Godbald

Godbald (or Godebald) (died 12 November 1127, in

Utrecht Utrecht ( , , ) is the fourth-largest city and a municipality of the Netherlands, capital and most populous city of the province of Utrecht. It is located in the eastern corner of the Randstad conurbation, in the very centre of mainland Nethe ...

) was a

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

from 1114 to 1127. Nothing is known about Godbald's origins. He was Provost at the chapter of the Johns-church in Utrecht and was closely involved in the management of the bishops Conrad of Swabia and Burchard before he was himself elected as bishop in 1114, after a lengthy vacancy. On his elevation, his first act was to restore order in the Zeelandic part of the diocese, which belonged to the

County of Flanders The County of Flanders was a historic territory in the Low Countries. From 862 onwards, the counts of Flanders were among the original twelve peers of the Kingdom of France. For centuries, their estates around the cities of Ghent, Bruges and Y ...

. The heretical preacher Tanchelm had tried to get the area transferred to the bishopric of Terwaan, which was governed by a like-minded bishop. Tanchelm died in 1115, but his influence remained. In 1123, Godbald founded a Norbertine

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in communities or alone ( hermits). A monastery generally includes a place reserved for prayer whic ...

in Middelburg, which was assigned to combat the heresy of Tanchelm. Godbald was a reform-minded man. This was shown by his involvement in the founding of the St. Laurens abbey near Oostbroek at

De Bilt De Bilt () is a municipality and town in the province of Utrecht, Netherlands. It had a population of in . De Bilt houses the headquarters of the Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute (KNMI). It is the ancestral home and namesake for the pr ...

, which was the first monastery in the diocese to join the

Cluniac The Cluniac Reforms (also called the Benedictine Reform) were a series of changes within medieval monasticism of the Western Church focused on restoring the traditional monastic life, encouraging art, and caring for the poor. The movement began w ...

movement. Godbald sided with the

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

in the

Investiture Controversy The Investiture Controversy, also called Investiture Contest ( German: ''Investiturstreit''; ), was a conflict between the Church and the state in medieval Europe over the ability to choose and install bishops (investiture) and abbots of monas ...

. During a visit of

Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor Henry V (german: Heinrich V.; probably 11 August 1081 or 1086 – 23 May 1125, in Utrecht) was King of Germany (from 1099 to 1125) and Holy Roman Emperor (from 1111 to 1125), as the fourth and last ruler of the Salian dynasty. He was made co-ru ...

to Utrecht in 1122, the following of the emperor clashed with the bishop's ministerials, after which Godbald was taken prisoner. He was soon released, but at the cost of major concessions. The city of

was given several important city rights; they were allowed to build an earthen wall around the city and they received financial favours at the cost of the bishopric. At the Concordat of Worms in the same year, Godbald seems to have supported the emperor, but in 1123 they clashed again. They soon reconciled, but Henry V died in 1125 in Utrecht, after which his opponent Lothair III rose to the throne. Almost immediately Godbald was at odds with the emperor again. Lothair III supported his family-in-law, the

Counts Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

Holland Holland is a geographical regionG. Geerts & H. Heestermans, 1981, ''Groot Woordenboek der Nederlandse Taal. Deel I'', Van Dale Lexicografie, Utrecht, p 1105 and former province on the western coast of the Netherlands. From the 10th to the 16th c ...

, and granted them rights over Friesland, which had previously been granted to the bishopric by

Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor Henry IV (german: Heinrich IV; 11 November 1050 – 7 August 1106) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 to 1105, King of Germany from 1054 to 1105, King of Italy and Burgundy from 1056 to 1105, and Duke of Bavaria from 1052 to 1054. He was the ...

. During the Imperial Diet at Utrecht in 1126, Godbald again lost in a dispute with the counts of Holland, this time over the newly mined

peatlands A mire, peatland, or quagmire is a wetland area dominated by living peat-forming plants. Mires arise because of incomplete decomposition of organic matter, usually litter from vegetation, due to water-logging and subsequent anoxia. All types o ...

around Utrecht. Godbald had played an active role in the cultivation of these areas. He had also had a dam laid down at

Wijk bij Duurstede Wijk bij Duurstede () is a municipality and a city in the central Netherlands. Population centres * Cothen *Langbroek *Wijk bij Duurstede Topography ''Dutch Topographic map of the municipality of Wijk bij Duurstede, 2013.'' City The city ...

to stabilize the water level of the

Kromme Rijn The Kromme Rijn () ("Crooked Rhine", for its many bends) is a river in the central Netherlands. In Roman times, this northernmost branch of the Rhine delta was the main distributary of this major European river. Along its banks the Romans bu ...

, and he had the

Vaartse Rijn The Vaartse Rijn is a canal connecting the city of Utrecht with Nieuwegein and the Lek river in the Dutch province of Utrecht. The Vaartse Rijn was formerly a major shipping route between Utrecht and the Rhine basin. History In 1122, Bishop Gode ...

, a short canal, dug to improve the ship transportation. After the setback at the Imperial Diet, Godbald retreated to the monastery of Oostbroek, where he died and was buried in 1127. {{Authority control 1127 deaths 12th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Holy Roman Empire Prince-Bishops of Utrecht Year of birth unknown