Life and Letters

of
Pope Gregory VII
Heesoo Kim
Early Life
● Born in Circa 1015 as Hildebrand of
Sovana (Ildebrando da Soana) to a
blacksmith in central Italy
● Studied under the future pope Gregory
VI and Lawrence (archbishop of
Amalfi) at the monastery of St. Mary
on the Aventine.
● Followed Gregory VI on his exile to
Cologne, Germany, and moved to
Cluny after the death of Gregory VI.
Pope Gregory VI
Image credit:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/f/fa/B_Gregor_VI.jpg/220px
-B_Gregor_VI.jpg
Early Life cont.
● Under Pope Leo IX, served as the
deacon and papal administrator,
and continued serving in high
positions under Popes Victor II
and Stephen IX
● He was instrumental in the
election of Pope Alexander II, and
served as the papal advisor.

Pope Gregory VII

Image credit:
https://www.thefamouspeople.com/profiles/images/pope-gregory-vii-1.jpg
Election into Papacy
● Among the few popes to be
elected into papacy via
acclamation (unanimous
proclamation by the electors
without casting any formal votes).
● Enthroned as a pope on June 29,
1073 during the Feast of St.
Peter’s Chair
● Wildly popular among the
Romans and the papal subjects
Image credits:
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-fbhefcgrIRU/Tc1vE80rMfI/AAAAAAAAEsI/sn7WuykLcFM/s1600/walktocanossa.jpg
Conflict with Henry IV,
the Holy Roman Emperor
& the King of Germans
● Henry IV took an oath of obedience a year after
rising to the throne in 1073 to fend himself
against the Saxon Rebellion.
● After defeating the Saxons, Henry attempted to
exert control over Italy, which angered Gregory
VII.
● Gregory VII sent a letter of reprimand to Henry
IV on Dec. 8th, 1075
Henry IV, the Holy Roman Emperor and the King of Germans
Image credit:
https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7b/Heinrich_4_g.jpg
Letters From Gregory VII to Henry IV:
Reprimand (Dec. 8th, 1075)
● Gregory VII appeals to the higher power (God) from which he draws the
authority to cast judgement on Henry IV.
○ “... thou should’st not have denied the reverence due, not to us, but to God
Almighty--disregarding the fact that the Lord saw fit to say to the apostles and their
successors: ‘Who hears you, hears me; and who scorns you, scorns me.”
● Gregory places himself in a more positive light in contrast to Henry who is
cast to be acting petulant and childish.
○ “... indeed, even though thou had’st not been so amicably admonished by us, it would
nevertheless have been but light that before thou did’st violate apostolic decrees, thou
should’st, by negotiation, make demands from us in cases where we oppressed thee or stood
in the way of thy prerogatives.”
Excommunications of Henry VI
● Angry with the letter of reprimand from Gregory VII, Henry VI and the German
bishops declared Gregory VII to have forfeited the papacy and thus
renounced their allegiance to Gregory VII.
● On February 22, 1076, Gregory VII excommunicated Henry IV and declared
the his subjects to be absolved from all oaths sworn to Henry IV.
● The upholdance of the papal excommunication depended on the German
princes, who liberally made use of the papal excuse to undermine the royal
authority.
● Over the next decade, Gregory VII absolved and excommunicated Henry VI,
three times in total, depending on the tide of public sentiment.
Policy Toward Europe and the East
● Claimed / attempted to claim Papal sovereignty over several countries
including Spain, Hungary, Croatia, Denmark. Image credit:
http://www.lloydthomas.org/Graphics/Christendom-1.jpg
● Attempted with some success to bring
together more distant Christian countries
(Poland, Bohemia, etc.) closer to the
main Catholic church.
● Worked hard to mend the schism
between the Byzantine Empire and the
Holy Roman Empire.
● Laid the foundational policies that would
guide the Crusades of the future.
 Image credit:
https://blog.nehemiahmissions.org/uploads/saints6.jpg

Exile and Death

● After a decade of contentions between Gregory VII and Henry IV, they
clashed in military skirmishes.
● While Henry IV was ultimately forced to retreat due to the Normans coming to
the support of Gregory VII, the
of the Normans turned the
Roman masses against Gregory
VII, and the pope was exiled from
Rome to Monte Cassino, and later
to the castle of Salerno.
● Within the year of being exiled,
Gregory VII died on May 25,
1085 in Salerno.
Letters From Gregory VII to King Alfonso VI:
Chastisement (1981)
● Whereas Gregory VII treated Henry IV as a foe and adversary, he treated
King Alfonso VI of Castile and Leon (Spain) as one would a child.
○ “... we are bound not only to congratulate you upon the glories of your welldoing but also
sorrowfully to restrain you from unworthy actions…”
● Gregory VII (superficially) acts benevolently to King Alfonso VI while again
appealing to the higher authority of God.
○ “Now may Almighty God, creator and ruler of all things and ineffable dispenser of all honors,
who giveth salvation unto kings … absolve you and your faithful subjects from all your sins
and grant you victory over your enemies seen and unseen…”
○ Note, this follows after chastising King Alfonso VI for actions supposedly disgraceful to the
church and then praising gifts given to the church by the king.
Bibliography
● “Pope Gregory VII,” Wikimedia Commons.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Gregory_VII
● “Documents Relating to the War of the Investitures: Letter of Gregory VII to
Henry IV,” Avalon Project, December 1075.
http://avalon.law.yale.edu/medieval/inv01.asp
● Ed. Emerton, E. “To King Alfonso VI of Castile and Leon, Defending Himself
and Urging Conformity to Roman Practice in those Kingdoms,” The
Correspondence of Pope Gregory VII: Selected Letters from the Registrum.
Chapter 9, p. 176-178