sentences:  Theobald of Bec was also present, even though the king had forbidden him to attend.The medieval chronicler Gervase of Canterbury stated that Stephen wanted to weaken Theobald's standing with the papacy, but Stephen also would have wished to assert his authority over the English Church by insisting on the right to limit papal contact with the English bishops, something that his predecessors had always done.Hilary attempted to excuse the king's attempt to exclude Theobald from the council, which appears to be the main reason why Stephen allowed Hilary to attend.