Pope Gregory Win In Battles Over Power Essay

During the Middle Ages the struggle of power between the monarchy and the church was an ongoing battle from the time of Charlemagne until the time of the Renaissance. I believe the Pope or high up church officials had more power over the king and in the eyes of the people. One reason for this is that Popes usually won when it came to battles over power. Pope Gregory VII was a prime example of this. Gregory did not hesitate to excommunicate King Henry IV after his attempt to take power away from the clergy. To have this horrible punishment revoked Henry proceeded to travel to Italy's northern mountains and stood barefoot in the snow for three days. After three days the Pope finally agreed to see Henry and had his excommunication revoked. King Henry's willingness to stand in frozen mountains proved he was giving the power back to the Pope, for only high up Church officials could excommunicate and excommunicate. However, some may say that even after the king had been removed from the church he still had power over his vassals. Giving him an army, money, and most importantly power. Sadly that is not is how feudal relationships work. After Henry’s removal he lost ALL power.
His vassals didn't have to follow him. His most loyal would stay with him if they chose. However Henry had no control over where they stayed by his side or not. To further prove the point of the church having more power is in one Archbishops story. This Archbishop's name was Thomas A Beckett. Thomas and King Henry II of England had been friends for while. When Henry was appointed to the king position and the old Archbishop of Canterbury, Theobald of Bec, had died, he appointed Beckett to the role of Archbishop of Canterbury. He thought this decision we help he gain more power over the Church. Thomas refused to let that happen; because Thomas did not want to Archbishop he fought tirelessly to keep the power within the church. Becket excommunicated a bunch of Henry’s supporters. These acts annoyed the king. He was alleged to have cried to out “will no one rid me of this turbulent priest?” Soon after this cry Beckett was murdered by the king's knights. For the role in murder of the Archbishop the king allowed himself to be whipped and beat by the monks of the Canterbury church. The king proved his weakness by resorting to showing his weakness by murder. Murder is a devious act and is not a sign of power. Some may say that because in the end Thomas died that the king ends having more power over England. However this is not logical. Becket stopped the king from gaining power and the church from losing power. Even after his death, Thomas had a sense of power over Henry. The king allowed himself to be beat by the monks. Which symbolizes his attempt to fix his wrong doings against his deceased friend. More proof that church officials had more power over the land is at the beginning of the Medieval Era.
Pope Leo III was not born into a family of nobility. He worked his way up through the clergy and eventually became the Pope. Majority of people did not support him because he is not from a noble family. Leo felt threatened so he sent word to Charlemagne for help. Charlamagne of course sent help. He believed it was the job of the king and his army to protect the church. Two days after Leo took an oath of purgation in Rome, he crowned Charlemagne the ruler of the Holy Roman Empire. Only a Pope can grant a person the title of the King of the Holy Roman Empire. Leo worked his way up from a commoner showing that the church has the power to transform anyone into an influential
figure. Others with the opposite position on the debate may say that because Charlemagne protected Leo means that the king had more power. The power was in Charlemagne's army keeping Leo safe. However, the power shown by the Pope after being protected for a couple of days was greater than the strength of the army. Popes in the beginning of the era, such as Leo, set the stage for the rest of the Middle Ages; because Leo showed great strength and determination it gave future Popes and church officials the mindset that they can accomplish anything through the church and that the king will always have my back. In conclusion, in the Middle Ages high up church officials had more power over the monarchy for a multitude of reasons. The church was a crucial part of life in the Middle Ages. People constantly looked to the lord for help. Thus, making the people who ran the church and taught them lessons from the lord had an immense amount of power in the time.