 So it was without the support of the kingdom's nobility that Henry took the radical action of having himself anointed and crowned King of Germany ("Rex Romanorum") by Willigis, Archbishop of Mainz on 9 July 1002 at Mainz, in present-day Germany.Henry's action marked the first time a German king was not crowned in Aachen Cathedral since Emperor Otto I began the tradition in 936 and the first time a German king assumed the throne without election by the German nobility.Under the regal name of "King Henry II", he appeared before the Saxons in mid-July in full regal apparel.