Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor

Henry was raised by his father, who made him Duke of Bavaria in 1026, appointed him co-ruler in 1028 and bestowed him with the duchy of Swabia and the Kingdom of Burgundy ten years later in 1038.^[4] The emperor's death the following year ended a remarkably smooth and harmonious transition process towards Henry's sovereign rule, that was rather uncharacteristic for the Ottonian and Salian monarchs.^[4] Henry succeeded Conrad II as Duke of Carinthia and King of Italy and continued to pursue his father's political course on the basis of virtus et probitas (courage and honesty), which led to an unprecedented sacral exaltation of the kingship. In 1046 Henry ended the papal schism, was crowned Emperor by Pope Clement II, freed the Vatican from dependence on the Roman nobility and laid the foundation for its empire-wide authority. In the duchies, Henry enforced the sovereign royal right of disposition, thereby ensuring tighter control. In Lorraine, this led to years of conflict from which he emerged victorious. Another sphere of defiance formed in southern Germany from 1052 to 1055. Henry III died, aged only 39. Modern historians, however, identify the final years of his reign as the beginning of a crisis in the Salian monarchy.^[5][6]

Early life[edit]

Born on 28 October 1016,^[7] or 1017,^[8] Henry was the son of Conrad of Worms and Gisela of Swabia.^[9][10] Conrad was a Franconian aristocrat^[11] who held domains along the river Rhine when his son was born.^[12] He was related to the imperial Ottonian dynasty through his great-grandmother, Liutgard—a daughter of the Holy Roman Emperor, Otto I.^[13] Conrad may have fathered a son before his marriage to Gisela, because a royal charter referred to his sons in 1024, but its reliability is dubious.^[14] Henry was always mentioned as his father's sole son in charters issued after February 1028.^[14] Gisela, who was descended from Charlemagne, had a strong claim both to Swabia and to Burgundy.^[15] Conrad was Gisela's third husband and she had given birth to three sons and possibly a daughter during her previous two marriages.^[15] Conrad was illiterate, but Gisela was solicitous to their son's education and Henry learnt to read.^[16][17]


The last Ottonian monarch, Henry II, died on 13 July 1024.^[18] The German aristocrats who assembled at Kamba to elect his successor proclaimed Conrad of Worms king on 4 September.^[19] Conrad's opponent formed a coalition that included his stepson, Ernest II, Duke of Swabia.^[20] They took up arms against the King in the second half of 1025, but he forced most of them into submission before the end of the year.^[21] Ernest asked his mother Gisela to mediate a reconciliation and she convinced the eight-year-old Henry also to intervene on Ernest's behalf in early 1026.^[22] Ernest had to promise to provide military assistance to Conrad to achieve a pardon.^[22]


Conrad designated Henry as his heir in Augsburg in February 1027.^[14] A year later, before departing for his first Italian campaign, Conrad charged Bruno, Bishop of Augsburg, with Henry's guardianship.^[14] Historian Stefan Weinfurter states that Bruno, who was Emperor Henry II's brother, was "particularly well-suited to impart regal concepts and imperial traditions" to his ward.^[23] Bruno accompanied Henry to Rome where they attended Conrad's imperial coronation on Easter 1027.^[24]