FREDERICK
253
FREDERICK
the various parts of his rcahn and manfully exerted utilize them in pursuing his imperial policy. The
himself to establish internal peace. There was no rea- conduct of Frederick in Northern Italy and the mis-
son why the secular princes of his empire should op- taken concept of the relations between Church and
pose the newly chosen king; his naturally conservative State could not fail to bring about a conflict with the
mind knew how to deal with existing forces. Of the papacy. In this conflict for supremacy in Northern
princes, whose power was already approaching sover- Italy, the pope was forced to prove that he was able to
eignty, he demanded only respect for the existing defend the position of equality with the king, which the
order". He sought also to unite the interests of the Ger- papal see had acquired, and in this way to gain a com-
nian princes, especially those of the House of Guelph plete victory over the emperor. The king, a deeply
with the interests of the empire. The Gregorian, religious man, was, indeed, convinced that the secular
hierarchical party in Germany was in a state of com-
plete dissolution. From the bishops Frederick had no
reason to fear radical opposition to his policy towards
tlie Church, dissatisfaction with the papal administra-
tion in Germany being then widespread. He suc-
ceeded in recovering the influence formerly exercised
by the German king in the
selection of bishops. Many
powerful men were at that
time to be found among the
German clergy, prominent
among them being the pro-
vost of Hildesheim, Rainald
von Dassel, consecrated .Arch-
bishop of Cologne in May,
1156, and made chancellor of
the empire. For eleven years
he was the most faithful coun
sellor of Frederick. Rainald
was a formidable opponent of
the papacy; in him the bishop
almost wholly disappears in
the statesman. Similar to
Frederick in character, he vig-
orously supported the anti-
hierarchical policy of the
emperor. Another prelate,
also a stanch supporter of the
king, was Wichmann, Arch-
bishop of Magdeburg, more of
a soldier than a bishop, and
uncanonically promotetl from
the See of Zeitz to the Arch-
bishopric of Magdeburg. Thus
assisted by the various estates
of the empire, Frederick sought
to make the power of the crown
as independent as possible.
This he did by vigorously
furthering the interests of his ancestral house. The
administrators of his family property, the ministeriales,
were not only managers of great estates, but at the
same time an ever-ready body of warriors. The nego-
tiations between the king and the pope concerning the
appointment to the See of Magdeburg revealed for the
- ,r^l_v-
- J-
":■ ' ■
illlflK#^J
■"■r'l
+&_.____
-^.^1_
--^ -ag 1
W
, . » 1
Frederick B.^rbarossa as Crusader
Miniature of 1188, Vatican Library
and ecclesiastical powers should co-operate with each
other, but he made it clear that even the pope should
respect in him the imperial lord. If Frederick be-
came master of Italy, the pope would have to acknowl-
edge this supremacy. In the beginning, it seemed
probable that Frederick would triumph. The pope
needed German help. Threat-
" ened by the Normans from without, he was not even se- cure in his own city, which governed itself through a sen- ate elected Ijy popular vote and tolerated the revolutionary Arnold of Brescia within its walls. It was in these cir- cumstances that the Treaty of Constance was signed be- tween the pope and the king (March, 1153). This treaty was aimed against the enemies of the pope both in Rome and Southern Italy. In return the pope promised to crown Fred- erick emperor and to help him against his enemies.
In October, 1154, Frederick began his march Romewards. Owing to the weakness of his army, the king did not succeed at this time in subjecting to his power Northern Italy and the rebellious city of Milan. In 1155 he went on with his army to Rome, where he met the newly elected Pope .Adrian IV, who maintained himself in Rome with difficulty and was anxiously awaiting the arrival of the German king. Frederick could not establish permanent order in Rome. The Treaty of Constance, promising the pope help against the Romans and Normans, was therefore not carried out. On 18 June, 1155, after having delivered Arnold of Brescia into the pope's hands, Frederick was
^ ^ crownetl as Roman emperor in spite of the opposition
first time a radical difference between the policies of of the reliellious Romans. In Southern, as in North-
the Church and the State. During these stormy con-
troversies, forerunners of the approaching tempest,
Frederick was strengthened in his views regarding the
superiority of the royal over the papal power, chiefly
thi-ough intercourse with the leading jurists of the Uni-
crn, Italy Frederick made little progress during this
Italian expedition. During the years 1155-1158,
Freilerick reached the heig!it of his power, and ener-
getically safeguarded the tranquillity of his realm.
The difficult Bavarian question, replete with imminent
versity of Bologna. The conception of the dignity of danger of war, was successfully settled; Henry Jaso-
the Roman emperor placed before him by these men mirgott surrendered Bavaria to Henry the Lion and in
confirmed him in his claims to the supremacy of the return received Austria as an intlepcndent duchy, a
German kings over the Church, which he based upon step that was pregnant with consequences for the
the rights exercised by them during the Carlovingian future of Germany. Frederick's policy was also suc-
period. The whole internal and external policy of cessful along the eastern and western boundaries of
Frederick was controlled by the idea of restoring the his empire. His suzerainty in Burgundy was, in the
ancient imperium mundi. In Northern Italy, where
many prosperous communes had acquired independ-
ence, the former imperial suzerainty had passed away.
Frederick failed to see that in these cities a new polit-
ical factor was developing, and underrated the powers
of resistance of these free municipal republics. Con-
cerned oidy with itumediate advantages, he sought to
recoverthe regalia (income from vacant sees and bene-
main, re-established, after Frederick, with the con-
sent of the Curia, had separated from Adela von
Vohburg, and married Beatrice, the heiress of Bur-
gundy. On his eastern frontier, he succeeded more
and more in Germanizing and Christianizing the local
tribes. In this respect, Henry the Lion was the chief
pioneer of the future imperial policy. Frederick
maintained amicable relations with Demnark, Poland,
fices), which the cities had gradually usurped, and to and Hungary. Impelled by his proud consciousness
