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(created 2013-02-16 23:58):
I CAME IN 44TH PLACE WITH A SCORE OF 89! TOP 50 YAY! :D
Rudolf von Habsburg, or Rudolph I as we would know him, was the first German king of the Habsburg dynasty. He inherited Alsace, the Aargau, and Breisgau which are lands presently in Austria and Germany.
He was crowned king in 1273, but had to renounce imperial rights to the Holy Roman Empire in order to be recognized by the Pope. He gained more Austrian land in 1278 when he defeated his rival Otakar II of Bohemia. His combat against French expansion prevented him from becoming a Holy Roman emperor.
Rudolph made great efforts to enforce public peace in Germany but unfortunately for him, German electors did not want his son Albert to become German king, so they made it that the crown would not pass hereditarily through the House of Halburg. He still became king though, lucky little Albert I.
Rudolph died in 1291 and is credited with keeping Germany together during a time of unrest. Good job Rudolph!

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