Henry IV Absolved by Pope at Canossa
In the midst of the Investiture Controversy, a bitter conflict over who held authority to appoint bishops in the Holy Roman Empire, Emperor Henry IV faced excommunication by Pope Gregory VII in 1076. This left Henry politically isolated as German princes threatened rebellion. Desperate to regain legitimacy, Henry crossed the Alps in winter with his wife and young son, enduring harsh conditions to reach Canossa Castle in northern Italy where the pope was staying as a guest of Countess Matilda of Tuscany. Upon arrival on January 25, Henry stood penitently outside the gates for three days in the snow before Gregory granted him an audience. On January 28, 1077, the pope lifted the excommunication, allowing Henry to return to the...