The Time of Two Emperors (1359-1547 IC) is the name given to the long period of disunity and civil unrest in the Empire that followed the self-proclamation of Elector Countess Ottilia of Talabecland as empress in opposition to the Elected Emperor Wilhelm of Stirland in 1359 IC.[1a]
In a desperate bid to end the bloodshed of the Age of Wars, the Elector Counts met in Altdorf and eventually agreed on a new choice for emperor, crowning Elector Count Wilhelm of Stirland as their new sovereign by a majority of one. Elector Countess Ottila of Talabecland was outraged at this outcome, and claimed the vote was rigged.[1a]
When Ottila returned to her capital at Talabheim she simply declared herself the new empress without a vote, and was supported in her claim by the Cults of Taal and Ulric. She then outlawed the Cult of Sigmar in Talabecland, a decree that stood for almost a thousand years. The civil war between the rival Imperial monarchs escalated and eventually led to the emergence of a third claimant to the Imperial throne in 1547 IC, the so-called "Wolf Emperors" of Middenland, which initiated the anarchic period in Imperial history known as the "Age of Three Emperors."[1a]