St Gregory VII was born in Tuscany. He is known as one of the great reforming popes and for the part he played in the Investiture Controversy, his dispute with Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor affirming the primacy of the papal authority and the new canon law governing the election of the pope by the College of Cardinals. Gregory was Pope from April 22, 1073, until his death in 1085. He was canonised by Pope Benedict XIII in 1728.
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