What did Henry IV demand from Pope Gregory VII at the assembly of Worms in 1076?
At the imperial assembly of Worms in 1076, Henry IV responded to Pope Gregory VII’s criticisms regarding royal appointments and the king's association with excommunicated advisers by denouncing the pope as a false monk and demanding that he abdicate his position.12
Supported by a majority of the German bishops present at the assembly, Henry also called upon the Romans to elect a new pope and persuaded the bishops to renounce their obedience to Gregory. This act of defiance transformed their existing dispute over church reform and the investiture of clergy into a fundamental conflict regarding the relationship between church and state. In response to these demands, Gregory VII subsequently excommunicated and deposed Henry, marking a significant escalation in the power struggle between the papacy and the monarchy.321