Help with confusing history textbook--Hohenstaufens--who or what are they?

Question

Okay, the dorks who wrote my AP EURO textbook enjoy the art of slipping in vague references never before mentioned in the textbook with no explanation. here Is the paragraph preceding this reference to the family/group:

"The church of the thirteenth century was being undermined by more than internal religious disunity. The demise of imperial power meant the papacy in Rome was no longer the leader of anti-imperial (Guelf, or propapal) sentiment in Italy. Instead of being the center of Italian resistance to the emperor, popes now found themselves on the defensive against their old allies. That was the ironic price paid by the papacy to vanquish the Hohenstaufens."

Who are the Hohenstaufens, and how did 'vanquishing' them benefit the papacy?

No, I'm not asking you to do my homework--I just don't understand this reference. Or am I just too stupid to be taking AP classes?!

Answer 1

House of Hohenstaufen was a family that produced many kings of Germany, some of whom were Holy Roman Emperors.

Answer 2

this is the kind of thing that illustrates how chaotic the middle ages were. the rise of the church afforded an opportunity for men of ability, especially those who were good fighters. Both the popes and the emperors had constantly to secure recruits. When a vassal of the emperor went over to the enemy, his lands and monies were declared ad forfeit and given to another more loyal person. Of all the new men who became prominent during the period, the most interesting was Frederic of Buren. he fought for Henry IV and made duke of Swabia he also married Agnes the emperor's daughter . He rose in power, and was the founder of the Hohenstaufen family, which took its name from a favorite castle.He had two sons, Frederic and Conrad. Frederic became emperor (well, he marched on Rome and made himself emperor anyway.) and also established a kingdom in Italy. As an emperor he did not consider himself under Rome's authority, nor was he a christian per se and often was at a kind of cold war with the papacy. this is a mild explanation , and does not describe the situation thoroughly. for more see the following reference

Answer 3

Basically... if I'm remembering things right... the first spin offs from the Catholic Church... the Lutherans... settled in Germany.
The Lutherans came about when a group of monks/priests disagreed with Catholic teachings about the use of Icons (statuary). They wanted to simplify things a lot more so that people would understand better.
The Catholic Church issued an order offering a bounty on the renegade monks' heads.
By getting rid of the Hohenstaufens, the Catholic Church got rid of the people who supported their competition in Germany.
That's if I'm remembering right. I'm old, though.