CHAPTER XIII THE CONFLICT BETWEEN GREGORY VII AND HENRY IV I. THE EARLY YEARS OF HENRY IV The most comprehensive of all the mediaeval chroni- c ^ es coverm g the history of the world was written by Ekkehard of Aurach. He exercised great patience and care and repeatedly revised and elaborated his work. ^ e De g an ta write just before the opening of the First Crusade, in which he became greatly interested (see extract below, pp. 3 16 sg.). His fair-mindedness is shown in the following account of Henry IV's early troubles. In the year 1057 of the Incarnation of our "Lord, and the year 1808 since the founding of the City, Henry IV, son of Emperor Henry, while still a boy, began to reign in the place of his father. At the time that this book is being written, he is reigning, in his forty-second year, as the eighty- seventh emperor since Augustus. . . . In the year of our Lord 1058, Frederick, who as pope was called Stephen, died, and Alexander, bishop of Lucca, followed him. At that time Hildebrand, who later became pope, administered the office of archdeacon in Rome. In the year of our Lord 1059, Pope Stephen died, and Gerhard followed him under the name of Nicholas (II). 1 Henry, king of France, died, and Philip, his son, reigned in his stead. 1 Stephen IX died in 1058 and was succeeded by Nicholas II, who was in turn succeeded by Alexander II in 1061. The confusion of dates by Ekkehard seems rather surprising, but similar mistakes are common in most of the chronicles. 266
