The death of
Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor, on 2 April 1657 was followed by the longest interregnum since the 13th century. This was largely a result of the youth of Ferdinand's surviving son
Leopold, who was only seventeen at the time of his father's death. It was generally agreed that the emperor had to be at least eighteen years old.
Cardinal Mazarin, the
French chief minister, hoped to prevent Leopold's election and to secure either the election of his
king Louis XIV or, at least, a candidate from outside the
House of Habsburg such as
Ferdinand Maria, Elector of Bavaria. The electors called to choose Ferdinand's successor were: •
Johann Philipp von Schönborn, elector of
Mainz •
Karl Kaspar von der Leyen, elector of
Trier •
Maximilian Henry of Bavaria, elector of
Cologne •
Ferdinand Maria, elector of Bavaria •
John George II, elector of
Saxony •
Frederick William, elector of
Brandenburg •
Charles I Louis, elector of the
Electoral Palatinate • Leopold I, King of
Bohemia Following the precedent set by his elder brother in the
election of 1653, Leopold abstained from the vote. ==Election results==