This conflict arose between Gregory and german Emperor Henry IV, where their differing opinions on who should choose local bishops clashed in the early 11th century. Pope Gregory was an advocate for more church authority and believed that he, and future popes, should have absolute say in certain spheres of power and decision making. To cement this total authority, Gregory created his “Dictatus Papae” in 1075, which laid out his vision for the church and delegated certain powers to the pope, illustrating his vision for a powerful papacy that had superiority over all Christians, despite political rule or boundaries. Among these powers is the right to choose local bishops in addition to being able to dispose political leaders, a declaration that was not enthusiastically received by political figures such as Henry IV.
The eventual outcome of this conflict resulted in the Concordat of Worms in 1122, which delegated power fairly evenly between the political and religious authority. The investiture conflict was not totally resolved at this agreement, however, and the continued split between the church and state on who has the dominant role in decision making would continue throughout the history of the Catholic Church, resurfacing very notably during Boniface’s papacy between the pope and several political