Leopold II | |
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Leopold II as King of Germany | |
King of Germany | |
Reign | 4 June 1550 – 19 January 1552 |
Coronation | 20 September 1550 in Strasbourg |
Predecessor | Henry X |
Duke of Habsburg | |
Reign | 1533-1561 |
Coronation | 20 June 1505 |
Predecessor | Peter I |
Successor | Frederick I |
Born | 29 January 1489 Kehl, Duchy of Habsburg, Holy Roman Empire |
Died | 19 January 1552 Offenburg, Duchy of Habsburg, Holy Roman Empire |
Religion | Roman Catholicism |
Leopold II (29 January 1489 – 19 January 1552) was Duke of Habsburg from 1505, and elected King of Germany in 1550, in opposition to Henry X in the Holy Roman Empire. Leopold II was an adamant supporter of Roman Catholicism, and worked with the Papal States to pursue the inquisition and counter reformation in southwest Germany. In 1547 he joined an alliance against the Kingdom of Lotharingia, beginning the Amiens War. This saw Habsburg greatly expand its territory around the Rhine River, conquering territories such as Strasbourg and Murbach, and subjugating the Alsace League under Habsburg guidance after defeating Jungist leaders in Metz and Trier.
During the reign of Emperor Henry X, his support for an antipope in Zephrynus II, and his policies toward France and non-Catholics, prompted Pope Leo XII to support a new imperial election, which selected Leopold II as King of Germany. Leopold's alliance managed to instigate a civil war in Bohemia, which became known as the War of the Three Henrys, and he pursued alliances with Austria and Hungary. Leopold II's sudden death in early 1552 led to him being succeeded by his capable son Frederick I, but the alliance against Bohemia broke down over differences between the new pope, Gregory XIV, and Hungary, who invaded northeast Italy in 1552.
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