Gebhard of Salzburg
Encyclopedia
Blessed Gebhard of Salzburg (about 101015 June 1088), also occasionally known as Gebhard of Helfenstein, was Archbishop of Salzburg
from 1060 until his death. He was one of the fiercest opponents of King Henry IV
during the Investiture Controversy
.
Of Gebhard's origins, all that is known for certain is that he was born in the German stem duchy of Swabia
. Although he appeared in a 17th century genealogy by Gabriel Bucelin
as a scion of the comital House of Helfenstein
, this lineage is entirely speculative. Gebhard assumedly studied in Paris
, was ordained a priest at Salzburg in 1055 and became court chaplain
to Emperor Henry III
. Then a loyal supporter of the Salian dynasty
, he also travelled as an ambassador to the Byzantine
court at Constantinople
and held the office of an Imperial chancellor
between 1057 and 1059.
On 30 July 1060 he was consecrated bishop of the Archdiocese of Salzburg
. He reorganized the tithe
s paid by the Carantanian peasants and the parish system in Carinthia
, where he in 1072 dissolved the double monastery of Gurk Abbey
, founded by Saint Hemma
in 1043, and replaced it by the suffragan Diocese of Gurk
. Gebhard also established Admont Abbey
in 1074, vested with Hemma's estates in the Carinthian March of Styria
. Besides this, he had the fortresses of Hohensalzburg, Hohenwerfen
and Friesach
built.
Yet in 1075, Gebhard had backed the German king Henry IV struggling with the Great Saxon Revolt
. In the following Investiture Controversy however, he was on the side of Pope Gregory VII
. Like his friend Bishop Altmann of Passau
he did not attend the 1076 Synod of Worms
held by the king and instead allied with the oppositional princes at the diet of Trebur
later in that year. Even after Henry's Walk to Canossa
, Gebhard supported the election of antiking Rudolf of Rheinfelden in March 1077. As he was unwilling to be reconciled with the king, Henry IV expelled him from Salzburg. While his diocese was devastated by the king's forces, Gebhard spent nine years in Swabia and Saxony
, trying to win the support of the bishops for the cause of Pope Gregory VII. Meanwhile in Salzburg, Berthold von Moosburg was installed as anti-bishop in 1085. Gebhard was not able to return to Salzburg until 1086, assisted by the support of Duke Welf I of Bavaria
.
Gebhard died at Hohenwerfen on 15 June 1088 and is buried in the church of Admont Abbey. His feast day is 15 June. He is shown as a bishop with a Greek cross and a unicorn
. In 1629 a process of canonization
was begun but delayed due to the Thirty Years' War
and has never been concluded.
Archbishopric of Salzburg
The Archbishopric of Salzburg was an ecclesiastical State of the Holy Roman Empire, its territory roughly congruent with the present-day Austrian state of Salzburg....
from 1060 until his death. He was one of the fiercest opponents of King Henry IV
Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry IV was King of the Romans from 1056 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 until his forced abdication in 1105. He was the third emperor of the Salian dynasty and one of the most powerful and important figures of the 11th century...
during the Investiture Controversy
Investiture Controversy
The Investiture Controversy or Investiture Contest was the most significant conflict between Church and state in medieval Europe. In the 11th and 12th centuries, a series of Popes challenged the authority of European monarchies over control of appointments, or investitures, of church officials such...
.
Duke of Swabia
The following is a list of Dukes of Swabia in southwest Germany.Swabia was one of the five stem duchies of the medieval German kingdom, and its dukes were thus among the most powerful magnates of Germany. The most notable family to hold Swabia were the Hohenstaufen, who held it, with a brief...
. Although he appeared in a 17th century genealogy by Gabriel Bucelin
Gabriel Bucelin
Gabriel Bucelin was a Benedictine polymath, Humanist, historical writer and cartographer.-Life:...
as a scion of the comital House of Helfenstein
House of Helfenstein
The House of Helfenstein was a German noble family during the High and Late Middle Ages. The family was named after the family castle, Castle Helfenstein, located above Geislingen an der Steige in the Swabian Alb region of Baden-Württemberg, Germany...
, this lineage is entirely speculative. Gebhard assumedly studied in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, was ordained a priest at Salzburg in 1055 and became court chaplain
Chaplain
Traditionally, a chaplain is a minister in a specialized setting such as a priest, pastor, rabbi, or imam or lay representative of a religion attached to a secular institution such as a hospital, prison, military unit, police department, university, or private chapel...
to Emperor Henry III
Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry III , called the Black or the Pious, was a member of the Salian Dynasty of Holy Roman Emperors...
. Then a loyal supporter of the Salian dynasty
Salian dynasty
The Salian dynasty was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages of four German Kings , also known as the Frankish dynasty after the family's origin and role as dukes of Franconia...
, he also travelled as an ambassador to the Byzantine
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
court at Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
and held the office of an Imperial chancellor
Archchancellor
An archchancellor or chief chancellor was a title given to the highest dignitary of the Holy Roman Empire, and also used occasionally during the Middle Ages to denote an official who supervised the work of chancellors or notaries....
between 1057 and 1059.
On 30 July 1060 he was consecrated bishop of the Archdiocese of Salzburg
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Salzburg
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Salzburg is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in Austria. The archdiocese is one of two Austrian archdioceses, serving alongside the Archdiocese of Vienna....
. He reorganized the tithe
Tithe
A tithe is a one-tenth part of something, paid as a contribution to a religious organization or compulsory tax to government. Today, tithes are normally voluntary and paid in cash, cheques, or stocks, whereas historically tithes were required and paid in kind, such as agricultural products...
s paid by the Carantanian peasants and the parish system in Carinthia
Duchy of Carinthia
The Duchy of Carinthia was a duchy located in southern Austria and parts of northern Slovenia. It was separated from the Duchy of Bavaria in 976, then the first newly created Imperial State beside the original German stem duchies....
, where he in 1072 dissolved the double monastery of Gurk Abbey
Gurk Abbey
Gurk Abbey was a short-lived Benedictine double monastery in Gurk, Austria, founded in 1043 by Saint Hemma of Gurk. It was dissolved in 1072 by her executor, Blessed Gebhard, Archbishop of Salzburg, who used the assets so realised to found Gurk Cathedral and the Diocese of Gurk-Klagenfurt....
, founded by Saint Hemma
Hemma of Gurk
Hemma of Gurk is a saint and a founder of religious houses in Austria.-Life:Hemma was a member of the noble family of Peilenstein , related to the Liutpoldings of Bavaria and thus to Emperor Henry II. She was born Countess of Zeltschach and was brought up at the Imperial court in Bamberg by the...
in 1043, and replaced it by the suffragan Diocese of Gurk
Roman Catholic Diocese of Gurk
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Gurk is a diocese comprising the Austrian state of Carinthia and is part of the Ecclesiastical province of Salzburg. Due to the presence of Carinthian Slovenes the Slovenian language is, together with Latin and German, the language of the liturgy in the Southern parts...
. Gebhard also established Admont Abbey
Admont Abbey
Admont Abbey is a foundation of the Benedictines on the River Enns in the town of Admont in Austria and is the oldest remaining monastery in Styria...
in 1074, vested with Hemma's estates in the Carinthian March of Styria
March of Styria
The March of Styria was originally broken off the Duchy of Carinthia before 970 as a buffer zone against the Magyars. Originally it was known as the Carantanian march , after the former Slavic principality of Carantania, a predecessor of the Carinthian duchy...
. Besides this, he had the fortresses of Hohensalzburg, Hohenwerfen
Burg Hohenwerfen
Hohenwerfen Castle stands on a rock approximately 40 km south of the Austrian city of Salzburg. The castle is majestically surrounded by the Berchtesgaden Alps and the Tennengebirge mountain range...
and Friesach
Friesach
Friesach is a historic town in the Sankt Veit an der Glan district of Carinthia, Austria. First mentioned in a 860 deed, it is known as the oldest town in Carinthia.-Location:...
built.
Yet in 1075, Gebhard had backed the German king Henry IV struggling with the Great Saxon Revolt
Great Saxon Revolt
The Great Saxon Revolt was a civil war between 1077 and 1088 early in the history of the Holy Roman Empire led by a group of opportunistic German princes who elected as their figurehead the duke of Swabia and anti-king Rudolf of Rheinfeld, a two-way brother-in-law of the young Henry IV, Holy Roman...
. In the following Investiture Controversy however, he was on the side of Pope Gregory VII
Pope Gregory VII
Pope St. Gregory VII , born Hildebrand of Sovana , was Pope from April 22, 1073, until his death. One of the great reforming popes, he is perhaps best known for the part he played in the Investiture Controversy, his dispute with Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor affirming the primacy of the papal...
. Like his friend Bishop Altmann of Passau
Altmann of Passau
Altmann of Passau , often called Saint or Blessed Altmann, was a founder of monasteries and Bishop of Passau. He is venerated as a saint, but not officially canonised....
he did not attend the 1076 Synod of Worms
Synod of Worms
The Synod of Worms was an ecclesiastical synod convened by the Emperor Henry IV in January 1076, at Worms, Germany. It was intended to agree a condemnation of Pope Gregory VII, and Henry's success in achieving this outcome marked the beginning of the Investiture Controversy.Of the 38 German...
held by the king and instead allied with the oppositional princes at the diet of Trebur
Trebur
Trebur is a community in Groß-Gerau district in Hesse, Germany. It is 13 km southeast of Mainz, and 8 km south of Rüsselsheim.-Location:Trebur is located in the Frankfurt Rhein-Main Region...
later in that year. Even after Henry's Walk to Canossa
Walk to Canossa
The Walk to Canossa refers to both the trek itself of Henry IV of the Holy Roman Empire from Speyer to the fortress at Canossa in Emilia Romagna and to the events surrounding his journey, which took place in and around January 1077.-Historical background:When, in his early...
, Gebhard supported the election of antiking Rudolf of Rheinfelden in March 1077. As he was unwilling to be reconciled with the king, Henry IV expelled him from Salzburg. While his diocese was devastated by the king's forces, Gebhard spent nine years in Swabia and Saxony
Duchy of Saxony
The medieval Duchy of Saxony was a late Early Middle Ages "Carolingian stem duchy" covering the greater part of Northern Germany. It covered the area of the modern German states of Bremen, Hamburg, Lower Saxony, North Rhine-Westphalia, and Saxony-Anhalt and most of Schleswig-Holstein...
, trying to win the support of the bishops for the cause of Pope Gregory VII. Meanwhile in Salzburg, Berthold von Moosburg was installed as anti-bishop in 1085. Gebhard was not able to return to Salzburg until 1086, assisted by the support of Duke Welf I of Bavaria
Welf I, Duke of Bavaria
Welf I was duke of Bavaria from 1070 to 1077 and from 1096 to his death. He was the first member of the Welf branch of the House of Este. In the Welf genealogy he is counted as Welf IV.-Life and reign:...
.
Gebhard died at Hohenwerfen on 15 June 1088 and is buried in the church of Admont Abbey. His feast day is 15 June. He is shown as a bishop with a Greek cross and a unicorn
Unicorn
The unicorn is a legendary animal from European folklore that resembles a white horse with a large, pointed, spiraling horn projecting from its forehead, and sometimes a goat's beard...
. In 1629 a process of canonization
Canonization
Canonization is the act by which a Christian church declares a deceased person to be a saint, upon which declaration the person is included in the canon, or list, of recognized saints. Originally, individuals were recognized as saints without any formal process...
was begun but delayed due to the Thirty Years' War
Thirty Years' War
The Thirty Years' War was fought primarily in what is now Germany, and at various points involved most countries in Europe. It was one of the most destructive conflicts in European history....
and has never been concluded.
Sources
- Amon, Karl, 1991: Die heiligen Bischöfe und Erzbischöfe der Kirche von Salzburg. In: Sursum Corda, Festschrift für P. Harnoncourt.
- Karner, Pius, 1913: Austria Sancta. Die Heiligen und Seligen Salzburgs. Vienna.
- Tomek, Ernst, 1935-59: Kirchengeschichte Österreichs. Innsbruck/Vienna/Munich: Tyrolia.
- Wimmer, Otto, Melzer, Hartmann, Gelmi, Josef (eds.), 2002: Gebhard Erzb. von Salzburg. In: Lexikon der Namen und Heiligen. Hamburg: Nikol. ISBN 3-933203-63-5
- Wodka, Josef, 1959: Kirche in Österreich. Wegweiser durch ihre Geschichte. Vienna: Herder.
- Wodka, Josef, 1960: Gebhard EB v. Salzburg. In: Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche. 2nd edition, vol. 4. Freiburg i. B.: Herder.