deposition of gregory vii: close read

7/28/2019 Deposition of Gregory VII: close read

1/5

Stephany Hinojosa HIST 4307

FALL 2011 E.Makowski

Deposition of Gregory VII

On January 24, 1076, Henry IV read a letter he had written, addressed to Pope Gregory

VII, at a national synod at Worms outlining his outrage over a deposition of several of his closest

advisors and bishops. This letter accused Pope Gregory VII of being a power hungry man who

received the title of Pope through violent, illicit tactics and not by the hand of God. Henry IV

then goes on to ask Pope Gregory VII to step down from his office as he teache[s] false

doctrines. This letter is part of a set of documents that come to be known as Investiture

Controversy.

This document was written by Henry IV to Pope Gregory VII. As son of Henry III, he

had very big shoes to fill after his fathers sudden death in 1056. It can be assumed that Henry IV

did not physically write the letter himself but rather dictated it to a scribe. There is no evidence

that Henry ever had any remarkable schooling and it is even hinted at that his education was

greatly ignored at the time of his youth. There is no evidence that every word came from Henrys

mouth , so to say, but there is also no evidence indicating that a scribe wrote it for him. With

such a high profile addressee and a conflict that was heated and seemed to be almost personal,

one is left to assume that Henry would have written this himself, especially with his imperial

temperament and pride shining throughout the document. Because this letter was also read as a

speech at a national synod at Worms, one has to suspect if this version of the document was

transposed by someone else present at the event ,or is the true original copy, but because it was

part of a larger and greatly important controversy, the original document survives intact. Henry


2/5

actually addresses the letter to Hildebrand, Pope Gregory VIIs pre-papal name. Henry does this

to emphasize the allegation that he is not a true pope, but one that usurped the title through

malicious acts. Hildebrand himself was actually a deeply religious man that was almost hell-bent

on having a world ruled by Christian doctrine; in turn he intensely believed that the Church

should be absolutely controlled by the Papacy. This aspect of his person could be construed as

power hungry, and perhaps he was, in respect to an all-consuming Christian belief that everyone

should look to the Pope as a source of power and morale.

This document is both a letter and a speech. There doesnt seem to be any third party

editing to the source so it is a trustworthy record. The letter starts with a scathing statement that

Pope Gregory VII or Hildebrand, as Henry addresses him, is not pope, but false monk (278).

While Henry does this to humiliate Pope Gregory, he has actual reason to doubt the veracity of

the Popes title.Only seventeen years prior was the Papal Election Decreepassed, which

effectively declared the independence of the papal office from imperial intervention. The decree

states that the papal office would be chosen by special church officials, known as cardinals, who

in turn were chosen solely by Popes. This decree went hand in hand with the Decree Against

Lay Investiture which was passed at the same time as the Papal Election Decree though greatly

ignored. Investiture itself is defined as a formal installation ceremony (277) where a prelate, or

church official, is given a symbolic gift by the lord, or layman of the land to show the bond

between them and the territory. Therefore, lay investiture was a church official being appointed

by a layman or non-clergy member. Both documents created a distinctly new and independent

papal authority that moved away from imperial oversight. This notion would enrage any king

accustomed to being the utmost source of power and authority in a feudal system. Henry goes on

to say that he alone is ordained by God in contrast to Pope Gregory VII, who he argues is not.


3/5

This argument arises from the idea that though the Pope anoints the King, as ordained by God,

he only holds the ability to do so, and holds no anointment himself as he is the only one with

such power and cannot anoint himself. This is also reinforcedby Pope Gregory VIIs ascension

to the title of Pope through an election by men. Henry also states Pope Gregory VII has not only

dared to touch the Lords anointed but hasscorned them and abused them (278). Here, Henry

is addressing the papacys burgeoning reform over the practice of simony. Simony was, in

essence, the act of paying for holy offices. While reform over simony kept the church in control

of this, it went hand in hand with lay investiture. Typically one would pay the layman for the

church office they were interested in and then they would hold an investiture ceremony. In this

way, church officials were not habituated to being contained by papal decrees but by bonds of

kinship and loyalty. The church was strongly against this because it undermined good Christian

values, it sullied the reputation of church offices, as most bishops or priests were corrupt and

greedy officials, and more importantly, the church did not receive any compensation from the

practice. Because of this, Pope Gregory VII started suspending certain bishops known to practice

simony, which in turn angered Henry IV and prompted him to write this letter that urged Pope

Gregory VII to abdicate from the office of Pope. Additionally Henry IV accuses Pope Gregory of

being puffed up by the abundance of subjects and using the papacy as it were at his disposal

and not in the disposal of God. Basically, Henry describes Pope Gregory VII as being a self-

servicing, greedy man full of himself. This seems to be ironic as these are qualities many would

have said about Henry IV himself at the time. Another main conflict occurring at the time was

the clashing of two giant ego-centric personalities that ultimately wanted control over the entire

kingdom. Raised to be a King, Henry was endued with these notions whereas Pope Gregory VII

had a great ambition fueled by religious zeal.


4/5


5/5

We know that historically, King Henry IV wrote this letter in response to Pope Gregory

VIIsDecree Against Lay Investiture but one can also see it as a decisive cry of imperial

authority over the growing papal power. At the time, Henry IV was still struggling with

rebellious lords in the kingdom that did not want him as King or did not see the need to answer

to Henry as King. This undermining of authority from the Pope, in the form of lay investiture

outlawing, was the last thing Henry IV needed at the time. Henry was simply trying to

consolidate the kingdom in his favor and placing church officials that were loyal to him was the

way to achieve this. This document concisely proclaims Imperial oversight over lay investiture

and stresses Imperial control over the papal throne.

deposition of gregory vii: close read

Documents