The Swabian League, an association of German cities, principally in the territory which had formed the old duchy of Swabia. The name, though usually given to the great federation of 1488, is applicable also to several earlier leagues (e.g. those of 1331, 1376). The Swabian cities had attained great prosperity under the protection of the Hohenstaufen emperors, but the extinction of that house in 1268 was followed by disintegration. Cities and nobles alike, now owing allegiance to none but the emperor, who was seldom able to defend them, were exposed to the aggression of ambitious princes. A duchy is a territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess. ... Swabia (German: Schwaben) is both a historic and linguistic region in Germany. ... // Events February 3 - Bartolomeu Dias of Portugal lands in Mossel Bay after rounding the Cape of Good Hope, at the tip of Africa becoming the first known European to travel this far south. ... Events September 8 - Stefan Dusan declares himself king of Serbia Start of the reign of Emperor Kogon of Japan, first of the Northern Ashikaga Pretenders Births Coluccio Salutati, Florentine political leader (died 1406) Deaths January 14 - Odoric, Italian explorer October 27 - Abulfeda, Arab historian and geographer (born 1273) Categories: 1331... // Events March – The treaty between England and France is extended until April of 1377. ... The Hohenstaufen were a dynasty of Kings of Germany, many of whom were also crowned Holy Roman Emperor and Dukes of Swabia. ... For broader historical context, see 1260s and 13th century. ...

In 1331, twenty-two Swabian cities, including Ulm, Augsburg, Reutlingen and Heilbronn, formed a league at the instance of the emperor Louis the Bavarian, who in return for their support promised not to mortgage any of them to a vassal. The count of Württemberg was induced to join in 1340. Under Charles IV, the lesser Swabian nobles began to combine against the cities, and formed the Schlegelerbund (from Schiegel, a maul). Civil war ensuing in 1367, the emperor, jealous of the growing power of the cities, endeavoured to set up a league under his own control, for the maintenance of public peace (Landfriedensbund, 1370). The defeat of the city league by Eberhard II of Württemberg in 1372, the murder of the captain of the league, and the breach of his obligations by Charles IV, led to the formation of a new league of fourteen Swabian cities led by Ulm in 1376. This league triumphed over the count of Württemberg at Reutlingen in 1377, and the emperor having removed his ban, it set up an arbitration court, and was rapidly extended over the Rhineland, Bavaria and Franconia. However, Württemberg struck back and defeated the league in 1388. Ulm is a city in the German Bundesland of Baden-Württemberg (about 100 km south-east of Stuttgart). ... Augsburg is a city in south-central Germany. ... Position of Reutlingen in Germany Reutlingen is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. ... Coat of Arms of Heilbronn Map of Germany showing Heilbronn Heilbronn is a city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, near Stuttgart. ... Louis IV of Bavaria of the House of Wittelsbach, born 1282, was duke of Bavaria from 1294, duke of the Palatinate from 1329 and, after 1314, Holy Roman Emperor. ... A vassal or liege, in the terminology that both preceded and accompanied the feudalism of medieval Europe, is one who enters into mutual obligations with a lord, usually of military support and mutual protection, in exchange for certain guarantees, which came to include the terrain held as a fief. ... Württemberg (often spelled Wurttemberg in English) refers to an area and a former state in Swabia, a region in south-western Germany. ... Events Europe has about 74 million inhabitants. ... Charles IV, Holy Roman Emperor. ... This article is on the maul, an implement for splitting wood. ... Events Battle of Najera, Peter I of Castile restored as King. ... Events Beginning of the rule of Poland by Capet-Anjou family. ... Events Births March 13 - Louis of Valois, Duke of Orléans, son of king Charles V of France Princess Beatrice of Portugal, heiress to the throne during the 1383-1385 Crisis Deaths Categories: 1372 ... // Events March – The treaty between England and France is extended until April of 1377. ... Events Beginning of prosecution of Lollards in England The Battle of Otterburn between England and Scotland Births September 29 - Thomas of Lancaster, 1st Duke of Clarence, second son of Henry IV of England (d. ...

In 1488 a new Swabian league was formed, at Esslingen, not only of 22 imperial cities but also of the Swabian knights' League of St. George's Shield, bishops, and princes (Tirol, Württemberg, the Palatinate, Mainz, Trier, Baden, Hesse, Bavaria, Ansbach, and Bayreuth). The league was governed by a federal council of three colleges of princes, cities, and knights calling upon an army of 13,000 men. It aided in the rescue of the future emperor Maximilian I, Frederick III's son, held prisoner in the Netherlands, and later was his main support in southern Germany. In 1519, the League conquered Württemberg and sold it to Charles V after its count Ulrich attempted to seize the city of Reutlingen. It helped to suppress the Peasants' Revolt(1524–25). The Reformation caused the league to be disbanded in 1534. // Events February 3 - Bartolomeu Dias of Portugal lands in Mossel Bay after rounding the Cape of Good Hope, at the tip of Africa becoming the first known European to travel this far south. ... Portrait by Albrecht Dürer, 1519 (Kunsthistorisches Museum, Vienna). ... Detail of Aeneas Piccolomini Introduces Eleonora of Portugal to Frederick III by Pinturicchio (1454-1513) Frederick III of Habsburg (Innsbruck, September 21, 1415 – August 19, 1493 in Linz) was elected as German King as the successor of Albert II in 1440. ... Events March 4 - Hernán Cortés lands in Mexico. ... The name Charles V is used to refer to numerous persons in history: Kings: Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (also Charles I of Spain) Charles V of France Charles V of Naples Charles V of Sweden This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which lists other pages that might... expanding insurgences The Peasants War (in German, der Deutsche Bauernkrieg) was a popular revolt in Europe, specifically in the Holy Roman Empire between 1524-1525 and consisted, like the preceding Bundschuh movement and the Hussite Wars, of a mass of economic as well as religious revolts by peasants, townsfolk and... The Protestant Reformation was a movement which began in the 16th century as a series of attempts to reform the Roman Catholic Church, but ended in division and the establishment of new institutions, most importantly Lutheranism, Reformed churches, and Anabaptists. ... Events February 27 - Group of Anabaptists of Jan Matthys seize Münster and declare it The New Jerusalem - they begin to exile dissenters and forcible baptize all others May 10 - Jacques Cartier explores Newfoundland while searching for the Northwest Passage. ...

References

• This article incorporates text from the 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica, which is in the public domain.