On July 27, 1189, Friedrich Barbarossa (also known as Frederick), the Holy Roman Emperor, arrived at the capital of the Serbian King Stefan Nemanja, a city called Nis. King of Germany, King of Italy, and King of Burgundy, Barbarossa was a medieval force to be reckoned with, crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 1155. His undoing was his ill-considered foray into the Third Crusade, a venture that cost the Holy Roman Emperor his life.
Digging Deeper
Perhaps you are familiar with the German invasion of the Soviet Union in 1941, a plan the Germans called “Operation Barbarossa” in honor of one of their greatest kings. Like the Third Crusade, Operation Barbarossa was a major bad idea and largely was responsible for the downfall of the Third Reich. Along with the famous military operation, many other people (real and fictional) and things have been named “Barbarossa,” which means “red beard” in Italian. There have been songs and record albums bearing this regal name, as well as literary and movie characters, movies, games, and even cities and ships, both real and fictional.
