Conrad II "the Salic" of Germany (990-4 June 1039) was Holy Roman Emperor from 26 March 1027 to 4 June 1039, succeeding Henry II of Germany and preceding Henry III of Germany. He was the first of four Holy Roman Emperors of the Salian dynasty.
Biography[]
Conrad was born in 990, son of Henry of Speyer and Adelaide of Alsace. His father was a mid-level nobleman, and he inherited Speyer and Worms when his father died when he was young. Conrad extended his power beyond the lands that he had been given, and the princes of Germany threw their support behind him when the childless Henry II of Germany died in 1024. Conrad became King of the Germans on 8 September 1024, being crowned King of the Lombards in Italy on 31 March 1026 and, finally, Holy Roman Emperor on 26 March 1027; he also inherited Burgundy (formally known as the Kingdom of Arles) on 6 September 1032. Conrad established the Salian dynasty of Germany, and he built the church as a center for imperial power; he ruled the "imperial triad" of Germany, Italy, and Burgundy. He presided over a relatively peaceful period from Western Europe from 1027 to 1039, apart from crushing an uprising in Swabia and fighting against Mieszko II Lambert of Poland. His death in 1039 led to his son Henry III of Germany succeeding him.