Papal selection before 1059
Encyclopedia
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
s, the bishops of Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and the leaders of the Catholic Church, were often appointed by their predecessors or secular rulers. While the process was often characterized by some capacity of election, an election without the meaningful participation of the laity was the exception to the rule, especially as the popes' claims to temporal power solidified into the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
. The practice of papal appointment
Papal appointment
Papal appointment is the oldest method for the selection of the pope. Papal selection before 1059 was often characterized by appointment by secular European rulers or by their predecessors...
during this period would later give rise to the jus exclusivae, a veto right exercised by Catholic monarchies into the twentieth century.
The lack of an institutionalized process for papal succession was prone to religious schism
Schism (religion)
A schism , from Greek σχίσμα, skhísma , is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization or movement religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a break of communion between two sections of Christianity that were previously a single body, or to a division within...
, and many papal claimants before 1059 are currently regarded by the Church as antipopes. Furthermore, the frequent requirement of secular approval of elected popes significantly lengthened periods of sede vacante
Sede vacante
Sede vacante is an expression, used in the Canon Law of the Catholic Church, that refers to the vacancy of the episcopal see of a particular church...
and weakened the papacy. In 1059, Pope Nicholas II
Pope Nicholas II
Pope Nicholas II , born Gérard de Bourgogne, Pope from 1059 to July 1061, was at the time of his election the Bishop of Florence.-Antipope Benedict X:...
succeeded in limiting future papal electors to the cardinals
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
with In Nomine Domini
In Nomine Domini
In nomine Domini, named for its Latin incipit , is a papal bull of Pope Nicholas II and canon of the Council of Rome, promulgated on April 13, 1059, establishing cardinal-bishops as the sole electors of the pope, with the consent of cardinal-deacons and cardinal-priests In nomine Domini, named...
, creating standardized papal elections that would eventually evolve into the papal conclave
Papal conclave
A papal conclave is a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Bishop of Rome, who then becomes the Pope during a period of vacancy in the papal office. The Pope is considered by Roman Catholics to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and earthly head of the Roman Catholic Church...
.
During the Roman Empire
From Peter to Fabian (64/67-236)
There is no secular scholarly consensus on when and on what terms Saint PeterSaint Peter
Saint Peter or Simon Peter was an early Christian leader, who is featured prominently in the New Testament Gospels and the Acts of the Apostles. The son of John or of Jonah and from the village of Bethsaida in the province of Galilee, his brother Andrew was also an apostle...
arrived in Rome, but most agree that he died there in 64 or 67. Moreover, Peter was never contemporaneously referred to as a "pope
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
" or even a "bishop
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
" (επισκoπoς). Unlike the selection process for a deacon
Deacon
Deacon is a ministry in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions...
, which is outlined in Acts
Acts of the Apostles
The Acts of the Apostles , usually referred to simply as Acts, is the fifth book of the New Testament; Acts outlines the history of the Apostolic Age...
6:1-6, there is no biblical method for the selection of a bishop; the earliest text mentioning the selection of a bishop is Teaching of the Twelve Apostles
Didache
The Didache or The Teaching of the Twelve Apostles is a brief early Christian treatise, dated by most scholars to the late first or early 2nd century...
circa 100 AD/CE.
Although the election of bishops in other early Christian communities is often described in contemporary sources, the earliest Roman sources date from 400, claiming that Peter himself appointed Linus
Pope Linus
Pope Saint Linus was, according to several early sources, Bishop of the diocese of Rome after Saint Peter. This makes Linus the second Pope. According to other early sources Pope Clement I was the Pope after Peter...
as his successor, and named Anacletus
Pope Anacletus
Pope Saint Anacletus , also called Pope Cletus, was the third Roman Pope Pope Saint Anacletus (very rarely written as Anencletus), also called Pope Cletus, was the third Roman Pope Pope Saint Anacletus (very rarely written as Anencletus), also called Pope Cletus, was the third Roman Pope (after St....
and Clement
Pope Clement I
Starting in the 3rd and 4th century, tradition has identified him as the Clement that Paul mentioned in Philippians as a fellow laborer in Christ.While in the mid-19th century it was customary to identify him as a freedman of Titus Flavius Clemens, who was consul with his cousin, the Emperor...
to follow himself as well. The early official lists of bishops of Rome are considered problematic by scholars because of their bias towards enhancing papal authority and anachronistically imposing continuity; for example, the earliest, the Liber Pontificalis
Liber Pontificalis
The Liber Pontificalis is a book of biographies of popes from Saint Peter until the 15th century. The original publication of the Liber Pontificalis stopped with Pope Adrian II or Pope Stephen V , but it was later supplemented in a different style until Pope Eugene IV and then Pope Pius II...
, dating probably from 354, is notoriously unreliable for the first two centuries.
Recorded public elections (236-492)
Pope Fabian
Pope Fabian was Pope from January 10, 236 to January 20, 250, succeeding Pope Anterus.Eusebius of Caesarea relates how the Christians, having assembled in Rome to elect a new bishop, saw a dove alight upon the head of Fabian, a layman and stranger to the city, who was thus marked out for this...
in 236 is related by the legend of Eusebius of Caesarea
Eusebius of Caesarea
Eusebius of Caesarea also called Eusebius Pamphili, was a Roman historian, exegete and Christian polemicist. He became the Bishop of Caesarea in Palestine about the year 314. Together with Pamphilus, he was a scholar of the Biblical canon...
: a dove
Dove
Pigeons and doves constitute the bird family Columbidae within the order Columbiformes, which include some 300 species of near passerines. In general terms "dove" and "pigeon" are used somewhat interchangeably...
landed on Fabian's head and "thereupon the people, all as if impelled by one divine spirit, with one united and eager voice cried out that he was worthy, and immediately they set him on the episcopal seat". This anecdote makes clear that "the choice of bishop was the public concern for the entire Christian community of Rome". Fabian can reliably be regarded as a victim of the persecution
Persecution of early Christians in the Roman Empire
The Persecution of Christians in the Roman Empire is the religious persecution of Christians as a consequence of professing their faith. It began during the Ministry of Jesus and continued intermittently over a period of about three centuries until the time of Constantine when Christianity was...
of Emperor Decius
Decius
Trajan Decius , was Roman Emperor from 249 to 251. In the last year of his reign, he co-ruled with his son Herennius Etruscus until they were both killed in the Battle of Abrittus.-Early life and rise to power:...
, after which there was no election for fourteen months.
The next available evidence comes from the schism between Novatian
Antipope Novatian
Novatian was a scholar, priest, theologian and antipope who held the title between 251 and 258. According to Greek authors, pope Damasus I and Prudentius gave his name as Novatus....
and Cornelius
Pope Cornelius
Pope Saint Cornelius was pope from his election on 6 or 13 March 251 to his martyrdom in June 253.- Christian persecution :Emperor Decius, who ruled from 249 to 251 AD, persecuted Christians in the Roman Empire rather sporadically and locally, but starting January in the year 250, he ordered all...
, both elected bishop by their own factions, and both writing to Cyprian
Cyprian
Cyprian was bishop of Carthage and an important Early Christian writer, many of whose Latin works are extant. He was born around the beginning of the 3rd century in North Africa, perhaps at Carthage, where he received a classical education...
, bishop of Carthage for support. Cyprian sided with Cornelius, writing that:
Moreover, Cornelius was made bishop by the choice of God and of His Christ, by the favorable witness of almost all of the clergy, by the votes of the laity then present, and by the assembly of bishops.
Cyprian also remarks that Cornelius had been ordained by sixteen bishops from the surrounding region, while Novatian had only been ordained by three, the first definite evidence of a true schism in the Roman church. That there could only be one bishop per city would be defined into church law by the First Council of Nicaea
First Council of Nicaea
The First Council of Nicaea was a council of Christian bishops convened in Nicaea in Bithynia by the Roman Emperor Constantine I in AD 325...
in 325.
Mark
Pope Mark
Pope Saint Mark the apostle or Marcus was Pope from January 18, 336 to October 7, 336, date of his death.Little is known of his early life. According to the Liber Pontificalis, he was a Roman, and his father's name was Priscus...
was the first to designate the bishop of Ostia
Bishop of Ostia
The Bishop of Ostia is the head of the Suburbicarian Diocese of Ostia, one of the seven suburbicarian sees of Rome. The position is now attached to the post of Dean of the College of Cardinals, as it has been since 1150, with the actual governance of the diocese entrusted to the Vicar General of...
as the first among the consecrators of the new bishop of Rome (the bishop of Ostia is currently the Dean of the College of Cardinals). However, the influence of Emperor Constantine I
Constantine I
Constantine the Great , also known as Constantine I or Saint Constantine, was Roman Emperor from 306 to 337. Well known for being the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity, Constantine and co-Emperor Licinius issued the Edict of Milan in 313, which proclaimed religious tolerance of all...
, a contemporary of Sylvester I and Mark, would help solidify a strong role for the Roman emperor in the selection process: Constantine chose Julius I
Pope Julius I
Pope Saint Julius I, was pope from February 6, 337 to April 12, 352.He was a native of Rome and was chosen as successor of Mark after the Roman seat had been vacant for four months. He is chiefly known by the part he took in the Arian controversy...
for all intents and purposes, and his son Constantius II
Constantius II
Constantius II , was Roman Emperor from 337 to 361. The second son of Constantine I and Fausta, he ascended to the throne with his brothers Constantine II and Constans upon their father's death....
exiled Liberius
Pope Liberius
Pope Liberius, pope from May 17, 352, to September 24, 366, was consecrated according to the Catalogus Liberianus on May 22, as the successor of Pope Julius I. He was regarded as a saint in the early Church, but his name was later removed from the Roman Martyrology, however, he is once again...
and installed Felix II
Antipope Felix II
Antipope Felix II was installed as Pope in 355 after the Emperor Constantius II banished the reigning Pope, Liberius, for refusing to subscribe the sentence of condemnation against Saint Athanasius. In May 357 the Roman laity, which had remained faithful to Liberius, demanded that Constantius, who...
(an Arian
Arianism
Arianism is the theological teaching attributed to Arius , a Christian presbyter from Alexandria, Egypt, concerning the relationship of the entities of the Trinity and the precise nature of the Son of God as being a subordinate entity to God the Father...
) as his successor. Felix and Liberius were succeeded in schism by Ursinus and Damasus
Pope Damasus I
Pope Saint Damasus I was the bishop of Rome from 366 to 384.He was born around 305, probably near the city of Idanha-a-Velha , in what is present-day Portugal, then part of the Western Roman Empire...
, respectively, the latter of whom managed to prevail by sheer bloodshed, and his the first bishop of Rome who can non-anachronistically
Anachronism
An anachronism—from the Greek ανά and χρόνος — is an inconsistency in some chronological arrangement, especially a chronological misplacing of persons, events, objects, or customs in regard to each other...
be referred to as a "Pope" (παππας, or pappas). Damasus persuaded the Emperor to decree him "bishop of bishops", a claim that severely antagonized Eastern bishops, leading to the First Council of Constantinople
First Council of Constantinople
The First Council of Constantinople is recognized as the Second Ecumenical Council by the Assyrian Church of the East, the Oriental Orthodox, the Eastern Orthodox, the Roman Catholics, the Old Catholics, and a number of other Western Christian groups. It was the first Ecumenical Council held in...
in 381, which dealt in part with the issue of supremacy.
Even with this new title, however, the method of selection of the bishop of Rome remained much the same. Both the clergy and the laity continued to participate in the selection, along with local and imperial politics. Other trends can be observed, as well, such as father-to-son succession between Pope Anastasius I
Pope Anastasius I
Pope Saint Anastasius I, born in Rome the son of Maximus, was pope from November 27, 399 to 401.He condemned the writings of the Alexandrian theologian Origen shortly after their translation into Latin. He fought against these writings throughout his papacy and in 400 he called a council to discuss...
and Pope Innocent I
Pope Innocent I
-Biography:He was, according to his biographer in the Liber Pontificalis, the son of a man called Innocens of Albano; but according to his contemporary Jerome, his father was Pope Anastasius I , whom he was called by the unanimous voice of the clergy and laity to succeed -Biography:He was,...
. Emperor Honorius
Honorius (emperor)
Honorius , was Western Roman Emperor from 395 to 423. He was the younger son of emperor Theodosius I and his first wife Aelia Flaccilla, and brother of the eastern emperor Arcadius....
stepped in to resolve the schism between Eulalius
Antipope Eulalius
Antipope Eulalius was an antipope who reigned from December 418 to April 419, although elected the day before Pope Boniface I.At first the claims of Eulalius as the rightful Pope were recognized by the Emperor Honorius, who sent a letter dated 3 January 419 recognizing him and pardoning the...
and Pope Boniface I
Pope Boniface I
Pope Saint Boniface I was pope from December 28, 418 to September 4, 422. He was a contemporary of Saint Augustine of Hippo, who dedicated to him some of his works....
(both elected), siding with Eulalius first and then Boniface I. Honorius decreed that any future schisms should be decided by unanimous selection; although this decree has never been employed in resolving a disputed papal election, it indicates the increasing degree of imperial interest in the question of papal succession.
Odoacer
Elections of the same manner continued largely undisputed until Pope SimpliciusPope Simplicius
Pope Saint Simplicius was Pope from 468 to March 10, 483.He was born in Tivoli, Italy, the son of a citizen named Castinus. Most of what is known of him is derived from the Liber Pontificalis....
, who was terminally ill for enough of his papacy to devote time to succession issues, who decreed that the minister of Germanic general Odoacer
Odoacer
Flavius Odoacer , also known as Flavius Odovacer, was the first King of Italy. His reign is commonly seen as marking the end of the Western Roman Empire. Though the real power in Italy was in his hands, he represented himself as the client of Julius Nepos and, after Nepos' death in 480, of the...
, a Roman nobleman, would have the power of approval over his successor (there was no longer a Roman emperor, Romulus Augustulus having been deposed in 476): the result was Pope Felix III
Pope Felix III
Pope Saint Felix III was pope from March 13, 483 to january 3, 492. His repudiation of the Henoticon is considered the beginning of the Acacian schism.-Biography:...
, the first patrician pope.
Ostrogothic rule (493-537)
Pope Symmachus
Saint Symmachus was pope from 498 to 514. His tenure was marked by a serious schism over who was legitimately elected pope by the citizens of Rome....
and Laurentius
Antipope Laurentius
Laurentius was an antipope of the Roman Catholic Church, from 498 to 506.-Biography:Archpriest of Santa Prassede, Laurentius was elected pope on 22 November 498, in opposition to Symmachus, by a dissenting faction...
, who both appealed to Theodoric the Great
Theodoric the Great
Theodoric the Great was king of the Ostrogoths , ruler of Italy , regent of the Visigoths , and a viceroy of the Eastern Roman Empire...
, the Ostrogoth king of Italy (and an Arian); the result is the first documented case of papal simony
Simony
Simony is the act of paying for sacraments and consequently for holy offices or for positions in the hierarchy of a church, named after Simon Magus , who appears in the Acts of the Apostles 8:9-24...
, wherein both candidates attempted to bribe the royal councilors, if not Theodoric himself, to influence his choice; Theodoric sided with Symmachus who proceeded to decree that reigning bishops would be able to designate their own successors, ending the participation of the laity for at least a half-century.
This process was used without serious issue until the death of Pope Felix IV
Pope Felix IV
Pope Saint Felix IV was pope from 526 to 530.He came from Samnium, the son of one Castorius. Following the death of Pope John I at the hands of the Ostrogoth King Theodoric the Great, the papal voters gave in to the king's demands and chose Cardinal Felix as Pope...
, who had given his pallium
Pallium
The pallium is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Roman Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the Pope, but for many centuries bestowed by him on metropolitans and primates as a symbol of the jurisdiction delegated to them by the Holy See. In that context it has always remained unambiguously...
to Pope Boniface II
Pope Boniface II
Pope Boniface II was pope from 530 to 532.He was by birth an Ostrogoth, the first Germanic pope, and he owed his appointment to the influence of the Gothic king Athalaric. Boniface was chosen by his predecessor, Pope Felix IV, who had been a strong adherent of the Arian king, and was never elected...
on his deathbed in 530 and decreed excommunication of any who refused to accept the succession. The Roman Senate
Roman Senate
The Senate of the Roman Republic was a political institution in the ancient Roman Republic, however, it was not an elected body, but one whose members were appointed by the consuls, and later by the censors. After a magistrate served his term in office, it usually was followed with automatic...
disliked the lack of election and denounced Felix, affirming a decree of Pope Anastasius II
Pope Anastasius II
Pope Anastasius II was pope from November 24, 496 to November 16, 498.Anastasius II was Pontiff in the time of the schism of Acacius. He showed some tendency towards conciliation, and thus brought upon himself the lively reproaches of the author of the Liber Pontificalis. On the strength of this...
, which had prohibited the practice of a pope designating a successor. Boniface II was supported only by a minority of the clergy, with the larger share supporting Dioscorus
Antipope Dioscorus
Dioscorus was a deacon of the Alexandrian and the Roman church from 506. In a disputed election following the death of Pope Felix IV, the majority of electors picked him to be Pope, in spite of Pope Felix's wishes that Boniface succeed him...
, with only Dioscorus's death halting the schism.
Boniface II attempted to re-entrench the practice of appointing his successor, but the public outcry was too great, resulting in a highly disputed election in 532 characterized by widespread accounts of bribery and coercion, which resulted in Pope John II
Pope John II
Pope John II was pope from 533 to 535.He was the son of a certain Projectus, born in Rome and a priest of the Basilica di San Clemente on the Caelian Hill. He was made pope January 2, 533. The basilica of St. Clement still retains several memorials of "Johannes surnamed Mercurius"...
(the first to take a papal name
Papal name
A papal name is a regnal name taken by popes. Beginning in the sixth century, some popes adopted a new name upon their accession to the papacy; this became customary in the 10th century, and every pope since the 16th century has done so.-History:...
). Athalaric
Athalaric
Athalaric was the King of the Ostrogoths in Italy. He was a son of Eutharic and Amalasuntha. His maternal grandfather was Theodoric the Great. He succeeded his grandfather as king in 526....
, the Ostrogoth king, forced John II to approve decrees that banned any private agreements to elect a pope and enacting limits on the amount of money that could be spent during a papal election (an early example of campaign finance reform
Campaign finance reform
Campaign finance reform is the common term for the political effort in the United States to change the involvement of money in politics, primarily in political campaigns....
). In fact, Athalaric himself was able to engineer the election of Pope Silverius
Pope Silverius
Pope Saint Silverius was Pope from June 8, 536 until March 537. According to the "New Catholic Encyclopedia" , the dates of Pope Silverius' pontificate are in doubt: "June 1 or 8, 536, to c. November 11, 537; d. Palmaria, probably December 2, 537."...
, the son of Pope Hormisdas
Pope Hormisdas
Pope Saint Hormisdas was Pope from July 20, 514 to 523. His papacy was dominated by the Acacian schism, started in 484 by Acacius of Constantinople's efforts to placate the Monophysites...
, upon John II's death.
Byzantine influence (537-752)
Upon his invasion of Italy, Justinian I
Justinian I
Justinian I ; , ; 483– 13 or 14 November 565), commonly known as Justinian the Great, was Byzantine Emperor from 527 to 565. During his reign, Justinian sought to revive the Empire's greatness and reconquer the lost western half of the classical Roman Empire.One of the most important figures of...
forced Silverius to abdicate and installed Pope Vigilius
Pope Vigilius
Pope Vigilius reigned as pope from 537 to 555, is considered the first pope of the Byzantine Papacy.-Early life:He belonged to a aristocratic Roman family; his father Johannes is identified as a consul in the Liber pontificalis, having received that title from the emperor...
, a formal papal legate to Constantinople in his place; Justinian next appointed Pope Pelagius I
Pope Pelagius I
Pope Pelagius I was Pope from 556 to March 4, 561. He was the second pope of the Byzantine Papacy, like his predecessor a former apocrisiarius to Constantinople.-Early life:He came from a Roman noble family...
, holding only a "sham election" to replace Vigilius; afterwards, Justinian was content to be limited to the approval of the pope, as with Pope John III
Pope John III
Pope John III was pope from 561 to July 13, 574. He was born in Rome, of a distinguished family. The Liber Pontificalis calls him a son of one Anastasius. His father bore the title of illustris, more than likely being a vir illustris...
after his election. Justinian's successors would continue the practice for over a century.
The continuing power of appointment of the Byzantine emperor can be seen in the legend of Pope Gregory I
Pope Gregory I
Pope Gregory I , better known in English as Gregory the Great, was pope from 3 September 590 until his death...
writing to Constantinople, asking them refuse his election. Pope Boniface III
Pope Boniface III
Pope Boniface III was Pope from February 19 to November 12, 607. Despite his relatively short time as Pope he made a significant contribution to the organization of the Catholic Church.-Early life:...
issued a decree denouncing bribery in papal elections and forbidding discussion of candidates for three days after the funeral of the previous pope; thereafter, Boniface III decreed that the clergy and the "sons of the Church" (i.e. nobles) should meet to elect a successor, each voting according to their conscience. This abated factionalism for the next four successions, each resulting in quick elections and imperial approval. However, Pope Severinus
Pope Severinus
Pope Severinus was pope in the year 640 who became caught up in a power struggle with the Byzantine Emperor Heraclius over the ongoing Monothelite controversy.-Election and struggle with Constantinople:...
was forced to wait 20 months for imperial approval in 640, receiving it only months before his death; thereafter Pope Martin I
Pope Martin I
Pope Martin I, born near Todi, Umbria in the place now named after him , was pope from 649 to 653, succeeding Pope Theodore I in July 5, 649. The only pope during the Byzantine Papacy whose election was not approved by a iussio from Constantinople, Martin I was abducted by Constans II and died in...
refused to wait, insisting on being consecrated only days after his election, resulting in his abduction by Constans II to Constantinople in 653 for trial and his being sentenced to exile. The next seven popes were more agreeable to Constantinople, and approved without delay, but Pope Benedict II
Pope Benedict II
Pope Saint Benedict II was Pope from 684 to 685.Pope Benedict II died on May 8, 685. He succeeded Leo II. Although chosen in 683, he was not ordained until 684 because the leave of Emperor Constantine IV was not obtained until some months after the election...
was impelled to wait a year in 684, whereafter the emperor consented to delegate the approval to the exarch of Ravenna, the ruler of the Byzantine district including the Duchy of Rome
Duchy of Rome
The Duchy of Rome was a Byzantine district in the Exarchate of Ravenna. Like other Byzantine states in Italy, it was ruled by an imperial functionary with the title dux...
.
During the pontificate of Pope Benedict II
Pope Benedict II
Pope Saint Benedict II was Pope from 684 to 685.Pope Benedict II died on May 8, 685. He succeeded Leo II. Although chosen in 683, he was not ordained until 684 because the leave of Emperor Constantine IV was not obtained until some months after the election...
(684-685), Constantine IV waived the requirement of imperial approval for consecration as pope, recognizing the sea change in the demographics of the city and its clergy. Benedict II's successor Pope John V
Pope John V
Pope John V was pope from July 685 to August 2, 686. John V was the first pope of the Byzantine Papacy allowed to be consecrated by the Byzantine emperor without prior consent, and the first in a line of ten consecutive popes of eastern origin...
was elected "by the general population", returning to the "ancient practice". The ten Greek successors of Agatho were likely the intended result of Constantine IV's concession. The elections of this period are known to have been held in the Basilica of St. John Lateran
Basilica of St. John Lateran
The Papal Archbasilica of St. John Lateran , commonly known as St. John Lateran's Archbasilica and St. John Lateran's Basilica, is the cathedral of the Diocese of Rome and the official ecclesiastical seat of the Bishop of Rome, who is the Pope...
(with the possessor of the Lateran likely to prevail in the event of schism), but the exact participants in the election are not known with certainty. Lay participation likely still occurred, but the basilica itself was too small for the phrase "with the whole people" to continue to be literal.
The Roman army (controlled by local aristocrats) entered papal politics in 686 by seizing the Lateran upon the death of Pope John V
Pope John V
Pope John V was pope from July 685 to August 2, 686. John V was the first pope of the Byzantine Papacy allowed to be consecrated by the Byzantine emperor without prior consent, and the first in a line of ten consecutive popes of eastern origin...
and evicting the clergy, violently forcing the consecration of Pope Conon
Pope Conon
Pope Conon was Pope from October 21, 686 until his death in Rome. Conon was buried in the Patriarchal Basilica of St...
and Pope Sergius I
Pope Sergius I
Pope Saint Sergius I was pope from 687 to 701. Selected to end a schism between Antipope Paschal and Antipope Theodore, Sergius I ended the last disputed sede vacante of the Byzantine Papacy....
. The next two elections were also controlled by the army, but with less overt violence. Pope Zachary
Pope Zachary
Pope Saint Zachary was Pope of the Catholic Church from 741 to 752. A Greek from Calabria, he was the last pope of the Byzantine Papacy...
, in 741, was the last pope to announce his election to a Byzantine ruler or seek their approval.
Frankish influence (756-857)
Pope Stephen II
Pope Stephen II was Pope from 752 to 757, succeeding Pope Zachary following the death of Pope-elect Stephen. Stephen II marks the historical delineation between the Byzantine Papacy and the Frankish Papacy.-Allegiance to Constantinople:...
crossed the Alps to appeal for the aid of Pepin the Short upon his election in 752, following the Lombard
Lombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
takeover of Ravenna, resulting in the Donation of Pepin
Donation of Pepin
The "Donation of Pepin", the first in 754, and second in 756, provided a legal basis for the formal organizing of the Papal States, which inaugurated papal temporal rule over civil authorities...
which strengthened the claim of the popes to the de facto Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
, and thus the incentives for secular interference in papal selection. The death of Stephen II's brother and successor Pope Paul I
Pope Paul I
Pope Paul I was pope from May 29, 757 to June 28, 767. He first served as a Roman deacon and was frequently employed by his brother, Pope Stephen II, in negotiations with the Lombard kings....
was followed by a bloody schism characterized by Toto of Nepi
Toto of Nepi
Toto was the self-styled duke of Nepi, the leading magnate of Etruria, who staged a coup d'état in Rome in 767. He became Duke of Rome for a year until his death...
and Pope Stephen III
Pope Stephen III
Pope Stephen III was pope from August 1 or August 7, 768 to January 24, 772. He was a native of Sicily.He came to Rome during the pontificate of Gregory III and gradually rose to high office in the service of successive popes....
; after Toto had his eyes gouged out and was imprisoned, Stephen III decreed that the entire Roman clergy had the right to elect the pope but restricted eligibility for election to the cardinal-priests and cardinal-deacons (incidentally, the first use of the term "cardinals" to refer to the priests of the titular churches or the seven deacons); the cardinal-bishops, supporters of Toto, were excluded. Of course, the Roman laity quickly regained its role after Stephen III's decree, and maintained its participation until 1059.
Pope Adrian I
Pope Adrian I
Pope Adrian was pope from February 1, 772 to December 25, 795. He was the son of Theodore, a Roman nobleman.Shortly after Adrian's accession the territory ruled by the papacy was invaded by Desiderius, king of the Lombards, and Adrian was compelled to seek the assistance of the Frankish king...
and Pope Leo III
Pope Leo III
Pope Saint Leo III was Pope from 795 to his death in 816. Protected by Charlemagne from his enemies in Rome, he subsequently strengthened Charlemagne's position by crowning him as Roman Emperor....
were elected under the rules of Stephen III, but the latter was forced from Rome and sought the aid of Charlemagne
Charlemagne
Charlemagne was King of the Franks from 768 and Emperor of the Romans from 800 to his death in 814. He expanded the Frankish kingdom into an empire that incorporated much of Western and Central Europe. During his reign, he conquered Italy and was crowned by Pope Leo III on 25 December 800...
. After two unanimous elections, Charlemagne's son Louis the Pious
Louis the Pious
Louis the Pious , also called the Fair, and the Debonaire, was the King of Aquitaine from 781. He was also King of the Franks and co-Emperor with his father, Charlemagne, from 813...
intervened in a bitterly disputed election in favor of Pope Eugene II
Pope Eugene II
Pope Eugene II, , pope was a native of Rome and was chosen to succeed Paschal I. Another candidate, Zinzinnus, was proposed by the plebeian faction, and the presence of Lothair I, son of the Frankish emperor Louis the Pious was necessary in order to maintain the authority of the new pope...
. Thereafter the process was returned by apostolic constitution to the status quo circa 769, reincorporating the lay Roman nobles (who continued to dominate the process for 200 years) and requiring the pope to swear loyalty to the Frankish ruler. The consecration of Pope Gregory IV
Pope Gregory IV
Pope Gregory IV was chosen to succeed Valentine in December 827, on which occasion he recognized the supremacy of the Frankish emperor Louis the Pious in the most unequivocal manner....
was delayed for six months to attain the assent of Louis.
When the clergy and the nobles elected different candidates in 844, Emperor Lothair I
Lothair I
Lothair I or Lothar I was the Emperor of the Romans , co-ruling with his father until 840, and the King of Bavaria , Italy and Middle Francia...
sided with Pope Sergius II
Pope Sergius II
Pope Sergius II was Pope from January 844 – January 24, 847.On the death of Gregory IV the archdeacon John was proclaimed pope by popular acclamation, while the nobility elected Sergius, a Roman of noble birth. The opposition was suppressed, with Sergius intervening to save John's life...
, the noble candidate; three years later Pope Leo IV
Pope Leo IV
Pope Saint Leo IV was pope from 10 April 847 to 17 July 855.A Roman by birth, he was unanimously chosen to succeed Sergius II. When he was elected, on 10 April 847, he was cardinal of Santi Quattro Coronati, and had been subdeacon of Gregory IV and archpriest under his predecessor...
was consecrated without imperial approval, which would have been difficult in any case as the Carolingian Empire was in the process of breaking up. Lothair II of Lotharingia
Lothair II of Lotharingia
Lothair II was the second son of Emperor Lothair I and Ermengarde of Tours. He was married to Teutberga, daughter of Boso the Elder. He is the namesake of the Lothair Crystal, which he probably commissioned, and of the Cross of Lothair, which was made over a century after his death but...
indeed failed to impose his own candidate, Pope Benedict III
Pope Benedict III
Pope Benedict III was Pope from September 29, 855 to April 17, 858.Little is known of Benedict's life before his papacy. He was educated and lived in Rome and was cardinal priest of S. Callisto at the time of his election. Benedict had a reputation for learning and piety. He was elected upon the...
, in 855 until the Roman-elected candidate refused the office (the first recorded historical refusal). Lothair II was present for the election of Pope Nicholas I
Pope Nicholas I
Pope Nicholas I, , or Saint Nicholas the Great, reigned from April 24, 858 until his death. He is remembered as a consolidator of papal authority and power, exerting decisive influence upon the historical development of the papacy and its position among the Christian nations of Western Europe.He...
, who prohibited anyone outside of the Roman community from interfering in papal elections, and as a result Pope Adrian II
Pope Adrian II
Pope Adrian II , , pope from December 14, 867 to December 14, 872, was a member of a noble Roman family, and became pope in 867, at an advanced age....
was consecrated without even informing the Franks.
Pornocracy (904-963)
The assassination of Pope John VIIIPope John VIII
Pope John VIII was pope from December 13, 872 to December 16, 882. He is often considered one of the ablest pontiffs of the ninth century and the last bright spot on the papacy until Leo IX two centuries later....
inaugurated a period marked by short papal reigns, in which as many as twelve popes were killed (sometimes after resignation), three more deposed, and two abdicated—a period known to historians as the "pornocracy" (Greek, rule of the harlots) or saeculum obscurum (Latin, the dark age). Following the alliance of Pope Sergius III
Pope Sergius III
Pope Sergius III was a pope of the Roman Catholic Church from 29 January 904 to 14 April 911. Because Sergius III was possibly the only pope known to have ordered the murder of another pope and the only pope to have fathered an illegitimate son who later became pope , his reign has been described...
with Theophylact I, Count of Tusculum
Theophylact I, Count of Tusculum
Theophylact I was a medieval Count of Tusculum who served Louis III, Holy Roman Emperor as judex and then was elected to head Rome as consul by the city's nobility in 915, an appointment that was confirmed by the Pope. He also was styled as senator, glorissimus dux, judex dativus, and magister...
(the father of Marozia
Marozia
Marozia, born Maria and also known as Mariuccia or Mariozza , was a Roman noblewoman who was the alleged mistress of Pope Sergius III and was given the unprecedented titles senatrix and patricia of Rome by Pope John X.Edward Gibbon wrote of her that the "influence of two sister prostitutes,...
, Sergius III's son's mother) and his wife Theodora, Theophylact succeeding in creating four of the next five popes. The son of Sergius III and Marozia reached the papacy as Pope John XI
Pope John XI
Pope John XI was a Pope from March 931 to December 935.-Parentage:The parentage of John XI is still a matter of dispute. According to Liutprand of Cremona and the "Liber Pontificalis," he was the natural son of Pope Sergius III , Pope John XI (910? – December 935) was a Pope from March 931 (at...
, only to be deposed by King Alberic II of Spoleto
Alberic II of Spoleto
Alberic II was ruler of Rome from 932 to 954, after deposing his mother Marozia and his stepfather, King Hugh of Italy.He was of the house of the Counts of Tusculum, the son of the notorious Marozia by her first husband, Alberic I, Duke of Spoleto. His half-brother was Pope John XI...
, who was able to control the installation of the next four popes, eventually installing his own son Pope John XII
Pope John XII
Pope John XII , born Octavianus, was Pope from December 16, 955, to May 14, 964. The son of Alberic II, Patrician of Rome , and his stepsister Alda of Vienne, he was a seventh generation descendant of Charlemagne on his mother's side.Before his death, Alberic administered an oath to the Roman...
, whose main act was to crown Otto I
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
as Holy Roman Emperor
Holy Roman Emperor
The Holy Roman Emperor is a term used by historians to denote a medieval ruler who, as German King, had also received the title of "Emperor of the Romans" from the Pope...
.
A synod in 963 deposed John XII and elected Pope Leo VIII
Pope Leo VIII
Pope Leo VIII , a Roman by birth, is considered by the Church an Antipope from 963 to 964 and a true Pope from 964 to 965. He held the lay office of protoserinus when he was elected pope by the Roman synod in December 963, when it also invalidly deposed Pope John XII , who was still alive...
(963-965), but the Romans would not accept him once his protector, Otto I
Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto I the Great , son of Henry I the Fowler and Matilda of Ringelheim, was Duke of Saxony, King of Germany, King of Italy, and "the first of the Germans to be called the emperor of Italy" according to Arnulf of Milan...
, departed, prompting the election of Pope Benedict V
Pope Benedict V
Pope Benedict V , Pope in 964, was elected by the Romans on the death of Pope John XII . However the Holy Roman Emperor Otto I did not approve of the choice and had him deposed after only a month and the ex-Pope was carried off to Hamburg and was placed under the care of Adaldag, Archbishop of...
(964). Otto I would further succeed in appointing Pope John XIII
Pope John XIII
Pope John XIII of Crescenzi family served as Pope from October 1, 965, until his death.Born in Rome, he spent his career in the papal court...
(965-972) and Pope Benedict VI
Pope Benedict VI
Pope Benedict VI was pope from January 19, 973 to June 974.He was born in Rome as the son of Hildebrand and was chosen with great ceremony and installed as pope under the protection of the Emperor Otto I on January 19, 973. During his pontificate, Benedict VI confirmed the privileges of some of...
(973-974).
Crescentii era (974–1012)
Otto I's successor, Otto IIOtto II, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto II , called the Red, was the third ruler of the Saxon or Ottonian dynasty, the son of Otto the Great and Adelaide of Italy.-Early years and co-ruler with Otto I:...
, was impelled to takeover Rome by force in 980 to depose Antipope Boniface VII
Antipope Boniface VII
Antipope Boniface VII , was an antipope . He is supposed to have put Pope Benedict VI to death. A popular tumult compelled him to flee to Constantinople in 974; he carried off a vast treasure, and returned in 984 and removed Pope John XIV from office, who had been elected in his absence, by murder...
and install his preferred candidate Pope John XIV
Pope John XIV
Pope John XIV was Pope from December, 983 to August 20, 984, successor to Pope Benedict VII He was born at Pavia, and before his elevation to the papal chair was imperial chancellor of Emperor Otto II , and was the latter's second choice.His original name was Pietro Canepanova, but he took the...
(983-984), without even feigning an election.
Pope John XV
Pope John XV
Pope John XV , Pope from 985 to 996, succeeding Boniface VII . He was said to have been Pope after another Pope John that reigned four months after Pope John XIV and was named "Papa Ioannes XIV Bis" or "Pope John XIVb"...
, the candidate of the Roman nobles upon the death of Otto II, did not survive long enough to be deposed by Otto III
Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor
Otto III , a King of Germany, was the fourth ruler of the Saxon or Ottonian dynasty of the Holy Roman Empire. He was elected King in 983 on the death of his father Otto II and was crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 996.-Early reign:...
, who engineered the election of Pope Gregory V
Pope Gregory V
Pope Gregory V, né Bruno of Carinthia , Pope from May 3, 996 to February 18, 999, son of the Salian Otto I, Duke of Carinthia, who was a grandson of the Emperor Otto I the Great . Gregory V succeeded Pope John XV , when only twenty-four years of age...
upon reaching Rome in 996. However, Gregory V could not remain on the throne once Otto III headed back for Germany, and the Romans replaced him with Antipope John XVI
Antipope John XVI
John XVI , born , , was an antipope from 997 to 998.-Life:He was born of Greek descent and was a native of Rossano in Calabria, southern Italy. At the time the region was a territory of the Byzantine Empire and John was the chaplain of Theophanu, the Empress consort of Emperor Otto II , who had...
temporarily until Otto III could return. Otto III reinstalled Gregory V and secured the election of Pope Sylvester II (999-1003) upon his death, only to die himself shortly thereafter, allowing the Roman nobles to choose three popes of their own.
Tusculan Papacy (1012-1044/1048)
Pope Benedict IX
Pope Benedict IX , born Theophylactus of Tusculum, was Pope on three occasions between 1032 and 1048. One of the youngest popes, he was the only man to have been Pope on more than one occasion and the only man ever to have sold the papacy.-Biography:Benedict was born in Rome as Theophylactus, the...
(the only pope currently regarded as having served multiple, non-consecutive terms), Henry III
Henry III, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry III , called the Black or the Pious, was a member of the Salian Dynasty of Holy Roman Emperors...
found three different popes in 1046 when he arrived in Rome seeking coronation as Holy Roman emperor. Henry III decided to depose all three and install Pope Clement II
Pope Clement II
Pope Clement II , was Pope from December 25, 1046 to his death. He was the first in a series of reform-minded popes from Germany.Born in Hornburg, Lower Saxony, Germany, he was the son of Count Konrad of Morsleben and Hornburg and his wife Amulrad.In 1040, he became Bishop of Bamberg...
(1046–1047).
Holy Roman Empire (1048-1059)
Pope Leo IX
Pope Saint Leo IX , born Bruno of Eguisheim-Dagsburg, was Pope from February 12, 1049 to his death. He was a German aristocrat and as well as being Pope was a powerful secular ruler of central Italy. He is regarded as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, with the feast day of April 19...
(1049–1054), all Germans, without the formality of election. However, the death of Henry III and the rise of child emperor Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor
Henry IV was King of the Romans from 1056 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1084 until his forced abdication in 1105. He was the third emperor of the Salian dynasty and one of the most powerful and important figures of the 11th century...
allowed Pope Nicholas II
Pope Nicholas II
Pope Nicholas II , born Gérard de Bourgogne, Pope from 1059 to July 1061, was at the time of his election the Bishop of Florence.-Antipope Benedict X:...
(1059–1061) to promulgate In Nomine Domini
In Nomine Domini
In nomine Domini, named for its Latin incipit , is a papal bull of Pope Nicholas II and canon of the Council of Rome, promulgated on April 13, 1059, establishing cardinal-bishops as the sole electors of the pope, with the consent of cardinal-deacons and cardinal-priests In nomine Domini, named...
in 1059, ensuring that all future elections (and, eventually, conclaves) would conform to a basic process that has remained largely unchanged for a millennium.