(born 1283, Munich, Ger.—died Oct. 11, 1347, Munich) German king (1314–47) and uncrowned Holy Roman emperor (1328–47). As the Luxembourg candidate for emperor, he was opposed by the Habsburg candidate Frederick III of Austria.
Both men were elected and crowned king in 1314, and Louis's forces defeated Frederick's army in 1322. A conflict with Pope John XXII over the appointment of the imperial vicar in Italy led to his excommunication (1324). To placate his opponents, Louis agreed to rule jointly with Frederick, an arrangement that continued until Frederick's death (1330). He accepted the imperial crown from the Roman people instead of from the pope (1328) and backed the appointment of an antipope. In 1346 Pope Clement VI secured the election of a rival king, Charles of Moravia, and Louis died of a heart attack before finishing his preparations for war.
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