Henry IV

“ For in his judgment no one is rightfully priest save him who has bought permission from his own capricious self. Me also whom God called to the kingdom—not, however, having called him to the priesthood—he strove to deprive of my royal power, threatening to take away my kingdom and my soul, neither of which he had granted, because he saw me wishing to hold my rule from God and not from him—because he himself had not constituted me king. ”

“ And He taught that every man should be constrained so to extend his love from one to the other that the kingdom should neither lack the honour due to the priesthood, nor the priesthood the honour due to the kingdom. ”

“ For the law and judgment that was in force against them before this peace was decreed shall be most diligently observed, so that they be restrained from iniquity;—for robbers and plunderers are excepted from this divine peace, and, in fact, from every peace. If any one strive to oppose this pious decree, so that he will neither promise the peace to God nor observe it, no priest shall presume to sing a mass for him or to give heed to his salvation; if he be ill, no Christian shall presume to visit him, and, unless he come to his senses, he shall do without the Eucharist even at the end. ”

“ Such greeting as this hast thou merited through thy disturbances, inasmuch as there is no grade in the church which thou hast omitted to make a partaker not of honour but of confusion, not of benediction but of malediction. For, to mention few and especial cases out of many, not only hast thou not feared to lay hands upon the rulers of the holy church, the anointed of the Lord—the archbishops, namely, bishops and priests—but thou hast trodden them under foot like slaves ignorant of what their master is doing. Thou hast won favour from the common herd by crushing them ”

“ For the wisdom of the holy fathers committed even Julian the apostate not to themselves, but to God alone, to be judged and to be deposed. For himself the true pope, Peter, also exclaims: "Fear God, honour the king." But thou who dost not fear God, dost dishonour in me his appointed one. Wherefore St. Paul, when he has not spared an angel of Heaven if he shall have preached otherwise, has not excepted thee also who dost teach otherwise upon earth. ”

“ It is not an infringement of the peace if any one order a delinquent slave, or a scholar, or any one who is subject to him in any way, to be beaten with rods or with whips. It is an exception also to this statute of peace, if the emperor shall publicly order an expedition to be made to seek the enemies of the realm, or shall be pleased to hold a council to judge the enemies of justice. The peace is not violated if, while it continues, the duke, or other counts, or bailiffs, or their substitutes hold courts, and lawfully exercise judgment over thieves and robbers, and other harmful persons. ”

“ Whereas in our times the holy church has been afflicted beyond measure by tribulations through having to join in suffering so many oppressions and dangers, we have so striven to aid it, with God's help, that the peace which we could not make lasting by reason of our sins, we should to some extent make binding by at least exempting certain days. ”

“ If any one, either at the present time or among our posterity forever, shall presume to violate it, he is banned by us irrevocably. We decree that it rests not more in the power of the counts or centenars, or any official, than in that of the whole people in common, to inflict the above mentioned punishments on the violators of the holy peace. ”

“ Being admonished to do so by the counsel of our faithful ones, I promise to observe in all things the obedience due to the apostolic see and to thee, pope Gregory, and will take care devoutly to correct and to render satisfaction for anything whereby a derogation to the honour of that same see, or to thine, has arisen through us. ”

“ We rely moreover on thy love not to let thy faithfulness disappoint our expectations; for from the loyalty of none of the princes or bishops of the land do we hope for greater things than from thine, rejoicing, as we have done, not only in the showing of the past but also in what thou hast led us to expect from thee in the future. ”

“ And let them most diligently be on their guard lest, in punishing, they show friendship or hatred, or do anything contrary to justice; let them not conceal the crimes of any one, but rather make them public. No one shall accept money for the redemption of those who shall have been found transgressing. Merchants on the road where they do business, rustics while labouring at rustic work—at ploughing, digging, reaping, and other similar occupations,—shall have peace every day. Women, moreover, and all those ordained to sacred orders, shall enjoy continual peace. ”

“ In very important matters the wisest counsels of the greatest men are needed—men who shall both outwardly have the ability and inwardly shall not be without the will to give their best advice in a matter in which they are interested. For there is nothing whatever in the carrying out of which either ability without will or will without ability avails. ”

“ Tf, during the space for which the peace has been declared, it shall be necessary for any one to go to another place where that peace is not observed, he may bear arms; provided, nevertheless, that he harm no one unless he is attacked and has to defend himself. Moreover, when he returns, he shall lay aside his weapons again. If it shall happen that a castle is being besieged, the besiegers shall cease from the attack during the days included in the peace, unless they are attacked by the besieged, and are obliged to beat them back. ”

“ The purpose of it is that those who travel and those who remain at home may enjoy the greatest possible security, so that no one shall commit murder or arson, robbery or assault, no man shall injure another with a. whip or a sword or any kind of weapon, and that no one, no matter on account of what wrong he shall be at feud, shall, from the Advent of our Lord to the 8th day after Epiphany, and from Septuagesima until the 8th day after Pentecost, presume to bear as weapons a shield, sword, or lance—or, in fact, the burden of any armour. ”

“ If any one shall presume to furnish the culprit with means of defence, arms, victuals, or opportunity for flight, he shall be punished with the same penalty as the guilty man. We forbid under our bann, moreover, that any one in sacred orders, convicted of transgressing this peace, be l^unished with the punishments of laymen—he shall, instead, be handed over to the bishop. Where laymen are decapitated, clerks shall be degraded; where laymen are mutilated, clerks shall be suspended from their positions ”

“ Both of which thou, most faithful one, dost possess, as we think, in equal measure; or to speak more truly, although thou who art very great art not lacking in very great ability,—nevertheless, if we know thee rightly and have noted thy fidelity with proper care, thou dost abound with a good will greater even than this very great ability ”

“ This imperial peace has been decreed chiefly for the security of all those who are at feud; but not to the end that, after the peace is over, they may dare to rob and plunder throughout the villages and homes. ”

“ And wherever he is heard to be, letters shall be sent there announcing that he is under the bann, and that no one may hold intercourse with him. The hands may not be cut off of boys who have not yet completed their 12th year; if boys, then, shall transgress this peace, they shall be punished with whipping only. ”