Apollonia, Holy Roman Empress

"You may feel weak now. Do not delude yourself that way. Your survival is your strength."

- Apollonia Colonna

Apollonia Colonna (born 21 January 1411), most commonly known as Apollonia Habsburg-Babenberg became Empress of the Holy Roman Empire in her own right in 1429. She came to power following the death of her husband, the previous emperor, Maximilian II. Mother to four children, including Magdalena of Bavaria, she became one of the powerhouses invited to the great Eurasian Summits, beginning in 1455. Under her reign, the Holy Roman Empire faced invasion by the Ottoman Empire, coups both from within and without, and rose up following a harrowing plague that had brought Christendom to its knees.

The Empress Apollonia is recognised and respected throughout Europe as the undisputed ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. She is an astute woman with a penchant for opulence and excess, and prone to ruthlessness when provoked. She made it clear at the beginning of her marriage to Dmitrei von Bargau that he had no claim over the throne or power over her. Nevertheless, their children are expected to climb to glorious echelons, as evinced by even her eldest daughter's ascension as Queen of Castile.

The supreme power embodied within the title ‘Holy Roman Emperor’ is one that connotes ascendancy and evokes envy. The honour bestowed by the ancient powers in Rome, it has been a hereditary claim within the Austrian imperial family for generations. Through the Habsburg-Babenberg bloodline, the honour of defending the faith has been passed down from father to son and yet now, a woman sits upon the throne. The Empress Apollonia is a woman of unparalleled intellect, and when she married the late Emperor Maximilian at the tender age of eighteen, it was evident that she was the dominant force within their marriage and when he died only a few years after their union, the Austrian court was met with her forceful ambitions. It became evident not long after Maximilian's death that Apollonia had no intention of relinquishing the power of the crown. Through her own political astuteness and clever alliances with the powerful von Bargau family, as well as receiving an advocate in the form of Pope Leopold XII (her uncle), Apollonia has ruled for twenty years, advancing her relatives to various thrones throughout Europe, including that of Castile and Croatia.

Early life
Apollonia was born at her family’s seat, the Palazzo Colonna, but records of her birth were not kept, though her parents left mentions of the births of each of their sons. Apollonia lived out her youth in Rome, resplendant at the knee of her uncle, the Pope. During her childhood, Apollonia was a notedly voracious reader, consuming not only her own lessons, but ultimately those of her brothers more quickly even than they, until at last her parents agreed to educate her alongside them. Disciplined and driven, she excelled them all in her studies, not only curious and eager to learn, but also determined to prove herself in a place she was led to believe she did not belong. This was yet another contradiction, and one that would dog her, her whole life long.

The Colonna family was always one of great prestige, but its star was on the rise, and only improved when Apollonia’s paternal uncle was elected Pope. From there, the family seemed invincible and Apollonia became one of the most sought-after brides in Europe. It was also during this period that Apollonia met Isabel Neville, perhaps the most enduring friendship of her lifetime.

In 1428, an incident recorded by a witness, an ambassador from Padua, who was riding with the young Apollonia, her family, and a few others. As an entertainment for the lords and ladies gathered at the Papal Court, a falcon hunt was organized. However, Apollonia’s horse was spooked, and Apollonia was hurled from her saddle. Fortunately, her injuries healed quickly and she was soon back in riding form and back in the saddle as soon as possible, surprising the visiting dignitaries who had witnessed her ghastly fall.

In 1428, when she was seventeen, Maximilian of Austria came to Italy. In 1429, Apollonia and Maximilian were wed and, between the influence of the Pope and Apollonia’s own machinations, he was almost immediately elected Holy Roman Emperor. Immediately, Apollonia set about shaping the Empire to her own liking, while her husband sat by and allowed her. In 1433, Apollonia was delivered of her first child, Magdalena of Bavaria, the future Queen of Castile. Within only a few months, however, her husband was dead and Apollonia was faced with a critical moment. True to self, she held her ground, making her intentions to remain the Empress felt. It was a struggle, but Apollonia was stalwart and, eventually, the opposition caved. Apollonia was, in her own right, recognized as the Holy Roman Empress.

Her troubles were not over, however. Maximilian still had an heir - the Archduke of Austria, Frederick Babenberg - lurking in the shadows and, following an attempt on her life, Apollonia knew she would need heirs of her own. She wasted no time, making a quick selection and marriage to Dmitrei von Bargau. In no time, she fell pregnant, giving birth to her second child with her new husband, with two more soon to follow.

Summit of Florence
The beginning of 1455 was a promising epoch in Apollonia's life. Empress in her own right with a volley of children serving as viable candidates for a marriage, a newly minted alliance with Alfonso of Castile, and her uncle reigning as Pope, Apollonia seemed to hold the world in one hand. Yet, the sudden death of her uncle that very year - shortly after he called together the first ten nations for a historic Summit in Florence - was only the second in a series of calamities, including the encroachment of a great power from the East - the conquering Sultan of the Ottoman Empire, İskender - upon Apollonia's own territory. Her uncle's death also dashed many of the Empress' plans to call together a crusade at the Summit, a shift which forever changed the face of Eurasian politics.

Despite these setbacks, the first Summit remained promising, with many relationships between nations forged there, and foundations laid for future events. However, the Summit was doomed, collapsing in 1456 into acrimony in the midst of Florentine bread riots.

Following the dispersement of the initial Summit, Apollonia did not remain idle. Eager to buy time and hold off inevitable war with the Ottomans, Apollonia maintained continuous communication with Sultan İskender, the two arranging a marriage between her only son and one of his daughters: a mutually beneficial illusion of alliance both parties intended to maintain until the last possible moment.

Between 1456 and the Lisbon Summit of 1458, Apollonia also began to address her Empire's future following her demise. While her papers and letters from before this era seem to lay a groundwork for her son to follow her as Emperor, following the first summit, Apollonia appears to have reassessed. By 1458, Apollonia looked firmly towards her daughter, Magdalena, and Magdalena's husband, Alfonso, as her successors.

Summit of Lisbon
In 1458, a second summit was convened in Lisbon, Portugal. This second summit proved more expansive, seeing in addition to the return of Aragon, Córdoba, Croatia, England, Florence, France, the Holy Roman Empire, the Ottoman Empire, Portugal, and Russia, the additional nations of Castile, China, Persia, Naples, Milan, and Venice. The world was opening up all around them in ways that were utterly unprecedented for the time.

For Apollonia, however, much had not changed and her position was as difficult as it had been at the end of the Florence Summit. Finding herself in this situation, Apollonia continued to lay the foundation for the crusade she still wished to muster. During this summit, she hoped that the mission would prove easier, as the new Pope proved to be Aragonese with profound Trastámara loyalties. However, two events occurring in tandem served to further shut down these possibilities.

Just before the summit convened, Apollonia's friend and ally, the Prince Regent of France, Marius d'Anjou, was faced with a strategic shift as his nephew, Philip of France, came of age. Rather than submit to the cessation of his powers in France, Marius launched a coup, attempting to seize the throne for himself, once and for all. However, this effort failed and Marius was forced to flee. Hoping to shelter her friend as well as to force France into a position of friendliness towards the Holy Roman Empire, Apollonia gave Marius sanctuary in her court, where he became one of her closest advisers. While this might have worked well for Apollonia, almost immediately, Philip married Alexandrina Trastámara, a move which soon ensured Apollonia was well and truly cut off from the favor of the Pope she'd so craved, and further forestalled her hopes of a crusade.

The Summit of 1458 proved, all in all, rather disastrous for Apollonia, as it's close saw the emergence of a trade deal between Apollonia's enemies: the Ottoman Empire and Córdoba and Russia, as well as England. Apollonia now found herself severed entirely from this lucrative deal and matters were soon to grow worse. No sooner had the Empress returned home than she found a spark of the plague had cropped up in Austria.

While Apollonia moved swiftly to curtail any further outbreaks, and soon the outbreak of plague died away, her crops and economy had still been quite ravaged by the the event, shifting Apollonia's focus from her once-precious crusade towards ensuring fiscal success for her empire.

Summit of Paris
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Later years
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Legacy
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Literary works
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Film & television
Apollonia and her contemporaries are also featured in a popular Western, reimagining these Renaissance figures as people living in the so-called Wild West in 1878. Apoollonia Colonna is pictured as the corrupt Sheriff of Crowns, the town at the center of this popular reimagining.

Western AU: Crowns, 1878
Folks who remember say Apollonia Colonna's daddy was a good man - preacherman - did everything lawful and right. They say, when bandits strung him and his missus up, and left 'em to die, the preacher prayed for their souls with his last breath. Apollonia was only just bloomed, then - came back home from town to find her parents swingin' from a noose and her younger siblings hidden in the dusty cellar of what remained of their home. She dug her parents graves, saw 'em put in the ground, and swore to rebuild all that had been lost. When Apollonia came back to town, again, it was with a vengeance. She shot down the bandits what killed her parents in the street, one by one, huntin' 'em down, little by little, and restored order to Crowns, with each move she made. They say that when she first appeared, she looked a gleamin' gold angel - but no one saw the hellfire that blazed beneath her feet.

The grateful people applauded the appointment of Apollonia as their sheriff, at first, confident that here, at last, was a woman capable of cleaning up their town and protecting them from the bandits and ruffians who festered and circled like vultures all around. Oh, and at first she did, as she rose to seize up more and more power, it was by casting the other powers down. When all that was said and done, however, Apollonia's true colors began to show. She began takin' bribes, even inviting crime what filled her own pockets into town, so long as they abided by her rules. Sheriff keeps the order, but she ain't got nothin' 'gainst crime. Truth is, though her daddy was a preacherman, Sheriff Colonna is the devil's own daughter.