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sess a European symbol which be–
longs to all nations equally. This is
the crown of the Holy Roman Ero–
pire, which embodies the tradition
of Charlemagne, the ruler of a
united occident."
We shall see in a succeeding in–
stallment why the symbolic mean–
ing of that crown - European unity
- is very much alive at present.
States may be secular, the monarchy
may be dead, Catholicism may
ap~
pear politically irrelevant, but what
the crown ceremoniously represents,
a united and powerful European
empire, is far from dead.
The Germans and the
Holy Roman Empire
As an ideal state in itself, the revi–
va! of the Roman Empire occurred
most dramatically in the Middle
Ages.
It
became a special case
among the various revivals of the
concept of a Roman Empire.
Where Charlemagne's empire
had been universal, the Roman Ero–
pire of the Middle Ages became na–
tional in feeling. It became, in fact,
by the twelfth century, the Holy Ro–
roan Empire of the
German nation.
From the coronation of Otto 1,
the imperial office took on two char–
acteristics: the emperor was
crowned by the pope, and tbe em–
peror was tbe individual already
elected as king of the Germans.
When Jordan of Osnabrueck, a
late thirteenth-century chronicler,
wrote a book about the Roman Ero–
pire and its "translation" to the Ger–
mans, he was merely echoing a
reality that had been accepted for
many, many generations.
The imperial crown of the Holy
Roman Empire itself is thought to
have been made especially for the
coronation of Otto the Great in 962.
" From that day forward," says his–
torian Heer, "although the Empire
was at no time a German national
state, Germany was to be its chief
prop and stay."
But the empire disintegrated. The
grandeur of unity restored by Otto
the Great metamorphosed into a
Frankenstein monster which de-
30
voured Europe under Frederick II
in 1250.
How and why did these events
come to pass? And of what impor–
tance are they for us today when
Europe is again straining for the
scepter of unity? These and other
vital questions will be answered in
this third installment of "Europe:
Catastrophe and Reviva!."
We resume our Eur.opean .doclk
mentary with the fragmentation of
Charlemagne's empire. There is
chaos in Europe, and Western civ–
ilization appears to be waiting for
the Death Angel to pass through.
Years 843-935: "Dark Ages" of
Empire and Reawakening. The ero–
pire is wasting away. Europe is un–
der attack from many quarters.
Arabs set tire to Marseilles. Danish
fleets, manned by Normans, sack
the coasts, pushing up the Seine as
far as París. Aachen, Metz and
Rheims are also attacked. Palermo
and Bari are captured by Saracens.
St. Peter's itself is pillaged in 846.
The citadel of Monte Cassino is de–
stroyed by Saracens in 884.
Meanwhile, Slavs and nomadic
Magyars are penetrating and threat–
ening the empire from the east. Eu–
rope is
in
very deep trouble.
lt
appears that another long folk mi–
gration is about to throw Europe
into turmoil and confusion again.
For a brief moment, it appears
that the dying empire may be res–
cued by Arnulf of Carinthia. He de–
feats tbe Normans at Louvain in
891 , battles the Moravians and
sweeps through northern Italy at the
call of Pope Formosus. Arnulf is
crowned emperor at Rome. But a
sudden heart attack kills Arnulf,
and confusion reigns once more.
His young son, Ludwig the Child,
is not in charge. Affairs pass to pre–
lates like Archbishop Hatto of
Mainz and the Conradins, a Franco–
oían family.
The Magyars defeat the armies of
Ludwig in 910. The lights seem
ready to go out in Europe. The ero–
pire is fatherless. Deep pessimism is
one of the prevailing moods of the
monastic chronicles. Another dark
age is ready to descend.
In Italy there is chaos and an–
archy. Popes may be viewed with
awe by Germans, but in their own
city they are insulted, deposed and
sometimes murdered. The papacy
itself reaches the depths of immoral–
ity and
is
called a "pornocracy." For
Ttaly, the chaos begins with the
death of Emperor Louis; it will not
end until Otto the Great invades
ltaly in. 95J - approximately- 75
·years later. The entire span is an
uninterrupted era of interna! tur–
moil and outside invasion.
Berengar, the grandson of Louis
the Pious, is the last of the phantom
emperors (915-924). After his death,
there is a vacancy in the empire
from 924-962, although Conrad 1
and Henry 1 are kings in Germany.
German politics and civil life are
lilled with strife. The Frankish Con–
rad 1 (911-918) battles with bis
Saxon rival, Henry, for hegemony.
But with Conrad's death in 918, a
situation occurs which again will
bring harmony to Europe. Upon bis
death, Conrad dispatches the royal
insignia to Henry as bis successor.
Though the Caro1ingian realm has
collapsed after a century of con–
fusion , a new empire is about to be
born under Henry - whom histo–
rians call " the first." Henry 1 will
begin to lay the groundwork for a
united Europe. When he designates
his son Otto as successor in 936, the
stage is set for another reviva! of
Europe.
Year 936: Otto the Great Chosen
as German King. Though Henry 1
(919-936) has succeeded in welding
remnants of the empire together,
the western part of the Frankish
kingdom is lost. Centuries later, it
will become the independent na–
tiona1 organism of France.
A German electoral college now
chooses the emperor over the Ger–
manic kingdom. In practice, up to
1257 the ecclesiastical e1ectors will
be the arcbbishops of Mainz, Koln
and Trier. Secular electors will be
the Count Palatine, the Duke of
Saxony and the Margrave of Bran–
denburg. With sorne changes, these
PLAIN TRUTH
January
1974