The Church the Champion of Marriage [pp. 585-600]

The 6Y~urch the Ckampion of ~Jarriage.
sword, and behaved, says Rohr- able to conquer his dislike, which
bad~er, rather like a Vandal d~ief many did not fail to attribute to
than a Christian king. In 1142, he witchcraft, for Ingeburga was both
arrived before the town of Vitry, comely, virtuous, and accomplishsacked it, and set fire to its church ed. The king now called together
and castle. In fl~e fOrmer were no his parliament at Compiegne, his
less than 1300 persons, men, women, uncle, the Archbishop of Rheims
and children, who had sought safety and legate of the Holy See, presiding.
in the sanctuary. He ruthlessly closed The queen, who did not understand
all avenues to the church, and burnt French, and whose Danish attendants
the miserable inhabitants as they vain- had all been sent away, was present
ly strove to escape. The town was at the deliberation. Unheard, therehereafter called Vitry le 1?rflle. The fore, and even unchallenged, she was
Count of Champagne, weakened by speedily declared too closely related
this terrible onset, sued for peace, and to the king through his fbrmer wife
promised to exert his influence to Isabella to be united to him in lawhave both excommunication and in- ful marriage. This seems to have
terdict taken off the person and fiefs been the favorite pretext for dissolvof Raoul de Vermandois. It was, in ing inconvenient marriages in those
fact, provisionally suspended, but, as times, as it was also later in the too
the culprit still refused to dissolve his fi~mous case of Henry VIII. of Engcriminal union, he was excommuni- land and Catharine of Aragon, but
cated for the second time. S. Ber- even in this we see the spirit of sub.
nard was a prominent actor in this ordination to the general authority
controversy, and poweffully worked of the d~urch still underlying the
for the preservation of peace. partial revolts of her unruly sons.
But greater troubles were yet in ~Vhen Queen Ingeburga was made
store for France and the church. In acquainted by an interpreter with the
1 193, Philip Augustus lost his first sentence rendered against her, she
wife, Isabella of Hainault, and soon was painfully astonished, and, burstafterwards sent the Bishop of Noyon, ing into tears, cried out in her broStephen, with great pomp to the ken French, Male France / Male
King of Denmark, Canute III., to France I Some pitying hearts there
ask the hand of his sister Ingeburga must have been in that assembly of
in mauiage. The request was joy- lords spiritual and temporal, some refully granted, and the queen-elect morseful consciences among that
brought back to France with all pos- gathering of Frenchmen, who, as
sible honor. The marriage took Rohrbacher quaintly says, "forgot
place at once, and the king confessed even to be courteous to a stranger
himself much pleased with his new and a won~an." Ingeburga, rising,
consort. The next day he caused then added, "Rome! Rome!"-subher to be solemnly crowned, a cere- lime appeal of oppressed innocence
mony to which great importance was to the fountain-head of justice and
attached in those days; but, strange honor! Philip had her immured in
to say, during the service itself he the Abbey of Cisoing. Pope Celeswas seen to turn pale as if with hor- tine III. sent legates to inquire into
ror, and to cast sudden looks of aver- fl~e rights of the case, but tlie king
sion towards the queen. He, how- succeeded in intimidating them, and
ever, retired with her to Meaux, and no conclusion was arrived at in the
lived with her a short tiine, still un- council held at Paris. The pope