Emperor Otto II Germany HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE

   Other names for Otto were GERMANY King, "Rufus", HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE Emperor and "The Bloody".

   Ancestral File Number: 9HMC-G7. User ID: 2420447846.

   General Notes:

"Rufus", "The Bloody", King of GERMANY Reigned 961-983, Empereor of the HOLYROMAN EMPIRE Reigned 967/973-983.

BOOKS
Wall Chart of World History, Edward Hull, 1988, Studio Editions, Germany 973: "Otho II, The Bloody King of Germany 973-983, Son of Otho I..."

Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1981, Micropaedia, Vol VII, p626, Otto II: "Born 955, Died 7 Dec 983 Rome, German King from 961 and Holy Roman Emperor from 967, sole ruler from 973, son of Otto I and his second wife, Adelaide. Otto continued his father's policies of promoting a strong monarchy in Germany and of extending the influence of his house in Italy. In 961 he was crowned co-regent King of Italy and Germany with his father and was made co-regent Emperor in 967. On 14 Apr 972, he married the Byzantine Princess Theophano. At his father's death in 973 he was accepted without opposition as successor, although revolts in the duchy of Bavaria and in Lorraine occupied the early years of his reign. Bavaria, themost independent of the duchies, rebelled in 974, under the leadership of its Duke, Henry II the Quarrelsome, Otto's cousin. It was not until 978 that Bavaria was pacified, the same year that Lothair, King of France, invaded Lorraine. In 979 Otto received the submission of Bohemia andPoland, and in 980 Lothair renounced his claim to Lorraine. Having thus secured his German dominions, Otto marched into Italy in 980 where German rule had been maintained by an imperial party headed by Hugh, Marquis of Tuscany. Otto invaded southern italy and was decisively defeated there by the Arabs in 982. In 983 he summoned a diet at Verona, where his young son, Otto III, was crowned German King. Otto II died in 983 while attempting to bring Venice under imperial control. His absence from Germany had occasioned revolts along its borders, and after his defeat in Calabria in 982 the German position east of the Elbe collapsed because of a revolt by the Danes and an invasion by the Slavs. Nonetheless, Otto left a firmly established realm to his son and successor Otto III."

The New Columbia Encyclopedia, 1975, p2030, Otto II: "Born 955, Died 983, Holy Roman Emperor (973-983), German King 961-983, son and successor of OttoI. He was crowned joint emperor in 967. Shortly after his father died Otto faced a rebellion by his cousin Henry the Wrangler, Duke of Bavaria, who coveted the crown. Otto defeated and deposed Henry (976), at the same time making Austria, Carinthia, and the Nordgau virtually independent of Bavaria. During this period he also repulsed a Danish attack. In 978, Otto invaded France in retaliation for the French king Lothair's attempt to conquer Lorraine; the inconclusive war ended in 980. Campaigning in Italy (981-982), Otto was, after some initial success disastrously defeated by the Arabs in S Italy. In 983 he held a diet of German and Italian nobles at Verona, where he had his son Otto III elected German king. Meanwhile,the Danes and the Slavs were again attacking his German lands, but Otto died suddenly before he could act. Regarding Germany and Italy as a united realm, Otto II felt his position as emperor more keenly than his role as German king. His failurein Italy greatly weakened the imperial prestige."

The Story of Civilization, Will Durant, Vol IV, The Age of Faith, Bk IV, The Dark Ages, Ch XX, The Rise of the North, Sec VI, Germany, p512: "Otto, nearing death, forestalled disorder by having his son Otto II crowned coemperor by Pope John XIII (967); and he secured as his son's wife Theophano, daughter of Romanus II the Byzantine Emperor (972); Charlemagne's dream of a marital union of the two empires was transiently made real...Otto II (973-983) spent himself in efforts to add southern Italy to his realm, and died prematurely in the attempt..."

ANCESTRAL FILE
Ancestral File Ver 4.13 9HMC-G7.

   Marriage Information:

Otto married Princess Theophano BYZANTIUM, daughter of Emperor Romanus BYZANTIUM, II and Empress Theophano BYZANTIUM, on 14 Apr 972. (Princess Theophano BYZANTIUM was born about 956 in Constantinople, Byzantium, Turkey and died on 15 Jun 991.)