Research topic: Henry the Lion

Henry the Lion 1129-95, duke of Saxony (1142-80) and of Bavaria (1156-80); son of Henry the Proud . His father died (1139) while engaged in a war to regain his duchies, and it was not until 1142 that Henry the Lion became duke of Saxony. Bavaria was restored to him after the accession of his cousin, Holy Roman Emperor Frederick I , who wished to end the strife in Germany between the rival families of Welfs, or Guelphs , and Hohenstaufen . Henry took part in Frederick's earlier Italian expeditions but devoted his attention chiefly to Saxony and to expansion beyond the Elbe, where he... Read more