Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was Holy Roman Emperor, Archduke of Austria and Duke of Burgundy. As noted in the quote above, it was through Maximilian's marriage to Mary, Duchess of Burgundy and the alliance of his son with the daughter of the Spanish monarchs that the House of Habsburg would expand its reach to far beyond the German-speaking territories. A massively influential ruler of his time, he was instrumental in making his clan the greatest royal house in Europe for more than a century.
He was a colourful character as only a Habsburg could be. He might be a true case of Success Through Insanity, being the only monarch of his age who was a great ruler, patron, diplomatic, general and soldier in a single person, but also a terrible eccentric and a serial squanderer, which often undermined his ventures. Anecdotes have him tumbling on the top of the Cathedral of Ulm, playing with lions and throwing parties after defeats, and his personal life, full of womanizing and whims, was very likely that of someone with a bipolar disorder. Those details and his long list of fiascos, however, are generally well buried by the good decisions he took, being a promoter of economy, arts and literature, and by how good he was in cultivating his image as a powerful and regal Bunny-Ears Lawyer, something his descendants would ironically fail at.
Despite the quote, Maximilian did not only live for love, but also for war. Nicknamed Coeur D'Acier (French for "Heart of Steel") and Der Letze Ritter ("The Last Knight" in German), Maximilian was a believer in old-fashioned chivalry, skilled at fighting in the frontlines and accustomed to train with a seven-meter long spear, yet also a military innovator on the pike-and-shot era. His reforms were on the same field as those of Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba, the best general of his time, whom Maximilian befriended by letter and tried to recruit for his empire many times. However, Maximilian was ultimately too unstable to be a ideal strategist himself, and his warring efforts got often frustrated by his lacking sense of logistics and his very Habsburg trait of biting more than he could chew. He waged a whopping 27 wars during his lifetime, obtaining much success and prestige but also losing many of them and tons upon tons of money.
He was also interested in magic and Alchemy, a custom he passed to his descendants. In his lowest points, Maximilian could be quite morbid, even travelling everywhere with a coffin during in his last years on the prevision he could die any day.
When Charles, Duke of Burgundy, died, he left a daughter Mary as heiress. She chose to marry Maximilian instead of a French candidate. In this way the Habsburgs inherited the rivalry with the French crown from the Burgundians. The marriage was happy and they had two children: Philip the Handsome and Margaret. Pregnant again, Mary died after a fall from her horse. Maximilian became regent for his young son.
After his daughter Margaret was first betrothed to the French Dauphin and then rejected, Maximilian agreed to a marriage of his two children to two of the children of The Catholic Monarchs, Isabella of Castile and Ferdinand of Aragon, who at the time were the only European rulers able to compete with him in esteem. Margaret's marriage ended at the early passing of her husband John, but Philip had several children with Joanna of Castile. At the point of the marriages, there were a few people higher on the succession list for the Spanish territories than Joanna, but after they all died, she stood to inherit these.
Maximilian became involved in the Italian Wars at the end of the century, helping Ferdinand in his exploits, which gave further fuel to the rivalry with France. He was little successful himself, but did marry a rich Italian bride: Bianca Maria Sforza. Despite her large dowry, he would later have problems with debtors and was said to travel from palace to palace so much to flee from them. To complicate things, his son Philip was a bit too friendly with the French, which caused agitation in Spain.
In 1506, Philip died, leaving Maximilian's grandson Charles as the person who would ultimately inherit Maximilian's territories, as well as those from Mary of Burgundy and the Spanish possessions. He left his daughter Margaret in charge as regent in the Netherlands, where she was popular due to having grown up there.
Maximilian's descendents would rule large parts of Europe, from Hungary to Spain to what is now Germany. They are also known for extended their influence through marriage politics, of which the marriage between Philip and Joanna was the most influential and well-known.
Portrayals of Maximilian I in fiction:
- José Coronado in movie La Corona Partida (2016)
- Jannis Niewöhner in series Maximilian (2017)
Tropes associated with Maximilian I in fiction
- Historical Beauty Update: In Maximilian. In reality, his son was the handsome one, not Maximilian.
- Only Sane Man: His appearance in La Corona Partida has him as the only reasonable person among his womanizer sociopath son Philip and his mentally unstable daughter-in-law Joanna (which, given this is Maximilian I we are talking about, is to say much about the situation). He even jokes to Margaret that if German princes don't obey him, how can he expect the royal couple to listen to him.
