Erlembald
Saint Erlembald (or Erlembaldo Cotta) (Sanctus Herlembaldus in
Ambrosian diocese
.
Biography
He was the brother of
Ariald
convinced him to take his brother's place at the head of the pataria. Erlembald, however, was not a cleric, but a soldier.
In 1064, he travelled to
Ascension. The populace turned against him and he fled to Pavia. After being captured en route to Rome, Ariald was executed and his body thrown in Lake Maggiore. On 3 May 1067, Erlembald recovered his body and reburied it in S. Celso in Milan on 17 May. Ariald's popularity was also recovered after the lifting of the interdict. A papal legation lent Erlembald much needed moral support at a congregation at Vallombrosa
.
In 1069, Guido renounced the see to
Atto archbishop in opposition to the arrested Gotofredo. Strong opposition from the German court evaporated suddenly in 1073 when Henry was troubled by revolts in Saxony and had to cede his rights in Milan to Pope Gregory VII
. Gregory confirmed Atto and lent his support to Erlembald.
At this, the height of his power, a fire broke out in the city in April 1075, destroying Milan's cathedral, and was interpreted as divine punishment for supporting the controversial pataria. The opposition factions in Milan signed a pact against Erlembald. He put down the revolt, but was killed in the battle and buried in S. Celso. From 6 to 26 May in 1095,
Duomo
. His feast day is 27 July.
Sources
- Caravale, Mario (ed). Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani LXIII. Rome.
- Keller, Hagen; Busch, Jörg W. (1993). "ERLEMBALDO, santo". ISBN 978-8-81200032-6.
