Walk To Canossa - at The Fortress

At The Fortress

When Henry reached Canossa, the Pope ordered that he be refused entry. According to the first-hand accounts of the scene (letters written by both Gregory and Henry in the following years), Henry waited by the gate for three full days. During this time, he allegedly wore only his penitent hair shirt and fasted. Although no contemporary sources report this, it has since been speculated that Henry spent much of his time during these three days in the village at the foot of the hill.

On 28 January the gates were opened for Henry and he was allowed to enter the fortress. Contemporary accounts report that he knelt before Pope Gregory and begged his forgiveness. Gregory absolved Henry and invited him back into the Church. That evening, Gregory, Henry, and Matilda shared communion in the Cathedral of Saint Nicholas inside the fortress, signaling the official end of Henry's excommunication.

Henry quickly returned to his empire, but Gregory remained with Matilda at the fortress and in other locations in Tuscany for several months. Later historians speculated upon a romantic or sexual relationship between the two (an accusation sometimes raised by Protestant historians in the 17th century) although if there was ever any evidence for this it has not survived.