In August 1107, an agreement was reached between Henry I of England ⓘ and Anselm of Canterbury ⓘ resolving the English phase of the Investiture Controversy ⓘ.

The dispute centred on the king’s practice of investing bishops with the ring and staff, symbols of spiritual authority. Reforming popes had condemned lay investiture across Europe, arguing that spiritual office could not be conferred by secular rulers.

Under the 1107 settlement, Henry renounced the right to invest bishops and abbots with spiritual symbols. In return, bishops would continue to perform homage to the king for the temporal lands attached to their office.

This compromise aligned England with wider reform principles while preserving royal control over the political and economic dimensions of episcopal appointment. It resolved the specific issue of lay investiture in England, but it did not end wider tensions between crown and Church. Questions of jurisdiction, clerical immunity, and appeals to Rome would resurface in later reigns, most notably under Henry II and John.