[September 24] Albert, archbishop of Mainz

Parents: John Cicero, elector of Brandenburg, and Margaret of Thuringia
Date of Birth: 28 June 1490
House: Hohenzollern
Predecessor: Uriel von Gemmingen

Reign: 1514 – 1545
Brief: When he was young, he became a co-margrave of Brandenburg and soon also became archbishop of Magdeburg. His brother, Joachim I Nestor, was appointed elector. In 1514, Albert became the elector of Mainz and was made a cardinal soon after. In becoming elector, he had to begin selling indulgences and enlisted the aid of John Tetzel whose activities prompted the 95 Theses of Matin Luther to be posted on the door of Castle Church in Wittenberg. In 1519, he was bribed to vote for Charles I of Spain for Holy Roman Emperor against the bid of François I of France. At first tolerant to the rising Protestant movement within his lands, Albert turned on them in his latter years and was eventually booted out of his own lands, with Mainz becoming a Protestant see.

Date of Death: 24 September 1545

Successor: Sebastian von Heusenstamm

Other Monarchs Who Died Today:

• Liberius, pope of Rome (366)
• Pippin, king of the Franks (768)
• Welf II, duke of Bavaria (1120)
• Innocent II, pope of Rome (1143)
• Manuel I, emperor of Constantinople (1180)
• Stefan, king of Serbia (1228)
• Reigen, emperor of Japan (1732)
• Pedro I, emperor of Brazil (1834)

[May 15] Hatto I, archbishop of Mainz

Date of Birth: circa 850

Predecessor: Sunderhold

Reign: 891 – 913

Summary: Born into a Swabian German family and educated at the monastery of Reichenau, Hatto became the abbot of Ellwangen Abbey in 888. He met and befriended Arnulf of Carinthia, the Carolingian king of Germany and was appointed archbishop of Mainz in 891. He was on such good terms with the king that he was known throughout his life as "the heart of the king". He was president of the synod of Tribur in 895 and joined the king on his journeys to Italy in 894 and 895. When in Rome, he was praised by Pope Formosus. His position allowed him to become regent for Arnulf's young son, Louis the Child, in 899. In this role, he forced Zwentibold, an illegitimate son of Arnulf and the duke of Lorraine, to recognize his nephew as German king.

As archbishop, Hatto I was very active in his realm. He attached to his archbishopric Ellwangen and Lorsch abbeys, both early Carolingian pilgrimage sites. He sided with the Conradines in their feud with the Babenbergs over leadership in Franconia, the central-western side of Germany. In 906, he even captured and executed Adalbert, count of Babenberg, despite promises of safe conduct. Hatto remained the regent for Louis throughout his reign and when the young king died in 911, Hatto arranged for Conrad, duke of Franconia, to take the vacant throne. Hatto remained loyal to Conrad I during fighting in Saxony because Hatto did not want to lose power or influence in Thuringia, where Mainz retained many possessions. When Henry the Fowler discovered a plot for his murder being orchestrated by Hatto, he ravaged archiepiscopal lands in Saxony and Thuringia. By the end of his life, Hatto had lost much of the respect he had earned in his earlier days. He died in 913, some say due to a bolt of lightening. His name was ill remembered by the Saxons who felt his wrath during the war with Henry.

Died: 15 May 913

Successor: Herigar

Other Monarch Deaths:

Valentinian II, emperor of Rome (392)

Go-Ichijo, emperor of Japan (1036)

Nur ad-Din Zangi, emir of Damascus (1174)

Ninwa Nagahide, daimyo of Japan (1585)

[February 4] St. Rabanus Maurus, archbishop of Mainz

Rabanus Maurus (far left) presents his encyclopedia
to Archbishop Odgar of Mainz, his direct superior

True Name: Rabanus Maurus Magentius

Date of Birth: c. 1780

Reign: 848 – 856

Predecessor: Odgar

Summary: Little is known of Rabanus from his childhood except that he came from noble parents in Mainz. In 801, he became a deacon at Fulda, a patronage site of both the Carolingians and the Robertians, two prominent families in Francia. He finished his studies at Tours where he received the surname Maurus in honor of Saint Maurus. In the succeeding years, he became the headmaster of Fulda seminary which became a center of scholarship and book production in Francia. While there, he wrote the encyclopedia De rerum natures (On the Nature of Things), as well as numerous commentaries and treatises on the Bible and on education in Francia. In 814, Rabanus became a priest and left Fulda to go on a pilgrimage to Jerusalem. He returned to Fulda in 817 and became the abbot of the seminary in 822. He retired from his position at Fulda in 842 so that he could write more.

In 847, Rabanus returned to public life as the elected archbishop of Mainz. Within Germany, archbishops had the role of both clerical and secular leadership, and thus Rabanus for the first time became a prince of the realm within the Frankish Roman Empire. He came to the episcopate in a time of strife between the Holy Roman Emperor, Lothar, and his brother, Louis the German. In this conflict, Rabanus tended to side with Louis, who ruled the lands to the east of Mainz. Lothair died in 855 and Rabanus the year later. Louis, in his role as Carolingian overlord of the region, appointed his nephew, Charles, to the episcopal seat.

Date of Death: 4 February 856

Successor: Charles


Other Monarchs Who Died Today:

• Septimus Severus, emperor of Rome (211)
• Sisinnius, pope of Rome (708)
• Justo Takayama, daimyo of Japan (1615)