Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor

1552–1612

Rudolf II was Holy Roman Emperor from 1576 to 1612 and a major patron of art, science, alchemy and astrology. His Prague court attracted scholars and artists, while his political weakness contributed to religious tension in central Europe.

Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor also held the offices or ranks of count, Prince-Elector, King of Bohemia, and Apostolic King of Hungary. Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor belonged to the House of Habsburg and operated within Holy Roman Empire; Habsburg monarchy. Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor was born in Vienna and died in Prague.

S. J. Parris’s Alchemy brings Giordano Bruno to Rudolf II’s Prague in 1588, where the emperor personally orders him to investigate the murder of an alchemist. Rudolf’s fascination with astronomy, medicine, collecting and occult learning is inseparable from the competition for patronage and the religious tensions surrounding his court. Edward Marston’s The Fair Maid of Bohemia approaches the same Prague from the viewpoint of an English acting company: Rudolf is an eccentric and unpredictable host whose imperial court becomes the setting for murder, secret messages and Anne Hendrik’s abduction. Together the novels use his court as both a real centre of Renaissance scholarship and a place where curiosity, secrecy and politics overlap.

Series

Historical novels and book series featuring Rudolf II, Holy Roman Emperor (2 series)

Giordano Bruno Novels in Order

by S. J. Parris 10 books 4.3(46,581)

The Giordano Bruno novels follow the historical Italian philosopher through a fictional career as investigator and intelligence agent. Beginning with his youth in Dominican Naples and continuing through exile in Elizabethan England, France and Prague, the series combines murder mysteries with Reformation conflict, court politics, espionage and Renaissance…

All books in this series

1. The Secret Dead

First published 2014 · 4.2(2,859)

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2. The Academy of Secrets

First published 2020 · 4.2(993)

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3. A Christmas Requiem

First published 2020 · 4.3(1,475)

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4. Heresy

First published 2010 · 4.1(8,721)

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5. Prophecy

First published 2011 · 4.2(5,722)

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6. Sacrilege

First published 2012 · 4.4(3,547)

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7. Treachery

First published 2014 · 4.4(5,038)

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8. Conspiracy

First published 2016 · 4.4(6,021)

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9. Execution

First published 2020 · 4.5(7,414)

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10. Alchemy

First published 2023 · 4.4(4,791)

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Nicholas Bracewell in Order

by Edward Marston 16 books 4.1(8,894)

The Nicholas Bracewell mysteries centre on Westfield’s Men, a fictional Elizabethan theatre company managed behind the scenes by its resourceful bookholder. Bracewell protects scripts, organises tours, settles disputes and solves murders that threaten the players, their patrons and the precarious business of performance. The sixteen novels move through…