The
Kingdom of Germany or
German Kingdom (, "
Teutonic Kingdom") developed out of the eastern half of the former
Carolingian Empire. Like
Anglo-Saxon England and
medieval France, it began as "a conglomerate, an assemblage of a number of once separate and independent...
gentes [peoples] and
regna [kingdoms]."
East Francia (
Ostfrankenreich) was formed in embryo by the
Treaty of Verdun in 843, and was ruled by the
Carolingian dynasty until 911, after which the kingship was elective. The initial electors were the rulers of the
stem duchies, who generally chose one of their own. After 962, when
Otto I was crowned emperor, the kingdom formed the bulk of the
Holy Roman Empire, which also included
Italy (after 951),
Bohemia (after 1004) and
Burgundy (after 1032).