Holy Roman Empire - Name

Name

The term sacrum (i.e., "holy" in the sense of "consecrated") in connection with the medieval Roman Empire was used from 1157, under Frederick I Barbarossa ("Holy Empire"; the form "Holy Roman Empire" is attested from 1254 onward). The term was added to reflect Frederick's ambition to dominate Italy and the Papacy. Before 1157, the realm was merely referred to as the Roman Empire.

In a decree following the 1512 Diet of Cologne, the name was officially changed to Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation (German: Heiliges Römisches Reich Deutscher Nation, Latin: Imperium Romanum Sacrum Nationis Germanicæ). This form was first used in a document in 1474, but then was used only in German literature, otherwise was known as Holy Roman Empire (Latin: Imperium Romanum Sacrum).

The French Enlightenment writer Voltaire remarked sardonically: "This agglomeration which was called and which still calls itself the Holy Roman Empire was neither holy, nor Roman, nor an empire."