Otto II, Holy Roman Emperor facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Otto II |
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Portrait of Otto II on a c. 985 Registrum Gregorii illuminated manuscript
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| Holy Roman Emperor | |
| Reign | 7 May 973 – 7 December 983 |
| Predecessor | Otto I |
| Successor | Otto III |
| King of Italy | |
| Reign | 25 December 980 – 7 December 983 |
| Predecessor | Otto I |
| Successor | Otto III |
| King of Germany | |
| Reign | 26 May 961 – 7 December 983 |
| Predecessor | Otto I |
| Successor | Otto III |
| Born | 955 Duchy of Saxony, Kingdom of Germany |
| Died | 7 December 983 (aged 27–28) Rome, Papal States |
| Burial | St. Peter's Basilica |
| Spouse | Theophanu (m. 972) |
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| Dynasty | Ottonian |
| Father | Otto the Great |
| Mother | Adelaide of Italy |
Otto II (born in 955 – died December 7, 983), also known as the Red, was the Holy Roman Emperor from 973 until his death in 983. He was part of the Ottonian dynasty and was the youngest and only surviving son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy.
Otto II became a joint-ruler of Germany in 961 when he was very young. His father made him co-Emperor in 967 to make sure he would take the throne next. Otto the Great also arranged for Otto II to marry Theophanu, a princess from the Byzantine Empire. She remained his wife until he died.
When his father passed away after ruling for 37 years, 18-year-old Otto II became the full ruler of the Holy Roman Empire without any problems. During his time as emperor, Otto II continued his father's goals. He worked to make the Imperial rule stronger in Germany and to expand the Empire's borders further into southern Italy. He also continued to make the Catholic Church follow the Emperor's lead.
Early in his reign, Otto II faced a big rebellion from other members of his own family who wanted the throne. He defeated them, which helped him remove the Bavarian branch of the Ottonian family from the line of succession. This made his power as Emperor stronger and secured the future for his own son to become Emperor.
After sorting out problems at home, Otto II focused on taking over all of Italy starting in 980. His efforts led to conflicts with the Byzantine Empire and the Muslims of the Fatimid Caliphate, who both controlled parts of southern Italy. Otto II first succeeded in uniting the southern Lombards under his rule and taking over Byzantine lands. However, his campaigns in southern Italy ended badly in 982 after a major defeat by the Muslims. While he was getting ready to fight back, a large uprising by the Slavs happened in 983. This forced the Empire to give up its main territories east of the Elbe river.
Otto II died suddenly in 983 when he was only 28, after ruling for ten years. His three-year-old son, Otto III, became Emperor, which caused a political crisis in the Empire.
Contents
Early Life and Becoming Emperor
Birth and Childhood
Otto II was born in 955. He was the third son of Otto the Great, the King of Germany, and his second wife, Adelaide of Italy. By 957, Otto II's older brothers had died. This meant that two-year-old Otto became the next in line for the throne.
Otto the Great made sure his son received a good education. His illegitimate son, Archbishop William of Mainz, taught Otto II about literature and culture. Margrave Odo taught the young prince about warfare and the kingdom's laws.
Becoming Co-Ruler
Before going to Italy, Otto the Great wanted to secure his son's future. In May 961, he gathered his nobles in Worms and had Otto II, who was six years old, elected as co-ruler. Otto II was then crowned by his uncle, Bruno the Great, at Aachen Cathedral. This was unusual because Otto II was so young, but his father wanted to make sure the throne would pass smoothly, especially since he was going to Italy to claim the Imperial title from the Pope.
While Otto I was in Italy, Otto II stayed in Germany, and two archbishops acted as his regents (people who rule for a young king). Otto I returned to Germany in 965 as the Holy Roman Emperor. To show that the family would continue to rule, Otto I again confirmed Otto II as his heir in 965.
Heir to the Throne
Even though Otto I was crowned Emperor in 962, the situation in Italy was still unstable. In 966, Otto I went on another trip to Italy. Again, Bruno was appointed to rule for the 11-year-old Otto II.
Otto I wanted to improve his relationship with the Byzantine Empire in the East. The Byzantine Emperor did not like Otto using the title "Emperor." They finally agreed to share power over southern Italy. Otto I also wanted a marriage between his family and the Eastern Byzantine family. For this marriage to happen, Otto II had to be crowned as Co-Emperor.
So, Otto I asked Otto II to join him in Italy. In October 967, they met and traveled to Rome. On December 25, 967, Pope John XIII crowned Otto II as Co-Emperor. This made sure Otto II would become the full Emperor after his father died.
The marriage negotiations with the East took a long time. Finally, in 972, a peace agreement and marriage were arranged. Otto I wanted a specific Byzantine princess, but she was too young. So, Otto II married Theophanu, the niece of the new Byzantine Emperor John I Tzimiskes. On April 14, 972, 16-year-old Otto II married 14-year-old Theophanu, and she was crowned empress by the Pope.
Even after his coronation, Otto II was still in his father's shadow. He was a co-ruler but was not given any real power in running the Empire. He mostly stayed in northern Italy while his father was in the south. In August 972, the Imperial family returned to Germany.
On May 7, 973, Otto the Great died from a fever. Otto II became the sole Emperor without any opposition. He continued his father's goals of strengthening Imperial rule in Germany and expanding it into Italy.
Otto II's Time as Emperor
Taking the Throne and Early Challenges
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When Otto the Great died, it was already planned for Otto II to become Emperor. Otto II had been King of Germany for twelve years and Emperor for five years. Unlike his father, Otto II did not have brothers who could challenge his claim to the throne. On May 8, the nobles of the Empire gathered and chose Otto II as his father's successor.
One of Otto II's first actions was to confirm the rights of the Archbishop of Magdeburg. Even though Otto II became Emperor peacefully, there were still power struggles within the Empire. For the first seven years of his rule, he was busy trying to keep Imperial power strong against rivals inside the Empire and enemies outside.
Problems that Otto the Great faced, especially with the Saxon nobles, continued after his death. The Saxon nobles did not like the Archdiocese of Magdeburg on the Empire's eastern border. Otto II's marriage to the Byzantine Princess Theophanu also made some Saxon nobles feel that the Emperor was moving away from their interests.
In Italy, things were also messy. The Pope appointed by Otto I was killed in 974. Another person then crowned himself Pope, becoming an Antipope. However, a revolt forced him to flee. Later, a new Pope, Pope Benedict VII, was chosen.
Otto II also had a disagreement with his mother, Adelaide of Italy. They traveled together for a while, but Otto II's mother and his wife, Theophanu, did not trust each other's influence over the Emperor. This caused tension in the Imperial family. After a final meeting in 978 that did not go well, Adelaide moved to Burgundy for protection.
Trouble with Henry II
Otto II wanted peace with his cousin, Henry II, Duke of Bavaria. In 973, Otto II gave Henry II control over some imperial castles. But Henry II wanted more power, especially in the Duchy of Swabia. When a bishop died in Augsburg, Henry II named his own cousin as the new bishop without asking Otto II. This caused a conflict between Henry II, Otto II, and the Duke of Swabia. Otto II eventually approved the bishop, trying to avoid a civil war.
When the Duke of Swabia died without an heir, Henry II demanded that Otto II make him the new Duke. Otto II refused, sensing Henry's big ambitions. Instead, Otto II named his nephew, Otto, as the new Duke of Swabia. This showed that Otto II preferred his direct family line over Henry II's.
Henry II saw this as an insult and a challenge to his claim to the Imperial throne. In 974, he plotted against Otto II with the Duke of Poland and the Duke of Bohemia. Otto II's church officials warned Henry II to submit or face being removed from the church. Henry II and his followers gave in, but Otto II punished them severely. Henry II was put in prison.
By 976, Henry II was back in Bavaria. He openly rebelled against Otto II, claiming he should rule the Empire. Henry II got support from some Saxon nobles who were unhappy with Otto II. In response, Otto II took away Henry II's duchy and removed him from the church. Otto II then marched his army to Bavaria and surrounded Henry II's main city, Regensburg. Otto II's army broke through, forcing Henry II to flee.
After Henry II was removed, Otto II changed the southern German duchies. He made the Duchy of Bavaria much smaller. From the land taken from Bavaria, Otto II created the Duchy of Carinthia in southern Germany. This greatly reduced the power of the Bavarian dukes in Italy and in Imperial politics. Otto II gave the smaller Duchy of Bavaria to his nephew Otto and made Henry III the Duke of Carinthia.
Otto II then focused on capturing Henry II. After two attempts, Otto II marched into Bohemia in 977. While he was there, another revolt broke out in Bavaria. Henry II, along with other dukes, joined the rebellion. Otto II had to return from Bohemia. He met the rebels at Passau and, after a long siege, forced them to surrender. Otto II brought the rebels before the Imperial assembly in 978. Henry II was imprisoned until Otto II's death in 983.
Unlike his father, who often forgave rebellious family members, Otto II wanted to make sure the Bavarian branch of his family was under his control. Henry II's young son was sent to study for a church career, suggesting Otto II wanted to end their family's secular rule in Bavaria.
War with Denmark
In 950, Otto the Great had taken control of the Kingdom of Denmark and forced the Danish King to accept him as his overlord. He also made the king and his son, Harald Bluetooth, convert to Christianity. Under Otto the Great, Denmark paid tribute to the Germans.
When Harald became king in 958, he expanded his kingdom into Norway. With this new power, Harald no longer wanted to accept German rule. In 974, Harald rebelled against Otto II. With help from Norwegian troops, Harald crossed into Germany and defeated the German forces. Otto II attacked Harald's army, but the combined Danish-Norwegian forces pushed back the Germans. However, when the Norwegian allies left, Otto II was able to stop Harald's advances.
War Against France
Otto II also faced problems in western Germany. Two brothers, Reginar IV and Lambert I, wanted their family's land back in the Duchy of Lorraine. Years earlier, Otto the Great had exiled their father for a failed revolt. In 973, Otto II agreed to their request, hoping for a fresh start. But the brothers tried to take their land by force again in 976, this time with help from King Lothar of France.
To calm things down, Otto II made Charles, King Lothar's brother, the Duke of Lower Lorraine. Otto II's support for Charles angered King Lothar, who claimed Lorraine for France. Charles and Lothar were also fighting, and Charles had been exiled from France. Charles fled to Otto II's court and promised to be loyal to Otto II. In return, Otto II made Charles Duke and promised to support his claim to the French throne.
Soon after Otto II crushed Henry II's revolt, the Emperor and his wife Theophanu returned to Aachen in Lorraine. With the Imperial family near the French border, Lothar invaded Lorraine and marched on Aachen. Otto II and Theophanu fled. Otto II's mother, Adelaide, sided with Lothar against her own son. After occupying Aachen for five days, Lothar returned to France.
Otto II called an Imperial assembly in July 978. There, he declared war on France and prepared his army. In September 978, Otto II attacked France with Charles's help. He faced little resistance, destroying the land around Rheims and other cities. Otto II then had Charles crowned as King of the Franks. Lothar fled to Paris, which Otto II and Charles then surrounded. However, sickness among his troops and a French relief army forced Otto II to end the siege in November and return to Germany. On the way back, Otto's rearguard was attacked by French forces.
Even though neither side won clearly, Otto II felt his honor was restored and started peace talks with the French King. Peace was finally made in 980. Otto II gave up his claims on Lorraine, and in return, Lothar recognized his son Louis V as the rightful heir to the French throne.
With peace made, Otto II returned to Aachen. In late June or early July 980, Empress Theophanu gave birth to their only son, Otto III.
Ruling in Italy
Church Politics
With his rule secure in Germany and his heir born, Otto II turned his attention to Italy. The situation there was chaotic. The Pope appointed by Otto I had been killed in 974. A new Pope, Pope Benedict VII, was chosen.
In 979, Pope Benedict VII's position was threatened, so he asked the Emperor for help. Otto II, Theophanu, and their infant son Otto III prepared to march south. Otto II appointed the Archbishop of Mainz to rule Germany in his absence.
In October 980, the Imperial court arrived in Italy. Otto II reached Pavia in December 980. There, Otto II and his mother, Adelaide of Italy, made up after years of being apart. Before Christmas, Otto II received the Iron Crown of Lombardy as the King of Italy. In February 981, Otto II arrived in Rome and easily restored Pope Benedict VII to his position.
In Rome, Otto II held a grand ceremony for Easter. Many important people from Germany, Italy, and France joined the Imperial family. Otto II made Rome his Imperial capital, where he met with princes and nobles from all over western Europe.
Venetian Relations
The relationship between the Empire and the Republic of Venice was important during Otto II's reign. In 966, the leader of Venice, Pietro IV Candiano, married a relative of Otto I. This brought the Empire and Venice closer, and Otto I gave Venice special trading agreements. This angered the Byzantine Emperor, as Venice controlled all sea trade between Western Europe and the Byzantine East.
Otto I's protection helped Pietro IV stay in power in Venice. But in 973, Otto I died. With Otto II busy with revolts in Germany, the Venetians who opposed Pietro IV saw their chance to remove him. They trapped him in his palace and set it on fire. The fire spread, burning much of the city. Pietro IV and his son were killed.
Pietro IV's younger son, Vitale Candiano, fled to Otto II's court. He planned to remove the new leader of Venice, who was pro-Byzantine. The new leader, Pietro I, stepped down after four years, allowing Vitale to return as leader in 977. This restored Venice's friendly relationship with the Empire. However, Vitale's rule was short, and he also stepped down. A new pro-Byzantine leader, Tribuno Memmo, became the new leader in 979.
Otto II was hesitant to renew the trading agreements with Venice. Only after his mother, Adelaide, stepped in did the Emperor renew the agreements.
In 980, violence broke out in Venice between families who supported Otto II and those who supported the Byzantines. The pro-Ottonian family asked the Emperor for help. Otto II saw this as a chance to fully bring Venice into the Empire. When he arrived in Italy in 981, Otto II immediately stopped trade with Venice. When this did not work, he imposed a second trade ban in 983, which severely hurt Venice's economy. The Venetian families were forced to surrender to Otto II, but his sudden death that year stopped him from fully taking advantage of his victory.
Religious Policy
Otto II continued his father's policy of making the Church more important in his Empire, especially monasticism and monasteries. The Church helped support and stabilize the Empire. To do this, Otto II made sure bishops had legal protection and economic independence from the nobles.
The Ottonian family had a special interest in Memleben because both Otto II's father and grandfather had died there. Otto II and his wife Theophanu made the city more important by building a large Benedictine abbey there, the Memleben Abbey. This abbey quickly became one of the richest and most powerful Imperial abbeys. Its size suggests it might have been planned as a burial place for the Ottonian emperors.
After putting down Henry II's rebellion, Otto II used the Empire's monasteries for treason trials. While his father had founded only one monastery, Otto II established at least four: Memleben, Tegernsee, Bergen, and Arneburg. Monasticism became a key part of Otto II's Imperial policy, and he gave abbots important political roles.
Otto II also used monks as his top political advisors. One important monk was John Philagathus, who was Otto II's wife Theophanu's personal chaplain. Otto II made him his Imperial Chancellor from 980 to 982. After Otto II's death, Theophanu, as regent for her son Otto III, made John Otto III's tutor.
Southern Expansion
Otto II wanted to do more in Italy than his father had. He wanted to gain complete control over all of Italy. Influenced by his wife, who did not like the Byzantine rulers, Otto II decided to take over Byzantine-controlled southern Italy. This meant he would have to fight not only the Byzantine Empire but also the Muslim Fatimid Caliphate, which also claimed southern Italy.
The main leader for the Ottonians in central and southern Italy had been the Lombard leader Pandulf Ironhead. Otto I had made him Prince of Benevento and Capua in 961. Pandulf fought against the Byzantines and expanded Ottonian control to include Spoleto in 967. The next year, under Otto II, Pandulf added Salerno to the Empire. His campaigns brought all three southern Lombard lands into the Holy Roman Empire. As Otto II's loyal follower, Pandulf ruled a large area stretching from Tuscany south to the Gulf of Taranto.
Pandulf died in 981, and Otto II lost one of his main helpers. Pandulf's lands were divided among his sons, but soon there were more quarrels between the local Lombard princes. Otto II traveled south to try and stabilize the situation, giving different parts of the land to various family members.
By 982, the area Pandulf once ruled had fallen apart, weakening Otto II's position against the Byzantines. The Byzantines still claimed power over the Lombard lands. Otto II tried to reunite the Lombard territories into his Empire. He eventually got all the Lombard princes to recognize his authority.
With his power over the Lombard princes reestablished, Otto II focused on the threat from Muslim Sicily. Since the 960s, Sicily had been under Muslim rule. The Muslim rulers had been raiding Imperial lands in southern Italy. After Pandulf's death in 981, the Sicilian Emir increased his raids. In 980, Otto II asked the city of Pisa for a fleet to help him fight in southern Italy. In September 981, he marched into southern Italy. He made peace with the Duke of Amalfi, who he needed as an ally against the Muslims and Byzantines.
Otto II's troops marched into Byzantine-controlled Apulia in January 982 to take the territory for his Empire. This made the Byzantine Empire seek an alliance with Muslim Sicily to keep its southern Italian lands. Otto's army surrounded and captured the Byzantine city of Taranto in March 982. After celebrating Easter there, Otto II moved his army west, defeating a Muslim army in early July. The Muslim Emir, who had declared a holy war against Otto, retreated when he saw how strong Otto II's army was. Otto II left his wife Theophanu and young son Otto III in the city and pursued the Muslim forces.
The Muslim Emir could not escape back to Sicily because Otto's navy blocked the sea. So, the Emir faced Otto's army in a big battle south of Crotone on July 14, 982. After a fierce fight, Otto II's heavy cavalry broke through the Muslim lines, and the Emir was killed. Even though their leader died, the Muslim troops did not run away. They regrouped and surrounded the Imperial soldiers, killing many of them and giving the Emperor a severe defeat. Many important Imperial officials and nobles died in the battle.
This Imperial defeat, the worst in the Empire's history at that time, greatly weakened Imperial power in southern Italy. The Byzantines joined forces with the Muslims and took back Apulia from Otto's forces.
Imperial Challenges
Succession Plans
The defeat at Stilo forced Otto II to flee north to Rome. He then held an Imperial assembly in Verona in 983. He sent his nephew back to Germany with news of the defeat and to call the German nobles to the assembly, but his nephew died on the way. News of the battle reached as far as England, showing how big the defeat was. A German duke heading to the assembly had to turn back because Danish Vikings were raiding.
At the assembly, Otto II appointed new Dukes for Swabia and Bavaria. He brought back Henry III, who he had exiled earlier, to help stabilize things in Germany while he fought in Italy. Otto II and the nobles agreed to block the sea and use economic warfare until more soldiers could arrive from Germany. Otto II also made a deal with Venice, whose help he needed after his army was destroyed. However, Otto II's death the next year and the civil war that followed stopped the Empire from fully responding to the defeat.
The most important thing Otto II did at the assembly was to make sure his son, Otto III, who was only three years old, was chosen as King of Germany and the next in line for the Imperial throne. Otto III became the only German king elected south of the Alps. The exact reason for this unusual choice is not known. It is possible that the situation in southern Italy after the defeat made Otto II act quickly to name an heir. It might also have been a way for Otto II to show that Italy was an equal part of the Empire to Germany. After his election, Otto III and his mother, Theophanu, traveled north to Aachen, where Otto III was officially crowned king. Otto II stayed in Italy to continue his military campaigns.
Great Slavic Uprising
Around 982, the Empire's power in Slavic territory reached far to the east. After Otto II's defeat at Stilo in 983, the Lutici Federation of Polabian Slavs rebelled against their German rulers. This started the Great Slav Rising. The Slavs destroyed important church centers. According to a German writer, the forced Germanization and Christianization of the Slavs over decades caused this destruction. The writer blamed the uprising on the Germans' mistreatment of the Slavs, saying, "Warriors, who used to be our servants, now free as a consequence of our injustices."
Soldiers from different German regions joined forces to fight the Slavs. However, the Empire was forced to retreat to the western banks of the Elbe river. The efforts to convert the Slavs to Christianity were undone, and political control over territories east of the Elbe was lost. Otto I's work of converting the Slavs was reversed in just a decade. The Slavic lands east of the Elbe would remain pagan for over a century before missionary work started again.
The Danes took advantage of the Slavic revolt and invaded the northern border of the Empire. The Sorb Slavs also invaded and conquered territory from the Saxons.
Sudden Death and Political Problems
In July 983, Pope Benedict VII, who had supported Otto II for a long time, died. Otto II returned to Rome in September to name a new Pope, choosing Pope John XIV in November or early December. While Otto II was in Rome, a malaria outbreak in central Italy stopped military activity in southern Italy. The outbreak eventually led to the Emperor's own death in his palace in Rome on December 7, 983. He was 28 years old and had ruled for just over ten years.
Otto II's money and possessions were divided among the Catholic Church, the poor, his mother Adelaide of Italy, his sister Matilda, and his loyal nobles. Otto II was buried in St. Peter's Basilica, making him the only Holy Roman Emperor buried there.
Otto II's three-year-old son, Otto III, was crowned as King of Germany in Aachen on Christmas Day 983, three weeks after his father's death. News of Otto II's death reached Germany after Otto III's coronation. The unsolved problems in southern Italy and the Slavic uprising made the Empire's political situation very unstable. A child ruler caused confusion in the Empire, allowing Otto III's mother, the Byzantine Princess Theophanu, to rule as his regent (someone who governs for a young ruler).
In 976, Otto II had removed Henry II as Duke of Bavaria and imprisoned him. In early 984, Henry II escaped. He then took the infant Otto III and, as a member of the ruling Ottonian family, claimed to be the regent of the Empire. Henry II even tried to claim the German throne for himself, getting support from the Duke of Poland and the Duke of Bohemia. However, Otto III's right to the throne was supported by many powerful church leaders and dukes. The threat of war forced Henry II to give up Otto III on June 29, 984, and to respect Theophanu's regency.
Otto II's early death and the events that followed were a serious test for the Empire. Even with a child ruler under his mother's care, the system set up by Emperor Otto the Great remained strong, as most of the Empire's powerful officials stayed loyal to the Imperial system.
About Otto II
| German royal dynasties | |
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| Ottonian dynasty | |
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Chronology
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| Henry I |
919 – 936
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| Otto I |
936 – 973
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| Otto II |
973 – 983
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| Otto III |
983 – 1002
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| Henry II |
1002 – 1024
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Family
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| Ottonian dynasty family tree Family tree of the German monarchs Category:Ottonian dynasty |
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Succession
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| Preceded by Conradine dynasty | |
| Followed by Salian dynasty | |
Otto was a small man, brave and quick to act. He was also a skilled knight. He was generous to the church and helped spread Christianity. Some writers of the time said he was called "the Red" because he invited troublesome Roman families to a banquet in 981 and had them killed during dinner. More friendly writers said it was because of his reddish skin. It is more likely he got the nickname from his half-uncle Conrad the Red, who died the year Otto was born and from whom he may have inherited some property.
Family and Children
Otto II was part of the Ottonian dynasty, which ruled Germany (and later the Holy Roman Empire) from 919 to 1024. He was the grandson of Henry I, the son of Otto I, the father of Otto III, and a distant cousin to Henry II.
Otto II had one known wife, Theophanu, a Byzantine princess. They married on April 14, 972. They had at least five children:
- Adelheid I, Abbess of Quedlinburg, born 973/974, died 1045.
- Sophie I, Abbess of Gandersheim, born October 975, died 1039.
- Matilda, born summer 978, died 1025; she married Ezzo.
- Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor, born late June/early July 980.
- A daughter, who was Otto III's twin, but died before October 8, 980.
Images for kids
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Portrait of Otto II on a c. 985 Registrum Gregorii illuminated manuscript
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Otto II (left) and Theophanu anointed as Emperor and Empress
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Otto II, from a series of Holy Roman emperors (12th and 13th centuries); the panels are now set into Gothic windows, Strasbourg Cathedral
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The Duchy of Carinthia (orange) was created by Otto II from confiscated territory of the Duchy of Bavaria (purple)
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Territory of the Venetian Republic (in red) shortly after Otto II's reign.
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Otto II, from a south Italian exultet roll, c. 985
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Italy around 1000, short after Otto II's death in 983.
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The Northern March (outlined in red) between the Billung March in the north and the Saxon Eastern March (March of Lusatia) in the south. Both the Billung March and the North March were lost following the Great Slav Rising.
See also
In Spanish: Otón II para niños
- Kings of Germany family tree.
