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Road to Canossa

Henry knew that his dependence on Pope Gregory VII was loosened after his victory in the Saxon War. He sent Count Eberhard the Bearded as his deputy to Italy. Eberhard demanded an oath of fealty from the Pope's vassal, Robert Guiscard, Duke of Apulia and Calabria. Henry made one of his chaplains, Tedald, archbishop of Milan, thereby contradicting the Pope's former decisions. Alarmed by these acts, the Pope announced he would excommunicate Henry unless he changed his policies.

Henry regarded the Pope's words as a clear denial of the sacred nature of kingship. He held a synod in Worms on 24 January 1076. Two archbishops, twenty-four German bishops (two-thirds of the German episcopate), one Burgundian bishop, an Italian bishop and Godfrey the Hunchback attended it. At Henry's order, they declared the Pope's election invalid and demanded his abdication. An assembly of the Lombard bishops and aristocrats passed a similar resolution in Piacenza on 5 February. Henry's most important ally, Godfrey the Hunchback, was murdered on 22 February. Godfrey had named his nephew, Godfrey of Bouillon, as his heir, but Henry granted Lower Lorraine to his own son, Conrad.

Pope Gregory VII was informed of the decisions of the two assemblies during the synod of Lent in Rome. He excommunicated Henry and released his subjects from fealty in a public prayer addressed to Saint Peter. The deposition of a monarch by a pope was unprecedented, but the Pope was convinced Henry's extraordinary arrogance could not be punished otherwise. On learning of the Pope's decision Henry convoked a synod in Utrecht, but the local bishop, William I, was the only prelate willing to excommunicate the Pope. Henry wanted to demonstrate that the Pope's denial of the monarchs' role in the administration of the Christian community was responsible for their conflict. His chaplain, Gottschalk, completed a letter to be circulated in Germany, which emphasised that only God could judge a monarch. The letter addressed the Pope as the "false monk, Hildebrand" and ended with the dramatic warning demanding his abdication: "descend, descend!" Two incidents occurred in succession which discouraged Henry's supporters: a fire after a lightning strike destroyed the cathedral of Utrecht on 27 March, and Bishop William's sudden death on 27 April.

Henry's opponents regarded these incidents as divine retribution for his sinful acts. Bishop Herman of Metz released the Saxon rebels who had been in his custody. Bishop Burchard of Halberstadt, who had been one of the leaders of the Saxon revolt, escaped from captivity and returned to Saxony. Theoderic and William, members of the House of Wettin, also returned from exile and rose up against Henry. Henry invaded Saxony in August, but only Vratislaus II of Bohemia accompanied him. Their arrival provoked a general uprising, and Henry was forced to flee to Bohemia. The German aristocrats and prelates met at Trebur from 16 October to 1 November. They convinced Henry to accept the terms the Pope had set for him. He had to promise to dismiss his excommunicated advisors and acknowledge Gregory as the lawful pope. Furthermore, he was to acknowledge the Pope's jurisdiction in his conflicts with the German dukes and bishops. They announced they would elect a new king if Henry was unable to achieve his absolution before the anniversary of his excommunication. They also invited Pope Gregory to Germany to hold an assembly in Augsburg on 2 February 1077.

Henry moved to Speyer and lived there as a penitent. He decided to depart for Italy to achieve his absolution, because he wanted to prevent the Pope from hearing his case at an assembly dominated by his enemies. Although the winter was unexpectedly severe, Henry, his wife and their retainers crossed the Mont Cenis pass in December. On 25 January, they reached Canossa Castle where the Pope had sought refuge, fearing that Henry came to Italy to capture him. Henry remained barefoot and wearing sackcloth at the castle for three days. Matilda of Tuscany (who held the castle), Adelaide of Turin and Hugh of Cluny convinced the Pope he had no choice but to absolve the remorseful King. Before receiving absolution, Henry had to pledge to accept the Pope's judgement in his conflict with his subjects.