Hre

The Holy Roman Empire (HRE) was a multi-ethnic political formation in Central Europe that lasted roughly from the early medieval period until 1806. It originated from East Francia and the remnants of the Carolingian Empire and developed into a loose federation of hundreds of semi-autonomous states. From the 15th century it was commonly known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. It encompassed territories that are now part of Germany, Austria, Switzerland, the Czech Republic, the Netherlands, Belgium, Luxembourg, northern Italy and beyond.

Governance and institutions: The Emperor's authority depended on the consent of princes and ecclesiastical rulers and the imperial estates; election by prince-electors. The Golden Bull of 1356 formalized the electoral system. The Imperial Diet (Reichstag) and the Imperial Circles (Reichskreise) administered internal affairs; the empire included kingdoms, duchies, free imperial cities, and bishoprics.

Electors: The Golden Bull of 1356 named seven electors: archbishops of Mainz, Trier, and Cologne; King of Bohemia; Duke of Saxony; Margrave of Brandenburg; and Count Palatine of the Rhine. Composition fluctuated in later centuries, but the electoral principle remained central to the empire's politics.

Religion and law: The Reformation in the 16th century reshaped politics and society; the Peace of Augsburg (1555) established cuius regio eius religio. The Peace of Westphalia (1648) granted formal territorial sovereignty to member states and redefined borders within the empire.

Dissolution and legacy: The empire dissolved under Napoleonic pressure in 1806 when Francis II abdicated the imperial title and founded the Austrian Empire; its dissolution helped pave the later German Confederation and influenced concepts of sovereignty, legality, and statehood in Central Europe.