Who Was the Last Roman Emperor?

For an entity as studied as the Roman Empire, you'd imagine it'd be pretty clear-cut who its final emperor was. However, it's really not at all clear who that title should belong to, and as you'll soon see, there are quite a few contenders.

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Further Reading:

[TheArmchairHistorian]

Looks like you cartoonified me! Love your art style :)

[thefrenchkiwi]

4:29 Quite ironic considering that their grandson, Carlos I/Charles V would become both king of Spain and Holy Roman emperor, and would go on to embody the idea of a universal monarch. Had they accepted, we could have technically seen an emperor that could have, at least in theory, reunited both the West and the East.
It would have also been even more ironic, since Theodosius I, the last emperor of a united Roman Empire was actually from Hispania or modern day Spain.

[justinian-the-great]

My vote goes for Constantine XI, because he lived and died how the real Roman emperor would do: in an epic defense of his capital, while firing off some sick quotes all around!

[mikethequestioningpineappl]

Fun fact : Conqueror Mehmed of Ottoman Empire viewed the last Byzantium emperor as a hero because he died fighting with his men, which was seen as a high status and many Ottoman sultans did this(Biggest example being Selim the Brave)

[SuchIsLife]

And I initially thought that Jerusalem was the most besieged city on Earth but I was wrong. It's quite amazing to know that the Theodosian Walls fended off numerous armies over the centuries only to yield to cannons by 1453.

[brutusthebear]

David Megas Komnenos could count as well. He was the last of the Komnenos line, and ruled the Empire of Trebizond, which was one of the fractured states that came out of the Eastern Roman Empire.

[TomboyTommy]

Odd thing actually, I found this channel through an Ad, I watched a video, liked it, and subscribed. The animation is very unique! Keep up the work!

[MonsieurDean]

Arguably, the original empire ended when the Praetorian guard eliminated the Julio-Claudian Dynasty, and basically became a shadow government that assassinated emperors at their whim. Even then, however, any suggestions of the emperor having royal status was downplayed to preserve the illusion of the Republic's continuation.

[jorgejustin]

The term Byzantine appears in Renaissance literature shorty after the fall of Constantinople in 1453. This was a deliberate move by the academics of the day to A) de-legitimise the claims of the Ottoman's and B) Strengthen the claims of the Europeans (both claimed to be the Inheritors of Rome)

[tfljmartis]

The common person: who?
A slightly historically literate person: Romulus Augustus
A historically literate person: Constantine XI
A legalist (which is how the Romans saw things: Felipe VI of Spain (who is still alive)

[ajarofmayonnaise]

Was waiting for a new video, you Guys are so underrated

[Ruosteinenknight]

Bridge of the death-style: "What do you mean? Last roman emperor to rule unified roman empire or last person who held the title?"

3:06 his niece Sophia Palaiologina however managed to escape and married grand prince of moscow, Ivan III.
You probably know her grandson better. Ivan IV, better known as Ivan the terrible.
That's also where Russian tsardom's claim of being "the third rome" comes from.

[wrightroenigk]

The last emperor was Constantine XI Palaeologus

[ahscott]

4:17 I’m imagining an alternative timeline where Henry VII takes up this offer and therefore the British Empire would’ve gone on to also technically be the Roman Empire. It would just be fitting.

[emircalvin]

Julius Nepos could also be a candidate for last emperor since he was considered the legitimate emperor and romulus augustulus was a usurper

[Yatagurusu]

The funniest part of this is Mehmed himself took the title Caesar of the Romans, which his descendants didn't really care about

[jacobbehring]

I've never clicked on an ad and enjoyed it like this

[sc]

I’m a Constantine XI voter. I’m actually of the opinion that he should be an Orthodox saint too. I was actually pretty surprised when I found out he wasn’t.

[aluminumcoffee]

Even though everyone has already said this, you deserve to hear it a million more times. I love your content and you are one of my favorite youtubers. I wish you got more recognition, but know you have a small but devout following. Keep up the good work 😁

[ahscott]

Does this mean that the current King of Spain is technically Roman Emperor?