Erlembald, with an army
made up of his followers and some nobles, attacked Godfrey.
made up of his followers and some nobles, attacked Godfrey.
Cambridge Medieval History - v5 - Contest of Empire and the Papacy
It is not certain whether
the Milanese clergy appealed to Victor II or Stephen IX; Arnulf says the latter,
but the former is more probable. For the chronology see also Hefele-Leclercq, iv,
pp. 1126 sqq.
2 The legateship is best dated early in 1059 before the Easter Synod at Rome.
We have Damian's own account addressed to Hildebrand, Archdeacon. Hence a
difficulty, for Hildebrand was not Archdeacon until autumn 1059. But Damian
speaks of his having been asked by Hildebrand to put together matters bearing on
Roman supremacy; the account was probably meant in that sense as a record of an
important decision. For other arguments in favour of this date see Hefele-Leclercq,
I, p. 1191, note 2; Meyer von Knonau, 1, p. 127, note 17. Hauck, 1, p. 696, note
1, holds the date as good as certain.
CH. I.
## p. 42 (#88) ##############################################
42
The vacancy on Nicholas II's death
was done. Damian persuaded Guido to call a synod, and here, at first to
the anger of the patriotic Milanese, the legate presided. It seemed a slur
upon the patrimony and the traditions of St Ambrose; even the democratic
reformers were aghast. It was then that Damian, faced by certain violence
and likely death, shewed the courage in which he never failed. With no
attempt at compromise, with no flattery to soothe their pride, he spoke
of the claims of St Peter and his Roman Church to obedience. Milan was
the daughter, the great daughter of Rome, and so he called them to sub-
mission. It was a triumph of bold oratory backed by a great personality;
Guido and the whole assembly promised obedience to Rome. Then
Damian went on with his inquest; one by one the clerics present confessed
what they had paid, for Holy Orders, for benefices, and for preferment.
All were tainted, from the archbishop to the humblest clerk. Punishment
of the guilty, from which Damian was not the man to shrink, would have
left the Church in Milan without priests and ministers of any kind. So
the legate took the course taken by Nicholas II in his decree against
simonists (1059). Those present, beginning with the archbishop, owned
their guilt, and promised for the future to give up simony and to enforce
clerical celibacy. To this all present took an oath. Milan had fallen into
line with the reformers, and in doing so had subjected itself to Rome.
Bonizo, agreeing with Arnulf on the other side, is right in taking this
embassy as the end of the old and proud independence of Milan. When
Guido and his suffragans were summoned to the Easter Council of 1059 at
Rome some Milanese resented it. But the archbishop received absolution
and for some six years was not out of favour at Rome.
The unexpected death of Nicholas II was followed by a contested
election and a long struggle. Both the Roman nobles and the Lombard
bishops wished for a change but knew their need of outside help. At
Rome Gerard of Galeria, whose talents and diplomacy were typical of
his class, was the leader; he and the Abbot of St Gregory on the Caelian
were sent to the German Court, and they carried with them the crown
and insignia of the Patrician. The Lombard bishops, with whom the
Chancellor Guibert worked, met together and demanded a Pope from
Lombardy-the paradise of Italy-who would know how to indulge
human weakness. Thus civic politics at Rome and a reaction against
Pataria and Pope worked together; the young king Henry acted at the
impulse of Italians rather than of Germans; the latter had reason for
discontent, but the imperial nominee was not their choice and their
support was somewhat lukewarm. Henry met the Lombard bishops (some
of whom Peter Damian thought better skilled to discuss the beauty of a
woman than the election of a Pope) and the Romans at Basle on
28 October 1061, and, wearing the Patrician's crown which they had
brought, invested their elect, Cadalus, Bishop of Parma, who chose the
name of Honorius II", "a man rich in silver, poor in virtue” says Bonizo. .
1 There is some conflict of evidence, especially as to the part played by the
## p. 43 (#89) ##############################################
Alexander II and Honorius II
43
Meanwhile the cardinal-bishops and others had met outside Rome, and,
hastening when they knew of the opposition, elected, 30 September 1061,
Anselm of Baggio, the Patarine Bishop of Lucca! It was a wise choice
and likely to commend itself; there could be no doubt as to the ortho-
doxy or policy of this old pupil of Lanfranc at Bec, tested at Milan and
versed in Italian matters; at the same time he was in good repute at the
German Court and a friend of Duke Godfrey. Desiderius of Monte
Cassino carried a request for military help to Richard of Capua, who
came and led Alexander II to Rome. Some nobles, especially Leo de
Benedicto Christiano (" of the Jewish synagogue,” says Benzo), influenced
the Trastevere, but there was much fighting and Anselm was only taken
into the Lateran at night and by force. He was consecrated on 1 October
1061, and like his predecessors kept his old bishopric.
Cadalus found his way to Rome blocked by Godfrey's forces, but in
Parma he gathered his vassals, and could thus march on. But another
help was of greater use. Benzo, Bishop of Alba in Piedmont, was sent
by the Emperor as his ambassador to Rome; he was a popular speaker
with many gifts and few scruples; his happy if vulgar wit was to please
the mob and sting his opponents; he was welcomed by the imperialists
and lodged in the palace of Octavian. Then he invited the citizens, great
and small, and even Alexander with his cardinals, to a popular assembly.
The papal solemnity had little chance with the episcopal wit. “ Asinan-
drellus, the heretic of Lucca,” and “his stall-keeper Prandellus," as Benzo
calls the Pope and Hildebrand, were worsted in the debate; Cadalus
was able to enter Rome on 25 March 1062, and a battle on 14 April
in the Neronian Field after much slaughter left him victor. But he could
not gain the whole city, and it was divided into hostile camps. Honorius
hoped for help from Germany, and he was negotiating with Greek envoys
for a joint campaign against the Normans. But after the arrival of
Duke Godfrey there came an end to the strife; both claimants were to
withdraw to their former sees until they could get their claims settled
at the German Court. Honorius was said to have paid heavily for the
respite, but Alexander could rest easy as to his final success.
Alexander was not without some literary support. Peter Damian from
his hermitage wrote to Cadalus two letters, fierce and prophetic—the
second addressed “To Cadalus, false bishop, Peter, monk and sinner,
wishes the fate he deserves”: he had been condemned by three synods ;
he had broken the Election Decree; his very name derived from cado
raós was sinister, he would die within the year ; the old prophet believed
German bishops. A summary of references in Hefele-Leclerq, iv, p. 1217, note 1.
The part played by Henry corresponds to the imperial falsification of the Election
Decree of 1059 (clause 6).
1 An election outside Rome was provided for in the Election Decree, and Peter
Damian expressly mentions the presence of the cardinal-bishops, a mention which
supports the papal form of the Election Decree.
CH. I.
## p. 44 (#90) ##############################################
44
Victory of Alexander II
the prophecy fulfilled by the excommunication, the spiritual death, of
Honorius within the year. At the same time he was writing treatises on
the episcopal and clerical life. At this time, too, he wrote his well-known
Disceptatio Synodalis, a dialogue between champions of the Papacy and
the Empire; it is not, as was once supposed, the record of an actual
discussion, but a treatise intended to influence opinion at the assembly
called at Augsburg, 27 October 1062, to settle the papal rivalry. But he
was an embarrassing ally? : his letters to Henry and Anno of Germany, if
full of candid advice, laid overmuch stress on the royal rights, and
Alexander and Hildebrand were displeased. Damian, perhaps ironically,
begged the mercy of his “Holy Satan. ”
It was the practical politics of the day, and not theories or arguments,
which turned the balance at Augsburg and elsewhere in favour of Alex-
ander. The abduction of the twelve-year-old boy at Kaiserswerth (April
1062) and his guardianship by Anno of Cologne, first alone and then with
Adalbert, changed affairs. The Empress Agnes, who had taken the veil
about the end of 1061, withdrew from politics. The German episcopate,
weak, divided, and never whole-hearted for the Lombard Honorius,
turned towards Alexander. The Synod of Augsburg, led by Anno, declared
for Alexander and so gained commendation from Damian; "he had smitten
off the neck of the scaly monster of Parma. ” Before the end of 1062
Alexander moved towards Rome, and before Easter 1063 Godfrey
supported the decision of Augsburg; the inclination of Anno and his
position of Imperial Vicar led him to Rome. At the Easter Synod
Alexander acted as already and fully Pope. As a matter of course he
excommunicated Cadalus, and repeated canons against clerical marriage
and simony; the faithful were again forbidden to hear mass said by guilty
priests.
But the opposition was not at an end, so the irrepressible Benzo again
led Cadalus to Rome in May 1063; they took the Leonine City, Sant'
Angelo, and St Peter's, but his seat was insecure. His supporters and his
silver dwindled together; the castle was really his prison until he bought
freedom from his jailor Cencius with three hundred pounds of silver ;
with one poor attendant he escaped to the safer Parma.
Then at Whitsuntide, probably in 1064, he met the Council at
Mantua attended by German and Italian prelates. Anno (“the high-
priest” Benzo calls him) stated candidly the charges against Alexander.
Alexander on oath denied simony, and on the question of his election
without Henry's leave or approval satisfied the assembly. Everyone
1 His letters to Cadalus, Epp. 1, 20, 21 (MPL, CXLIV); to Henry IV, VII, 3;
to Anno, 11, 6; to Hildebrand, clearing himself, 1, 16.
2 The year is taken as 1064, 1066, and 1067 by various writers. The arguments
are most clearly discussed in Hefele-Leclercq, iv, pp. 1237 sqq. See also Meyer
von Knonau, 1, p. 375, note 19. Benzo's account with its alternate swoonings of
Beatrice and Anno has a touch of drama.
## p. 45 (#91) ##############################################
Reform under Alexander II
45
present may not have looked at the Council in the same way, but all
were glad to settle the disputed succession. On the second day a mob of
Cadalists attacked the gathering. Only the appearance of Beatrice of
Tuscany with a small force saved the Pope's life; some bishops fled.
Cadalus was excommunicated, and Alexander could safely go to Rome.
But his city was still not a pleasant seat. Benzo did not give up hope and
in 1065 visited the German Court; even up to 20 April 1069 Honorius
signed bulls as Pope.
The remaining years of Alexander's pontificate can be summarised.
The Norman vassals or allies of the Pope soon deserted him; Richard
of Capua ravaged Campania and approached Rome, probably anxious to
be made Patrician. Duke Godfrey, acting in his own interests and not
those of Henry, marched towards Rome with an army of Germans
and Tuscans, and a treaty followed. Once more Pope and Normans
were at peace, irrespective of imperial plans and hopes. The balance
between Duke Godfrey and the Normans was finally kept. Elsewhere too
it was a question of balance. As Anno's influence at the German Court
lessened he depended more upon Rome, and from the German episcopate,
lacking any great national leader like Aribo and now gradually losing its
former moral strength, he gained small support. At Rome he was humili-
ated; in 1068 and again in 1070 he had to clear himself of accusations.
The system by which metropolitans were to be channels of papal authority
was beginning to work its way? But provincial synods both in France
and Germany became commoner, and some, such as that of Mayence
(August 1071) where Charles, the intended Bishop of Constance, resigned
in order to avoid a trial, acted independently. But there as in other cases
legates, the Archbishops of Salzburg and Trèves, were present. Such
councils, often repeating decrees from Rome, raised papal power, and at
this very synod the Archbishop of Mayence is called for the first time
Primas et Apostolicae sedis legatus. It was no wonder that not only
Anno but Siegfried dreamt of a calm monastic life.
The growth of reform seemed to slacken in Alexander's later years: it
may be that Damian was right in contrasting the indulgence shewn to
bishops with the severity towards the lower clergy; it may be that the
movement was now throwing itself more into constitutional solidification
than into spiritual awakening; it may be that the machinery at Rome
was not equal to the burden thrown upon it by the vast conception of its
work. In England alone, where Alexander had blessed the enterprise of
1 Alexander exercised his power more in matters of discipline than of property.
The Thuringian tithes dispute he left for German settlement.
Siegfried's letter to the Pope (see Mon. Bamb. ed. Jaffé, p. 77) does not seem
to me so subservient as it is often held to be, e. g. by Hauck, op. cit. II, p. 743.
3 Siegfried retired to Cluny and made his profession, only returning to his see
at the command of Abbot Hugh (1072). He would have resigned in 1070 but for
Alexander II.
CH. 1.
## p. 46 (#92) ##############################################
46
Conciliar legislation
William of Normandy, was success undiluted. The king was just and
conscientious; Lanfranc was a theologian and a reformer, even if of the
school of Damian rather than of Humbert. The episcopate was raised,
and the standard of clerical life; councils, such as marked the movement,
became the rule, as was seen at Winchester and London in 1072. But if
England moved parallel to Rome it was yet, as an island, apart. It was
also peculiar in its happy co-operation of a just king and a great arch-
bishop.
The growth of canonical legislation (1049-1073) is easily traced. It
begins with an attempt to regain for the Church a control over the
appointment of its officers through reviving canonical election for bishops
and episcopal institution for parish priests. But the repetition of such
canons, even with increasing frequency and stringency, had failed to gain
freedom for the Church in face of royal interests and private patronage.
The Synod of Rheims under Leo IX (1049) had led the way: no one was
to enter on a bishopric without election by clergy and laity. The spread
of Church reform and literary discussion moved towards a clearer definition
of the rival principles: the Church's right to choose its own officers, and
the customary rights of king or patron in appointments. So the Roman
synod of 1059 went further: its sixth canon forbade the acquisition either
gratis or by payment by any cleric or priest of a Church office through a
layman. The French synods at Vienne and Tours (1060), held under the
legate Stephen, affirmed the necessity of episcopal assent for any appoint-
ment. Alexander II, with greater chance of success, renewed in his Roman
synod of 1063 Pope Nicholas' canon of 1059. Under him the two ele-
ments, the cure of souls, which was obviously the Church's care, and the
gift of the property annexed to it, about which king and laymen had some-
thing to say, were more distinctly separated. It was significant when on
21 March 1070 Alexander gave to Gebhard of Salzburg the power of
creating new bishops in his province, and provided that no bishop should
be made by investiture as it was accustomed to be called or by any other
arrangement, except those whom he or his successors should, of their free
will, have elected, ordained, and constituted? So far, and so far only, had
things moved when Alexander II died.
The constant use of legates was continued if not increased, and France
was as before a field of special care. Thither Damian had gone, returning
in October 1063, and Gerard of Ostia (1072) dealt specially and severely
with simony. In France, and also elsewhere, the frequency of councils
1 Throughout the Middle Ages the right of confirming his suffragans was left to
this archbishop, and the peculiarity was mentioned at the Council of Trent.
2 Jaffé-Löwenfeld, Regesta, no. 4673. The history is clearly summarised in
Scharnagl, Der Begriff der Investitur in den Quellen und der Litteratur des Investitur-
streites (Kirchenrechtliche Abhandlungen, ed. U. Stutz, No. 86). Some of the canons
mentioned are in Bernheim, Quellen. Also at length Hefele-Leclercq (passim). The
Latin originals in Mansi.
## p. 47 (#93) ##############################################
Alexander II and Milan
47
locally called is now noticeable. Not only the ordinary matters but laxity
of marriage laws among the laity arising from licence among great and
small were legislated upon.
The course of affairs at Milan, however, needs longer and special notice.
Alexander II had been for many years concerned in the struggle at
Milan; his accession gave encouragement to the Patarines; to the citizens
and clergy he wrote announcing his election. When Ariald visited Rome
under Stephen IX, Landulf, who was on his way thither, was wounded
at Piacenza; his wound was complicated by consumption, and he lost
the voice and the energy which he had used so effectively. After his
death, the date of which is uncertain, his place was more than filled by
his brother Erlembald, a knight fresh from a pilgrimage to the Holy
Land, and with, as it was said, private, as well as family, wrongs to
avenge upon the clergy. He had a personality and appearance very
different from his brother's; striking and handsome as became a patrician,
splendidly dressed, gifted with that power of military control and
organisation which was destined to reappear so often in medieval Italian
States. He fortified his house, he moved about with a bodyguard; he
became the Captain of the city; personal power and democratic rule were
combined and so he was the real founder of the Italian commune. Ariald
was content, as he put it, to use the word while Erlembald wielded the
more powerful sword. The new leader visited Rome (1065) when
Alexander was settled there; he received from the Pope a white banner
with a red cross, and so became the knight of the Roman and the
universal Church. The archbishop, with no traditions of family or
friendship to uphold him, saw power slipping from his hands, and the
Emperor counted for naught. From a second visit to Rome (1066)
Erlembald returned with threats of a papal excommunication of Guido,
and fresh disturbances began. Married priests and simonists were sharply
condemned from Rome, and believers were forbidden to hear their masses.
But the Papacy sought after order, and the cathedral clergy, faced by
persecution, gathered around the archbishop. More tumult arose when
Ariald preached against local customs of long standing. Milan had not
only its own Ambrosian Liturgy', but various peculiar customs: the ten
days between Ascension Day and Pentecost had been kept since the
fourth century as fasts; elsewhere only Whitsun Eve was so observed.
Ariald, preferring the Roman custom, preached against the local use,
and so aroused indignation. Then Guido at Whitsuntide seized his chance,
and rebuked the Patarines for their action against him at Rome in
1 It seems best with Duchesne (Origins of Christian worship, p. 88) to connect
the Ambrosian Rite with the Gallican group. Aquileia and the Danubian districts
followed Milan. The Carolingian changes affected the Gallican Church, and through
imperial influence reached Rome. But Milan kept its Ambrosian traditions, dating
from the days of Auxentius (355–374), a Cappadocian Arian and immediate pre-
decessor of St Ambrose; no doctrines were concerned (Duchesne, op. cit. pp. 93 sqq. ).
CH. 1.
## p. 48 (#94) ##############################################
48
The commune at Milan
1
1
1
seeking his excommunication; a worse tumult than before arose, and the
city was again in uproar. But the day after the riot the mass of citizens
took better thought and repented. The archbishop placed the city under
an interdict so long as Ariald abode in it. For the sake of peace the
threatened preacher left, and (27 June) was mysteriously murdered, at
Guido's instigation as his followers said. Ten months later his body was,
strangely and it was said miraculously, recovered. He had perished by the
sword of violence which he had taken, but the splendid popular ceremonies
of his funeral restored his fame, and so in death he served his cause.
Once again two legates came to still the storm (August 1067): Mainard,
Cardinal-bishop of Silva Candida, and the Cardinal-priest John'. The
settlement they made went back to that of Damian, and so recognised
the position of Guido, but years of violence had by now changed the city.
The legatine settlement attempted to re-establish Church order and
Damian's reforms, and the revenue of the Church was to be left untouched.
Violence was forbidden, but things had gone too far; revolution had
crystallised, and neither side liked the settlement; Guido thought of re-
signing
Erlembald, supported from Rome, thought he could increase his
power by enforcing canonical election on the resignation of Guido, setting
aside the imperial investiture and gaining the approval of the Pope. But
Guido now chose the sub-deacon Godfrey, a man of good family, in his con-
fidence, eloquent, as even his later enemies confessed, and therefore likely
to be influential. Guido formally although privately resigned, and
Godfrey went to the imperial Court where he was already known through
services rendered; he returned with his ring and staff, but was driven
away. Alexander II condemned not only Godfrey but also Guido, who
had resigned without papal leave; Guido took up his duties again, and
remained in power; disorder passed into war.
Erlembald, with an army
made up of his followers and some nobles, attacked Godfrey. Revolution
had become war against a claimant chosen by the Emperor but in
defiance of ecclesiastical law and the Papacy. During Lent 1071 part of
the city was set on fire, causing great destruction and misery; Guido
withdrew to the country and there on 23 August 1071 his life and
trouble ended. Not until 6 January 1072 did Erlembald find it possible
to elect a successor; by a large assembly from the city, its neighbourhood,
and even farther afield, in the presence of a legate Cardinal Bernard,
Atto, a young cathedral clerk of good family but little known, was
elected. Erlembald, the real ruler of the city, was behind and over
all; and many, laymen and ecclesiastics, disliked the choice. The dis-
contented took to arms, the legate escaped with rent robes, and Atto,
torn from the intended feast at the palace, was borne to the cathedral,
where in mortal fear he was made to swear never to ascend the throne of
St Ambrose. But next day Erlembald regained control; he "ruled the
1 The embassy, often slurred over in narratives, is described by Arnulf, Chap. 21.
## p. 49 (#95) ##############################################
Death of Alexander II
49
both men
city as a Pope to judge the priests, as a king to grind down the people,
now with steel and now with gold, with sworn leagues and covenants
many and varied. ” It mattered little that at Rome a synod declared
Atto rightly elected, and condemned Godfrey and his adherents as
enemies of God. Meanwhile the Patarines held the field, and their success
at Milan encouraged their fellows in Lombardy as a whole. But the new
turn of affairs had involved the Pope; he wrote (c. February 1072) to
Henry IV, as a father to a son, to cast away hatred of the servants of God
and allow the Church of Milan to have a bishop according to God. A
local difficulty, amid vested interests, principles of Church reform, and
civic revolution, had merged into a struggle between Emperor and Pope.
Henry IV sent an embassy to the suffragans of Milan announcing his
will that Godfrey, already invested, should be consecrated; they met at
Novara where the consecration took place.
At the Easter Synod (1073) the Pope, now failing in strength,
excommunicated the counsellors of Henry IV who were, it was said,
striving to alienate him from the Church. This was one of Alexander's
last acts. Death had already removed many prominent leaders, Duke
Godfrey at Christmas 1069, the anti-Pope Cadalus at the end of 1072
(the exact day is not recorded). Peter Damian died on 22 February
1072, and Adalbert of Bremen on 16 March of the same year,
of the past although of very different pasts. Cardinal Humbert had died
long before, on 5 May 1061. Hildebrand was thus left almost alone
out of the old circle of Leo IX.
On 21 April 1073 Alexander died, worn out by his work and responsi-
bilities; even as Pope he had never ceased the care of his see of Lucca;
by frequent visits, repeated letters, and minute regulations he fulfilled his
duty as its bishop! It was so with him also as Pope. The mass of great
matters dealt with was equalled by that of smaller things. Even the
devolution of duties, notably to cardinals and especially to the archdeacon,
did not ease the Pope himself. He seems to us a man intent mainly upon
religious issues, always striving (as we should expect from a former leader
at Milan) for the ends of clerical reform, able now to work towards them
through the Papacy itself. Reform, directed from Rome and based upon
papal authority, was the note of his reign. A man of duty more than of)
disposition or temperament, he gained respect, if not the reverent love
which had gathered around Leo IX. His measure of greatness he reached
more because he was filled with the leading, probably the best, ideas of
his day than because of any individual greatness of conception or power.
But he had faced dark days and death itself with devotion and unswerving
hope. It was something to have passed from his earlier trials to his later
prosperity and firm position, and yet to have shewn himself the same man
1 The history of the Chancery under him is "peculiarly anomalous. " And this
was because he not only was, but acted as, Bishop of Lucca. See Poole, The Papal
Chancery, p. 69.
C. MED. H. VOL. V. CH. I.
4
## p. 50 (#96) ##############################################
50
The new Papacy
throughout, with the same beliefs, the same aims, and the same care for
his task. If he left his successors many difficulties, and some things even
for Gregory VII to criticise, he also left them a working model of a con-
scientious, world-embracing Papacy, filled, as it seems to us, with the
spirit of the day rather than inspiring the day from above. The Papacy
had risen to a height and a power which would have seemed impossible
in the time of Benedict IX. But the power, strong in its theory and
conception, had a fragile foundation in the politics of the Empire, of Italy,
and of Rome itself.
## p. 51 (#97) ##############################################
51
CHAPTER II.
GREGORY VII AND THE FIRST CONTEST
BETWEEN EMPIRE AND PAPACY.
I.
On 21 April 1073 Pope Alexander II died. The strained relations
between the Papacy and the ruler of the Empire made the occasion more
than usually critical; moreover, the Election Decree of Nicholas II, for
which so narrow a victory had been won at the previous vacancy, was to be
put to a second test. Fortunately for the Papacy, there was no division of
opinion within the Curia; the outstanding personality of the Archdeacon
Hildebrand made it certain on whom the choice of the cardinals would
fall. But their deliberations were anticipated by the impatience of the
populace. While the body of Alexander was being laid to rest in the
church of St John Lateran on the day following his death, a violent
tumult arose. The crowd seized upon the person of Hildebrand, hurried
him to the church of St Peter ad Vincula, and enthusiastically acclaimed
him as Pope. The formalities of the Election Decree were hastily com-
plied with; the cardinals elected, the clergy and people gave their assent,
and Hildebrand was solemnly enthroned as Pope Gregory VII'. Popular
violence had compromised the election, and provided a handle for the
accusations of his enemies. But the main purpose of the Election Decree
had been fulfilled. The Pope was the nominee neither of the Emperor
nor of the Roman nobles; the choice of the cardinals had been anticipated
indeed, but not controlled, by the enthusiasm of the multitude. Hildebrand
only held deacon's orders; a month later he was ordained priest, and on
30 June” consecrated bishop. In the interval, he seems, in accordance
with the Election Decree, to have announced his election to the king and
to have obtained the royal assent.
We have little certain information of the origin and early life of this
great Pope. He is said to have been the son of one Bonizo and to have
been born at Sovana in Tuscany; the date of his birth is uncertain, but he
was probably about fifty years old at the time of his accession. The im-
portant fact, to which he himself bears emphatic testimony, is that his
early days were passed in Rome and that it was there that he received his
The choice of name is significant. It seems most probable that he took it in
memory of his predecessor and master, Gregory VI.
? Or 29 June. But as 30 June was a Sunday, the regular day for episcopal con-
secrations, it is the more likely date, although 29 June was a great festival.
3 But see R. L. Poole, Benedict IX and Gregory VI (from Proc. Brit. Acad. Vol. vııı).
CH. II.
4-2
## p. 52 (#98) ##############################################
52
Early life of Pope Gregory VII
education. So he saw the Papacy in its degradation and was to partici-
pate in every stage of its recovery. He received minor orders (reluctantly,
he tells us) and was attached in some capacity to the service of Gregory VI,
the Pope who bought the Papacy in order to reform it. With him he
went into exile in 1047, and spent two impressionable years in the Rhine
district, then the centre of the advanced reform movement of the day, and
probably it was at this time that he received the monastic habit? In
1049 Leo IX, nominated Pope by Henry III, was filling the chief places
in the Papal Curia with leading reformers especially from this district; on
his way to Rome he took with him the young Hildebrand, whose life was
for the future to be devoted entirely to Rome and the Papacy. With
every detail of papal activity he was associated, in every leading incident
he played his part; his share in the papal councils became increasingly
important, until at the last he was the outstanding figure whose qualifica-
tions for the papal throne none could contest.
By Leo IX he was made sub-deacon and entrusted with the task of
restoring both the buildings and the discipline of the monastery of St
Paul without the walls. Later he was sent to France to deal with heresy
in the person of Berengar of Tours, whose views he condemned but whose
person he protected. By Victor II he was given the important task of
enforcing the decrees against simony and clerical marriage in France,
where in company with Abbot Hugh of Cluny he held synods at Lyons
and elsewhere. With Bishop Anselm of Lucca he was sent by Pope
Stephen IX to Milan, where the alliance of Pope and Pataria was for the
first time cemented; and from Milan to Germany to obtain the royal
assent to Stephen's election. He had a share in vindicating the indepen-
dence of papal elections against the turbulence of the Roman nobles at
the election of Nicholas II, and again in the papal Election Decree which
was designed to establish this independence for the future. By Nicholas he
was employed in initiating the negotiations which led to the first alliance
of the Papacy with the Normans in South Italy. In the same year (1059)
his appointment as Archdeacon of the Roman Church gave him an
important administrative position; shortly afterwards occurred the death
of Cardinal Humbert of Silva Candida, and Hildebrand took his place as
the leading figure in the Papal Curia. To his energy and resolution was
due the victory of Alexander II over the rival imperial nominee, and he
held the first place in the Pope's councils during the twelve years
Alexander's papacy. The extent of his influence has been exaggerated by
the flattery of his admirers and by the abuse of his enemies. He was the
right-hand man, not the master, of the Pope; he influenced, but did not
of
1 His statement to Archbishop Anno of Cologne (Reg. 1, 79)—ob recordationem
disciplinae, qua tempore antecessoris vestri in ecclesia Coloniensi enutriti sumus-
seems to bear this interpretation, and can only be referred to this period. In view of
the testimony of friends and enemies alike, I find it impossible to accept the cou-
tention of Dr W. Martens that Hildebrand never became a monk.
## p. 53 (#99) ##############################################
His position under Alexander II
53
dominate Alexander. That other counsels often prevailed we know.
When he became Pope he revoked more than one privilege granted by his
predecessor, suggesting that Alexander was too prone to be led away by
evil counsellors. Even when, as in the case of the papal support given to
the Norman conquest of England, his policy prevailed, it is clear from his
own statement that he had to contend against considerable opposition
within the Curia. On all the major issues, however, Pope and archdeacon
must have been in complete agreement, especially with regard to Milan,
the greatest question of all. They had been associated together in the
embassy that inaugurated the new papal policy with regard to the
Pataria, and, as Bishop of Lucca, Alexander had been more than once
employed as papal legate to Milan. This was the critical issue that led to
the breach between Pope and king, and it was the extension of the same
policy to Germany that produced the ill-will of the German episcopate
which is so noticeable at the beginning of Gregory's papacy. That there
is a change of masters when Gregory VII becomes Pope is clear. The
policy is the same, but the method of its execution is quite different.
Hildebrand must have chafed at the slowness and caution of his prede-
cessor. When he becomes Pope, he is urgent to see the policy carried
into immediate effect. The hand on the reins is now a firm one, the con-
trolling mind is ardent and impatient. Soon the issue is joined, and rents
move rapidly to the catastrophe.
Superficially the new Pope was not attractive. He was small of
stature, his voice was weak, his appearance unprepossessing. In learning
he fell short of many of his contemporaries; the knowledge of which he
gives evidence is limited, though very practical for his purpose. Thus he
had a close acquaintance with the collections of Decretals current in his
time! Besides them he depended mainly on Gregory the Great, with
several of whose works he was obviously familiar. Otherwise there is
practically no indication of
no indication of any first-hand acquaintance with the works of
the Fathers or other Church writers. He adduces the authority of a few
passages from Ambrose and John Chrysostom in urging on Countess
Matilda of Tuscany the importance of frequent communion. Once only
does he quote from Augustine’, and then the reference is to the De
doctrina christiana; the Civitas Dei, quoted so frequently by his sup-
porters and opponents alike, is not mentioned by him at all.
The chief authority with him was naturally the Bible. The words of
Scripture, both Old and New Testament, were constantly on his lips.
1 That many of these Decretals were forged is well known, but of course to
Gregory, as to all his contemporaries, they were not known to be other than genuine.
? It has been shewn by Mirbt, Bernheim, and others that he follows closely the
views of Augustine, especially as expressed in the Civitas Dei; but when he quotes
his authority for these views it is the authority of Gregory the Great that he ad-
duces. It seems to me therefore that it is from Gregory that he absorbs Augustine,
not from a selection of Augustine as Mirbt thinks.
сн. п.
## p. 54 (#100) #############################################
54
His temperament and character
But, though quotations from the New Testament are the more numerous,
it is the spirit of the Old Testament that prevails. His doctrine is of
righteousness as shewn in duty and obedience, rather than as expressed in
the gospel of love. The language of the Old Testament came most
naturally to him; he was fond of military metaphors, and his language
is that of a general engaged in a constant campaign against a vigilant
enemy. A favourite quotation was from Jeremiah, “Cursed be the man
that keepeth back his sword from blood,” though he usually added with
Gregory the Great “that is to say, the word of preaching from the rebuk-
ing of carnal men. " He was, in fact, in temperament not unlike a prophet
of the Old Testament—fierce in denunciation of wrong, confident in
prophecy, vigorous in action, unshaken in adversity. It is not surprising
to find that contemporaries compared him with the prophet Elijah. His
enthusiasm and his ardent imagination drew men to him; that he attracted
men is well attested. One feature his contemporaries remarked—the
brightness and keenness of his glance. This was the outward sign of the
fiery spirit within that insignificant frame, which by the Hame of its
enthusiasm could provoke the unwilling to acquiescence and stimulate
even the fickle Roman population to devotion. It was kindled by his
conviction of the righteousness of his aims and his determination, in
which self-interest did not participate, to carry them into effect.
This had its weak side. He was always too ready to judge of men by
their outward acquiescence in his aims, without regarding their motives.
It is remarkable that with his experience he could have been deceived by
the professions of Cardinal Hugo Candidus, or have failed to realise the
insincerity of Henry IV's repentance in 1073. Here he was deceived to
his own prejudice. It is not easy, however, to condone his readiness in
1080 to accept the alliance of Robert Guiscard, who had been under ex-
communication until that date, or of the Saxons, whom he had spoken
of as rebels in 1075, and who were actuated by no worthier motives in
1076 and 1080. In the heat of action he grievously compromised his
ideal. Another and a more inevitable result of his temperament was the
frequent reaction into depression. Like Elijah, again, on Mount Carmel
we find him crying out that there is not a righteous man left. Probably
these moods were not infrequent, though they could only find expression
in his letters to intimate friends such as Countess Matilda of Tuscany and
Abbot Hugh of Cluny. And the gentler tone of these letters shews him
in a softer light-oppressed by his burden, dependent solely on the help-
ing hand of the “pauper Jesus. ” It was a genuine reluctance of which he
spoke when he emphasised his unwillingness at every stage of his life to
have fresh burdens, even of honour, imposed upon him. There is no
reason to doubt that he was unwilling to become Pope; the event itself
prostrated him, and his first letters, announcing his election and appeal-
ing for support, had to be dictated from his bed.
This was a temporary weakness, soon overcome. And it would be a
## p. 55 (#101) #############################################
The Petrine authority
55
mistake to regard him merely, or even mainly, as an enthusiast and a
visionary. He had a strong will and could curb his imagination with an
iron self-control. As a result he has been pictured most strangely as cold
and inflexible, untouched by human weakness, unmoved by human
sym-
pathies. It is not in that light that we should view him at the Lenten
Synod of 1076, where he alone remained calm and his will availed to
quell the uproar; it was self-control that checked his impatience in the
period following Canossa, and that was responsible for his firmness and
serenity amid defeat and disappointment, so that he remained unconquered
in spirit almost to the end. But there was another influence too, the
experience of the years that preceded his papacy. As cardinal-deacon for
over twenty years, and Archdeacon of the Roman Church for thirteen,
his work had lain particularly among the secular affairs of the Papacy;
from this he had acquired great practical knowledge and a keen sense of
the actual. It coloured his whole outlook, and produced the contrast
between the theories he expressed and the limitation of them that he was
willing to accept. He had a clear vision both of what was essential and
of what was possible; it was later clouded by the dust of conflict, after
he had joined issue with the Emperor.
His early life had been spent in the service of the Church and the
Papacy. This service remained his single aim, and he was actuated, as he
justly claimed, by no feeling of worldly pride or self-glorification. He
naturally had a full sense of the importance of his office, and realised
both its potentialities and its responsibilities. To St Peter, who had
watched over the training of his youth, he owed his earliest allegiance;
as Bishop of Rome he had become the successor and representative of
St Peter. It was not the least of his achievements that he realised the
logical inferences that could be drawn from the Petrine authority; he was
careful to sink his own individuality, and to picture himself as the channel
through which the will of the Apostle was expressed to mankind. Every
communication addressed to the Pope by letter or by word of mouth is
received by St Peter himself; and, while the Pope only reads the words
or listens to the message, St Peter can read the heart of the sender. Any
injury done, even in thought, to the Pope is thus an injury to the Prince
of the Apostles himself. He acts as the mouthpiece of St Peter, his sen-
tences are the sentences of St Peter, and from St Peter has descended to
him the supreme power of binding and of loosing in heaven and on earth.
So his power of excommunication is unlimited: he can excommunicate,
as in the case of six bishops with all their supporters at the Lenten
Synod of 1079, sine spe recuperationis. Similarly his power of absolution
is unlimited, whether it be absolution to the penitent, absolution from
all their sins to those who fight the battles of the Church against her
enemies, or absolution of the subjects of an excommunicated ruler from
the oath of allegiance they had taken to him. These are not the asser-
tions of a claim; they are the simple expression of his absolute belief.
CH. II.
## p. 56 (#102) #############################################
56
His use of this authority
How supreme was his confidence is shewn in his prophecies. The authority
descended from St Peter extends over material prosperity in this life; yes,
and over life itself. Glory and honour in this life, as well as in the life to
come, depend on obedience to him, he assured the magistrates of Sardinia
in 1073. In 1078 he proclaimed that all who hindered the holding of a
synod in Germany would suffer not only in soul but also in body and
property, would win no success in war and no triumph in their lifetime.
And at Easter 1080 he pronounced his famous prophecy that Henry, if he
did not repent, would be dead or deposed before August. This is the
confidence of complete conviction.
But it was a delegated authority that he was exercising, and therefore
it must not be exercised arbitrarily. The obedience to God which he en-
forced on all Christians must be rendered by himself first of all. Obedience
to God implies obedience to the Church and to the law of the Church, to
the decrees of the Fathers, the canonical tradition. He shews no dis-
position to over-ride this; in fact he is careful to explain that he is
subject to its authority. Frequently he protested that there was nothing
new in his decrees. His decree against lay investiture was not new, not
of his own invention; in promulgating it he had merely returned to the
teaching and decrees of the Early Fathers and followed the prime unique
rule of ecclesiastical discipline. He did not make new laws; he issued
edicts which interpreted the law or prohibited the illegal practices that
had grown up in course of time. The Holy Roman Church, he says, has
always had and will always have the right of issuing new decrees to deal
with particular abuses as they arise. Its custom has always been to be
merciful, to temper the rigour of the law with discretion, to tolerate some
things after careful consideration, but never to do anything which con-
flicts with the harmony of canonical tradition.
Now the prime importance of this consideration of Gregory VII's
views is in its bearing on his relations with the temporal authority. He
started with the orthodox Gelasian view of the two
powers
each
supreme
in its own department, and it is clear that at first he sees no conflict of
his ideas with this. In the ecclesiastical department of course he must be
absolute master. Archbishops, bishops, and abbots must acknowledge his
complete authority, obey his summons to Rome, submit to his over-riding
of their actions, and not interfere with direct appeals to Rome. The
legates he sends act in his name. Anywhere they can call synods, preside
over them, and issue decrees on his behalf. But, as his own office is
divinely ordained, so he recognises is the royal office. In 1073 he speaks
of the two powers and compares them with the two eyes of the human
body; as these give light to the body, so the sacerdotium and imperium
should illumine with spiritual light the body of the Church. They should
work together in the harmony of pure religion for the spiritual good of
Christianity; the spiritual end is the final object of both, in accordance
with the accepted medieval view. Obedience, therefore, is due to kings;
## p.
the Milanese clergy appealed to Victor II or Stephen IX; Arnulf says the latter,
but the former is more probable. For the chronology see also Hefele-Leclercq, iv,
pp. 1126 sqq.
2 The legateship is best dated early in 1059 before the Easter Synod at Rome.
We have Damian's own account addressed to Hildebrand, Archdeacon. Hence a
difficulty, for Hildebrand was not Archdeacon until autumn 1059. But Damian
speaks of his having been asked by Hildebrand to put together matters bearing on
Roman supremacy; the account was probably meant in that sense as a record of an
important decision. For other arguments in favour of this date see Hefele-Leclercq,
I, p. 1191, note 2; Meyer von Knonau, 1, p. 127, note 17. Hauck, 1, p. 696, note
1, holds the date as good as certain.
CH. I.
## p. 42 (#88) ##############################################
42
The vacancy on Nicholas II's death
was done. Damian persuaded Guido to call a synod, and here, at first to
the anger of the patriotic Milanese, the legate presided. It seemed a slur
upon the patrimony and the traditions of St Ambrose; even the democratic
reformers were aghast. It was then that Damian, faced by certain violence
and likely death, shewed the courage in which he never failed. With no
attempt at compromise, with no flattery to soothe their pride, he spoke
of the claims of St Peter and his Roman Church to obedience. Milan was
the daughter, the great daughter of Rome, and so he called them to sub-
mission. It was a triumph of bold oratory backed by a great personality;
Guido and the whole assembly promised obedience to Rome. Then
Damian went on with his inquest; one by one the clerics present confessed
what they had paid, for Holy Orders, for benefices, and for preferment.
All were tainted, from the archbishop to the humblest clerk. Punishment
of the guilty, from which Damian was not the man to shrink, would have
left the Church in Milan without priests and ministers of any kind. So
the legate took the course taken by Nicholas II in his decree against
simonists (1059). Those present, beginning with the archbishop, owned
their guilt, and promised for the future to give up simony and to enforce
clerical celibacy. To this all present took an oath. Milan had fallen into
line with the reformers, and in doing so had subjected itself to Rome.
Bonizo, agreeing with Arnulf on the other side, is right in taking this
embassy as the end of the old and proud independence of Milan. When
Guido and his suffragans were summoned to the Easter Council of 1059 at
Rome some Milanese resented it. But the archbishop received absolution
and for some six years was not out of favour at Rome.
The unexpected death of Nicholas II was followed by a contested
election and a long struggle. Both the Roman nobles and the Lombard
bishops wished for a change but knew their need of outside help. At
Rome Gerard of Galeria, whose talents and diplomacy were typical of
his class, was the leader; he and the Abbot of St Gregory on the Caelian
were sent to the German Court, and they carried with them the crown
and insignia of the Patrician. The Lombard bishops, with whom the
Chancellor Guibert worked, met together and demanded a Pope from
Lombardy-the paradise of Italy-who would know how to indulge
human weakness. Thus civic politics at Rome and a reaction against
Pataria and Pope worked together; the young king Henry acted at the
impulse of Italians rather than of Germans; the latter had reason for
discontent, but the imperial nominee was not their choice and their
support was somewhat lukewarm. Henry met the Lombard bishops (some
of whom Peter Damian thought better skilled to discuss the beauty of a
woman than the election of a Pope) and the Romans at Basle on
28 October 1061, and, wearing the Patrician's crown which they had
brought, invested their elect, Cadalus, Bishop of Parma, who chose the
name of Honorius II", "a man rich in silver, poor in virtue” says Bonizo. .
1 There is some conflict of evidence, especially as to the part played by the
## p. 43 (#89) ##############################################
Alexander II and Honorius II
43
Meanwhile the cardinal-bishops and others had met outside Rome, and,
hastening when they knew of the opposition, elected, 30 September 1061,
Anselm of Baggio, the Patarine Bishop of Lucca! It was a wise choice
and likely to commend itself; there could be no doubt as to the ortho-
doxy or policy of this old pupil of Lanfranc at Bec, tested at Milan and
versed in Italian matters; at the same time he was in good repute at the
German Court and a friend of Duke Godfrey. Desiderius of Monte
Cassino carried a request for military help to Richard of Capua, who
came and led Alexander II to Rome. Some nobles, especially Leo de
Benedicto Christiano (" of the Jewish synagogue,” says Benzo), influenced
the Trastevere, but there was much fighting and Anselm was only taken
into the Lateran at night and by force. He was consecrated on 1 October
1061, and like his predecessors kept his old bishopric.
Cadalus found his way to Rome blocked by Godfrey's forces, but in
Parma he gathered his vassals, and could thus march on. But another
help was of greater use. Benzo, Bishop of Alba in Piedmont, was sent
by the Emperor as his ambassador to Rome; he was a popular speaker
with many gifts and few scruples; his happy if vulgar wit was to please
the mob and sting his opponents; he was welcomed by the imperialists
and lodged in the palace of Octavian. Then he invited the citizens, great
and small, and even Alexander with his cardinals, to a popular assembly.
The papal solemnity had little chance with the episcopal wit. “ Asinan-
drellus, the heretic of Lucca,” and “his stall-keeper Prandellus," as Benzo
calls the Pope and Hildebrand, were worsted in the debate; Cadalus
was able to enter Rome on 25 March 1062, and a battle on 14 April
in the Neronian Field after much slaughter left him victor. But he could
not gain the whole city, and it was divided into hostile camps. Honorius
hoped for help from Germany, and he was negotiating with Greek envoys
for a joint campaign against the Normans. But after the arrival of
Duke Godfrey there came an end to the strife; both claimants were to
withdraw to their former sees until they could get their claims settled
at the German Court. Honorius was said to have paid heavily for the
respite, but Alexander could rest easy as to his final success.
Alexander was not without some literary support. Peter Damian from
his hermitage wrote to Cadalus two letters, fierce and prophetic—the
second addressed “To Cadalus, false bishop, Peter, monk and sinner,
wishes the fate he deserves”: he had been condemned by three synods ;
he had broken the Election Decree; his very name derived from cado
raós was sinister, he would die within the year ; the old prophet believed
German bishops. A summary of references in Hefele-Leclerq, iv, p. 1217, note 1.
The part played by Henry corresponds to the imperial falsification of the Election
Decree of 1059 (clause 6).
1 An election outside Rome was provided for in the Election Decree, and Peter
Damian expressly mentions the presence of the cardinal-bishops, a mention which
supports the papal form of the Election Decree.
CH. I.
## p. 44 (#90) ##############################################
44
Victory of Alexander II
the prophecy fulfilled by the excommunication, the spiritual death, of
Honorius within the year. At the same time he was writing treatises on
the episcopal and clerical life. At this time, too, he wrote his well-known
Disceptatio Synodalis, a dialogue between champions of the Papacy and
the Empire; it is not, as was once supposed, the record of an actual
discussion, but a treatise intended to influence opinion at the assembly
called at Augsburg, 27 October 1062, to settle the papal rivalry. But he
was an embarrassing ally? : his letters to Henry and Anno of Germany, if
full of candid advice, laid overmuch stress on the royal rights, and
Alexander and Hildebrand were displeased. Damian, perhaps ironically,
begged the mercy of his “Holy Satan. ”
It was the practical politics of the day, and not theories or arguments,
which turned the balance at Augsburg and elsewhere in favour of Alex-
ander. The abduction of the twelve-year-old boy at Kaiserswerth (April
1062) and his guardianship by Anno of Cologne, first alone and then with
Adalbert, changed affairs. The Empress Agnes, who had taken the veil
about the end of 1061, withdrew from politics. The German episcopate,
weak, divided, and never whole-hearted for the Lombard Honorius,
turned towards Alexander. The Synod of Augsburg, led by Anno, declared
for Alexander and so gained commendation from Damian; "he had smitten
off the neck of the scaly monster of Parma. ” Before the end of 1062
Alexander moved towards Rome, and before Easter 1063 Godfrey
supported the decision of Augsburg; the inclination of Anno and his
position of Imperial Vicar led him to Rome. At the Easter Synod
Alexander acted as already and fully Pope. As a matter of course he
excommunicated Cadalus, and repeated canons against clerical marriage
and simony; the faithful were again forbidden to hear mass said by guilty
priests.
But the opposition was not at an end, so the irrepressible Benzo again
led Cadalus to Rome in May 1063; they took the Leonine City, Sant'
Angelo, and St Peter's, but his seat was insecure. His supporters and his
silver dwindled together; the castle was really his prison until he bought
freedom from his jailor Cencius with three hundred pounds of silver ;
with one poor attendant he escaped to the safer Parma.
Then at Whitsuntide, probably in 1064, he met the Council at
Mantua attended by German and Italian prelates. Anno (“the high-
priest” Benzo calls him) stated candidly the charges against Alexander.
Alexander on oath denied simony, and on the question of his election
without Henry's leave or approval satisfied the assembly. Everyone
1 His letters to Cadalus, Epp. 1, 20, 21 (MPL, CXLIV); to Henry IV, VII, 3;
to Anno, 11, 6; to Hildebrand, clearing himself, 1, 16.
2 The year is taken as 1064, 1066, and 1067 by various writers. The arguments
are most clearly discussed in Hefele-Leclercq, iv, pp. 1237 sqq. See also Meyer
von Knonau, 1, p. 375, note 19. Benzo's account with its alternate swoonings of
Beatrice and Anno has a touch of drama.
## p. 45 (#91) ##############################################
Reform under Alexander II
45
present may not have looked at the Council in the same way, but all
were glad to settle the disputed succession. On the second day a mob of
Cadalists attacked the gathering. Only the appearance of Beatrice of
Tuscany with a small force saved the Pope's life; some bishops fled.
Cadalus was excommunicated, and Alexander could safely go to Rome.
But his city was still not a pleasant seat. Benzo did not give up hope and
in 1065 visited the German Court; even up to 20 April 1069 Honorius
signed bulls as Pope.
The remaining years of Alexander's pontificate can be summarised.
The Norman vassals or allies of the Pope soon deserted him; Richard
of Capua ravaged Campania and approached Rome, probably anxious to
be made Patrician. Duke Godfrey, acting in his own interests and not
those of Henry, marched towards Rome with an army of Germans
and Tuscans, and a treaty followed. Once more Pope and Normans
were at peace, irrespective of imperial plans and hopes. The balance
between Duke Godfrey and the Normans was finally kept. Elsewhere too
it was a question of balance. As Anno's influence at the German Court
lessened he depended more upon Rome, and from the German episcopate,
lacking any great national leader like Aribo and now gradually losing its
former moral strength, he gained small support. At Rome he was humili-
ated; in 1068 and again in 1070 he had to clear himself of accusations.
The system by which metropolitans were to be channels of papal authority
was beginning to work its way? But provincial synods both in France
and Germany became commoner, and some, such as that of Mayence
(August 1071) where Charles, the intended Bishop of Constance, resigned
in order to avoid a trial, acted independently. But there as in other cases
legates, the Archbishops of Salzburg and Trèves, were present. Such
councils, often repeating decrees from Rome, raised papal power, and at
this very synod the Archbishop of Mayence is called for the first time
Primas et Apostolicae sedis legatus. It was no wonder that not only
Anno but Siegfried dreamt of a calm monastic life.
The growth of reform seemed to slacken in Alexander's later years: it
may be that Damian was right in contrasting the indulgence shewn to
bishops with the severity towards the lower clergy; it may be that the
movement was now throwing itself more into constitutional solidification
than into spiritual awakening; it may be that the machinery at Rome
was not equal to the burden thrown upon it by the vast conception of its
work. In England alone, where Alexander had blessed the enterprise of
1 Alexander exercised his power more in matters of discipline than of property.
The Thuringian tithes dispute he left for German settlement.
Siegfried's letter to the Pope (see Mon. Bamb. ed. Jaffé, p. 77) does not seem
to me so subservient as it is often held to be, e. g. by Hauck, op. cit. II, p. 743.
3 Siegfried retired to Cluny and made his profession, only returning to his see
at the command of Abbot Hugh (1072). He would have resigned in 1070 but for
Alexander II.
CH. 1.
## p. 46 (#92) ##############################################
46
Conciliar legislation
William of Normandy, was success undiluted. The king was just and
conscientious; Lanfranc was a theologian and a reformer, even if of the
school of Damian rather than of Humbert. The episcopate was raised,
and the standard of clerical life; councils, such as marked the movement,
became the rule, as was seen at Winchester and London in 1072. But if
England moved parallel to Rome it was yet, as an island, apart. It was
also peculiar in its happy co-operation of a just king and a great arch-
bishop.
The growth of canonical legislation (1049-1073) is easily traced. It
begins with an attempt to regain for the Church a control over the
appointment of its officers through reviving canonical election for bishops
and episcopal institution for parish priests. But the repetition of such
canons, even with increasing frequency and stringency, had failed to gain
freedom for the Church in face of royal interests and private patronage.
The Synod of Rheims under Leo IX (1049) had led the way: no one was
to enter on a bishopric without election by clergy and laity. The spread
of Church reform and literary discussion moved towards a clearer definition
of the rival principles: the Church's right to choose its own officers, and
the customary rights of king or patron in appointments. So the Roman
synod of 1059 went further: its sixth canon forbade the acquisition either
gratis or by payment by any cleric or priest of a Church office through a
layman. The French synods at Vienne and Tours (1060), held under the
legate Stephen, affirmed the necessity of episcopal assent for any appoint-
ment. Alexander II, with greater chance of success, renewed in his Roman
synod of 1063 Pope Nicholas' canon of 1059. Under him the two ele-
ments, the cure of souls, which was obviously the Church's care, and the
gift of the property annexed to it, about which king and laymen had some-
thing to say, were more distinctly separated. It was significant when on
21 March 1070 Alexander gave to Gebhard of Salzburg the power of
creating new bishops in his province, and provided that no bishop should
be made by investiture as it was accustomed to be called or by any other
arrangement, except those whom he or his successors should, of their free
will, have elected, ordained, and constituted? So far, and so far only, had
things moved when Alexander II died.
The constant use of legates was continued if not increased, and France
was as before a field of special care. Thither Damian had gone, returning
in October 1063, and Gerard of Ostia (1072) dealt specially and severely
with simony. In France, and also elsewhere, the frequency of councils
1 Throughout the Middle Ages the right of confirming his suffragans was left to
this archbishop, and the peculiarity was mentioned at the Council of Trent.
2 Jaffé-Löwenfeld, Regesta, no. 4673. The history is clearly summarised in
Scharnagl, Der Begriff der Investitur in den Quellen und der Litteratur des Investitur-
streites (Kirchenrechtliche Abhandlungen, ed. U. Stutz, No. 86). Some of the canons
mentioned are in Bernheim, Quellen. Also at length Hefele-Leclercq (passim). The
Latin originals in Mansi.
## p. 47 (#93) ##############################################
Alexander II and Milan
47
locally called is now noticeable. Not only the ordinary matters but laxity
of marriage laws among the laity arising from licence among great and
small were legislated upon.
The course of affairs at Milan, however, needs longer and special notice.
Alexander II had been for many years concerned in the struggle at
Milan; his accession gave encouragement to the Patarines; to the citizens
and clergy he wrote announcing his election. When Ariald visited Rome
under Stephen IX, Landulf, who was on his way thither, was wounded
at Piacenza; his wound was complicated by consumption, and he lost
the voice and the energy which he had used so effectively. After his
death, the date of which is uncertain, his place was more than filled by
his brother Erlembald, a knight fresh from a pilgrimage to the Holy
Land, and with, as it was said, private, as well as family, wrongs to
avenge upon the clergy. He had a personality and appearance very
different from his brother's; striking and handsome as became a patrician,
splendidly dressed, gifted with that power of military control and
organisation which was destined to reappear so often in medieval Italian
States. He fortified his house, he moved about with a bodyguard; he
became the Captain of the city; personal power and democratic rule were
combined and so he was the real founder of the Italian commune. Ariald
was content, as he put it, to use the word while Erlembald wielded the
more powerful sword. The new leader visited Rome (1065) when
Alexander was settled there; he received from the Pope a white banner
with a red cross, and so became the knight of the Roman and the
universal Church. The archbishop, with no traditions of family or
friendship to uphold him, saw power slipping from his hands, and the
Emperor counted for naught. From a second visit to Rome (1066)
Erlembald returned with threats of a papal excommunication of Guido,
and fresh disturbances began. Married priests and simonists were sharply
condemned from Rome, and believers were forbidden to hear their masses.
But the Papacy sought after order, and the cathedral clergy, faced by
persecution, gathered around the archbishop. More tumult arose when
Ariald preached against local customs of long standing. Milan had not
only its own Ambrosian Liturgy', but various peculiar customs: the ten
days between Ascension Day and Pentecost had been kept since the
fourth century as fasts; elsewhere only Whitsun Eve was so observed.
Ariald, preferring the Roman custom, preached against the local use,
and so aroused indignation. Then Guido at Whitsuntide seized his chance,
and rebuked the Patarines for their action against him at Rome in
1 It seems best with Duchesne (Origins of Christian worship, p. 88) to connect
the Ambrosian Rite with the Gallican group. Aquileia and the Danubian districts
followed Milan. The Carolingian changes affected the Gallican Church, and through
imperial influence reached Rome. But Milan kept its Ambrosian traditions, dating
from the days of Auxentius (355–374), a Cappadocian Arian and immediate pre-
decessor of St Ambrose; no doctrines were concerned (Duchesne, op. cit. pp. 93 sqq. ).
CH. 1.
## p. 48 (#94) ##############################################
48
The commune at Milan
1
1
1
seeking his excommunication; a worse tumult than before arose, and the
city was again in uproar. But the day after the riot the mass of citizens
took better thought and repented. The archbishop placed the city under
an interdict so long as Ariald abode in it. For the sake of peace the
threatened preacher left, and (27 June) was mysteriously murdered, at
Guido's instigation as his followers said. Ten months later his body was,
strangely and it was said miraculously, recovered. He had perished by the
sword of violence which he had taken, but the splendid popular ceremonies
of his funeral restored his fame, and so in death he served his cause.
Once again two legates came to still the storm (August 1067): Mainard,
Cardinal-bishop of Silva Candida, and the Cardinal-priest John'. The
settlement they made went back to that of Damian, and so recognised
the position of Guido, but years of violence had by now changed the city.
The legatine settlement attempted to re-establish Church order and
Damian's reforms, and the revenue of the Church was to be left untouched.
Violence was forbidden, but things had gone too far; revolution had
crystallised, and neither side liked the settlement; Guido thought of re-
signing
Erlembald, supported from Rome, thought he could increase his
power by enforcing canonical election on the resignation of Guido, setting
aside the imperial investiture and gaining the approval of the Pope. But
Guido now chose the sub-deacon Godfrey, a man of good family, in his con-
fidence, eloquent, as even his later enemies confessed, and therefore likely
to be influential. Guido formally although privately resigned, and
Godfrey went to the imperial Court where he was already known through
services rendered; he returned with his ring and staff, but was driven
away. Alexander II condemned not only Godfrey but also Guido, who
had resigned without papal leave; Guido took up his duties again, and
remained in power; disorder passed into war.
Erlembald, with an army
made up of his followers and some nobles, attacked Godfrey. Revolution
had become war against a claimant chosen by the Emperor but in
defiance of ecclesiastical law and the Papacy. During Lent 1071 part of
the city was set on fire, causing great destruction and misery; Guido
withdrew to the country and there on 23 August 1071 his life and
trouble ended. Not until 6 January 1072 did Erlembald find it possible
to elect a successor; by a large assembly from the city, its neighbourhood,
and even farther afield, in the presence of a legate Cardinal Bernard,
Atto, a young cathedral clerk of good family but little known, was
elected. Erlembald, the real ruler of the city, was behind and over
all; and many, laymen and ecclesiastics, disliked the choice. The dis-
contented took to arms, the legate escaped with rent robes, and Atto,
torn from the intended feast at the palace, was borne to the cathedral,
where in mortal fear he was made to swear never to ascend the throne of
St Ambrose. But next day Erlembald regained control; he "ruled the
1 The embassy, often slurred over in narratives, is described by Arnulf, Chap. 21.
## p. 49 (#95) ##############################################
Death of Alexander II
49
both men
city as a Pope to judge the priests, as a king to grind down the people,
now with steel and now with gold, with sworn leagues and covenants
many and varied. ” It mattered little that at Rome a synod declared
Atto rightly elected, and condemned Godfrey and his adherents as
enemies of God. Meanwhile the Patarines held the field, and their success
at Milan encouraged their fellows in Lombardy as a whole. But the new
turn of affairs had involved the Pope; he wrote (c. February 1072) to
Henry IV, as a father to a son, to cast away hatred of the servants of God
and allow the Church of Milan to have a bishop according to God. A
local difficulty, amid vested interests, principles of Church reform, and
civic revolution, had merged into a struggle between Emperor and Pope.
Henry IV sent an embassy to the suffragans of Milan announcing his
will that Godfrey, already invested, should be consecrated; they met at
Novara where the consecration took place.
At the Easter Synod (1073) the Pope, now failing in strength,
excommunicated the counsellors of Henry IV who were, it was said,
striving to alienate him from the Church. This was one of Alexander's
last acts. Death had already removed many prominent leaders, Duke
Godfrey at Christmas 1069, the anti-Pope Cadalus at the end of 1072
(the exact day is not recorded). Peter Damian died on 22 February
1072, and Adalbert of Bremen on 16 March of the same year,
of the past although of very different pasts. Cardinal Humbert had died
long before, on 5 May 1061. Hildebrand was thus left almost alone
out of the old circle of Leo IX.
On 21 April 1073 Alexander died, worn out by his work and responsi-
bilities; even as Pope he had never ceased the care of his see of Lucca;
by frequent visits, repeated letters, and minute regulations he fulfilled his
duty as its bishop! It was so with him also as Pope. The mass of great
matters dealt with was equalled by that of smaller things. Even the
devolution of duties, notably to cardinals and especially to the archdeacon,
did not ease the Pope himself. He seems to us a man intent mainly upon
religious issues, always striving (as we should expect from a former leader
at Milan) for the ends of clerical reform, able now to work towards them
through the Papacy itself. Reform, directed from Rome and based upon
papal authority, was the note of his reign. A man of duty more than of)
disposition or temperament, he gained respect, if not the reverent love
which had gathered around Leo IX. His measure of greatness he reached
more because he was filled with the leading, probably the best, ideas of
his day than because of any individual greatness of conception or power.
But he had faced dark days and death itself with devotion and unswerving
hope. It was something to have passed from his earlier trials to his later
prosperity and firm position, and yet to have shewn himself the same man
1 The history of the Chancery under him is "peculiarly anomalous. " And this
was because he not only was, but acted as, Bishop of Lucca. See Poole, The Papal
Chancery, p. 69.
C. MED. H. VOL. V. CH. I.
4
## p. 50 (#96) ##############################################
50
The new Papacy
throughout, with the same beliefs, the same aims, and the same care for
his task. If he left his successors many difficulties, and some things even
for Gregory VII to criticise, he also left them a working model of a con-
scientious, world-embracing Papacy, filled, as it seems to us, with the
spirit of the day rather than inspiring the day from above. The Papacy
had risen to a height and a power which would have seemed impossible
in the time of Benedict IX. But the power, strong in its theory and
conception, had a fragile foundation in the politics of the Empire, of Italy,
and of Rome itself.
## p. 51 (#97) ##############################################
51
CHAPTER II.
GREGORY VII AND THE FIRST CONTEST
BETWEEN EMPIRE AND PAPACY.
I.
On 21 April 1073 Pope Alexander II died. The strained relations
between the Papacy and the ruler of the Empire made the occasion more
than usually critical; moreover, the Election Decree of Nicholas II, for
which so narrow a victory had been won at the previous vacancy, was to be
put to a second test. Fortunately for the Papacy, there was no division of
opinion within the Curia; the outstanding personality of the Archdeacon
Hildebrand made it certain on whom the choice of the cardinals would
fall. But their deliberations were anticipated by the impatience of the
populace. While the body of Alexander was being laid to rest in the
church of St John Lateran on the day following his death, a violent
tumult arose. The crowd seized upon the person of Hildebrand, hurried
him to the church of St Peter ad Vincula, and enthusiastically acclaimed
him as Pope. The formalities of the Election Decree were hastily com-
plied with; the cardinals elected, the clergy and people gave their assent,
and Hildebrand was solemnly enthroned as Pope Gregory VII'. Popular
violence had compromised the election, and provided a handle for the
accusations of his enemies. But the main purpose of the Election Decree
had been fulfilled. The Pope was the nominee neither of the Emperor
nor of the Roman nobles; the choice of the cardinals had been anticipated
indeed, but not controlled, by the enthusiasm of the multitude. Hildebrand
only held deacon's orders; a month later he was ordained priest, and on
30 June” consecrated bishop. In the interval, he seems, in accordance
with the Election Decree, to have announced his election to the king and
to have obtained the royal assent.
We have little certain information of the origin and early life of this
great Pope. He is said to have been the son of one Bonizo and to have
been born at Sovana in Tuscany; the date of his birth is uncertain, but he
was probably about fifty years old at the time of his accession. The im-
portant fact, to which he himself bears emphatic testimony, is that his
early days were passed in Rome and that it was there that he received his
The choice of name is significant. It seems most probable that he took it in
memory of his predecessor and master, Gregory VI.
? Or 29 June. But as 30 June was a Sunday, the regular day for episcopal con-
secrations, it is the more likely date, although 29 June was a great festival.
3 But see R. L. Poole, Benedict IX and Gregory VI (from Proc. Brit. Acad. Vol. vııı).
CH. II.
4-2
## p. 52 (#98) ##############################################
52
Early life of Pope Gregory VII
education. So he saw the Papacy in its degradation and was to partici-
pate in every stage of its recovery. He received minor orders (reluctantly,
he tells us) and was attached in some capacity to the service of Gregory VI,
the Pope who bought the Papacy in order to reform it. With him he
went into exile in 1047, and spent two impressionable years in the Rhine
district, then the centre of the advanced reform movement of the day, and
probably it was at this time that he received the monastic habit? In
1049 Leo IX, nominated Pope by Henry III, was filling the chief places
in the Papal Curia with leading reformers especially from this district; on
his way to Rome he took with him the young Hildebrand, whose life was
for the future to be devoted entirely to Rome and the Papacy. With
every detail of papal activity he was associated, in every leading incident
he played his part; his share in the papal councils became increasingly
important, until at the last he was the outstanding figure whose qualifica-
tions for the papal throne none could contest.
By Leo IX he was made sub-deacon and entrusted with the task of
restoring both the buildings and the discipline of the monastery of St
Paul without the walls. Later he was sent to France to deal with heresy
in the person of Berengar of Tours, whose views he condemned but whose
person he protected. By Victor II he was given the important task of
enforcing the decrees against simony and clerical marriage in France,
where in company with Abbot Hugh of Cluny he held synods at Lyons
and elsewhere. With Bishop Anselm of Lucca he was sent by Pope
Stephen IX to Milan, where the alliance of Pope and Pataria was for the
first time cemented; and from Milan to Germany to obtain the royal
assent to Stephen's election. He had a share in vindicating the indepen-
dence of papal elections against the turbulence of the Roman nobles at
the election of Nicholas II, and again in the papal Election Decree which
was designed to establish this independence for the future. By Nicholas he
was employed in initiating the negotiations which led to the first alliance
of the Papacy with the Normans in South Italy. In the same year (1059)
his appointment as Archdeacon of the Roman Church gave him an
important administrative position; shortly afterwards occurred the death
of Cardinal Humbert of Silva Candida, and Hildebrand took his place as
the leading figure in the Papal Curia. To his energy and resolution was
due the victory of Alexander II over the rival imperial nominee, and he
held the first place in the Pope's councils during the twelve years
Alexander's papacy. The extent of his influence has been exaggerated by
the flattery of his admirers and by the abuse of his enemies. He was the
right-hand man, not the master, of the Pope; he influenced, but did not
of
1 His statement to Archbishop Anno of Cologne (Reg. 1, 79)—ob recordationem
disciplinae, qua tempore antecessoris vestri in ecclesia Coloniensi enutriti sumus-
seems to bear this interpretation, and can only be referred to this period. In view of
the testimony of friends and enemies alike, I find it impossible to accept the cou-
tention of Dr W. Martens that Hildebrand never became a monk.
## p. 53 (#99) ##############################################
His position under Alexander II
53
dominate Alexander. That other counsels often prevailed we know.
When he became Pope he revoked more than one privilege granted by his
predecessor, suggesting that Alexander was too prone to be led away by
evil counsellors. Even when, as in the case of the papal support given to
the Norman conquest of England, his policy prevailed, it is clear from his
own statement that he had to contend against considerable opposition
within the Curia. On all the major issues, however, Pope and archdeacon
must have been in complete agreement, especially with regard to Milan,
the greatest question of all. They had been associated together in the
embassy that inaugurated the new papal policy with regard to the
Pataria, and, as Bishop of Lucca, Alexander had been more than once
employed as papal legate to Milan. This was the critical issue that led to
the breach between Pope and king, and it was the extension of the same
policy to Germany that produced the ill-will of the German episcopate
which is so noticeable at the beginning of Gregory's papacy. That there
is a change of masters when Gregory VII becomes Pope is clear. The
policy is the same, but the method of its execution is quite different.
Hildebrand must have chafed at the slowness and caution of his prede-
cessor. When he becomes Pope, he is urgent to see the policy carried
into immediate effect. The hand on the reins is now a firm one, the con-
trolling mind is ardent and impatient. Soon the issue is joined, and rents
move rapidly to the catastrophe.
Superficially the new Pope was not attractive. He was small of
stature, his voice was weak, his appearance unprepossessing. In learning
he fell short of many of his contemporaries; the knowledge of which he
gives evidence is limited, though very practical for his purpose. Thus he
had a close acquaintance with the collections of Decretals current in his
time! Besides them he depended mainly on Gregory the Great, with
several of whose works he was obviously familiar. Otherwise there is
practically no indication of
no indication of any first-hand acquaintance with the works of
the Fathers or other Church writers. He adduces the authority of a few
passages from Ambrose and John Chrysostom in urging on Countess
Matilda of Tuscany the importance of frequent communion. Once only
does he quote from Augustine’, and then the reference is to the De
doctrina christiana; the Civitas Dei, quoted so frequently by his sup-
porters and opponents alike, is not mentioned by him at all.
The chief authority with him was naturally the Bible. The words of
Scripture, both Old and New Testament, were constantly on his lips.
1 That many of these Decretals were forged is well known, but of course to
Gregory, as to all his contemporaries, they were not known to be other than genuine.
? It has been shewn by Mirbt, Bernheim, and others that he follows closely the
views of Augustine, especially as expressed in the Civitas Dei; but when he quotes
his authority for these views it is the authority of Gregory the Great that he ad-
duces. It seems to me therefore that it is from Gregory that he absorbs Augustine,
not from a selection of Augustine as Mirbt thinks.
сн. п.
## p. 54 (#100) #############################################
54
His temperament and character
But, though quotations from the New Testament are the more numerous,
it is the spirit of the Old Testament that prevails. His doctrine is of
righteousness as shewn in duty and obedience, rather than as expressed in
the gospel of love. The language of the Old Testament came most
naturally to him; he was fond of military metaphors, and his language
is that of a general engaged in a constant campaign against a vigilant
enemy. A favourite quotation was from Jeremiah, “Cursed be the man
that keepeth back his sword from blood,” though he usually added with
Gregory the Great “that is to say, the word of preaching from the rebuk-
ing of carnal men. " He was, in fact, in temperament not unlike a prophet
of the Old Testament—fierce in denunciation of wrong, confident in
prophecy, vigorous in action, unshaken in adversity. It is not surprising
to find that contemporaries compared him with the prophet Elijah. His
enthusiasm and his ardent imagination drew men to him; that he attracted
men is well attested. One feature his contemporaries remarked—the
brightness and keenness of his glance. This was the outward sign of the
fiery spirit within that insignificant frame, which by the Hame of its
enthusiasm could provoke the unwilling to acquiescence and stimulate
even the fickle Roman population to devotion. It was kindled by his
conviction of the righteousness of his aims and his determination, in
which self-interest did not participate, to carry them into effect.
This had its weak side. He was always too ready to judge of men by
their outward acquiescence in his aims, without regarding their motives.
It is remarkable that with his experience he could have been deceived by
the professions of Cardinal Hugo Candidus, or have failed to realise the
insincerity of Henry IV's repentance in 1073. Here he was deceived to
his own prejudice. It is not easy, however, to condone his readiness in
1080 to accept the alliance of Robert Guiscard, who had been under ex-
communication until that date, or of the Saxons, whom he had spoken
of as rebels in 1075, and who were actuated by no worthier motives in
1076 and 1080. In the heat of action he grievously compromised his
ideal. Another and a more inevitable result of his temperament was the
frequent reaction into depression. Like Elijah, again, on Mount Carmel
we find him crying out that there is not a righteous man left. Probably
these moods were not infrequent, though they could only find expression
in his letters to intimate friends such as Countess Matilda of Tuscany and
Abbot Hugh of Cluny. And the gentler tone of these letters shews him
in a softer light-oppressed by his burden, dependent solely on the help-
ing hand of the “pauper Jesus. ” It was a genuine reluctance of which he
spoke when he emphasised his unwillingness at every stage of his life to
have fresh burdens, even of honour, imposed upon him. There is no
reason to doubt that he was unwilling to become Pope; the event itself
prostrated him, and his first letters, announcing his election and appeal-
ing for support, had to be dictated from his bed.
This was a temporary weakness, soon overcome. And it would be a
## p. 55 (#101) #############################################
The Petrine authority
55
mistake to regard him merely, or even mainly, as an enthusiast and a
visionary. He had a strong will and could curb his imagination with an
iron self-control. As a result he has been pictured most strangely as cold
and inflexible, untouched by human weakness, unmoved by human
sym-
pathies. It is not in that light that we should view him at the Lenten
Synod of 1076, where he alone remained calm and his will availed to
quell the uproar; it was self-control that checked his impatience in the
period following Canossa, and that was responsible for his firmness and
serenity amid defeat and disappointment, so that he remained unconquered
in spirit almost to the end. But there was another influence too, the
experience of the years that preceded his papacy. As cardinal-deacon for
over twenty years, and Archdeacon of the Roman Church for thirteen,
his work had lain particularly among the secular affairs of the Papacy;
from this he had acquired great practical knowledge and a keen sense of
the actual. It coloured his whole outlook, and produced the contrast
between the theories he expressed and the limitation of them that he was
willing to accept. He had a clear vision both of what was essential and
of what was possible; it was later clouded by the dust of conflict, after
he had joined issue with the Emperor.
His early life had been spent in the service of the Church and the
Papacy. This service remained his single aim, and he was actuated, as he
justly claimed, by no feeling of worldly pride or self-glorification. He
naturally had a full sense of the importance of his office, and realised
both its potentialities and its responsibilities. To St Peter, who had
watched over the training of his youth, he owed his earliest allegiance;
as Bishop of Rome he had become the successor and representative of
St Peter. It was not the least of his achievements that he realised the
logical inferences that could be drawn from the Petrine authority; he was
careful to sink his own individuality, and to picture himself as the channel
through which the will of the Apostle was expressed to mankind. Every
communication addressed to the Pope by letter or by word of mouth is
received by St Peter himself; and, while the Pope only reads the words
or listens to the message, St Peter can read the heart of the sender. Any
injury done, even in thought, to the Pope is thus an injury to the Prince
of the Apostles himself. He acts as the mouthpiece of St Peter, his sen-
tences are the sentences of St Peter, and from St Peter has descended to
him the supreme power of binding and of loosing in heaven and on earth.
So his power of excommunication is unlimited: he can excommunicate,
as in the case of six bishops with all their supporters at the Lenten
Synod of 1079, sine spe recuperationis. Similarly his power of absolution
is unlimited, whether it be absolution to the penitent, absolution from
all their sins to those who fight the battles of the Church against her
enemies, or absolution of the subjects of an excommunicated ruler from
the oath of allegiance they had taken to him. These are not the asser-
tions of a claim; they are the simple expression of his absolute belief.
CH. II.
## p. 56 (#102) #############################################
56
His use of this authority
How supreme was his confidence is shewn in his prophecies. The authority
descended from St Peter extends over material prosperity in this life; yes,
and over life itself. Glory and honour in this life, as well as in the life to
come, depend on obedience to him, he assured the magistrates of Sardinia
in 1073. In 1078 he proclaimed that all who hindered the holding of a
synod in Germany would suffer not only in soul but also in body and
property, would win no success in war and no triumph in their lifetime.
And at Easter 1080 he pronounced his famous prophecy that Henry, if he
did not repent, would be dead or deposed before August. This is the
confidence of complete conviction.
But it was a delegated authority that he was exercising, and therefore
it must not be exercised arbitrarily. The obedience to God which he en-
forced on all Christians must be rendered by himself first of all. Obedience
to God implies obedience to the Church and to the law of the Church, to
the decrees of the Fathers, the canonical tradition. He shews no dis-
position to over-ride this; in fact he is careful to explain that he is
subject to its authority. Frequently he protested that there was nothing
new in his decrees. His decree against lay investiture was not new, not
of his own invention; in promulgating it he had merely returned to the
teaching and decrees of the Early Fathers and followed the prime unique
rule of ecclesiastical discipline. He did not make new laws; he issued
edicts which interpreted the law or prohibited the illegal practices that
had grown up in course of time. The Holy Roman Church, he says, has
always had and will always have the right of issuing new decrees to deal
with particular abuses as they arise. Its custom has always been to be
merciful, to temper the rigour of the law with discretion, to tolerate some
things after careful consideration, but never to do anything which con-
flicts with the harmony of canonical tradition.
Now the prime importance of this consideration of Gregory VII's
views is in its bearing on his relations with the temporal authority. He
started with the orthodox Gelasian view of the two
powers
each
supreme
in its own department, and it is clear that at first he sees no conflict of
his ideas with this. In the ecclesiastical department of course he must be
absolute master. Archbishops, bishops, and abbots must acknowledge his
complete authority, obey his summons to Rome, submit to his over-riding
of their actions, and not interfere with direct appeals to Rome. The
legates he sends act in his name. Anywhere they can call synods, preside
over them, and issue decrees on his behalf. But, as his own office is
divinely ordained, so he recognises is the royal office. In 1073 he speaks
of the two powers and compares them with the two eyes of the human
body; as these give light to the body, so the sacerdotium and imperium
should illumine with spiritual light the body of the Church. They should
work together in the harmony of pure religion for the spiritual good of
Christianity; the spiritual end is the final object of both, in accordance
with the accepted medieval view. Obedience, therefore, is due to kings;
## p.
