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218 Duke Bernard taking the sacred lance in his hands, delivered it to the king; their homage and oath of fealty then followed. From Merseburg Henry hastened to Lower Lorraine. In the course of his journey he was joined by his wife Kunigunda, whom he saw crowned queen at Paderborn on 10 August by Archbishop Willigis. A fierce conflict, which broke out between the king's Bavarian followers and the Saxon inhabitants of the city, marred the rejoicings. In Lower Lorraine Henry found no ready acceptance. Two bishops only received him; others hesitated to join them; and Archbishop Heribert of Cologne, indulging a personal grudge, purposely held aloof. At length the prelates concurred in choosing Henry to be king, and after tendering him their oath of fealty, accompanied him to Aix. There, on 8 September, the remaining Lorrainer magnates joined in placing Henry on the coronation chair of his predecessors, and in paying him homage. Nothing therefore was now wanting but the submission of the Duke of Swabia. Herman, however, finding himself now so far outmatched, was already prepared to yield. Through mediators he besought the king's grace for himself and his adherents; and then on 1 October appeared in person before Henry at Bruchsal. On swearing allegiance, Herman was suffered to retain both his duchy and his fiefs, but was required to make good the damage he had caused to the city of Strasbourg.

Henry's title to reign, thus acknowledged in Germany, was also accepted by peoples outside. The Venetians renewed with Henry the treaty of friendship concluded with Otto II. In the vassal state of Bohemia a revolution had lately set up a new ruler who at once sought formal investiture at the hands of Henry. Lastly, from Italy, there came letters and envoys of the imperialist party, urging Henry to intervene in rebellious Lombardy.

Henry of Bavaria, the fifth of his house to occupy the German throne, is known in history as Henry II, both as King and Emperor. He was born on 6 May 973, and had therefore lately completed his twenty-ninth year when he was crowned at Mayence in June 1002. His early life had been moulded by adversity. By the rebellion of his father, Duke Henry "the Wrangler," he had been deprived of his home; and after some time spent under the care of Abraham, Bishop of Freising, he had been sent, still a child, to be brought up at Hildesheim. There he received his first grounding in an education which made him in all ways a cultivated man, well learned both in Holy Scripture and in ecclesiastical lore. He became acquainted at the same time with the methods of church government, as he was meant for the clerical career; but his father's restoration in 985 brought him back to Bavaria. Further training under Bishop Wolfgang of Ratisbon helped to form those decided ideas upon Church and State which afterwards shaped his policy as king. Upon the death of his father in August 995 Henry succeeded without question to the duchy of Bavaria. The last exhortation of the repentant Wrangler to his son