Hohenstaufen

German family of princes, several members of which were Holy Roman Emperors 1138–1208 and 1214–54. They were the first German emperors to make use of associations with Roman law and tradition to aggrandize their office, and included Conrad III; Frederick I (Barbarossa), the first to use the title Holy Roman Emperor (previously the title Roman emperor was used); Henry VI; and Frederick II.

The last of the line, Conradin, was executed in 1268 with the approval of Pope Clement IV while attempting to gain his Sicilian inheritance. They were supported by the Ghibellines (see Guelph and Ghibelline), who took their name from the family's castle of Waiblingen.