Matilda of Tuscany

Matilda of Tuscany (Italian: Matilde di Toscana; Latin: Matilda or Mathilda; c. 1046 – 24 July 1115), or Matilda of Canossa (Italian: Matilde di Canossa [maˈtilde di kaˈnɔssa]), also referred to as la Gran Contessa ("the Great Countess"), was a member of the House of Canossa (also known as the Attonids) in the second half of the eleventh century. Matilda was one of the most important governing figures of medieval Italy. She reigned in a time of constant battles, political intrigues, and excommunications by the Church.

She ruled as a feudal margravine and, as a relative of the imperial Salian dynasty, she brokered a settlement in the so-called Investiture Controversy. In this extensive conflict with the emerging reform Papacy over the relationship between spiritual (sacerdotium) and secular (regnum) power, Pope Gregory VII dismissed and excommunicated the Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV (then King of the Romans) in 1076. At the same time, Matilda came into possession of a substantial territory that included present-day Lombardy, Emilia, Romagna, and Tuscany. She made the Canossa Castle, in the Apennines south west of Reggio Emilia, the centre of her domains.

After his famous penitential walk in front of Canossa Castle in January 1077, Henry IV was accepted back into the Church by the Pope. However, the understanding between the Emperor and the Pope was short-lived. In the conflicts with Henry IV that arose a little later, from 1080, Matilda put all her military and material resources into the service of the Papacy. Her court became a refuge for many displaced persons during the turmoil of the investiture dispute and enjoyed a cultural boom. Even after the death of Pope Gregory VII in 1085, Matilda remained a vital pillar of the Reform Church. Between 1081 and 1098, grueling disputes with Henry IV meant Canossan rule was in crisis. The historical record is sparse for this time. A turning point resulted from Matilda forming a coalition with the southern German dukes, who opposed Henry IV.

In 1097, Henry IV retreated past the Alps to the northern portion of the Holy Roman Empire, and a power vacuum developed in Italy. The struggle between regnum and sacerdotium changed the social and rulership structure of the Italian cities permanently, giving them space for emancipation from foreign rule and communal development. From autumn 1098, Matilda regained many of her lost domains. Until the end, she tried to bring the cities under her control. After 1098, she increasingly used the opportunities offered to her to consolidate her rule again. Since she was childless, in her final years, Matilda developed her legacy by focusing her donation activity on Polirone Abbey.

The account of Donizo reports that between 6 and 11 May 1111, Matilda was crowned Imperial Vicar and Vice-Queen of Italy by Henry V at Bianello Castle (Quattro Castella, Reggio Emilia). With her death, the House of Canossa became extinct in 1115. Well into the thirteenth century, popes and emperors fought over what was called the Terre Matildiche ("Matildine domains") as their rich inheritance.

Source: Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Matilda_of_Tuscany