Erbreichsplan facts for kids
Erbreichsplan is a German word. It means "plan for a hereditary empire." This was a big idea from Henry VI, Holy Roman Emperor (who ruled from 1191 to 1197). He wanted to stop the imperial election, where princes chose the emperor. Instead, he wanted the Holy Roman Empire to be passed down in his family, the Staufer, like a family business.
This plan would have joined the Empire (which included Germany, Italy, and Burgundy) with the kingdom of Sicily. Sicily was a kingdom Henry owned because of his wife, Constance, who was its heiress. But Sicily was also a special land connected to the Pope. Because of this, the Papacy (the Pope and his leaders) strongly disagreed with Henry's plan. Many imperial princes also didn't support it enough.
Why Henry Had This Idea
Henry became Holy Roman Emperor in 1191. He was known for being very strong and wanting to make the emperor's power even greater. In 1194, he took over the Kingdom of Sicily from its king, William III. In the same year, his wife Constance had a son, Frederick II. Henry hoped Frederick would inherit both the Empire and Sicily. It was Henry's dream to have the Empire and Sicily always united under his family, the House of Hohenstaufen.
But there was a problem for Henry's plan. The Empire was an "elective monarchy." This meant that after an emperor died, the princes would vote for the next one. The Hohenstaufen family couldn't be sure they would always keep the title. Henry knew that in other countries, like France, kings passed their crowns to their children. This made the kingships much stronger. So, Henry decided to try and make his imperial title hereditary. He tried to get the support of the Empire's princes.
The princes, who were not church leaders, were worried about Henry's great power. Even though it was normal for princes to pass their lands to their children, it wasn't a formal rule. Henry sometimes refused to let a prince's heir take over their land. For example, when Albrecht the Proud, a prince, died in 1195, Henry took his land instead of letting Albrecht's brother, Dietrich I, inherit it. Because of this, the princes were nervous about their own family's right to inherit. They were willing to make some deals with the Emperor if he would protect their inheritance rights.
Henry's Plan and Why It Failed
After taking Sicily in 1194, Henry was busy planning a possible crusade (a religious war). He was also talking about getting his son Frederick elected as his successor in the Empire. Meanwhile, the princes made it clear they wanted their own lands to be hereditary. They also wanted women in their families to be able to inherit. Henry agreed to think about these demands. By doing this, he got most of the princes who were not church leaders to agree to his idea of a hereditary monarchy. Henry also got the support of the church princes. He promised he would stop taking lands from the Church when a church leader died. This was a practice called jus spolii, which had been used against Church lands for many years.
Even with a lot of support from both kinds of princes, Henry couldn't get a written agreement. The first big problem for his plan was the Archbishop of Cologne, Adolf of Altena. Adolf didn't like Henry's rule in general. He also didn't want to lose the important power his position had in choosing the emperor. When he got several princes from Saxon and Thuringia to go against the Emperor, Henry realized he couldn't make the monarchy hereditary without a fight.
Henry then turned to the papacy (the Pope). He hoped that if the Pope supported him, the plan would work. But Pope Celestine III had many reasons to say no. One big reason was that the Pope didn't want the Emperor to become too powerful in Italy. Henry tried to make a deal with Celestine. He offered to meet some of the Pope's demands and probably offered money too. But in the end, the Pope decided that a hereditary monarchy would make the Emperor too strong. So, he refused to support Henry.
Henry's plan to make his office hereditary was now stuck. He put his plans aside for a while. Instead, he made sure his son Frederick was elected King of the Romans in late 1196. This was a step towards becoming emperor. Over the next year, Henry was busy with a revolt in Sicily and getting ready for the Crusade. Then, he suddenly died in September 1197. His death completely ended his plans for a hereditary Empire. The idea was quickly forgotten as the Empire soon fell into a civil war between Philip of Swabia and Otto IV. Henry's efforts to make the imperial title hereditary didn't work. The Holy Roman Empire remained an elective monarchy until it ended in 1806. However, for the last four centuries, the Habsburg family often got the job, even though it was still technically an election.
