Henry II elected King of Germany

1002

The Bavarian cousin of the dead Otto III outmaneuvered two rivals and pushed through his election at Mainz. A pious, limping, childless ruler, he would spend twenty-two years repairing imperial authority in Italy and Burgundy while founding the bishopric of Bamberg on his eastern frontier. The Church later canonized him, one of the very few medieval monarchs to be recognized as a saint.