Sigismund

b. 1368; d. 1437

Holy Roman Emperor from 1410, a son of Emperor Charles IV. He succeeded his father as margrave of Brandenbury (1378), and on the death of his father-in-law, Louis the Great, became King of Hungary (1387), and in 1410, on the death of Rupert III, was elected Holy Roman Emperor, and was crowned in 1414.

Sigismund was a prominent member of the Council of Constance (1414), which brought the Great Schism to an end, and was involved in the death of John Huss, an event which roused the Bohemians against him so that it was only after 17 years of war that Sigismund was able to enter their capital as king. Sigismund's character is still disputed by historians. It is hard to decide whether he was the better Catholic or Imperialist. His support made possible the Council of Constance; yet the overriding consideration he gave to Imperial diplomacy wrecked it, and in sanctioning the condemnation of Huss, Sigismund would seem to have used a religious instrument to crush a movement which was most repugnant to him because of its nationalist tendencies. This dualism of character and ambition prevented him, in spite of his intelligence and capability, from achieving very much of endurance in either church or state.

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