Richard of Cornwall
Richard of Cornwall was elected King of the Romans in 1257 and spent most of his reign in England, having bought the office and got very little for it. Born in 1209, he was the younger son of King John and the brother of Henry III. He was made Earl of Cornwall as a child and became one of the wealthiest men in Europe on the tin of the Cornish stannaries, on the profits of a recoinage he financed, and on moneylending — including to his own brother. He went on crusade in 1240 and achieved by negotiation what a larger army had not: the release of prisoners and the fortification of Ascalon. He twice refused the crown of Sicily, which the papacy was hawking around Europe, on the grounds that the terms were ruinous. His brother accepted it for his own son and nearly lost his throne over the cost. The German election of 1257 was openly for sale. Richard reportedly spent 28,000 marks on the electors and secured four votes; a rival faction elected Alfonso X of Castile with the other three, and neither man ever established authority. He was crowned at Aachen and made four visits to Germany, holding some influence in the Rhineland and almost none elsewhere. He was captured at Lewes in 1264 fighting for his brother against Simon de Montfort, hiding in a windmill, and was held for over a year. He died in 1272, and the interregnum ended with Rudolf of Habsburg the following year.
- Lived: 1209 CE – 1272 CE
- Nationality: German
- Roles: head_of_state
