Matthias, Holy Roman Emperor

Matthias
Imperator Romanorum
Portrait by Lucas van Valckenborch, 1583
Holy Roman Emperor
Reign13 June 1612 – 20 March 1619
Coronation26 June 1612
Frankfurt Cathedral
PredecessorRudolf II
SuccessorFerdinand II
Born24 February 1557
Vienna, Archduchy of Austria, Holy Roman Empire
Died20 March 1619(1619-03-20) (aged 62)
Vienna, Austria, Holy Roman Empire
Burial
Spouse
(m. 1611; died 1618)
HouseHabsburg
FatherMaximilian II, Holy Roman Emperor
MotherMaria of Austria
ReligionCatholic Church
SignatureMatthias's signature

Matthias[1] (24 February 1557 – 20 March 1619) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1612 to 1619, Archduke of Austria from 1608 to 1619, King of Hungary and Croatia from 1608 to 1618 and King of Bohemia from 1611 to 1617. His personal motto was Concordia lumine maior ("Unity is stronger in the light").[2][3]

Matthias played a significant role in the familial opposition of the Habsburgs against his brother Emperor Rudolf II. After gaining power, he showed little political initiative of his own. The course of his politics was determined by Cardinal Melchior Klesl until his fall in 1618. As a consequence of his failed religious and administrative policies, the Bohemian Revolt, the initial theatre of the Thirty Years' War, began during the final year of Matthias' reign.[4]

  1. ^ Mátyás II of Hungary and Bohemia
    Matija II of Croatia
  2. ^ J. H. Zedler. "Matthias, Römischer Kayser". Bayerische Staatsbibliothek. Retrieved 1 March 2020.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference LOC was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ "Matthias (Holy Roman emperor". Encyclopædia Britannica. Retrieved 1 March 2020.