter, in ■whicli he explained 
away the meaning of his former expreffions. 
Notwithllanding this fubmiflion on the part of Adrian, 
the emperor refolved to marcli into Italy, and afl’erl the 
rights ot liis imperial crown. ' Accordingly, after re¬ 
ducing Bolidaus duke of Poland, confirming the fove¬ 
reignty of Waldemar, and lecuring the fidelity of the 
king of Hungary, he crofted the Alps with a numerous 
army, and reduced Brefcia, which had the prefumption 
to oppofe his palFage. ^ He then compelled all the re¬ 
volted cities ot Lombardy to returrrto their allegiance ; 
and held an afFembly on the plain of Roncalie, where 
he enacted feveral laws for the maintenance of tran¬ 
quillity, afeertained the prerogatives of royalty, and 
exacted homage of all who lield of the empire, without 
making any diltindtion between laymen and eeclefiaflics. 
The latter part of thefe proceedings gave great um¬ 
brage to his holinefs, and a grand embafl'y of legates 
was lent to complain of the difrepedt which had been 
thus offered to the cluircli; but Frederic eft'edtually 
iilenced them by obferving, that Jefus Chrilt himfelf, 
though lord of the univerfe, had deigned to nay, for 
liimielf and St. Peter, the tribute which was demanded 
in the name of Caefar. 
Whiifi Frederic was employed in chaftifing ths Mila- 
nefe for a frefii infurredtion, pope Adrian died ; and a 
fchifm arofe in the eledtion of a fuccefibr to the papacy. 
The greatell part of the cardinals, wlio were on the 
fpot at the time of his death, gave their iuffrages on 
behalf of Roland, chancellor of tlie church, wlio af- 
fumed the name of Alexander HI. and the reft chofe 
Odtavian of St. Cecilia, who tore the papal robe, by 
force, from his competitor, and caufed himfelf to be 
proclaimed by the name of Victor IV. The emperor, 
being apprifed of this circumftance, convened a council 
at Pavia, in whicli Vidtor was recognifed as lawful 
pope, and declared witli the ufual folemnities; but 
Alexander thundered out a fenteiice of excommunica¬ 
tion againlt the emperor, and all his adherents. 
The leverity which Barbarofi'a had exercifed upon 
the Milanele excited molt of the other Italian Hates 
againlt him, and induced them, in 1164, again to fiiake 
off the imperial yoke. The Romans and Venetians ac¬ 
cordingly 
