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Page 76
Gilbert found the Pope seated in the midst of an assembly. He could at
last feast his eyes upon the wonderful and sainted man whom he had all
his life loved and venerated. When the Pontiff rose and spoke of the
virtue and fortitude that ought to sustain them in this crisis, he
seemed endowed with supernatural power, and moved all present to tears.
It seemed as though his soul foreknew it was the last time his voice
should be raised in defence of his grand and holy cause.
Another year passed by; the festival of Easter was approaching. Henry
was meditating a return to Germany, when a deputation of the citizens
arrived in his camp, offering to surrender the capital. The Lateran gate
was opened, and the imperial army began to enter the city. The Roman
soldiers, finding themselves betrayed, flew to arms, and Gilbert de Hers
was once more contending with the warriors he had met at Fladenheim and
the Elster. Godfrey de Bouillon fell wounded before the desperate
resolution of the besieged, and as he was brought to his knee, vowed a
pilgrimage to the Holy Land. But, outnumbered and confused, the
defenders were driven into the citadel, and Henry, with his queen at his
side, entered in triumph. The next day Guibert of Ravenna was installed
in the Lateran palace in the See of St. Peter, and consecrated on the
twenty-fourth of March, by the bishops of Modena and Arezzo. His first
act was to crown King Henry in the Vatican. Gregory retired to the
castle of San Angelo, and the giddy populace greeted the anti-pope with
shouts of joy. A severe chastisement awaited their perfidy and
inconstancy. Robert Guiscard was advancing with thirty thousand infantry
and six thousand cavalry, and Henry fled before the redoubtable prince,
whom he had provoked by an alliance with Alexis, the Emperor of the
East. Abandoned by Henry, who had returned to Austria, the treacherous
Romans barred their gates. Robert asked admission, but in vain; and his
irritated soldiers forced their way at midnight through the Flaminian
gate. The city was crimsoned with flame and sword. A body of Saracens
formed part of the Norman's army, and their fury knew no bounds. From
three points of the city the flames were streaming. Scarce could the
Papal guards preserve a portion of the churches from pillage and
destruction. St. Sylvester's and St. Lawrence were wrapped in fire, and
the basilicas, from the quarter of Lateran to the Coliseum, were
involved in the red ruin. For three days the conqueror raged like a lion
in the capital of the Christian world. The frenzied people again
attempted resistance, and again the streets ran with their blood. When,
gorged with slaughter and booty, the ferocious conquerors had evacuated
the city, Gregory and his attendants reentered Rome and occupied the
Lateran palace. He lingered in the venal city only long enough to
convoke a council and renew his anathemas against Henry and Guibert, and
then retired to Monte Cassino.
Gilbert was not permitted to accompany the Pontiff to his retreat, but
was dispatched to Matilda with an account of all that had occurred. He
found the magnanimous princess threatened by an army more than treble
her own. But she was undismayed and full of hope, meditating a bold
enterprise that was crowned with success. In the dead of the night, when
the imperialists, secure in their numerical superiority, were plunged in
sleep, she led the remnants of her troops into the hostile camp. The
sleepers awoke to the cry of "St. Peter! St. Peter!" and perished ere
they could grasp their arms. The chivalry and nobility of Lombardy were
well-nigh exterminated. In a few hours, corpses and tents alone remained
of the hostile array. Why should not Sorbara be as magical a word as
Thermopyl�? It _would_ be, if the Christian chroniclers had shared the
pride or shown the polish of Grecian historians, and if modern
Christians felt a Grecian enthusiasm for the deeds of their Christian
ancestors. Matilda differed from Leonidas but in one respect--in
surviving the action and remaining victor on the field.
Some days after the battle, Gilbert was summoned into Matilda's
presence.
"I owe you more," she said, "than I can ever repay. Your former
voluntary services and fidelity are enhanced by your brilliant exploits
in this last victory. Be pleased to style yourself Governor of Modena."
Gilbert advanced a step, and sinking upon one knee, replied:
"Madam, I came to share in your generous devotion to our common Father,
and to assist you as best I could. You are now--thanks to your own
valor--victorious and secure. I must decline your bounty, for from this
moment I renounce the soldier. Here is my sword, madam; since Rome and
you no longer require it, I shall not need it; nowhere would I more
willingly resign it than thus at your feet."
As the morning dawned, Gilbert de Hers, accompanied by a troop of horse,
set out for Monte Cassino.
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