Rise and Fall of the Holy Roman Empire: From Charlemagne to Napoleon

The controversial history of the Holy Roman Empire is back in print. Attacked by revisionist historians for its integration of church history and the secular history of the Holy Roman Empire, "The Rise and Fall of the Holy Roman Empire" is the only complete history of the Holy Roman Empire from Charlemagne to Napoleon currently in print. Moreover, it deals not just with the emperors but with the larger empire as it was viewed by the medieval Europeans themselves. Every emperor and pope is discussed as well as the significant kings of Europe who helped shape the empire and the Middle Ages. Further, it traces the history of the various Christian sects and the evolution of the church. The Reformation did not arise out of nowhere; it was in the making for three hundred years or more. Consequently, this history is neither for those who believe religion to be the source of evil, nor for those who believe the papacy to be the pure uncorrupted line of Saint Peter. In the words of the author, "the Holy Roman Empire was a mixture of good and evil, and was the seed of everything good and evil that has since encompassed the globe ... Without the Holy Roman Empire, there are no middle ages; without the middle ages, there is no Reformation and no Renaissance; without the Reformation, there are no Puritans; without the Puritans, there is no modern democracy; without modern democracy, there is no modern world. Science, art, literature, and even modern democracy are all products of the Reformation and Renaissance yet without the middles ages, these would never have existed ... the Holy Roman Empire is the seed for everything good and bad that has happened since that time."