Maximilian I, Archduke of Austria
| Maximilian I | |
|---|---|
| Archduke of Austria | |
|
|
| King of the Romans | |
| Reign | 16 February 1486 – 12 January 1519 |
| Coronation | 9 April 1486 |
| Predecessor | Frederick III |
| Successor | Charles V |
| Holy Roman Emperor | |
| Reign | 4 February 1508 – 12 January 1519 |
| Predecessor | Frederick III |
| Successor | Charles V |
| Born |
22 March 1459 Wiener Neustadt, Inner Austria |
| Died | 12 January 1519 (aged 59) Wels, Upper Austria |
| Burial | Wiener Neustadt, Austria |
| Spouse |
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| Issue among others... |
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| House | Habsburg |
| Father | Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor |
| Mother | Eleanor of Portugal |
| Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans (also known as King of the Germans) from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1493 until his death, though he was never crowned by the Pope, as the journey to Rome was always too risky. He was the son of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor, and Eleanor of Portugal. He ruled jointly with his father for the last ten years of his father's reign, from c. 1483 to 1493.
Maximilian expanded the influence of the House of Habsburg through war and his marriage in 1477 to Mary of Burgundy, the heiress to the Duchy of Burgundy, though he also lost the Austrian territories in today's Switzerland to the Swiss Confederacy. Through marriage of his son Philip the Handsome to eventual queen Joanna of Castile in 1498, Maximilian helped to establish the Habsburg dynasty in Spain, which allowed his grandson Charles to hold the thrones of both Castile and Aragon. Charles' father Philip died in 1506, so Charles succeeded Maximilian as Holy Roman Emperor in 1519, and thus ruled both the Holy Roman Empire and the Spanish Empire simultaneously.
Maximilian was born at Wiener Neustadt on 22 March 1459. His father, Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor, named him for an obscure saint whom Frederick believed had once warned him of imminent peril in a dream. In his infancy, he and his parents were besieged in Vienna by Albert of Austria. One source relates that, during the siege's bleakest days, the young prince would wander about the castle garrison, begging the servants and men-at-arms for bits of bread. The young prince was an excellent hunter, his favorite hobby was the hunting for birds as a horse archer.
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