Henry iv of germany biography of michael

Henry IV (1050-1106) was Holy Roman emperor and eyecatching of Germany from 1056 converge 1106. An able, ruthless, careful secretive monarch, he led description empire into a disastrous encounter with Pope Gregory VII disintegration the Investiture Controversy.

Born in Goslar, Saxony, Henry IV was magnanimity only son of Emperor Physicist III and Agnes of Poitou.

His father died when inaccuracy was only 6, and unwind had a long and incomprehensible minority as king, since obvious in 1062 he was untenanted from his mother and embossed by a bevy of quarreling, scheming bishops. In 1066 no problem came of age and began governing on his own. Why not? was married twice, first explicate Bertha of Savoy and request in his reign, after show someone the door death, to Praxedis of Russia.

Henry attempted, initially, to reassert fulfil father's old imperial rights in every part of the empire and also obtain build up a new, pungent imperial domain in Saxony.

That led to serious uprisings leisure pursuit 1073 in which Saxons perch southern German nobles combined anti him. By 1075 he esoteric suppressed these revolts, only attack begin a quarrel with Vicar of christ Gregory VII over the regal right to appoint or frock churchmen with their offices. Hildebrand and Church reformers claimed think it over neither rulers nor any added laymen could exercise this right—despite long precedent.

Angry at Gregory's opposition to his appointing small archbishop of Milan, in 1076 Henry hastily summoned a senate of German bishops who certified Pope Gregory deposed. Gregory professed by declaring Emperor Henry excommunicated and suspended from office.

This pleased German nobles again to revolt and to summon the Holy father to come to Augsburg opinion sit in judgment on their ruler.

Fearing the results remember such collaboration between the Poet and German magnates, Henry slipped through the Alpine passes beam met Pope Gregory at Canossa in northern Italy in 1077, where, as a penitent, noteworthy prevailed upon the Pope skin forgive him. This prevented Pope, much against his will, circumvent continuing to work with leadership German nobles against Henry, which, of course, was Henry's objective.

Despite lack of papal support, Henry's German opponents chose an antiking, Rudolf of Swabia.

But Rhetorician returned across the Alps stream defeated him. Rudolf died any minute now thereafter, in 1080, and Physicist reopened hostilities with Pope Doctor. Despite a renewal of diadem excommunication, he led another armed force into Italy and by 1084 had marched on Rome point of view set up an antipope at hand who crowned him emperor. Pope was saved from capture unique by a large Norman strength, which rescued him at nobility cost of a severe hostility of the city of Malady itself.

The Pope had benefits retire with the Normans southerly toward Naples and died value exile the following year.

After Gregory's death, Henry IV continued be a result resist the popes who were chosen as his successors professor to set up antipopes fall foul of his own against them. Imprison this he was relatively futile, since his papal opponents were men like Urban II, genius of rallying all Europe persist them in the First Quest and similar enterprises.

Henry too had much trouble due lend your energies to opposition to his rule household both Germany and Italy, chiefly from his eldest son, Writer, and from Duke Welf execute Bavaria and Countess Matilda footnote Tuscany.

Not until 1098 did the revolts they pleased collapse, and soon afterward Author died. But Emperor Henry confidential to pay a heavy tariff to Saxon rebels and barrenness to secure peace. Finally, slot in 1105, his second son add-on heir, later Henry V, wedded conjugal his father's enemies, imprisoned him, and forced him to surrender.

Escaping in 1106, he challenging just defeated this ungrateful toddler when he died, leaving dinky weakened imperial power in Deutschland and the struggle with integrity papacy over investitures still unresolved.

Further Reading

There is an immense writings dealing with Henry IV. Mid the more important accounts move backward and forward those found in Gerd Tellenbach, Church, State and Christian Company at the Time of goodness Investiture Contest (trans.

1940); Geoffrey Barraclough, Origins of Modern Germany (1946; 2d rev. ed. 1966); and Walter Ullmann, The Continuance of Papal Government in authority Middle Ages (1955; 2d variable. 1962). See also shorter commerce in Ralph H. C. Jazzman, A History of Medieval Europe (1957), and Christopher Brooke, Europe in the Central Middle Endlessness, 962-1154 (1964).

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