Regesta Imperii - Online Quellen zur Reichsgeschichte

Regesta of Maximilian I 1486/1493-1519

Leitung:

Ass. Prof. i.R. Dr. Inge Wiesflecker-Friedhuber

• Dr. Manfred Hollegger

Mitarbeitende:

• Dr. Markus Gneiß
• Dr. Christa Beer
• Dr. Angelika Schuh

Anschrift:

Regesta Imperii Maximilian I.
Victor-Franz-Hess-Forschungszentrum der Österreichischen Akademie der Wissenschaften

Schmiedlstraße 6, 2. Stock

A-8042 Graz-Messendorf

Telefon:

work +43(0)316-4120-222

E-Mail:

• manfred.hollegger@oeaw.ac.at
• ingeborg.wiesflecker@gmx.at

The regesta of the rule of Maximilian as an absolute ruler on the transition from medieval times to the early modern period mark the end of the Regesta Imperii. Corresponding to the Regesta Imperii’s basic orientation all types of written sources– deeds, letters, records, chancery and chamber files, diplomatic correspondence, contemporary sources in general and contemporary historiographic sources etc.– are being taken into account; due to large number of approximately 500.000 relevant documents only a selection of the most important ones was published as part of the Regesta Imperii volumes.

In order to still offer a reliable basis to a new and holistic perspective on the Austrian, German and European history on the transition from the Middle Ages to the Early Modern Period, not only domestic actions concerning the imperial reform, the Austrian administrative reforms and the development of the early modern state as a transformation and integration process aiming at the compression of country and rule were taken into consideration, but also  in the light of the large social and religious movements the sources of judicial, social, economic and  everyday life history as well as personal, cultural and intellectual history is being paid attention to. The foreign policies, where the relationships with the papacy, France, Spain, England, Hungary, Poland, Russia, the Ottoman Empire, Venice and all other Italian states illustrate the intertwining and fights with the remaining European powers during the gradual rise of the house Austria ruling in the Holy Roman Empire to the great power in Europe, were approached analogically. The general objective of the Maximilian regesta as an extensive document publication is to provide an as comprehensive image as possible of the political, intellectual, economic and social life at the turn of the era around 1500. Additionally, this procedure ensures that at least our most important historical sources are being secured against the unforeseeable possibilities of loss and destruction.

This document material, which is to 80 per cent  new insofar as up to now in had neither been edited as a complete text nor been published as regesta, has been collected in all major Austrian, German und European archives under the leadership of Hermann Wiesflecker († 2009), whom Leo Santifaller had assigned the processing of the regesta of Maximilian I to in 1949. Out of this material a selection of roughly 40.000 typewritten regesta for the entire reign of Maximilian was compiled. Not only H. Wiesfleckers accompanying illustration of Maximilian and his time in five volumes is based on this selection, which is accessible through a paper based registry of all place and personal names , but it also forms the foundation of the ongoing edition, next to extensive photocopies, Xerox copies, microfilmings and digitized contents. Four regesta volumes in seven sub-volumes for the years 1493-1504 with approximately 22.000 regesta in total are already available in print, which are also available online at regesta-imperii.de. The regesta are arranged chronologically, however, the Maximilian regesta in a narrow sense, i.e. everything originating from court and everything that was happening there, were separated from other provinces, i.e. from documents originating from outside of the court, and per volume edited in two subvolumes (Maximilian I or rather Austria, realm and Europe), in order not to disturb Maximilian’s itinerarium and to keep a better overview. Two other sub-volumes containing the registry of the names of people and places of the first two regesta volumes were also published under the leadership of H. Wiesflecker. Digitized versions of those two registry volumes are also to be found in the RI online, see here.

All the materials of the remaining years of Maximilian’s rule which have not been covered by the ongoing edition yet are open to interested visitors from Austria and abroad in the research centre of the Austrian Academy of Sciences in Graz. Due to administrative reasons we ask potential visitors to announce their arrival beforehand.

Smaller academic enquiries about the project may be send to Frau Ass.-Prof. i.R. Dr. Ingeborg Wiesflecker-Friedhuber or to Dr. Manfred Hollegger per Post (ÖAW / Forschungszentrum Graz, IMF / Arbeitsstelle Regesten Maximilians I., Schmiedlstraße 6, A-8042 Graz-Messendorf) or by e-mail (ingeborg.wiesflecker@uni-graz.at or manfred.hollegger@oeaw.ac.at respectively).

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