"Stupid! Reckless! My Holy See, how absurd this is and who has blinded you to break the peace agreement between Rome and the Normans and to bring the flames of war to Rome once again. ”

In the Basilica of Saint-Denis in Paris, the capital of the Norman kingdom, Hildebrand, the future Gregory VII, made such an exclamation.

Hildebrand, who had lived in the Norman kingdom for a long time, had a very clear idea of the strength of this empire, and it had a population of 15 million people, including 8 million people in the Kingdom of France and Normandy alone, 2.5 million in England, 1 million in Ireland and Wales, 1.2 million in Scotland, 2 million in the Kingdom of Lorraine, and 700,000 in Brittany.

Such a large population was enough to provide William with hundreds of thousands of qualified soldiers, and what was even more terrifying was that this power was completely controlled by King William, whose direct domain was the most fertile and rich in the country, accounting for more than half of all the territories of the entire kingdom, and directly controlling the population of up to 10 million people.

And the noble vassals who were loyal to William were either his cronies and nobles who had followed him from a very early age, or his relatives, who obeyed William's orders and were loyal, and did not dare to disobey them in the slightest.

Even if some foreign nobles have obtained high positions in the Norman kingdom, they are mostly conscientious and diligent, if they have the slightest betrayal, they will lose William's protection, and without William's protection, those Norman nobles who are angry with them will rush up and eat them cleanly.

Don't look at William's command of only two Guards Corps, five old standing legions, and five newly formed standing legions, plus some mercenaries such as the Nordic Guard, Italian crossbowmen, Spanish rangers, etc., adding up to just over 100,000 people, but once William orders the whole country to mobilize, he can pull out as many as 300,000 troops in a short time.

300,000 troops, what a terrible number, even the once most powerful Holy Roman Empire, its army after national mobilization is only 160,000, and the number of troops that can go out is no more than 80,000.

Of course, due to the relatively limited financial and material constraints of the Norman Kingdom, this country usually only maintains two full-strength Guards Legions, five old standing legions that are missing, and five half-formed new standing legions, with a total of about 100,000 troops.

With a mere 100,000 troops, plus William's three of the most powerful legions, 30,000 or 40,000 men trapped in the Norwegian battlefield, perhaps in the eyes of Pope Sdwan IX, it seemed that as long as he issued an excommunication order against William and let several countries besiege the Norman kingdom, he could bring the unruly William and the Normans under his feet.

"How ignorant and ridiculous it is." Hildebrand shook his head and sighed.

"Now is not the time to give up, His Majesty must take back his mandate and restore peace with Norman again!" Hildebrand, who was not a man who liked to sit still, stood up and began to think about how to escape the Norman surveillance, leaving the prison of Saint-Denis in Paris and going to the Vatican to admonish Pope Sdwang IX.

Ostensibly, since being invited to the Norman kingdom by William, Hildebrand was first appointed Patriarch of Aquitaine, and then promoted to Archbishop Saint-Denis of France, becoming the most powerful person in the entire Kingdom Church besides William.

But those who know the inside story are well aware that William's attitude towards Hildebrand is wary and cautious, and this surveillance will not disappear until he gains William's trust.

So how did Hildebrand escape from Norman surveillance? Naturally, he had his way.

As the saying goes, "Qin Hui has three friends", not to mention Hildebrand, who was the leader of the Cluny Seminary, who was of high moral character, gentle and polite, and knowledgeable, and had a group of supporters in France and the capital Paris, including many noble Norman nobles.

William, who came from later generations, advocated freedom of belief, all kinds of sects could survive in the Norman kingdom, and even Judaism could be respected by William, so naturally as the most influential sect of Christianity, there were not a few believers in the Cluni sect.

Taking advantage of William's departure from Paris to Norway to take command of the war, and taking advantage of the slight relaxation of his surveillance, Hildebrand, with the help of his supporters, escaped from the Basilica of Saint-Denis in Paris and traveled to the Holy Roman Empire under the covert escort of Ebel, Count of Vimandua of the Carolingian family.

A few days later, Hildebrand escaped from the Normans' control and finally escaped William's grasp.

In the Holy Roman Empire, Hildebrand was courteous to the princes, who sent knights to escort the respected Cluni leader on the way to Rome.

"Great Rome, the kingdom of the Lord, I have finally returned!" After more than two months of arduous trekking, Rome was already in sight, and Hildebrand looked at the ancient and magnificent city of Rome and couldn't help but sigh with emotion.

Just as Hildebrand was expressing his feelings, a middle-aged priest dressed as a bishop came to him, bowed down and said: "God forbid, Cardinal Hildebrand, when His Holiness heard of your arrival in Rome, he ordered me to come and meet you." ”

"Thank you for your deigence to greet me, Bishop Lucca of Tuscany, Father Anselmo of Baggio." Hildebrand cordially shook Bishop Lucca's hands and said gratefully: "I have now resigned all the priesthood of the Norman kingdom, and I am no longer a cardinal, so why bother with such a courtesy?" ”

The Bishop of Lucca of Tuscany, Father Anselmo of Baggio, was no simple task, he was the future Pope of Mount Stress II and the only Pope of Italian nationality since the 11th century.

Alexander II's relationship with William in history was extraordinary, and officially he awarded William the banner of St. George, giving him the right name to conquer England, and with the help of the Pope, William was successfully crowned King of England.

As for why Alexander II was willing to support William's conquest of England by his illegitimate son William at that time, it was because the then king Harold and the Kingdom of England refused to recognize the authority of the pope, but William was willing to bow down to the pope, and he promised the pope a lot of benefits, which won the support of Pope Alexander II.

"Your Excellency Cardinal Hildebrand, your nobility has long been known in Rome, the Council of Cardinals has already elected you as Cardinal, and you have been reinstated as Grand Deputy of His Holiness the Pope.

You are well aware of the dilemma His Majesty has been facing these days, and now His Majesty is desperate for your help. Bishop Anselmo also held Hildebrand's hands tightly and said in a sincere tone.