Aachen, the resting place of Charlemagne, where all German kings must be crowned to assert their legitimacy.
Today, this city welcomed a new king, once again attracting significant attention.
Before the coronation ceremony, Laszlo, accompanied by Christopher, visited Charlemagne's tomb as per tradition. Frederick II's gilded coffin for Charlemagne amazed everyone who saw such a treasure for the first time, but Laszlo felt little about it.
Ever since Otto III removed one of Charlemagne's teeth, every imperial monarch aspiring to great achievements would inevitably disturb the remains of this great Emperor.
Some took arm bones, some took leg bones. The most excessive was Charles IV, the "Wise King of Bohemia," who directly ordered Charlemagne's skull to be taken and placed inside a gilded bust crafted by royal artisans. This treasure is still kept in the inner treasury of Aachen Cathedral.
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Some advised Laszlo to emulate previous monarchs, using Charlemagne's relics to enhance his legitimacy and prestige, but he had no intention of disturbing the dead.
Compared to inheriting and recreating Charlemagne's great achievements, he had already established a hegemony no less than that of the great Emperor, and thus had no need to resort to such eerie methods to increase his authority.
As for Christopher, his son, he had even less need for such things to solidify and strengthen his authority.
After visiting Charlemagne's resting place, the coronation ceremony officially began.
The procession was unprecedentedly grand. Compared to Laszlo's own coronation here, the number of Imperial Estates who came to observe and pledge allegiance this time had increased by more than fivefold.
This was partly because the Emperor's court easily determined who was eligible to attend such a grand coronation based on the "Register of Imperial Estates," and partly because the unshakeable hegemonic position of the Habsburg Family meant that all Imperial Estates could not ignore its majesty.
Envoys from as far as Denmark, the Teutonic Order, and even the Archbishop of Riga further north, were sent to participate in this celebration. Additionally, the Pope, Laszlo's second brother-in-law the Grand Duke of Lithuania, regents from various eastern vassal states, and Charles VIII of Northern France also sent envoys, with the dethroned King Edward IV of England even serving as a foil.
Before this, Aachen had almost never gathered so many dignitaries and envoys from across the continent, which greatly broadened the horizons of the local populace.
The massive procession passed through the crowded square, heading directly to Aachen Cathedral, where the coronation ceremony was to be held.
The one responsible for crowning Christopher was the Imperial Arch-Chancellor, Archbishop of Mainz Adolf. He first followed the fixed procedure to present Prince Christopher, the protagonist of the day, to the onlookers and citizens filling the cathedral and the square outside.
"My Lords Electors and citizens of the Empire, behold Christopher von Habsburg, son of Ladislaus I, heir to many crowns, Archduke of Austria, Lord of Dauphiné, Count of Franche-Comté.
He is chosen by God and the Electors, destined to be crowned King of the Romans, to inherit the Imperial throne in the future, to rule the Empire, to defend the faith, and to establish peace throughout the Christian world.
Do you wish to accept his rule?"
The Archbishop's shout echoed inside and outside the cathedral. The crowd suddenly fell silent, then erupted in a thunderous cheer.
Christopher, who had been a little nervous facing so many eyes, quietly breathed a sigh of relief, a gentle smile on his face, looking much more confident than before.
Laszlo, standing beside his son, nodded slightly.
This first step of the coronation ceremony went smoothly.
Such ceremonies seeking recognition actually symbolized the ancient electoral traditions of the Germanic tribes. Although by now they had become mere formalities, receiving the cheers of the princes and the populace could still give the crowned individual the illusion of being "the popular choice."
It was the Archbishop of Mainz's oath that almost made Laszlo, participating in an Aachen coronation for the second time, lose his composure.
Asking the Germans everywhere if they were willing to accept someone as "King of Rome" sounded a bit like a dark joke.
In fact, during the initial coronations in Aachen, the bishop proclaimed the title "King of Germany." After the 12th century, when the Emperor broke with the Pope, to escape the influence of the Holy See, the title "King of Germany" was adaptively changed to "King of Rome" and became an exclusive title for the Emperor himself or the Imperial heir.
However, Laszlo felt quite hopeful that he could make this title a reality within his lifetime, though there was no need for it at present.
Following this was a series of complex rituals, a grand medieval drama, including oaths, anointing, bestowing regalia, enthronement, and receiving the allegiance of the princes.
After all, as a tangible manifestation of divine right, the more solemn and exaggerated it was, the more convincing it became.
Throughout the process, Laszlo sat on the throne specially added for the Emperor, silently watching the princes one by one approach Christopher's royal throne.
The princes first bowed to the Emperor, then turned to Christopher to pledge their allegiance.
If anyone hesitated, Laszlo would immediately speak to set the tone. However, he remained silent throughout this ceremony. From the Electors onwards, no one expressed any objection to the coronation. The entire ceremony was firmly suppressed by his aura, until the very end when people offered cheers and blessings to the new king.
From Wenceslaus to Sigismund, and then to Albrecht II, the subjects of the Empire had waited for over seventy years, finally getting an Emperor who diligently fulfilled his duties.
Although he had only reigned for a little over a decade, the number of times he had set foot on imperial soil and his attention to imperial affairs had far surpassed those of previous Emperors, ultimately bringing valuable peace to the Empire.
People now placed more hope on his son. As long as he wasn't another incompetent ruler like Wenceslaus, their acceptance was quite high.
After the coronation ceremony, before the celebratory banquet began, Laszlo took Christopher on a visit to Aachen's City Hall.
According to old tradition, upon the new king's ascension, Aachen's privileges would be updated and confirmed. Among these existing Free City privileges, Laszlo specifically complied with the citizens' petition to strengthen the authority of Aachen's autonomous city court through an imperial decree.
In exchange for receiving judicial privileges, Aachen's judges were required to make rulings based on local customary law and imperial decrees, with their judgments requiring confirmation from the city's administrative authorities and the Imperial Court of Cologne.
Although that was the stated rule, in practice, the Free City's court had almost unrestricted authority within the city. As long as it wasn't a particularly egregious miscarriage of justice affecting public morals, judgments would not be overturned.
Laszlo and Christopher signed and sealed the document respectively, making it Christopher's first personally signed imperial document.
This document was a shot in the arm for Aachen's city government.
The news that Burgundian troops had once again entered Liège had reached Aachen almost immediately, causing panic among the citizens.
In recent years, although Liège was nominally an imperial bishopric, the Burgundians were in actual control of regional administration and maintaining order. The border of the Duchy of Burgundy had also been pushed to the outskirts of Aachen.
Every time Charles led the Burgundian army towards the Empire, people worried that his goal was to water his horses in the Rhine River.
Fortunately, the alliance between the Emperor and Charles, and the Emperor's formidable strength, truly deterred Charles, preventing him from advancing eastward beyond Aachen.
Now, the Emperor had formally declared protection over Aachen, which was also a silent warning to Charles.
Even if both parties were well-known close allies, certain boundaries should still be clearly drawn, otherwise it would be a huge detriment to their alliance and the Emperor's prestige.
Aachen was undoubtedly fortunate; in contrast, the fate of Gelre was not as favored by the Emperor.
The old Duke Arnold's life was counting down, and his reign was nearing its end.
According to the treaty he was forced to sign a few years ago, territories such as Zutphen and Gelderland would be inherited by Charles of Burgundy.
Recently, Burgundian troops had gradually taken over the southern territories of the Duchy. The old Duke, gravely ill, had no heart to resist and chose to let Charles decide on his own.
Even if he disagreed, Gelre's weak military strength would hardly be able to withstand Burgundy's strong pressure.
This time, Duke Arnold's absence from Christopher's coronation ceremony due to health reasons made Laszlo refocus on the Gelre succession issue.
In the imperial palace in Aachen, Charles exchanged pleasantries with his long-unseen brother Anthony, then began to share information they had gathered.
They and some other guests were scattered in various corners of the room, awaiting an audience with the Emperor.
Currently, the unfortunate Edward IV, brought by Charles, was speaking with the Emperor and his heir in the study. He was likely doing his utmost to secure the Emperor's aid.
"How is life in the East?" Charles looked at his brother with some curiosity. Anthony didn't seem to have changed much.
Anthony spread his hands in frustration and replied, "The situation in the East is becoming increasingly tense, but the Eastern Empire's borders are becoming more stable. The muslims are currently engrossed in infighting and can't spare the effort to expand westward. My work is still the same as before, dealing with all sorts of people, but dealing with those Greeks or Bulgarians is much harder than shuttling between Burgundy and Austria."
"Alas, don't even mention it. I don't know what got into Laszlo to transfer you to the East. It was perfectly fine to stay in Burgundy."
"Ahem, you can't say that. After all, Father earned me a territory in the East; I can't just abandon it, can I?"
"That's true. You are now a powerful Duke. Serve the Emperor well." Charles didn't dwell on the matter too much.
Back then, Philip III "the Good" had several illegitimate sons, but only Anthony was allowed to use the Burgundian fleur-de-lis coat of arms with the illegitimate slash.
Perhaps from then on, Philip hoped Anthony would escape the fate of being Charles's shadow and forge his own path in life, which Anthony had now achieved.
"I hear the Duke of Gelre doesn't have much longer to live?"
Anthony had a particular interest in Gelre. He had once tried to obscure the Emperor's view on the Gelre succession issue, which he saw as a significant reason for his transfer to the East.
When he left Burgundy, the Gelre succession negotiations had made no progress. Austria was preparing for its second campaign against the Ottomans, and Charles had to deal with the second War of the Public Weal. Both sides tacitly avoided this sensitive topic.
But the current situation no longer allowed for negotiations to drag on. Once old Duke Arnold died, Burgundy would inevitably forcibly occupy Gelre. Without the Emperor's approval, it could very likely escalate into a diplomatic incident.
This was what Anthony worried about.
"Yes, this is one of the reasons I came to see the Emperor this time. The other reason is to secure an Elector's seat."
"Then Burgundy's treasury will probably suffer another raid," Anthony said with a helpless chuckle. "Have you prepared enough florins? After all, His Imperial Majesty only recognizes that."
"Of course. The spoils taken from France last time, plus the funds recently collected from the States-General, I will make him agree."
Charles stroked the gold ring on his hand, looking confident.
When it came to wealth, he would not lose to anyone. The splendor of the Burgundian court could even rival that of the Imperial court.
Of course, part of the reason was that the Emperor disliked extravagant clothes and palaces, choosing instead to invest more money into national development and military construction.
In any case, he still had some money to use. Although buying territorial titles and an Elector's seat seemed a bit wasteful to him, in the long run, it was not a loss.
Consider it paying for security. Wasn't it the same situation when the King of Denmark took Holstein back then?
Over there, the succession was genuinely first in line. Here in Gelre, however, there were many collateral branches waiting to inherit the Duchy. Charles's intervention would inevitably cause their dissatisfaction.
As long as he obtained the ducal title from the Emperor, Charles would no longer be subject to imperial control in whatever he did afterward. This was precisely what he hoped for.
The King of Denmark spent one hundred thousand florins to bribe the nobles of Holstein to elect him to inherit the territory. Charles would not pay the nobles of Gelre; he would only invite those who opposed him to taste the power of Burgundian cannons.
"As long as you have a plan." Anthony said no more, quietly awaiting the Emperor's summons.
Not long after, Edward IV returned to the room, his face full of dejection.
Charles inquired and learned that the Emperor had initially agreed to the York Family's request for a marriage alliance, but when it came to specific matters of providing aid, the Emperor began to make various excuses and prevaricate, seemingly hesitant.
Charles was about to comfort Edward when the Emperor's attendant walked over. He only had time to pat Edward's shoulder before following the man to the Emperor's room.
Compared to worrying about the mess in England across the Channel, Charles now hoped to do some good business with the Emperor, just like in the past—the Emperor would sell power, claims, and protection, and those in need would pay for them. Generally, the highest bidder won, and there was nothing more straightforward than that.