March 4, 1152 Friedrich I (Barbarossa) is elected German King in Frankfurt. (He then became Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire.) March 4, 1782 Birth of Johann Rudolf Wyss in Bern, Switzerland. Wyss edited and published a book his father had written with his four sons, Der schweizerische Robinson (1827). The book was translated into nearly … [Read more...]

March 3, 1033 Death of St. Kunigunde von Luxembourg (ca. 980–1033) St. Kunigunde was the daughter of Count Siegfried of Luxembourg. In 999 she married emperor Heinrich II of the Holy Roman Empire (a.k.a. the German Empire). They were married in Paderborn, Germany. She was crowned as empress by Pope Benedict VIII in Rome. In 1017 she founded … [Read more...]

March 2, 1481 Birth of Franz von Sickingen in Ebernburg, Germany. A character in Goethe's play, Götz von Berlichingen, the historic Sickingen was a defender of the Protestant cause in Germany. His end came when he declared war on Richard of Greiffenclau, the archbishop of Trier and was defeated. After that defeat he gradually lost support and … [Read more...]

March 1, 1077 Imperial diet removes Heinrich IV as Kaiser and subsequently elects Rudolf von Schwaben. March 1, 1683 Birth of Karoline von Brandenburg-Ansbach in Ansbach, Germany. Caroline was the wife of the second of the German Kings of England, George II. She was a very strong influence on her husband's execution of his kingly … [Read more...]

February 28, 1552 Birth of Joost Bürgi (1552-1632) in Lichtensteig, Switzerland. A watchmaker, astronomer and mathematician, Bürgi invented logarithms, possibly as early as 1588, and had compiled his logarithmic tables by 1603. (The Scottish mathematician, John Napier, who is often credited with the invention in British histories, invented … [Read more...]

February 27, 272 Birth of Constantine. Constantine the Great was the emperor of the Roman Empire. He had started his political career as one of the four Roman Emperors at the time of the division of power. He ruled the Western Empire from the city of Trier (now in Germany). He later waged battle against the other emperors and emerged finally as … [Read more...]

February 26, 1361 Birth of Wenceslas in Nürnberg, Germany. Wenceslas gained the titles, German King, King of Bohemia and King of the Romans. He was a very weak ruler in unsettled times. He was deposed, spent some time in prison and lost his position as King of Bohemia. He retained the title of King of the Germans until his death although he … [Read more...]