Frederick was born in mid-December 1122 in Haguenau, to Frederick II, Duke of Swabia and Judith of Bavaria. His father was from the Hohenstaufen family, and his mother was from the Welf family, the two most powerful fa… See more

The increase in wealth of the trading cities of northern Italy led to a revival in the study of the Justinian Code, a Latin legal system that had become extinct centuries earlier. Legal scholars renewed its application. It is speculated … See more

Frederick did little to encourage economic development in Germany prior to the autumn of 1165. In that year he visited the lower Rhineland, the most economically advanced region in Germany. He had already tra… See more