Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor

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Rudolf II von Habsburg was an emperor of the Holy Roman Empire, King of Bohemia, and King of Hungary.

He was born in Vienna on July 18, 1552, and died in Prague on January 20, 1612. He was the eldest son and successor of Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor, King of Bohemia, King of Hungary; his mother was Maria of Spain, a daughter of Charles V and Isabella of Portugal.

Acceding to most of the Habsburg lands in 1576, Rudolf reversed his father's tolerant policy toward Protestantism and gave assistance to the Counter-Reformation. Although he was a learned man, he was incapable of ruling effectively because he was plagued by melancholy and later subject to occasional fits of insanity, prompting members of his family to intervene in imperial affairs.

In 1595 his uncle Archduke Ferdinand II died, leaving only morganatic sons. As head of the house, Rudolf in principle should have succeeded in his lands Further Austria and Tirol, but he immediately allowed his next brother, Archduke Mathias, who was married to Ferdinand II's only surviving legitimate daughter, to inherit those lands in right of his wife.

Following the Ottoman-supported revolt of Stephen Bocskay in Hungary (1604-6), provoked by Rudolf's attempt to impose Roman Catholicism there, most of the executive power in the kingdoms passed to Matthias. In 1608, Matthias forced Rudolf to cede Hungary, Austria, and Moravia to him. Seeking to gain the support of the Bohemian estates, Rudolf in 1609 issued a royal charter called the Majestät, or Letter of Majesty, which guaranteed religious freedom to the nobles and cities. This effort was in vain, and Rudolf was further compelled to give up Bohemia to Matthias in 1611. The turbulence of his reign can be seen as foreshadowing the Thirty Years' War.

Rudolf II was one of the most eccentric European monarchs of that or any other period. He kept a menagerie of exotic animals and was a great lover of art and architecture, surrounding himself with artists such as the mannerist Bartholomeus Spranger and the fantastical Giuseppe Arcimboldo. He was also fascinated with the sciences, and both Tycho Brahe and Johannes Kepler attended his court, as well as the alchemists Edward Kelley and John Dee. Rudolf gave Prague a mystical reputation that persists in part to this day, with Alchemists' Alley in the grounds of Prague Castle a popular visiting place. He is closely associated with the legend of the Golem, having met the Maharal, Rabbi Loew. Such was Rudolf's reputation that it was rumoured he collected dwarfs and employed a regiment of giants in his army.

1 Ancestors
2 References
3 See also
4 External links

[edit] Ancestors

**Rudolf's ancestors in three generations**
Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor	Father: Maximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor	Father's father: Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor	Father's father's father: Philip I of Castile
			Father's father's mother: Joanna of Castile
		Father's mother: Anna of Bohemia and Hungary	Father's mother's father: Ladislaus II of Bohemia and Hungary
			Father's mother's mother: Anne de Foix
	Mother: Maria of Spain	Mother's father: Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor	Mother's father's father: Philip I of Castile
			Mother's father's mother: Joanna of Castile
		Mother's mother: Isabella of Portugal	Mother's mother's father: Manuel I of Portugal
			Mother's mother's mother: Maria of Aragon

[edit] References

Evans, R. J. W. Rudolf II and his world: A study in intellectual history, 1576-1612. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1973.

[edit] See also

Golem Stories, by Edward Einhorn, examines Rudolf II's association with the golem legend.
Moldavian Magnate Wars for the background on southern wars (with Ottomans and its allies)

portrait of Rudolf II by Giuseppe Arcimboldo

[edit] External links

Image:Commons-logo.svg	Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor

Preceded by: Maximilian II	King of Germany, Holy Roman Emperor-Elect, King of Bohemia, Margrave of Moravia, King of Hungary and Archduke of Austria 1576–1608	Succeeded by: Matthias
Preceded by: Ferdinand II, Archduke of Further Austria	ruler of Tirol and Further Austria 1595–1595	Succeeded by: Matthias