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Strictly speaking, Elizabeth of Pommern didn't become Empress in 1368; she'd already been Empress since 1363, when she married Charles IV who was already Emperor, and acquired the title in his right. The coronation was a formality. I'd originally intended to have a column for coronations, but (1) couldn't find the data for the whole list and (2) there would have to be columns for Germany as well as the Empire and sometimes also Italy and Burgundy. Too much. Maybe they could be listed in an auxiliary article. RandomCritic 17:14, 23 February 2007 (UTC)
If there are problems with the information and/or sourcing in this article we could, like, discuss them -- that's what the Talk page is for. Going immediately to revert warring is completely uncool. I'm reproducing both versions below so there can be discussion. In the meantime, I've removed both versions. RandomCritic 21:42, 26 April 2007 (UTC)
The titles Queen of Germany and Queen of the Romans were subsidiary titles to that of Holy Roman Empress, and belonged to the consort of the King of Germany, or the King of the Romans. The King of Germany (or, more precisely, the Rex Teutonicorum, "King of the Germans") was the monarch of the German lands and territories, elected by the pre-eminent nobles and bishops of the German Kingdom; as a position, it was a remnant of the ancient Teutonic tribal practises. After 962, the King of Germany would by custom request of the Pope to be granted the title of Holy Roman Emperor. The consorts of those men who bore the title King of Germany, or King of the Germans, were thus Queen of Germany, or Queen of the Germans.
The title King of the Romans developed in the 11th and 12th centuries, as a means of referring to the elected ruler of the Empire (Germany, Italy, and (from 1032 on) Burgundy) who had not as yet been confirmed in the imperial dignity by the Pope, and crowned in Rome by him (or, less often, other appropriate Roman authorities). It was used to signify the prestige and universal role of the monarch, whilst accepting that he had not achieved recognition as an Emperor - a title which in reality conferred no additional power, but which was viewed as an ultimate target by many European monarchs. Accordingly, the consort of a "King of the Romans" would be known as the "Queen of the Romans".
As the Imperial coronation involved an arduous and lengthy journey into Italy, leaving German affairs unattended to for months or years, many German kings postponed it for several years, and some were never crowned as Emperors at all. In the interval between election and coronation, they were known as "King of Germany", or – in and after the reign of Emperor Henry IV – "Kings of the Romans", rather than as "Emperors". From 1508 onward, however, the Kings of the Romans took the title "Roman Emperor-elect" or simply "Roman Emperor", without recourse to a coronation by the Pope.
The title "King of Germany", or "King of the Romans", might still be separated from that of "Emperor" when an heir to the Empire was elected as co-King to the reigning Emperor. The heir was then titled "King of Germany" and "King of the Romans". The former title would then cease to belong to the Emperor, instead becoming the position of the heir; the unclear and uneasy balance of power between German Kings and their Emperors were to create problems on more than one occasion. The latter title brought no real power; rather, it gave the heir both a prestige in his own right, and indicated that he was the Emperor's designated successor; it also allowed the King to succeed to the Empire when the reigning Emperor died without a fresh election. The heir's spouse was called "Queen of Germany", or "Queen of the Romans", and although she often became reigning Empress in due course, in some cases she or her husband might die before succeeding to the higher dignity, in which case "Queen of the Romans" would be her only title.
The German Empire, existing between 1871 and 1918, was in theory a partial return to the Holy Roman Empire and Kingdom of Germany, although politically it was very different. The three German Empresses of that Empire can thus also be found here.
The titles Queen of Germany and Queen of the Romans referred to the consort of the King of Germany (Rex Teutonicorum) or King of the Romans (Rex Romanorum). The latter title deceloped in the 11th century, to stress the King's position as the Imperator futurus (" Emperor-to-be") even before his Imperial coronation by the Pope.
As the title "King of the Romans" was also used by the heir designate, elected during the lifetime of the his predecesssor, the heir's spouse would be called "Queen of the Romans" as well.
This list also includes the spouses of the three German Emperors that ruled the German Empire between 1871 and 1918.
Okay this original article List of Holy Roman Empresses and German queens was split up to List of Holy Roman Empresses and List of German queens but this redirect only redirect to List of German Queens instead of List of Holy Roman Empresses. Whoever did this needs to fix it again and change all links to List of Holy Roman Empresses and German queens to either List of Holy Roman Empresses or List of German queens. -- Queen Elizabeth II's Little Spy ( talk) 04:38, 5 May 2010 (UTC)
Hi, I noticed that the formatting of the table in the House of Habsburg-Lorraine section has gotten to a point where all the information is warped and in incorrect areas. Could someone more qualified than I am take a look at that? Thanks. Unlimitedlead ( talk) 01:59, 22 May 2022 (UTC)
Elisabeth of Brunswick-Lüneburg, who was unopposed Queen Consort from 3 October 1247 to 28 January 1256, is missing from this list — Preceding unsigned comment added by 2A02:A450:A90E:1:88D6:9374:F99D:6E00 ( talk) 23:02, 29 March 2024 (UTC)