History of the Germans

It is time - we are finally going to Canossa. Expect imperial power to disappear in smoke, greedy mothers-in-laws, frozen passes, hoisted horses and tobogganing empresses. All that ends with the enduring picture of a king first kneeling before a woman and then before a pope.....

That is the the episode you have to listen to!

The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau under Common Creative Licence 3.0.

As always:

Homepage with maps, photos and blog: www.historyofthegermans.com

Facebook: @HOTGPod

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The rise of the papacy since 1046 is almost linear. The popes throw off the chokehold of the roman aristocracy, they take over leadership of the church reform movement from the emperors, and by the end of the pontificate of Alexander II the Holy See has become universal with kings hailing the pope and not the emperor as their overlord.

In 1073 Hildebrand, the eminence grise of the last 20 years ascends the throne of St. Peter. His view of the role of the papacy goes even further than his predecessors. We know this because he laid it out in one of the most remarkable documents of the middle ages, the Dictatus Papae.

This ever expanding role of the papacy had to collide at some point with the other universal power, the emperor Henry IV. Letters are exchanged and words are spoken that set events in motion that will destroy them both.

The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau under Common Creative Licence 3.0.

Homepage with maps, photos and blog: www.historyofthegermans.com

Facebook: @HOTGPod

Twitter: @germanshistory

Instagram: history_of_the_germans

Reddit: u/historyofthegermans

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Historyofthegermans

In 1065 king Henry IV begins his personal rule. After 9 years of regency., the last 3 of which under a government of barons headed by archbishop Anno of Cologne, imperial power is much diminished. Prelates and lords are raiding the imperial purse, when the barons force the young king to dismiss his main adviser, he realises that the previous model of kingship no longer operates. He cannot rely on the oaths of fealty sworn by his counts and dukes, nor can he put faith in the Imperial Church System his predecessors could draw on.

He chooses the royal lands around the rich silver mines of Goslar as the nucleus for his new, territorial power base. He builds mighty castles on the tops of mountains that project royal power, he installs a governor, rather than a count as the head of his administration, and most of the castles’ garrison and administrators are ministeriales, unfree men trained in war.

This new policy clashes with the Saxons, the stem who had already stood in opposition to Henry's father and had plotted to murder him when he was only a child. In 1073 the Saxons gather in an assembly to hear Otto of Northeim 's famous speech that turned disaffection into outright rebellion. In 18 months, Henry IV's Saxon War will become a rollercoaster where he goes from unconditional surrender to triumph - but is the triumph going to last?

The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau under Common Creative Licence 3.0.

Homepage with maps, photos and blog: www.historyofthegermans.com

Facebook: @HOTGPod

Twitter: @germanshistory

Instagram: history_of_the_germans

Reddit: u/historyofthegermans

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/Historyofthegermans?fan_landing=true

Emperor Henry III is dead. The realm is now in the hands of his widow, Agnes of Poitou who rules on behalf of the six-year-old king Henry IV. Agnes is no Theophanu and no Adelheid. Not that she is incompetent, she just isn't absolutely brilliant, and absolutely brilliant is the baseline necessary to manage this fragile situation.

The relationship between the central imperial power and the magnates has flipped, and instead of all-powerful emperors, the dukes, counts and bishops do what they like. And Henry III's bête noire, Godfrey the Bearded is more powerful than ever.

The laity calls for a church that is more like the church of the apostles, pious and dedicated to the poor. They demand an end to simony and the licentiousness of priests.

And the papacy asserts its independence. Not that they necessarily intend to throw off the imperial yoke, but the reformers need protectors against the Roman aristocracy that literally used popes as footstools and ATMs.

All this culminates in a situation where the young king Henry IV sees no other way to escape from his opponents than by jumping into the cold and fast flowing River Rhine, choosing death over captivity..

The music for the show is Flute Sonata in E-flat major, H.545 by Carl Phillip Emmanuel Bach (or some claim it as BWV 1031 Johann Sebastian Bach) performed and arranged by Michel Rondeau under Common Creative Licence 3.0.

Homepage with maps, photos and blog: www.historyofthegermans.com

Facebook: @HOTGPod

Twitter: @germanshistory

Instagram: history_of_the_germans

Reddit: u/historyofthegermans

Patroon: https://www.patreon.com/Historyofthegermans?fan_landing=true

This week we have a special treat - Episode 1 of Thugs & Miracles a podcast by Benjamin Bernier. We handed our feed over to Benjamin, a gifted storyteller who brings you the History of France from the Fall of the Roman Empire to the Fall of the Guillotine:

Welcome to the inaugural episode of Thugs and Miracles! In this first episode of the podcast that looks back at 1,500 years of history through the eyes of the kings and queens of France, we'll set the scene for you. With the Western Roman Empire collapsing and on its way out, a power vacuum developed in the areas that the legions once kept under the control of emperors; now, barbarian kings, many who had ties to the old Empire, are left to fight it out for supremacy. This is the world of 476 CE, the beginning of the Medieval Era, and a time filled with more violence, spirituality and drama than any television show or movie could even hope to capture.

This is a time of long-haired, mystical kings; of queens making power plays in a male-dominated society, and stories of patricide, fratricide, and every other type of -cide possible. It’s the history of court members making power grabs and overthrowing regimes; of deals made to unite religions and compel alliances; and of miracles, saints and relics appearing through the years to change the course of events and make the impossible possible. Professor Paul Freedman may have said it best when he said of these times, “we're into what certainly seems like a combination of thugs and miracles.”

Thugs and Miracles is available on all major podcast platforms and on www.thugsandmiracles.com