Gotebald (dec 31, 1049 – dec 31, 1062)

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Nothing can be said of his life before his election as patriarch of Aquileia in 1049 . From the chronicler Erimanno we know that, at the time of his appointment, Gotebaldo was Nemetensis praepositus , or provost of Speyer , in Germany . Perhaps he was the brother of Count Arduico / Hartwig of Calw, father of Pope Victor II .

In the middle of the 11th century the Aquileian seat was not going through an easy period. The ancient grudges with the patriarchate of Grado , which claimed primacy over the ecclesiastical province of Venetia et Histria with the support of the Duchy of Venice , had awakened forcefully, so much so that in 1024 the predecessor Poppone had attacked Grado and sacked it.

Gothenburg never went too far in violence, but nevertheless pursued a tough policy which, however, yielded little results. In 1050 - 51 he supported the claims of the bishop of Treviso on the abbey of Sant'Ilario (possession of the doge ) who had forged a diploma of Henry II to be able to enjoy the tithes of two curtes which, despite being in the territory of his diocese, they depended on the monastery. Henry III had initially recognized the forged document, but he had to revise his decision when the Abbot of St. Hilary challenged Otto III 's original diplomas., Henry II and Conrad II (who, indeed, confirmed another false document attributed to Carlo il Grosso ).

It suffered a second setback in 1053 when, during a council held in Rome , Pope Leo IX had ruled that Grado was defined Nova Aquileia , thus placing it at the head of the ecclesiastical province of Venetia et Histria , while Gotebaldo, simply defined Forojuliensis episcopus , would have had authority on the mainland alone. Perhaps the pontiff held grudges against the patriarch who had not shown himself particularly diligent in the fight against simony .

Upon Leo's death, Gothenburg, aided by Henry III, attempted to induce Pope Victor II to change this decision. But the death of the emperor, who was succeeded by little Henry IV , interrupted the negotiations.

As soon as Henry IV came of age, Gothenburg returned to claim his ecclesiastical supremacy. In 1062 , in fact, he went to court to obtain the support of the sovereign who confirmed the rights on Grado conferred to Aquileia by the previous emperors.

He died in 1063 , before witnessing the Venetian counter-move: in 1064 , in fact, on the occasion of the council of Mantua which recognized Alexander II against the pro-imperial Honorius II , the patriarch of Grado Domenico Marango obtained from the pontiff the confirmation of the previous papal provisions in contrast with what was established two years earlier by the emperor.

As regards his pastoral activity in the patriarchate, Gotebaldo was interested in the support of the clergy and in the recovery of places of worship that had fallen into ruins: an undated document certifies the donation to the monastery of Santa Maria in Valle di Cividale of four localized household goods in Ampezzo , while another writing from 1062 testifies to the restoration and rededication of the church of Santo Stefano di Aquileia .

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