Aftermath of the Imperial Election

Timeline

1. 1519Courts of the Central European states · Central EuropeAfter Maximilian I's death, his grandson Charles (King of Spain), France's Francis I, England's Henry VIII, and Frederick III, Elector of Saxony, became the leading candidates. Each court courted the seven electors through bribery, promises of marriage, and military intimidation; Poland's Sigismund I controlled the Bohemian electoral vote.
2. 1519Frankfurt · GermanyThe seven electors gathered at Frankfurt, where Sigismund I cast the Bohemian electoral vote for Charles on behalf of Louis II. The Elector of Saxony publicly endorsed Charles, and the Fugger family's massive loans financed the bribery. Charles was ultimately elected Holy Roman Emperor unanimously.
3. 1519Central–Eastern Europe · Central EuropeAfter his election, Charles moved to mediate the Polish–Teutonic War and courted Moscow's Vasily III against France. Defeated, Francis I turned to alliances with Poland and the Ottomans to contain the Habsburgs. The election's aftermath profoundly reshaped the balance of power among Europe's great states in the first half of the sixteenth century.