The humiliation of Canossa

German Kings and emperors had claimed the right to appoint senior clergy in their realm since the 10th century. The newly elected Pope Gregory, however, ruled this practice immoral, sparking the investiture controversy. The opening salvos of the conflict were fired by the German King Henry IV, who declared the election of Pope Gregory invalid and claimed he was no longer the Pontiff. In response, Gregory condemned Henry as a bad king and excommunicated him from the Church. This meant that a number of princes no longer felt bound by their oath of allegiance to Henry and confronted him with an ultimatum: he must either persuade the Pope to reinstate him or they would find another king.

The 26-year-old Henry had no other choice but to repent and chose to do so in eye-catching fashion. Crossing the snow-covered Alps in the middle of winter, he stood barefoot outside Canossa Castle on 25 January 1077, and petitioned to see the Pope. Ignored by Gregory, he stood in the freezing cold for three days. Having finally demonstrated his repentance in this way, he was granted an audience with the Pope to confess his sins.

Although he had now received forgiveness and readmittance to the Church, the princes elected a new king anyway, whom the Pope recognized as the true ruler of Germany. Henry was only able to arrange for a new Pope to replace Gregory after beating the Anti-king in battle. Marching to Rome at the head of an army in 1084, Henry IV was crowned emperor by the new Pope, Clement III. Gregory had been forced to flee Rome and died in exile shortly afterwards.Although a compromise ended the investiture controversy under Henry’s son, Henry V, in 1122, the fundamental conflict between secular and spiritual power persisted. Kings and popes would continue to clash over it for hundreds of years. Perhaps the most enduring legacy of this conflict, however, was the phrase “going to Canossa” to mean a humiliating reversal of position.