Henry (VII) (1211 – 12 February 1242), a member of the Hohenstaufen dynasty, was King of Sicily from 1212 until 1217 and King of Germany (formally King of the Romans) from 1222 until 1235, as son and king, co-ruler of Emperor Frederick II. He was the seventh Henry to rule Germany, but in order to avoid confusion with the Luxembourg emperor Henry VII, he is usually numbered Henry (VII).

Under custody

Henry was born in Sicily, the only son of King Frederick II and his first wife, Constance of Aragon. He was the elder brother of Conrad IV, who eventually succeeded him as king.

While Frederick sought to be elected German king against his Welf rival Otto IV, he had his new-born son crowned King of Sicily (as Henry II) by Pope Innocent III in March 1212, since an agreement between Frederick and the Pope stated that the kingdoms of Germany and Sicily should not be united under one ruler. For this, the regency of the Sicilian kingdom went to his mother Constance and not to his father.

However, after the death of the Pope in 1216, Frederick called his son to Germany, entrusted him with the Duchy of Swabia, and again assumed the title of King of Sicily in 1217. Henry's mother remained as regent in Sicily, now on behalf of her husband, until 1220. After the extinction of the Swabian Zähringen line in 1219 Henry also received their title of a Rector of Burgundy, The election had been a condition to Frederick II redeeming his Crusade promises of 1215, because the succession question, in case of the emperor's death on the crusade, was clarified by them. However, Pope Honorius III did not recognize the election and also deprived Henry of his rights over the Sicilian kingdom, because he (just as his predecessor) wanted to prevent the union of both countries. Also, numerous German princes had rejected the election in the first moment.

After Frederick II returned to Italy in 1220, Henry was placed under the tutelage of Archbishop Engelbert I of Cologne, daughter of King Ottokar I of Bohemia, Engelbert planned his marriage with Isabella of England, one of the daughters of King John Lackland; however, this union never took place. After Engelbert's death in 1225, Duke Louis I of Bavaria took over the guardianship. The young King was mostly in the care of imperial ministeriales, like Conrad of Winterstetten. They also acted as administrators over his Swabian duchy. In the meanwhile, the betrothal between Henry and the Bohemian princess was cancelled.

In Nürnberg on 29 November 1225, by order of his father, Henry married Margaret of Babenberg, daughter of Duke Leopold VI of Austria, a woman seven years older than he was.

The Kingdom of Aragón has a similar cross, pointed at the bottom. Henry VII's mother was the daughter of the King of Aragón. At Lescun with Pic d’Ansabère (Pyrenees Aragón/France) in the background you may discover a similar cross.

thumb|Coat of arms Henry VII at death. Right under: '134v Death of Earl Thomas of Warwick Checky azyre and Or, a bend ermine'

Imprisonment and death

thumb|Henry's death, 15th century depiction

Henry was kept prisoner in various places, first in Heidelberg and Alerheim Castle, later in Apulia and at Rocca San Felice in Campania. His seclusion may have been dictated as much by his health as by his rebelliousness: analysis of his skeleton in 1998–1999 has shown that he was suffering from advanced leprosy in his last years. This was perhaps the real cause which prevented the emperor from forgiving him.

Possibly on 12 February (according to other sources 10 February) 1242 Henry died near Martirano in Calabria after a fall from his horse when he was moved there from Nicastro.

Among the rulers of the Holy Roman Empire, Henry is numbered only in parentheses, as he did not exercise the sole kingship. He is not to be confused with the later emperor Henry VII who actually ruled the Empire from 1308 onwards. Long time in his father's shadow and disparaged as "Parentheses Henry", several historians in recent years have adopted a more positive view of his Hohenstaufen policies.

See also

  • Dukes of Swabia family tree

Notes

  • Gino Fornaciari, The Leprosy of Henry VII (1211–1242), son of Frederick II and King of Germany.