Frederick I

Frederick I was a member of the Hohenstaufen dynasty and a descendant of both the Welf and the Salian dynasties. He inherited the duchy of Swabia from his father in 1147 and was elected king of Germany in 1152 after the death of his uncle Conrad III. He was crowned as king of Italy in 1155 and as Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Adrian IV in 1155. He had a long and complex relationship with the papacy, sometimes supporting the reform movement and sometimes opposing it. He also had to deal with the rebellious Lombard cities in northern Italy, which he tried to subdue by several military campaigns. He eventually reached a compromise with the Lombard League in the Peace of Constance in 1183. He also faced challenges from other German princes, especially Henry the Lion, whom he eventually deposed and exiled in 1180. He was a patron of culture and learning and supported the foundation of universities and monasteries. He also promoted the imperial legal system and the rights of the cities. He joined the Third Crusade in 1189 along with other European monarchs, such as Richard I of England and Philip II of France. He led a large army across Anatolia, but he drowned in the Saleph river near Silifke in 1190. His death was a great loss for the crusading cause and for the empire. His body was divided into three parts: his flesh was buried in Antioch, his bones in Tyre, and his heart and inner organs in Tarsus. He was succeeded by his son Henry VI as emperor. He is remembered as one of the most powerful and charismatic medieval rulers, who earned the epithet Barbarossa (red beard) from his Italian enemies. He is also regarded as a national hero in Germany and a model of chivalry in literature.