Showing posts with label Pope Paschal II. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Pope Paschal II. Show all posts

Thursday, February 22, 2024

Thurstan of Bayeaux

Thurstan (or Turstin) of Bayeaux (c.1070 - 1140) was the son of a priest (this was before Anselm disallowed priests in England to marry). Born at Bayeaux, his father became a canon at St. Paul's in London by 1104.

Thurstan was a clerk under Kings William Rufus and Henry I. For a time he was Henry's almoner, responsible for distributing alms to the poor.* Henry selected Thurstan as the next Archbishop of York after the death of Thomas II of York. Thomas had refused to recognize Archbishop Anselm of Canterbury as his superior, and got his pallium from a papal legate and not bestowed on him by Canterbury. This was part of the Canterbury-York dispute.

In Thurstan's case, Anselm had been succeeded by Ralph d'Escures, who likewise would not support Thurstan's elevation to archbishop unless Thurstan professed obedience to Canterbury. This Thurstan would not do.

To be clear, he did not need to. Henry decided to quash the Canterbury-York controversy at the 1116 Council of Salisbury by ordering Thurstan to submit to d'Escures. Thurstan resigned the archbishopric instead of submitting. Meanwhile, however, Pope Paschal had sent him and the king letters that supported Thurstan against Canterbury. Thurstan's resignation was ignored. The next two popes repeated Paschal's orders, and in October 1119 Thurstan was in Reims being consecrated by Pope Calixtus II, even though Calixtus had earlier told King Henry that he would not consecrate Thurstan until the king gave his consent.

Henry was outraged, and vowed that Archbishop Thurstan would not set foot in England. Thurstan stayed on the continent with Calixtus. He also visited Henry's favorite sibling, his sister Adela of Normandy. Adela helped convince Henry to reconcile with Thurstan. Calixtus had also threatened interdict on England (no sacraments could be administered to the faithful) if Henry did not comply. When Adela retired from active life and entered the monastery of Marcigny at Easter 1120, Thurstan escorted her. A year later he ws recalled to England. (I can't help thinking Adela had a large hand in changing her brother's mind.)

One of Thurstan's more controversial moves was to make a bishop out of a man who was obscure of birth, boastful of his (fictitious) parentage, haughty and materialistic. Thurstan wanted to create more bishops to oversee more dioceses in northern England. One of these was Wimund, who was made Bishop of the Isles, including the Hebrides and the Isle of Mann. When Thurstan created a bishop for galloway, Wimund objected because he felt he had jurisdiction over Galloway. Wimund did more than object: he decided to compensate for the loss of revenue by losing Galloway that he became essentially a pirate, a story I told here.

Thurstan eventually resigned his position on 21 January 1140 in order to fulfill a lifelong goal of becoming a Cluniac monk at Pontefract. He died there on 6 February, after a two-week retirement.

Two years earlier, he had been essential in raising an army against the Scots. For the story of the Battle of the Standard, you'll have to come back tomorrow.

*The United Kingdom still has a Lord High Almoner.

Sunday, February 18, 2024

Anselm and Henry Working Together

As mentioned here, the relationship between Archbishop of Canterbury Anselm and King Henry I of England was not completely adversarial. Henry wanted desperately to rule England, even if his elder brother Robert Curthose had a valid claim, and Henry wanted allies. He even apologized in a letter to Anselm (who was on the continent, having been exiled by Henry's other brother, King William II) for being crowned by Bishop Maurice of London, rather than waiting for the archbishop, as was traditional.

Anselm also approved the marriage of Henry to Matilda of Scotland, after convening a council to decide if Matilda, although she had been living in a convent as a nun for many years, had actually become a nun. Anselm helped Henry deal with some of his enemies: he supported Henry deposing Ranulph Flambard, the Bishop of Durham who had been loyal to William II but not to Henry; Anselm also threatened Robert Curthose with excommunication, when Robert (then as Duke of Normandy) wanted to invade England and take the throne from Henry. Anselm was involved in persuading Robert to accept the Treaty of Alton.

There was one crucial item where Anselm and Henry did not see eye-to-eye, and that was the question of authority between church and king. Henry still wanted approval of clerical positions (lay investiture), including that of archbishop. Anselm had to pull out his "big gun" if he was to resolve this: he made clear that Henry was facing excommunication, also sending the message obliquely through Henry's sister, Adela. For Henry, not being seen as a faithful member of the Catholic Church would undermine his attempt to be seen as a "good king" after the corruption of his predecessor.

Henry had to compromise. Henry was willing to leave investing of bishops and priests to the Church, but if those positions held lands, they needed to acknowledge that the lands were held in trust from the king and do him homage as landowners. (Anselm and Pope Paschal both agreed to this, but still hoped to eliminate this homage in the future.) Henry also asked that the excommunication of his advisors (see the first link above) be lifted. This Anselm did himself (though later Paschal criticized him for "overturning" the pope's decision without consulting him.)

Anselm was not satisfied, however, and would not return to Canterbury until the king met with him. Henry traveled to Bec in August 1106. Anselm demanded the return of all lands once belonging to Canterbury that William had confiscated. Henry had taxed married clergy, but after Anselm had forbidden clerical marriage, Henry made up for the loss of revenue by taxing all clergy. Anselm forced Henry to make clergy exempt for three years from tax. These changes were enough to satisfy Anselm, who returned. He lived two more years, attending to the duties of Archbishop of Canterbury.

Before concluding Anselm's life, we are going on a side quest. I (and far more consequential historians) have written much about William the Conqueror's sons Robert, William, and Henry. He had other children, and they also had influence. I want to introduce you Henry's older sister, Adela, who was very likely instrumental in convincing him to accept Anselm's demands. See you tomorrow.

Saturday, February 17, 2024

Anselm and Henry I

I have written before of how William II of England died unexpectedly, and how his younger brother Henry quickly assumed control of England in spite of the elder brother Robert's claim (sibling rivalry among princes is especially consequential, but Robert was far away on the First Crusade), and how Henry was accepted by the nobles probably because he offered to undo the corrupt practices of William in his Charter of Liberties.

One of the other benefits of Henry being a very different person from William is that Anselm of Bec was able to resume his position at Canterbury as archbishop. Unfortunately, although Henry asked Anselm back and was going to give him all the states connected to Canterbury, he did ask Anselm to do him homage, and wanted to invest him (again) with the ring and crozier of his station. This would have meant that the king had authority to invest an archbishop, to which Anselm immediately refused. Henry even asked permission for this from Pope Paschal II, but Paschal would not grant it for the same reason that Anselm refused it.

Not everything between Anselm and Henry was hostile. Anselm supported Henry against his brother, Robert Curthose, who asserted a claim to England. Anselm also supported Henry's deposing of the Bishop of Durham, Ranulph (Ralph) Flambard, who was responsible for some of the corruption of William's administration. (Flambard was the first person to be imprisoned in the Tower of London, as well as the first person ever to escape. I told that story here.)

Anselm also supported Henry in his desire to marry Matilda of Scotland (illustration), despite Matilda's status as a nun(!). At a different council, however, Anselm established the Gregorian reforms, prohibiting marriage, concubinage, and drunkenness among clerics. He also regulated clerical dress and condemned the British slave trade. Henry supported Anselm's reforms, but still asserted that he had authority over Anselm himself. Henry dispatched three bishops to Rome to get the pope's approval for his authority, and upon their return claimed that the pope had given it. Anselm decided to travel to Rome himself to verify this, along with William Warelwast whom he had sent to Rome earlier. Upon learning of the king's deception, Pope Paschal excommunicated the three bishops who had lied for Henry.

When word of the pope's actions reached Henry, he sent a message to Anselm, telling him not to return to England. In this second exile, Anselm decided it was time to go on the offensive. He made Henry an offer he dare not refuse. I'll explain tomorrow.

Tuesday, May 23, 2023

The Battle of Mersivan

The Crusade of 1101 had high hopes: the First Crusade had already been successful, establishing the Kingdom of Jerusalem, and the Germans, French, and Lombards (joined by Byzantines from Constantinople) who set out as reinforcements at the request of Pope Paschal II thought they would be avoiding any serious battles. They were mistaken, however, when different groups of Turks banded together and met them at the Battle of Mersivan. The Turkish leader, Kilij Arslan I, had his forces push the invaders where he wanted them to go.

The westerners were then at a disadvantage in the Mersivan area, dealing with dry open land bereft of supplies that was more suited to the cavalry regiments of the Seljuk and Danishmend Turks. Over the several days of the battle, the Turks outmaneuvered the Crusaders at every turn, surrounding them on the very first day.

On day two, a raid by the German division failed, and they were cut off from the main army with no supplies or communication. After a relatively inactive third day, the next day saw Turkish reinforcements. The Crusaders tried to break out of their position, inflicting some damage to the Turks, but they failed to achieve their goal. The fifth day saw the Crusaders' camp captured. Shockingly, the knights fled, leaving behind families and priests to be killed or enslaved. The Lombards, mostly peasant class who did not have horses, could not flee and were largely wiped out, although some were captured and made slaves.

This defeat, and the rounding up and destruction of those who fled, taking place just a few years after the First Crusade, taught the Muslim world that the Crusaders were not invincible. The leader of the Turks, Kilij Arslan I, had redeemed himself after the losses brought by the First Crusade, and established a capital at Iconium. I'll tell you more about Kilij Arslan next time.

Monday, May 22, 2023

The Crusade of 1101

Because the First Crusade was successful, in 1100-1101 several of those who had avoided going on the First (or started and turned back because of the difficulties in traveling such distances) decided to conduct their own Crusade. Because they had avoided the First, this Crusade is sometimes called the Crusade of the Faint-Hearted. Stephen, Count of Blois (1045 - 1102), fled from the Siege of Antioch, for instance, and was so strongly criticized that his wife refused to allow him to stay home. This new Crusade was an opportunity for him and others to redeem themselves.

Pope Urban had died before the First Crusade was completed, but his successor, Pope Paschal II, called for reinforcements to supplement the armies who remained in the Holy Land. His urging resulted in three separate groups deciding to take up the Cross.

One group was from Lombardy, led by the Archbishop of Milan, Anselm IV. They were untrained and undisciplined peasants who, when they reached Constantinople, pillaged the city (even killing Emperor Alexios I's pet lion) until they were gathered and shipped to a camp at Nicomedia.

A second group met them there in May 1101. These were led by Stephen of Blois and other nobles, bringing French, Germans, and Burgundians. They were joined by Raymond IV of Toulouse, who had been successful on the First Crusade and had been offered the position of "King of Jerusalem," which he refused (the title went to Godfrey of Bouillon).

The largest contingent in this combined army was Lombards, who wanted to march the army north where they could rescue Bohemond I of Antioch, who was held captive by a Turkish dynasty, the Danishmends. The Seljuk Turks, realizing that combining forces was necessary to defeat the intruders, persuaded the Danishmend Turks to join them. This proved disastrous for these new Crusaders, but that is a story for tomorrow.

Wednesday, August 13, 2014

The Problems of Pope Paschal

Pope Paschal II speaking to Anselm of Canterbury
On 13 August 1099, a Cluniac monk from northwest of Rome named Ranierius was named Pope Paschal II, following Pope Urban II. He sat the chair of Peter until 21 January 1118—a long stretch compared to many popes.

Like other popes, he had to deal with the controversy over investiture; in his case, specifically, he weighed in on England's trouble between King Henry I and Archbishop Anselm of Canterbury, finding the same solution later settled in the Concordat of Worms: agree that the pope names clergy and confers religious titles, but the king of England can confer secular titles and grant land.

As for the relations between Paschal and the Holy Roman Emperor: Henry V proved to be more difficult in some ways than his father had been, even marching an army into Italy against Paschal over the Investiture Controversy. Paschal had to agree to give up all properties and possessions it had received since the days of Charlemagne. Only for this would Henry give up his "rights" of investiture.  The agreement was to take place in February 1111, but the Romans objected very strongly to a German army trying to change the status quo: they revolted, and Henry retreated, but not before capturing Paschal and 16 cardinals! The pope was imprisoned for two months; a rescue mission by Robert I of Capua with 300 men failed. Paschal was released after agreeing to allow Henry to invest priests and bishops. (Months later, with Henry safely back across the alps, a council and Paschal would excommunicate him for his actions.)

Paschal also had the opportunity during his reign to unite the Catholic (Western) and Orthodox (Eastern) churches; Emperor Alexios I was willing. Paschal, however, laid down the condition that the pope be seen as the ultimate ruler of all churches throughout the world, and this the Patriarch of Constantinople would not agree to.

One of Paschal's appointments in 1112 was of a priest named Erik Gnúpsson to be Episcopus Groenlandia regionnumque finitimarum ["Bishop of Greenland and nearby regions"]. Norseman had settled Greenland in the 10th century, and there was another land to the west called "Vinland," which was almost certainly Newfoundland. This gives Paschal the privilege of having appointed the first bishop of the Americas. (Gnúpsson left for Vinland in 1121 and never returned, alas.)*

*Vatican and Icelandic records both mention this; see These Stones Bear Witness, by Richard White for more on the Norse presence in North America.

Thursday, August 7, 2014

Fathers & Sons in the HRE

Henry IV (center), with his sons Henry V & Conrad
Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV is best known for the Investiture Controversy and the Walk to Canossa, when he did penance so that Pope Gregory VII would lift an excommunication.

Henry was excommunicated again in 1084; however, this time he wasn't so penitent. He marched into Rome, deposed Gregory, and appointed his own pope, Clement III. The College of Cardinals had another idea, however, declared Clement III an "anti-pope," and appointed their own pope, Pope Urban II. Urban supported Gregory VII's ideas and opposed Henry, as did Pope Paschal II who followed him in 1099.

Henry was prepared to oppose the popes, but a further betrayal created worse trouble for him. His son, Henry (1086 - 1125; later Holy Roman Emperor Henry V). Sons in line for the throne often make designs on that throne before their predecessor departs by his own choice, and young Henry decided that his father's excommunication was good grounds for staging a rebellion.

In 1104, young Henry decided it was time to stand up and depose Henry IV. The Church was willing (naturally) to support the son against the father who had proven to be no friend to the papacy. Henry IV had been trying to maintain order in the Empire, and did not want a war. He agreed to a meeting to try to achieve a peaceful resolution; the meeting, however, was a ruse, and he was captured by his son's forces. Imprisoned in Böckelheim Castle in southwestern Germany, he was forced to renounce his creation of Pope Clement and to admit that he was unjustly hostile to Pope Gregory.

Henry IV was German, however, and Germany itself was not keen on having their king deposed and imprisoned by a teenager who then declared himself Holy Roman Emperor Henry V. In 1106, forces loyal to Henry IV opposed his son and the pope and freed Henry IV from his prison. Henry Senior started making alliances with other nations for support. Early in 1106, he defeated his son's forces, but he succumbed to an illness of several days and died on 7 August.

Because he was still excommunicated, his body was placed by order of the papal legate into an unconsecrated chapel until the excommunication was lifted in summer of 1111.

Henry V did become Holy Roman Emperor in his own right from 1111 until 1125