The HRE started when Charlemagne received the emperor crown from Pope Leo in 800 or when Otto got the crown from Pope John in 962. The HRE then went through twists and turns, up and downs, was controlled by the Hapsburg family starting in 1438, until it was dissolved under Napoleon’s boot in 1806. The HRE under Hapsburg control then continued as the Austrian Empire, which merged with Hungary to form the Austrian-Hungarian Empire in 1867, which lost WWI and then dissolved for good.
