Where Is the Limit of Loyalty? On a MonarchicalImpostor and a King on the Throne

Monarchical impostor usually opposed himself to ruler sitting on a throne. People whowent over his side refused the loyalty to the official authority when recognized animpostor as a real power. However, the false Frederick II of Hohenstaufen in 1285offered the legitimate King Rudolf I of Habsburg a different, non-alternative project, buta unifying one. The impostor appealed to the King to come to him at the Reichstag andreceive the German lands from him as an << Emperor >>. This was an attempt to take hisplace in the political arena without setting a goal (at least in the beginning) to removeRudolf. The notion of loyalty to the King in such circumstances turns out not to bestrictly alternate, but more flexible, variable depending on the historical context. Theinterpretation of the actions of the self-proclaimed Emperor as loyalty or disloyalty toRudolf depends primarily on the interpretation of the main political and military force- the King.