I T . 
got the better of his rival, and both Henry and bis queen 
received the imperial crown from his hands. Before the 
emperor entered the church, the pope propofed to him 
the following queftion: “ Will you obferve your fidelity 
to me and my fuccelfors in every thing ?” To which, 
though a kind of homage, he fubmitted, and anfwered in 
the affirmative. After his coronation, he confirmed the 
privileges beftowed on the Roman fee by his predeceffors, 
and added fome others of his own; (till, however, relerv- 
ing for •himfelf the fovereignty, and the power of fending 
commiffaries to hear the grievances of the people. Hav- 
dng repelled the incurfions of the Saracens, reduced fome 
more rebellions of his fubjeCts, and reduced the greatelt 
part of Apulia and Calabria, he died in the year 1024. 
1 The death of this emperor was, as ufual, followed by a 
competition for the crown. Conrad, being chofen em¬ 
peror of Germany, was declared king of Italy by the arch- 
billiop of Milan ; while a party of the nobles made offer 
of the crown to Robert king of France, or his fon Hugh. 
But this offer being declined, and likewife another to 
William duke of Guienne, Conrad enjoyed the dignity 
conferred on him by the archbiffiop without moleftation. 
He was crowned king of Italy at Monza in 1026 ; and 
the next year he received the imperial crown from pope 
John XX. in prefence of Canute the Great, king of Eng¬ 
land, Denmark, and Norway; and Rodolph III. king of 
Burgundy. His reign was fimilar to that of his prede- 
ceffors. The Italians revolted, the pope was expelled ; the 
malcontents wereTubdued, and the pope reftored; after 
which the emperor returned to Germany, where he died 
in 1039. 
Under Henry III. who fucceeded Conrad, the diftiir- 
bances were prodigioufly augmented. Pope Sylvefter II. 
was driven out by Benedict ; who in his turn was ex¬ 
pelled by John bifliop of Sabinum, who affumed the title 
of Sylvelter. Three months afterwards, Benedict was re¬ 
ftored, and excommunicated his rivals ; but foon religned 
the pontificate for a fum of money. In a fhort time he 
reclaimed it ; and thus there were at once three popes, 
-each of whom was fupported on a branch of the papal re¬ 
venue, while all of- them made themfelves odious by the 
feandalous lives they led. At laft: a prielt called Gratian 
put an end to this fingular triumvirate. Partly by arti¬ 
fice, and partly by preients, he perfuaded all the three to 
renounce their pretenfions to the papacy; and the people 
of Rome, out of gratitude for To iignal a fervice to the 
church, chofe him pope, under the name of Gregory VI. 
Henry III. took umbrage at this election, in which he had 
not been confulted, and marched with an army into Italy. 
He depofed Gregory, as having been guilty of fimony; 
and filled the papal chair with his own chancellor, Heidi- 
ger bifnop of Bamberg, who affumed the name of Cle¬ 
ment II. and afterwards confecrated Henry and the em- 
prefs Agnes. This ceremony being over, and the Ro¬ 
mans having fworn never to eleCt a pope without the ap¬ 
probation of the reigning emperor, Henry proceeded to 
Capua, where he was vifited by Drago, Rainulphus, and 
other Norman adventurers; who, leaving their country at 
different times, had made themfelves mafters of great part 
of Apulia and Calabria, at the expence of the Greeks and 
Saracens. Henry entered into a treaty with them; and not 
only foleinnly invefted them with thofe territories which 
they had acquired by conqueft, but prevailed on the pope 
to excommunicate the Beneventines, who had refufed to 
open their gates to him, and beftowed that city and its 
dependencies, as fiefs of the empire, upon the Normans, 
provided they took poffeflion by force of arms. The em¬ 
peror was fcarcely returned to Germany when he received 
Intelligence of the death of Clement II. He was fucceed¬ 
ed in the apoftolic fee by Damafus II. who alfo dying 
foon after his elevation, Henry nominated Bruno bifhop 
of Toul to the vacant chair. This Bruno, who was the 
emperor's relation, immediately affumed the pontificals; 
but, being a modeft and pious prelate, he threw them off 
•.on his journey, by the- perfuafion of a monk of Cluny, 
Vox,. XI. No. 767. 
\ -L Y. .4 5 $ 
name Hildebrand , afterwards the famous Gregory VII. and 
went to Rome as. a private man. “The emperor alone 
(laid Hildebrand) has ne right to , create a pope. ” He 
accompanied Bruno to Rome, and fecretiy retarded his 
election, that he might arrogate to himfelf the merit of 
obtaining if. The fcheme fucceeded to his wifli; Bruno, 
who took the name of Leo IX. believing himfelf indebted 
to Hildebrand for the pontificate, favoured him with his 
particular friendlhip and confidence; and hence origi¬ 
nated the power of this enterprifing monk, of obfeure 
birth, but boundlefs ambition, who governed Rome fo 
long, and whole zeal for the exaltation of the church oc- 
cafioned fo many troubles to Europe. 
Leo foon after .his elevation waited on the emperor at 
Worms, to crave afliftance againft thd Norman princes, 
who were become the terror of Italy, and treated their 
.fubjeCts with great leverity. Henry furnifhed the pope 
, with art army; at the head of which he marched again!?: 
the Normans, after having excommunicated them, accom¬ 
panied by a great number of bifhops and other ecciefi- 
aftics, who were all either, killed or taken prifoners, the 
Germans and Italians being totally routed. Leo himfelf 
was led captive to Benevento, which the Normans were 
now mafters of, and which Henry had granted to the pope 
in exchange for the fief of Bamberg in Germany; and 
(till the fecular power of the pope was entirely deftroyed 
by Bonaparte) the apoftolic fee remained in poffeflion of 
Benevento by virtue of that donation. The Normans, 
however, who had a right to the city by a prior grant, re¬ 
ftored it, in the mean time, to the princes of Lombardy ; 
-and Leo was treated with fo much refpeCt by the conque¬ 
rors, that he revoked the fentence of excommunication, 
and joined his fanftion. to the imperial inveftiture for the 
lands which they held in Apulia and Calabria. Leo died 
foon after his releafe ; and the emperor about the fame 
time caufed his infant fon, afterwards the famous Hen¬ 
ry IV. to be declared King of the Romans, a title ftill in ufe 
for the acknowledged heir of the empire. Gebhard, 3 
German bifliop, was eledted pope, under the name of Vic¬ 
tor II. and confirmed by the addrefs of Hildebrand, who 
waited on the emperor in perfon for that purpole, though 
he difdained to confult him beforehand. Perhaps Hilde¬ 
brand would not have found this talk fo eafy, had not 
Henry been involved in a war with the Hungarians, who 
preffed him hard, but whom he obliged at laft to pay a 
large tribute, and furnifti him annually with a certain 
number of fighting men. 
As foon as the emperor had finiflied this war and others 
to which it gave rife, he marched into Italy to infpect the 
conduft of his filter Beatrice, widow of Boniface marquis 
• of Mantua, and made her prifoner. She had married 
Gozelo duke of Lorraine, without the emperor’s confent; 
and contracted her daughter Matilda, by the marquis of 
Mantua, to Godfrey duke of Spoleto and Tufcany, Go- 
zelo’s fon by a former marriage. This formidable alli- 
ence jnftly alarmed Henry; he therefore attempted to dif- 
folve it, by carrying his fifter into Germany; where he 
died foon after his return, in the 39th year of his age, and 
the 16th of his reign. 
This emperor, in his laft journey to Italy, concluded 
an alliance with Contarini, doge of Venice. That repub¬ 
lic was already rich and powerful, though it had only 
been enfranchifed in the year 998 from the tribute of a 
mantle of cloth of gold, which it formerly paid, as a mark 
of fubjeclion, to the emperors of Conftantinople. Genoa 
was the rival of Venice in power and in commerce, and 
was already in poffeflion of the ifland of Corfica, which 
the Genoefe had taken from the Saracens. Thefe two ci¬ 
ties engroffed at this time almoft all the trade of Europe. 
There was no city in any refpeCl equal to them either in 
France or Germany. 
Henry IV. was only five years old at his father’s death. 
The popes made ufe of the refpite given them by his mi¬ 
nority, to fhake off in a great meafure their dependence 
upon the emperors. After a variety of contefts about 
6 A the 
