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5'-7^7^ 


tihvavy  oftht  theological  ^minavy 

PRINCETON  .  NEW  JERSEY 


•d^^j). 


The  G-reen  Fund 

^A  y:ib  .R4  1870 

Reichel,  Oswald  Josepn 
-1923.  ' 

The  See  of  Rome  in  the 

Middle  Anac 


.04 


THE    SEE    OF    ROME. 


LONDON   :    PRINTED    BV 

SPOTTISWOODE      AND      CO.,       NEW-STREET      SQUARE 

AND   PARLIAMENT    STREET 


THE     SEE     OF     ROME 


IN 


THE     MIDDLE    AGES. 


BY 


REV.  OSWALD  J.   REICHEL,  B.C.L.  &  M.A. 

yiCAR   OF   SPARSHOLT  ;    VICE-PRINCIPAL   OF   CUDDESDEN    COLLEGE  ;   AND 
SOMETIME   SCHOLAR   OF   THE   QUEEn's   COLLEGE,    OXFORD. 


'Attendite  ad  petram  unde  excisi  estis,  et  ad  cavernam  laci, 
de  qua  praecisi  estis.'  IsAi.  li.   i. 


LONDON: 
LONGMANS,     GREEN,     AND     CO. 

1870. 


3[n    ^cmoriam 
tritavi  MICHAELIS  REICHELII 

VALENTINII   et  URSULAE  filii  : 

rt"  1619  de  Afoldan;  dcinde  post  persecutionem  Boemicam  a°  1629  de  Beckwitz ; 

demque  a°  1635  de  Belgern  pastoris ;  Siicdoruin  opera  7neiis,  Apr. 

a"  1637  su6  ponte  Misenensi  miserriiae  interempii : 

NECNON 

proavi    CAROLI     RUDOLPHI     REICHELII 

JACOBI  DANIELIS  et  SOPHIAE  ELISABETHAE  filii : 

°  1747  de  Hcrmsdorf:  delude  a"  1752  de  Taiibetiheim  ;  posiremo  a°  1754  de  Neukirc-h  pastoris; 
ibique  die  25  mens.  Oct.  a°  1794  piacide  de/imcti  : 

QUORUM   ALTER   EXILII    PRO   CHRISTI    CAUSA  CALAMITATE, 

ALTER   LITERARUM    HEBRAICARUM    SCIENTIA, 

UTERQUE    riETATIS    AFEECTU    ET   VITAE    BENE   ACTAE    NOBILI    EXEMPLO, 

HUMILE   SCRIPTORIS    INGENIUM 

AD   INDIGNAM   ECCLESIASTICAE   HISTORIAE   RELATIONEM 

ACUERUNT. 


^SlXTGJgTOIT  ^ 


PREFACE. 


'T^HE  following  pages  are  offered  to  the 
public  with  great  diffidence.  The 
writer  is  not  unaware  of  his  seeming  pre- 
sumption in  venturing  upon  ground  already 
occupied  by  great  names;  nor  does  he,  as  might 
perhaps  be  expected,  lay  claim  to  the  merit  of 
originality.  Yet  he  hopes  that  his  attempt 
may  be  tolerated  for  the  very  reason  which 
makes  it  seem  presumptuous,  viz.  because  it 
aims  at  being  a  simple  outline  of  facts 
grouped  round  a  few  leading  principles.  If 
these  facts  are  to  be  found  in  other  works, 
clothed  in  a  garb  more  ample  and  picturesque, 
it  is  at  least  believed  that  they  have  not  been 
previously  presented  in  so  brief  a  form.. 

A  wish  has  been  expressed  ere  now  for 
such  an  outline  of  the  history  of  the  See  of 
Rome. 


viii  PRE  FA  CE. 

It  is  felt  by  all  thoughtful  people  that  that 
treatment  of  Church  History  which  contents 
itself  with  the  first  three  centuries  and  the 
period  of  the  Reformation,  is  not  only  an 
imperfect  but  a  faulty  one ;  inasmuch  as  it 
ignores  the  continuity  of  the  subject,  and 
regards  the  movement  in  the  sixteenth  cen- 
tury apart  from  the  feelings  long  working  in 
secret,  of  which  it  was  the  final  expression. 

Recent  events,  too,  have  added  a  fresh 
interest  to  the  subject.  Moreover,  in  popu- 
lar treatises,  this  portion  of  history  has 
suffered,  more  perhaps  than  any  other,  in 
having  been  misrepresented  alike  by  friends 
and  foes.  Some  have  portrayed  the  Papacy 
as  though  it  were  simply  a  reproduction  of 
Christianity  as  it  existed  in  its  early  dawn; 
whilst  others  have  chosen  to  regard  it  as  an 
unprincipled  usurpation.  Whether  either  of 
these  views  is  the  true  one,  or  whether  the 
Papacy  ought  not  rather  to  be  regarded  as  a 
result  of  natural  growth,  produced  by  natural 
causes,  is  a  question  which  can  only  be 
decided  by  a  calm  and  impartial  appeal  to 
facts.  The  writer  can  honestly  assert,  that 
he  has  written  aiming  at  calmness  and  free- 


PREFACE.  ix 

dom  from  bias.  It  remains  for  others  to  say 
whether  he  has  succeeded  in  attaining  his 
object. 

Whilst,  however,  aspiring  to  be  impartial, 
he  must  distinctly  disclaim  the  charge  of 
being  indifferent.  For  according  to  the  view 
which  is  taken  of  the  organisation  of  the 
Mediaeval  Church  will  follow  a  justification  or 
a  renunciation  of  the  position  held  by  those 
churches,  which  originally  belonged  to,  but 
have  subsequently  separated  themselves  from, 
the  Western  patriarchate.  To  him  it  appears 
that  sympathy  with  past  institutions  is  com- 
patible with  the  belief  that  they  are  now  an 
anachronism  ;  and  that  it  is  possible  to  own 
their  necessity  and  salutary  influence  in  the  age 
which  gave  them  birth,  nay  more,  to  regret 
their  decline,  but  at  the  same  time  to  admit 
that  they  belong  to  a  past  epoch,  and  can  no 
longer  be  revived  with  advantage.  Perhaps 
it  may  be  an  inevitable  result  of  a  sympa- 
thetic study  of  history  that  it  leaves  us  sadder 
if  it  leaves  us  wiser  men. 

It  would  not  have  been  difficult  to  advance 
pretensions  to  learning  by  giving  references. 


X  PRE  FA  CE. 

quoted  at  second-hand,  to  works  which  few 
are  likely  to  consult.  The  writer  has,  in  this 
case,  preferred  to  follow  another  course  ;  and 
has  made  a  point  of  giving  (as  far  as  possible) 
references  to  well-known  books,  so  that  they 
may  be  easily  verified.  The  works  which  are 
most  constantly  appealed  to  as  authorities 
are  the  following : 

The  collection  of  Councils  by  Labbe  and  Cossart,  with  sup- 
plements by  Mansi,  published  at  Venice  1728-48,  in  29  vols.  fol. 

Neander's  History  of  the  Chtirch,  references  to  the  English 
translation  by  Torrey,  published  by  Messrs.  T,  and  T.  Clarke  of 
Edinburgh,  in  9  vols.  8vo. 

Gieseler's  Ecclesiastical  History^  references  to  Davidson's 
English  translation,  likewise  published  by  Messrs.  Clarke,  in 
5  vols.  8vo. 

Milman's  Histoiy  of  Latin  Christianity.  The  small  edition  in 
9  vols. 

Hallam's  Middle  Ages.     The  small  edition. 

In  conclusion,  the  writer  ventures  to  express 
the  hope  that  this  volume  may  be  found  of 
service  to  students,  not  as  superseding  other 
larger  works,  but  as  supplying  an  introduction 
to  the  history  of  the  Mediaeval  Church.  In 
letting  it  appear,  he  would  not  omit  to  own 
his  acknowledgments  to  those  graduates  of 
Oxford  and  Cambridge  who,  having  heard 
the    greater   part   of    it   when    delivered    at 


PREFACE.  xi 

Cuddesden  in  the  form  of  lectures,  have  en- 
couraged him  with  their  approval  ;  and  in 
particular  to  R.  D.  Radcliffe,  Esq.,  of  Christ 
Church,  Oxford,  to  whose  kindness  the  Appen- 
dices are  due. 

Cuddesden  College,  near  Oxford  : 
May  3,  1S70. 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 

A.  Change  of  field  of  Ecclesiastical  History 

B.  Change  of  Character        .... 

C.  Vicissitudes  of  Temporal  and  Ecclesiastical  Power 


PAGE 

I 


PART   I. 

THE  AGE   OF  GROWTH, 


CHAPTER    n. 

THE   WESTERN    PATRIARCHS    UNDER    THE  EASTERN    EMPERORS. 

A.  State  of  the  See  of  Rome  in  seventh  century  .  .         9 

(i)  Causes  of  its  importance      .  .  .  .         g 

(2)  Dignities  included  in  the  office  .  .  .11 

(3)  Beginning  of  a  new  dignity  .  .  .13 

B.  Gregory  I,  the  Great        .             .  .  .  .18 

(i)  His  ecclesiastical  administration  .  .  .21 

(2)  Political  relations    .             .  .  .  '3° 

(3)  Internal  administration        .  .  .  <       3^ 

C  The  Successors  of  Gregory  I.       .  ,  .  -34 

(i)  Dependence  on  the  Eastern  Empire  .  .       34 

(2)  Submission  of  the  West       .  .  .  -39 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER    III. 

THE    TRANSFER    OF    ALLEGIANCE. 

PAGE 

A.  Causes  of  the  Transfer    .             .             .  .  '45 

(i)  Dependence  on  Constantinople  a  cause  of  weak- 
ness       .             .             .             .  .  -45 

(2)  Iconoclasm  of  Emperor  Leo  III.    .  .  .46 

(3)  The  Lombards         .             .             .  .  .50 

B.  Appeal  of  the  Latin  Patriarchs  to  the  West  .  .       54 

(i)  Appeal  of  Gregory  III.        ,             .  .  -54 

(2)  Zachary  and  the  First  Donation      .  .  •       5^ 

(3)  Stephen  II.  and  the  Second  Donation  .  .       63 

(4)  Hadrian  I.  and  the  Third  Donation  .  -67 

C.  Allegiance  given  to  revived  Western  Empire  .  -72 

(i)  Troubles  of  Leo  III.            .             .  .  .72 

(2)  Charles  in  Rome     .             .             .  .  -73 

(3)  Coronation  of  Charles          .             .  .  .74 


CHAPTER   IV. 

THE    POPES    UNDER    THE    CAROLINGIANS 

A.  The  Papacy  to  the  Treaty  of  Verdun 

(i)  Importance  of  the  coronation 

(2)  Position  of  the  Papacy  after  the  coronation 

B.  The  False  Decretals 

(i)  History  of  the  Decretals 
(2)  Drift  of  the  Decretals 

C.  The  Papacy  as  developed  by  the  False  Decretal 

(i)  Nicolas  I.    . 

(2)  Hadrian  II.  ... 

(3)  John  VIII. 

Pedigree  of  Carolingians 


77 
77 
79 
89 
89 
93 

97 

97 
104 
109 

112 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE    NIGHT   OF   THE    PAPACY. 

The  Popes  under  the  rival  ItaHan  parties  .  -113 
(i)  Party  of  Guido  of  Spoleto  and  Lambert  in  the  as- 
cendant .             .             .             .  .  •     1 15 

(2)  Ascendency  of  Berengar      .  .  .  •     117 

(3)  Ascendency  of  the  Tuscan  party     .  .  .119 


CONTENTS,  sv 

PAGE 

B.  Imperial  intervention       .  .  .  .  .122 

(i)  Intervention  of  Otto  I.        ....     122 

(2)  Ascendency  of  Tuscan  party  .  .  .128 

(3)  Intervention  of  Otto  III.     ....     130 

C.  Ascendency  of  Tuscan  party        ....     135 

(i)  John  XVII.,  John  XVIIL,  and  Sergius  IV.  .      135 

(2)  Counts  of  Tusculum  .  .  .  .136 

(3)  Three  rival  Popes    .  .  .  .  '137 

CHAPTER   VI. 

CHURCH    AND    STATE. 

A.  New  relations  of  Church  and  State  .  .  .     141 

(i)  The  Church  altered  .  .  .  .141 

(2)  Importance  attaching  to  bishops  and  princes  .      143 

(3)  Roman  system  identified  with  religion         .  .145 

B.  Gains  for  the  Church       .  .  .  .  ,148 

(i)  Wealth  from  donations,  tithes,  and  manses  .     149 

(2)  Privileges  of  the  clergy         .  .  .  •     15- 

(3)  Power  of  higher  clergy         .  .  .  •     ^55 

C.  Disadvantages  for  the  Church      .  .  .  -158 

(i)   Free  el.ec ti on s  abolished      .  .  .  ,158 

(2)  Ecclesiastical  matters  settled  by  secular  tribunals    .     166 

D.  Results  of  these  influences  on  the  Church  .  .170 

(i)  Share  of  the  bishops  in  secular  legislation   .  .170 

(2)  Effects  on  the  episcopate    .  .  .  •      171 

(3)  Beneficial    results   of    ecclesiastical    influence   on 

society    .  .  .  .  .  -174 


PART    II. 

THE   AGE   OF  GREATNESS. 
CHAPTER   VII. 

THE    HILDEBRANDIAN    ERA, 

A.  Causes  of  reform  .....     187 

(i)  Italian  party  alarmed  .  .  .  .     1S8 

(2)  Earnest  men  aroused  .  .  .  .189 

(3)  Reforms  from  within  .  .  .  .189 


CONTENTS. 


B.  Chief  points  of  reform 

(i)  Independence  of  the  Popes 

(2)  Clerical  celibacy 

(3)  Simony         .... 

C.  Struggles  with  princes  the  result  of  the  reform 

(i)  Philip  of  France  threatened 
(2)  Struggle  with  Henry  IV. 


PAGE 

iqo 
190 

194 

202 

204 
204 

205 


CHAPTER   VIII. 


THE    POPES    AND    ANTIPOPES. 


A.  Causes  of  the  appearance  of  rival  Popes 

(i)  Decree  of  Nicolas  II. 

(2)  Norman  assistance  . 

(3)  Popular  sympathy    . 

B.  First  Period 

(i)  Alexander  II.  and  Honorius  II. 

(2)  Gregory  VII.  and  Clement  III. 

(3)  Gelasius  II.  and  Gregory  VIII. 

C.  Depression  of  the  Papacy  and  Empire 

(i)  Depression  of  the  Papacy  . 

(2)  Depression  of  Empire 

(3)  Returning  power 

D.  Renewed  stmggle  of  Antipopes  . 

(i)  Struggle  of  Frederic  I.  and  Hadrian  IV. 
(2)  Alexander  III.  and  Antipopes 


214 

215 
217 
218 

219 
219 

220 
222 

223 
223 
227 
229 

231 
232 
234 


CHAPTER    IX. 

CLIMAX    OF   THE    PAPAL    POWER. 

A.  The  Era  of  Innocent  III.             .             .             .             .  242 

(1)  The  Popes  before  Innocent  III.     .             .             .  242 

(2)  Innocent  III.           .....  245 

(3)  Innocent  III.'s  successors  ....  258 

B.  Struggle  with  the  Empire  under  Innocent  IV.  and  his 

successors  .  .  .  .  .263 

(i)  Persecution  of  Hohenstaufen           .             .             .  264 

(2)  Decision  of  imperial  elections          ,             .             .  267 


CONTENTS. 

xvii 

PAGE 

c. 

Boniface  VIII.     . 

.     269 

(i)  His  tyranny 

.     269 

(2)  His  defective  title   . 

.     269 

(3)  Persecution  of  the  Colonnas 

270 

(4)  Grant  of  Indulgences 

.    271 

(5)  Conflict  with  Philip  the  Fair 

.     272 

CHAPTER   X. 

THE    HOLY    EMPIRE. 

A. 

The  Holy  Empire 

.    280 

(i)  Meaning  of  the  expression  . 

.    280 

(2)  The  idea  in  the  time  of  Grcgory  V] 

I.       .         .    282 

(3)  The  idea  in  the  time  of  Innocent  I 

[I.       .         .    284 

(4)  The  idea  in  the  time  of  Boniface  V 

III.    .       .  285 

B. 

Causes     .... 

.    287 

(i)  Evils  of  anarchy  produced  a  love  0 

'system             .     287 

(2)  Confusion  of  Church  and  State 

.     288 

(3)  General  confusion  in  people's  mind 

s            .             .     289 

C. 

Consequences  of  the  idea 

.     290 

(i)  On  the  State 

290 

(2)  On  the  Church 

.     293 

(3)  On  the  relations  of  Church  and  Sta 

te           .             .     300 

CHAPTER   XL 

THE    CRUSADES. 

A. 

Crusades  in  general 

.     306 

(i)  Idea  of  a  Crusade   . 

.     306 

(2)  Causes  of  Crusades 

.     308 

(3)  Effects  of  the  Crusades 

•     314 

B. 

The  First  Crusade 

•     317 

(i)  Occasions    . 

.     318 

(2)  The  crusading  rabble 

.     321 

(3)  The  real  Crusade     . 

•     322 

(4)  Frankish  kingdoms  in  the  East 

•     325 

C. 

Crusades  of  twelfth  century 

•     326 

(i)  Crusade  of  iioi 

•     326 

(2)  The  Second  Crusade 

•     327 

(3)  The  Third  Crusade 

•     329 

CONTENTS. 


D.  Crusades  of  first  half  of  thirteenth  century 

(i)  Fourth  Crusade  to  Constantinople 

(2)  Fifth  Crusade 

(3)  Crusade  of  Frederic  II, 

E.  The  Crusades  of  St.  Louis 

(i)  Sixth  Crusade 
(2)  Seventh  Crusade 


PAGE 

333 
334 
339 
340 

341 
342 
342 


CHAPTER   XII. 


INVESTITURES    AND   JURISDICTION  :   CLERICAL   TAXATION, 


A.  Property  of  Church 

(i)  Real  property 

(2)  Personal  property   . 

B.  Investitures 

(i)  Causes  of  the  struggle 

(2)  Beginning  of  the  struggle 

(3)  Struggle  in  England 

(4)  Struggle  with  kings  of  Castile 
{5)  Struggles  in  the  empire 

C.  Struggle  for  jurisdiction  in  England 

(i)  Causes  of  the  struggle 

(2)  Course  of  the  struggle 

(3)  Sequel 

(4)  The  Church  victorious 

D.  Inroads  on  wealth  of  Clergy 

(i)  Disposal  of  benefices 

(2)  Legates  instead  of  appointments  to 

(3)  Taxation  of  the  Clergy 


Pedigree  of  English  Sovereigns 


,        , 

348 

• 

351 

. 

356 

. 

356 

356 

• 

358 

363 

• 

2>(>2> 

. 

367 

369 

. 

372 

378 

381 

382 

Z^Z 

)  benefices 

387 

390 
396 

Appendix  I. 
Magna  Charta  translated 


397 


CONTENTS.  xix 

PART    III. 

AGE  OF  DECLINE. 

CHAPTER   XIII. 

THE    POPES   AT   AVIGNON. 

PAGE 

A.  Loss  of  political  supremacy  ....     409 

(i)  Benedict  XI.  .....     410 

(2)  Clement  V.  .  .  .  .  .411 

B.  Struggles  of  Popes  for  power        .  .  .  .421 

(i)  Attempts  to  regain  independence  from  France        .     421 
(2)  Attempts  to  regain  supremacy  in  Germany  .     423 

C.  Public  opinion  against  the  Popes  .  .  -431 

(i)  Clement  VI.  ....  .     431 

(2)  Innocent  VI.  .....     434 

(3)  Urban  V.     .  .  .  .  .  -434 

(4)  Gregory  XI.  .  .  ...  .     436 

CHAPTER   XIV. 

THE   GREAT   SCHISM    OF   THE   WEST. 

A.  The  rise  and  progress  of  the  Schism        .  .  .     439 

(i)  Urban  VI.  and  Clement  VII.  .  .  .     440 

(2)  Boniface  IX.  .....     445 

B.  Attempts  to  heal  the  Schism        ....     447 

(i)  Attempts  proceeding  from  neutrals  .  -447 

(2)  Attempts  made  by  the  French  King  and  States  .     450 

(3)  Attempts  made  by  the  Cardinals     .  .  -451 

(4)  Share  of  Gregory  XII.  and  Benedict  XIII.  .     453 

C.  Consequences  of  the  Schism        .  .  ,  -455 

(i)  Oppression  of  the  Church   ....  455 

(2)  Exposing  of  corruptions       ....  458 

(3)  Enquiry  into  history  stimulated       .             .             .  459 

(4)  Secular  power  applied  to  ecclesiastical  matters        .  459 

(5)  Appeal  to  General  Councils             .             .             .  460 

Appendix  II. 
Statute  of  Praemunire     .  .  .  .  .462 


CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER   XV. 

THE    INDEPENDENT   COUNCILS    OF    THE    WEST. 

PAGE 

A.  The  Council  of  Pisa        .  ,  .  .  .468 

(i)  Acts  of  the  Council  .  .  .     469 

(2)  After-events  .  .  .  -472 

B.  Council  of  Constance       .  .  .  .  -475 

(i)  The  Council  convened         .      -  .  -475 

(2)  Order  of  proceedings  ....     476 

(3)  Efforts  to  heal  the  Schism    ....     480 

(4)  Failure  of  the  Council  to  produce  reformation         .     4S6 

C.  Papacy  of  Martin  V.        .  .  .  .  .     490 

(i)  Circumstances  attending  his  election  .  .     490 

(2)  Policy  of  Martin  V.  ....     492 

(3)  Policy  after  the  Council       ....     494 

D.  Council  of  Basle  .  .  .  •  .  .     495 

(i)  Preliminaries  to  the  Council  .  .  .     496 

(2)  Assertion  of  its  independence  .  .  .     496 

(3)  Measures  of  reform  ....     499 

(4)  Collision  with  the  Pope       .  .  .  .401 


Appendix  III. 
Concordat  with  England 


510 


CHAPTER   XVT. 


LAST   YEARS    OF    THE    MEDI/EVAL    PAPACY. 

A.  Administration  of  ^neas  Sylvius 

(i)  Nicolas  V.  . 

{2)  Crusades  against  the  Turks 

(3)  Endeavours  to  advance  the  Papal  power 

B.  The  Successors  of  ^neas  Sylvius 

(i)  Moral  corruption     . 
(2)  Political  degradation 


514 
515 
518 

524 

527 
527 
533 


CONTENTS. 


B. 


C. 


CHAPTER   XVII. 

THE    BREAKING    UP   OF   THE    HOLY   EMPIRE. 

PAGE 

Transition  Period  for  Church  and  State  .  .  .     542 

(i)  International  position  of  the  Pope  and  the  Em- 
peror      .  .  .  .  .  .542 

(2)  Rise  of  nationaUties  and  national  Churches  .     546 

(3)  Breaking  up  of  Latin  Christianity  and  the  Empire  .     547 
Parallelism  in  the  history  of  the  Empire  and  the  Papacy  .     549 

(i)  Both  derived  from  a  common  origin  .  .     549 

(2)  Parallelism  recognised  by  Dante     .  .  •     55^ 

(3)  Instances  of  parallelism       .  .  .  •     55^^ 

Mutual  influence  of  Church  and  State     .  .  .     559 

(i)  Influence  of  Church  .  .  .  -559 

(2)  Influence  of  State    .  .  .  .  .561 


B. 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 

CHURCH    AND    STATE    IN   ANTAGONISM. 

Opposition  to  the  Papacy 
(i)  Opposition  of  States-General 

(2)  Opposition  of  Spirituals 

(3)  Opposition  of  the  Emperors 

(4)  Opposition  of  Ecclesiastics 

Opposition  to  the  Hierarchy 
(i)  Emanating  from  the  Pope   . 

(2)  Regulars  and  Seculars 

General  Opposition  to  the  Church 
(i)  Curtailment  of  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction 

(3)  Prohibition  of  gifts  in  mortmain 


569 

570 
572 
574 
575 
576 
576 
577 
578 

579 
582 


CHAPTER   XIX. 

NATIONAL    REACTIONS    AGAINST   THE    LATIN    SYSTEM. 

A.  Reaction  in  England        .....  585 

(i)  The  earlier  movement  national        .  .  .  588 

(2)  The  later  movement  devoted  to  general  reforms      .  592 

(3)  The  national  movement  after  Wycliffe         .  .  598 


xxii  CONTENTS. 

PAGE 

B.  Political  reformation  in  Bohemia  .  .  .     599 

(i)  The  movement  national       ....     599 

(2)  The  movement  anti-hierarchical      .  .  .     606 

(3)  Movement  again  national  under  the  Hussites  .     615 

C.  Galilean  movement  in  France      .  .  .  .618 

(i)  Beginning  under  Louis  IX.  .  .  .618 

(2)  Under  Philip  the  Fair  ....     620 

(3)  Assertion  of  Galilean  principles  during  the  Schism  .     621 

(4)  Gallican  liberties  secured  at  Bourges  .  .624 

Conclusion   .  .  .  .      ^     .  .  .     628 

Appendix  IV. 
Statutes  of  Provisors      .  .  .  .  -632 

INDEX       .  .  .  .  .  .  .639 


CHRONOLOGICAL   TABLE   OF  POPES  AND 
EMPERORS. 


Year  of 

Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

B.C. 

Augustus 

27 

A.D. 

Tiberius 

14 

Caligula 

37 

Claudius 

41 

A.D. 

42 

Peter  and  Paul 

Nero 

54 

67 

Linus  and 

Galba,     Otho,     Vitellius, 

Clement,  68 

Vespasian 

68 

78 

Cletus 

Titus 

79 

Domitian 

81 

Nei-va 

96 

Trajan 

98 

no 

Evaristus 

Hadrian 

117 

119 

Alexander  I. 

130 

Sixtus  I. 

Antoninus  Pius 

138 

140 

Telesphonis 

152 

Hyginus 

156 

Pius  I. 

Marcus  Aurelius 

161 

165 

Anicetus 

173 

Soter 

177 

Eleutherius 

Commodus 

180 

Pertinax 

190 

Didius  Julianus 

191 

192 

Victor 

Niger 

192 

Septimius  Severus 

193 

202 

Zephyrinus 

Caracalla,     Geta,     Diadu- 

menian 

211 

Opilius  Macrinus 

217 

Elagabalus 

218 

219 

Calixtus  I. 

Alexander  Severus 

222 

224 

Urban  I. 

230 

Pontianus 

235 

Antenis 

Maximin 

235 

236 

Fabianus 

The  two  Gordians,  Maxi- 

mus  Pupienus,  Balbinus 

237 

Gordian  the  younger 

238 

CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE   OF 


Year  of 
Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

A.D. 

A.D. 

Philip 

244 

Decius 

249 

250 

Vacancy 

251 

Cornelius 

Callus 

251 

Volusian 

252 

253 

Lucius  I. 

Aemilian,  Valerian,  Gallienus 

253 

255 

Stephen  I. 

257 

Sixtus  II. 

258 

Dionysius 

Claudius  II. 

268 

270 

Felix 

Aurelian 

270 

275 

Euctychian 

Tacitus 

27s 

Probus 

276 

Carus 

282 

283 

Caius 

Carinus,  Numerian,  Diocletian 

284 

Maximian  and  Diocletian 

286 

296 

Marcellinus 

304 

Marcellus 

Constantms,  Galerius 

305 

Liciiiius 

307 

Maximin 

308 

309 

Eusebius 

Constantine,  Galerius,   Licin- 
ius,    Maximin,    Maxentius, 

and  Maximinian 

309 

3" 

Melchiades 

314 

Sylvester  I. 

Constantine 

323 

336 

Marcus 

336 

Julius 

Constantine   II.,  Constantius 

II.,  and  Constans 

337 

Magnentius 

350 

352 

Liberius 

Constantius  {alone) 

353 

Julian 

361 

Jovian 

363 

Valens  and  Valentinian  I. 

364 

367 

Felix  II. 

Gratian  and  Valentinian  I. 

367 

367 

Damasus  I. 

Valentinian  II.  and  Gratian 

375 

Theodcsius 

379 

35^5 

Siricius  I. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

395 

Honorius 

Arcadhis 

398 

Anastasius  I. 

402 

Innocent  I. 

Thcodosius  IL 

408 

417 

Zosimus 
Eulalitis 

418 

Bonifacius  I. 

423 

Coelestine  I. 

Valentinian  III. 

424 

POPES  AND  EMPERORS. 


Year  of 
Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Empe 

rors 

Year  of 
Accession 

•      A.D. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

A.D. 

432 

Sixtus  III. 

440 

Leo  I.  (the  Great) 

Maximus,  Avi- 

tus 
Majorian 

Marcian 
Leo  I. 

450 

455 
455 
457 

461 

Hilary 

Severus 
Vacancy 

461 
465 

467 

Simplicius 

Anthemius 
Olybrius 
Glycerius 
Julius  Nepos 

Romulus     Au- 
gustulus 

END  OF  WESTERN 
EMPIRE 

Leo    IL. ,    Zeno 
Basiliscus 

467 
472 
473 

474 

475 

476 

483 

Felix  III. 

Anastasius  /. 

491 

492 

Gelasius  I. 

496 

Anastasius  II. 

498 

Symmachus 
Lattrentius  (anti- 
pope) 

512 

Hormisdas 

Justin  /. 

518 

523 

John  I. 

526 

Felix  IV. 

yustinian  L. 

527 

530 

Boniface  II. 

532 

John  II. 

535 

Agapetus  I. 

536 

Silverius 

540 

Vigilius 

555 

Pelagius  I. 

559 

John  III. 

Justin  LL 

565 

573 

Benedict  I. 

577 

Pelagius  II. 

Tiberius  LL 
Maurice 

582 

590 

Gregory    I,    (the 
Great) 

Phocas 

602 

604 

Sabinianus 

606 

Boniface  III. 

607 

Boniface  IV. 

LLeraclius 

610 

614 

Deus  dedit 

617 

Boniface  V. 

626 

Honorius  I. 

640 

Severinus 

CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE   OF 


Year  of 
Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

A.D. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

A.D. 

640 

John  IV. 

Consta7itine  III. 
Ileracleonas, 
Cojistatis  II. 

641 

642 

Theodoras  I. 

649 

Martin  I. 

655 

Eugenius  I. 

~ 

657 

Vitalian 

Constantine  IV. 
(Pogonatus) 

668 

672 

Adeodatus 

676 

Donus 

678 

Agatho 

682 

Leo  II. 

I 

684 

Benedict  II. 

685 

John  V. 

yustinian  II. 

685 

686 

Conon 

687 

Sergius  I. 

Paschal 

Theodore 

Leontiiis 
Tiberius 

694 

697 

701 

John  VI. 

705 

John  VII. 

jhcstinian      II. 
(restored) 

705 

708 

Zinzinnus 

708 

Constantine  I. 

Philippicus  Bar- 

danes 
Anastasius  II. 

711 

713 

715 

Gregory  II. 

Theodosius  III. 
Leo    III.     {the 
Isam-ian) 

716 
718 

731 

Gregory  III. 

Constantine  V. 
Copronyvius 

741 

742 

Zacharias 

752 

Stephen  II. 

757 

Stephen  III.  ? 

757 

Paul  I. 

767 

Coiista?itine  II. 

767 

Theophylact 

768 

Philip 

768 

Stephen  III. 

{alias  IV.) 

772 

Adrian  I. 

Leo  IV. 
Constantine  VI. 

775 
780 

795 

Leo  III. 

Deposition      of 

Constantine 

VI.   by  Irene 

797 

POPES  AND  EMPERORS. 


Year  of 
Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

A.D. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

A.D. 

WESTERN   EM- 

PIRE  REVIVED 

Charles  I. 

Nicephorus 
Staurasius 
Michael  I. 

{Rhangabes) 
Leo  V.  {the  Ar- 

meiiiati) 

800 
802 

8x1 
8x1 
813 

Lewis    I.    (the 

Pious) 

814 

8i6 

Stephen  IV. 

[alias  V.) 

817 

Paschal  I. 

Michael  II.  {the 
Statnmerer) 

820 

824 

Eugenius  II. 

824 

Anastasiiis 

824 

Zinziniius 

827 

Valentine 

828 

Gregory  IV. 

Lothar  I. 

Theophilus 

Michael  III.  {the 
{Drunkard) 

829 
840 

842 

844 

Sergius  II. 

847 

Leo  IV. 

85s 

Benedict  III. 

Lewis  II, 

855 

858 

Nicolas  I. 

867 

Adrian  IV. 

Basil     I.      {the 
Macedonia}!) 

867 

872 

John  VIII. 

Charles  II,  (the 
Bald) 

87s 

882 

Martin  II. 

884 

Adrian  III. 

Charles  III.  (the 
Fat) 

884 

885 

Stephen  V. 

(alias  VI.) 

Amulf 

Guido 

Berengar 

Leo      VL     {the 
Philosopher) 

886 
888 

891 

Formosus 

891 

Sergius 

896 

Boniface  VI. 

896 

Stephen  VI. 
{alias  N\\.) 

897 

Romanus 

•  898 

Theodore  II. 

898 

John  IX. 

Le7i>is  the  Child 

899 

CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE   OF 


Year  of 
Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

A.D. 

900 

Benedict  IV. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

A.D. 

Lewis    III.    (of 

Provence) 

900 

903 

Leo  V. 

903 

Christopher 

904 

Sergius  III. 

911 

Anastasius  III. 

Conrad  I. 

Alexander 
Constantine  VII 
{Porphyrogenitiis) 

911 
912 

913 

Lando 

914 

John  X. 

Henry    I.    (the 

Rotnaniis  I 

919 

Fowler) 

928 

Leo  VI. 

929 

Stephen  VII. 

{alias  N\l\.) 

931 

John  XI. 

936 

Leo  VII. 

Otto  I. 

936 

939 

Stephen  VIII. 

{alias  IX.) 

943 

Martin  III. 

Constantine  VIII 

944 

946 

Agapetus  II. 

955 

Jolm  XII. 

Rotnanns  II. 

959 

963 

Leo  VI IL 

Nicephoriis  Phocas 

963 

964 

Benedict  V. 

965 

John  XIII. 

yohn  I.  (Zi mi  sees) 

969 

972 

Donus  II. 

972 

Benedict  VI. 

Otto  II. 

973 

974 

Boniface  VIL 

974 

Benedict  VII. 

Basil    II.    and 
ConstatttinelX. 

975 

983 

John  XIV. 

Otto  III. 

983 

984 

Boniface  VII. 

98s 

John  XV. 

996 

Gregory  V. 

997 

John  XVI 

999 

Sylvester  II. 

April  2 

Henry  II.  (the 
Saint) 

1002 

1003 

John  XVII. 

June  9 

1003 

John  XVIII. 

Dec.  26 

1009 

Sergius  IV. 

1012 

Benedict  VIII. 

1012 

Grei^ory 

1024 

John  XIX.  (XVIII. 

Conrad  II.  (the 

August 

in  Lab.) 

Salic) 

Romanus  III. 

1024 
1028 

1033 

Benedict  IX. 

POPES  AND  EMPERORS. 


Year  of 
Accession 

1 
Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

A.D. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

A.D. 

Michael  IV. 

1034 

Henry  III. 

Michael  V. 
Constantine  X. 
{Monomachus) 

1039 
1041 

1042 

1044 

Gregory  VI. 

May 

1044 

Sylvesto-  III. 

1046 

Clement  II. 

Dec.  25 

1048 

Damasus  II. 

July  17 

1049 

Leo  IX. 

1054 

Vacancy 

Theodora  (again) 

1054 

April  19 

1055 

Victor  II. 

March 

Henry  IV. 

Michael  VI. 

1056 

1057 

Stephen  IX. 

Isaac  ConiJieiius 

1057 

August  2 

[alias  ^.) 

1058 

Benedict  X. 

March  30 

1058 

Nicolas  II. 

Dec.  28 

Constantine  XI. 
{Dncas) 

1059 

106 1 

Alexander  II. 

Sept.  30 

Honoritis 

Romaniis     IV. 

[Diogenes') 
Michael  VII. 
Ducas 

1068 
IO71 
1072 

1073 

Gregory  VII. 

April  22 

Nicephorus  III. 
(Botoniates) 

1078 

1080 

Clement  III. 

Alexius     Com- 
ne7Uts 

I081 

1085 

Vacancy 

1086 

Victor  III. 

May  24 

1088 

Urban  II. 

March  12 

1099 

Pascal  II. 

August  13 

Henry  V. 

II06 

1118 

Gregory  VIII. 

\ 

1118 

Jan.  25 

Gelasius  II. 

John  II. 

II18 

1119 

Callixtus  II. 

Feb.  I 

II2I 

Coelestine 

I  124 

Honorius  II. 

Dec.  21 

CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE   OF 


Year  of 
Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

A.D. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

A.D. 

Lothar  II.  (the 

Saxon) 

II25 

1 130 

Innocent  II. 

Feb.  15 

1 130 

Anacletus  II. 

Feb.  15 

1138 
"43 

Victor  IV. 

Conrad  III. 

1 138 

Coelestine  II. 

Manuel  I. 

"43 

Sept.  26 

1 144 

Lucius  II. 

March  12 

"45 

Eugenius  III. 

Feb.  27 

Frederic  I.  (Bar- 
barossa) 

1152 

"53 

Anastasius  IV. 

July  9 

"54 

Adrian  IV. 

Dec.  3 

"59 

Alexander  III. 

Sept.  7 

"59 

Victor  IV. 

1 1 64 

Paschal  III 

April  22 

1 168 

Callixtus  III. 

I178 

Innocent  III. 

Alexius  II. 

1 180 

1181 

Lucius  III. 

Sept.  I 

Andronicus  I. 

1 183 

1 185 

Urban  III. 

Isaac  Angelus 

1 185 

Nov.  25 

1187 

Gregory  VIII. 

Oct.  20 

1 188 

Clement  III. 

Henry  VI. 

1 190 

1191 

Coelestine  III. 

March  30 

Alexius  III. 

"95 

1 198 

Innocent  III. 

Philip  and 

January 

Otto  IV. 

Otto  IV. 
Frederic  II. 

Isaac  Mour- 
zoufle 

Baldwin  I. 

Henry 

Theodoi-e     Las- 
car is 

1198 

1202 
1204 
1205 

1206 
1208 
1212 

1216 

Honorius  III. 

July  18 

Peter  de  Cour- 

tcnay 

1217 

POPES  AND  EMPERORS. 


Year  of 
Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 

Accession 

A.D. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

A.D. 

Robert 

1220 

John  Ducas 

1222 

1227 

Gregory  IX. 

March  19 

Baldwin  II. 

1228 

1241 

Coelestine  IV. 

October 

1242 

Vacancy 

1243 

Innocent  IV. 

June 

Conrad  IV. 

1250 

1254 

Alexander  IV. 

Interregjtuin 

1254 

Dec.  12 

Richard  of  Corn- 
wall  a7td  Alfonso 
of  Castile 

Theodoras  II. 

John  IV. 
Michael  Palco- 
logus 

1255 

1257 
1258 

1259 

1261 

Urban  IV. 

Aug.  29 

1265 

Clement  IV. 

Feb.  5 

1269 

Vacancy 

1271 

Gregory  X. 

Sept.  I 

Rudolph  of  Haps- 
burg 

1272 

1276 

Innocent  V. 

Feb.  21 

1276 

Adrian  V. 

July  II 

1276 

John  XX.  or  XXI. 

Sept.  13 

(XIX.  in  Lab.) 

1277 

Nicolas  III. 

Nov.  25 

1281 

Martin  IV. 

Feb.  22 

A)idronicus  II. 
(Paleolog/is) 

1283 

1285 

Honorius  IV. 

April  2 

1288 

Nicolas  IV. 

Feb.   15 

Adolf  of  Nassau 

1292 

1293 

Vacancy 

1294 

Coelestine  V. 

Julys 

1294 

Boniface  VIII. 

Dec.  24 

Albert  I. 

1298 

CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE   OF 


Year  of 
Accession 

Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

A.D. 

In  the  West 

In  the  East 

A.D. 

1303 

Benedict  X.  or  XI. 

Oct.  22 

1305 

Clement  V. 

June  15 

Henry  VII. 

1308 

1314 

Vacancy 

Lewis  IV. 
and  Frederic 
of  Austria 

I314 

1316 

John     XXI.     or 

Aug.  7 

XXII.  (XX.  in 
Lab.) 

Andronicns  III. 
(Faleologus) 

1320 

1334 

Benedict   XL    or 

Dec.  20 

XII. 

John  V.  {Faleo- 
logus) 

I34I 

1342 

Clement  VI. 

May  7 

Charles  IV. 
(Giinther     of 
Schwartzburg) 

1347 

1352 

Innocent  VI. 

Dec.  18 

1362 

Urban  V. 

Sept. 

1370 

Gregory  XL 

Dec.  30 

1378 

Urban  VI. 

Wenceslaus 

1378 

April  9 

1378 

Clement  VII. 

Sept.  21 

1389 

Boniface  IX. 

Nov.  2 

Alamiel  II. 

I39I 

1394 

Benedict  XIIL 

Sept.  28 

Rupert 

1400 

1404 

Innocent  VI I, 

Oct.  17 

1406 

Gregory  XII. 

Nov.  30 

1409 

Alexander  V. 

June 

1410 

John    XXIL    or 

Sigismund 

May  17 

XXIII.  (XXI. 
in  Lab.) 

[fobst  of  Moravia) 

1410 

1416 

Vacancy 

1417 

Martin  V. 

Nov.  1 1 

1424 

Clement  VIII 

John  VI 

1424 

1431 

Eugenius  IV. 

March 

Albert  II. 

1438 

POPES  AND  EMPERORS. 


Year  of 
Accession 


A.D. 

1439 
Nov.  17 

1447 
March  6 


1455 
April  8 

1458 
August 

1464 
Aug.  31 

1471 
Aug.  9 

1484 
Aug.  29 

1492 
Aug.  II 

1503 
Sept.  22 

1503 
Nov.  I 

1513 
March  11 

1522 
Jan.  2 

1523 
Nov.  19 

1534 
Oct.  13 

1550 
Feb.  8 

1555 
April  9 

1555 
May  23 

1559 
December 

1566 
Jan.  7 

1572 
May  13 

1585 
April  24 

1590 
Sept.  15 


Bishops  of  Rome 


Felix  V. 
Nicolas  V. 


Callixtus  III. 
Pius  II. 
Paul  II. 
Sixtus  IV. 
Innocent  VIII. 
Alexander  VI. 

Pius  III. 
Julius  II. 
LeoX. 

Adrian  VI. 
Clement  VII. 
Paul  III. 
Julius  III. 
Marcellus  II. 
Paul  IV. 

Pius  IV. 

Pius  V. 
Gregory  XIII. 

Sixtus  V. 
Urban  VII. 


Emperors 


In  the  West 


Frederic  III. 


Maximilian  I. 


Charles  V. 


In  the  East 


Constantine  XIII. 

FALL   OF  THE 
EASTERN  EMPIRE 


Ferdinand  I. 
Maximilian  II. 

Rudolph  II. 


Year  of 
Accession 


1440 
1448 
1453 


1493 


1519 


1558 
1564 

1576 


CHRONOLOGICAL    TABLE   OF 


Year  of 

1 

1 

Accession 

ijishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

1 

j      Year  of 
1   Accession 

A.D. 

1590 

Gregory  XIV. 

A.D. 

Dec.  5 

1591 

Innocent  IX. 

Oct.  29 

:       1592 

Clement  VIII. 

Jan.  30 

1605 

Leo  XI. 

April  I 

- 

1605 

Paul  V. 

May  16 

Mathias 

1 

I6I2 

Ferdinand  II. 

;        I6I9 

1621 

Gregory  XV. 

Feb.  2 

1623 

Urban  VIII. 

Aug.  6 

Ferdinand  III. 

16-^,7 

1644 

Innocent  X. 

I        ^"j/ 

Sept.  15 

1655 

Alexander  VII. 

April  7 

1667 

Clement  IX. 

Leopold  I. 

1658 

June  20 

1670 

Clement  X. 

April  29 

1676 

Innocent  XI. 

Sept.  21 

1689 

Alexander  VIII. 

Oct.  6 

1691 

Innocent  XII. 

July  12 

1700 

Clement  XI. 

Nov.  23 

Joseph  1. 

1705 

Charles  VI.                       \ 

I7II 

1721 

Innocent  XIII. 

1 

May  8 

1724 

Benedict  XIII. 

1 

May  29 

1 

1730       I 

Clement  XII. 

\ 

July  12 

1740 

Benedict  XIV. 

Aug.  17 

\ 

' 

Charle-s  VII. 

1742 

'758 

Clement  XIII.                 I 

Francis  I. 

1745 

July  6 

1769 

Clement  XIV. 

Joseph  II. 

1765 

May  19 

1775 

Pius  VI. 

Feb.   15 

Leopold  11. 

1790 

' 

Francis  II. 

1792 

POPES  AND   EMPERORS. 


Year  of 
Accession 

1 
Bishops  of  Rome 

Emperors 

Year  of 
Accession 

A.D. 

A.D. 

1800 

Pius  VII. 

March  13 

ABDICATION    OF    FRANCIS 

1806 

END   OF   THE   HOLY 

ROMAN   EMPIRE 

1823 

Leo  XII. 

Sept.  28 

1829 

Pius  VIII. 

March  31 

1831 

Gregory  XVI. 

Feb.  2 

1846 

Pius  IX. 

June  16. 

./   PKIITCETOIT    *- 


\5HSOLOm  Oil, 


^^^ 

j^* 


CHAPTER     I. 

INTRODUCTORY. 


A 


Comeddis  vetiisttssima  veteyumy  et  Vetera  novis  stipervenientibus 
projicietis. — Lev.  XXVI.  10. 


WHATEVER  variety  of  opinion  may  prevail    chap. 
as  to  the  precise  period  at  which  the  history '■ — 

of  what  are  called  the  Middle  Ages  begins,  it  is  at 
least  clear,  that  under  the  episcopate  of  Gregory  the 
Great  the  power  of  the  See  of  Rome  in  the  West  a.d.  590 
commences.  At  the  beginning  of  the  sixteenth 
century,  and  the  appearance  of  the  Reformation  it  is 
seen  to  decline.  Its  history  becomes  henceforth  an 
altered  one.  One  period  in  its  career  is  complete. 
Its  mediaeval  .career  may  therefore  be  justly  con- 
sidered to  commence  with  the  pontificate  of  Gregory 
the  Great,  and  to  end  with  that  of  Leo  X.;  to 
begin  with  the  seventh  century,  and  to  close  with 
the  sixteenth  ;  thus  embracing  a  period  of  rather 
more  than  nine  centuries. 

During  these  centuries  a  new  and  hitherto  unex-  A.  Change 
plored  field  was  opened  out  for  the  Church.     Chris-  ofeccie- 
tianity  changed  its  ground,  and  with  that  change  the  %Ys^/J,y^ 
character  and  constitutions  of  the  Church  changed 
as  well.      Hitherto  the  Church  had  flourished  among 
the  men  of  the  old  world.     The  shores  of  the  Medi- 

E 


5  INTRODUCTION. 

CHAP,     terranean — those  same  shores  on  which  the  role  of 

'■ political  history  had  been  played — had  been  the  first 

field  of  ecclesiastical  history.  The  old  centres — 
Rome,  Alexandria,  Antioch,  Jerusalem,  Constan- 
tinople—  had  been  centres  of  the  Church's  life. 
Christianity  had  worn  the  colouring  of  the  old  world 
and  the  old  modes  of  thought  :  now  with  the  decline 
of  the  older  civilisations  its  older  life  declined  too. 

But  this  decline  was  not  unattended  with  cor- 
responding gains.  For,  no  longer  confined  to  the 
old  seats  of  mankind,  but  following  the  onward 
march  of  civilisation,  the  Church  crossed  the  Alps 
and  diffused  herself  in  central  Europe.  Among  the 
Germanic  nations  henceforth  she  took  up  her  home. 
Her  losses  in  the  East  were  compensated  by  gains 
in  the  West,  Disputes  which  had  agitated  Greeks 
and  Romans  were  laid  to  rest ;  the  rivalries  of 
Rome  and  Constantinople,  of  Alexandria  and  An- 
tioch, were  forgotten.  She  entered  on  a  new  life, 
animated  by  new  modes  of  thought,  distracted  by 
new  disputes. 

Yet  not  at  once,  nor  without  a  long  period  of 
training,  were  the  new  nations  able  to  assert  their 
Independence  ;  in  fact,  this  was  not  the  case  until 
the  Reformation.  The  preparatory  training  was  a 
work  of  time  and  gradual  growth.  And  hence  the 
Middle  Ages — those  ages  in  which  It  was  taking 
place — are,  as  their  name  implies,  intermediate  ages 
— ages  in  which  the  old  world  met  the  new  world  ; 
in  which  the  traditions  of  the  old  world  were  still  in 
the  ascendant,  those  of  the  new  world  In  infancy  ; 
in  which  the  Teuton  was  first  brought  face  to  face 


CHANGE    OF   CHARACTER    OF   CHURCH.  - 

with  the  Roman — the  Roman  the  inheritor  of  a  great     chap. 


civilisation,  whose  day  was  past,  the  Teuton  still 
rugged  like  his  native  woods.  The  old  world  was 
passing  away,  and  being  borne  to  its  grave,  the  new 
world  was  growing  up  under  the  shadow  of  the 
past. 

It  is  not,  therefore,  so  strange  as  it  might  appear  B.  Change 
that  nations  whose  characteristic  feature,  as  it  is  now  racter' 
seen,  is  love  of  freedom  and  intolerance  of  restraint 
alike  in  politics  and  religion,  should  have  then  lent 
themselves  so  readily  to  the  Roman  system.  Indeed, 
it  will  be  observed  that  no  sooner  had  Christianity 
passed  into  Europe,  than  the  bands  of  ecclesiastical 
organisation  were  drawn  tighter  than  they  had  ever 
been  before,  and  continued  to  be  drawn  tighter  and 
tighter,  until  the  strictest  system  of  ecclesiastical 
absolutism  was  developed,  at  the  head  of  which  stood 
the  sovereign  pontiff.  Yet  so  it  was.  The  Germanic 
nations  received  Christianity  and  the  Roman  supre- 
macy together,  and  hence  constantly  confounded  the 
two.  Years  elapsed  before  they  became  conscious  of 
the  confusion ;  a  still  longer  period  before  this  con- 
sciousness found  expression  ;  and  nine  centuries  had 
gone  by  before  they  dared  to  rise  in  rebellion  against 
a  primary  usurpation,  and  rid  themselves  of  an  error 
which  they  had  imbibed  from  their  first  teachers. 

And  yet,  although  undoubtedly  an  usurpation, 
and  resting  on  a  primary  misapprehension,  the  papal 
rule,  and  the  Holy  Empire  to  which  it  gave  rise,  are 
the  great  objects  of  attraction  Jn  the  Middle  Ages, 
and,  whilst  they  did  last,  were  sincerely  believed  in. 
Whatever  is  greatest  and  noblest  in  those  ages — 

•      B    2 


INTRODUCTION. 


CHAP,    great  saints,  great  heroes,  great  sovereigns — are  all 


1 


I. 


in  the  early  part  of  the  Middle  Ages  to  be  found 
upholding  the  Holy  Empire,  as  in  the  latter  part 
they  were  divided  between  the  rival  sovereigns  of  that 
Empire,  the  popes  and  the  emperors.  When  that 
Empire  passed  away,  as  it  was  inevitably  destined  to 
pass  away  with  increasing  years,  the  glory  which 
had  been  shed  over  the  early  years  of  European 
history  had  vanished.  The  Teutonic  nations  had 
attained  to  manhood,  and  lived  in  the  light  of  clearer 
knowledge  ;  but  the  poetry  of  childhood  was  gone. 
The  man  Is  no  doubt  wiser  than  the  child ;  but  is 
that  a  subject  of  unmixed  congratulation  ?  The 
child  has  not  the  intellect  or  the  knowledge  of  the 
man ;  but  has  the  man  the  freshness,  the  simplicity, 
and  above  all  the  happiness  of  childhood  ? 
c.  Vicis-  Moreover,  this  hierarchical  centralisation,  which  is 
siiiidesof  gQ  conspicuous  in  the  Middle  Ages,  was  a  new  thing 
andeccle-  \^  ^J^g  Seventh  century,  and  in  fact  a  result  growing 

siastical  1.1  1       1      •  o       i       1    • 

power.  out  of  the  Church  s  altered  relations.  Such  claims  as 
were  put  forth  by  the  Popes  in  the  eleventh  and 
thirteenth  centuries,  would  have  been  impossible  in 
the  first  four  centuries  of  Christendom.  They  were 
the  claims  of  a  city  no  longer  mistress  of  the  world, 
to  be  mistress  of  the  world  ;  the  claims  of  a  spiritual 
person  to  occupy  the  place  once  held  by  a  political 
sovereign  ;  the  claims  of  one  who  felt  the  strength  of 
his  position,  who,  having  been  left  to  himself,  had 
learnt  what  it  was  to  be  free,  and  who,  having  learned 
what  it  was  to  be  free,  coveted  to  rule  over  others. 
They  were  the  claims  of  a  civilised  ecclesiastic  feel- 


VICISSITUDES   OF  POWER.  5 

ing    his   moral    ascendency  over  nations    rude    and     chap. 

uncultivated,  and  adroitly  using  his  moral  ascendency  

for  political  purposes.  Moreover,  these  claims  were 
first  advanced  in  the  cause  of  civilisation  and  Chris- 
tianity. The  error  was  that  they  were  persevered 
in  by  those  who  had  tasted  the  sweets  of  power, 
long  after  the  rudeness  and  want  which  had  first 
called  them  forth  had  passed  away.  Nay,  are  they 
not  even  now  persevered  in,  although  those  upon 
whom  they  are  made  are  far  in  advance  of  those 
who  make  them  in  intellectual  enlightenment? 

It  is  interesting  to  watch  the  progress  of  these 
claims,  not  forgetting  that  they  form  the  basis  on 
which  the  Holy  Empire  was  built,  and  to  see  the 
oscillations  of  power  from  the  temporal  to  the 
spiritual  head,  and  back  to  the  temporal  head  again. 
For,  in  the  Holy  Empire,  religion  and  politics  were 
ever  combined.  At  one  time  the  religious  power 
is  the  strongest ;  at  another,  the  two  are  equal ; 
again  the  civil  power  has  secured  the  upper  hand, 
and  seeks  to  dethrone  the  ecclesiastical  altogether. 
When  the  connection  between  the  two  is  finally 
severed,  the  Holy  Empire  is  really  at  an  end. 

Three  definite  stages  may  therefore  be  distin- 
guished in  the  history  of  the  See  of  Rome  in  the 
Middle  Ages — an  age  of  growth,  an  age  of  greatness, 
and  an  age  of  decline. 

In  the  first  of  these  stages,  the  age  of  growth,  the  (i)  First 
Latin    system    may  be   watched    rapidly  spreading     '"^  ^ 
over  Europe  with  hardly  a  single  obstacle.      Civili-   590-1046 
satlon  is  confounded   with   Christianity,  and  Chris- 


6  INTRODUCTION. 

CHAP,     tianlty  with   the  Papacy.     The  spiritual    power   is 

continually   rising   in    importance,    and    founds    the 

Empire. 

{2) Second       In  the  next  of  these  stages — the  age  of  greatness 
^  P       — the  Pope  has  become  a  spiritual  autocrat,  ruling 

1046-1303  ^j^g  Church  absolutely,  and  through  the  Church  ruling 
the  Empire.  That  rule  brings  him  into  collision 
with  the  emperor.  A  struggle  goes  on  ostensibly 
between  popes  and  emperors,  really  between  the  old 
world  and  the  new  world,  between  the  old  despotic 
Latin  spirit  and  the  new  freedom-loving  Teutonic 
spirit.  And  such  is  the  power  of  the  Papacy,  that 
the  emperors  succumb  in  the  struggle.  In  the  mo- 
ment of  the  greatest  triumphs  of  the  Papacy,  how- 
ever, the  handwriting  is  seen  on  the  wall. 

(3)  Third      With  the  fourteenth  century,  marked  nationalities 
'       begin   to  show    themselves    fn  language,  literature, 

1303-1515  a.nd  distinct  kingdoms.  Europe  has  reached  man's 
estate  and  will  no  longer  be  held  in  thraldom. 
Soon  the  system  of  the  Papacy,  as  a  living  power, 
is  seen  to  crumble  away,  declining  far  more  rapidly 
than  it  had  grown,  and  dragging  down  with  it  into 
ruin  at  once  the  popes  and  the  emperors.  During 
the  papal  residence  at  Avignon,  the  political  supre- 
macy of  the  popes  was  lost.  By  the  great  schism  of 
the  West,  their  ecclesiastical  supremacy  was  under- 
mined. And  when  vice  had  deprived  them  of  what 
moral  weight  they  still  possessed,  Western  Christen- 
dom broke  off  its  fetters,  and  the  result  was  the 
Reformation. 

It  will  be  the  business  of  the  following  pages  to 
give  a  short  outline  of  th^ese  vicissitudes. 


Part  I. 

THE    AGE    OF    GROWTH. 

590—1046. 


STATE   OF   THE  SEE   OF  ROME. 


CHAPTER    II. 

THE    WESTERN   PATRIARCHS   UNDER    THE 
EASTERN  EMPERORS. 

(590—725.) 

Et  nemo  bibens  vettts  statim  vult  novum  ;  dicit  enim  :  vettu 
melius  est.  — Luc.  V.  39. 


THE   Western   Patriarchate  was  already  firmly    chap. 
established  when  Gregory  I.  was  called  from  '. 

his  retreat  on  the  Coelian  hill  ^  to  occupy  the  most  ofthe^See 
important  position  in  Western  Christendom.     Rome,  of  Rome 

r  r  '    m  seventh 

for  more  than  twelve  centuries  the  ruling  centre  for  century. 
the  nations  dwelling  around  the  Mediterranean,  was  ofitTim- 
no  longer  the  mistress  of  the  world.      Her  temporal  portance. 
sovereignty  had  departed  from  her.     But  amid  the 
causes  which  subverted  her  empire,  she  had  never- 
theless   not   lost   her   prestige.      She  was   still    the 
centre  of  the  West.     Though  shorn  of  power,  she 
was  still  an  object  of  admiration,  of  veneration,  of 
respect.     Around  her  gathered  the  memories  of  the 

*  The  monastery  of  St.  Andrew  on  the  Coelian  hill  was  one  out 
of  seven  founded  by  Gregory  himself  See  Montalembert's 
Monks  of  the  West,  ii.  p.  86.  For  the  life  of  Gregory  see  Labb^ 
and  CossART,  Concilia,  vi.  713  ;  Milman's  Latift  Christianity, 
book  iii.  ch.  vii.  ;  a  short  account  in  Bede's  Hist.  Eccl.  ii.  i. 
Gregory  I.  elected  590  a.d.,  died  604. 


lO  THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 

PART     past.     She  was  the  link  between  the  old  world  and 

the  new.     She  had  seen  the  glories  of  the  empire. 

She  had  witnessed  the  triumphs  of  faith.  She  had 
been  hallowed  by  the  blood  of  martyrs.  Changing 
and  yet  changeless,  she  had  bent  before  a  thousand 
storms ;  she  had  risen  resplendent  with  new  glory. 
What  she  had  lost  in  power,  she  had  gained  in 
moral  ascendency.  Prestige  was  hers,  and  the  pres- 
tige of  the  city  naturally  communicated  a  prestige 
to  her  bishopric. 

That  bishopric  had,  in  fact,  been  gradually  rising 
in  power  and  importance  ever  since  the  Council  of 
Nicaea,^  or  even  before  that  period.  Its  rise  had 
been  furthered  by  a  variety  of  causes.  Besides  the 
rank  which  it  derived  from  the  city  of  old  Rome^ 
hallowed  by  the  traditions  of  the  martyrdom  of 
St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul,  its  greatness  was  due  partly 
to  the  removal  of  the  court  to  Constantinople, 
which  freed  the  bishops  of  Rome  from  the  depress- 
ing tyranny  to  which  the  eastern  patriarchs  were 
exposed ;  partly  to  the  conversion  of  the  adjoining 
countries,  which,  whilst  it  added  to  the  extent  of  its 
patriarchate,  supplied  it  with  some  of  its  most  dutiful 
children  ;  but  more  than  all,  to  the 'fact  that,  whilst 
political  changes  had  been  frequent,  the  bishopric  of 

'  Can.  6  gives  to  the  bishops  of  Alexandria  authority  over 
Egypt,  Libya,  and  the  PentapoHs,  stating  as  the  reason,  tTreiltj  kqi 
tto  kv  Tr\  'Pojfjr]  Ittktkoku  tovto  avrrjdic  ItjTiv.  The  precedence  of 
the  bishops  of  old  Rome  was  recognised  by  the  Council  of  Constan- 
tinople A.D.  381,  Can.  3. 

^  Can  28,  Concil.  Chakedo7i  :  tm  0poi'y(episcopal)  r^c  rrpEcrfivTepac 
'Pw/xr;c,  ^'«  TO  (iaffiXtvEit'  Ti]i'  noXir  i.Keirr)r,  01  Tcaripts  tiKortos  cnro^t^ui- 
Kuai  TO  irpifffit'ia. 


STATE    OF   THE  SEE  OF  ROME.  jj 

Rome  was  the  one  abiding  and  enduring  institution,     chap. 
The  city  had  been  pillaged  by  Goths  and  Vandals;   ^ — ■ 


the  Western  Empire  had  fallen,  and  been  succeeded 
by  the  rule  of  a  Herulian  king;  anon  there  had 
been  an  Ostrogothic  kingdom  in  Italy,  then  the 
country  had  been  once  more  reconquered  for  the 
Eastern  Empire.  Now  the  recovered  territory  was 
again  threatened  by  Lombard  invaders,  and  still  the 
bishopric  of  Rome  was  there,  having  outlived 
every  convulsion.  As  in  the  days  when  the  faith 
first  reached  Italy,  so  now,  when  Gregory  I.  was 
elected  to  office,  the  bishopric  of  Rome  was  still  the 
same — the  same,  only  yet  more  powerful.  First  in 
rank  it  had  always  been  ;  now  it  was  also  first  in 
power,  in  extent,  and  in  the  respect  which  it  com- 
manded throughout  the  world.  It  was,  in  short,  the 
first  patriarchate  of  Christendom. 

The  office  to  which  Gregory  I.  was  suddenly  (2)  Dig- 
elevated  in  the  year  590,  included  under  it  the  three  chidedin 
following   distinct   diofnities.      First,   it  included   the     '^ ''■^^^• 

.  .  ip)  Bi- 

actual    episcopal  charge  of  the    city   of    Rome ;   the  shopric 
church  of  St.  John  Lateran  with  its  haughty  inscrip- 
tion :   Omnium  urbis  et  orbis  ecclesiarum  mater  et 
caput ;  being  the  cathedral  church,  and  the  adjoining 
Lateran  palace,  which  tradition  says  was  given  by 
Constantine  to  Sylvester  I.,  being  the  place  of  resi- 
dence.    Secondly,   it   included   the   metropolitan  or  ib)  Arch- 
arckiepiscopal  sw^ennt^nd^nce.  of  the  Roman  territory,  of  the 
with  jurisdiction  over  the  seven   suffragan  bishops,  ^f^/lX 
afterwards   called  cardinal  bishops  ;   the  bishops   of  ^'^"[^l"^ 
Ostia,    Portus,    Silva    Candida,    Sabina,    Praeneste, 
Tusculum,  and  Albanum.     Thirdly,  it  included  the  (0  P^^tri- 


12  THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 

PART    patriarchal  oversight  of   the   suburban   provinces,^ 

which  were  under  the  poHtical  jurisdiction  of  the  Vi- 

siibiirban  carius  Urbis,  viz.,  Campania,  Tuscany  with  Umbria, 
provtmes.  pj^^gj-^^j^^  Valeria,  Samnium,  ApuHa  with  Calabria, 
Lucania  with  Bruttii ;  in  short.  Upper  Italy,  together 
with  the  three  islands  of  Sicily,  Sardinia,  and  Corsica. 
As  patriarch,  the  Roman  bishop  stood  on  the  same 
footing  as  the  four  great  patriarchs  of  the  East, 
those  of  Constantinople,  Alexandria,  Antioch,  Jeru- 
salem ;  he  enjoyed  however  the  primacy  of  honour  ; 
and  standing  alone  in  the  West,  whereas  four  pa- 
triarchs divided  the  primacy  of  the  East,  his  juris- 
diction often  seemed  to  extend  to  districts  where  he 
had  no  jurisdiction  by  right  For  the  vicariate  of 
Rome  was  only  one  among  four  vicariates,  into  which 
the  great  prefecture  of  Italy  was  politically  divided  ; 
the  other  vicariates  being  Northern  Italy,  with  its 
centre  at  Milan  ;  Western  Illyria,  with  its  capital  at 
Sirmium  ;    and  Western  Africa,   with   its  capital  at 


'  The  term  suburbicariae  ecclesiae  first  appears  in  Rufini, 
Hist.  Eccl.  i.  (x.)  6,  and  was  the  subject  of  a  violent  controversy 
in  the  seventeenth  century  between  Jacob  Gothofred  and  his 
Iriend  Salmasius  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  Jesuit  Sismond  on  the 
other.  Two  civil  officers  presided  over  the  vicariate  of  Rome, 
the  Praefectus  Urbi  and  the  Vicarius  Urbis.  The  district  of  the 
prefect  extended  beyond  the  city  of  Rome  to  the  one  hundredth 
milestone,  that  of  the  vicarius  included  the  ten  provinces  named 
in  the  text.  Gothofred  and  Salmasius  maintain  that  by  regiones 
suburbicariae  is  meant  the  district  of  the  prefect,  whereas  Sismond 
maintains  that  it  is  the  district  of  the  vicarius.  The  conclusion 
would  seem  to  be  that,  although  the  former  are  right  in  their  inter- 
pretation of  the  term  regiones  suburbicariae,  the  jurisdiction  of 
the  Roman  patriarch,  nevertheless,  extended  over  the  district  of 
the  vicarius.     See  Hefele,  ConciL  Gesch.  \.  380. 


STATE    OF   THE   SEE   OF  ROME. 

Carthage.     So  far  were  Gaul,  Spain,  and  Britain  from     chap. 

belonging  to  the  vicariate  of  Rome,  that  they  consti- ' . 

tuted  together  a  separate  prsefecture,  known  as  the 
praefecture  of  Gaul.  Nevertheless  all  these  districts 
were  in  time  drawn  into  the  patriarchate  of  Rome, 
and  indeed  the  whole  of  Western  Europe  as  it 
gradually  came  under  the  influence  of  Christianity. 

In    addition  to   this  threefold   dignity  of  bishop,   (3)  -S^- 
archbishop   and   patriarch,    which    had  belonged  to  ofa"fvj 
the  bishops  of  Rome  ever  since  the  political  divisions     ^S*"^y- 

id)  Pre- 

of  the  Empire  had  been  reproduced  in  the  metro-  paratiom 
politan  constitution  of  the  Church,  the  germs  of  a  Papacy. 
fourth  and  yet  higher  dignity,  which,  in  distinction 
from  the  others,  may  be  termed  the  Papacy,  had 
begun  to  appear  in  the  fifth  century,  and  were  be- 
coming prominent  towards  the  beginning  of  the 
seventh  century.  At  first  these  germs  were  small 
indeed,  being  a  mere  claim  to  ecclesiastical  primacy  ; 
but  gradually  increasing  with  the  lapse  of  time,  they 
culminated  in  the  twelfth  century  in  an  ecclesiastical 
monarchy,  claiming  to  be  the  ecclesiastical  counterpart 
of  the  Roman  Empire,  nay  more,  demanding  for  the 
bishops  of  Rome  an  absolute  despotic  sovereignty, 
not  only  over  ecclesiastical  matters,  but  also  over  the 
whole  political  fabric  of  Europe.  The  growth  of 
this  new  dignity,  and  the  successive  stages  by  which 
it  attained  to  greatness,  until  its  very  greatness  led 
to  reaction  and  decline,  occupy  from  henceforth  the 
central  canvas  of  ecclesiastical  history.  The  an- 
nals of  pagan  Rome,  from  the  first  to  the  fifth  cen- 
turies, revolve  about  the  history  of  her  emperors. 
Not  otherwise  does  the  history  of  Western  Christen- 


H 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART 
I. 


{b)  Steps 
already 
taken  to- 
wards the 
Papacy. 

(a)  De- 
cretal 
letters. 
A.D.  385 


dom  from  the  seventh  to  the  sixteenth  centuries 
revolve  about  the  institution  of  the  Papacy.  As 
formerly  the  history  of  Rome  was  merged  in  that 
of  her  emperors,  so  from  the  seventh  century  onwards 
the  history  of  Western  Christendom  was  merged  in 
that  of  her  Popes. 

Even  before  the  time  of  Gregory  I.  certain  steps 
had  been  taken  by  the  Roman  bishops,  indicative  of 
their  progress  towards  the  new  dignity  of  the  Papacy. 
On  important  questions  of  doctrine  or  discipline  it 
was  usual  for  bishops  of  one  Church  to  consult  those 
of  another.  Greater  enlightenment  was  supposed 
to  belong  to  certain  Churches  than  to  others,  and  in 
particular  marked  deference  was  paid  to  the  opinions 
of  the  bishops  of  those  Churches,^  in  which  the 
genuine  apostolical  tradition  was  believed  to  have 
been  handed  down  uncorrupted.  One  such  Apostolical 
Church  alone  existed  in  the  West — the  Church  of 
Rome — unless  indeed  the  mere  doubtful  tradition  of 
St.  Barnabas  havinof  been  at  Milan  can  be  authen- 
ticated;  and  hence  on  all  disputed  points  the  Western 
bishops  could  appeal  only  to  the  Church  of  Rome.  In 
reply  to  the  questions  addressed  to  them,  the  Roman 
bishops  had  issued  pastoral  epistles  from  the  time  of 
Siricius  onwards,  at  first  couched  in  the  language  of 
fraternal  counsel,  but  soon  assuming  the  tone  of 
apostolic  authority,  and  about  the  year  500  the  name 
of  decretal   letter  is  first  met  with.^     The  simpler 


1  On  the  respect  paid  to  Apostolic  Churches  in  early  times  see 
Tertull.  De  Praes.  Hacr.  ch.  36,  and  in  particular  Iren.  Adv. 
Hacr.  iii.  3. 

*  According  to  Gieseler,  Ecd.  Hist.  i.  436  (English  transl.), 


dvmin- 
idn. 


STATE   OF   THE  SEE   OF  ROME.  je 

term   epistle  now  disappears  altogether.      Its  place     chap. 
is  exclusively  occupied  by  decretal  letters.      In  itself,  — ^— — - 
and  taken  alone,  this  chancre  of  name  may  seem  a 
small  thing,  hardly  deserving  consideration  ;  but  yet  tensions 
that  change  in    the  use  of  a   term  indicated   a   real  archal 
change  of  feeling  and  a  real  change  of  relations.     It 
showed  that  the  relation  of  other  bishops  to  that  of 
Rome  was  altered,  and  that  Christendom  was  con- 
scious of  the  alteration.      It  showed   that   the   filial 
relation  of  deference  was  at  an  end,  supplanted  by 
the  servile  relation  of  dependence.      It  showed  that 
the  Roman  Church  was  fast  progressing  to  the  time 
when   she  would   be  mistress    of  Churches,   laying 
down  laws  which  none  might  dare  to  gainsay. 

Nor  was  this  result  retarded  by  the  inclusion  of 
Africa,  Spain,  France,  and  the  independent  Churches 
of  Milan  and  Ravenna  in  the  patriarchate  of  Southern 
Italy.  Africa,  after  resisting  the  appeal  of  Apiarius 
to  the  two  Roman  bishops,  Zosimus  and  Coelestine,^ 
yielded  her  claims  to  independence  from  a  sense  of 

note,  the  first  existing  decretal  is  SiRicii  Epist.  ad  Himerium  Episc. 
Tarraconensern  a.d.  385,  but  it  refers  to  missa  ad  provincias  a 
venerandae  memoriae  praedecessore  meo  Liberie  [352-366]  gene- 
ralia  decreta.  The  expression  Epistola  Decretahs  first  appears  in 
the  so-called  Decretum  Gelasii  de  libris  recipiendis  et  non  reci- 
piendis  about  500  a.d.  The  original  term  is  Decretum,  aftenvards 
Statutum,  or  Constitutum  decretale.  Properly  decretum  means 
the  decision  of  a  college,  and  it  may  have  been  used  as  expressing 
the  decision  of  the  Roman  Presbytery.  See  Spittler's  Gesch. 
des  katioii.  Rechts,  Halle,  1778,  p.  157. 

^  A  presbyter,  Apiarius,  having  been  deposed  for  sundry  offences 
by  Bishop  Urbanus  of  Sicca,  a  disciple  and  friend  of  Augustine,  had 
appealed  to  Rome,  and  been  restored  to  office  by  Zosimus  on  the 
strength  of  the  Sardican  canons,  which  were  quoted  as  Nicene. 
Apiarius  was   deposed  again,  but   the  attempt   of  Coelestine   to 


i6 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART  her  weakness  under  the  shock  of  the  Vandals.^  The 
'  CathoHc  bishops  of  Spain,  oppressed  by  the  Arian 
Vandals,  Suevi  and  Alani,  sought  to  fortify  their 
own  position  by  cultivating  a  closer  union  with 
Rome.  In  France  the  dissensions  between  the 
archbishops  of  Aries  on  the  one  hand,  and  the 
metropolitans  of  Vienne,  Narbo,  and  Marseilles  on 

418-424  the  other,  had  afforded  Zosimus  an  opportunity  for 
intermeddling  in  the  affairs  of  that  Church.''^  Zosimus 
had  appointed   the  archbishop   of  Aries  his  vicar. 

440-461  Leo  withdrew  the  privilege  from  Hilary  on  the  appeal 
of  a  deposed  bishop,  and  reinstated  Celidonius  in 
443  the  see  of  which  Hilary  had  deprived  him.  As 
though  this  exercise  of  more  than  patriarchal  autho- 
rity were  not  enough,  he  obtained  from  the  weak 
emperor  Valentinian  HI.  an  edict,  addressed  to 
Aetius,  the  governor-general  of  Gaul,  confirmatory  of 
his  conduct;^  in  which,  among  other  things,   it  is 


restore  him  was  met  by  the  Africans  forbidding  all  interference 
and  interdicting  appeals  to  foreign  bishops.     See  Cone.  African, 
ad  Coelestinum,  a.  d.  425,  and  Concil.  Milevitan.  ii.  a.  d.  416,  Can. 
22  in  GiES.  Ecd.  Hist.  i.  450  note  (Engl.  Trans.).     Mil.  i.  240. 
'  GiES.  Ecd.  Hist.  i.  452. 

2  On  the  dispute  between  Hilary  and  Leo,  see  Gies.  i.  448. 

3  The  words  of  the  edict  quoted  by  Gies.  i.  452  note  :  '  Cum 

*  igitur  sedis  apostolicae  primatum  sancti  Petri  meritum,  qui  prin- 

*  ceps  est  episcopalis  coronae,  et  Romanae  dignitas  civitatis,  sacrae 

*  etiam  synodi  firmarit  auctoritas,  ne  quid  praeter  auctbritatem 

*  sedis   illius   illicita   praesumtio   attentare   nitatur.     Tunc   enim 

*  demum  ecclesiarum  pax  ubique  servabitur,  si  rectorem  suum  ag- 

*  noscat  universitas Nee  hoc  solum,  quod  est  maximi  cri- 

'  minis,  submovemus,  verum  ne  levis  saltem  inter  ecclesias  turba 
'  nascatur,  vel  in  aliquo  minui  religionis  disciplina  videatur,  hac 

*  perenni  sanctione  censemus,  ne  quid  tarn  episcopis  Gallicanis 


II. 


STATE   OF   THE  SEE    OF  ROME.  ^j 

Stated  that  no  one  ought  to  attempt  anything  without  chap. 
the  authority  of  the  Apostohc  See,  that  peace  can 
only  be  preserved  in  the  Churches  when  the  whole 
universe  acknowledges  its  ruler  ;  that  no  bishops  of 
Gaul  or  elsewhere  should  attempt  anything  without 
its  being  ratified  by  the  authority  of  the  venerable 
bishop  of  the  eternal  city,  and  that  whatever  he  has 
sanctioned  or  shall  sanction  shall  have  the  force  of 
law,  and  be  executed  by  the  civil  authorities.  Milan, 
too,  the  independent  patriarchate  in  northern  Italy, 
tracing  back  its  origin  to  the  Apostle  Barnabas,  had 
become  reconciled  to  Rome  when  pressed  by  the 
Lombards.^  Ravenna  had  done  the  same.  And 
elsewhere  in  Europe,  thanks  to  the  labours  of  the 
early  missionaries,  new  nations  were  being  won  for 
Christ,  and  at  the  same  time  for  the  patriarchal  rule 
of  Rome.  All  circumstances,  in  short,  seemed  to 
have  combined  to  facilitate  the  establishment  of  an 
ecclesiastical  monarchy.  The  assertion  had  already 
been  made  that  the  bishop  of  Rome  is  subject  to  no 
earthly  judge.^ 

'  quam  aliarum  provinciarum  contra  consuetudinem  veterem  liceat 
'  sine  viri  venerabilis  papae  urbis  aeternae  auctoritate  tentare. 
'  Sed  hoc  illis  omnibusque  pro  lege  sit,  quicquid  sanxit  vel  sanxerit 
'  apostolicae  sedis  auctoritas,  ita  ut,  quisquis  episcoporum  ad 
'  judicium  Romani  antistitis  evocatus  venire  neglexerit  per  mo- 
'  deratorem  ejusdem  provinciae  adesse  cogatur,  per  omnia  servatis, 
*  quae  divi  parentes  nostri  Romanae  ecclesiae  detulerunt' 

^  GiES.  ii.  129. 

^  By  Ennodius,  bishop  of  Ticinum,  511,  in  his  Libellus  Apolo- 
geticiis  pro  Synodo  IV.  Roinana — the  Sy nodus  Palmaris,  a.d.  501. 
See  Labbe  and  Cossart  ad  annum.  The  Synod  has  been  con- 
vened in  501  byTheodoric  to  examine  the  charges  alleged  against 
the  new-elected  bishop,  Symmachus.     See   Gies.   ii.    124.     The 

C 


g  THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 

PART,         The  prestige  which  Gregory  I.  found  attaching  to 
'- the  See  of  Rome  at  the  time  of  his  accession  to  office, 


A.D. 


570-580  he  continued  to  advance  in  more  ways  than  one, 
B.  Grc-  sometimes  consciously,  but  more  often  unconsciously 
the  in  the  faithful  discharge  of  what  seemed  to  him  to 

^^  be  his  duty.  Under  no  circumstances,  however, 
590-604  f.^^  Gregory  be  charged  with  the  low  personal 
ambition  which  was  displayed  by  so  many  of  his 
successors.  If  Gregory  wished  to  advance  the 
powers  of  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  it  was  for  the  sake 
of  order  and  discipline.  If  Gregory  sought  to  in- 
clude under  the  sheltering  wing  of  his  patriarchate 
the  whole  of  Western  Europe,  it  was  that  it  might 
profit  by  the  civilising  influence  of  the  Roman 
Church — a  Church  in  culture,  in  purity,  in  the  gran- 
deur and  impressiveness  of  her  services  far  sur- 
passing any  of  her  Western  sisters.  If  Gregory 
overstepped  a  patriarch's  admitted  rights,  drawing 
the  ties  of  connection  between  himself  and  other 
bishops  more  closely,  and  sometimes  undoubtedly 
transgressing  his  rightful  powers,  it  was  again  done 
in  the  interests  of  morality  and  purity.  Europe 
acquiesced  in  his  zeal  for  discipline.  If  the  voice  of 
discontent  was  raised  by  some  aggrieved  prelates, 
pleading  the  rights  of  their  Churches,  it  was  soon 
stifled  in  the  general  approval  which  Gregory's 
conduct  commanded  among  all  the  better  men. 
Gregory's  interference  was  felt  to  be  judicious,  well- 
timed,  in  the  cause  of  truth  ;  and  soon  the  question  of 

Synod  according  to  Ennodius  stated  :  *  Non  nos  beatum  Petrum, 
'  sicut  dicitis,  a  domino  cum  sedis  privilegiis,  vel  successores  ejus, 
'  peccandi  judicamus  licentiam  suscepisse.' 


GREGORY  I.    THE   GREAT^ 


19 


right  was  dropped  altogether,  and  it  became  a  re-    chap. 

ceived  axiom,  that  the  closer  the  connection  between 

any  Church  and  Rome,  the  more  would  true  religion 
flourish  and  abound. 

Viewing  the  matter  from  another  side,  the  Impor- 
tance of  Gregory's  administration  for  the  subsequent 
history  of  the  Papacy  cannot  be  overrated.  Western 
Europe  was  then  in  a  most  susceptible  state,  just 
beg-innlnof  to  settle  down  after  the  violent  convulsions 
which  had  overthrown  the  Western  Empire.  Every- 
where were  new  nations,  brave,  impetuous,  capable, 
but  ignorant  alike  of  letters  and  political  institutions. 
Like  children  emerging  into  youth,  the  nations  of 
Europe  were  then  most  susceptible  of  every  Influ- 
ence, either  for  good  or  evil.  Whatever  culture 
they  might  now  meet,  whatever  creed  they  might 
now  learn,  whatever  Institutions  they  might  now 
be  accustomed  to,  either  in  Church  or  State,  this 
culture,  creed,  and  Institutions  would  be  theirs  for 
the  future.  Perhaps  at  some  far  distant  time  they 
might  rise  superior  to  the  associations  of  their  child- 
hood, but  that  time  would  not  be  till  their  matu- 
rity was  past.  Hence  the  bearings  on  the  future  of 
Rome's  attitude  towards  them  at  the  beginning 
of  the  seventh  century.  Hence  the  importance  of 
Gregory's  powerful  administration.  It  taught  them 
to  expect  powerful  administration  from  Rome ;  It 
taught  them  to  expect  to  see  that  power  exercised 
in  the  cause  of  justice  and  right ;  it  taught  them  to 
reverence  Rome,  and  to  submit,  to  own  her  moral 
ascendency,  to  learn  to  obey.  Had  a  pontiff  less 
zealous,    less    energetic,    less  able  than  Gregory  I. 


20 


THE   WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART  occupied  the  See  of  Rome,  had  he  been  followed 
— '- —  by  pontiffs  imbued  with  less  of  his  spirit  than 
Gregory  III.,  Zacharias,  and  Nicolas  I.,  the  eccle- 
siastical relations  of  Europe  might  have  been  altered. 
An  archbishop  of  Cologne,  or  Triers,  or  Mainz, 
might  have  occupied  the  place  that  the  popes  did  in 
later  times,  or  the  nations  of  Europe  might  have 
developed  more  republican  and  less  monarchical 
forms  of  government. 

The  points  in  Gregory's  career  which  contributed 
towards  bringing  about  these  results,  may  be  summed 
up  under  the  three  heads  of:  i,  Gregory's  eccle- 
siastical administration;  2,  his  political  relations; 
and  3,  his  home  relations.  Under  the  former  head 
must  be  included  not  only  Gregory's  general  policy 
towards  other  Churches — that  policy  of  drawing  the 
ties  closer  between  himself  and  them,  in  which  he 
was  influenced  in  no  small  degree  by  the  political 
position  of  the  empire,  still  in  theory  the  mistress  of 
the  world  ; — but  still  more  the  mission  which  he  set 
on  foot  to  England,  so  fruitful  in  after  consequences  ; 
since  through  England,  Germany,  and  through  Ger- 
many, France,  was  attached  to  Rome  in  the  closest 
ties  of  dependence.  To  these  must  be  added  the 
cases  of  intervention  with  individual  bishops,  and 
his  attitude  towards  his  Eastern  rival.  The  second 
head  will  include  Gregory's  attitude  towards  the 
Empire,  and  his  political  relations  to  the  Lombards. 
And  under  the  head  of  home  relations  a  few  words 
must  be  devoted  to  his  internal  administration  of 
the  See,  and  to  his  own  life  and  character,  which 
though  less  fraught  with  immediate  consequences, 


GKEGORY  /.    THE   GREAT. 


21 


added  weight  and  authority  to  his  intervention  else- 
where. 

To  a  great  extent  Gregory's  general  policy  in 
ecclesiastical  matters  was  the  result  of  the  view  he 
entertained  of  his  position,  as  within  the  Church 
corresponding  to  that  of  the  emperor  within  the 
state  ;  recognising  himself  as  subject  to  the  emperor 
no  doubt  in  temporal  concerns,  but  in  ecclesiastical 
matters  as  wholly  independent.  The  Empire  was 
the  one  great  institution  raised  above  national  pecu-^ 
liarities  by  ignoring  them,  embracing  all,  excluding 
none.  It  was  the  one  political  power  to  which  all 
others  were  or  were  believed  to  be  subject ;  and  since 
the  extinction  of  the  Western  Empire  by  the  barba- 
rians, and  the  reconquest  of  Italy,  it  was  reunited 
under  one  head  in  the  Eastern  Emperor.  Such  an 
institution,  too,  was  the  Church,  an  outward  visible 
society,  knowing  no  distinction  of  Jew  or  Greek, 
of  barbarian  or  Scythian.  Ought  not  this  society 
likewise  to  have  one  supreme  head  in  the  person 
of  St.  Peter's  successor  ?  Such  may  have  been  the 
thought  as  it  presented  itself  to  the  mind  of  Gregory. 
Practically,  this  theory  was  far  from  representing  the 
facts.  For,  since  the  Lombard  invasion,  the  emperor's 
dominions  in  Italy  were  limited  to  the  exarchate  of 
Ravenna,  the  duchy  of  Rome  and  Naples,  the  cities 
on  the  coast  of  Liguria,  and  the  extreme  provinces 
of  Lower  Italy.^  Indeed  any  one  who  recalls  the 
extent  of  the  dominions  of  the  Vicarius  Urbis,^  will 
discover  that  the  rightful   territory  of  the   Roman 


CHAP. 

II. 


(i)  Eccle- 
siastical 
Adtnitiis- 
tration. 

(a)  Gen- 
eral 
Policy. 


A.D.  476 


568 


*  GiES.  ii.  130. 


'  See  p.  12, 


2  2  THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 

PART     patriarchate  was  originally  limited  to  one-fourth  of 
the   Italian  prsefecture,  whatever  might  be  the  ad- 
dition made  in  point  of  fact  by  an  extension  of  its 
supervision  to  other  and  more  distant  districts. 

The  theory  of  Rome's  universal  sovereignty,  how- 
ever, was  one  which  had  taken  such  a  firm  pos- 
session of  men's  minds  ;  that  Empire  had  already 
survived  so  many  shocks,  and  finally  asserted  its 
dominion  over  so  many  barbarous  nations,  that  the 
upheaval  of  Europe  by  the  invasion  of  the  northern 
nations,  seemed  but  a  passing  wave  of  confusion, 
which  would  soon  subside  into  order  again.  Mean- 
time what  could  a  loyal  Roman  bishop  so  well  do  as 
to  bring  subjects  of  the  Empire  into  close  connection 
with  himself?  How  could  he  escape  the  responsi- 
bility of  holding  the  emperor's  place  during  the 
abeyance  of  order  ? 

In  such  a  spirit  of  loyalty  and  religious  duty 
Gregory  I.  may  have  acted  in  his  endeavours  to  cen- 
tralise all  authority  in  himself.  Imbued  with  the 
idea  that  to  himself  was  intrusted  by  Christ  the  care 
of  the  whole  Church,^  his  conscientiousness  led  him 
to  desire  a  personal  supervision  of  all  the  Churches. 
Regarding  Europe  simply  as  a  part  of  the  univer- 
sal Empire  of  Rome,  and  himself  as  a  subject  of 
Rome,  Gregory  I.  may  have  felt  that  ecclesiastical 
dependence  on  a  Roman  bishop  would  best  accustom 
subject  nations  to  political  dependence  on  a  Roman 

'  L.  ix.  Ep.  T2  :  '  De  Constantinopolitana  ecclesia  quis  earn 
'  dubitet,  apostolicae  sedi  esse  subjectam?  L.  ix.  Ep.  68  :  '  Sine 
'  apostolicae  sedes  auctoritate  atque  consensu  nullas  quaeque  acta 
'  fuerint  vires  habeant  [synodi]. 


GREGORY  I.    THE   GREAT.  , -, 

emperor,  and  thus  advance  order  and  good  govern-    chap. 

ment  in  general.      Once  Rome  had  thrown  the  net-  '- — • 

work  of  her  institutions  over  the  southern  world, 
and  the  Church  had  reproduced  them  ;  now  the 
Church  would  throw  that  very  same  network  of 
ecclesiastical  institutions  over  Europe,  that  upon 
them  the  Empire  might  fasten  itself  Little  was 
Gregory  aware  that  there  ^as  an  independent  vigour 
in  the  Teutonic  nations,  such  as  the  worn-out  nations 
of  the  old  world  did  not  possess,  and  that  although 
the  spell  of  a  higher  civilisation  might  for  a  time 
secure  the  victory  for  Rome  whilst  Europe  was  rude 
and  ignorant,  yet  that  no  sooner  would  Europe  awake 
to  a  consciousness  of  its  own  powers  than  it  would 
shake  off  the  Empire  and  shake  off  the  Papacy  as 
well,  building-  on  their  ruins  a  new  fabric  suited  to 
its  own  wants,  and  expressing  its  own  character. 

To   natives   of   England,  descended   from   Saxon  ih)  Con- 
forefathers,  who,  during  the  latter  part  of  the  fifth  England. 
and  sixth  centuries  had  formed  settlements  in  this 
country,   wholly   eradicating  from   the  Eastern  and 
Midland  districts  all  traces  of  Christianity,^  a  special 

^  The  arguments  for  and  against  the  existence  of  an  early- 
British  Church  are  summed  up  in  Pearson's  Early  and  Middle 
Ages  of  England,  ch.  v.,  -with  the  following  results  :  'A  Christian 
'  Church  7niist  have  existed  in  Britain  in  the  fourth  century,  and  it 
'  7nay  have  been  founded  much  earher,  but  it  was  throughout  a  inis- 
'  sionary  establishment,  chiefly  working  among  the  native  [Celtic] 
'  tribes.  .  .  .  There  is  no  reason  to  believe  that  this  British 
*  Church  was  either  enlightened,  or  pure  in  doctrine,  or  severely 
'  moral.  Its  delegates  seem  to  have  consented  to  the  Arian  apos- 
'tacy  at  Rimini  [a.d.  357].  A  few  years  later  the  speculations  of 
'Pelagius  were  generally  adopted.  As  late  as  a.d.  429  the  greater 
'  part  of  the  British  army  at  Maes  Garmon  was  unbaptised,  although 


5^  THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 

PART     interest  seems  to  gather  about  the  name  of  Gregory  I., 

as    being    the    instrument   by  whom    an    organised 

Church  was  first  introduced  into  their  island.  What- 
ever notions  of  Christianity  may  once  have  existed 
among  the  Celtic  inhabitants  who  previously  occu- 
pied these  districts  of  Britain ;  those  notions  had 
been  entirely  obliterated  by  the  invasion  of  the 
Saxons ;  and  only  among  the  Celtic  races  of  Wales 
and  Cornwall  did  anything  like  Christian  Churches 
still  survive.^  To  Gregory,  therefore,  Saxon  Eng- 
land is  indebted  for  all  her  Christianity.  To  his 
zeal  she  owes  her  Church,  her  bishops,  her  monas- 
teries. Ever  since  the  day  when  visiting  the  slave- 
market  in  Kome,^  he  had  come  in  contact  with  the 
fair  light-haired  Saxon  youths,  and  had  asked  after 
their  place  of  birth,  the  name  of  their  nation,  the 
province  from  which  they  came,  and  the  name  of 
their  prince,  playfully  putting  a  new  meaning  on  their 
replies — How  could  the  author  of  darkness  possess 
men  of  countenances  so  fair  ?  Were  they  called 
Angles  ?  it  was  well  since  they  possessed  angelic 
faces,  and  would  soon  be  co-heirs  with  the  angels 
in     heaven  "^     Was     their   province    called    Deira  ? 


'nominally  Christian.'  The  native  historian  Gildas,  Hist.  iii.  22, 
declares  that  the  wars  and  invasion  which  scourged  the  island 
were  the  just  vengeance  of  God  on  the  ineffable  sins  of  the  princes 
and  people.  But  whatever  knowledge  of  Christianity  may  have 
existed  among  the  earlier  Celtic  inhabitants,  two  facts  are  at  least 
certain  :  i,  that  the  Saxon  inhabitants  of  England  were  heathen 
at  the  time  of  Augustine's  mission  :  and  2,  that  Saxon  England 
received  her  first  knowledge  of  Christianity  from  Rome. 

1  See  Freeman's  Norman  Conquest^  i.  33. 

'  Bede,  Hist.  Ecd.  ii.  i. 


GREGORY  I.    THE   GREAT.  jtj 

Truly  they  were  rescued  de  ira.     Was  their  king    chap. 
called  Aella  ?       Then    soon  would  Alleluia  to  the  '- — - 


praise  of  the  Creator  resound  in  his  realm — ever 
since  that  memorable  day  Gregory  could  never 
forget  his  much-loved  Angles,  and  was  haunted  by 
the  desire  to  win  them  for  Christ.  Once  he  had 
formed  the  scheme  of  setting  out  on  a  mission  to  them 
himself,  but  had  been  unable  to  carry  it  out,  since  the 
Romans  would  not  allow  him  to  leave  their  city. 
But  at  length  Augustine  had  been  despatched,  and 
Kent  had  been  won  by  his  preaching.  Letters  were 
frequently  passing  between  Gregory  and  England, 
and  soon  England  was  brought  into  peculiar,  rela- 
tions of  dependence  on  Rome.  Perhaps  nowhere 
else  was  the  veneration  for  Rome  so  intense  as 
among  the  English  people.  Monks  and  nuns,  bishops 
and  princes,  were  continually  making  pilgrimages  to 
Rome,  by  which  the  tie  was  knit  all  the  closer.  A 
store  of  books  and  the  elements  of  art  ^  were  intro- 
duced from  Rome  into  England,  and  after  the  Synod  a.d.  664 
of  Whitby,^  the  Roman  uses  prevailed  in  the  nor- 
thern parts  of  the  country,  having  displaced  the  uses 
introduced  from  Scotland  :  for,  said  Oswy,  then  king 
of  Northumbria,  '  Bpth  Colman  and  Wilfrid  agree 
that  the  keys  of  heaven  were  given  to  Peter  by  our 
Lord.  And  I  also  say  unto  you  that  he  is  the  door- 
keeper, whom  I  will  not  contradict  ....  lest  when 
I  come  to  the  gates  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven  there 
should  be  none  to  open  them,  and  the  possessor  of 
the  keys  prove   my  enemy,'     The    historians    of  a 

*  Bede,  Hist.  Ecel.  iv.  18.     Neand.  v.  157.  *  Bede,  iii.  25. 


26 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART 
I. 


{c)  Rela- 
tions to 
indivi- 
dual 
bishops. 


{')  In 

Dal- 

viatia. 


later  day,  when  the  rupture  with  Rome  had  come 
about,  may  magnify  the  instances  of  insubordination 
and  rebelHon  against  Rome  which  are  on  record ; 
but  these  instances,  far  from  proving  a  general  com- 
bination of  the  people  to  resist  claims,  which  they 
believed  to  be  unfounded,  are  rather  evidence  of  the 
insubordination  of  a  rude  and  still  lawless  people. 
Throughout  the  Saxon  Church  appears  in  the  closest 
connection  with  R'ome  ;  and  until  the  Norman  Con- 
quest altered  the  relations  between  England  and 
Rome,  the  greneral  desire  was  to  draw  the  connection 
still  closer,  and  on  every  point  to  assimilate  the 
English  Church  to  that  of  Rome. 

Yet  neither  Gregory's  general  policy,  nor  the 
conversion  of  England,  fruitful  as  it  was  in  after 
consequences,  exhibits  so  clearly  the  vigour  of  his 
ecclesiastical  administration  as  do  his  particular  re- 
lations to  individual  bishops.  Witness  his  epistles 
addressed  to  Augustine,  or  those  addressed  to  the 
French  bishops,  his  conduct  toward  the  Bishop  of 
Sipontum,  calling  him  to  account  for  his  criminal 
remissness,  his  deposition  of  Laurence,  the  first  of 
the  seven  deacons,  and  his  degrading  the  Bishop  of 
Melita.^  His  letter  addressed  to  Natalis,  Bishop  of 
Salona,  requiring  him  to  restore  his  deposed  Arch- 
deacon Honoratus,  whose  only  fault  had  been  that 
he  had  too  faithfully  protested  against  the  unlawful 
conduct  of  Natalis,  may  appear  a  stretch  of  his 
patriarchal    prerogative,^   but    it   was    a   stretch    of 


'  See  MiLMAN,  ii.  120.     Neander  v.  150  (Engl,  trans.). 
2  Neander  v.  152. 


r 


GREGORY  L    THE   GREAT.  2  7 

power  in  the  cause  of  justice  and  discipline.      Natalis     chap. 

II 
could  have  expected  no  milder  treatment  at  the  hands  '- — - 

of  a  synod.  A  bishop  who  could  defend  his  luxu- 
rious entertainments  by  appealing  to  the  example  of 
Abraham,  who  could  give  away  to  his  relations  the 
vessels  and  hangings  of  the  Church,  and  who  could 
plead  in  defence  of  his  own  idleness  that  Christ  had 
promised  to  grant  the  illumination  of  the  Spirit,  to 
those  who  ask,  does  not  seem  to  have  been  hardly 
treated  by  Gregory.  The  general  feeling  of  the  age 
condemned  the  conduct  of  Natalis.  What  could  he 
do  against  the  just  decision  of  Gregory  ? 

Nor  was  this  instance  of  Intervention  in  the  affairs  0^)  In 
of  a  distant  Church  unique.  With  similar  rigour 
Gregory  interposed  his  authority  in  Spain  to  restore 
two  bishops  ^  who  had  been  deposed  by  the  caprice 
of  a  nobleman.  The  Spanish  Church  had  in  fact 
yielded  her  independence  to  Rome  in  the  time  of 
Leo  I.,  and  the  authoritative  tone  which  Siricius 
had  first  used  when  addressing  Bishop  Himerius,  had 
been  reproduced  in  Leo's  letters  to  Turibius,  Bishop  a.d.  443 
of  Asturica,  and  to  the  Bishops  of  Gaul  and  Spain. 
Since  then  Simplicius  had  appointed  a  Spanish  467-483 
bishop,  Zeno  of  Seville,  papal  vicar.  Now  Gregory, 
by  conferring  the  pallium  on  Leander,  completed  the 
Roman  claim  to  superiority.'^  The  subjection  of  the 
Spanish  Church  had  been  rendered  easy  by  the  con- 
version of  the  Visigothic  king  Reckared  to  the  Ni- 
cene  faith.  The  closeness  of  a  tie  which  the  older 
Spanish    communities    had    resorted   to,   to   protect 

^  Neander  v.  157.  2  Greg.  Ep.  i.  41. 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART      themselves   from    A  nanism    during  the    Visigothic 


I. 


dominion  in  Spain,  was,  by  his  conversion,  extended 
A.D.  589  to  the  whole  Spanish  Church,  though  it  was  in  con- 
sequence somewhat  relaxed ;  ^  and  henceforth  the 
archbishops  of  Seville  habitually  received  the  pal- 
lium at  the  hands  of  the  Roman  pontiffs  in  token  of 
their  superior  jurisdiction. 
(y)  In  In  Gaul  Gregory's  authority  was  of  a  more  re- 

stricted character,  greater,  however,  in  the  southern 
than  in  the  northern  district.  The  Franks,  until 
their  sovereigns  leagued  themselves  with  the  bishops 
of  Rome  for  purposes  of  mutual  aggrandisement, 
could  never  forget  that  their  Church  had  sprung  up 
independently  of  Rome.^  Nevertheless  there  were 
not  wanting  instances  of  Roman  intervention  in  the 
affairs  of  the  Gallic  Church.  Two  Prankish  bishops, 
Salonius  of  Embrun  and  Sagittarius  of  Gap,^  after 
having  been  rightfully  deposed,  had  been  restored 
559-573  to  their  sees  by  John  III.  ;  but  their  restoration  was 
really  due  to  the  favour  of  King  Guntram,  who 
first  allowed  them  to  appeal  to  Rome,  and  afterwards 
enforced  the  decision  of  John  III.  It  neither  re- 
flects credit  on  the  pontiff's  judgment  nor  on  his 
independence  of  political  influences.  By  Gregory 
letters  were  frequently  addressed  to  the  sovereigns 
of  France,  to  Queen  Brunhild,  to  Thierry  and  Theo- 
debert,  and  to  Clotair,  full  of  remonstances  against 
the  irregularities  *  prevailing  in  the  promotion  of 
young  and  unworthy  persons  to  ecclesiastical  digni- 


'  GiES.  ii.  188;  Neand.  v.  157.  ^  Milman,  i.  444. 

'  GiES.  ii.  187.  *  Ibid.  ii.  121. 


GREGORY  I.    THE  GREAT. 


29 


ties  ;  but  by  the  state  of  the  French  Church  a  few    chap. 

.                                            .                                   n. 
years  later,  it  would  not  appear  that  his  remonstrances 

were  attended  with  much  effect. 

If  proof  were  required  to  show  that  in  all  his  in-  ()  Rela- 
terposition  in  the  affairs  of  foreign  churches,  Gregory  other 
was  actuated  by  a  disinterested  love  of  justice  and  ^rchs. 
the  advancement  of  true  religion,  rather  than  by  any 
selfish  love  of  power,  such  proof  may  be  easily  found 
in  his  conduct  towards  the  great  patriarchs.     There 
is  nowhere  any  extravagant  assumption  of  power, 
or  claim  to  supremacy,   but,   on  the  contrary,  there 
is   a  depression    of  such    claims   in    others,    and    a 
straightforward  expression  of  censure. 

The  phrase  '  as  you  commanded,'  when  addressed 
to  himself  in  a  letter  by  Eulogius,  patriarch  of  Alex- 
andria, is  disclaimed  ;  '  I  know,'  he  replied,^  '  who  I 
am  and  who  you  are.  In  dignity  and  rank  you  are 
my  brother,  in  piety  my  father.  I  did  not  command 
you,  but  only  suggested  what  to  me  seemed  expe- 
dient' In  writing  to  the  same  prelate,  the  title 
Papa  universalis,  when  applied  to  himself,  is  care- 
fully deprecated,  although  it  was  a  title  in  common 
use  among  the  Greek  bishops  of  the  principal  cities. 
Even  in  rebuking  the  pretensions  of  John  the  Faster, 
patriarch  of  Constantinople,  for  using  that  title, 
Gregory  was  careful  to  use  gentle  language  in  order 
to  spare  the  emperor's  feelings,  although  in  a  private 
letter  addressed  to  his  plenipotentiary,  he  speaks  of 
John's  conduct  with  the  severest  reprobation.  When 
the    Papacy  was  fully   established,  no    Pope   would 

'  Neander,  v.  153. 


^o 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART- 
I. 


(2)  Po- 
lilical  ;r- 
lations. 

{a)   To 

the 

E}npi7-e. 


have  hesitated  to  claim  the  name.  No  Pope  would 
have  moderated  his  language  out  of  deference  to 
the  feelings  of  an  emperor.  But  whilst  by  his  acts 
Gregory  was  pushing  his  patriarchal  prerogatives 
to  a  dangerous  limit,  the  tone  of  the  Papacy,  which 
was  ushered  into  the  world  by  the  false  decretals, 
was  far  from  being  his.  He  was  building  up  the 
framework,  into  which  the  spirit  of  hierarchical  des- 
potism was  subsequently  infused  ;  but  his  was  not 
that  spirit.  No  one  was  less  anxious  than  Gregory 
to  claim  for  himself  an  absolute  ecclesiastical  sove- 
reignty. No  one  contributed  more  than  he  did  to 
establish  such  a  sovereignty.  No  one  was  less 
anxious  to  use  his  primacy  except  in  the  cause  of 
justice  and  truth  ;  no  one  more  paved  the  way  for 
its  later  abuses. 

If  Gregory's  powerful  administration  prepared  the 
way  for  the  ecclesiastical  career  of  the  Papacy,  his 
political  relations  were  not  less  efficacious  in  attach- 
ing it  to  the  temporal  powers  of  Europe  and  thereby 
gaining  for  it  a  political  importance.  Gregory  acted 
as  a  loyal  subject  of  the  Empire  in  his  guardianship 
of  Rome,  and  in  his  relations  to  the  barbarian  na- 
tions ;  his  loyalty  was  repaid  by  the  privileges  he 
received  in  return.  Among  the  great  vassals  of  the 
emperors  none  were  more  powerful  or  more  wealthy 
than  the  bishops  of  Rome  ;  none  had  greater  influ- 
ence with  the  people ;  to  none  were  such  marked 
prerogatives  allowed;  none  had  so  great  a  political 
consequence,  which  was  rendered  all  the  more  ne- 
cessary from  the  unsettled  state  of  Italy.  From 
none,   however,    did    the  emperors    receive   greater 


GREGORY  I.    THE   GREAT.  -j 

fidelity,  until,  themselves  too  powerless  to  give  pro-     chap. 

tection  against  the  foes  by  whom  the  very  existence  '■ — ■ 

of  Italy  was  imperilled,  they  compelled  the  Popes 
to  transfer  their  allemance  elsewhere  in  return  for 
the  protection  which  they  received. 

Fom  their  entrance  into  office  until  its  close,  the 
emperors  allowed  the  bishops  of  Rome  to  be  re- 
presented at  the  court  by  clerical  representatives, 
called  Apocrisiarii  or  Responsales  ;  the  confirmation 
of  their  election  was  applied  for  at  Constantinople 
by  the  Roman  clergy^  in  terms  of  the  most  abject 
humility;  their  taxes  were  paid  into  the  imperial 
exchequer.  In  the  close  intimacy  which  prevailed 
between  the  See  of  old  Rome  and  the  court  of  new 
Rome  may  be  found  an  early  instance  of  the  intimacy 
which  was  reproduced  by  the  popes  and  emperors  of 
the  Holy  Empire.  At  the  time  of  Gregory,  how- 
ever, that  intimacy  was  still  in  its  infancy.  Gregory 
might  remonstrate  and  protest  against  imperial  de- 
cisions ;  he  might  triumph  over  the  fall  of  Maurice  ;^ 
but  Gregory  was  still  a  subject  of  Rome,  and  even 
bowed  before  Phocas  with  base  adulation. 

In  dealing  with  the  Lombards,  however,  at  once  ib)  To 
the  nearest  and  most  dangerous  opponents  of  the  bards.    ' - 


'  In  the  Liber  diurnus  Romanorum  Pontijicum  in  the  eighth 
century,  the  form  of  apphcation  is  to  be  found  addressed  to  the 
emperor  :  '  Lacrymabihter  cuncti  famuli  suppHcamus,  ut  domi- 
'  norum  pietas  servorum  suorum  obsecrationes  dignanter  exaudiat 
'  et  concessa  pietatis  suae  jussione  petentium  desideria  ad  effectum 
'  de  ordinatione  ipsius  praecipiat  pervenire.'  See  Neand.  v.  156  ; 
GiESELER,  ii.  131, 

^  GiES.  ii.  132. 


32 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART 
I. 


A.D.  593 


(3)  Inter- 
nal ad- 
ministra- 
iioH, 


Empire,  he  acted  with  all  the  rigour  of  an  indepen- 
dent prince.  His  exposition  of  Ezekiel  was  abruptly 
broken  off,  when  the  Lombards  had  advanced  so  far 
as  to  besiege  the  city  ;  the  commanders  of  the  garri- 
son were  encouraged  to  avert  the  impending  capture 
of  the  metropolis  ;  by  his  influence  a  final  peace  was 
concluded.  The  exarch  pretended  to  despise  Gre- 
gory's weakness,  in  supposing  the  Lombards  dis- 
posed to  peace ;  the  Emperor  Maurice  regarded  his 
proceedings  with  jealousy  ;  but  Gregory  possessed 
greater  powers  than  he  displayed.  He  had  gained 
the  Queen  Theodelinda ;  he  had  reconciled  her  to 
Constantine,  Bishop  of  Milan.  Under  her  son 
Adelwald  more  Lombard  subjects  embraced  the 
Nicene  faith,  and  from  the  time  of  King  Grimoald 
it  became  the  received  religion  of  the  Lombards.^ 
Nevertheless,  even  after  their  change  of  creed,  the 
Lombards  remained  as  before  the  most  implacable 
enemies  of  Rome ;  their  attitude  was  always  mena- 
cing ;  often  their  menaces  were  carried  into  cruel 
execution. 

Amidst  all  this  extension  of  the  boundaries  of  the 
Church,  the  care  devoted  to  distant  parts,  and  the 
troubles  which  disturbed  Italy,  Gregory  L  never 
forgot  the  claims  of  his  own  Church  or  his  position 
in  it  as  bishop.  Living  a  simple  and  monastic  life 
in  the  midst  of  monks  and  clergy,  superintending 
the  music  which  he  had  lately  improved,  labouring 


'  GiES.  ii.  186;  Neand.  v.  156;  Milman,  ii.  132  seq. 


II. 


THE   SUCCESSORS   OF  GREGORY  %  ^^ 

diligently  as  a  preacher,  an-d  no  less  actively' in"  re-  chap. 
lieving  the  wants  of  the  needy  by  a  monthly  distri- 
bution of  alms ;  at  one  time  expounding  Ezekiel 
whilst  the  Lombards  were  threatening  the  city;  at 
another  cuttinsf  himself  off  from  the  eucharist  because 
a  poor  man  had  been  found  dead  in  the  streets  ;  at 
another  sending  dishes  from  his  own  table  to  persons 
whom  he  knew  to  be  in  want ;  at  another  labouring 
with  his  pen,  or  improving  the  service  of  the  mass, 
Gregory  astonishes  us  no  less  by  the  versatility  of 
his  genius  than  by  his  philanthropy  and  Christian 
devotion.^  So  far  from  entertaining  proud  notions 
of  his  own  position,  although  surrounded  with  all 
the  splendour  of  rank,  he  looked  upon  official  life  as 
a  burden  :  '  I,  therefore,'  he  writes,  'consider  what  I 
endure ;  I  consider  what  I  have  lost ;  and  when  I 
behold  that  loss,  what  I  bear  appears  the  more 
grievous.'^  So  far  from  claiming  an  absolute  sove- 
reignty over  the  Church,  he  applied  to  himself  in  a 
genuine  sense  the  modest  title  which  the  haughtiest 
of  his  successors  have  never  since  disdained.  Gregory, 
the  greatest  bishop  that  had  hitherto  been  chosen 
to  preside  over  the  Western  Patriarchate,  could  call 
himself  '  Servus  servorum  Dei ; '  and  yet  this  servant 
of  servants,  if  Leo  I.  is  excepted,  stands  out  immea- 
surably above  his  predecessors  and  successors  for 
centuries. 


'  See   Neand.   v.    149;    Milman,  ii.    113;   Montalembert, 
ii.  80  ;  GiES.  li.  145. 

*  See  Greg.  Praefat,  in  Dial.  0pp.  iii.  233  \  Epist.  i.  4,  7. 

D 


34 

PART 
I. 

C.   The 

successors 
of  Gre- 
gory I, 

A.D. 
604-725 

(I)  De- 
pendence 
OH  the 
Eastern 
Empire. 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 

Under  the  successors^  of  Gregory  I.  the  See  of 
Rome  still  continued  in  dependence  on  the  Eastern 
Empire,  and  many  of  the  Roman  bishops  experienced 
to  their  cost  the  dangers  of  such  a  state.  The 
opponent  of  the  Monothelites,  Martin  I.,  who  in  his 
zeal  to  guard  the  purity  of  the  Church's  teaching 
called  a  council  at  Rome  in  the  year  649,^  and  there 
promulgated  twenty  canons  by  way  of  reply  to  the 


*  The  successors  of  Gregory  were  as  follows 


Elected 


Sabinianus 
Boniface  III. 
Boniface  IV. 
Deusdedit 
Boniface  V. 
Honorius  I. 
Severinus 
John  IV. 
Theodore 
Martin  I. 
Eiigenius  T. 
Vitalian 
Adeodatus 
Donus 
Agatho 
Leo  II. 
Benedict  II. 
John  V. 
Conon 
Sergius  I. 

Paschal. 

Theodore. 
John  VI. 
John  VII. 
Sisinnius 
Constantinel. 
'  Mil.  ii.  323 


Nov, 


604 

606 

607 

614 

617 

625 

640 

640 

642 

649 

654 

657 

672 

676 

678 

682 

684 

685 

686 

687 


701 

705 
708 
708 
(book  iv, 


Died 

605  His  life  in  LabbJ!,  vi.  p.  1349. 

606  Ibid.  p.  135 1. 
614  Ibid.  p.  1353. 
617  Ibid.  p.  1385. 
625  Ibid.  p.  1395. 

639  Ibid.  p.  141 7. 

640  Ibid.  p.  1503. 
642  Ibid.  p.  1509. 
648  Ibid.  p.  1527. 

655  Ibid.  vii.  p.  I. 

657  Ibid.  p.  445. 

672  Ibid.  p.  457. 

676  Ibid,  p,  537. 

678  Ibid.  p.  587. 

682  Ibid.  p.  587. 

683  Ibid.  p.  1451. 

685  Ibid.  p.  1485. 

686  Ibid.  p.  1495. 

687  Ibid.  p.  1499. 
701  Ibid,  viii.  p.  i. 


705 
708 
708 

714 
eh.  6). 


Ibid.  p.  105. 
Ibid.  p.  III. 
Ibid.  p.  119. 
Ibid.  p.  III. 


THE   SUCCESSORS   OF  GREGORY  /. 


S"? 


'  Type   of   Constans,'   circulating   them    throughout     chap. 

the    Western    Church,    and    seeking    to    obtain  for   ^-^ 

them  universal  adoption,  soon  felt  the  heavy  arm  of 
the  imperial  vengeance.  The  '  Type '  had  been 
published  as  an  imperial  edict.  Hence  the  conduct 
of  Martin  seemed  treasonable  to  the  Byzantine 
despot.  The  arrival  of  Calliopas  as  Italian  exarch 
in  Rome  was  the  signal  for  Martin's  punishment  June  15, 
to  begin.  There,  as  he  lay  prostrated  by  an  illness 
which  had  lasted  several  months,  reclining  on  his 
couch  at  the  altar  of  the  Lateran  Church,  with  the 
clergy  assembled  around  him  ;  and  the  multitudes 
which  had  assembled  on  the  previous  Sunday  for 
public  worship  had  dispersed ;  he  was  suddenly 
attacked.  Calliopas  had  ascertained  that  no  armed 
force  was  secreted  within  the  building  for  the  Pope's 
protection,  and  pushing  forward  into  the  Church  with 
his  attendants  read  out  the  imperial  mandate,  decla- 
ring Martin  deposed,  on  the  ground  that  he  had 
obtained  the  see  irregularly  and  illegally.  At  once 
Martin  was  seized,  and  protesting  that  he  would  ten 
times  rather  die  than  see  blood  shed  on  his  account, 
was  hurried  to  his  own  palace.  At  midnight  a  litter 
was  there  into  which  he  was  forced,  and  as  it  passed 
the  gates,  those  gates  were  closed  behind  to  prevent 
his  attendants  following.  Without  delay  he  was 
conveyed  to  the  port  and  embarked.  A  long  career 
of  trouble  now  awaited  Martin.  There  was  the 
tedious  voyage,  during  which  the  bishop,  old,  sick, 
and  infirm,  was  left  for  a  year  on  the  Island  of 
Naxos;  the  troubles  of  the  journey  being  embittered 
by  the  severity  of  his  guards,  who  drove  away  with 


D    2 


36 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART     insults  all  who  came  to  offer  him  little  kindnesses. 
There  was  the  arrival  at  the  port  of  Constantinople, 


A.D 


Sept.  17,  when  he  was  left  on  board  ship  sick  and  in  bed,  ex- 
posed till  evening  to  every  kind  of  annoyance  ;  the 
solitary  confinement  for  ninety-three  days  in  prison ; 
the  hearing  before  the  appointed  tribunal,  during 
which  he  was  requested  to  stand,  although  too  weak 
to  keep  erect  without  help ;  the  derision  of  his 
judges ;  a  further  confinement  of  eighty-five  days ; 
the  tragedy  concluding  with  his  exile  to  the  town  of 
Chersonesus,  where,  in  the  midst  of  unfeeling  barba- 
A.D.  rians  he  died  In  the  greatest  privations.^  Rome 
655  may  well  look  back  with  pride  on  a  bishop  who 
stood  firm  in  the  midst  of  such  sufferlno-s,  and  whose 
letters  during  that  period  breathe  a  spirit  of  heroic 
submission  :  '  With  the  help  of  your  prayers,'  he 
wrote  to  Theodore,  *and  the  prayers  of  all  the 
faithful  who  are  with  you,  I  shall,  living  and  dying, 
defend  the  faith  on  which  our  salvation  reposes  :  for 
to  me  to  live  is  Christ,  and  to  die  is  gain.'^  Yet  he, 
whom  Rome  now  delights  to  honour,  had  another 
tale  to  tell  during  the  year  of  his  exile.  '  Although,' 
he  writes,  '  St.  Peter's  Church  possesses  no  gold,  yet 
through  the  mercy  of  God  it  has  stores  of  grain  and 
wine  and   necessaries  of  life.     What  fear  then  has 


'  See  the  account  in  his  own  letter  to  Theodore,  Ep.  xv.  xvi. 
Labbe,  vi.  65,  75. 

2  Ep.  xiv.  Labbe,  vi.  65  :  '  Opitulantibus  nobis  orationibus 
*  vestris,  ac  omnium  fidelium  Christianorum,  qui  vobiscum  sunt, 
'  et  vivens  et  moriens  salutis  nostrae  f.dem  defendam,  et  quem- 
'  admodum  beatus  Paulus  apostolus  docet :  Mihi  vivere  Christus 
^est.  et  mori  kicrum.' 


THE   SUCCESSORS   OF  GREGORY  I. 


37 


fallen  upon  it  which  restrains  it  from  fulfilling  God's     chap. 

commands  ?  ...   Or  have  I  appeared  to  the  whole  

Church  so  like  an  enemy  ?     But  may  God,  who  will 
have  all  men  to  be  saved,  establish  their  hearts  in 
the  faith  by  the   mediation  of   St.    Peter  !  ...  As 
regards  my  feeble  body,  the  Lord  Himself  will  take 
care  of  that  ...  for  the  Lord  is  nigh,  and  I   hope 
in  His  mercy  that  He  will  soon  finish  my  course  ?'  ^ 
He    died    on    September   i6.     Martin  was  not  the      a.d. 
only  Roman  bishop  who  suffered  the  misery  of  depen-       655 
dence   on    the   Eastern   Empire.     Eueenius    L  and    654-657 
Vitalian,  his  successors,  suffered  it  likewise.      If  they 
were  saved  from  meeting  a  fate  similar  to  that  of 
Martin,  it  was  only  because  their  weak  prudence  led 
them  to  acquiesce  in  the  publication  of  the  '  Type ; ' 
but  by  so  doing  they  forfeited  the  respect  of  their 
orthodox  cotemporaries  or  of  posterity. 

Fresh  strength  was  added  to  the  position  of  the 
Roman  bishops  by  the  triumph  of  Martin's  party  at 
the  sixth  general   council,   notwithstanding  the   im-       6So 
perial  support  given  to  the  Monothelites  ;  and  soon 
the  title  episcopus  universalis,  once  denounced  by 


1  Ep.  xvii.  Labb^,  vi.  26  :  '  Miratr.s  sum  autem,  et  adhuc  miror 
'  indiscretionem  et  incompassionem  omnium,  qui  quondam  mihi 
'  pertinebant  .  .  .  quia  sic  funditus  infelicitatis  meae  obliti  sunt, 
'  et  nee  scire  volunt,  ut  invenio,  sive  sim  super  terram,  sive  non 
'  sim.  Miratus  quoque  multo  magis  sum  in  eos  qui  sunt  sanctis- 
'  simae  apostoli  Petri  ecclesiae,  quoniam  tantam  dederunt  operam 
'  de  corpora  ac  membro  suo,  id  est  super  dilectione  nostra,  ad 
'  reddendos  nos  sine  solicitudine,  saltem  super  corporal!  usu  quoti- 
'  dianoque  suinptu.  Nam  etsi  aurum  ecclesia  sancti  Petri  non 
'  habet,  frumentotamen  et  vino  et  aliis  necessariis  expensa  non  caret 
'  per  gratiam  Dei,  ut  modicae  saltem  exhibitionis  curam  gessissent.' 


'38 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART     Gregory  I.  as  anti-Christian,  began  to  be  generally 
■ assumed.     This    time  it  was  more  than    a  title ;  it 


was  the  symbol  of  a  real  pretension ;  and  Gregory 
had  probably  denounced  it  in  others  for  fear  it 
might  come  to  be  so  misused.  It  implied  that  the 
Western  Patriarchs  were  beginning  to  regard  them- 
selves as  raised  above  all  other  patriarchs ;  for  had 
they  not  recently  been  almost  the  sole  champions 
of  orthodoxy  when  others  had  bowed  to  Monothe- 
litism  ?  It  implied  also  a  growing  independence  of 
the  Eastern  Empire ;  for  had  not  they  alone  supported 
orthodoxy  against  the  pressure  of  the  imperial  court  ? 
After  the  sixth  general  council,  this  increase  of 
freedom  appears  on  several  occasions  more  clearly, 
in  vain,  the  Quinisext  Council  repudiated  the  Roman 
canon  on  the  celibacy  of  the  clergy  and  propounded 
others  in  its  place;  in  vain  Justinian  II.  attempted 
to  compel  the  Roman  bishop,  Serglus  I.,  to  subscribe 

gg^l^Qj  to  the  decrees  of  that  council.  The  garrison  of  Ra- 
venna rose  in  rebellion ;  the  protospatharius  was 
driven  with  insult  from  the  city,  and  Sergius  was 
701  obliged  to  interfere  to  allay  the  tumult  among  the 
indignant  soldiery.  The  mere  suspicion  of  a  similar 
intention    against  John  VI.,   caused   a  new   uproar 

701-705  against  the  exarch,  Theophylact,  whose  life  was 
only  saved  by  the  persuasive  eloquence  of  the 
bishop.  Profiting  by  experience  of  failure,  Justinian 
soon  afterwards  adopted  a  different  course  towards 

708-714  Constantine,  and  invited  the  bishop  to  visit  him. 
710       Everywhere    Constantine    was    well    entertained ;  ^ 

1  MiLM.  ii.  337;  GiF.s.  ii.  185. 


THE  SUCCESSORS  OF   GREGORY  I. 


39 


from  the  emperor  himself  he  received  distinguished     chap. 
marks  of  honour ;  but  whether  he  subscribed  to  the  ^- 


decrees  of  the  Quinisext  Council  or  not,  is  a  point 
on  which  history  is  silent. 

In  other  respects,  too,  Rome  held  her  own. 
Thus  the  custom  of  awaiting  the  imperial  confirm- 
ation, before  entering  on  office,  which  had  been 
introduced  under  the  Ostrogothic  kings,  was  re- 
laxed and  in  time  abolished  :  an  imperial  edict  was 
obtained  by  Agatho,  granting  an  abatement  of  the  678-682 
fees  payable  to  the  emperor  at  confirmation  ;  Bene- 
dict II.  secured  the  privilege  of  being  confirmed  53^-68; 
without  delay  by  the  exarch ;  and  when  the  heretical 
Philippicus  Bardanes  assumed  the  purple,  Rome 
refused  to  give  him  her  obedience. 

Whilst  Rome  was  gradually  breaking  loose  from  (2)  Sub- 
her  political  anchorage  in  the  East,  she  had  mean-  "JJ^^/je" 
time    been    strengftheningf    her    hold    over    subject   ^"^^^^^ 
Churches  in  the  West.     No  further  resistance  was   vicariate 
offered  to  her  pretensions  by  the  church  of  Africa,  '^■^   ■''^^^' 
itself  sore  oppressed  by  the  rise  of  the  Mahommedan 
power.^    A  letter  of  the  African  bishops  to  Theodore,    (.^^-e^q 
bishop  of  Rome,  speaks  of  the  Apostolic  See  as  being 
a  '  great  and  never-failing  source  for  all  Christians, 
from  whence  issue  the  streams  which  water  the  uni- 
versal Church,  and  to  which,  by  the  decrees  of  the 
fathers,  a  special  reverence  has  been  attached.'  ^     It 
went  even  further  ;  it  declared  that  '  by  the  ancient 

*  Neand.  v.  113;  GiES.  ii.  170;  Milm.  ii.  162  (book  iv.  ch.  i.). 

2  '  Magnum  et  indeficientem  omnibus  Christianis  fluenta  redun- 
'  dantem,  apud  apostolicam  sedem  consistere  fontem  nullus  ambi- 
*  gere  possit,  de  quo  rivuli  prodeunt  affluenter,  universum  largissime 


40 


THE    WESTERN   PATRIARCHATE. 


PART     canons  it  had  been  ordered  that  no  subject  should 

I.  ,  ,  .  -^ 
be  discussed  or  decided  even  in  the   most  remote 


districts,  without  being  brought  under  the  notice  of 
the  ApostoHc  See,  that  it  might  be  confirmed  by  the 
authority  of  that  See.'  Africa  had  changed  her  tone 
since  the  time  of  Augrustine.  The  wave  of  the 
Vandals  had  passed  over  her  ;  the  Mahommedan  con- 
quest had  laid  her  low ;  powerless  and  helpless,  she 
looked  to  Rome,  whose  claims  she  had  rejected  in 
her  glory,  and  she  tendered  submission.  It  was  not 
a  free  submission  she  now  gave,  but  one  wrung  from 
the  misery  of  desolation. 
{b)  Sub-  One  after  another  the  independent  archbishoprics 
Raveima.  of  the  West  disappear  from  view,  and  are  merged 
in  the  growing  territory  of  Italy.  The  archbishops 
-  ".  of  Ravenna  had  once  aspired  to  hold  the  first  place 
among  the  great  prelates  of  Italy  when  their  city 
was  the  seat  of  the  exarch,^  basing  their  claims  on 
privileges  secured  to  them  by  the  emperors  Heraclius 
and  Constantine.  In  the  days  of  the  Monothelite 
troubles,  when  Rome  espoused  the  cause  of  ortho- 


*  irrigantes  orbem  Christianorum,  cui  etiam  in  honorem  beatissimi 
'  Petri  patrum  decreta  peculiarem  omnem  decrevere  reverentiam 
■'  in  requirendis  Dei  rebus.  Antiquis  enim  regulis  sancitum  est,  ut 
'  quicquid,  quamvis  in  remotis  vel  in  longinquo  positis  ageretur 

*  provinciis,  non  prius  tractandum  vel  accipiendum  sit,  nisi  ad 
'  notitiam  almae  sedis  vestrae  fuisset  deductum,  ut  hujus  auc- 
'  toritate,  juxta  quae  fuisset  pronunciato,  firmentur,  indeque  sum- 
'  erent  ceterae  ecclesiae  velut  de  natali  suo  fonte  praedicationis 
'  exordium,  et  per  diversas  totius  mundi  regiones  puritatis  incor- 
.*  ruptae  maneantfidei  sacramenta  salutis.'  Quoted  by  GiES.  ii.  1S5 
note,  and  Labbe  in  the  Acts  of  Concil.  Later,  an.  649. 

^    *  GlES.  ii.  185  ;   MiLM.  ii.  329. 


THE  SUCCESSORS   OF  GREGORY   /. 


41 


doxy,   the  emperors  that  of  the  Monothelites,  they  ciiAr. 

had  renounced  their  connection  with   Rome  and  as-   '- — - 

sumed  the  management  of  the  Church  of  the  exar- 
chate.    Those  struofSfles  over,  they  had  renewed  their  ^.n 
°^                    _  •'  676-67S 

connection  with  the  Roman   bishops.      Now—such 
was  his  influence  at  court — Leo  II.  procured  an  im-    682-6S3 
perial  rescript,  placing  the  Church  of  Ravenna  under 
the  jurisdiction  of  the  Roman  See,  and,  on  the  elec- 
tion of  Felix  to  the  archbishopric,  he  was  compelled,       707 
notwithstanding  his  objections,  to  sign  the  customary 
writing  testifying  his  allegiance  to  the  Roman  See  ; 
and  unwillingly  to  renounce  the  independence  of  the 
See  of  Ravenna.     Nevertheless,  again  more  than  a       ^^^ 
century  and  a  half  later,  a  fresh  claim  to  independence 
was  advanced  by  Archbishop  John,^ 

The  submission  of  Aquileia  took  place  about  the  (0  -^^i^'- 

7111SS101L  of 

same  time  as  that  of  Ravenna.     Before  the  arms  of  AquHcia. 
the  invaders  in  the  fifth  century,  the  patriarchs  of    ^'^-  ^^ 
Aquileia  had   withdrawn   to  the  island    of   Grado.'"^ 
There  secure  from  the  revolutions  which  were  devas- 
tating Northern  Italy,  they  had  refused  to  acquiesce       553 
in  the  edict  condemning  the  '  three  chapters,'  when 
the  Roman  bishop  Vigilius  had  been  more  yielding, 
and  continued,  together  with  the  Istrian  bishops,  out 
of  communion  with  the  See  of  Rome  for  more  than 
a  century.     But  the  schism  was  at  length  healed  by 
Sergius    I.,    and    before    the    close    of  the    seventh    ^-87.701 
century  no  independent  archbishop  at  all  survived  in       698 
Italy. 

Thus  one  after  another  the  Churches  in  all  the  (d)  Ger- 
many. 

'   MiLM.  iii.  171.  2  GiES.  ii.  129. 


THE   WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART     vicariates  of  the  Italian  praefecture  had  passed  from 


I. 


a  position  of  equality  to  one  of  dependence  on 
Rome,  those  of  North  Africa  first ;  those  of  North 
Italy  next ;  those  of  Western  Illyria  last.  And  even 
beyond  the  Italian  praefecture  Rome  had  made  her 
ascendency  felt  in  the  Gallic  praefecture.  Spain  had 
yielded  freely  ;  the  attitude  of  Gaul  was  more  doubt- 
ful ;  England  was  attached  to  Rome  by  ties  of  the 
warmest  affection.  Now  through  England,  the  spell 
of  Roman  superiority  was  brought  to  bear  on  a 
country  which  had  never  been  included  in  the  old 
Roman  Empire.  On  this  account  the  conduct  of 
A.D.  723  Boniface,  the  Apostle  of  Germany,  is  so  important 
in  its  bearings  on  the  subsequent  growth  of  the  Pa- 
pacy.^ Coming  from  England  deeply  imbued  with 
veneration  for  the  Church  of  Rome,  Boniface  made 
that  veneration  the  basis  on  which  he  established 
the  new  Church  in  Germany.  He  had  hardly  been 
a  year  at  work  in  Hesse  and  Thuringia,  having 
baptised  his  two  first  converts,  when  he  was  sum- 
moned to  Rome  by  Gregory  I.,  and  required  to  give 
an  account  of  his  faith.  No  hesitation  seems  to 
have  been  felt  by  Boniface  in  obeying  the  summons, 
nor  yet  in  taking  the  oath,  which  Gregory  ad- 
ministered to  him  at  his  consecration,  which  decided 
for  centuries  the  thraldom  of  the  German  Church. 
At  the  tomb  of  St.  Peter  he  was  required  to  swear 
with  the  utmost  solemnity  an  oath  substantially 
the  same  as  that  taken  by  the  Italian  bishops  be- 
longing to  the  several  archiepiscopal  sees  under  the 

^  Neand.  v.  158  ;  GiES.  ii.  214. 


THE  SUCCESSORS   OF  GREGORY  I. 


43 


jurisdiction  of  Rome.     It  ran  :  ^  '  To  thee  the  first  of    chap. 

.                                                            .                                      II. 
the  Apostles  and  to  thy  representative  Gregory  and  

his  successors  I  promise,  that  with  God's  help  I  will 
abide  in  the  unity  of  the  Catholic  faith,  agreeing 
with  nothing  contrary  to  the  unity  of  the  Catholic 
Church,  but  in  every  way  maintaining  my  faith  pure, 
and  constantly  co-operating  with  thee  and  with  thy 
Church,  on  which  has  been  bestowed  by  God  the 
power  to  bind  and  to  loose,  with  thy  representative 
aforesaid  and  with  his  successors.  Whenever  I  find 
the  conduct  of  the  chief  officers  of  the  Church  con- 
tradictory to  the  ancient  ordinances  and  decrees  of 
the  Fathers,  I  will  have  no  fellowship  or  connection 
with  them,  but  will  prevent  it  if  I  can,  or  if  not,  will 
report  it  faithfully  to  the  Pope.'  By  that  oath, 
which  was  henceforth  regularly  administered  to  all 
bishops  as  they  were  appointed  to  the  new  sees 
established  by  Boniface  in  Germany,  was  decided 
once  and  for  ever  the  question  whether  a  free  Church 

^  '  In  nomine   Domini   Dei   et  Salvatoris  nostri  Jesu  Christi. 
'  Imperante  domino  Leone  a  Deo  coronalo  magno  Imperatore 

*  anno  septimo  post  consulatum  ejus,  sed  et  Constantini  magni 
'  Imperatoris  ejus  filio  anno  iv.  indictione  vi.  :  Promitto  ego  Boni- 
'  facius,  Dei  gratia  episcopus,  tibi  beato  Petro  Apostolorum  prin- 
'  dpi,  Vicarioque  tuo  beato  Gregorio  Papae  et  successoribus  ejus, 
'  perPatrem,  et  Filium,  et  Spiritum  Sanctum,  Trinitatem  inseparabi- 
'  lem,  et  hoc  sacratissimum  Corpus  tuum :  Me  omnium  fidem  et 
'  puritatem  sanctae  fidei  catholicae  exhibere,  et  in  unitate  ejusdem 
'  fidei  Deo  operante  persistere,  in  qua  omnis  Christianorum  salus 

*  sine  dubio  esse  comprobatur  :  Nullo  modo  me  contra  unitatem 
'  communis  et  universalis  ecclesiae  suadente  quopiam  consentire  ; 
'  sed,  ut  dixi,  fidem  et  puritatem  meam  atque  concursum  tibi  et 
'  utilitatibus  ecclesiae  tuae,  cui  a  Domino  Deo  potestas  ligandi 
'  solvendique  data  est,  et  praedicto  Vicario  tuo,  atque  successori- 
'  bus  ejus  per  omnia  exhibere  :  Sed  et  si  cognovero,  antistites 
'  contra  instituta   antiqua  sanctorum  patrum  conversari,  cum  eia 


44 


THE    WESTERN  PATRIARCHATE. 


PART     should  be   left  to    develope    itself  in    Germany,  or 

whether  Germany  should  be  incorporated  in  the  old 

Roman  hierarchical  system  ;  by  it  was  laid  the  foun- 
dation of  the  ecclesiastical  power  of  the  Popes  in 
Germany  ;  ^  by  it,  however,  Germany  was  brought 
under  the  influence  of  Roman  civilisation,  the  effects 
of  which  will  be  fully  seen  in  its  subsequent  history. 
Hitherto  the  Western  Patriarchate  had  rested  its 
claim  to  ecclesiastical  dominion  on  the  secular  claims 
of  the  Empire  ;  henceforth  it  substituted  divine  for 
imperial  right.  Hitherto  the  bounds  of  the  Empire 
constituted  its  bounds  ;  henceforth  it  aspired  to  be 
supreme  over  the  world.  Still  its  authority  was 
ecclesiastical,  and  by  no  means  absolute  over  its 
daughter  Churches  ;  still  the  possessors  of  that  au- 
thority owned  themselves  subjects.  Not  till  thirty 
years  later,  when  new  troubles,  political  and  reli- 
gious, had  well-nigh  threatened  to  annihilate  it,  does 
it  emerge  from  these  troubles  to  rise  to  political  im- 
portance ;  not  till  a  century  later  to  obtain  political 
independence. 

*  nullam  habere  communionem  aut  conjunctionem  ;  sed  magis,  si 
'  valuero  prohibere,  prohibeam  ;  sin  minus,  fideliter  statum  Do- 
'  mino  meo  Apostolico  renunciabo.  Quod  si,  quod  absit,  contra 
'  hujus  promissionis  meae  seriem  aliquid  facere  quolibet  modo,  seu 
'  ingenio  vel  occasioni  tentavero,  reus  inveniar  in  aeterno  judicio, 
'  ultionem  Ananiae  et  Sapphire  incurram,  qui  vobis  etiam  de 
'  rebus  propriis  fraudem  facere  vel  falsum  dicere  pracsumserint. 
'  Hunc  autem  indiculura  sacramenti  ego  Bonifacius  exiguus  epi- 
'  scopus  manu  propria  scripsi,  atque  ponens  supra  sacratissimum 
'  corpus  beati  Petri,  ita  ut  praescriptum  est,  Deo  teste  et  judice, 

*  praestiti  sacramentum  quod  et  servare  promitto.'  See  Gies. 
'  ii.  215  ;  Neand.  v.  64, 

•  The  Synod  held  by  Boniface,  an.  743,  decreed  amongst  other 
tilings,  '  subjectionem  Romanae  eccle.siae.'     See  Labbe,  vii.  281. 


CAUSES  OF   THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


45 


CHAPTER    III. 

THE    TRANSFER    OF  ALLEGIANCE. 
(725-8oo.)r 


Exatidiat  te  Dominns  in  die  iribulationis :  protegat  ie  liomen  Dei  yacob. 
Ps.  XIX.   2.' 


T 


HE  eighth  century   opened    upon    Rome  still    chap, 
dependent,  but  estabhshing  herself  as  ecclesi- 


III. 


astical  mistress  of  the  West  ;  it  closed  after  witness-  ^y  the^" 

ing  the  bold  step  of  a  transfer  of  her  allegiance  from  ^'''^yfi^ 

one  sovereign  to  another.     The  first  quarter  of  the  giance. 

century  passed  away  in  the  completion  of  the  first  i2/^iw^ 

act.     It  saw  the  success  of  Gregory  II.,  in  imposing  ^"^  ^^!^' 

on  Boniface  and  his  successors  in  office  an  oath  of  f^cp^^  ^ 

allegiance.     The  second  quarter  began  whilst  Gre-  to  ecde- 

gory  II.  was  still  Bishop  of  Rome  and  still  intent  upon  powlTo/ 

advancing  the  interests  of  his  Church.''^     Ten  years  of  ^^P'^^- 

his  eventful  career  had  already  passed  away,  during       //. 

which    the  newly-established    German  Church    had       ^•'"• 

.  715-731 

been  incorporated  in  the   Latin  system  ;  five  years, 

not  less  eventful,  were  yet  to  come,  during  which 

another  train  of  movements  frauQfht  with  most  im- 

portant  consequences  for  the  Papacy  would  be  set  in 

'  Gregory's  letter  to  Charles  Martel.     Labb^,  viii.  206. 

^  For  the  life  of  Gregory  II.  see  LabbS,  viii.  159.  In  725  he 
had  been  Pope  ten  years,  and  he  continued  to  hold  the  Papacy 
till  731. 


46 


THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


PART 
I, 


(2)  Icono- 


motion.  Gregory  II.  was  Pope,  but  he  was  still  the 
subject  of  the  Eastern  Empire  ;  ecclesiastically  he 
was  all  powerful,  politically  he  was  comparatively 
powerless.  Though  ruler  of  the  religious  destinies  of 
the  West,  he  received  the  commands  of  the  Emperor 
of  the  East.  To  him  the  whole  of  Christian  Europe 
looked  up  as  patriarch,  nay,  as  more  than  patriarch, 
as  the  successor  and  representative  of  St.  Peter  ;^ 
but  successor  of  St.  Peter  though  he  was,  he  was 
nevertheless  a  subject  of  Csesar,  and  that  not  of  a 
Csesar  who  would  receive  his  godly  admonitions  as 
a  dutiful  son,  but  of  one  who  would  himself  aspire  to 
lay  down  the  law  for  the  Church.  In  a  word,  the 
ecclesiastical  power  of  the  Pope  in  Europe  was  con- 
stantly suffering  shipwreck  on  the  rock  of  his  politi- 
cal dependence  on  the  Emperor  in  the  East.  Under 
these  circumstances  it  is  not  hard  to  understand  how 
the  tie  connecting  the  Bishops  of  Rome  to  the  em- 
perors should  seem  a  galling  one,  how  it  should  be 
ignored  as  much  as  possible,  and  how,  growing  con- 
tinually weaker,  it  should  be  liable  at  any  moment 
to  be  altogether  sundered,  whenever  it  might  chance 
to  be  exposed  to  a  more  than  ordinary  strain.  It  was 
not  long  before  the  time  came  for  such  exposure. 
The  Emperor  Leo  III.  was  a  native  of  Isauria,^ 


'^Ein'Lror    ^^  obscure  birth,  a  valorous  and  able  soldier,  pos- 

Leo  III.     sessed  of  military  and  administrative  talents,  and  of 

sterling   worth,    but    rude   and  unrefined    in    mind, 


*  See  ch.  vi. 

3  See  Milman's  Latin    Christianity,  book  iv.  ch.  vii.   (vol.  ii, 
p.  339,  small  edition). 


CAUSES   OF   THE   TRANSFER.  47 

unable  to  appreciate  art  and  loving  a  plain  unadorned     chap. 


III. 


worship.      To    his    practical    mind    the   sentimental 
ecstasies  of  the  Eastern  monks  seemed  distasteful  ;  clastic 
the   respect   paid    to  images    and    pictures    seemed  ^'"^^^• 
superstitious ;    the    mental    attitude   of    those   who 
could  not  enkindle  in  themselves  reverential  feelings 
without  the  help  of  material  representations,  seemed 
idolatrous.      Images  did  not  seem  to  him  merely  the 
result  of  a  low  spiritual  apprehension,  or  of  an  inca- 
pacity for  the  ideal,  but  they  seemed  positively  sin- 
ful.    Their  use  was  not  indeed  one  which  had  com- 
mended   itself    to    the    first    simple    adherents    of 
Christianity,    but   it   was    an    instrument    necessary 
perhaps  to  influence  a  morally  corrupt  and  intellec- 
tually enfeebled  people.     Coming   as  he    did  fresh 
from  his  Isaurian  hills,  was  Leo  incapable  of  under- 
standing this  fact  ?     Or  did  he  simply  fail  to  observe 
the  sad  condition  of  the  Empire  }     Perhaps  either, 
perhaps  both.      But  certain  it  is  that  he  had  not  been 
more  than  ten  years  on  the  throne  (during  which  time 
he  had  only  twice  rescued  the  Empire  from  falling 
into  the  hands  of  the  formidable  Saracens,  and  with 
the  exception  of  persecuting  the  Jews  had  otherwise 
meddled  little  with  religion),  when  Christendom  was 
suddenly  astonished  by  the  appearance  of  an  edict 
interdicting  all  worship  of  images — so  the  edict  ran    a.d.  726 
— and  proscribing  as  idolatrous  all  statues  and  pic- 
tures which  represented  the  Saviour,  the  Virgin,  and 
the  Saints.^ 

The  excitement  caused  by  the  publication  of  this 

'  MiLMAN,  ii.  352. 


48 


THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


PART     edict    was    intense.     Learned   and    unlearned  alike, 
I.  . 
priest  and  peasant,  monk  and  soldier,  clergy  and  laity, 

men  and  women,  even  children,  all  were  involved 
in  the  strife.  A  clean  sweep  was  at  once  made 
of  all  religious  attachments.  The  devout  felt  their 
feelings  outraged ;  the  careless  and  indifferent  exulted. 
Terrible  prodigies  were  witnessed  in  the  heaven,  and 
phenomena  no  less  strange  occurred  on  earth.  ^ 
Nor  was  the  excitement  lessened  when  a  second 
edict  appeared,  drawn  up  in  terms  still  more  stringent, 
and  besides  commanding  the  total  destruction  of  all 
images,  ordering  the  whitewashing  of  the  walls  of 
the  Churches.  Scenes  of  rebellion  and  bloodshed 
were  the  result ;  in  Constantinople  open  resistance 
was  offered  to  the  execution  of  the  edict ;  in  Greece 
and  the  Aegean  islands  a  formidable  insurrection 
broke  out.  The  monks  were  loud  in  denouncing 
the  enactment,  the  clergy  unanimous  in  condemning 
Leo  ;  even  the  rival  patriarchs  of  old  and  new  Rome, 
Gregory  II.  and  Germanus,  united  in  defending  the 
images  against  the  imperial  commands. 
{b)  Italy  In  Italy  the  feeling  was  particularly  bitter.  Ab- 
of  rebel-  sence  from  Rome  had  lessened  the  respect  felt  for 
^^''"  the  imperial  name ;  and  the  emperor's  deputies,  the 

exarchs    of   Ravenna,    had   gained    for    themselves 
only  a  reputation  for  severity.    To  the  emperor  him- 
self, Gregory  II.  now  addressed  a  letter  of  remon- 
729       strance  :^  '  For  ten  years  you  have  paid  no  attention 

1  An  alarming  volcanic  eruption  in  the  Aegean.     See  Milman, 

ii-  354- 

2  This  letter  is  to  be  found  in  Greek  and  Latin  in  the  praeam- 
bulares  to  Condi.  Nicen  II.  an.  787  ;  LabbiS,  viii.  652  seq. 


CAUSES  OF   THE   TRANSFER. 


III. 


49 

to  the  Images  you  now  denounce  as  idols,  and  chap. 
whose  total  destruction  and  aboHtion  you  command. 
Not  the  faithful  only,  but  infidels  are  scandalised  at 
your  impiety.  Christ  has  condemned  those  who 
offend  one  of  His  little  ones  ;  you  fear  not  to  offend 
the  whole  world.  You  say  that  God  has  forbidden 
the  worship  of  things  made  with  hands.  Who 
worships  them  }  .  .  .  The  Scripture,  the  Fathers, 
the  Councils  you  treat  with  equal  contempt.  .  .  . 
Go  into  a  school  where  children  are  learning  their 
letters,  and  proclaim  yourself  a  destroyer  of  images. 
You  will  receive  their  tablets  thrown  at  your  head 
....  You  boast  that  you  are  a  second  Hezekiah, 
after  800  years,  casting  out  the  idols  from  the 
Churches  as  he  did  the  brazen  serpent  from  the 
temple.  And  truly  Hezekiah  was  your  brother,  self- 
willed  as  you,  and  like  you  daring  to  offer  violence  to 
the  priests  of  God.  .  .  .  With  the  power  given  me  by 
St.  Peter,  I  could  inflict  punishment,  but  I  leave  you 
to  endure  the  curse  you  have  heaped  on  yourself 
It  was  followed  by  a  second  letter,  though  how  soon 
after  it  is  impossible  to  determine  :^  'You  persecute 
and  afflict  us  with  the  arm  of  flesh  ;  we  unarmed  and 
defenceless  can  but  send  a  devil  to  humble  you.  .  .  . 
Images  have  been  borne  by  bishops  to  Councils ;  no 
religious  man  goes  on  a  pilgrimage  without  an  Image 
.  .  .  .  Write  to  all  the  world  that  we  are  in  error 
concerning  images  ;  cast  the  blame  on  us,  who  have 
received  from  God  the  power  to  bind  and  to  loose.' 
The  Italians  proposed  to   elect  a  new  emperor  and 

'  This  letter  in  Greek  and  Latin  in  I.ABBf ,  viii.  668  seg. 
E 


A.D. 


CQ  THE   TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 

PART     to  conduct  him    to    Constantinople.^     But   Gregory 

withstood    the    proposal,    suggesting   hope   for    the 

conversion  of  Leo.      He  alone  exhorted  to  fidelity, 
whilst  they  proposed  to  sever  the  bond  connecting 
them  with  the  East.      But  the  rebellion  was  not  to 
be  accomplished  yet.     The  circumstances  which  ulti- 
mately separated  the  Popes  and  the  emperors  remain 
still  to  be  told. 
(3)  The         Not  a   century  and  a  half  before    the    outbreak 
bards.        of  the   Iconoclastic  controversy  the  Lombards  had 
{a)  Their   f^j-gt  made  their  appearance  in  Italy  under  the  lead- 

settlenieiit  ,  ,       .     ^  i      .  i     i*  i      i 

hi  Italy,  ership  of  Alboin,'  summoned,  it  was  believed,  by 
568  ]Sjaj-ses  across  the  Alps  as  instruments  of  vengeance, 
because  this  province  had  appealed  to  Constantino- 
ple against  his  oppressive  rule.  Unlike  the  Goths, 
who  had  been  partially  civilised  before  their  arrival 
in  Italy,  the  bold  and  unscrupulous  Lombards, 
without  awe  or  reverence  for  religion,  depopulated 
cities,  burned  churches,  and  destroyed  monasteries  in 
their  progress  promiscuously,  everywhere  diffusing 
the  wildest  terror,  and  regarded  as  the  harbingers  of 
the  coming  day  of  judgment.  The  hatred  of  the 
Romans  for  the  Lombards  was  intense,  greater  even 
than  their  hatred   for  the    Iconoclasts.     They    had 

1  Anastasius  in  Vit.  xc.  Gregor.  II.  :  '  Cognita  vero  Impera- 
'  toris  nequitia,  omnis  Italia  consilium  iniit,  ut  sibi  eligerent  Im- 
'  peratorem,  et  Constantinopolim  ducerent.  Sed  compescuit  tale 
'  consilium  Pontifex,  sperans  conversionem  Principis, —  blando 
'  omnes  sermone,  ut  bonis  in  Deum  proficerent  actibus  et  in  fide 
'  persisterent,  rogabat.  Sed  ne  desisterent  ab  amore  vel  fide 
*  Romani  Imperii,  admonebat.' 

"^  Milman's  Latin  C/iristia?iity,hodk  iii.  vol.  ii.  ch.  vii.pp.  97, 13s 
(small  edition). 


r 


CAUSES   OF   THE    TRANSFER.  -^ 

advanced  from  the  North  to  the  South,  and  they  had     chap. 

III. 
established  the  two  powerful  dukedoms  of  Benevento ' — 

and  Spoleto.^     In  the  time  of  Gregory   I.  they  had       735 

besieged  Rome.     Gregory  had  defended  it,  and  by       3^^ 

his  friendly  correspondence  their  queen  Theodelinde 

had  been  won  from  Arianism  to  Catholicism.^ 

In  the  time  of  John  VI.,  the  Duke  of  Benevento    701-705 

had  made  a  predatory  incursion  into  Campania  ;^  and 

at  the  moment  when  the    Iconoclastic    controversy 

broke  out  the  Lombards  had  established,  besides  the 

two  dukedoms  in  the  South,  a  settled  kingdom  in 

the  district,  thence  called  Lombardy,*  presided  over 

by  a  king^  eager  for  aggrandisement,  and  only    on 

the  look   out  for  a  favourable  opportunity  in  order 

to  include  Rome  and  the  exarchate  in  his  dominions. 

That   opportunity  seemed  now  to  have  arrived,  {b)  Oi'er 

■  On    the    publication    of    the    Iconoclastic    edict   at  /hfel-ar- 

Ravenna  the  people   broke  out  in  insurrection,  and  ^'^"*^' 

11-1  •  '^■^^-  7^7 

declared  their  determmation  to  renounce  their  allegi- 
ance with  the  Empire  rather  than  to  permit  their 
churches  to  be  despoiled  of  their  ornaments.  They 
attacked  the  soldiers,  and  maintained  a  desperate 
conflict  for  the  mastery  of  the  city.  The  exarch  was 
assailed  by  disaffection  within.  At  this  moment 
the    Lombards    appeared    without    the    walls    with 


'  The  Greek  dominions  in  Italy  were  confined  (i)  to  the  Exar- 
chate of  Ravenna,  (2)  the  Duchy  of  Rome  and  Naples,  (3)  the 
cities  on  the  coast  of  Liguria,  and  (4)  the  extreme  provinces  of 
Lower  Italy.     See  Gies.  ii.  130. 

2  An.  599;  MiLMAN,  ii.  135,  137. 

3  MiLMAN,  ii.  336.  ■*  Il)id.  417. 
■^  Liutprand,  who  reigned  713-743  a.d. 

E    2 


52 


THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


PART     Liutprand    at    their    head,    announcing    themselves 

• —    devout  worshippers  of  images.     The  populace  was 

won  ;  Ravenna  surrendered  ;  the  troops  of  Liutprand 
spread  without  resistance  over  the  Pentapolis. 

The  days  of  the  exarchate  seemed  about  to  be 
numbered.  Constantinople's  hold  upon  Italy  seemed 
to  be  gone,  and  gone  for  ever.  But  it  was  not  so. 
The  exarchate  did  not  pass  away  without  making 
one  more  spasmodic  gasp  for  life.  The  Byzantine 
troops,  combining  with  the  maritime  forces  of  Venice, 
succeeded  in  retaking  Ravenna,  and  for  several 
years  that  city  continued  to  be  the  residence  of  an 
imperial  officer.^  The  last  exarch,  Eutychius,  con- 
trived to  maintain  his  perilous  position  for  twenty 
years,  temporising  between  the  Pope,  the  Lombards, 
and  the  Franks ;  and  when  he  was  at  length  com- 
pelled to  abandon  his  office  and  to  take  refuge  in 
Naples,  the  exarchate,  after  having  existed  for  200 
A.D.  years,  ever  since  the  overthrow  of  the  Ostrogothic 
kingdom  by  Belisar  and  Narses,  was  finally  at  an 
end.  The  Lombards  in  the  North  were  the  only 
power  left  which  could  aspire  to  the  political  sove- 
reignty of  Italy, — barbarians,  cruel  and  insatiable,^ 
whose  dominion  the  Popes  could  least  of  all  sub- 
mit to  endure.  Never  with  all  their  largesses  to 
the    Church    could    the    Lombards    eradicate    this 


'    MiLMAN,  ii.  418. 

2  In  proof  of  their  barbarity,  the  well-known  story  of  Alboin's 
death  and  that  of  his  adulterous  queen,  Rosmunda,  the  cup  made 
out  of  her  father's  skull  with  which  Alboin  pledged  her  at  a  public 
banquet,  her  revenge,  and  her  own  murder  by  her  guilty  paramour, 
may  be  referred  to.     See  Milman,  ii.  132. 


CAUSES  OF  THE   TRANSFER. 


53 


repugnance ;  and  however  devotedly  they  might  act,     chap. 

there  prevailed  from  first  to  last  between  them  and   

the  Italian  clergy  an  implacable  animosity.  By  the 
Italians  of  the  eighth  century  they  were  regarded 
with  nearly  the  same  kind  of  horror  with  which  the 
Turks  were  regarded  in  Europe  in  the  sixteenth 
century ;  even  when  apparent  amity  existed,  no 
terms  can  be  found  too  strong  to  express  the  general 
detestation  in  which  they  were  held. 

Whilst  the  power  of  the  exarchate  had  declined,  (c)  Un- 
and  that  of  the  Lombards  was  steadily  increasing,^  ness  of 
the  prospect  must  have  loomed   before  the  Popes,   „f^f////^ 
either  of  havino^  to  submit  to  the  rule  of  the  bar-  ^^"^: 

^  bards. 

barians  or  of  establishing  an  independent  political 
sovereignty  themselves,  which  should  take  the 
place  of  the  defunct  exarchate.  The  latter  alterna- 
tive would  naturally  commend  itself  to  them  most. 
But  how  with  neighbours  like  the  Lombards,  bent 
on  obtaining  the  sovereignty  over  the  whole  of 
Italy,  was  it  possible  to  succeed  without  external  sup- 
port ?  From  the  Eastern  Emperors  no  help  could  be 
expected.  They  were  themselves  harassed  with  the 
attacks  of  the  Saracens,  and  had  been  unable  to  save 
the  exarchate.  The  Normans  were  as  yet  hardly 
known  ;  it  was  not  till  near  the  close  of  the  Papacy  a^.  74° 
of  Gregory  III.  that  they  first  seized  the  Duchy  of 
Spoleto ;  and  besides,  they  were  cruel  barbarians, 
worse  even  than  the  Lombards.      In  this  distress  the 


'  Almost  all  pretension  to  power  except  over  Sicily  and  Calabria 
expired  with  the  death  of  the  Emperor  Leo  III.,  in  741  a.p. 
MiLMAN,  ii.  368. 


54 


THE   TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


PART     gaze  of  Gregory  1 11.^  was  directed  beyond  the  Alps 

—  to  a  Catholic  chief,  who  had  just  achieved  a  signal 

731-741    deliverance  for  Christendom  on  the  field  of  Tours 

732       and   Poitiers,   who  had  done  in    France    what   the 

emperors  were  unable  to  do  in  the  East,  and  who 

therefore  might  be  expected  to  be  able  to  deal  with 

the  Lombards  in  the  same  way  that  he  had  already 

dealt  with  the  Saracens. 

B.  Ap-  From  the  East,  powerless  to  render  help,  from  an 

^/hc  ilxtin   Empire  crumbling  away  beneath  the  weight  of  its 

patri'        o^NXi  greatness,  Gregory  III.  therefore  turned  away, 

the  West,  and  fixed  his  gaze  on  the  youthful  greatness  of  a 

^^cafof      transalpine  nation,  the  Franks — brave,  adventurous, 

Gregory     fuH  of  promise,  successful  in  warfare,  and  destined  to 

731-741    rise  to  future  power.     With   Charles  Martel,  mayor 

of  the  palace,  and  virtual  ruler  of  the  Frankish  realm, 

Gregory  II.''^  had  already  opened    communications, 

739  To  Charles  Martel,  his  successor,  Gregory  III. 
again  appealed,  when,  after  eight  years  of  doubtful 
peace,  he  suddenly  found  himself  involved  in  an 
open  war  with  the  Lombards.^     His  appeal  is  truly 

740  touching  :*  '  his  tears  are  falling  night  and  day  for  the 


^  Gregory  III.  was  Pope  from  731  to  741.  He  succeeded 
Gregory  II.  and  was  in  turn  succeeded  by  Zachary,  741  to  752. 
For  the  life  of  Gregory  III.,  see  Labb^,  viii.  195  seq.  ;  for  that  of 
Zachary,  Il/id.  219. 

2   MiLMAN,  ii.  42S.  3  //vy.  429. 

''  Labb£,  viii.  205.  The  letter  begins  :  '  Nimia  fluctuamus  tri- 
'  bulatione,  et  lacrymae  die  noctuque  ab  oculis  nostris  non  defi- 
'  ciunt,  quando  conspicimus  quotidie  et  undique  ecclesiara  sanc- 
'  tam  Dei,  a  suis,  in  quibus  spes  erat  vindicandi,  destitui  filiis. 
'  Propterea  coarctati  dolore  in  gemitu  et  luctu  consistimus,  dum 
'  cernimus  id  quod  modicum  remanserat  praeterito  anno  pro  sub- 


I 


THE    THREE   DONATIONS.  ee 

destitute  state  of  the  Church  ;  the  Lombard  kinof  and     chap. 

III. 
his  son  are  ravaging  the  last  remains  of  the  property '- — 

of  the  Church,  which  no  longer  suffices  for  the  sus- 
tenance of  the  poor,  or  to  provide  lights  for  the 
daily  service ;  they  have  invaded  the  territory  of 
Rome  and  seized  all  his  farms  ;  his  only  hope  is 
in  the  timely  succour  of  the  Prankish  king.'  The 
appeal  was  rendered  still  stronger  by  the  presents 
that  accompanied  it — the  mystic  keys  of  the  sepulchre 
of  St.  Peter,  and  filings  of  his  chains,  which  no 
Christian  could  resist.  The  title  of  Patrician  and 
Consul  of  Rome  was  offered  ;  and  Gregory,  as  might 
be  expected  after  such  presents,  received  a  courteous 
answer  and  an  embassy  was  despatched  to  the  im- 
perial city. 

It  is  impossible  to  say  what  might  have  been  the 
result  of  the  negotiations  between  the  Pope  and  the 
ambassadors,  had  they  been  continued.  They  were,  Oct.  21 
however,  interrupted  by  the  death  of  both  the 
potentates  ;  of  Charles  Martel  in  October,  of  Gre- 
gory III.  in  November  of  the  very  same  year.  Nov.  27, 
Nevertheless,  these  negotiations  were  the  prelude  to 


'  sidio  et  alimento  pauperum  Christi,  seu  luminarium  concinna- 
'  tione,  in  partibus  Ravennatum,  nunc  gladio  et  igne  cuncta  con- 
'  sumi  a  Liutprando  et  Hilprando  regibus  Longobardorum.  .  ,  . 
'  Sed  hortamur  tuam  bonitatem  coram  Domino,  et  ejus  terribili 
'  judicio,  Christianis.simi  fili,  ut  propter  Deum  et  animae  tuae 
'  salutem  subvenias  ecclesiae  sancti  Petri,  et  ejus  peculiari  populo, 
'  eosdemque  reges  sub  nimia  celeritate  refutes,  et  a  nobis  repellas, 
'  et  jubeas  eos  ad  propria  reverti.  .  .  .  Conjuro  te  per  Deum 
'  vivum  et  verum,  et  per  ipsas  sacratissimas  claves  confessionis 
'  beati  Petri,  quas  vobis  ad  signum  direximus,  ut  non  praeponas 
'  amicitiam  Longobardorum  amori  principis  apostolorum.' 


56 


THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


doin. 


PART     subsequent    negotiations,    which    Pepin   the    Short, 

'- —   the   son  of  Charles   Martel,  carried   on   with  Pope 

Zachary,  the  successor   of   Gregory  III.,  and  this 
time  the  negotiations  led  to  most  important  results. 

At  the  election  of  Zachary,  the  customary  form 
of  obtaining  the  consent  of  the  exarch  was  dis- 
ary  and  carded,  and  discarded  to  be  never  afterwards  revived. 
^doimtfon.  Henceforth,  the  Popes  may  be  considered  as  inde- 
A.D.  pendent  of  the  Eastern  Empire;  henceforth  begins 
(a)  Rome  their  connection  with  the  West ;  henceforth  they 
iiji  iiide-     \^q\^  no  longfer  an  exclusively  ecclesiastical  position, 

pendent  ^  ■'  ^  ^ 

duke-  but  the  Papacy  has  become  a  political  dukedom. 
After  the  sixth  General  Council,  they  had  claimed 
the  title  of  Universal  Priest,^  and  vindicated  that 
claim  by  soon  afterwards  reducing  to  submission 
the  last  of  the  great  archbishops  of  the  West.^ 
After  the  appeal  to  Charles  Martel  and  the  inde- 
pendent election  of  Zachary,  they  aspire  to  political 
sovereignty.^ 

With  the  Lombards  in  arms  against  him,  the  cities 
belonging  to  the  Roman  territory  in  the  possession 
of  an  enemy,  a  great  part  of  his  Church's  estates 
wrested    from    him,^   and     ecclesiastical    provinces, 


'  Concil.  Const.  III.  an.  680,  calls  Pope  Agatho,  Universalis 
Papa,  Labbe,  vii.  614  ;    Universalis  Fatriarc/ia,  Labbe,  vii.  619. 

^  Sergius  I.  healed  the  schism  of  Istria,  an.  698.  See  Labbe, 
vii.  103  ;  Gies.  ii.  129.     See  chap.  ii.  p.  41. 

3  Rome  was  subject  to  the  Eastern  emperors  until  741.  Per- 
haps nominally  as  long  as  the  exarchate  continued.  From  752, 
or  rather  from  742,  when  it  preserved  its  lands  from  the  Lombards 
until  800,  it  was  an  independent  dukedom.  In  800  it  became 
part  of  the  Western  Empire. 

*  The   Roman  patrimonies  in   Sicily  and   Calabria  had  been 


THE    THREE   DONATIONS.  cy 

hitherto  subject  to  his  oversig-ht,  transferred  to  the     chap. 

.                   in. 
patriarchate  of  the  younger  Rome,^  the  position  of  '- — 

the  newly  elected  Pope  seemed  most  forlorn  ;  nor 
was  his  position  as  head  of  a  dukedom  independent, 
indeed,  in  fact,  but  still  observing  the  forms  of  de- 
pendence on  the  moribund  exarchate  quite  equiva- 
lent to  that  of  a  sovereign  undisguised  and  avowed. 
This  avowed  independence  was  now  secured  by  the 
boldness  of  Zachary.  Surrounded  by  his  court  of 
bishops,  and  relying  on  his  own  priestly  charac- 
ter, Zachary  set  forth  from  Rome  to  visit  the 
Lombard  king,  Liutprand,  at  Ferni.  The  scene  of 
the  interview  was  a  church,  the  sanctity  of  which  was 
likely  to  infuse  a  deeper  awe  into  the  mind  of 
Liutprand.  There,  as  Zachary  discoursed  on  the 
vanity  of  earthly  grandeur,  and  on  the  strict  and 
perhaps  speedy  account  which  all  would  soon  have 
to  render  to  God  for  the  blood  which  they  had  shed 
in  war,  and  threatened  the  monarch  with  eternal 
damnation  if  he  delayed  to  surrender  the  four  cities, 
Liutprand  quailed  before  the  Pope.  He  owned 
himself  in  the  wrong ;  he  restored  the  cities.  More- 
over, the  estates  of  the  Church  in  the  Sabine  terri- 
tory, Narni,  Osimo,  and  Ancona,  and  towns  in  the 
district    of   Sutri,    he    gave    back    also ;    and    after 

confiscated  at  the  time  of  the  Iconoclastic  controversy, 
729  A.D. 

'  Hadrian  I.  in  his  Epistol.  ad  Carol,  de  Imaginibus,  after  the 
second  Nicene  Council,  an.  787 — Labbe,  viii.  1598  (Mansi, 
xiii.  808)  ad  fin.  speaks  of  dioceses  :  '  Archiepiscoporum  quam  et 
'  episcoporum  sanctae  catholicae  et  apostolicae  Romanae  ecclesiae, 
*  quae  tunc  cum  patrimoniis  nostris  abstulerunt,  quando  sacras 
'  imagines  deposuerunt.' 


eg  THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 

PART     releasing  all  his  Roman  prisoners,  concluded  a  treaty 

. \ of  peace   for  twenty  years   with  the   Dukedom  of 

Rome,  In  that  treaty  the  independence  of  Rome 
was  acknowledged,  nor  was  the  exarchate  able  to 
dispute  the  acknowledgment,  since  it  expired  itself 
only  a  few  years  later.  No  doubt  the  memory  of 
these  estates  and  possessions  belonging  to  the  See 
long  before  the  appearance  of  the  Franks  in  Italy, 
and  restored  to  it  by  Liutprand,  gave  rise  to 
that  fiction  of  a  '  Donation '  by  Constantine,  em- 
bodied in  the  forged  decretals,  telling  how  Con- 
stantine, cured  of  his  leprosy  by  the  prayers  of 
the  Roman  bishop  Sylvester,  resolved  to  forsake 
the  ancient  capital,  lest  the  secular  government 
should  cramp  the  freedom  of  the  spiritual,  and 
how  he  then  bestowed  upon  the  Pope,  and  his  suc- 
cessors, the  sovereignty  of  the  whole  of  Italy,  or  of 
the  countries  of  the  West.  In  as  far  as  that  docu- 
ment aimed  at  proving  the  possession  of  property 
by  the  Popes  before  the  arrival  of  the  Franks  in 
Italy,  it  was  substantially  correct ;  in  as  far  as  it 
was  intended  to  throw  the  sanction  of  antiquity 
over  a  position  recently  acquired,  it  was  an  ignorant 
blunder  and  a  falsehood — a  falsehood,  however, 
which,  let  it  be  borne  in  mind,  faithfully  reflects  the 
thoughts  and  feelings  of  the  age  which  gave  it 
birth.i 


1  Hadrian  I.  writing  to  Charles,  777,  refers  to  such  a  grant. 
Ep.  i.  in  Labb^,  viii.  526.  His  words  are  :  '  Et  sicut  temporibus 
'  beati  Silvestri  Romani  Pontificis,  a  sanctae  recordationis  piissimo 

*  Constantino  Magno  imperatore,  per  ejus  largitatem  sancta  Dei 

*  catholica  et  apostoHca  Romana  ecclesia  elevata  atque  exaltata 


THE    THREE  DONATIONS.  r^ 

Whilst    the    feeble    exarchate    still    continued    to     chap. 

exist,  struggling  with  dying  throes  against  the  vie-  ^ — 

torious  Lombards,  and  requiring  the  interposition  ot  face 
the  sacred  character  of  the  Pope  to  protect  it  from  ■^,t;f^'^^, 
absolute  destruction,  Zacharv  was  drawing:  closer  to  (^"jo^sj^i^ 

■'      ^  _^  T  ranks. 

the  Franks  by  appointing  Boniface  as  his  legate  for    a.d.  743 


'  est,  et  potestatem  in  his  Hesperiae  partibus  largiri  dignatus  est ; 
'  ita  et  in  his  vestris  felicissimis  temporibus  atque  nostris  sancta 
'  Dei  ecclesia,  id  est  beati  Petri  apostoH  permaneat.  .  .  .  Quia 
'  ecce  novus  Christianissimus  Dei  Constantinus  imperator  his  tem- 
'  poribus  surrexit,  per  quern  omnia  Deus  sanctae  suae  ecclesiae 
'  beatorum  apostolorum  principis  Petri  largiri  dignatus  est.  Sed 
'  et  cuncta  aha,  quae  per  diversos  imperatores,  patricios  etiam,  et 
'  ahos  Deum  timentes,  pro  eorum  animae  mercede,  et  venia  delic- 
'  torum,  in  partibus  Tusciae,  Spoleto,  seu  Benevento,  atque  Corsica 
'  simul  et  Sabinensi  patrimonio,  beato  Petro  apostolo,  sanctaeque 
'  Dei  et  apostohcae  Romanae  ecclesiae  concessa  sunt,  et  per 
'  nefandam  gentem  Longobardorum  per  annorum  spatia  abstracta 
'  atque  ablata  sunt,  vestris  temporibus  restituantur.' 

The  grant  itself  is  to  be  found  in  the  Pseiidoisidoi-ian  Decretals 
entitled  Edictum  domini  Constantini  Imp.,  and  extracts  from  it  in 
Decret.  Gratiani  Disf.  xcvi.  c.  xiii.  The  following  extracts  are 
given  by  GiES.  ii.  337  [Constantine  says]  :  '  Et  sicut  nostram  ter- 
'  renam  imperialem  potentiam,  sic  ejus  [Petri]  sacrosanctam  Ro- 
'  manam  ecclesiam  decrevimus  veneranter  honorari,  et  amplius 
'  quam  nostrum  imperium  terrenumque  thronum,  sedem  sacra- 
'  tissimam  beati  Petri  gloriose  exaltari  :  tribuentes  ei  potestatem 
'  et  gloriae  dignitatem,  atque  vigorem  et  honorificentiam  imperia- 
'  lem.'  Therefore  he  gives  him  palatium  Lateranense  and  all 
imperial  insignia  :  '  Unde  ut  pontificalis  apex  non  vilescat,  sed 
'  magis  quam  imperii  dignitas,  gloria  et  potentia  decoretur,  ecce 
'  tam  palatium  nostrum,  ut  praedictum  est,  quam  Romanam  urbem, 
'  et  omnes  Italiae,  seu  occidentalium  regionum  provincias,  loca  et 
'  civitates  praefato  beatissimo  Pontifici  nostro  Sylvestro,  universali 
'  Papae,  contradimus  atque  relinquimus  ;  et  ab  eo  et  a  successori- 
'  bus  ejus  per  hanc  divalem  nostram  et  pragmaticum  constitutum 
'  decernimus  disponenda,  atque  juri  sanctae  Romanae  ecclesiae 
'  concedimus  permansura.    Unde  congruum  perspeximus  nostrum 


O  THE   TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 

PART  the  somewhat  difficult  task  of  restoring  order  to  the 
— '- —  Prankish  Church.^  That  Church,  owing  to  the 
743  greatness  of  its  wealth  and  the  wordliness  of  its 
clergy,  had  been  distracted  by  a  struggle  of  its 
ecclesiastical  rulers  for  political  power  in  the  days  of 
c.  666  Ebroin  and  Leodegar.^  Since  the  vigorous  admi- 
nistration of  Pepin  of  Heristhal  and  Charles  Martel, 
however,  Prance  had  ceased  to  be  under  clerical  rule, 
and  her  bishops  were  excluded  from  the  great  offices 
of  state.  Instead,  however,  of  being  thereby  induced 
to  devote  themselves  to  their  spiritual  functions,  the 
clergy  now  gave  themselves  up  all  the  more  to 
worldliness  and  vice,  to  drunkenness,  licentiousness, 
and  promiscuous  concubinage ;  and  in  return  it  was 
not  uncommon  for  the  laity  to  rob  the  churches. 
Charles  Martel  had  even  distributed  ecclesiastical 
revenues  and  offices  in  usufruct  to  valiant  soldiers. 
Such  was  the  state  of  anarchy  when  Carloman  and 
Pepin,  the  sons  of  Charles  Martel,  invited  Boniface 
to  interpose  to  restore  order.  Boniface  readily  con- 
sented. The  reforms  which  he  introduced  may  be 
gathered  from  his   letters  to  Archbishop  Cuthbert.^ 


'  imperium,  et  regni  potestatem  in  orientalibiis  transferri  regionibus, 
'  et  in  Byzantinae  provinciae  optimo  loco,  nomini  nostro  civitatem 

*  aedificari,  et  nostrum  illic  constitui  imperium ;  quoniam  ubi 
'  principatus  sacerdotum,  et  Christianae  religionis  caput  ab  Im- 
'  peratore  coelesti  constitutum  est,  justum  non  est,  ut  illic  Im- 
'  perator  terrenus  habeat  potestatem.' 

'  Zachariae  Epist.  i.  i,  ad  Bonifacium,  Labb£,  viii.  231  ;  Epistol. 
xi.  ad  Episcopos  Galliae  et  Germaniae,  Labb:^,  viii.  257. 

2  See  MiLMAN,  book  iv.  ch.  x. ;  vol.  ii.  p.  434  (small  edition). 

3  Concil.  an.   743,   Labb^,  viii.   281  :  '  (i)  Decrevimus  et  con- 

*  fessi  sumus  fidem  catholicam,  etc.     (2)  Statuimus  ut  per  annos 


THE    THREE  DONATIONS.  5 1 

The  Church  in  Gaul  was  brousfht  into  new  terms  of    chap. 

.                                     III. 
intimacy  with  Rome,  and  the  palHum  conferred  on  '- — 

three  of  her  bishops.^ 

Thus  was  the  way  prepared  for  that  signal  revo-  {c)  De- 
lution,  pregnant  with  far-reaching  consequences  for  ofChii- 
both  Church  and  State  in  Europe,  which  noiselessly  ^^'^''^'^  ^^^' 
took  place  at  Soissons  in  the  year  752,  in  which 
Zachary  and  Pepin  were  the  actors,  and  w^hereby 
the  successors  of  St.  Peter  gained  an  ascendency 
over  the  Teutonic  sovereigns.  Yet  it  was  from  no 
motives  of  servile  dependence  that  Pepin  sent  two 
ecclesiastics  to  Rome,  and  there  proposed  to  Zachary 
the  question,  whether  it  was  better  for  one  who  pos- 
sessed the  power  to  rule,  or  for  one  who  merely  pos- 
sessed the  name.  On  the  contrary,  Pepin's  conduct 
appears  simply  to  have  been  the  result  of  political 
forecast.  He  was  no  doubt  anxious  to  lay  the  con- 
scientious scruples  of  the  Franks,  ever  the  firmest 
adherents  of  their  old  reigning  house,^  by  obtaining 
the  sanction  of  some  external  authority  for  what 
was  undoubtedly  a  revolution.  And  to  what  external 
authority  could  he  so  well  apply  as  to  the  highest 
representative  of  religion  ?  Besides,  he  needed  the 
approval  of  the  Church  before  he  could  invite  the 
Franks  to  commit  an  act  of  perjury — an  act  which 

*  singulos  canonum  decreta  et  ecclesiae  jura  ...  in  Synodo  le- 
'  gantur.  {4)  Venationes  et  silvaticas  vagationes  cum  canibus,  et 
'  ne  accipitres  et  falcones  habeant,  prohibuimus.  (6)  Statuimus 
'  ut  singulis    annis  unusquisque  episcopus   parochiam  suam  cir- 

*  cumeat.  (7)  Interdiximus  servis  Dei,  ne  pompato  habitu,  vel 
'  sagis  vel  armis  utantur.' 

'  Epist.  Zachariae  ad  Bonifac.  iv.  LabbS,  viii.  237. 
2  See  GiES.  ii.  225-.- 


62  THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 

PART     might  Otherwise  render  all  succeeding  oaths  of  alle- 

'- —  giance  insecure,  and  imperil  for  his  family  the  throne 

he  was  securing  for  himself. 

The  answer  which  his  ambassadors  brought  back 
from  Rome  was  favourable.  The  late  reforms  in  the 
Prankish  Church  conducted  by  Boniface  under  the 
auspices  of  Zachary,  had  prejudiced  the  Pope  in 
favour  of  Pepin,  and  prejudiced  the  Franks  in  favour 
A.n.  of  the  Pope's  spiritual  authority.  Pepin  was  elected 
king  at  Soissons,  according  to  the  old  usage,  with 
the  acclamation  of  the  nobles  and  people,  amid  the 
clash  of  arms  ;  then  elevated  on  the  buckler,  whilst 
bishops  and  nobles  stood  around  his  throne ;  and 
Boniface,  now  Archbishop  of  Mentz,  administered 
to  the  newly-elected  king  the  solemn  rite  of  anointing 
with  oil — a  ceremony  two  years  later  repeated  by 
the  Pope  in  person,  when  Zachary's  successor  visited 
Pepin.  One  individual  alone  appeared  to  suffer  by 
the  change — the  deposed  Merovingian  king,  Chil- 
deric  III.  With  long  hair  and  flowing  beard,  with- 
out domain,  without  revenues,  he  had  passed  a  life 
of  dignified  but  apathetic  quiescence,  seated  on  a 
throne,  in  mock  ceremony  receiving  ambassadors  or 
giving  the  answers  put  in  his  mouth.  Once  only  in 
the  course  of  the  year  had  he  been  brought  forth 
from  seclusion,  to  be  conveyed  in  a  slowly-moving 
car  through  the  ranks  of  his  wondering  subjects. 
Then  he  had  returned  again  to  the  seclusion  of  his 
palace.  Could  to  him  the  change  from  the  seclusion 
of  the  palace  to  the  quiet  of  the  monastery  be  an  ap- 
preciable one,  except  in  as  far  as  it  spared  him  the 
mockery  and  fatigue  of  a  public  exhibition  ?     Could 


THE    THREE   DONATIONS. 


63 


there  be    any  great    crime    in    relieving    him    from     chap. 

duties  which  another  invariably  discharged  and  for ^ 

which  he  was  wholly  unequal  ?  In  the  quiet  of  the 
monastery  Childeric  III.  died,  last  of  the  royal 
House  of  Meroveus,  whilst  the  usurper  of  his  throne 
reigned  in  his  stead.  The  Church  had  given  her 
sanction  to  the  usurpation.  Things  had  indeed 
chanofed  since  the  time  of  Clovis  !  ^ 

Meantime  the  Papacy  had  also  changed    hands,  (3)  ste- 
Fresh  clouds  had  darkened  the  Italian  horizon.    The 

A.I). 

Lombard  king,   Astolf,''^  had  entered  the  exarchate,     752-757 
seized    Ravenna,   and   threatened   Rome.      He  had  second 
concluded  a  treaty  with  Pope  Stephen  11.;^  then  he  ^'^>^^'^^^^^'^- 
was  agam  m  arms,  this  tmie  demandmg  the  mstant  ferings 
submission  of  the  city,  burning.the  villas  and  suburbs,  '^ 
plundering    the    churches,    violating    nuns,    tearing 
infants   from    their   mothers'    breasts,  polluting   the 

'  See  MiLMAN,  book  iv.  ch.  xi.  ;  vol.  iii.  p.  9  (small  edition). 
It  is  a  remarkable  fact  that  in  one  and  the  same  year  the  last  hold 
of  the  Eastern  Empire  in  Europe  expired — the  exarchate  of  Ra- 
venna— and  the  last  of  the  Merovingians  was  deposed.  The  new 
king,  Pepin,  had  thus  an  open  field  before  him.  He  succeeded  at 
once  to  the  kingdom  of  the  Franks,  and  to  the  position  formerly- 
held  by  the  exarchs. 

Those  who  love  to  trace  parallels  may  also  be  struck  with 
that  between  the  beginning  and  the  end  of  the  Holy  Roman 
Empire.  The  foundations  of  that  Empire  were  substantially  laid 
by  Pepin  in  the  year  752  a.d.  After  existing  a  thousand  years 
they  were  substantially  undermined  by  Frederick  the  Great  of 
Prussia  in  the  seven  years'  war,  1756-63.  The  Empire  itself  was 
not  officially  inaugurated  until  the  year  800  a.d.  Nor  was  it  offi- 
cially abolished  until  a  thousand  years  later,  an.  1806  a.d. 

2  GiES.  ii.  226. 

^  Stephen  H.  was  Pope  from  752  to  757  a.d.  He  succeeded 
Zacharias  and  was  followed  by  Paul  I.  For  the  life  of  Stephen, 
see  Labbe,  viii.  367. 


64 


THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


FART     mothers,  digging  up  the  bodies  of  the   saints,  and 

carrying  them  off  as  tutelar  deities   to   Lombardy. 

In  vain  the  new  pontiff,  Stephen  II.,  appealed  to 
Constantinople  for  help.^  Even  his  visit  to  Pepin 
was  not  to  much  purpose.  Pepin,  it  is  true,  crossed 
the  Alps  after  he  had  been  again  anointed,  and  de- 
feated Astolf  at  Pavia ;  but  he  had  no  sooner  with- 
drawn his  forces  beyond  the  Alps,  than  Astolf 
marched  with  his  whole  army  upon  Rome,  and 
encamped  before  the  Salarian  gate.^ 
A.D.  754  Truly  deplorable  was  then  the  condition  of  the 
city  which  had  once  ruled  the  world.  Theoretically 
a  part  of  the  Eastern  Empire,  really  an  independent 
Republic ;  refusing  to  acknowledge  an  iconoclastic 
emperor,  and  yet  appealing  to  him  for  help  ;  break- 
ing away  from  her  connection  with  the  East,  and  not 
yet  fully  connected  with  the  West ;  unable  to  defend 
herself,  and  yet  sorely  needing  defence ;  with  Lom- 
bards encamped  beneath  her  walls,  she  stood  totter- 
ing on  the  verge  of  ruin.  The  crisis  of  her  troubles 
had  come,  and  it  was  impossible  to  foretell  its  issue. 
Would  her  independence  be  swept  away,  her  terri- 
tory be  merged  in  the  Lombard  kingdom,  and  the 
Roman  patriarchs  be  relegated  to  strictly  ecclesias- 

'  Anastasius,   Vit.  xciv.  Stephani  II.  :  '  Cemens  ab  imperiali 

*  potentia  nullum  esse  subveniendi  auxilium,  tunc  quemadmodum 

*  praedecessores  ejus,  beatae  memoriae  domnus  Gregorius,  et  Gre- 
'  gorius  alius,  et  domnus  Zacharias,  beatissimi  Pontifices,  Carolo, 
'  excellentissimae  memoriae,  Regi  F'ancorum,  direxerunt,  petentes 
'  sibi  subveniri  propter  oppressiones  ac  invasiones,  quas  et  ipsi  in 
'  hac  Romanorum  provincia   a   nefanda   Longobardorum   gente 

*  perpessi  sunt.' 

'  Neand.  v.  159. 


THE    THREE  DONATIONS. 


■6-5 


tical  duties  ?    Or  would  some  unforeseen  circumstance     chap. 

III. 

come  to   her   aid,  and  replace  her  in  possession  of 

these  territories  which  she  was  on  the  point  of 
losing  ?  Letter  followed  letter^  In  quick  succession, 
addressed  by  Stephen  II.  to  Pepin,  reminding  him 
of  the  eternal  condemnation  he  hazarded  if  he  did 
not  complete  the  donation  he  had  vowed  to  St,  Peter, 
and  conjuring  him  by  God  and  His  Holy  Mother, 
by  the  angels  of  Heaven,  by  the  apostles  St.  Peter 
and  St.  Paul,  and  by  the  Last  Day,  to  come  to  the 
rescue  of  that  suffering  Pope.  Not  till  a  letter 
arrived  purporting  to  come  from  St.  Peter  himself,^ 


1  The  first  letter,  Epist.  i.  Labb^,  viii.  378,  is  a  letter  of  thanks 
for  Pei)in's  promised  assistance.  The  second  letter,  Epist.  iii. 
Labbe,   viii.   381,   is  stronger.     Amongst  other  things  he  says  : 

*  Sciatis  enim,  quia  sicut  chirographum  vestram  donationem  prin- 

*  ceps  apostolorum  firmiter  tenet,  et  necesse  est  ut  ipsum  chiro- 
'  graphum  expleatis  :  ne  dum  Justus  Judex  ad  judicandum  vivos 
'  et  mortuos,  et  saeculum  per  ignem  advenerit,  in  futuro  judicio 
'■  idem  princeps  apostolorum  idem  chirographum  demonstrans 
'  nullam  habere  firmitatem,  districtas  faciatis  cum  eo  rationes.' 
The  third,  Epist.  iv.,  Labb^,  viii.  382,  is  the  strongest.  It  begins: 
'  Quanta  luctuosa  et  amarissima  tristitia  circumvallati,  quantaque 

*  anxietate  atque  angustia  coarctati  simus,  et  quantas,  crebrescen- 
'  tibus  continuis  malis,  oculi  nostri  distillantes  profundant  lacry- 

*  mas,  credimus  quod  et  ipsa  omnium  elementarum  figmenta  enar- 
'  rent.     Quis  enim  harum  tribulationum  conspector  non  lugeat?' 

^     2  -phe  letter,  Epist.  v.  Labbe,  viii.  386,  is  addressed  ad  Francos  : 

*  Ego  Petrus  apostolus,  dum  a  Christo  Dei  vivi  filio  vocatus  sum 

*  supernae  clementiae  arbitrio,  illuminator  ab  ejus  potentia  totius 
"  mundi  sum  praeordinatus.  .  .   .     Quamobrem  omnes  qui  audien- 

*  tes   impleverunt  praedicationem,   profecto    credant  sua  in  hoc 

*  mundo  Dei  praeceptione  relaxari  peccata,  et  mundi  atque  sine 
^  macula  in  illam  progredientur  vitam.   .   .  . 

'  Ideoque  ego  apostolus  Dei  Petrus,  qui  vos  adoptivos  habeo 

*  filios,  ad  defendendum  de  manibus  adversanorum  banc  Romanam 

F 


6g  THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGTANCE. 

PART     offering  heaven  to  his  friends,  and  denouncing  hell 


on  his  enemies,  did  Pepin  respond  to  the  sum- 
mons, and  suddenly  crossing  the  Alps,  swoop  down 
upon  the  Lombards.  Besieged  in  Pavia,  Astolf 
readily  acceded  to  the  demands  of  Pepin  ;  and  in 
a  formal  assembly  at  which  the  Eastern  am- 
bassadors were  present,  vainly  asserting  the  claims 
of  Byzantium,  the  district  once  forming  the  Exar- 
chate in  North  Italy,  and  which  included  Ravenna, 
Rimini,  Pesaro,  Fano,  Cesena,  and  other  towns,  was 
ceded  to  the  Roman  Church,^  even  Narni  being 
severed  from  the  dukedom  of  Spoleto.  To  crown 
the  whole,  the  deed  of  gift  commemorating  the 
donation  was  ordered  to  be  placed  on  the  tomb  of 
St.  Peter.  In  return  for  this  substantial  help,  the 
title  of  Patrician  was  bestowed  on  Pepin  by  the 
Pope.  Pepin  received  it  with  modesty,  declaring 
that  his  sole  object  in  coming  was  to  show  his  vene- 

'  civitatem  et  populum  mihi  a  Deo  commissum  .  .  .  adhortor,  et 
'  ad  liberandam  ecclesiam  Dei  ...  a  pessima  Longobardorum 
'  gente.  .  .  . 

'  Conjuro  vos  (ut  praefatum  est)  dilectissimi,  per  Deum  vivum, 
'  et  omnino  protestor,  minime  permittatis  hanc  meam  civitatem 
'  Romanam  et  in  ea  habitantem  populum  amplius  a  gente  Longo- 
'  bardorum  laniari,  ne  lanientur  et  crucientur  corpora  et  animae 
'  vestrae  in  aeterno  atque  inextinguibili  igni  Tartareo  cum  diabolo, 
'  et  ejus  pestiferis  angelis.  ..." 

A  similar  instance  of  the  direct  interposition  of  St.  Peter  is  that 
related  by  Bede,  Hist.  Ecd.  ii.  6,  when  Archbishop  Laurentius  was 
scourged  by  the  apostle.  If  Stephen  II.  could  perpetrate  such  a 
forgery,  we  heed  not  wonder  that  Hadrian  I.,  writing  to  Charles  in 
777,  should  speak  of  Constantine's  donation  as  an  undoubted  fact, 
nor  that  in  843,  the  acceptance  of  the  False  Decretals  should  be 
possible. 
.  1  MiLMAN,  iii.  25  ;  GiES.  ii.  227  ;  Neand.  v.  159. 


THE   THREE  DONATIONS.  ^^. 

ration  for  St.   Peter,  by  discharging  duties  which  the     chap. 

Eastern   Empire   had   failed   to   fulfil.      He  in   turn \ 

nominated    the    Pope    Patrician   of  the    Exarchate,    a.d.  755 

Both  parties  were  satisfied  with  the  result,  and  thus 

Rome  was,  for  the  second  time,  by  the   help    of  a 

foreign  potentate,  an   independent  republic,  with  a 

large  part  of  Italy  annexed  to  her  bishopric. 

Still  troubles  continued  to  beset  the  See  under  the  (4)  Ha- 

succeeding-  Popes,    Paul    I.,^  Constantine    11.,''^    and    ^'""   ' 

.  .  .  772-795 

Stephen  III.  ;^  but  with  Pepin  for  its  defender  and  and  the 

protector,  and  the  Lombards  weakened  by  internal  ^f^'^^^/''* 
disunion,  the  Papacy  was  comparatively  secure. 
The  Dukes  of  Spoleto  and  Benevento  broke  away 
from  connection  with  the  King  of  Pavia.  Never- 
theless, in  the  Papacy  of  Paul  I;,  Desiderius  threat- 
ened Rome.  On  the  death  of  Paul,  the  Duke  of 
Nepi  elevated  Constantine  by  violence  to  the  Pon- 
tificate :  his  successor,  Stephen  III.,  took  cruel 
vengeance  on  the  usurper.  But  the  most  eventful 
years  are  those  which  fall  in  the  administration  of 
Hadrian  I.,^  when  Charles  had  succeeded  his  father 
Pepin  on  the  throne  of  the  Franks. 

Again  the  Lombards  are  the  aggressors  ;  again 
the  Prankish  king  is  the  defender ;  again  he  crosses 

^  Paul  I.  was  Pope  from  757  to  767  a.d.  For  his  life,  see 
Labb£,  viii.  427. 

2  The  claim  of  Constantine  to  be  considered  a  Pope  is  denied 
by  some  writers.     He  only  held  the  dignity  for  one  year. 

^  Stephen  III.  was  Pope  from  768  to  772  a.d.  His  life  in 
LABBfi,  viii.  468. 

*  Hadrian  I.  was  Pope  from  772  to  795  a.d.  He  followed 
Stephen  HI.  and  was  succeeded  by  Leo  HI.  His  life  in  Labb^, 
viii.  491.  Charles  became  king  of  the  Franks  768.  He  was 
crowned  as  emperor  800,  and  died  814  a.d. 

F     2 


68  THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 

PART     the  Alps  at  the  summons  of  the  Pope  ;  again  a  dona- 

. '- tion   is    made   to  the  successor  of  St.   Peter.      But 

turning  from  the  bare  outHne  of  facts  to  the  motives 
influencing  the  conduct  of  all  the  parties  concerned, 
a  sad  picture  of  depravity,  corruption,  and  personal 
selfishness  comes  to  view.  The  act  ^  which  first 
drew  down  upon  Hadrian  the  enmity  of  Desiderius, 
was  not  an  act  of  justice  or  mercy ;  it  was  the  be- 
trayal of  the  fatherless  children  of  Carloman,  the 
suppression  of  justice  for  the  sake  of  furthering  his 
own  interests.  The  motive  which  induced  Charles 
so  readily  to  respond  to  the  call  of  Hadrian,  and 
crossing  the  Alps  to  carry  on  a  war  of  extermination 
ao-ainst  the  Lombards,  was  not  zeal  to  serve  the 
Pope,  but  a  desire  to  incorporate  the  Lombards  in 
the  kingdom  of  the  Franks,  and  to  deprive  the 
children  of  his  brother  Carloman  of  their  undoubted 
rights.  The  times  were  no  doubt  lawless  times. 
Both  Franks  and  Lombards  were  rude  and  bar- 
barous. The  personal  ambition  which  aimed  at 
concentrating  large  kingdoms  in  the  hands  of  one 
person  was  most  useful  in  advancing  civilisation; 
but  the  personal  character  of  those  who  indulged 
their  ambition  appears  low  when  referred  to  any  ab- 


'  Charles  had  seized  the  whole  kingdom  on  the  death  of  his 
brother  Carloman,  to  the  detriment  of  the  children  of  Carloman. 
The  dispossessed  children  took  refuge  at  the  court  of  the  Lombard 
king,  Desiderius,  and  Desiderius  tried  to  move  the  Pope  to  recog- 
nise their  claims.  But  Hadrian  was  too  sagacious  to  make  an 
enemy  of  the  Prankish  king,  and  to  listen  to  a  Lombard.  He 
refused  and  was  in  consequence  attacked  by  the  Lombards.  See 
MiLMAN,  iii.  41. 


THE    THREE  DONATIONS. 


69 


solute  standard.     Possibly  in  the  age  to  which  they    chap. 


III. 


belonged  it  appeared  otherwise.  The  play,  there- 
fore, of  lower  motives,  which  is  so  obvious  in  the 
transactions  between  Hadrian  I.  and  Charles,  need 
not  draw  forth  the  reprobation  which  such  motives 
would  deserve  in  a  more  advanced  age.  For,  not- 
withstanding the  lowness  of  the  motives,  there  is  a 
heroism  about  the  conduct  of  Charles  which  proves 
that  his  faults  were  the  faults  of  the  age,  his  great- 
ness the  greatness  of  a  master  mind.  There  is  a 
generosity  and  frankness  about  the  way  in  which, 
after  defeating  the  Lombards,  he  attended  all  the 
ceremonies  of  the  Holy  Season  at  Rome,  and  then 
ratified  the  donation  of  his  father  Pepin,  by  ceding  a.d.  776 
to  the  Pope  the  Exarchate  and  the  Pentapolis,  terri- 
tories which  were  his  by  right  of  conquest,  even 
offering  the  diploma  which  contained  the  solemn  gift 
upon  the  altar  of  St.  Peter's.  There  is  a  magna- 
nimity too  about  his  subsequent  conduct — his  coming  780 
to  Rome  to  celebrate  the  baptism  of  his  younger 
son,  for  whom  he  destined  the  kingdom  of  Italy,  his 
second  visit  to  Rome  as  protector  at  the  bidding  of  781 
the  Pope,  his  granting  the  dukedom  of  Benevento 
to  the  Lombard  Grimoald — which  raises  him  far 
above  the  level  of  a  mere  ambitious  schemer,  and 
contrasts  with  the  character  of  Hadrian,  the  latter, 
until  the  time  of  his  death,  being  haunted  by  a  morbid 
hatred  of  his  foes  the  Lombards. 

For  the  third  time,  now,  by  the  gift  of  Charles,  the 
See  of  Rome  was  endowed  with  territorial  posses- 
sions. Estates  it  already  possessed  in  the  time  of 
Gregory  the  Great ;  the  independent  tenure  of  these 


70 


THE   TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


PART     estates  had  been  first  secured  to  it  in  the  time   of 

'         Pope  Zachary,  and  had  given  rise  to  the  fiction  of  a 

A.D.  742    ^^^^  donation  by  Constantine.     A  second  donation 

755       had  been  made   by    Pepin    of  the    Exarchate   and 
PentapoHs  ;   and   to  these  two  preceding  donations 

774  V.  as  now  added  by  the  generosity  of  Charles  a  third. 
By  these  three  donations,  the  Bishop  of  Rome 
was,  however,  placed  on  a  level  with  civil  princes, 
just  as,  by  the  submission  of  the  great  metropolitans, 
he  had  already  become  an  ecclesiastical  monarch. 
He  was  no  longer  simply  Patriarch,  not  even 
Patriarch  of  the  whole  West  :  he  was  Pope,  and 
Pope  in  a  political  as  well  as  an  ecclesiastical  sense. 
And  yet  as  he  reviewed  his  position  at  the  head  of 
an  independent  republic  in  Italy,  as  he  beheld  the 
unsettled  state  of  Italy,  and  felt  what  a  strong  hand 
was  needed  to  govern  his  newly-acquired  posses- 
sions, Hadrian  I,  may  well  have  had  gloomy  mis- 
givings as  to  the  future.  Would  he  be  able  to  keep 
what  he  had  got  ?  Would  he  be  able  to  dispense 
with  foreign  support  ?  Many  a  wistful  glance  he 
may  have  turned  towards  his  protector  beyond  the 
Alps,  and  oft  have  bethought  him  by  what  means  the 
ties  which  bound  them  together  could  be  drawn  if 
necessary  closer.  For  he  could  not  without  sacrificing 
his  dignity  follow  the  example  of  so  many  lay  lords, 
and  render  fealty  to  one  who  was  only  king,  in  re- 
turn for  protection.  But  he  might  without  indignity 
repeat  what  had  been  done  by  his  predecessors,  and 
own  himself  the  subject  of  an  emperor.  It  was  not, 
however,  reserved  for  Hadrian  to  do  more  than  to 
think  and  to  scheme. 


THE    THREE  DONATIONS. 


71 


And  yet  those  who  witnessed  the  council  held  at     chap. 

Frankfort  ^  in  the  last  year  of  his   Pontificate,  might '- . 

have  thought  that  the  Pope  had  neither  much 
dignity  nor  ecclesiastical  power  to  sacrifice.  Bishops  a.d.  794 
and  nobles  assembled  there  at  the  summons  of 
Charles  from  every  part  of  the  Western  Empire, 
from  Italy,  Germany,  Gaul,  Aquitaine,  even  from 
Britain,  and  matters,  secular  and  ecclesiastical,  were 
decided  at  one  and  the  same  assembly.  No  Hadrian 
was  there  to  take  part  when  the  doctrines  of  the 
Adoptionists,  Elipand  and  Felix,  were  condemned. 
He  could  only  acquiesce  when  the  decisions  of  the 
second  Nicene  Council,  sanctioning  the  worship  of  787 
images,^  were  rejected — decisions  received  in  the 
East,  and  already  approved  by  Hadrian  and  his 
predecessors   in  the  West.      In    common    with    the 


*  Concil.  Francofurd.  an.  794,  Labb6,  ix.  loi,  Can.  i  :  '  Con- 
venientibus,  Deo  favente,  apostolica  auctoritate,  atque  piissimi 
domni  nostri  Caroli  regis  jussione  an.  xxvi.  principatus  sui,  cunc- 
tis  regni  Francorurn,  seu  Italiae,  Aquitaniae  provinciae  episcopis 
ac  sacerdotibus  synodal!  Concilio,  inter  quos  ipse  mitissimus 
sancto  interfuit  conventui.  Ubi  in  primordio  capitulorum  exor- 
tum  est  de  impia  ac  nefanda  haerese  Elipandi  Toletanae  sedis 
episcopi,  et  Felicis  Orgellitanae,  eorumque  sequacibus,  qui  male 
sentientes  in  Dei  filio  asserebant  adoptionem.  Quam  omnes  qui 
supra  sanctissimi  patres  et  respuentes  una  voce  contradixerunt, 
atque  hanc  haeresim  funditus  a  sancta  ecclesia  eradicandam 
statuerunt.' 

^  Ibid.  Can.  2  :  '  Allata  est  in  medium  quaestio  de  nova  Grae- 
corum  synodo  quam  de  adorandis  imaginibus  tertiam  Constantino- 
poli  fecerunt,  in  qua  scriptum  habebatur,  ut  qui  imaginibus  Sanc- 
torum, ita  ut  deificae  Trinitati,  servitium  aut  adorationem  non 
impenderent,  anathema  judicarentur.  Qui  supra  sanctissimi  pa- 
tres nostri  omnimodis  adorationem  et.  servitutem  renuentes  con- 
tempserunt,  atque  consentientes  condemnaverunt.' 


72  THE   TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 

PART     nations  of  Southern  Europe,  Hadrian  might  deplore 

'- —  the  anti-artistic  canons  of  the  Council  of  Frankfort, 

but  the  deeper  spirituality  of  the  Teutonic  Franks 
was    already    asserting    itself   against   the  abuse   of 
images,   not  indeed  with  the  rude  violence  of  the 
edicts  of  Leo  the   I  saurian,  but  with  the  legal   de- 
cisions  of  an    imperial    synod.     The    Franks  were 
strong,  and  what  could  the  Pope  dare  against  such 
an  opponent  as  Charles  ? 
c.  Alle-         The  idea  which  floated  before  the  mind  of  Ha- 
"f-zw;/  to     drian  I.  as  a  visionary  scheme,  was,  however,  about 
^^^^  *'^:       to  assume  a  more  material  shape  in  that  of  his  suc- 
Western    cessor.     For  at  least  Leo  IIL-^  contrived  to  find  a 

Empire.  .  .  .-    .  ,  . 

way    out    of   the    difficulty    without    sacrificing    his 
hies  of"'   dignity.      Taught  in  the  very  first  years  of  his  ad- 
Leo.  III.    ministration    to    experience    his    own    helplessness 
A.D.       against  conspiracy  or  tumult,  conscious   of  his  own 
personal    insecurity,    if    popular    feeling    should    be 
roused  against  him    by   either    well-founded    or  ill- 
founded   accusations,   he   matured   his  scheme  of  a 
revived  Western   Empire.      Once,  whilst  riding  in 
April  23,    solemn  pomp  on  St.  George's  day  to  the  church  of 
St.   Laurence,  he  had  been  suddenly  seized   by  an 
armed  band,  thrown  from   his  horse,   dragged  to  a 
neighbouring  church,  and  there  an  attempt  had  been 
made  to  practise  upon  him  the  oriental  punishment 
of   mutilation.      From    suffering   and    imprisonment 
Leo  escaped.      He  crossed  the  Alps,  and  repaired  to 


*  Leo  III.  succeeded  Hadrian  I.  as  Pope  in  the  year  795  a.d. 
He  was  succeeded  in  816  by  Stephen  IV.  For  his  life  see  Labb^, 
ix.  119. 


REVIVAL    OF   THE    WESTERN  EMPIRE. 


73 


Paderborn   to  the  court   of  the    patrician    Charles,     chap. 

Yet  there  the  voice  of  slander — if  slander  it  was —   '- — 

followed  him.  His  position  seemed  utterly  hopeless. 
At  home  he  was  threatened  by  the  Roman  people, 
abroad  he  was  threatened  by  unrelenting  enemies. 
In  this  emergency  he  formed  his  resolve.  Perhaps 
he  even  communicated  it  to  Charles,  but  more  pro- 
bably it  was  concealed  in  the  secret  of  his  own 
bosom.  It  was  the  resolve  to  complete  the  revolu- 
tion begun  by  Zachary  and  Pepin  at  Soissons,  by 
raising  the  Prankish  king  to  a  higher  dignity  than 
that  of  any  European  sovereign,  and  to  transfer  to 
him  when  anointed  by  solemn  unction  Emperor  of 
the  West  the  allegiance  formerly  paid  by  Rome  to 
the  Emperor  of  the  East.  The  resolve  was  taken. 
Soon  the  fitting  season  for  its  execution  would  have 
arrived. 

Leo  had  returned  to  Rome ;  to  Rome  Charles  also      (2) 

Charles 

directed  his  steps,  summoned  as  a  judge  to  enquire  /«  Rome. 
into  the  charges  preferred  against  the  Pope,  about  '^•^'  ^°° 
to  return  with  the  diadem  of  the  Caesars  on  his  brow 
and  the  homage  of  the  Pontiff.  For  some  days  a 
synod  held  sittings ;  a  long  and  difficult  investiga- 
tion of  the  charges  was  made,  and  nothing  was 
established.^  But  to  satisfy  the  scruples  of  all,  Leo 
came  forward,  ascended  the  pulpit  in  the  church  of 
St.  Peter,  and  there,  in  the  presence  of  the  people. 


'  The  Synod  declared  :  '  Nos  sedem  apostolicam,  quae  est 
'  caput  omnium  Dei  ecclesiarum,  judicare  non  audemus.  Nam 
'  ab  ipsa  nos  omnes,  et  Vicario  sue  judicamur,  ipsa  autem  a 
'  nemine  judicatur,  quemadmodum  et  antiquitus  mos  est.'  Ana- 
STASius,  Vita  Leon.  III.  The  reference  is  to  the  Synodus  Palmaris 
an.  501.     See  p.  17. 


J.  THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 

PART     attested  before   God,   His  Angels,  and  the  blessed 

'. Apostle    St.    Peter,    that   he    was    guiltless    of  the 

charges  preferred  against  him.  The  eighth  century 
of  the  Christian  era  was  about  to  close.  The  last 
Christmas  day  had  come.  The  Pope  and  his  clergy, 
Charles  and  his  attendants,  repaired  to  the  basilica 
of  St.  Peter  to  join  in  devotion. 
(3)  Coro-  The  service  of  the  mass  went  on.  In  the  centre 
^Charles  *^f  ^^^  ^^g^  altar  was  the  Pope,  and  around  him  in 
A.D.  800  the  semicircular  apse  the  clergy  rising  tier  upon  tier. 
Charles  with  all  his  courtiers  knelt  in  profound  de- 
votion below.  Then,  as  before  the  confession,  he 
rose  from  prayer,  the  Pope  advanced  towards  him, 
suddenly  placed  on  his  head  a  crown,  and  at  once  a 
deafening  thrice-repeated  cheer  arose  from  the  whole 
assembled  people,  making  the  spacious  dome  ring 
again,  and  almost  drowning  the  words  :  Carolo  piis- 
simo  Augusto  a  Deo  coronato,  magno,  pacifico,  im- 
peratori  Romanorum,  vita  et  victoria.  The  Emperor 
elect  was  anointed  with  solemn  unction.  The  Pontiff 
knelt  before  him  and  humbly  tendered  his  obeisance. 
From  that  day  Charles  was  no  longer  King  of  the 
Franks  and  Patrician  of  the  Romans,  but  Emperor 
of  the  West  and  sovereign  Augustus.^ 


'  Seethe  accounts  of  the  Coronation  in  Labb^,  ix.  226,  sub  an. 
800  :  '  Exeunte  anno  Christi  dccc,  cum  ad  reparandum  turbatae 
'  ecclesiae  statum  Romam  venisset  Carolus  Magnus,  ac  die  natali 
'  domini,  sacrorum  causa  sancti  Petri  basiHcam  esset  ingressus, 
'  Leo  pontifex,  ob  egregiailHus  in  ecclesiam  Romanam  Christique 
*  vicarios  merita,  nihil  tale  suspicantis  capiti  coronam  imposuit, 
'  populo  ter  unanimi  voce  acclamante,  Carolo  piissimo  Augusto  a 
'  Deo  coronato,  magno,  pacifico,  imperatori  Romanorum,  vita  et 
'victoria.     Ita  ab  omnibus  constitutus  imperator,  oleo.sancto  a 


REVIVAL   OF   THE    WESTERN  EMPIRE. 


75 


By  that   sudden  act,  which   came   upon   Charles,     chap. 


I 


according  to  his  own  confession,  wholly  unexpectedly,^ 
the  transfer  of  allegiance  by  the  Popes  from  East  to 
West  was  complete.  By  it  Charles  had  obtained 
the  long-cherished  object  of  his  ambition,  but  in  a 
way  which  he  little  anticipated.  He  could  no  longer 
indulge  in  the  dream  of  transferring  the  Byzantine 
crown  to  his  own  head,  nor  entertain  the  project  of 
wedding  the  Empress  Irene.  Rival  claims  to  those 
of  the  Eastern  Empire  had  been  called  into  being— 
the  claims  of  the  old  Western  Empire.^  In  the 
vagueness  and  uncertainty  of  the  powers,  the  privi- 
leges, and  the  rights  which  the  new  title  conferred, 
in  the  indistinct  notions  of  the  authority  by  which  it 
was  bestowed,  dwelt  much  of  its  majesty  and  power. 
Neither  the  Pope,  the  Emperor,  nor  the  people  had 
any  clear  view  of  what  was  implied  in  the  new 
imperial  dignity.      It  was  enough  for  Leo  to  have 

'  pontifici  illico  est  inunctus,  ab  eoque  more  antique  principum 
'  adoratus  :  et  qui  antea  rex  Francorum  ac  patricius  Romanorum 

*  vocabatur,  exinde,  ablato  patricii  nomine,  imperator  et  Augustus 
'  est  appellatur.'  Another  account.  Ibid.  228  :  'Ipsa  autem  sacra- 
'  tissima  natalis  Domini  cum  Rex  ad  missam  ante  confessionem 
'  beati  Petri  Apostoli  ab  oratione  surgeret,  domnus  Leo  Papa 
'  coronam  capiti  ejus  imposuit,  et  a  cuncto  Romanorum  populo 
'  acclamatum   est,   Carolo  Augusto  a   Deo   coronato,  magno  et 

*  pacifico  Imperatori  Romanorum,  vita  et  victoria.  Antea  enim 
'  domnus  Carolus  vocabatur  ab  omnibus  rex  Francorum  et  patri- 
'  cius  Romanorum  ;  sed  post  laudes  a  domno  apostolico  more 
'  antiquorum  principum  adoratus  est,  atque  ablato  Patricii  nomine 

*  Imperator  et  Augustus  est  appellatus.'  The  voice  of  the  age 
called  the  coronation  by  the  Pope  the  coronation  a  Deo. 

1  See  note  on  preceding  page. 

2  GiES.  ii.  229;  Neand.  v.  159;  see  Concil.  Roman,  an.  996  ; 
LABBfi,  xi.  1016. 


III. 


76 


THE    TRANSFER   OF  ALLEGIANCE. 


PART     placed  himself  under  the  protection  of  a  new  sove- 

\ reign  without  loss  of  dignity ;  for  Charles  to  have 

merged  his  title  of  King  of  the  Franks  in  that  of 
Western  Emperor ;  and  for  the  Romans  to  see  their 
city  once  more  the  seat  of  Empire.  They  thought 
not  of  the  union  between  the  Teuton  and  the  Ro- 
man ;  of  the  wedding  between  the  Papacy  and  the 
Empire.^  Indeed,  who  that  witnessed  or  took  part 
in  the  ceremony  had  any  forecast  of  the  far-reach- 
ing consequences  with  which  that  union  was  already 
pregnant  ? 

^  See  MiLMAN,  book  iv.  ch.  xii. ;  vol.  iii.  p.  57  (small  edition). 


THE  PAPACY   TO    THE   TREATY   OF   VERDUN. 


77 


CHAPTER    IV. 

THE  POPES   UNDER  THE   CAROLINGIANS. 
(800—888.) 


Non  est  discipulus  supa-  magistrum. — S.  Luc.  ii.  40. 


T 


HOSE  who  have  watched  the  progress  of  the     chap. 

See  of   Rome    during   the  two  centuries  of    ' — 

its  growth,  from  the  time  of  Gregory  the  Great  to  p'acy  To 
the  coronation  of  Charles  by.  Leo  HI.,  cannot  fail  ffyf"^^ 
to  have  observed  the  foundations  already  laid  of  all  ^'^'^■ 
the  subsequent  claims  advanced  on   behalf  of  the    80^^843. 
Papacy.      In  the  two  steps  which  had  been  taken  as  (0  ^"i- 

1  1         .  ,        .      .  ^    ,  portance 

yet — the  reduction  to  submission  01  the  great  metro-  of  the  co- 
politans,   and  the  transfer  of  allegfiance  from  East  '^'"^'^"• 
to  West — were  involved  all  its   subsequent  acts    of  dations 
domination ;    the    oath  exacted    from    Boniface    im-  future 
plying  that  henceforth  all  bishops  were  simply  Papal  S^''^'^^"-^^^- 
vassals  ;  the  coronation  of  Charles  securing  a  political 
ascendency  for  the  Papacy.     For  although  the  Pope 
on  bended  knee,  took  an  oath  of  fidelity  to  the  newly 
anointed    Emperor,    yet,    by   transferring   his    own 
allegiance  from  the   East  to  the  West,  at  his  own 
discretion,  he  violated  the  ordinary  duties,  and  over- 
stepped the  recognised  position  of  a  subject.    Charles, 
it  is  true,  received  a  new  and  higher  dignity,  but  the 
acceptance  of  that  dignity  at  the  hands  of  Leo,  might 


78 


THE   POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 


PART     be  construed  to  be  a  recognition  of  the  Pope  as  the 
bestower  of  Empire. 


{b)  Foun-  One  step  only  was  yet  wanting  before  the  claims  of 
fheHoif  the  Papacy  would  assume  their  full  dimensions,  and 
Empire,  ^t^^^  gj-^p  ^^g  ^  clear  enunciation  of  the  principles 
involved  in  the  two  preceding  steps.  Whenever  this 
other  step  should  be  taken,  such  was  the  respect 
inspired  by  Rome,  and  such  the  incapacity  of  the 
Northern  nations,  to  whom  she  had  communicated 
the  first  germs  of  civilisation,  to  distinguish  her  tem- 
poral from  her  spiritual  character,  her  religious 
from  her  civilising  influence,  that  it  would  only 
require  time,  not  only  to  gain  ready  acquiescence  for 
her  claims,  but  what  is  more,  to  obtain  actual 
assistance  from  those  who,  in  after  times,  would  most 
suffer  from  them  in  furthering  her  designs  of 
aggrandisement.  Rightly,  therefore,  may  the  Papal 
Sovereignty  over  the  West  be  considered  to  date 
from  the  coronation  of  Charles  in  the  year  800. 
For  then  began  that  union  of  Church  and  State,  of 
the  Empire  and  the  Papacy,  which  ripened  into  the 
Holy  Empire  of  a  later  century,  and  constituted  the 
characteristic  feature  of  the  Middle  Ages.  For  five 
centuries  that  Empire — the  grandest  religious  and 
political  institution  which  the  world  ever  saw — • 
flourished  and  grew ;  for  as  many  more  it  existed  in 
decline  and  decay.  The  beginning  of  the  present  cen- 
tury has  witnessed  the  downfall  of  its  political  head  ; 
will  it  be  given  to  its  spiritual  head  to  survive  the 
close  ?  No  wonder,  considering  the  changes  which 
the  coronation  of  Charles  inaugurated  in  Europe,  that 
it  made  an  .unparalleled  impression   on   those  who 


THE  PAPACY   TO    THE    TREATY  OF    VERDUN. 


79 


I 


lived  at  the  time !     For  was  it  not  the  introduction     chap. 

of  order,  law,  and  settled  government  in  the  midst  of  1_ 

anarchy  ?  Was  it  not  the  welding  together  of 
hitherto  discordant  elements  ?  No  wonder  too  that 
it  should  have  been  the  theme  which  engaged  the 
attention  of  every  succeeding  age.  For  was  it  not 
the  event  which  gave  to  mediaeval  society  its  form 
and  impress  ?  Was  it  not  the  introduction  of  a 
centralising  power  which  fused  Frank  and  Italian, 
the  Teuton  and  the  Roman,  into  one  homogeneous 
society  ?^ 

After  the  coronation  of  Charles,  a  temporary  lull  (2)  Post- 
came  over  the  course  of  the  rapacy,  whilst  the  newly-  Papacy 
elected   Emperor  was    consolidating  his   conquests,  corona- 
and   Leo   III.   was  adapting  himself  to  his  altered  ^'^^'^' 

1       •  •    -y  r^  T  T  r         1  1         1  1  ('^)  P^"^'^^ 

relations    with    Germany.       Henceforth,    both    the  advanced 
Emperor  and  the    Pope  combine  to  build  up  that  fegisia-'^*' 
peculiar  fabric  of  the  Middle  Ages,  on  which  both  '''^'"• 
rested  for  support ;  the  Pope  relying  on  the  Emperor 
for  protection  against  his  political  foes,  the  Emperor 
on    the    Pope   for  guaranteeing  his    doubtful    title. 
Emperors,  by  their  capitularies,  advanced  the  cause 
of  the  Popes,  whilst  the  Popes,  in  pushing  their  own 
claims,  vindicated  for  the  Emperors  a  dignity  which 
they   had  themselves  conferred.     Thus  by  playing 
into  each  other's  hands,  the  title  of  both  was  simulta- 
neously established. 

Prominent    among    these   capitularies    are    those  (O  Ca- 
which  Charles  enacted.     All  persons   are  required  ^'' '''"^ 
to  obey  the  clerg-y  set  over   them,   from  the  least  ^^^^*'^^^- 

^  ^^  A.D.   802. 

1  See  the  excellent  ch.  v.  in  Bryce's  Holy  Roman  Empire.        - 


gQ  THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

PART  to  the  greatest,  as  they  would  obey  God,  whose 
^'  place  the  clergy  hold  upon  earth.^  All  men  are  to 
refer  disputed  matters  to  their  bishops  for  adju- 
dication.^ At  Aachen  all  persons  within  his  do- 
minions, monks  and  canons  included,  were  required 
to  take  a  new  oath  of  allegiance  to  himself,  in  which 
they  declare,  that  henceforward  they  will  bear  true 
allegiance  to  their  Lord  Emperor  Charles,  son  of 
King  Pepin,  and  of  Queen  Bertha,  without  fraud, 
or  malice,  or  guile.^  '  At  the  same  time  it  shall  be 
publicly  explained  to  all  what  is  the  meaning  and 
force  of  this  oath,  and  how  much  more  it  includes 
than  a  mere  promise  of  fidelity  to  the  monarch's 
person.  Firstly,  it  binds  those  who  swear  it  to 
live,  each  and  every  one  of  them,  according  to 
his  strength  and  knowledge  in  the  holy  service  of 


'  Caroli  Magni  selecta  Capitula  ecclesiastlca,  apud  Labbj^,  ix. 
tit.  i.  cap.  i.  p.  232  :  '  Praecipientes  enim  jubemus,  ut  nulJus  qui- 
'  libet  ex  fidelibus  nostris,  a  minimo  ad  maximum,  in  his  quae 

*  ad   eum   pertinent,   episcopo   inobediens  parere    audeat.    .    .    . 

*  Cap.  2  :  Volumus  atque  praecipimus,  ut  omnes  suis  sacerdotibus 
'  tarn  majoris  ordinis  quam  et  inferioris,  a  minimo  usque  ad  maxi- 
'  mum,  ut  summo  Deo,  cujus  vice  in  ecclesia  legatione  fungimtur, 

*  obedientes  existant' 

2  Ibid.  cap.  iii.  p.  233  :  '  Quicumque  litem  habens  .  .  .  illico 

*  ad  episcoporum  judicium  cum  sermone  litigantium  dirigatur.' 

^  Concil.  Aquisgr.  an.  802,  Labb^,  ix.  265  :  'Ad  ipsummet  an- 
'  num  MDCCCii  Carolus  imperator  concilium  habuit,  ut  ei  omnes 
'  generaliter  fidelitatem  jurarent,  monachi,  canonici.     Ita  et  fece- 

*  runt.     Sacramentum  :  Sacramentale  qualiter  promitto  ego,  quod 

*  ab  isto  die  in  antea  fidelis  sum  domno  Carolo  piissimo  Impera- 
'  tori,  filio  Pippini  regis  et  Berthanae  reginae,  pura  mente,  absque 
'  fraude  et  malo  ingenio,  de  mea  parte  ad  suam  partem,  et  ad 
'  honorem  regni  sui  :  sicut  per  drictum  debet  esse  homo  domino 

*  suo.     Sic  me  adjuvet  Deus.' 


THE  PAPACY   TO    THE    TREATY  OF   VERDUN.  gl 

God  ;  since  the  Lord  Emperor  cannot  extend  over    chap. 

all  his  care  and  discipline.     Secondly,  it  binds  them,  L_ 

neither  by  force  nor  fraud,  to  seize  or  molest  any  of 
the  goods  or  servants  of  his  crown.  Thirdly,  to  do 
no  violence  or  treason  towards  the  Holy  Church,  nor 
to  widows,  or  orphans,  or  strangers,  seeing  that  the 
Lord  Emperor  has  been  appointed,  after  the  Lord  and 
His  Saints,  the  protector  and  defender  of  all  such.'^ 
Moreover,  each  bishop  was  required  to  adapt  his 
liturgy  to  that  in  use  at  Rome  ;  and  throughout 
Charles's  administration,  civil  and  religious  enact- 
ments are  so  intermingled  and  confounded,  that  no 
parallel  to  it  can  be  found,  except  in  the  Mosaic 
code.  In  fact,  the  leading  idea  of  Charles's  legislation 
seems  to  have  been  to  reproduce  the  Mosaic  legis- 
lation, and  to  establish  a  new  theocracy  upon  earth. 
Four  centuries  later,  his  idea  was  realised. 

Not  less  distinguished,  and  still  more  conducive  to  {^)  Legis- 
the  advancement  of  the  Papacy,  was  the  legislation  of  Lewis  the 
Lewis  the  Pious  in  several  councils  held  at  Aachen     ^  ^'d. 
in  the  year  8x6.^     The  greater  part  of  the  acts  of       ^' 
these    Councils,  though    relating   to    the   hierarchy, 
and  emanating  from  the  emperor,  might  almost  seem 
to  have  been  dictated  by  the  Church's  head.     The 
duties  of  each  grade  of  the  clergy  are  defined.^     The 
luxury  of  the  clergy  and  their  vices  are  reprimanded, 
and  their  worldly  pomp,  their  belts  studded  with  gold 

^  Quoted  from  Bryce's  Holy  Roman  Empire,  P-  73  ;  to  be  found 
in  Pertz.  M.  G.  H.  iii.  (leg.  i ). 

*  The  acts  of  these  Councils  are  to  be  found  in   Labbe,  ix. 
p.  399  seq. 

^  Liber  i.  cap.  i.-xxii. 

G 


32  THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 


PART  and  precious  stones,  their  fine  apparel  and  gilded 
^'  spurs.  The  abuses  that  had  crept  into  monasteries 
and  nunneries  are  castigated.^  The  rule  of  Chrode- 
gang,  bishop  of  Metz,  requiring  the  secular  clergy  to 
live  together  under  canonical  discipline  is  confirmed, 
the  bishop  being  invested  with  autocratic  powers 
to  inforce  it.^  Church  property  is  declared  strictly 
inviolable.  Monasteries  are  put  under  the  iron  rule 
of  Benedict  of  Aniane.  Full  and  independent  rights 
are  secured  for  the  hierarchy ;  bishops  are  to  be 
elected  by  the  clergy  and  commons ;  abbots  by  the 
brotherhood  of  monks.  The  sovereign  and  the 
noble  are  alike  excluded  from  all  interposition.  To 
the  bishops  is  given  the  sole  power  to  depose  and 
expel  priests,  even  from  chapels  built  by  nobles  on 
their  own  domains;  and  to  their  irresponsible  ad- 
ministration is  committed  the  whole  property  of  the 
Church.^  Thus  the  whole  clerical  army  was  concen- 
trated and  brought  under  a  rigid  discipline,  all  being 
ultimately  referred  to  the  Pope.  The  grateful 
Church  knew  how  deeply  she  was  indebted  to  Lewis  ; 
and  in  return  for  his  legislation,  bestowed  upon  him 
the  epithet  '  the  Pious.' 

[b)  Rela-        But  Still  the    Popes  were  subjects,  aspiring,  it  is 

tions  of  . 

the  Popes  true,  to  greater  ascendency  over  the  bmpire,  but 
^Western  holding  Rome  itself  by  the  most  uncertain  of 
tenures.  Leo  III.  had  acknowledged  Charles  as  his 
Lord  and  Judge.      Stephen  IV.*  humbly  tendered 

'  Liber  ii.  2  Labb^,  ix.  536. 

3  See  his  Capitularies  issued   to    supplement   the   Council   of 
Aachen,  Labb^,  ix.  569. 

*  Stephen  IV.  succeeded  Leo.  IIL  in  the  Pontificate  in  816. 


em- 
perors. 


THE  PAPACY   TO    THE    TREATY  OF   VERDUN.  g^ 

his  excuses  to   Lewis  for  having  been  hastily  con-     chap. 

secrated  without  the  approbation  of  the  emperor  or  L_ 

his  delegates/  and  by  way  of  reparation  crowned  Popes^ 
Lewis  with  p^reat  splendour  at  Rheims.      His  sue-  ^"f'Jt''-'f^ of 
cessor  Paschal,^  again,  sent  a   deprecatory  embassy  peror. 
across  the  Alps  to  apologise  for  the  precipitancy  of       8^16^' 

his  own  election  ;  and  this  time  the  Romans  received     Jan.  24, 

817 

a  grave  admonition  not  to  offend  again  against  the 
majesty  of  the  Empire.     When  the  emperor  Lothar       823 
came  to  be  crowned  at  Rome,  Paschal  found  his  own 
jurisdiction    over   the   monastery  of   Farfa    denied, 
and   was    compelled  to    restore    all    the    property 
which   his  predecessors   had  unjustly  taken  away.^ 
Only  by  the  influence  of  the  emperor's  counsellor, 
Wala,  was  the  election  of  Eugenius  IL  secured,*  and   J^"^'  ^^4 
when  Lothar  for  the  second  time  visited  Rome,  a   ^'°^'  ^^4 
statute  was  passed,  enacting  that,  according  to   the 
ancient  use,  no  Pope  should  be  consecrated  until  his 
election  had  been  confirmed  by  the  emperor.^     The 

After  holding  it  one  year  he  was  succeeded  by  Paschal  I.  in  817. 
For  his  life  see  Labbe,  ix.  395. 

'  Eginhard,  an.  816:  'Missis  interim  duobus  legatis  qui 
'  quasi  pro  sua  consecratione  imperatori  suggererent.'  Astrono- 
Mus,  c.  xxvi. :  '  Praemisit  legationem,  quae  super  ordinatione  ejus 
'  Imperatori  satisfaceret' 

2  Paschal  I.  was  Pope  from  817  to  824  a.d.  He  succeeded 
Stephen  IV.  and  was  followed  by  Eugenius  II.  His  life  in  Labb^, 
ix.  579. 

3  See  the  diplomata  Lotharii  in  the  Chronicon  Farfense  in 
MuRATORi,  Script.  Rer.  Hal.  ii.  386. 

*  Eugenius  II.  was  Pope  from  824  to  827.  He  came  next  after 
Paschal  I.  and  was  followed  by  Valentine.  His  life  in  Labbe, 
ix.  635. 

'  AsTRONOMUS,  c.  xxxviii.  :  '  Statutum  etiam  juxta  antiquum 
'  morem,  ut   ex   latere   Imperatoris  mitterentur,    qui   judicariam 

G  2 


84 


PART 
I. 


A.D. 
827-844 

(<S)  Dis- 
affectio)i 
0/  Rome 
to  the 
Emperor. 


THE   POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

successor  of  Valentine,  Gregory  IV.,^  was  careful 
not  to  ascend  the  Papal  throne  until  the  provisions 
of  this  statute  had  been  complied  with  and  Lothar's 
sanction  of  his  election  had  been  obtained.^ 

It  could  not  however  be  expected  that  the  Roman 
people,  always  impatient  of  foreign  control,  would 
acquiesce  in  the  reduction  of  their  bishops  to  the 
position  of  vassals  of  a  transalpine  power.  Once 
they  had  owned  no  other  sovereign ;  now  they  could 
ill  brook  submission  to  a  stranger.  Moreover  the 
Franks,  to  whom  they  owed  allegiance,  and  who 
controlled  their  counsels,  were  barbarians,  whereas 
they  were  the  representatives  of  culture  and  learning. 
Glad  would  they  have  been  to  throw  off  the  foreign 
dominion  ;  and  gladder  still  to  have  the  elections  of 


*  exercentes  potestatem,  justitiam  omni  populo  .  .  .  aequa  lance 
'  penderent.  Clergy  and  people  were  then  required  to  take  the 
'  following  oath,  Bouquet,  vi.  173  :  '  Promitto  ego  ille  per  Deuni 
'  omnipotentem  et  per  ista  sacra  iv  evangelia,  et  per  hanc  crucem 
'  Domini  nostri  Jesu  Christi,  et  per  corpus  beatissimi  Petri  principis 
'  Apostolorum,  quod  ab  hac  die  in  futurum  fidelis  ero  dominis 
'  nostris  Imperatoribus  Hludovico  et  Hlothairio  diebus  vitae  meae, 
'  juxta  vires  et  intellectum  meum,  sine  fraude  atque  malo  ingenio, 
'  salva  fide,  quam  repromisi  domino  Apostolico  :  et  quod  non 
'  consentiam,  ut  aliter  in  hac  sede  Romana  fiat  electio  Pontificis  nisi 
'  canonice  et  juste,  secundum  vires  et  intellectum  meum  :  et  ille  qui 
'  electus  fuerit,  me  consentiente  consecratus  Pontifex  non  fiat,  prius- 
'  quam  tale  sacramentum  faciat  in  praesentia  missi  domini  Impera- 
'  toris  et  populi,  cum  juramento,  quale  Dominus  Eugenius  Papa 
'  sponte  pro  conservatione  omnium  factum  habet  per  scriptum.' 

'  Gregory  IV.  succeeded,  an.  827,  after  Valentine's  five  weeks' 
episcopate,  and  held  the  chair  of  St.  Peter  until  an.  844,  when  he 
was  succeeded  by  Sergius  II.     His  life  in  Labbe,  ix.  667. 

2  Eginhard,  p.  390  :  '  Non  prius  ordinatus  est,  quam  legatus 
'  Imperatoris  Romani  venit  et  electionem  populi  qualis  esset 
'  examinavit.' 


THE  PAPACY   TO    THE   TREATY  OF    VERDUN.  gc 

their  prince-bishop  in  their  own  hands,  and  to  be  rid     chap. 

of  imperial  nominees.     Perhaps,  Hkewise,  the  Popes  '- . 

too,  always  longing  as  they  were  to  bring  their  real 
power  into  some  proportion  to  the  honour  they  en- 
joyed, would  have  rejoiced  had  it  been  so.  But  the 
time  was  not  yet  come  for  such  a  step.  The  Popes 
were  still  too  weak  and  the  emperors  were  still  too 
strong.  All  fear  of  enemies  nearer  home  had  not  as 
yet  quite  disappeared.  For  the  present  it  was  better 
to  incur  the  resentment  of  the  Romans,  rather  than 
to  break  with  sovereigns  such  as  Charles,  Lewis, 
and  Lothar.  The  allegiance  of  Rome  to  the  Em- 
pire was  precarious.  The  position  of  the  Popes  at 
Rome  was  precarious  also  ;  and  more  than  once  it 
was  their  lot  to  experience  how  precarious  it  was. 

Leo    III.,    who    had  had  a  narrow   escape   from 
being  mutilated  by  the  Romans  before  the  corona- 
tion of  Charles,  was  hardly  safe  during  his  imperial 
reign. ^     On  the  death  of  Charles,  the  tide  of  Roman 
insurrection  again  rolled  heavily  ;  the  Pope  held  his 
throne  only  through  the  awe  of  the  imperial  power. 
Tumults  broke  out  at  the  election  of  Stephen  IV.  ;      a.d. 
Paschal   I.   was   forced  by  the  impatient  people   to       8i6 
assume  the  Pontificate  without  the  imperial  sanction,    J^gj^'*' 
but  was  too  prudent  to  make  common  cause  with 
the  Romans  in  their  premature  assertion  of  indepen- 
dence.    The  election  of  Eugenius  1 1,  was  only  carried 
after  a  contest  between  the  German  and  Roman  fac- 
tions, and  the  presence  of  Lothar  was  necessary  to 
uphold  Eugenius  II.,  even  when  elected,  against  his 

'  See  ch.  iii.  p.  i8. 


35  THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

PART     rival  Zinzinnus.     Gregory  IV.  was  more  fortunate. 
By  birth  a  Roman,  elected  by  the  people  and  ap- 


proved by  Lothar,  he,  for  the   first  time  since  the 
coronation  of  Charles,  united  opposing  interests. 
(y)  Weak-       And  yet  whilst  the  Popes  were  the  subjects  of  the 
"mpe{'o?-s    Empire,  and  had  to  look  to  the  Empire  for  protec- 
^^uTtlie'^'    ^^^"^^   even    in  the    city  over  which   they  presided, 
Church,     there  were  not  wanting  indications  of  their  growing 
independence,  which  was  advanced  in  great  measure 
by  their  territorial  possessions.     The  legislation  of 
Charles,  and  still  more  that  of  Lewis,  proves  to  what 
extent  even  the  minds  of  the  greatest  princes  were 
spell-bound  by  the  idea  that  the  Roman  Church  was 
the  seat  of  St.  Peter.     No  wonder  then  that  Lewis  in 
the  feebleness  of  his  later  years,  and  princes  weaker 
than  Lewis,  should  humbly  succumb  before  the  higher 
spiritual  pretensions  of  the  Papacy.     Not  six  years 
after  the  great  Diet  of  Aachen,  another  diet  was  con- 
vened at  Attigny-sur-Aisne  ^  to  witness  the  humilia- 
A.D.       ting  public  penance  of  the   Emperor  Lewis.      His 
sensitive  conscience  had  long  been  preying  on  him, 
reproaching  him  for  having  compelled  his  brothers 
to   receive    the    tonsure    against    their  will,   for  his 
barbarous    conduct   towards  his    nephew    Bernard,'"^ 
for  the   chastisement  of  the  insurgent  bishops,  and 
for  the  restraints  which  he  had  imposed  on  the  holy 
monks  Adalhaid,  Wala,    Bernarius.     For  these  de- 
linquencies the  trembling  son  of  Charlemagne  stood 
weeping  and  imploring  the  intercession  of  the  clergy, 

^  See  Labb£,  ix.  624,  an.  822. 

2  It  may  render  the  history  of  this  period  more  intelhgible  to 
give  the  pedigree  of  the  Carolingians  at  the  end  of  the  chapter. 


THE  PAPACY   TO    THE    TREATY  OF    VERDUN. 


87 


endeavouring  by  prodigal  almsgiving  and  most  hu-     chap. 
miliating  penances  to  appease  the  wrath  of  heaven.  ' 

Never  afterwards  was  Lewis  what  he  had  been 
before.  His  superstition  had  abased  the  imperial 
dignity  before  the  transalpine  clergy.  He  could 
not  again  raise  it  to  its  former  greatness. 

The  disturbances  which  occupy  the  remaining 
years  of  his  life  were  the  consequences  of  a  cha- 
racter, too  yielding  to  restrain  this  turbulence  of  his 
nobles,  too  feeble  to  curb  his  own  passions,  too 
superstitious  to  oppose  the  pretensions  of  his  clergy, 
and  they  afforded  to  the  Popes  ample  opportunity 
of  aggrandisement.  Even  the  attitude  assumed  by 
the  French  prelates  towards  Gregory  IV.,  when  he 
appeared  in  France  as  mediator  between  Lewis  and 
his  sons,  and  still  more  the  threats  which  they  ad-  j^^e  20, 
dressed  to  him,  that  if  he  came  to  excommunicate  ^^^ 
them,  he  should  himself  return  excommunicated, 
although  uttered  in  the  heat  of  the  struggle,  are 
evidence  rather  of  the  strength  of  the  Church  in 
Gaul  than  of  the  weakness  of  the  Papacy  in  Italy. 
Not  many  weeks  later  the  strength  of  the  clergy  in 
Gaul  was  put  to  the  test.  At  Compiegne  Lewis 
was  deposed  by  the  bishops  and  compelled  to  do 
public  penance  in  the  Church  of  St.  Medard  at 
Soissons.^  There,  having  laid  aside  his  imperial 
attire,  and  put  on  a  dark  robe  of  mourning,  he 
repeated  eight  articles  of  accusation  against  himself, 
declaring  himself  guilty  of  sacrilege  and  perjury ;  of 
severity  towards  the  partisans  of  his  sons  ;  of  all  the 

^  Conven.  Compendiens,  an.  833,  Labb^,  ix.  802. 


THE  POPES   UNDER   THE   CAROLINGIANS. 


March  i, 
834 


PART    slaughter,   pillage,  and  sacrilege  caused  by  the  in- 

'. surrection  of  his  sons  ;  of  arbitrary  government ;  and 

maladministration  of  the  Empire.  It  was  a  sad 
scene  to  behold  the  son  of  Charles,  crowned  Emperor 
of  the  West,  thus  humiliated  before  his  own  clergy, 
confessing  himself  guilty  of  crimes  which  he  had 
never  committed — a  foretoken  of  Henry  IV.'s  hu- 
miliation at  Canossa.  It  was  a  degradation  and 
insult  to  the  Empire,  and  as  such  it  enlisted  all  the 
warlike  nobles  on  his  side  against  the  clergy,  and 
resulted  in  his  speedy  restoration.^  For  six  more 
years  Lewis  continued  to  reign  without  power,  a 
tool  in  the  hands  of  contending  factions,  which  at  his 
death  took  up  arms  in  open  warfare,  and  continued 
their  warfare  until  Lothar  had  been  defeated  on 
the  field  of  Fontenay,  and  peace  restored  by  the 
843      division  of  the  Empire  at    Verdun.^     But  what  is 


841 


'  See  the  account  in  Labb^ ,  ix.  809,  an.  834,  of  the  Conventus 
apud  sanctum  Dionysium. 

"^  The  state  of  the  kingdoms  before  and  after   the  treaty  of     ■ 
Verdun  may  be  best  gathered  from  the  following  table  :  ^ 


Date 

Emperors  of  the  West 

. 

800 
814 
817 
840 

850 

87s 
876 

879 

880 

884 

888 

CHARLES  the  Great 
LEWIS  the  Pious 

Kings  of  Germany                 Kings  of  France 

LOTHAR 

LEWIS  II.  died  875 
CHARLES  the  Bald 

CHARLES  the  F^t 
Amulf     Emperor     in 
Germany 

Lewis  the  German 
ditd  875 

Lewis  II. 

Charles  the  Simple 

In     Italy     Guido 
and  Berengar 

Charles  the  Bald 

a'/V^876  "" 
Louis  II.  (the  Stammerer), 

died  879 
Louis  III.  and  Carloman, 

died  884 

Eudes 

THE   PAPACY  TO    THE    TREATY  OF   VERDUN. 


89 


most   eventful  about  these  transactions   in  the   life    chap. 
of  Lewis   is  the  part  which   the   clergy   played   in  ' 

arranging,  conducting,  and  accomplishing  them,  and 
thus  bringing  them  under  the  sanction  of  religion. 
This  circumstance  alone  is  enough  to  show  how  the 
power  of  the  Church  was  growing.  And  if  in  that 
age  the  power  of  the  Church  was  not  as  yet  identical 
with  the  power  of  the  Pope,  the  current  feeling  of 
the  day  at  least  considered  that  so  it  ought  to  be  ; 
nor  was  it  long  before  this  feeling  found  expression 
in  fact. 

No  document  has  ever  had  a  more  remarkable  B.  The 
history,  or  a  more  lasting  influence  on  the  relations  cretals. 
of  society,  than  that  in  which  this  feeling  found  ex-  (0  His- 
pression,  and  which  is  known  in  modern  times  by  the  De- 
the   name  of  the    False   or    Pseudo-Isidorian    De-  ^^^^^•^• 

{a)  Con- 

cretals.^      A  collection  of  decretal  letters  made  by  tents. 

Isidore  of  Seville  had  long  been  in  great  repute  in 

the  West,  based  on  the  earlier  collection  made  by       ^.d. 

c.  633 

Dionysius  Exiguus  in  the  sixth  century,  containing  c.  500 
the  Apostolic  canons,  the  canons  of  the  most  im- 
portant councils  of  the  fourth  and  fifth  centuries,  and 
the  decretal  letters  of  the  Popes  from  the  time  of 
Siricius  to  that  of  Anastasius  II.  Suddenly  there  385-498 
appeared  at  Mainz,  in  the  time  of  Archbishop 
Autcar,  a  collection  purporting  to  be  that  of  Isidore,    826-847 


'  Some  account  of  the  False  Decretals  may  be  found,  Gies. 
ii.  324  ;  Neand.  vi.  loi  ;  Milman's  Latin  Christianity,  book  v. 
ch.  iv. ;  vol.  iii.  p.  191  (small  edition).  The  great  works  are,  how- 
ever, Knust  (F.  H.),  De  fontibus  et  consilio  pseudoisidorianae  col- 
lectionis,  Gotting.  1832,  4to ;  and  Mohler's  Fragmcnie  aus  und 
iiber  Pseudo-Isidor. 


OQ  THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

PART  brought,  it  was  said,  from  Spain  by  Archbishop 
'        Riculf,  but  containing  a  series  of  documents  hitherto 

786-^14    unknown — fifty-nine  letters  and  decrees  of  the  twenty 

c.  100-31 1  oldest  bishops  of  Rome  from  Clement  to  Melchiades, 

the  donation  of  Constantine,  thirty-nine  new  decrees 

of  Popes  and  councils  between  the  time  of  Sylvester 

311-715  and  Gregory  II.,  and  the  acts  of  several  unauthentic 
councils.  The  chief  points  to  which  the  spurious 
decrees  were  directed  were,  the  exaltation  of  the 
episcopal  dignity,^  the  security  of  the  clergy  against 
the  attacks  of  laymen,^  the  limitation  of  the  power 
of  metropolitans,^  reducing  them  to  be  mere  instru- 
ments of  the  Pope,  and  a  consequent  enlargement  of 
the  privileges  of  the  See  of  Rome. 

{b)  Marks  Harmonising  as  the  new  collection  did  in  its  tone 
with  the  general  feeling  of  Christendom,  and  being 


of  sptcri- 
ousness, 


^  Urbani  I.  Ep.  an.  223-230  a.d.  :  '  Ideo  ista  praetulimus, 
'  carissimi,  ut  intelligatis  potestatem  Episcoporum  vestrorum,  in 
'  eisque  Dominum  veneremini.'  Pontiani  Ep.  i.  an.  230-235 
A.D.  :  '  De  illis  enim  dictum  est,  Qui  vos  contristabit,  me  contri- 
'  stabit  .  .  .  et  alibi,  Qui  vos  audit,  me  audit' 

^  Agobardus,  De  privilegio  et  jure  sacerdotii,  cap.  i.  :  '  Pressurae, 
*  odia  et  despectio  Ecclesiarum  atque  Clericorum  nunc  inferve- 
'  scere  coeperunt  saeculis  inaudito  et  inusitato  mode'  Idem,  De 
dispcnsaiione  ecclesiasticarum  renwi,  cap.  xv. :  *  Nunc  in  quibusdam 
'  locis  nuUus  ordo  hominum,  sive  sint  liberi,  sive  servi,  de  habita- 
'  tione  sua  tam  infidus  est,  ut  sacerdotes  :  ut  pote  qui  nullo  modo 
'  securi  esse  possint,  nee  scire  quot  diebus  Ecclesiam  vel  habitacu- 
'  lum  suum  eis  habere  sit  licitum.  Nunc  non  solum  possessiones 
'  ecclesiasticae,  sed  ipsae  etiam  ecclesiae  cum  possessionibus 
'  venumdantur.'  Pii  I.  Ep.  i.  an.  142-157  :  '  Oves  pastorem  suum 
'  non  reprehendant,  plebs  vero  Episcopum  non  accuset  .  .  .  Epi- 
'  scopi  autem  a  Deo  sunt  judicandi.' 

3  Zephyrini  I.  Ep.  i.  an.  202-219  :  'Patriarchae  vero  vel  Pri- 
'  mates  accusatum  discutientes  Episcopum,  non  ante  sententiam 
'  proferant  finitivam,  quam  apostolica  fulti  auctoritate.' 


THE  FALSE  DECRETALS. 


91 


hailed  as  a  boon  by  the  clergy,  it  passed  unques-     chap. 
tioned   at   the   time.     Only    some    French  prelates  '. — 


A.D. 


202-219 


dared  to  dispute  it,  not  indeed  on  critical  grounds, 
but  because  it  advanced  pretensions  to  which  they 
were  not  willing  to  submit.^  And  yet  to  a  critical 
eye  it  was  full  of  palpable  anachronisms.  The 
ancient  Roman  bishops  quote  a  Latin  translation  of 
Scripture  formed  from  the  mixture  of  St.  Jerome's 
with  an  earlier  version.  The  Roman  bishop,  Pius  I.,  156-165 
complains  in  the  second  century  that  property  de- 
voted to  God  has  been  applied  to  secular  purposes.'^ 
Zephyrinus,  living  under  the  pagan  Emperors  Cara- 
calla  and  Elagabalus,  speaks  of  the  expulsion  of  the 
bishops  being  forbidden  by  the  imperial  decrees.^ 
Victor,  who  lived  at  the  close  of  the  second  century,  193-202 
writes  to  Theophilus,  bishop  of  Alexandria,  who 
lived  two  centuries  later,  respecting  the  contested 
observance  of  Easter  which  had  been  settled  at  the 

Nicene  Council.      The  words  of  the  Sodomites  are  ^^«-  xix. 

9. 

cited  as  the  words  of  God  uttered  by  Moses,  and 

brought  forward  as  evidence  ag^ainst  secular  tribunals 

in  ecclesiastical  matters  ;  and  the  words  of  the  Epistle  ^'^b.  ix. 

13. 
to  the  Hebrews  are   quoted  in  a  perverted  way  to 

prove  the  magical  purifying  power  of  consecrated 

water. 

'  See  Neand.  vi.  120. 

2  Pn  I.  Ep.  ii. :  'Ad  sedem  apostolicam  perlatum  est,  quod 
'  praedia  .  .  .  divinis  usibus  tradita  quidam  humanis  applicant 
'  usibus,  et  Domino  Deo,  cui  tradita  sunt,  ea  subtrahunt,  ut  suis 
'  usibus  inserviant.' 

3  Zephyrini  Ep.  ii.  :  *  Nunciatum  est  sedi  apostolicae  per  apo- 

*  crisiarios  vestros,  quosdam  fratrum  nostrorum  Episcoporum  vide- 

*  licet,  ab  ecclesiis  et  sedibus  propriis   pelli,  suaque   eis  auferri 

*  supellectilia,  et  sic  nudos  et  expoliatos  ad  judicia  vocari.' 


02  THE  POPES   UNDER   THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

PART  Notwithstanding  all  these   evidences    of  forgery, 

'        no  general  exposure  of  the  fraud  was  made  until  the 

?1/S-'^    time  of  the   Reformation.     Nicholas   of   Cusa   and 

cepta7ice.    Xurrecremata    had    indeed    before    that   time    cast 

suspicion  upon  the  genuineness  of  the  decretals  as 

far  as  they  dared  to  do  so,  but  the  Magdeburg  Cen- 

turiators  were  the  first,  and  after  them  Blondel,  who 

thoroughly  laid  bare  the  fraud.      Internal  evidence 

points  to  Mainz  as  the  spot  in  which  the  forgery 

was  perpetrated,  although  the  question  of  authorship 

is  one  involved  in  more  or  less  of  obscurity.     Was 

Benedict  Levita,  a  deacon  of  Mainz,  the  author,  as 

has  been  frequently  supposed,  or  were  the  decretals 

the  work  of  Archbishop  Riculf  ?^     Or  did  they,  as 

indeed  seems  the  most  probable  conjecture,  emanate 

from  Archbishop  Autcar,  either  directly  or  indirectly, 

through  the   assistance  of  one  among  his  clergy  ? 

Moreover,  history  points  to  the  Treaty  of  Verdun, 

843       as  the  time  when  they  became  known.''^     By  some 


1  Petrus  de  Marca,  De  Cone.  Scec.  et  Imp.  iii.  5  ;  and  Blascus, 
Comm.  de  Collect.  Catt.,  cap.  vi.,  regard  Riculf  as  the  forger. 
Baluzius,  Mabillon,  and  Natalis  Alexander  place  their  origin 
under  Charles.  Febronius  even  supposes  they  were  written  in 
Rome  as  early  as  744.  Benedictus  Lerita  is,  however,  undoubtedly 
the  first  who  made  an  extensive  use  of  the  False  Decretals  in  his 
collection  of  capitularies,  thus  obtaining  for  them  wide  circulation  ; 
and  Autcar  must  have  been  privy  to  the  forgery,  if  he  was  not 
the  author.  The  latter  view  is  shared  by  Blondellus,  Ballerini, 
Spittler,  and  Planck. 

^  The  False  Decretals  appear  to  have  been  drawn  up  after  the 
year  829  a.d.  since  they  contain  quotations  from  the  Acts  of  the 
Council  of  Paris  held  in  that  year,  in  the  letters  of  John  I.  and 
Urban  III.  for  instance.  They  were  cited  as  an  authority  by 
Charles  the  Bald  at  the  Council  of  Quiercy,  which  therefore  proves 


THE  FALSE  DECRETALS.  ^^ 

it  has  been  even  supposed  that  there  is  a  reference     chap. 

IV. 

to  them  in  that  treaty, 


I 


The  views  advocated  in  the  decretals  are  of  the  of  the 
most    advanced    kind,    but    still    substantially   the  '^'^'^^^^'^''•^• 

1    .         1  •   .  r   T  T     (^)  Claims 

same  as  those  advocated  m  the  writmgs  of  Leo  1.  for  the 
and  Gregory  I. — there  only  existing  in  embryo,  here  fiarmony 
developed  by  time  and  favouring  circumstances,  espe-  ^^— /^'S 
cially  by  the  oath  of  Boniface  and  the  coronation  of  the  age. 
Charles.      Above  the  priests,  themselves  an  invio- 
lable caste,  the  apple   of  God's  eye,  the  *  familiares 
Dei,'  the  spiritual  men  as  opposed  to  the  carnal  lay- 
men,  subject  to    no  secular   tribunal,   inviolable   as 
well  with  regard  to  their  person  as  their  property  ; 
above  the  bishops,  in   whose  persons   Christ   him- 
self is  honoured,  and  who  can  not  be  condemned 
but  by  the  concurrence  of  seventy  other  bishops ; 
above  the  great  metropolitans,  primates,  and  patri- 
archs, towers  the  Roman  Pontiff,  the  Bishop  of  the 
Universal    Church,  the  successor  of  St.   Peter,   on 


that  they  must  have  been  in  existence  before  the  year  857  a.d., 
that  being  the  year  in  which  the  Council  was  held.  There  appears 
also  to  be  an  allusion  to  the  Acts  of  the  Council  of  Thionville, 
which  would  place  them  later  than  the  year  835.  And  if,  as  is 
asserted,  they  are  quoted  in  the  Treaty  of  Verdun,  their  date  must 
lie  between  the  years  835  and  843  a.d.  Certainly  they  must  have 
been  written  before  845,  because  in  that  year  Benedictus  Lerita 
began  to  compile  his  collection  of  capitularies,  in  which  Pseudo- 
Isidoriana  appear  in  great  numbers.  Roughly  speaking,  we  may 
assign  840  a.d.  as  their  date.  It  has  been  supposed,  and,  perhaps, 
with  great  probability,  that  the  False  Decretals  were  a  work  of 
gradual  growth.  The  germ  of  them  is  found  in  the  Eighty  Capi- 
tula  of  Pope  Hadrian  I.  an.  785,  in  Labb£,  viii.  598.  This  at  least 
is  the  view  of  Wasserschlebem,  Beitrdge  zur  Gesch.  d.  vorgraiian. 
Kirchenrechtsqiiellen,  Leip.  1839. 


I. 


g^  THE  POPES   UNDER   THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

PART  whom  in  particular  has  been  conferred  by  Christ  the 
power  of  binding  and  loosing.^  He  is  the  sole  and 
sufficient  judge  in  all  cases  affecting  bishops,  the 
sole  authority  for  convening  synods.  He  is  the 
sole  framer  of  irrevocable  decisions,  a  sovereign  on 
earth  possessing  authority  over  Rome  derived  from 
the  grant  of  the  Emperor  Constantine,  and  also  a 
sovereign  in  heaven,  the  disposer  of  the  kingdom  of 
heaven. 

To  have  advanced  claims  such  as  these,  had  they 
not  been  supported  by  the  sympathy  of  the  West, 
must  have  been  almost  equivalent  to  dealing  a 
death  blow  at  the  Papacy.  The  very  fact,  however, 
that  these  claims,  instead  of  weakening  the  Papacy, 
consolidated  its  power,  may  show  to  what  extent 
they  expressed  the  feelings  of  the  age.  Indeed  it 
is  remarkable  that  they  did  not  emanate  from  Rome, 
but  from  the  diocese  of  Mainz.  So  strong  was  the 
spell  of  fascination  which  Rome  then  exercised  over 
the    Teutonic    nations  —  nations    apparently    more 


'  Conf.  Capitula  Hadriani,  Ixxii.  an.  785,  Labb^,  viii.  606  : 
'  Presbyter  non  adversus  episcopum,  non  diaconus  adversus  pres- 
'  byterum,  aut  siibdiaconus  adversus  diaconum,  non  acolytus  ad- 

*  versus  subdiaconum,  non  exorcista  adversus  acolytum,  non  lector 
'  adversus  exorcistam,  non  ostiarius  adversus  lectorem  det  accusa- 
'  tionem  aliquam.     Et  non  damnabitur  praesul,  nisi  in  Ixxii.  testi- 

*  bus.     Neque  praesul  sumnius  a  quoquam  judicabitur,  quoniam 

*  scriptum  est :  Non  est  discipulus  super  magistrum.     Presbyter 

*  autem  in  cardine  constitutus,  non  nisi  Ixiv.  testibus  damnabitur. 
'  Diaconus  cardinarius  constitutus  urbis  Romae,  nisi  in  xxvi.  non 

*  condemnabitur.  Subdiaconus,  acolytus,  exorcista,  lector,  nisi 
'  sicut  scriptum  est,  in  vii.  testibus  non  condemnabitur.  Testes 
'  autem  sine  aliqua  sint  infamia,  uxores  et  filios  habentes,  et 
'  omnino  Christum  praedicantes.' 


THE   FALSE  DECRETALS.  g- 

anxious  than  the  Popes  themselves  to  advance  the     chap. 
Papal  theocracy.     Great  therefore  was  the  influence  ' 

of  the  False  Decretals,  when  they  became  generally 
known  ;  and  that  influence  continued  to  go  on  for 
seven  centuries,  until  the  forgery  was  exposed. 
Have  they  not  moulded  the  hierarchical  relations  of 
all  the  Churches  of  Europe  ?  Are  not  traces  of  them 
to  be  seen  in  institutions  which  still  survive  ? 

Until    the    time    of   Nicolas   I.,   no   authoritative  {p)  in- 
appeal    by    Popes    to   the    decretals    is    on    record,  ^of'thele 
Then,  however,  an  instance  occurs  of  a  pontiff  one  '^^V^^'-^ 
year  ig'norant  of  their  existence,  and  the  next  year  advanced 

.  ,  ,        .  .  ^        \  .         before  the 

quotmg   them    as    an    authority   to    the    Prankish  time  of 
bishops.     But  the  principles  distinctly  enunciated  at  /. 
Mainz   were  being   carried  out  at  Rome,   as    early  {")  Ser- 
in fact  as  the  time  when  the  death   of  Lewis  the 

A.D. 

Pious  had  broken  up  the  Empire  of  Charles  into  the  ^44-847 
three  parts — German,  French,  and  Italian — which 
henceforth  constitute  distinct  nations.  Thus  the 
election  and  consecration  of  Sergius  II.  took  place  844 
in  violation  of  the  ancient  treaty,  without  awaiting 
th'e  "consent  of  the  Emperor  Lothar.^  Fired  with 
indignation,  Lothar  despatched  his  son  Lewis,  then 
king  of  Italy,  and  afterwards  emperor,  to  punish 
the  presumption  of  the  prelate.  But  Sergius  II. 
knew  the  strength  of  his  position ;  he  knew  the  awe 
inspired  in  the  Franks  by  a  solemn  religious  service ; 
he    knew   the  support    he    could   expect   from    the 

^  See  the  passage  from  which  this  is  taken  in  Milman's  Latifi 
Christianity,  book  v.  ch.  iii.  ;  vol.  iii.  p.  119.  Sergius  II.  suc- 
ceeded Gregory  IV.  as  Pope  an.  844.  He  was  succeeded  in  847 
by  Leo  IV.     For  his  Hfe  see  Labb^,  ix.  932. 


96 


THE  POPES   UNDER   THE   CAROLINGIANS. 


PART     Romans.     Lewis  was  met  with  signs  of  joy;  all  the 

- '- civil  authorities   and   all   the  people  went  forth  to 

welcome  him,  chanting  hymns  and  songs  of  praise, 
and  conducted  him  to  the  city.  By  the  Pope  he 
was  embraced,  on  the  steps  of  St.  Peter,  and  led  to 
the  silver-plated  doors  of  the  Church,  which  were 
jealously  closed.  *  Comest  thou  with  a  pure  heart 
and  mind  for  the  welfare  of  the  republic,  the  whole 
world,  and  this  Church  } '  asked  the  Pope  :  '  if  not, 
never  shalt  thou  with  my  consent  enter  within  these 
gates.'  The  king  protested  that  his  intentions  were 
pacific  :  he  was  allowed  to  enter  the  Church.  As 
he  entered  the  chant  burst  forth,  *  Blessed  is  he  that 
cometh  in  the  name  of  the  Lord.'  Still  the  cautious 
pontiff  was  too  wary  to  allow  his  army  to  enter 
Rome ;  and  the  Roman  patricians  absolutely  refused 
to  acknowledge  allegiance  to  any  one  but  to  the 
emperor  himself 
('!)  Under       Again,  on  the  death  of  Sergius  IL,  an  election  was 

succeed-  i  •  i       i 

ingPcpes.  made  with  the  utmost  haste,  and  Leo  IV.^  conse- 
^"")  -^^^  crated  as  soon  as  elected,  but,  on  this  occasion,  the 
A.D.  imperial  rights  were  infringed  only  on  account  of  the 
exigencies  of  the  time,  the  Saracens  being  almost 
at  the  gates  of  Rome  ;  and  the  consecration  took 
place  with  the  express  reservation  of  the  emperor's 
rights.  Nevertheless,  as  if  to  indemnify  himself  for 
his  dependence  on  the  Franks,  Leo  IV.  in  writing 

'  Leo  IV.  succeeded  Sergius  II.  an.  847  and  died  855.  For 
his  life  see  Labb£,  ix.  995.  The  female  Pope,  Johanna,  who  is  said 
to  have  sat  in  the  chair  between  Leo  IV.  and  Benedict  III.,  is  a 
later  fiction.  See  the  authorities  cited  by  Gieseler,  ii.  220  ;  and 
the  discussion  in  Labb£,  ix.  1167  ad  an.  855. 


THE  FALSE  DECRETALS.  07 

to  princes,  placed  the  name  of  the  prince  addressed    chap. 

after  his  own,  omitting  also  the  title  Dominus.      His  ' 

successor,   Benedict   1 11.,^  not  more  fortunate  than  ('/3)  Be- 

Eugenius   II.   had    been,   only  obtained    the    Papal  ///. 

chair  ag'ainst  his  rival  Anastasius  by  the  decision  of      ^.d. 

.  .  .    .  .  855-858 

the    imperial    commissioners ;   and    Nicolas    I.    was       855 

chosen  rather  by  the  favour  of  the  Emperor  Lewis       ^5^ 

II.  and  his  nobles  than  by  that  of  the  clergy. 

Under  Nicolas  I.^  the  Papacy  appears  in  all  the  c.  The 

dimensions  of  a  later  age,  and,  as  if  to  mark  the  com-  developed 

mencement  of  a  fresh  epoch,  the  new  ceremony  of  ^  ^j^^ d 

coronation    was    introduced    at    his    consecration.^  cretais. 

Already  strengthened  in  many  of  his  claims  to  power    860-888 

by  the  sanction  of  the  False  Decretals,  which  were  (')  ^^: 

•'  ^  ^  colas  I. 

now  for  the  first  time  appealed  to  as  an  authoritative      a.d, 
document,  Nicolas  acquired  still  more  power,  owing      5-7 
to  the  goodness  of  the  causes  on  behalf  of  which  pion  of 
he    interposed,  acting  as  the  champion  of  the  op-  '^"l^  ^7' th 
pressed,   and    upholding   the   fundamental    rules   of  affair  of 

1      .    .1  .  Til-  IquatiHS. 

morality  and  civil  society.  In  the  disputes  between 
Photius  and  Ignatius  for  the  Patriarchate  of  Con- 
stantinople, he  had  established  his  reputation  for 
justice  in  the  East  as  well  as   in  the  West."*     He 


*  Benedict  III.,  Pope  from  855  to  858,  was  succeeded  by 
Nicolas  I.     For  his  life  see  Labb^,  ix,  1237. 

2  Nicolas  I.  succeeded  Benedict  III.  in  858,  and  was  succeeded 
in  867  by  Hadrian  II.     For  his  life  see  Labb^,  ix.  1270. 

^  Anastasius,  Vita,  cvii.  Nicolai  I.  On  this  occasion  the 
Emperor  Lewis  II.  acted  as  equerry.  In  the  words  of  Anastasius : 
*  Frenum  Caesar  equi  Pontificis  suis  manibus  apprehendens  pedes- 
'  tri  more,  quantum  sagittae  jactus  extenditur,  traxit.' 

*  See  the  account  of  the  controversy  in  Gies.  ii.  464 ;  Milman, 
vol.  iii.  book  v.  ch.  iv.  1 60. 

H 


•98 


THE  POPES   UNDER   THE   CAROLINCIANS. 


PART     had    espoused    the  cause    of  the   unjustly  deposed 

'- —  Ignatius  against  the  drunkard  emperor,  Michael  III. ; 

and  cancelling  the  decision  of  his  legates,  who  had 

yielded  to  bribes,  in  a  synod  held  at  Rome  ^  he  had 

proceeded  to  pronounce  sentence  of  deposition  on 

(-S)  In  the  Photius.     That  same  justice  was  shown  in  his  con- 

King Lo-  duct  towards  Lothar  II.,  the  king  of  Lorraine,  whose 

divorce   from    the    injured    queen    Thietberga    he 

absolutely  prohibited.      It  was  in  vain  that  Lothar, 

anxious  to  marry  the  guilty  Waldrade,  circulated  an 

infamous  accusation  against  his  lawful  queen;  ^  in  vain 

862       that    a  synod   held   at  Aachen^  of  bishops  wholly 

subservient  to  the  guilty  pleasures  of  their  prince, 

declared   his   first  marriage   invalid,  and  gave  him 

permission  to   marry  Waldrade ;  in  vain  even  that 

Lothar  so  contrived  it  that  nonebut  bishops  dependent 

gg,       on  himself,  either  by  presents  or  threats,  should  meet 

at  the  new  council,  convened  by  the   Pope  at  Metz,* 

'  Concil.  Roman,  iv.  an.  863,  Labb^,  x.  243.  For  an  account  of 
the  Synod  see  Nicolai  I.  Ep.  vii.  Labb^,  ix.  1307,  sect.  4  :  '  Reve- 
'  rentissimum  et  sanctissimum  fratrem  et  coepiscopiim  nostrum 
'  Ignatium,  sanctae  Constantinopolitanae  ecclesiae  patriarcham, 
'  qui  primo  quidem  imperiali  violentia  ac  terrore,  proprio  throne 
'  privatus  est,  et  postea  a  Photio  adultero,  praevaricatore  ac  per- 
'  vasore  sedis  ConstantinopoHtanae,  et  ab  ejus  complicibus  .  .  . 
'  anathematizatus  est,  et  .  .  .  infuhs  est  sacerdotahbus  de- 
'  spohatus,  auctoritate  summi  judicis  domini  nostri  Jesu  Christi 
'  promulgamus,  sancimus,  atque  decernimus,  unquam  nee  fuisse, 
'  nee  esse  depositum,  vel  anathematizatum,  tanquam  qui  ab  impe- 
'  riaU  potentia  est  absque  ulla  canonica  auctoritate  pulsus  ecclesia,' 
etc. 

2  Earn  ab  ejus  fratre  constupratam  esse. 

'  Concil.  Aquisquam.  iii.  an.  862,  Labb^,  x.  200. 

"*  Concil.  Metens.  an.  863  coram  Radoaldo  et  Joanne  aposto- 
licae  sedis  legatis  habitum,  Labb^,  x.  231. 


THE  PAPACY  AFTER    THE  FALSE   DECRETALS. 


99 


and    that    the    bishops    then    assembled    confirmed     chap. 

the  decision  of   the    previous  synod.      Nicolas    was  L_ 

superior  to  the  influences  which  corrupted  his  le- 
gates both  on  this  occasion  and  at  Constantinople. 
In  a  new  synod  summoned  at  Rome  ^  in  the  same 
year,  after  a  careful  investigation  of  the  case,  he 
pronounced  the  decrees  of  the  synod  of  Metz  to  be 
null  and  void  ;  ^  he  declared  that  such  an  assembly, 
favouring  the  cause  of  adulterers,  was  not  worthy  to 
be  called  a  synod ;  he  deposed  the  two  leading 
archbishops,  Thietgaud  of  Triers,  and  Gunther 
of  Cologne,  as  men  who  had  bid  defiance  to  the 
Apostolic  ordinances  and  the  rules  of  justice  ;^  and 
only  accorded  pardon  to  the  rest  of  the  bishops,  on 
condition  that  they  testified  their  repentance  in  person 
or  by  proxy,  and  submitted  to  the  decrees  of  the 
Apostolic  chair.  Truly  imposing,  however,  was  his 
attitude,  when  on  the  occasion  of  a  general  fast,  and 
a  penitential  procession  which  he  had  decreed  for 
the  purpose  of  entreating  the  Almighty  to  inspire  the 
emperor  with  a  right  disposition  and  respect  for  St. 
Peter,  a  procession  of  clergy  and  people  was  attacked 
by  a  band  of  lawless  soldiers  who  had  entered  Rome 
to  support  the  cause  of  Lothar.  Hastily  crossing 
the  Tiber  for  safety,  Nicolas  retreated  to  the  Church 
of  St.  Peter,  and  there  spent  two  days  and  two  nights 

•  Concil.  Romanum  iii.  an.  863,  Labb^,  x.  235. 

*  Cone.  Rom.  iii.  Ibid.  Can.  i.  :  '  Synodum  in  Metensium  urbe 
'  .  ,  .  collectam  ex  tune  et  nune  et  in  aeternum  judicamus  esse 

*  cassatam,  et  cum  Ephesino  latrocinio  reputatam,  apostolica  auc- 

*  toritate  in  perpetuum  esse    sancimus   damnandam   nee   vocari 

*  synodum.' 

3  Ibid.  Can.  2. 

H  2 


jOQ  THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

PART     in  fasting,  and  quietly  awaited  the  issue.^     The  un- 
'        ruffled  dignity  and  brave  endurance  which  he  then 


displayed  in  defending  a  holy  cause  could  not  fail 
to  win  the  respect  of  all  lovers  of  right,  and  materially 
to  strengthen  the  position  of  the  Papacy. 
A.D.  865  All  the  attempts  of  Lothar  to  make  the  Pope 
acquiesce  in  his  crime,  shattered  on  the  firmness  of 
Nicolas;  whom  nothing  would  satisfy  short  of  a 
total  renunciation  by  Lothar  of  his  criminal  connec- 
tion with  Waldrade,  and  a  restoration  of  Thiet- 
berga  to  her  rightful  position.  The  king  was  at 
length  obliged  to  receive  her  at  the  hands  of  a 
papal  legate,  in  the  presence  of  the  majority  of  his 
nobles,  and  to  promise  on  oath,  that  for  the  future  he 
would  treat  her  as  his  lawful  wife  and  queen.^  When, 
however,  his  wickedness  had  desired  a  new  expe- 
dient for  the  gratification  of  his  lust,  and  Thietberga 
had  been  reduced  by  ill-treatment  to  such  a  strait, 
that  with  her  own  hand  she  wrote  to  the  Pope, 
declaring  that  her  marriage  with  Lothar  had  never 
been  a  valid  one,  and  expressing  her  resolution  to 
devote  herself  henceforth  to  a  life  of  chastity,  Nicolas 
detected  the  refinement  of  Lothar's  cruelty,  and  again 
stood  up  in  defence  of  the  oppressed.  Thietberga 
was  given  to  understand  ^  that  she  need  be  under  no 

1  MiLMAN,  iii.  181  (small  edition).         ^  Neand.  vi.  T15. 
3  Nicolai  I.  ep.  xlviii.  ad  Theutbergam,  Labbe,  ix.  1444  :  'Cum 
'  magis  nos  ita  sentiamus  quod  justum  est,  et  ita  intelligamus  quod 

*  aequum  existit,  ut  te  etiam  reprobata  etiam  mortua,  Lotharius 

*  nuUis  legibus  .  .  .  Waldradam  moecham  in  uxorem  unquam 
'  permitteretur  assumere  .  .  .  Verum  nos  banc  confession  em  tuam, 
'  quam  non  voluntas  sed  vis  extorsit,  nequaquam  pro  confessione 
'  recipimus.  .  .  .  Nee  putamus  Lotharium  virum  videlicet  tuum, 


THE  PAPACY  AFTER    THE  FALSE  DECRETALS.  jor 

apprehensions  for  her  X\{^,  since  Lothar  should  never    chap. 
be  allowed  to  marry  the  adulteress  Waldrade,  and  ' 

was  informed  that  the  laws  of  the  Church  could  not 
allow  her  to  take  the  vow  of  chastity,  unless  both 
husband  and  wife  of  their  own  free  will  came  to  the 
same  resolution.  The  sympathies  of  all  who  were 
not  prejudiced  by  party-feeling  could  not  fail  to  go 
with  Nicolas  I.  in  upholding  the  cause  of  justice 
without  fear  of  man  ;  and  thus  in  a  lawless  age  all 
lovers  of  order  were  enlisted  on  his  side,  and  bore 
without  murmuring  what  might  otherwise  have 
seemed  overbearing  conduct. 

Nor  was  the  firm  adherence  of  Nicolas  to  the  cause  {b)  Hh- 
of  right  less  manifest  in  his  treatment  of  the  deposed  "ofthe^"^'^ 
archbishops,   Thietgaud  of  Triers,  and  Gunther  of  g^^^P^^- 
Cologne,  a  treatment  which  at  the  same  time  dis-  („)  Arch- 
closed   the    extraordinary  strength    of  the    Roman  ^cohtne'^ 
bishop.      Not  all  the  remonstrances  of  the  emperor,  '^"^ 

^  Triers. 

to  whom  the  act  was  represented  as  an  insult  done 
to  himself,  not  the  march  of  Lewis  II.  upon  Rome, 
not  the  privations  to  which  he  was  himself  exposed, 
not  all  the  intercessions  of  bishops  and  princes,  could 
induce  Nicolas  to  revoke  his  sentence  upon  them.^ 
The  sudden  death  of  an  imperial  soldier,  who  had 
dashed  in  pieces  a  cross  held  in  special  veneration, 
was  regarded  as  a  judgment  of  heaven  in  favour  of 
the  Pope.     The  emperor  w^as  seized  with  a  fever, 

'  in  tantam  sui  perniciem  devolvendum,  ut  vitae  tuae  insidiari  quo- 

*  cumque  modo  consentiat,  cum  non  sibi  vel  regno  suo  minus 

*  quam  tibi,  si  ad  hoc  tarn  immane  piaculum  dilapsus  esset,  acqui- 
'  reret  omnino  dispendium.' 

[■ 


I02 


THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS, 


PART 
I. 


(,S)  Arch- 
bishop of 
Ravenna. 

A.D.  862 


Nov.  I, 
862 


(y)  Hinc- 
mar  of 
Rhiiins. 


and  relented.  Lothar  deposed  Gunther  to  appoint 
his  own  son  in  his  place  ;  Thietgaud  bowed  before 
the  storm.  The  two  greatest  prelates  of  Germany 
had  been  humbled. 

Nor  did  an  archbishop  nearer  home,  John  of 
Ravenna,  fare  much  better.  Ambitious  and  avari- 
cious, resting  his  haughty  pretensions  on  the  fact 
that  Ravenna  had  once  been  the  imperial  residence, 
and  therefore  aspiring  again  to  set  up  Ravenna  as 
superior  to  Rome,  he  had  taken  possession  of  certain 
estates  claimed  by  the  Roman  See,  visiting  all  who 
offered  resistance  with  imprisonment  and  excommu- 
nication. Successful  at  first  in  his  appeal  to  the 
emperor,  Lewis  II.,  he  had  retired  from  Rome,  ex- 
communicated himself,  but  refusing  to  acknowledge 
the  authority  of  the  Pope.  But  his  own  city  did  not 
espouse  his  cause,  and  another  triumph  was  in  store 
for  Nicolas.  The  people  of  Ravenna  invited  the  Pope 
to  visit  their  city ;  at  his  approach,  the  archbishop 
fled  ;  the  emperor  left  him  to  his  own  devices,  and 
bade  him  humble  himself  before  the  great  Pope  to 
whom  we  and  the  whole  Church  submit  in  obedience. 
No  other  alternative  was  left  to  John,  but  with  tears 
to  implore  the  mercy  of  his  adversary,  to  take  a 
public  oath  of  allegiance  to  Nicolas  on  the  sacred 
relics,  the  cross  and  sandals  of  Christ,  and  the  four 
Gospels,  and  to  promise  to  present  himself  personally 
every  year  at  Rome.^ 

A  like  success  attended  Nicolas  in  his  struggle 
with  the  great  transalpine  prelate,   Hincmar,   arch- 


'  MiLMAN,  iii.  172. 


IV. 


THE   PAPACY  AFTER    THE  FALSE  DECRETALS.  jq. 

bishop  of  Rheinis.  In  this  case,  however,  he  seems  chap. 
to  have  consulted  the  interests  of  the  Papacy  rather 
than  the  claims  of  justice,  and  on  this  occasion  for 
the  first  time  the  False  Decretals  were  appealed  to  as 
an  authority.^  In  a  provincial  synod  held  at  Soissons 
Hincmar,  the  most  learned,  powerful,  and  politic 
ecclesiastic  in  France,  had  deposed  Rothad,  the 
bishop  of  that  city,  for  disobedience  to  ecclesiastical 
rule.'-^  Neither  Hincmar  himself,  who  had  deposed 
Rothad,  nor  the  French  bishops  who  constituted  the 
synod,  denied  the  right  of  Rothad  to  appeal  in  the 
first  instance  to  the  Pope,  but  they  did  refuse  to  re- 
cognise his  second  appeal,  because  he  had  taken  back 
his  first  appeal  by  choosing  the  bishops  themselves 
for  his  judges.  Great,  therefore,  was  Hincmar's 
indignation,  when  the  Pope,  in  violation  of  the  laws 
of  the  Church,  entertained  Rothad's  second  appeal, 
and  after  citing  Hincmar  to  Rome,  declared,  on  his 
non-appearance,  the  sentence  pronounced  by  him  to 
be  invalid,  and  sent  Rothad  back  to  France  with  a 
dictatorial  letter  to  the  king  and  the  archbishop.  In 
justification  of  this  conduct,  Nicolas  at  first  quoted 
the  canons  of  Sardica,  but  he  subsequently  appealed 
to  the  False  Decretals.  Still  more  important  than 
the  object  gained  was   the  manner   in   which  it  was 


1  Neand.  vi.  117  ;  GiES.  ii.  341  ;  Milman,  iii.  184. 

2  Concil.  Suesson.  an.  861,  Labb^,  x.  196  ;  Annales  Bertinia?ii 
ad  an.  861  :  '  Hincmarus  Durocortori  Remorum  archiepiscopus 
'  synodo  comprovinciali  apud  martyrium  sancti  Crispin!  et  Cris- 
'  piniani  secus  civitatem  Suessionis  Rothadum  ipsius  urbis  epi- 
'  scopum  regulis  ecclesiasticis  obedire  nolentem  episcopali  privat 
*  communione  secundum  decreta  canonum,  donee  obediat' 


\ 


I04 


THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 


PART  effected.^  For  the  Pope  maintained  on  the  authority 
. ■ of  the  decretals  that  an  archbishop  is  not  war- 
ranted in  judging  a  bishop  unless  he  has  received 
plenary  powers  from  the  Pope  for  that  purpose. 
And  not  only  was  this  appeal  important  since  it 
invested  the  decretals  with  the  Papal  sanction,  but 
it  was  still  more  so  because  it  employed  them  in 
a  case  in  which  the  episcopal  rank  was  concerned. 
Henceforth  all  bishops  would  advocate  them,  hoping, 
as  in  the  case  of  Rothad,  to  gain  in  the  Pope  a  cham- 
pion of  their  dignity  against  the  oppression  of  the 
greater  metropolitans. 

Nicolas  I.  did  not  pass  away  without  leaving  his 
mark  on  the  history  of  the  Papacy.^  No  Pope  since 
the  time  of  Gregory  I.  so  well  deserves  the  title  of 
the  Great ;  and  yet  the  prejudices  of  a  later  day 
have  deprived  him  of  his  just  due.  The  pitch  to 
which  the  administration  of  Nicolas  I.  had  raised  the 
Papal  dignity  far  surpasses  the  achievements  of 
any  of  his  predecessors.  It  was  supported  by  his 
(2)  Ha-     successor  Hadrian  H.,^  but  neither  with  equal  judg- 

driaii  //.     ^ 

'   Neand.  vi.  118  ;  GiES.  ii.  341. 

2  A  description  of  Nicolas  I.  ap.  Regin.  ad  an.  868  :  '  Post 
'  beatum  Gregorium  [I.]  usque  in  praesens  nullus  Praesul  in  Ro- 
'  mana  urbe  pontificali  honore  sublimatus  illi  videtur  aequiparan- 
'  dus  :  regibus  ac  tyrannis  imperavit,  eisque,  ac  si  dominus  orbis 

*  terrarum,  auctoritate  praefuit :  episcopis  et  sacerdotibus  religiosis 
'  ac  mandata  Domini  observantibus  humilis,  blandus,  pius,  man- 

*  suetus  apparuit ;  irreligiosis  et  a  recto  tramite  exorbitantibus  terri- 
'  bilis  atque  austeritate  plenus  extitit,  ut  merito  credatur  alter 
'  Helias,  Deo  suscitante,  nostris  in  temporibus  resurrexisse,  etsi 

*  non  corpore,  tamen  spiritu  et  virtute.'     See  also  Neand.  vi.  120. 

^  Hadrian  II.  succeeded  Nicolas  I.  an.  867.  He  was  suc- 
ceeded by  John  VIII.  in  872.     His  life  in  Labb^,  x.  387. 


THE  PAPACY  AFTER    THE  FALSE  DECRETALS.  jqc 

ment,   nor    with    equal  success.       It    might  indeed    chap. 

seem  that  heaven  was  favouring   the  cause  of  the  ! . 

Papacy,  when  Lothar  and  his  nobles,  who  had  been    867^72 
admitted    to    communion    by    Hadrian    at    Rome,  {i^)Strug- 

...  gle  with 

under  a  solemn  adjuration  of  their  innocence,  were  Charles 
carried  off  by  a  plague  before  the  end  of  the  year.^ 
But  when,  seizing  the  occasion,  Hadrian  thought  to 
interfere  in  the  disposal  of  Lothar's  kingdom,  the 
world  was  not  ripe  for  this  broad  and  naked  as- 
sertion of  the  Papal  power,  and  he  learnt  that  his 
threats  could  be  despised  even  when  uttered  in  the 
cause  of  justice.'^  Notwithstanding  all  he  could  do, 
the  kingdom  of  Lorraine  was  seized  by  Charles  the    ^ 

°  •'  ^  June  28, 

Bald,  the  uncle  of  Lothar  n.,by  whom  also  it  was       870 
retained  to  the  detriment  of  the  claims  of  Lewis  H., 
the  brother  of  Lothar.     Still  less  was  Hadrian's  in- 
terference successful  in  behalf  of  Carloman,  the  re- 
bellious son  of  Charles  the  Bald.^     When  Carloman, 


'  MiLMAN,  iii.  202  :  '  If  thou  avouchest  thyself  innocent  of  the 
'  crime  of  adultery,  for  which  thou  hast  been  excommunicated  by 
'  the  Lord  Nicolas,  and  art  resolved  never  again  to  have  unlawful 

*  intercourse  with  the  harlot  Waldrade,  draw  near  in  faith,  and 

*  receive  the  holy  sacrament  for  the  remission  of  thy  sins.  But  if 
'  thou  thinkest  in  thy  heart  to  return  to  wallow  in  adultery,  beware 
'  of  receiving  it,  lest  thou  provoke  the  terrible  judgment  of  God.' 
The  king  shuddered,  but  did  not  draw  back. 

2  On  the  death  of  Lothar,  his  brother  the  emperor,  Lewis  IL, 
ought  to  have  been  his  legal  heir,  but  his  uncle,  Charles  the  Bald, 
seized  the  kingdom  of  Lorraine,  and  was  supported  by  the  French 
bishops.  Hadrian  IL  rebuked  the  latter,  and  bade  Hincmar  have 
no  communion  with  Charles  the  Bald,  unless  he  surrendered  what 
he  had  wrongfully  seized.  Hincmar  in  reply  wrote  a  letter  full  of 
plain  truths.     See  p.  108;  and  Neand.  vi.  123. 

^  MiLMAN.  iii.  206. 


I06  THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

PART     having  deserted  his  monastic  Hfe  for  the  more  con- 

'. genial  Hfe  of  arms,  appeared  at  the  head  of  a  band  of 

robbers  ravaging  the  territory  of  his  father ;  and  the 
Prankish  bishops  were  preparing  to  take  the  ex- 
treme measure  of  degradation  against  the  apostate 
ecclesiastic  and  unnatural  son ;  to  their  surprise 
appeared  a  letter  from  Hadrian  II.  : — '  Not  only,' 
it  ran,^  '  have  you  usurped  the  realm  of  others,  but 
you  have  surpassed  the  wild  beasts  in  cruelty.  You 
have,  like  the  ostrich,  hardened  your  heart  against 
your  own  son  in  having  banished  him  from  the, 
kingdom  and  endeavoured  to  procure  his  excommuni- 
cation.' '  Carloman,'  it  continued,  '  has  appealed  to 
the  Apostolic  See,  and  by  the  Apostolic  authority 
we  command  you  to  refrain  from  your  cruelty  : 
restore  him  to  your  favour,  receive  him  as  your  son, 
reinstate  him  in  his  honours  till  the  arrival  of  our 
legates  who  will  settle  the  case.'  These  threats  were 
to  no  purpose.  The  clergy  made  common  cause 
with  the  king ;  and  supported  by  the  strong-minded 
prelate,  Hincmar  of  Rheims,  Charles  defied  the  Pope 
to  the  day  of  his  death. 

Archbishop     Hincmar    had     succumbed     in     his 


'  Epist.  xxix.  Hadriani  II.  Labbe,  x.  435  :  '  Inter  cetera  exces- 
'  suum  tuorum,  quibus  aliena  usurpando  invasisse  crederis,  illud 
'  quoque  nihilominus  objicitur,  quod  etiam  bestiarum  feritatem 
'  excedens,  contra  propria  viscera,  id  est,  contra  Carlomannum 
'  genitum  tuum  saevire  minime  verearis  ;  ita  ut  more  struthionis, 
'  quod  ex  libro  beati  Job  discimus,  obduraveris  ad  filium  tuum, 
'  quasi  non  sit  tuus.  .  .  .  Verum  quia  idem  Carlomannus  sedem 
*  apostolicam  legatis  suis,  tanquam  quibusdam  pedum  suorum 
'  passibus  adiit  .  .  .  primo  quidem  ab  hujuscemodi  conatuum  tuo- 
'  rum  intentu  auctoritate  apostolica  refrenamus.' 


THE  PAPACY  AFTER   THE  FALSE  DECRETALS. 


107 


Struggle  with  Nicolas.      Naturally  embittered  in  con-     chap. 

sequence  against  the  Papal  claims,  Hincmar  readily  '. . 

sided  with  Charles  in  his  struggles  with  Hadrian  II.  gi^s  wifll 
When  commanded  to   withdraw  from   the  court  of  ^^^^"'^^>' 

of 

Charles/  he  wrote  that  it  was  an  unheard-of  thing  Rheims. 
that  the  Pope  should  presume  to  be  king  as  well  as  ^° 
bishop.  Earlier  Popes  had  never  renounced  fellow- 
ship with  even  heretical,  apostate,  and  tyrannical 
princes,  whereas  Charles  was  a  Catholic  desirous  of 
remaining  at  peace  with  the  Church,  and  prepared 
to  defend  himself  against  every  charge.  He  more- 
over reminded  the  Pope  of  what  had  been  done 
for  the  Church  by  the  older  Prankish  monarchs,  and 
how,  -when  Gregory  IV.  had  come  into  France  to 
disturb  the  peace  of  the  Church,  he  had  been  obliged 
to  return  not  with  becoming  honour.^ 

A  new  cause  of  disagreement  was  soon  added, 
when  Hadrian  II.,  following  the  example  of  his  pre- 
decessor, cited  Hincmar  to  appear  at  Rome  for  having 
deposed  his  nephew,  Hincmar  of  Laon.^  Again  the 
authority  of  the  decretals  was  quoted  to  prove  that 
a  definitive  judicial  sentence  in  the  case  of  bishops 
could  only  come  from  the  Pope ;  and  again  Hincmar 
defended  the  principles  of  the  older  ecclesiastical  law 
against  the  new  code  of  the  Papal  monarchy.  Again 
the  Pope  refused  to  recognise  the  provincial  synod       871 


1  See  one  severe  letter  of  rebuke  addressed  to  Hincmar, 
Hadriani  II.  Epist.  xxv.  Labbe,  x.  430  :  ' .  .  .  Restat  ut  te  de  tuis 
'  actibus  reprehendere  non  omittamus.' 

2  Neand.  vi.  123  ;  Hinc.  Ep.  ad  Hadr.  a.d.  870  {0pp.  ed.  Sirm. 
ii.  689  ;  Bouquet,  vii.  537),  quoted  by  Gies.  ii.  343. 

3  MiLMAN,  iii.  209. 


io8 


PART 
I. 


THE  POPES   UNDER    THE   CAROLINGIANS, 

of  Douzi/  and  summoned  plaintiff  and  defendant  to 
appear  before  a  Roman  synod.  On  this  occasion 
Hincmar  raised  his  voice  in  the  strongest  language 
of  reprobation  against  the  False  Decretals,^  styling 
them  a  compilation  of  fictions,  a  poisoned  cup  be- 
smeared with  honey — because  the  decrees  bore  the 
name  of  venerable  bishops— and  comparing  them 
with  the  forbidden  fruit,  which,  promising  to  our  first 
parents  independence  and  equality  with  God,  involved 
them  in  miserable  bondage.  Hadrian  II.  had  not 
the  same  power  as  Nicolas  I.  Hincmar  had  grown 
stronger,  and  the  whole  strength  of  the  FVankish 
Church,  called  forth  by  the  recent  aggressions  on  its 
sovereign,^  was  enlisted  in  his  support. 


'  Concil.  Duziacense,  an.  871,  LabbiS,  x.  105  i. 

*  See  the  quotations  in  Neand.  vi.  127. 

^  Thus  Hincmar  had  written  to  Hadrian  in  the  name  of  Charles 
the  Bald  in  Hinc.  Op.  ii.  701  ;  and  Bouquet,  vii.  542  :  'Cogitis 
'  nos,    indecentibus   potestati   regiae   literis  vestris  inhonoratum, 

*  inconvenientibus  episcopali  modestiae  vestrae  mandatis  gravatum, 

*  contumeliis  et  opprobriis  dehonestatum,  aliter  quam  vellemus 
'  mente  pacifica  vobis  rescfibere  :  ut  tandem  animadvertatis,  quan- 

*  quam  perturbationibus  humanis  obnoxium,  in  imagine  tamen  Dei 

*  ambulantem  esse  nos  hominem,  habere  sensum  paterna  et  avita 
'  successione  Dei  gratia,  regio  nomine  ac  culmine  sublimatum,  et 

*  quod  his  majus  est,  Christianum,  Catholicum,  fidei  orthodoxae 

*  cultorem.     Valde  mirati  sumus,  ubi  hoc  dictator  epistolae  scrip- 

*  turn  invenerit,  esse  apostolica  auctoritate  praecipiendum,  ut  Rex, 
'  corrector  iniquorum,  et  districtor  reorum,   ac  secundum   leges 

*  ecclesiasticas  atque  mundanas  ultor  criminum,  reum  legaliter  ac 

*  regulariter  pro  excessibus  suis  damnatum,  sua  fretum  potentia, 

*  Romam  dirigat :  maxime  autem  ilium,  qui  et  ante  depositionem 
'  contra  custodiam  publicam  et  contra  quietem  moliri  in  tribus 
'  synodis  extitit  deprehensus,  et  post  depositionem  suam  a  sua 
'  pervicacia  non  quievit.     Reges  Francorum  ex  regio  genere  nati, 


THE  PAPACY  AFTER   THE  FALSE  DECRETALS. 


109 


\ 


But  HIncmar's  success  was  not  a  permanent  one.     chap. 

The  accession  of  a  new  and  more  yielding  Pope  ^ ^ — 

led  Charles    to  the  hope  of  securing  the    imperial   vi//]''"' 

crown,    for   which    he  was   willing   to    make  many       a.d. 

872—882 
sacrifices.^     For   such  were   the   advantages  which 

the    possession    of    it    conferred    even    then,    that 

Charles  was    not  scrupulous   as   to   the    means    by 

which  he  obtained  it.     It  was  enough  for  him  if  his 

title  were  established  by  the  sanction  of  the  Pope. 

It  was  enough  if  the  other  bishops,  the  ministers  of 

the  Holy  Roman  Church,  the  senate  and  people  of 

Rome,  approved  the  election.^     In  his  complacency 

at  receiving  the  new  honour,  he  made  no  objection 

when  the  Pope  nominated  A'nsegis,  archbishop  of 

Sens,  primate  over  the  French  Church  and  Apostolic 

Vicar.*     In    vain    Hincmar   protested   against   this 

step,   invading    the    rights   of  all   metropolitans  ;  in 

vain  the  bishops,  following  his  lead,  declared    that 


'  non  Episcoporum  vicedomini,  sed  terrae  domini  hactenus  fuimus 
'  computati ;  et  ut  Leo  ac  Romana  Synodus  scripsit :  Reges  et 

*  Imperatores,  quos  terris  divina  potentia  praecepit  praeesse,  jus 

*  distinguendorum  negotiorum  Episcopis  Sanctis  juxta  divalia  con- 

*  stituta  permiserunt ;  non  autem  Episcoporum  villici  extiterunt' 

1  John  VIII.  succeeded  Hadrian  II.  in  872.     He  was  followed 
by  Martin  II.  in  882.     For  his  life  see  Labbe,  xi.  i. 

2  Neand.  vi.  128  ;  MiLMAN,  iii.  215. 

3  Hadriani  Epist.  cccxv.,  Labb^,  xi.  216:  *  Imperium,  quod  ei 

*  constat  non  huniano  collatum  beneficio,  licet  per  mediocritatis 
'  nostrae  ministerium,  sed  divino  .  ,  . '  Epist.  cccxviii.  Ibid.  223  : 
'  [Carolo]  Augustale  diadema,  sibi  divinitus  sine  dubio  collatum, 
'  per  humilitatis  nostrae  ministerium  accipiente.'  Synod.  Ticin. 
an,  876,  Labb^,  xi.  282. 

*  Neand.  vi.  128  ;  Gies.  ii.  347* 


I  JO  THE  POPES   UNDER   THE   CAROLINGIANS. 

PART     they  would  only  obey  the  decretals  in  as  far  as  they 

'- —  were  compatible  with   the   rights  of  metropolitans. 

John  VIII.,  did  not  withdraw  his  vicar,  and  the  king, 
surrendering  the  interests  of  the  Church  in  return 
for  his  own  advancement,  refused  to  oppose  the 
Papal  ordinance. 

The  Papacy  of  John  VIII.  closes  over  a  futile 
attempt  on  his  part  to  exercise  despotic  sovereignty 
over  the  bishops  of  Lombardy  ;  and  with  the  death  of 
John  ends  the  first  act  in  the  drama  of  the  Pope's 
transalpine  dominion.  That  act,  beginning  under 
Gregory  the  Great  with  the  reconciliation  of  the 
archbishops  of  Milan  to  the  Roman  See,  ended 
with  the  excommunication  by  Rome  of  an  arch- 
bishop of  Milan,  Anspert.  The  North  Italian  pre- 
lates sided  with  Anspert,  however,  in  defying  Rome's 
authority.  In  Provence  the  clergy  paid  more  defer- 
ence to  John  ;  and  this  influence  had,  no  doubt,  great 
weight  with  the  ecclesiastics  who  assembled  at 
Montaille,  and  assuming  the  right  of  founding  a  new 
kingdom,  elevated  Boso  to  the  rank  of  King  of 
Provence.^  German  and  Italian  factions  were  now 
for  a  time  rival  claimants  of  the  Papacy ;  a  season 
of  unsettledness  set  in  which  saw  the  Popes  the 
abject  slaves  of  factions  ;  and  political  disturbances 
imparted  the  contagion  of  disturbance  to  the  See. 
Nevertheless,  the  newly  won  transalpine  territory 
amply  compensated  Rome  for  the  loss  of  respect  she 
sustained  nearer  home.   The  devotion  of  the  Western 

'  Concil.  Mantalense,  an.  879,  Labbe,  xi.  503  ;  Milman,  iii.  228, 


THE  PAPACY  AFTER   THE  FALSE  DECRETALS.  m 

nations  became  intensified  as    in   Italy  disaffection    chap. 

spread.     Slowly  and  in  secret  the  influence  of  the  \ . 

False  Decretals  was  spreading.  If  in  the  night  of 
vice,  intrigue,  and  faction  which  ensued,  Europe  still 
remained  true  to  her  spiritual  head,  no  wonder  that, 
when  the  morning  broke,  she  yielded  herself  up 
entirely  to  his  political  sovereignty. 


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THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY.  n 


CHAPTER   V. 

THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY. 
(888—1046.) 


Dixerunt  Deo :  Recede  a  nobis,  et  scUntiain  viaruin  tuaruin 
noliimus.^ — Job,  xxi.  14. 


T 


HE  darkest  period  of  the  history  of  the  Papacy     chap 


set  in  at  a  rapid  pace  after  the  death  of 
John  VHI.2  Martin  H.  and  Hadrian  IW  followed 
one  another  in  quick  succession  at  Rome,  acknow- 
ledging, as  John  had  been  compelled  to  do,  the  sole 
sovereignty  of  Charles  the  Fat,^  an  emperor  as 
utterly  contemptible  as  he  was  physically  great, 
as  physically  great  as  his  ancestor  of  the  same 
name  had  been  intellectually.  With  the  death  of 
Charles,  which  happened  during  the  episcopate  of 
Stephen  V.,^  the  edifice  of  the  Carolingian  Empire 
crumbled    away,    and    went    finally    to    pieces.^     A 

1  Concil.  Roman,  an.  983,  Labb^,  xi.  976. 

2  Martin  II.  succeeded  John  VIII.  in  882.  For  his  Hfe  see 
Labb^,  xi.  527. 

3  Hadrian  III.  succeeded  Martin  11;  in  884  and  held  the 
Papacy  for  one  year.     For  his  life  see  Labb£,  xi.  531. 

■*  See  the  genealogy  in  ch.  iv.  p.  112  (note).     He  died  an.  888. 

*  Stephen  V.  succeeded  Hadrian  III.  in  885,  and  was  succeeded 
by  Formosus  in  891.     For  his  life  see  Labb^,  xi.  540. 

^  The  empire  of  the  Carolingians  had  lasted  eighty-eight  years 
from  the  coronation  of  Charles.     The  Emperor  Otho  III.  revived 

I 


V. 


114 


PART 
I. 


THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY. 

period  of  anarchy  ensued  both  for  the  Empire  and 
the  Papacy,  the  former  being  distracted  by  the  feuds 
of  the  Babenbergers  and  Rothenburgers,  until  the 


the  Empire  of  the  West  in  the  year  962.  The  state  of  things  after 
the  death  of  Charles  the  Fat,  887,  may  be  best  gathered  from  the 
following  table,  remembering  that  whilst  Charles  the  Fat  was 
emperor,  Charles  the  Simple  was  king  of  Germany,  and  Louis  III. 
and  Carloman  were  kings  of  France. 


The  Western  Empire 

France 

Date                                            Date 

Date 

884.  CHARLES      the     88a   Charles  the  Sim- 

879.   Louis    III.     and 

Fat,    Holy   Ro- 

pie,    King     of 

Carloman, 

man     Emperor, 

Germany 

kings  until  884 

died  887, 

S88>   Arnulf  Emperor  in           ,   Gmido  and  Beren- 

888.   Eudes 

Germany                            gar  Emperors  in 

Italy 

898.  Charles  the  Sim- 

ple, died  923 

900.  LEWIS    III.    (of 

899.  Lewis  the  Child, 

Provence)    died 

died  904 

912 

904.  BERENGAR 
restored,      died 
922 

912.   Conrad  I.  died  ()20 

919.    Henry     I.     (the 

923.   Rodolf    of    Bur- 

923.   Rodolf,  died  936 

Fowler) 

gundy 
926.   Hugh  of  Aries 

936.   OTTO      I.       (the 

, 

936.   Louis  IV.  d'Outre 

Great) 

•947-.   Lothaif 

Mer,  died  954 

950.    Berengar  II.  un- 

954.  Lothair,  died  986 

til  964 

964.  Revival  of  the  Holy  Roman  Empire 

BY  Otto  L 

973.  OTTO  II.  died()?,T, 

983.   OTTO  III.  died  1002 

986.   Louis  V.  le  Fai- 

neant, died  987 

987.  HUGH  CAPET, 

died  996 

996.   Robert  I. 

1002.   HENRY  II.  (the  Saint),  died  1024 

1024.   CONRAD  II.  (the  Sahc)  died  1039 

1 03 1.   Henry      I.      died 

1060 

1039.  HENRY  III.  died  1056 

V. 


A.D. 
911 


THE   RIVAL   ITALIAN  PARTIES.  J2r 

election  of  Henry  I./  the  latter  being  for  more  than     chap. 
150  years   tossed  about  in  the  sea  of  Italian  party 
strife,  the  darkness  of  the  surrounding  vice  being  only 
from  time  to  time  relieved  by  the  lustre  of  the  virtues 
of  individual  Popes,  whom  the  greater  emperors  of 
the  house  of  Saxony  placed  in  the  chair  of  St.  Peter. 
No  such  intervention,  however,  took  place  during  A.  The 
the  first  seventy  years,  nor  were  the  visits  of  Arnulf  under  the 
to  Italy  attended  with  any  definite  influence  on  the  ^fl^aiian 
Roman  Church.     For  seventy  years  the  Popes  were  P<^>'^i«^' 
creatures  of  rival  parties,^  nominated  by  the  party    888-962 
which,  for  the  time  being,  happened  to  be   in  the 
ascendant,  obliged  to  give  their  spiritual  sanction  to 
its   objects,    obtaining   their    Pontificate   by    crime, 
vacating  it  by  murder,  and  receiving  the  fatal  dignity 
of  the  See,  only  to  lose  it  as  rapidly  as  it  had  been 
won. 

During  the  first  twenty  years,   the  struggle   lay  (i)  Party 
between  the  party  of  the  Duke  Guido  of  Spoleto  o/splleto 
on  the  one  hand,  and  that  of  Berengar  of  Friuli  on  J^'f^""^^^ 
the  other,  each  of  whom,  on  the  death  of  Charles  ^^f^i"- 

the  ascen- 

the   Fat,  aspired  to  the   imperial  dignity,  as  being  dent. 
the  representatives  of  Charles  the  Great.     Around 


1  See  NiTHARDUS,  De  dissensionibus  Ludov.  Pii,  lib.  IV.  ;  and 
Reginonis  Chronicortim  11.  ii. 

^  The  spirit  of  faction  had  previously  shown  itself  in  Italy,  the 
Frankish  and  the  Italian  or  national  party  disputing  the  pre- 
eminence.    Stephen  V.  in  885  was  chosen  by  the  national  party  : 

*  Unde,'  say  the  Annales  Fuldenses  ap.  Pertz,  i.  402,  '  Imperator 
'  iratus,  quod  eo  inconsulto  illuna  ordinate  praesumserunt,  misit 

*  Liutwartum  et   quosdam   Romanae  sedis    Episcopos,   qui  eum 

*  deponerent ;  quod  perficere  minime  potuerunt.' 

I  2 


ri-i6  THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY. 

PART     Guido,  who  at  first  formed   the  wild  hope  of  suc- 
ceeding  peaceably  to   the  transalpine   dominions   of 


Charles,  and  had,  it  was  said,  accordingly  entered  into 
an  amicable  arrangement  with  Berengar,  by  which 
Berengar  was  to  have  the  cisalpine  dominions,  the 
dukes  and  dependants  of  Spoleto,  Camerina,  and 
Tuscany  rallied  ;  the  Lombards  and  the  north  of 
Italy  generally  were  on  the  side  of  Berengar.  Two 
D.  88g  bloody  battles  were  fought,  but  when  victory  had 
declared  itself  in  both  on  the  side  of  Guido,  he  was 
elected  by  the  bishops  king  of  Italy,^  and  crowned 

891  by  Stephen    V.    emperor   at    Rome.''^       The    same 
dignity  was  conferred  on  his  son  Lambert,  by  Pope 

892  Formosus  ;  ^  and  although,    on    the   appearance    of 
^96       Arnulf  in  Rome,*  Formosus  declared  the  inaugura- 


'  Concil.  Ticinens.  an.  889,  Can.  12,  Labbe,  xi.  607:  'Post 
'  obitum  recordandae  memoriae  domini  Caroli  gloriosi  Impera- 
'  toris  et  Senioris  nostri  quot  quantaquepericula  huic  Italico  regno 
'  usque  in  praesens  tempus  supervenerint,  nee  lingua  potest  evol- 
'  vere,  nee  calamus  explicare  :  ipsis  denique  diebus  quasi  ad  cer- 
'  turn  signum  supervenerunt  qui  pro  hoc  regno  ut  sibi  volentes 
'  nolentesque  adsentiremus,  minis  diversis  et  suasionibus  inlectos 

*  furtive  ac  fraudulenter  adtraxerunt.  Sed  quia  illi  superveniente 
'  perspicuo  Principe  Widone  bis  jam  fuga  lapsi  ut  fumus  evanue- 
'  runt,  nosque  in  ambiguo  reliquerent  .  .  .  necessarium  duximus 
'  at  mutuum  colloquium  .  .  .  convenire,  ibique  .  .  .  decrevimus 
'  uno  animo  eademque  sententia  praefatum  magnanimum  Princi- 

*  pem  Widonem  ad  protegendum  et  regaliter  gubernandum  nos  in 

'  regeni  et  seniorem  nobis  eligere  et  in  regni  fastigium  Deo  miser-  ! 
'  ante  praefigere.' 

2  A?inaL  Fuldens.  ad.  an.  891. 

3  Formosus  succeeded  Stephen  V.  an.  891,  and  was  followed 
by  Stephen  VI.  an.  896.  His  life  in  Labb£,  xi.  612;  see  Mil- 
man,  iii.  238. 

■*  MiLMAN,  iii.  240. 


THE  RIVAL   ITALIAN  PARTIES. 


117 


tlon  of   Lambert  invalid  on  the  ground  that  it  had     chap. 

been   extorted  by  compulsion,  and  crowned  Arnulf  ! 

emperor  in  his  place,  nevertheless,  the  title  of  Lam- 
bert was  recognised  at  Rome  in  the  time  of  John 
IX.,  and  the  coronation  of  Arnulf  was  rejected  with    a,p.  898 
scorn.  ^     Lewis  of  Provence  was  also  crowned  em- 
peror by  Benedict  IV.,^  in  the  year  901. 

These  successes  of  the  party  of  Guido  and  his  son  (2)  As- 

cenaency 

Lambert,  chequered  as  they  had  been  by  occasional  of  Beren- 
reverses,  were  destined  after  the  death  of  Lambert  '^go6_922 
to  be  succeeded  by  permanent  depression,  which 
gave  to  the  party  of  Berengar  the  lead  for  the  time 
being,  and  ultimately,  on  the  death  of  his  rival, 
Lewis  of  Provence,^  transferred  to  his  hands  the 
whole  sovereignty  of  Italy.  The  turning  point  in 
the  fortunes  of  Berengar  is  marked  by  the  accession 
of  Sergius  III.,  in  the  year  904.  This  ecclesiastic 
had  already  been  twice  a  candidate  for  the  tiara — 
once  at  the  election  of  Formosus,  and  again  at  that 
of  John  IX.,  and,  after  seven  years  of  exile  in  Tus- 
cany, had  succeeded,  by  the  help  of  the  Tuscan 
duke,  Adalbert,  in  driving  Christopher  from  Rome 
after  a  seven  months'  episcopate,  and  placing  himself 


'    MiLMAN,  iv.   244. 

2  Formosus  was  Pope  from  891-896  a.d.  He  was  succeeded 
by  Stephen  VI.  896-897  a.d.  whose  life  in  Labb^,  xi.  663- 
Romanus  followed  Stephen  VI.  897-898;  then  Theodore,  898, 
died  898  ;  John  IX.  898-900  ;  and  Benedict  IV.  900-903  a.d. 
After  Benedict  IV.  came  Leo  V.  903  ;  Christopher  903-904  ; 
and  Sergius  III.  904-911.     Their  lives  in  LabbiS,  xi.  663  seq. 

3  After  the  death  of  Lambert,  an.  898,  the  Spoletan  party  had 
put  forward  Lewis  of  Provence  as  their  champion,  and  he  was 
crowned  emperor  by  Benedict  IV.  at  Rome,  901  a.d. 


jjg  THE  NIGHT  OF  THE  PAPACY. 

on  the  seat  which  he  had  occupied.  The  triumph  of 
Berengar  was,  however,  secured  by  the  terror  of  the 
Mahommedan  invasion.  In  answer  to  an  appeal  of 
the   enterprising    and    highly-gifted,    but   immoral,^ 

914428  Pope,  John  X.,^  who,  to  support  the  cause  of  suffering 
Christendom,  resolved  to  invoke  the  aid  of  both  the 
Eastern  and  Western  emperors,  Berengar,  as  the 
undisputed  aspirant  to  the  Empire,  repaired  in  person 

March  24,  to  Rome.  There^  he  was  met  by  the  senate  with 
flying  banners,  singing  his  praises  in  the  Latin 
tongue,  by  the  schools  of  strangers,  each  paying  their 
homage  to  the  emperor  elect  in  their  native  dialect, 
by  the  brother  of  the  Pope,  Peter,  representing  the 
Roman  nobles,  and  by  the  son  of  Theophylact  bearing 
the  proud  title  of  consul  of  Rome.  Alighting  from 
the  Pope's  white  horse,  on  which  he  had  ridden  ac- 
cording to  custom,  he  ascended  the  steps  of  St. 
Peter  to  the  spot  where  John  X.  was  seated 
awaiting  his  arrival.  There  he  was  cordially  received 
by  the  Pope,  and  saluted  with  a  kiss.  He  swore  to 
maintain  the  privileges  and  possessions  of  the 
Church,  and,  in  return,  received  from  John  X.  the 
imperial  crown.  The  donations  of  Pepin  and 
Charles  were  read,  and  the  Pope,  placing  himself  at 
the  head  of  the  army,  rode  forth  with  the  emperor 
in  array  to  battle. 

'  The  infamous  Theodora,  is  said  to  have  been  his  mistress. 

^  Sergius  III.  was  succeeded  in  911  by  Anastasius  III.  His 
life  in  Labbe,  xi.  775.  Two  years  later,  an.  913,  Anastasius  was 
followed  by  Laudo.  See  Labb^,  xi.  777.  In  the  following  year 
John  X.  was  elected  and  held  the  see  from  914  to  928.  For  his 
life  see  Labbe,  xi.  779. 

3  Milman,  iii.  291. 


THE  RIVAL  ITALIAN  PARTIES. 


119 


Meantime,  a  third  party,  led  by  Adalbert,.^  Mar-    chap. 
grave  of  Tuscany,   had  been  growing  up  in  Italy, 


{'C\  As- 

aided  by  the  notorious  Theodora,  and  her  equally  cJndency 
abandoned  daughters,  Marozia  and  Theodora,  and  %^/^^^J^ 
destined  soon  to  wrest  the  power  out  of  the  hands  p^rty. 
of   Berengar   of    Friuli„   and   to   wield    an   almost    922-962 
absolute    sovereignty   over    Rome,    and    over    the 
Papacy.     Already,   by    the    help    of   Adalbert,    the 
second    of  that   name,    one   of  the    richest    Italian 
nobles,    and   at   first,    until    alienated   by   his   wife 
Bertha,  a  faithful  supporter  of  Berengar^  the  See  of 
Rome   had   been    secured   for   Sergius    III.      The 
succeeding  Popes  were  the  nominees  of  this  party.^ 
Soon  after  the  death  of  Adalbert  IL,  however,  his 
widow   Bertha,   and    her  son    Guido,^  had   become 
involved   in  a  quarrel  with  the  emperor  Berengar, 
from  which  Berengar  was  only  relieved  by  the  mur- 
derer's hand.*     But,  before  the  death  of  Berengar       922 

*  Adalbert  II.,  surnamed  the  Rich,  was  the  son  of  Adalbert  I. 
and  the  grandson  of  Boniface,  Count  of  Lucca  and  Marquis  of 
Tuscany  in  the  time  of  Charles.  Adalbert's  influence  was  great 
owing  to  his  marriage  with  Bertha,  the  illegitimate  daughter  of 
King  Lothar  II.  by  his  concubine  Waldrada.     Milman,  iii.  286. 

2  Besides  these  already  mentioned,  viz.  Anastasius  III.  911- 
913;  Lando,  913-914;  and  John  X.  914-928,  the  following 
Popes  were  nominated  by  this  party  :  Leo  VI.  928-929  ;  Stephen 
VII.  929-931  A.D.  ;  John  XL  931-936;  Leo  VII.  936-939; 
Stephen  VIII.  939-943;  Martin  III.  943-946;  Agapetus  IL 
946-955  ;  and  John  XII.  955  and  deposed  963.  Their  lives  in 
Labb^,  xi.  799  seq. 

^  Guido  was  the  son  of  Bertha  by  her  husband  Adalbert  IL 
Bertha  had  another  son,  however,  Hugh  of  Provence,  by  her 
former  husband.  Hugh  was,  therefore,  the  step-brother  of  Guido. 
Marozia  was  the  mistress  of  Guido.     Milman,  iii.  297. 

*  Milman,  iii.  294. 


J20  THE  NIGHT  OF  THE  PAPACY.      ' 

PART     had    placed    Italy    entirely   at    the    mercy    of    the 

'. Tuscan  party,  that  party  was  secretly  intriguing  for 

obtaining  dominion  over  Rome  by  the  aid  of  the 
infamous  Theodora  and  Marozia,  who,  not  con- 
tent with  disgracing  the  chief  city  of  Christendom 
by  their  licentiousness  for  many  years,  placed  their 
profligate  paramours  or  base-born  sons  in  the  chair 
of  St.  Peter.  The  archbishopric  of  Ravenna  and  the 
A.D.  See  of  Rome  in  succession  were  secured  to  John  X., 
by  the  influence  of  his  paramour,  the  elder  Theodora.^ 
The  vices  of  her  daughter  Marozia  raised  up  a  rival 
925  to  him  for  the  mastery  of  the  city  in  the  person  of 
her  lover,  the  Marquis  Alberic,^  and  by  the  aid  of  a 
new  lover  deprived  him  of  his  see  and  of  his  life.'"^ 
When  her  paramour.  Pope  Sergius  III.,  had  died, 
Marozia  replaced  an  ecclesiastic  by  a  Warrior, 
the  Marquis  Alberic ;  on  the  death  of  the  Marquis 
Alberic  she  wedded  the  rich  Margrave  of  Tuscany, 
Guido  ;  and  at  his  death  she  offered  herself  and  the 
city  of  Rome  to  the  new  king  of  Italy,  Hugh  of 
Provence,  the  step-brother  of  her  late  husband.    One 

931-936  of  her  sons,  John  XL,  the  offspring  of  Pope  Sergius 
III.,    was     raised    to    the    Papal     throne;    another. 


'  MiLMAN,  iii.  289. 

^  Jbid.  293  :  'Alberic,  the  paramour  of  Marozia,  was  the  father 
of  the  Alberic  who  was  afterwards  tyrant  of  the  city.  He  died 
soon  afterwards,  and  Marozia  supplied  his  place  with  a  new 
lover,  Guido  the  son  of  Adalbert  II.  Marquis  of  Tuscany.  On 
the  death  of  Guido,  Marozia  again  gave  her  hand  to  his  step- 
brother, Hugh  of  Provence. 

3  This  is  stated  on  the  authority  of  Liutprandi  Antapodosis, 
ii.  48  ;  Pertz,  v.  297.  Nevertheless,  the  fact  has  been  disputed. 
See  MiLM.  iii.  287  ;  Gies.  ii.  351. 


THE   RIVAL   ITALIAN  PARTIES.  I  2  t 

Alberic,  the  son  of  the  Margrave  Alberic,  offended     chap. 
with  the  haughty  conduct  of  his  step-father  Hugh,        ^' 


possessed  himself  of  the  chief  power  as  patrician  a.d. 
and  senator  of  Rome,  and  confined  his  elder  bro- 
ther, the  Pope,  a  prisoner,  only  permitting  him  to 
appear  in  public  to  perform  his  spiritual  functions. 
Pope  followed  Pope — Leo  VII.,  Stephen  VIII., 
Martin  III.,  Agapetus  II. — appointed  by  the  sole 
nomination  of  Alberic — all  equally  powerless,  all 
without  either  dignity  or  morals  ;  and  at  length,  on 
the  death  of  Alberic,  his  son  Octavian,  though  only 
nineteen  years  of  age,  aspiring  to  unite  the  spiritual 
and  civil  powers  in  his  own  person,  administered  the 
secular  government  of  Rome  by  the  name  of  Oc- 
tavian, whilst  as  John  XII.  he  disgraced  the  Papal 
dignity  by  the  most  shameless  excesses,  adultery, 
rape,  and  even  incest.  To  such  depths  of  degrada- 
tion had  the  Papacy  been  reduced. 

Meantime,  the  dukedom  of  Tuscany  passed  from 
Guido  to  his  brother  Lambert,^  from  Lambert,  by  the 
treachery  of  Hugh  of  Provence,  to  Boso,  brother  of 
Hugh.  Successful  by  fraud  and  by  force,  but  scorning 
alike  ecclesiastical  and  moral  control,  Hugh  was  un- 
disputed king  of  Italy,  a  sovereign  everywhere  else 
except  in  Rome.^  On  the  death  of  Hugh,  the  947 
kingdom  descended  to  his  son  Lothar ;  on  his 
decease,  it  anew  changed  its  sovereign,  passing  into 
the  hands  of  Berengar  II.,  Margrave  of  Ivrea,  and 
his  son  Adalbert,  successively.  The  condition  of 
Italy  and  of  Rome,  of  the  kingdom  and  the  Papacy, 

1   MiLM.  iii.  297.  ^  Ibid.  300. 


J  22  THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY. 

PART     seemed  utterly  hopeless,  when  the    renewed  inter- 

'- vention  of  a  transalpine  monarch  restored  decency 

to   the  Papacy,  Italy  to  the  Empire,  and  founded 

afresh  the  Holy  Empire,  which   had  been  really  in 

abeyance    since    the    death    of    the     last    of    the 

CaroHngians.^ 

B.  /;//-  Many  causes  combined  to  bring  about  the  interven- 

te'rven"''  tion  of  the  great  Saxon  monarch.  Otto  I.^   As  early  as 

^^^■"*  the  year  951,  that  chivalrous  king  had  rescued  and 

A.  D, 

962-1002   married  the  beautiful  Adelheid,  the  widow  of  Lothar, 
(1)  Inter-  ^^^  ^^^    £  Huofh  of  Proveuce.^     After  havinor  been 

venhofi  of  ^  =• 

Otto  L       cruelly  persecuted  by  Berengar  IL,  who  had  thereby 

f^\r~^'^^    hoped  to  compel  her  to  accept  the  hand  of  his  son 

Adalbert,  she  had  been  rescued  by  Otto^  and  had 

given  her  hand  to  her  benefactor  in  return.     By  right 

of  inheritance,  Otto  had  obtained  with  her  hand  the 


^  Consult  as  authorities  for  the  above  Milman,  book  v.  ch.  xi. ; 
Neand.  vi.  129  ;  GiES.  ii.  350. 

*  The  genealogy  of  the  house  of  Saxony  is  as  follows : 

Otto  the  Illustrious. 

I 
HENRY  I.  (the  Fowler), 
King  of  Germany,  919-936. 


Adelheid  =  OTTO  I.  Thankmar.  Henry  of  Bavaria. 

King  of 
Germany  936 ; 
Emperor  962-973. 


OTTO  n.  =Theophano,  Ludolph  of      Daughter  =  Conrad     Henry  II. 

Emperor  Swabia.                       of  Franconia.     of  Bavaria. 

973-983-  1 

I  I 

OTTO  III.  HENRY  II. 

Emperor  Emperor 

983-1002.  1002-1024. 

3  See  Milman,  book  v.  ch.  xii. ;  vol.  iii.  306  (small  edition). 


IMPERIAL  INTERVENTION  IN  ITALY. 


123 


kingdom  of  Italy,  which  he  now  granted  Berengar  II.     chap. 

and  Adalbert   as   vassals.      Under  their  oppressive    '. 

rule  the  Italians  groaned  ;  the  son  of  Otto,  Ludolf, 
was  despatched  for  their  deliverance,  and  met 
his  death  either  by  fever  or  treachery  ;  the  excesses 
of  Berengar  increased,  and  the  cry  for  the  intervention 
of  the  Germans  waxed  louder  and  louder.  Once 
when  Alberic  reigned  supreme  at  Rome  the  presence 
of  a  stranger  was  not  permitted  there  ;  at  his  dicta- 
tion the  Pope  had  declined  to  receive  the  German 
Otto  or  to  bestow  the  imperial  crown.  Far  other- 
wise thought  Alberic's  son,  John  XII.^  Acting  at 
once  as  patrician  and  Pope,^  he  no  sooner  found  him- 
self threatened  by  Berengar  II.  than  he  joined  the 
Archbishop  of  Milan  and  the  Italian  princes  in  ap- 
pealing  to    Otto  for  succour".     At  Pavia  Otto  was  (^)  ^"^'"- 

^  °  ^  ttation  of 

crowned  king  of  Italy ;  at  Rome  he  was  anointed  Otto  l. 
emperor  of  the  West ;  Otto  swearing  to  protect  the 
Roman  Church  against  her  enemies,  to  restore  her 
lands  and  possessions,  and  to  make  no  change  in  the 
government  of  Rome  without  the  sanction  of  the 
Pope;  John  XII.  and  the  Roman  people  swearing 
on  the  body  of  St.  Peter  to  be  faithful  to  the 
emperor,  and  to  abandon  all  connection  with  Beren- 
gar and  Adalbert. 

Never  did  a  more  important  event  in  history  take       a.d. 

.  .  Feb.  962. 

place  making  less  impression  on  those  who  witnessed 
it,  and  less  commemorated  by  subsequent  historians, 
than  the  coronation  of  Otto  I.  at  Rome  in  the  year 

^  John  XII.  was  Pope  from  955  until  he  was  deposed  by  Otto 
an.  963. 

^  MiLMAN,  iii.  304. 


2^  THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY. 

PART     962.    By  the  coronation  of  Charles,  one  hundred  and 

. L sixty-two  years  earher,  the  first  foundations  had  been 

laid  for  the  Holy  Empire  ;  by  the  coronation  of  Otto, 
that  Empire  itself  was  founded  afresh,  and  from  that 
time  forward  it  had  an  uninterrupted  existence.  A 
step,  which  in  the  time  of  Charles  had  been  w^arranted 
by  exceptional  circumstances,  and  which  was  then  a 
tentative  measure,  was  now  deliberately  repeated, 
and  continued  henceforth  to  be  repeated  as  one  of 
the  greatest  safeguards  to  the  possession  of  power. 
One  hundred  and  sixty  years  had  strangely  oblite- 
rated all  memories  of  dependence  on  an  Eastern 
Empire.  Since  that  time  the  ceremony  of  corona- 
tion had  been  frequently  witnessed.  An  act  which 
had  been  done  in  the  first  instance  to  gain  the 
protection  of  the  Franks  against  the  Lombards,  was 
now  revived  to  put  an  end  to  the  troubles  of  Italy. 
What  had  there  been  an  ecclesiastical  movement, 
or  at  least  a  private  arrangement  between  a  sove- 
reign and  a  prelate,  was  now  a  popular  one.  More- 
over the  feelings  with  which  Otto  received  the 
imperial  crown  were  very  different  from  those  with 
which  Charles  had  received  it.  Charles  was  glad  to 
have  the  sanction  of  religion  to  assure  his  doubtful 
title  to  his  recent  conquests,  and  though  aspiring  to 
the  crown,  received  it  as  a  gift  for  which  he  amply 
rewarded  the  Pope.  Otto  appeared  in  Rome  to 
claim  it  as  a  customary  right.  There  could  be  no 
appeal  to  precedent  to  impose  terms  upon  Charles 
since  the  ceremony  of  coronation  was  then  entirely 
new.  Otto,  before  he  received  the  privilege  to 
which  he  claimed  to  be  entitled,  was  made  to  swear 
to  protect  the  rights  of  the  Roman  Church. 


IMPERIAL  INTERVENTION  IN   ITALY. 


125 


A.D.  963 


The  coronation  of  Otto  introduced  a  new  power     chap. 

into   Italy  to  correct  the  enormous  scandals  of  the ^ ^ 

Roman  Church  ;  and  as  long  as   Otto  L    continued  o/t/mT  ^ 
to  sit  on  the  imperial  throne,  that  power  was  able  to  ^^ll^^'^'^"'' 
triumph  over  all   opposition.     Whatever  might   be  („)  Depo- 
professed,  there  could  be  no  doubt  that  Otto  exer-  ^jll^^  ''■^ 
cised  a  very  real  power.     Not  the  least  proof  of  this  ^^^^ 
power  is  an  event  which  happened  in  the  year  fol- 
lowing his  coronation,  when  the  emperor  summoned 
an    ecclesiastical   council,    and    the   Archbishops    of 
Milan,  Ravenna,  and  Hamburg,  besides  two  German, 
two  French  metropolitans,  and  a  great  number  of 
Italian  bishops,   assembled  at  his  bidding  to  sit  in 
judgment   on    Pope    John    XII.      Still    less    doubt 
could    there    be    of   his    power  when,  after  a    trial, 
in  which  the  blackest  charges  were  preferred  against 
the  Pope,^  and  in  the  teeth  of  John's  laconic  letter 


'  Concil.  Roman,  an.  963,  Labb^,  xi.  881  :  '  Petrus  Cardinalis 
'  presbyter,  se  vidisse  ilium  Missam  celebrasse,  et  non  communi- 
'  casse,  testatus  est :  Joannes  episcopus  Narniensis  et  Joannes 
'  cardinalis  diaconus,  se  vidisse  ilium  diaconum  ordinasse  in  equo- 
'  rum  stabulo  non  certis  temporibus  sunt  professi.  Benedictus 
'  cum  ceteris  condiaconis  et  presbyteris  dixit  se  scire  quod  ordi- 
'  nationes  episcoporum  faceret  pretio,  et  quod  armorum  decem 
'  episcopum  in  Tudertina  civitate  ordinarit.  De  sacrilegio  non  est 
'  necesse  percontari,  quia  plus  videndo  et  quam  audiendo  scire 
'  potuissemus.  De  adulterio,  dixerunt  quod  oculis  non  viderant, 
'  sed  pro  certo  scirent,  viduam  Rainarii,  et  Stephanam  patris  con- 
'  cubinam,  et  Annam  viduam,  cum  nepte  sua  abusum  esse,  et 
'  sanctum  palatium  lupanar  et  prostibulum  fecisse.  Venationem 
'  dixerunt  publice  exercuisse,  Benedictum  spiritualem  patrem 
'  suum  lumine  privasse  et  mox  mortuum  esse  :  Joannem  cardi- 
'  nalem  subdiaconum,  virilibus  amputatis,  occidisse  :  incendia  fe- 
'  cisse  ;  ense  accinctum,  galea  et  lorica  indutum  fuisse  testati  sunt. 
'  Diaboli  in  amorem  vinum  bivisse  omnes  tam  clerici  quam  laici 


J  26  THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY. 

PART     to   the  counciP — '  John,  the  servant  of  God,  to   all 

■       bishops  :  we  hear  that   you  design  to  elect  a   new 

Pope  ;  if  you  do,  in  the  name  of  God  I  excommu- 
nicate you,  forbidding  you  to  confer  orders  or  cele- 
Dec.  4,     brate    mass ' — the    emperor    deposed    the    Pontiff, 
^  ^       sanctioned  the  election  of  a  new  Pope,  Leo  VI 11.,^ 
and  upheld  his  nominee  in  office  in  spite  of  all  the 
opposition  of  John  and  his  successor  Benedict  V.^ 
(i3)  Sup-        For  Rome  would  not  submit  to  the  authority  of  a 
of  three      German  prince   until  she  was  forced  to  do  so  after 
rebellions,  j^^j^y  ^  revolt;  revolts  in  which  John  XIL,  before 
his  pontifical  career  was  closed  by  the  sword  of  an 
injured  husband,*  not  less  than  Benedict  V,,  whom  the 
people  elected  to  succeed  him,  made  common  cause 
with  the  citizens,  and  were  by  them  supported  against 
the  emperor  Otto.      Thrice  Rome  rebelled,  and  was 
as   often    reduced  by  the  might   of  the  transalpine 
A.D.       king.     Within  a  month  after  the  deposition  of  John 
964'      XII.  a  furious  insurrection   broke  out,  and  was  sub- 
dued by  the  valour  of  Otto,   who  forcing  the  barri- 
cades of  the  bridge  over  the  Tiber,  took  his  revenge 

*  acclamarunt.  In  ludo  aleae,  Jovis,  Veneris,  ceterorumque  dae- 
'  monum  auxilium  poposcisse  dixerunt.  Matutinas  et  canonicas 
'  horas  eum  non  celebrasse,  nee  signo  crucis  se  muniisse  professi 
'  sunt.' 

•  Joan.  Ep.  Labb6,  xi.  882  :  '  Nos  audivimus  dicere,  quod  vos 

*  vultis  alium  Papam  facere.     Si  haec  feceritis,  excommunico  vos 

*  de  Deo  omnipotenti,  ut  non  habeatis  licentiam  ullum  ordinare, 
'  et  Missam  celebrare.' 

^  Leo  VIII.  was  elected  an.  963.  He  is  not  recognised  by  the 
ultramontane  party  as  a  lawful  Pope. 

^  On  the  death  of  John  XII.  an.  964,  Benedict  V.  was  appointed 
by  the  Roman  party.  He  surrendered  to  Otto  an.  965,  and  ended 
his  life  in  exile  at  Hamburg.     Milman,  iii.  313  ;  Labbe,  xi.  891. 

*  Milman,  iii.  313. 


IMPERIAL  INTERVENTION  IN  ITALY.  ,27 

until  the  supplications  of  the  new  Pope  arrested  the     chap. 
carnage.     Not  two  months  later,   on  the  return  of  - 


John  XII.  to  the  city,  a  fresh  insurrection  burst  Feb.  27, 
forth,  which  was  as  quickly  suppressed  by  Otto, 
Benedict  V.  was  deposed  and  sent  into  exile.  And 
again,  not  two  years  later,  when  John  XI 11.,^  elected  Dec.  16, 
by  command  or  at  least  with  the  approbation  of  the 
emperor,  had  succeeded  Leo  VIII.,  the  barons  and 
people,  dissatisfied  with  his  haughtiness,  expelled  him 
from  the  city,  and  Otto  for  the  third  time  descended 
the  Alps.  Yet  such  was  the  terror  inspired  by  ihis 
approach,  that  a  counter  insurrection  ensued  in  favour 
of  the  Pope,  and  both  John  XIII.  and  Otto  were 
received  with  hymns  of  joy  and  gratulation. 

It  was   on  this  occasion  that  the  power  of  Otto  (r)  Privi- 
over  the  Pope  and  the  city  appears  in  the  strongest  cured  to 
relief.     After  the  second  rebellion  had  been  quelled,  ^"^*^^^^' 
the  grateful  Leo  VIII.   had  recognised  in  a  council    J"ne  23, 
the  full  right  of  the  Em.peror  Otto  and  his  successors 
in  the  kingdom  of  Italy  to  elect  their  own  successors 
to  the  Empire  and  to  approve  the  Pope,^  declaring 
that  this  right  should  belong  for  ever  to  the  king  of 
the  Roman  Empire,  and  to  none  else.     On  Otto's 
third  appearance  in  Rome,  the  Roman  magistrates 
who  had  dared  to  assume  the  names  of  the  old  re- 
publican   dignities    paid    the   penalty   of  the  insult 
offered  to  the  Empire.     The  body  of  the  prefect  who 
had  expelled  John  XIII.  was  dug  up  out  of  his  grave 
and    torn    to   pieces ;    the  consuls    were    banished 
beyond  the  Alps  ;  the  twelve  tribunes  were  hanged  ; 

'  John  XIII.  succeeded  Leo  VIII.  an.  965,  and  was  followed 
by  Bonus  II.  an.  972,  and  Benedict  VI.  an.  972. 
'  MiLM.  iii.  313. 


128  THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY. 

PART     the  actual  prefect  was  set  upon  an  ass    with  a  wine 

'        bag  on  his  head,  led  through  the  streets,   scourged, 

and  thrown  into  prison.      The  government  of  the  city 

was  entrusted  to  the  Pope   as  viceroy,^  and   during 

the  five  remaining   years  of  his   pontificate,  by  the 

overawing  influence  of  Otto,  a  considerable  degree  of 

order  was  preserved  at  Rome. 

{2)Asccn-       It  was  otherwise  after  the  death  of  Otto  I.,  and 

Tuscan      ^he  decease  of  John  XIII.,  both  of  which  events  took 

party.        place    within    eight   months    of   each    other.^     The 

A.D. 

973-996    Tuscan  party  elevated  itself  anew.      By  the  influence 
{a)  Ditr-    Qf  ^j^g^j-  paj-^y  Benedict  VI.  was  cast  into  prison  and 

tug  reign  '-         •'  ^ 

0/ Otto  11.  murdered  ;    by    the    influence    of   the    same    party, 
Benedict  VI I. ,^  the  nephew  of  the  famous  Alberic, 


'   MiLM.  iii.  315. 

2  John  XIII.  died  September  7,  972,  Otto  I.  died  May  7,  973. 
^  GiEs.  ii.  355  (note)  ;  Milm.  vii.  317. 
The  succession  of  Popes  and  Antipopes  in  this  period  is  as 
follows  : 

Popes  Antipopes 

John  XII.  955: 
deposed  963. 
Leo  VIII.  963.  John  XII.  963,  continues   as   rival 

Pope  until  964. 
Benedict  V.  964,  rival  Pope  retires 
into  exile. 
John  XIII.  965. 
Donus  II.  972. 
Benedict  VI.  972  : 
murdered  974. 

Boniface  VII.  974,  expelled  by  the 
people,  974 ;   returns   as   regular 
Pope  on  the  death  of  Otto  II. 
Benedict  VII.  974. 
John  XIV.  983: 
died  in  prison,  984. 


IMPERIAL   INTERVENTION  IN  ITALY.  I  2q 

was  elevated  to  the  Papal  chair  after  the  one  month's    chap, 

episcopate,    and    the    summary    ejectment    by    the  

people  of  Boniface  VII.  By  the  same  party  the 
Roman  republic  was  anew  re-established,  acknow- 
ledging as  its  head  the  Consul  Crescentius,  the 
grandson,  it  is  said,  of  the  elder  Theodora  and  Pope 
John  X.,  the  son  of  the  younger  Theodora,  and  the 
cousin  of  Alberic.^  Nevertheless,  Otto  II.  main- 
tained to  some  extent  the  imperial  dignity  during 
his  ten  years'  reign.  He  had  been  crowned  by  John 
XIII.  in  his  father's  lifetime.  To  his  protection, 
no  doubt,  Benedict  VII.  owed  his  nine  years'  peace- 
ful possession  of  the  See,  and  by  his  intervention  the 
election  of  John  XIV.  was  secured  in  the  same  year  a.d.  983 
in  which  he  himself  died. 

During   the   minority   of  Otto    III.,   the    Tuscan  ip)  Dur- 
party  exercised  undisputed  sway  111  Rome,  without  rity  of 
any  check  from  without.      No  sooner  was  Otto   II. 
dead,  than  Boniface  VII.  reappeared  from  exile,  and    983-994 
having  seized  his  rival,  John  XIV,,  and  put  him  to       984 
death    by    starvation,    for    two   years    occupied    un- 
resisted  the   Papal    chair.^     No    one  offered    oppo-       98s 
sition  :    for   John   XIV.   was    hated    as   an   imperial 
nominee.      Nevertheless,    Boniface   VII.  was   not   a 
friend  of  the  Tuscan  party.      The  party  of  Crescen- 

Popes  Antipopes 

Boniface  VII.  984. 

John  XV.  985.. 

Gregory  V.  996:  John  XVI.  997. 

dies  999. 
Sylvester  II.  999. 

'  MiLM.  iii.  320. 

2  GiEs.  ii.  355;  MiLMAN,  iii.  317. 

K 


I^Q  THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY. 

PART  tins  rejoiced,  on  his  sudden  death,  at  being  delivered 
'  from  a  Pope  whose  one  claim  on  their  allegiance 
was,  that  he  was  as  bitter  an  enemy  as  themselves  of 
the  imperial  interest.  By  the  people  his  dead  body 
was  treated  with  insults.^  The  Castle  of  St.  Angelo, 
lately  occupied  by  the  Pope,  was  now  in  the  hands 
of  Crescentius,  and  Crescentlus  was  in  consequence 
undisputed  master  of  the  city.  But  Boniface's  suc- 
cessor in  the  Pontificate,  John  XV.,  not  proving  as 
pliant  as  the  consul  desired,  was  driven  from  Rome, 
and  reduced  to  the  necessity  of  again  appealing  to 
the  transalpine  sovereign.^ 
(3)  Liter-       Meantime  the  name  of  the  great  House  of  Saxony 

iientton  of 

Otto  HI.    was  not  altogether  forgotten,  nor  was  the  remem- 

^■^-       brance   of   the  first    Otto    and   the    Germans    quite 
996-1002  >■ 

(a)  Ear-  extlnct  In  Italy.  When,  therefore,  John  XV.  had 
jiuenc'e.      found  In  the  youthful  Otto  a  sympathiser  with  his 

987  complaints  against  a  contumacious  people,  and  the 
rumour  had  spread  that  the  young  monarch'  was 
about  to  come  to  Rome,  there  to  receive  the  Imperial 
crown,  the  Pope  was  permitted  to  return.^  He  was 
received  with  the  utmost  respect  by  the  consul  and 
the  senate,  and  remained  undisturbed  for  the  rest 
of  his  life  in  possession  of  his  temporal  supremacy. 

996  When  at  length  Otto  HI.  set  forth  to  cross  the 
Alps,  he  was  received  at  Ravenna  *  by  an  embassy, 
announcing  the  sudden  death  of  John  XV.,  and 
humbly  submitting  to  the  wishes  of  the  emperor  as 
to   the   appointment   of  a   successor.     The   gentle, 


'  MiLM.  iii,  318.  2  Ibid.  319. 

'  Ibid.  320.  ■*  Ibid,  322. 


IMPERIAL    INTERVENTION  IN  ITALY.  I^I 

blameless,  spiritual   Bruno,  a  kinsman  of  Otto  III,,     chap. 
who  succeeded  by  his  appointment,  taking  the  name 


of  Gregory  V.,^  stands  out  in  marked    relief  from  L/;;/. 
the  lone  list  of  worthless  Popes  who  had  preceded  ''^L"^^  ^'-^ 

^  r  X  Liregory 

and  succeeded  him,  proving  how  advantageous  for  ^ 
the  Church  the  emperor's  influence  might  be,  but    996-999 
proving  at  the  same  time  how  incapable  the  Romans       ^^^ 
were  of  appreciating  real  virtue.     On  May  3,  996,     ^^y  3» 
Gregory  V.  bestowed  the  imperial  crown  on  Otto  III. 
A  year  had  not  elapsed  before  he  was  obliged   to 
flee  from  Rome ;  his  excommunication  was  treated 
with  scorn  by  the  rebellious  citizens  ;  and  a  fresh 
Pope,  John  XVI.,  had  usurped  his  place,  nominated 
by  Crescentius. 

Apfain  the  younof  and  chivalrous  emperor,  Otto  III.  if)  Pun- 

1  iriir  '  ishmeni 

— the  wonder  of  the  world,  full  of  promise,  talent,  ofrebd- 
and  projects — was  in  Rome  with  an  overwhelming  J^j^;^_ 
force.  Again  he  was  received  without  the  least 
resistance.  The  usurping  Pope  was  punished  more 
severely  than  the  usurping  prefect  had  been  in  the 
time  of  Otto  L,  and  with  eyes  put  out,  with  tongue 
and  nose  cut  off,  was  paraded  through  the  streets  on 
an  ass,  with  his  face  to  the  tail,  and  a  wine-bladder 
on  his  head.  Such  was  the  penalty  for  his  audacity.^ 
Crescentius,  with  twelve  of  his  leading  partisans, 
was  beheaded ;  and  their  bodies,  with  their  heads 
downwards,  hung  round  the  battlements  of  the 
Castle  of  St.  Angelo.     The  rebellion  was  quenched. 

'  Gregory  V.   succeeded  an.  996,  and  died  999.     See   Gies. 
ii.  358;  MiLMAN,  iii.  322. 
"^  MiLMAN,  iii.  326. 

K    2 


J  ^2  THE  NIGHT  OF   THE  PAPACY.  \ 

PART     The    emperor  was  victorious,  and  exercised  undis- 

' puted  sway  in  the  city  of  the  Caesars. 

At  this  moment  a  grand  scheme  rose  before  his 

mental   vision.^     Rome   was   to    occupy   again    her 

ancient  place  as  the  seat  of  Empire.     An  emperor 

was  to  sit  on  the  throne  of  Constantine  who  would 

govern  like  Constantine,  and  raise  the  Empire  once 

more  to  the  pinnacle  of  power.     A  truly  Apostolic 

Pope  was  to  be  appointed,  a  second  Sylvester  who 

would  reform  the  clergy  and  correct  the  infamous 

avarice  and  vice  of  the  Roman  Church. 

{d)  Ap-         On  the  death  of  Gregory  V.  that  scheme  seemed 

ment  of     about  to  be  realised.     The  decree  issued  by  Otto  III. 

/j^  ^^^  ^^   for  the  election  of  his  tutor  Gerbert,  who  assumed 

A.D.       the  name  of  Sylvester  II.,  in  allusion  to  the  relations 
999-1003 

of  Constantine  and  Sylvester  I.,  declared   Rome  to 

be  the  capital  of  the  world,  the  Roman  Church  to 
be  the  mother  of  Churches  ;  it  described  how  the 
dignity  of  the  Roman  Church  had  been  obscured  by 
her  neglectful  Popes,  how  the  property  of  the 
Church  had  been  squandered  on  the  dregs  of  man- 
kind, how  the  prelates  had  made  everything  venal, 
and  so  despoiled  the  very  altars  of  the  Apostles. 
It  denounced  the  donations  of  Constantine  and 
Charles  the  Bald  as  void  and  forgeries  ;  It  assumed 
the  power  not  only  of  electing,  but,  by  God's  grace, 
of  creating  and  ordaining  the  Pope,  and  it  granted 
eight   counties   for    his    support.^     The    millennial 

1  MiLMAN,  book  V.  ch.  xiii. ;  vol.  iii.  p.  328  (small  edition). 

2  Ottonis  III.  diploma,  an.  999  ap.  Baronium  ad  an.  1191, 
No.  57  ;  Pertz,  iv.  ii.  162  :  '  Romam  caput  mundi  profitemur, 
'  Romanam  ecclesiam  matrem  omnium  Ecclesiarum  esse  testamur, 


IMPERIAL    INTERVENTION  IN  ITALY.  t  , -, 

period  of  the  Christian  era  was  to  see  all  old  abuses     chap. 

swept  away,  and  the  new  regime  established.^     The  '- 

new  ao-e  was  to  beo^in  with  a  new  Constantine  and  a 
new  Sylvester.  The  year  looo  was  to  inaugurate 
the  change.  But  how  vain  are  the  schemes  of  men  ! 
The  looked-for  year  came.  It  found  Otto  III. 
indeed  at  Rome,  with  a  palace  built  on  the  Aven- 
tine,  with  a  regular  administrative  system  for  the 
government  of  the  capital  established.      It  found  his 


'  sed  incuria  et  inscientia  Pontificum  longe  suae  claritatis  titulos 
'  obfuscasse..  Nam  non  solum  quae  extra  urbem  esse  videbantur 
'  vendiderunt,  sed,  si  quid  in  hac  nostra  urbe  regia  habuerunt,  ut 
'  majori  licentia  evagarentur,  omnibus  cum  vindicante  pecunia  in 
'  commune  dederunt,  et  sanctum  Petrum  et  sanctum  Paulum,  ipsa 
'  quoque  altaria  spoliaverunt,  et  pro  reparatione  semper  confusio- 
'  nem  duxerunt.  Confusis  vero  Papaticis  legibus,  et  jam  abjecta 
'  ecclesia  Romana  in  tantum  quidam  Pontificum  irruerunt,  ut 
'  maximam  partem  Imperii  nostri  apostolatui  suo  conjungerent. 
'  Haec  sunt  enim  commenta  ab  illis  ipsis  inventa,  quibus  Joannes 
'  Diaconus,  praeceptum  aureis  Uteris  scripsit  sub  titulo  magni  Con- 
'  stantini  longa  mendacii  tempora  finxit.  Haec  sunt  enim  com- 
'  menta,  quibus  dicunt,  quondam  Carolum  sancto  Petro  nostra 
'  publica  tribuisse.  Sed  ac  haec  respondemus  ipsum  Carolum 
'  nihil  dare  jure  potuisse,  utpote  jam  a  Carole  meliore  fugatum, 
'  jam  imperio  privatum,  jam  destitutum  et  annullatum.  Spretis 
'  ergo  commentitiis  praeceptis,  et  imaginariis  scriptis  ex  nostra 
'  liberalitate  sancto  Petro  donamus  quae  nostra  sunt.  .  .  .  Sicut 
'  enim  pro  amore  sancti  Petri  dominum  Sylvestrum  magistrum 
'  nostrum  Papam  elegimus,  et  Deo  volente  ipsum  serenissimum 
'  ordinavimus  et  creavimus  :  ita  pro  amore  ipsius  domini  Sylvestri 

*  Papae,  sancto  Petro  de  pubhco  nostro  dona  conferimus,  octo 

*  comitatus,  Pisaurum,  Fanum,  Senogalliam,  Anconani,  Fossabru- 
'  num,  CaUium,  Esium  et  Ausimum.'  Conf.  also  Constitutio  Ue- 
'  cretalis  Ottonis  III.  apud  Labbe,  xi.  103 1. 

^  Other  bishops  took  up  the  idea  of  universal  peace.  See  Sta- 
tuta  per  Widonem  Aniciensem  episcopum,  an.  1000,  ap.  Labb^, 
xi.  1043,  and  below  clx  vi.  on  the  Truce  of  God. 


134 


THE  NIGHT  OF  THE  PAPACY. 


PART  tutor,  Sylvester  II.,  on  the  chair  of  St.  Peter  to 
•  second  and  direct  him.  Before  three  years  both  of 
them  were  dead,  the  victims  of  the  consummate  art 
of  the  beautiful  but  injured  Stephania,^  Well  may 
the  collapse  of  the  great  scheme  of  Otto  III.  and 
Sylvester  II.  strike  a  blank  into  every  ambitious 
soul !  Well  may  the  sad  tale  of  Otto  draw  forth  a 
passing  tear,  as  it  rings  even  yet  faintly  in  the  pages 
of  many  a  chronicler,  lingering  with  fondness  over 
the  young  emperor's  memory.^  '  Two  years  had  not 
passed  since,  setting  out  on  his  last  journey  to  Rome, 
he  had  opened  the  tomb  of  Charles  in  the  basilica  at 
Aachen,  had  gazed  on  the  great  emperor  sitting  on  a 
marble  throne,  robed  and  crowned  with  the  gospel- 
book  before  him,  and  there,  touching  the  dead  hand, 
unclasping  from  the  neck  its  golden  cross,  had  taken, 
as  it  were,  an  investiture  of  empire  from  his  Prankish 
forerunner.'  Two  years  later,  he  was  himself  borne 
'by  his  lamenting  followers  across  the  Alps  a  corpse, 
and  buried  in  the  choir  of  Aachen,  beneath  the  dome, 


*  MiLMAN,  iii.  346,  348. 

2  MiLMAN  (iii.  347)  quotes  from  Hofler  the  plaintive  poem  on 
the  death  of  Otto,    It  shows  the  popular  feeling.    It  is  as  follows  : 
'  Quis  dabit  aquam  capiti  %         Vivo  Ottone  tertio 
Quis  succurret  pauperi  %  Salus  fuit  populo. 

Quis  dabit  fontes  oculis  ?  ..... 

Lacrymosis  populis  *  Plangat  ignitus  Oriens, 

Sufficientes  lacrymae[s]  Crudus  ploret  Occidens  : 

Mala  mundi  plangere  %  Sit  aquilo  in  cinere, 

Planctus  in  Meridie. 
'  Ad  triumphum  ecclesiae  Sit  mundus  in  tristitia, 

Coepit  Otto  crescere  :  Nostra  luge  cithara. 

Sumsit  Otto  imperium  Plangat  mundus,  plangat  Roma, 

Ut  floreret  saeculum  :  Lugeat  Ecclesia,' 


ASCENDENCY  OF  THE   TUSCAN  PARTY.  I^^ 

some  twenty  paces  from  the  tomb  of  Charles.^     The    chap. 
death  of  Otto  put  an  end  to  all  attempts  at  reform.  " 

For  none  but  Otto  in  that  lawless  age  rose  above 
his  surroundings,  to  project  a  new  era  of  improve- 
ment. None  but  his  tutor,  Sylvester  II.,  could 
sympathise  with  his  projects.  When,  comet-like,  . 
these  two  luminaries  had  darted  across  the  heaven 
and  disappeared,  the  darkness  of  night  grew  thicker 
than  before. 

Even  in  the  lifetime  of  Otto  III.,  the  association  dlnc7^(^' 
with  Germany  was  hateful   to  the  Italians.^     Had  it  p^-^/^^-" 

•'  par-ty. 

not  ever  been  so  since  the  days  of  Charles  ?     On       a.d. 
Otto's  death  the  German  dominion  was  cast  off,  and  '"^^1.'°** 

(i)  John 

the   Tuscan  party  were  again  triumphant.     Three  xvii., 
undistinguished  Popes,  John  XVII.,  John  XVIII.,  xviir., 
Sergius  I V.,^  ruled  for  ten  year's  of  obscurity,  during  ^^^^"'^ 


*  Quoted  from  Bryce's  Holy  Romatt  Empire,  p.  162,  3,  and 
based  on  Alberici  Chron.  ad  an.  1002  (quoted  by  Gies.  ii, 
360)  :  '  Milites  transalpini  corpus  Imperatoris  defuncti  cum  in- 
'  signibus  Imperii  ad  Galliam  [Germaniam]  transferentes,  crebris 
'  Italorum  incursibus  laccessiti  armis  sibi  viam  parant.' 

^  Conf.  the  Roman  fragments  in  the  Rheinisches  Museum  fiir 
Jurisprudenz,  v.  131  (quoted  by  Gies.  ii.  360)  :  '  Postquam  pecca- 
'  tis  nostris  exigentibus  Romanorum  imperium  barbarorum  patuit 
'  gladiis  feriendum,  Romanas  leges  penitus  ignorantes  illiterati  ac 
'  barbari  judices  legis  peritos  in  legem  conantes  jurare,  judices 
'  creavere.  .  .  .  Comes  enim  illiteratus  ac  barbarus  nescit  vera  a 
'  falsis  discernere  et  ideo  fallitur.'  Alberici  Chron.  ad  an.  looa 
(ed.  Leibnit.  ii.  26) :  '  Otto  Imperator  degens  Romae,  dum  cum 
'  Romanis  reraissius  agit,  tractans,  qualiter  jura  Regni  et  Ecclesiae 
'  ad  antiquum  statum  reformaret ;  Romani  per  hoc  ad  contemp- 
'  turn  ejus  adducti,  subito  contra  eum  conspirant,  et  aUquot  mili- 
'  tum  ejus  interfectis  eum  in  palatio  obsident,  unde  .  .  .  vix  egres- 
'  sus  Roma  .  .   .  moritur.' 

3  John  XVII.  [XVI.]  succeeded  Sylvester  II.  an.  1003.      He 


THE  NIGHT  OF  THE  PAPACY. 


136 

PART     which  Rome  was  again  a  repubhc,  with  the  son  of 
Crescentlus,  the  patrician  John,  at  its  head.     The 


north  of  Italy,  however,  espoused  the  cause  of  the 
Emperor  Henry  II.,  whose  claim  to  the  kingdom  of 
Italy  was   contested   by  Ardoin,  Margrave  of  Ivrea. 
{2)Counts  But  the  leadership  of  the  Tuscan  party  had  passed 
ium.  from  the  descendants  of  Crescentius  to  the  Counts 

of  Tusculum  ;  and  from  the  time  of  Benedict  VIII. 
they  treated  the  Papacy  as  an  appanage  of  their 
family,  and  appointed  the  holders  of  it  by  the  m.ost 
open  simony.  By  these  counts  Benedict  VIII. 
was  appointed,  but  not  without  a  rival  Gregory  in 
the  interest  of  the  Crescentii  contesting  his  claims  ; 
and  Benedict's  position  continued  precarious,  until, 
by  a  promise  of  the  imperial  crown,  he  had  secured  the 
support  of  the  emperor.^  By  the  Counts  of  Tus- 
culum also,  John  XIX.,^  though  yet  a  layman,  and 

was  followed  by  John  XVIII.  [XVII.]  in  the  same  year,  and  by 
Sergius  IV.  an.   1009.     Sergius  IV.  was  succeeded  by  Benedict 

VIII.  an.  1012.     For  their  lives,  see  Labb^,  xi.  1049  seq. 

^  Henry  II.  was  crowned  an.  1014.    Of  this  coronation,  Thiet- 
MAR  (vi.  in  fine)  says  : 

'  Ista  dies  pulcro  signetur  clara  lapillo. 
Qua  regi  nostro  se  subdit  Roma  benigno.' 

^  Benedict  VIII.  was  Pope  from  1012  to  1024;  his  brother, 
John  XIX.  [XVIII. j,  from  1024  to  1033 ;  his  nephew,  Benedict 

IX.  from  1033  to  1046.  See  Labb^,  xi.  1081  seq.  The  series  of 
Popes  and  Antipopes  is  therefore  as  follows  : 

Popes  •  Antipopes 

Sylvester  II.  999. 
John  XVII.  1003. 
John  XVIII.  1003. 
Sergius  IV.  1009. 
Benedict  VIII.  1012. 


ASCENDENCY   OF   THE    TUSCAN  PARTY. 


^Z1 


prefect    of    the    city,    was    elevated    to   the    Papal     chap. 

throne  to  succeed  his  brother,  Benedict  VI 1 1. ;  and  on  '. 

his  decease,  the  tiara  was  bestowed  on  his  nephew,     '  "  '°^'^ 
Benedict  IX.,  a  boy  not   more  than  ten    or  twelve      1033 
years  of  ag-e.      But  though  Benedict  I X.  was  a  boy,  (3)  Three 
his  vices  were  the  vices  01  a  man,  and,  moreover,  Popes. 
of  a  man  utterly  lost  to  shame,  depraved  and  con-  diet IX.' 
temptible.      Ruling  more  like  a  captain  of  banditti   1033-1046 
than    like  a  prelate,  perpetrating  adultery,  murder, 
and  every  kind  of  abomination,  with   the    greatest 
impunity,  his  brother  being  the  patrician  of  the  city 
— he  at  length   exhausted  the  patience  of  the   op- 
pressed people.      He  was  driven  from  Rome,  and  a 
fresh   Pope  was  substituted  in  his  place,  who  took 
the  name  of  Sylvester  1 11.^  1044 

Popes  Antipopes 

Gregory. 
John  XIX.  1024. 
Benedict  IX.  1033. 

Sylvester  III.  1044  ap. 

Gregory  VI. 
All  three  deposed  at  Sutri,  an.  1046. 
'  Desiderii  Dialogi,  &c.  in  Bibl.  Fafrum  Ludg.  xviii.  853  : 
'  Denique  cum  rapinas,  caedes,  aliaque  nefanda  in  Romanum 
'  populum  aliquanta  per  tempora  sine  ulla  dilatione  ageret  [Bene- 
'  dictus],  congregati  in  unum  populi,  quia  ejus  nequitiam  amplius 
'  ferrenequibant  eum  a  pontificatus  cathedra  exturbantes,  urbe  pel- 
'  lunt,  alterumque  in  locum  ejus  [Sylvestrem]  .  .  .  canonica  par- 
'  vipendentes  decreta  substituunt.  Qui  tribus  non  amplius  men- 
'  sibus  Romanae  usus  est  cathedrae  successione.  .  .  .  Benedictus 
'  igitur  quod  amiserat  sacerdotium  recepit,  pristinos  tamen  mores 
'  non  mutavit.  .  .  .  Cumque  se  a  clero  simul  et  populo  propter  nequi- 
'  tias  suas  contemni  respiceret  .  .  .  tandem  cuidam  Joanni  Archi- 
'  presbytero  qui  tum  in  urbe  religiosior  caeteris  clericis  videbatur, 
*  non  parva  ab  eo  accepta  pecunia,  summum  sacerdotium  relin- 
'  quens  tradidit.' 


138  THE  NIGHT  OF  THE  PAPACY. 

PART         But  the  Counts  of  Tusculum  were  too  strong  for  the 
people.   To  their  party  belonged  the  patrician ;  to  their 


Pope  in     party  the  consuls  also  adhered.     Benedict  returned 
^yvester   j^^  triumph,  Sylvester  withdrew  to  his  bishopric  of 
A.D.       Sabina.     More  disgraceful  scenes  were  yet  to  follow. 
Enamoured,  it  is  said,  of  his  cousin,  and  finding  that 
his  uncle  obstinately  refused  to  give  him  his  daugh- 
ter unless  he  resigned  the  Papacy,  Benedict  went 
so  far  as  to  sell  the  dignity  to  an  arch-presbyter  of 
learning  and  unimpeachable  chastity,  who  doing  evil 
in  the  hope  that  good  might  come  of  it,  purchased 
the  pontificate  to  reform  its  abuses,  and  assumed  the 
name  hitherto  borne  by  the  best  of  his  predecessors, 
that  of  Gregory  VI. 
(b)  *Rival       Forthwith,  Greg^ory  VI.  devoted  himself  to  the  re- 

I'ope  in  .     .  ^.      :       .      . 

Gregory  covery  of  the  ecclesiastical  possessions  of  the  See, 
many  of  which  had  been  lost  to  the  Church  in  the 

1045-1046  restlessness  of  the  preceding  administrations  at  the 
point  of  the  sword.  Thereby,  however,  he  soon 
found  himself  involved  in  a  struqforle  with  the  late 
Popes.  For  Benedict  IX.  had  not  obtained  his 
bride,^  and  her  father  Gerard  de  Saxo,  had  espoused 
the  cause  of  Sylvester  III.  Three  rival  Popes  now 
contested  the  chair  of  St.  Peter,  each  supported  by 
their  respective  partisans.  Benedict  IX.  held  the 
Lateran ;  Gregory  VI.,  Sancta  Maria  Maggiore; 
Sylvester  III.,  St.  Peter's  and  the  Vatican. 

(4)  Henry       At  this  moment,  when  the  personal  disputes  of  the 

Su'tri.  Popes  had  become  the  scandal  of  Christendom,  the 
^^46      more  devout,  the  clergy  and  the  monks,  appealed,  as 


'  MiLMAN,  iii.  358. 


ASCENDENCY  OF  THE   TUSCAN  PARTY. 


139 


had  once  before  been  done  in  the  time  of  John  XII.,     chap 

to  the  transalpine  monarch,  whose  own  character  as  '— 

Western  Emperor  seemed  to  constitute  him  the 
arbiter  of  all  quarrels  within  the  pale  of  the  Empire. 
Obedient  to  the  summons  which  was  conveyed  to 
him  by  the  archdeacon  of  Rome,  Henry  III.  crossed 
the  Alps,  and  was  everywhere  received  with  loud  joy 
or  silent  awe.  From  Placenza  he  advanced  to  Sutri, 
about  thirty  miles  north  of  Rome,  and  there  assem- 
bling a  council  of  prelates,  including  among  their 
number  the  Patriarch  of  Aquileia  and  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Aries,  he  proceeded  to  examine  the  claims 
of  the  rival  Pontiffs.  Sylvester  III.  was  at  once 
condemned  as  a  usurper.^  The  voluntary  abdica- 
tion of  Benedict  IX.  annulled  his  claims.  Gregory 
VI.,  convicted  of  simony,  quietly  surrendered  up  the 
Papacy ;  and  there  being  in  the  whole  Roman  Church 
not  one  person  who  was  not  disqualified  either  on  the 
ground  of  ignorance,  or  notorious  profligacy,  or  well- 
known  simony,  the  German  Suidger,  bishop  of 
Bamberg,  was  unanimously  elected  Pope  on  Christ- 
mas Eve,  and  consecrated  on  the  day  after  Christmas 
Day,  taking  the  name  Clement  II.  With  him,  a 
new  era  of  German  Popes  and  radical  reforms  was 
inaugurated. 

This  was  the  last  occasion  on  which  a  German 
emperor  was  successful  in  deposing  a  Roman  bishop, 
and  as  such  it  marks  the  close  of  the  age  in  which 
the  Papal  power  was  growing,  and  the  beginning 
of   the    new    age,"*  in    which    that    power    reigned 

'  See  the  account  in  Labb£,  xi.  1314- 


I. 


j.Q  THE  NIGHT  OF  THE  PAPACY. 

PART  supreme.  Hitherto  the  Popes  had  never  been  able 
to  forget  that  they  were  subjects  of  the  Empire. 
Henceforth  they  begin  to  aspire  to  a  supremacy 
above  the  Emperors.  Great  indeed  must  have  been 
the  fascination  exercised  by  the  Papacy  over  the 
Germanic  nations,  if  it  could  still  command  their 
respect  after  its  terrible  career  during  the  last  150 
years.  Should  it  ever  be  distinguished  for  its  vir- 
tues, as  it  had  been  for  its  vices,  it  was  easy  to  fore- 
tell that  its  power  would  be  irresistible.  If  the 
desire  of  Western  Christendom  was  towards  Rome 
and  her  Popes  in  the  darkest  days  of  the  night  of  the 
Papacy,  what  would  not  its  feelings  be  when  the 
night  had  been  changed  into  day  ?  The  night  in 
which  the  age  of  growth  ended,  closed  with  the 
Pontificate  of  Benedict  IX.;  with  the  accession  of 
Clement  II.  the  dawn  of  a  new  day  broke. 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


141 


CHAPTER   VI. 

CHURCH  AND  STATE. 
(590—1046.) 


Vadam  post  amatores  meos,  qui  dant panes  iiiihi,  et  aquas  tneas,  lanam  meam,  et 
linum  meiim,  oleu7n  menm,  et potum  ntetim. — Hos.  11.  5. 


THE  entire  ors^anisation  of  the  Roman  Church,     chap. 
...                                              VI. 
reproducing  the  organisation  of  imperial  Rome, 

passed    together   with    Christianity  to  the  Western  relations 

nations.      Ahnost    from   the  .time    of    the   first    in-  %^Jstaie 

troduction  of  Christianity  among  those  nations,  the  (i)  The 

course   of  events    had   decided  that  thus  it  should  altered. 

be;  and  in  Eng^land  the  Synod  of  Whitby,^  in  Ger-  i^  ^y 

^  _       "^    ^  -^  Roman 

many  the  oath  of  Boniface,'"^  had  settled  the  point  ideas. 
once  and  for  all,  that  the  Roman  system  should  be 
the  model  on  which  the  Mediaeval  Church  in  these 
countries  should  be  built.  Comingf  with  all  the 
pageantry  of  the  ancient  Empire,  at  once  the  vehicle 
of  religion,  of  civilisation,  and  of  a  definite  ecclesi- 
astical system,  Roman  Christianity  overwhelmed 
the  untutored  minds  of  the  Germanic  tribes  ;  who, 
unable  in  their  then  stage  of  culture  to  distinguish  the 
human   elements   from    the   divine,   the    changeable 


'  Synodus  Pharensis,   an.   664,  in  Bedae,  Hist.  Ecd.  iii.  25  ; 
and  T.ABBfi,  vii.  506. 

-  An.  723.     See  ch.  H.  p.  42. 


1^2  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 

PART     forms  from  the  unchangeable  truths,  the  framework 

. '. of  imperial  system  from  the  new  life  which  it  was 

intended  to  convey,  received  it  as  a  whole,  and  be- 
came henceforth  not  only  Christians,  but  Roman 
Christians.  Christianity  reigned  supreme  in  the 
West,  yet  not  in  its  original  form,  but  after  it 
had  been  already  moulded  by  Greek  philosophy, 
and  clothed  in  the  garb  of  Roman  imperialism. 
{b)  By  Just  as  at  first,  after  being  the  religion  of  the  poor 

the  and  the  unlettered,  it  had,  when  fashioned  by  Greek 

^therkh^  philosophy,  taken  hold  on  the  more  educated  classes 
of  society,  whilst  the  uneducated  villagers,  hence 
called  pagans,  continued  to  adhere  to  their  old  super- 
stitions ;  so  now,  when  cast  in  the  mould  of  Roman 
imperialism  it  came  to  the  West,  it  followed  the 
traditions  of  the  metropolis.  It  addressed  itself 
first  to  the  great,  and  won  its  chief  victories  by  the 
respect  which  the  Roman  name  inspired.  In  this, 
if  in  nothing  else,  the  Mediaeval  Church  is  diame- 
trically opposed  to  the  Church  of  the  first  three 
centuries.  The  Apostles  of  the  first  Age  went 
forth  to  win  the  poor,  the  despised,  and  the  outcast ; 
those  of  the  Middle  Ages  first  addressed  themselves 
to  the  great,  to  princes,  and  nobles.  Apostolic 
Christianity  spread  as  the  religion  of  the  poor ; 
Mediaeval  Christianity  as  the  religion  of  the  rich. 
The  Apostolic  Church  was  democratic  in  its  origin 
and  institutions.  Far  otherwise  was  the  Church  of 
the  eighth  and  ninth  centuries,  in  which  the  monar- 
chical ideas  of  the  Empire  had  superseded  the  re- 
publican order  of  its  first  founders. 
(:)  Ini'  Such   a  change  of  views  could  not  fail  to  make 

fortance 


NEW  RELATIONS  OF  CHURCH  AND   STATE.  I^^ 

itself  felt  in  the  circumstances  of  both  Church  and     chap. 

State,  nor  could  it  fail  to  influence  the  conduct  and   L— 

practice  of  churchmen.      The    higher    ecclesiastics  "^  tishops 
were    now    considered    as   alone    constitutinof    the  ^"^ 

^  princes^ 

Church,  as  alone  able  to  express  its  voice.  A  mar- 
vellous importance  was  attached  to  the  conversion  of 
kings  and  princes,  an  example  of  which  had  already- 
occurred  at  the  conversion  of  Constantine.^  The 
great  mass  of  Christians — the  Christian  populace  as 
it  were — disappear  from  view ;  the  spiritual  aris- 
tocracy of  monks  and  bishops  alone  become  pro- 
minent. The  feelings  and  wishes  of  the  people  are 
never  considered,  or  are  ignored  ;  the  interests  and 
wishes  of  kings  and  princes  are  religiously  observed. 
The  Church  has  become  an  institution  for  the  great 
and  the  rich  ;  the  history  of  Christianity,  a  history 
of  the  relation  of  bishops  to  princes,  and  princes  to 
bishops,  of  the  Papacy  to  the  Empire,  and  the  Empire 
to  the  Papacy.  As  in  politics  the  great  mass  of 
the  people  have  no  voice,  so  in  the  administration 
of  the  Church  they  are  voiceless  also.  They  follow 
where  their  princes  lead,  blindly  accepting  the  creed 
to  which  their  chiefs  are  pledged. 

One  after  another  the  nations  of  Europe  are  con- 
verted to  the  faith  ;  their  conversion  is  seen  always 
to  proceed  from  above,  never  from  below.  Clovis 
yields  to  the  bishop  Remigius,  and  forthwith  he  is 
followed  by  the  baptism  of  3000  Franks.^    Ethelbert 


1  See  Socrates'  Ecdes.  Hist.  i.  2. 

'^  See  Neand.  v.  9  ;  Maclears's  Missions  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
V-  54- 


J..  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 

PART  yields  to  the  mission  of  Augustine,  and  forthwith  all 
^'  Kent  follows  his  example  ;  ^  when  his  son  Eadbald 
apostatises,^  the  men  of  Kent  apostatise  with  him. 
Essex  is  finally  won  by  the  conversion  of  King 
Sigebert,  who  under  the  influence  of  another  king, 
Oswy,  allows  himself  to  be  baptised.^  Northumber- 
land is  temporarily  gained  by  the  conversion  of  its 
king,  Edwin,*  but  falls  away  as  soon  as  Edwin  is 
dead.^  It  anew  accepts  the  faith,  when  another  king, 
Oswald,  promotes  its  diffusion.^  In  the  conversion 
of  Germany,  a  bishop,  Boniface,  plays  a  prominent 
part,  in  close  connection  with  the  princes  of  the 
country,  Charles  Martel  and  Pepin  ;^  the  latter,  in 
return  for  his  patronage,  receiving  at  Soissons  the 
Church's  sanction  to  a  violent  act  of  usurpation.^ 
Denmark  is  gained  by  the  conversion  of  its  kings, 
Harald  Krag,  Harald  Blaatand,  and  Canute;^ 
Sweden  by  that  of  the  two  Olofs ;  ^^  and  Russia, 
by  the  conversion  of  its  sovereign,  Vladimir. ^^ 
Everywhere  Christianity  addresses  itself  first  to 
kings  and  princes  ;  everywhere  the  bishops  and 
abbots  appear  as  its  only  representatives. 

Nor  was  this  all,  for  where  a  king  had  once  been 
gained,  no  obstacle  was  offered  by  the  Mediaeval 
missionaries  to  the  immediate  indiscriminate  baptism 
of  his  subjects.     Three  thousand  warriors  of  Clovis 


'  Bedae,  Hist.  Ecd.  i.  26.  '^  Ibid.  ii.  5. 

3  Ibid.  iii.  22.  ^  Ibid.  ii.  12,  13. 

*  Ibid.  iii.  i.  ®  Ibid.  iii.  2,  3. 

7  Neand.  v.  61  seq.  ^  See  p.  61.     Ibid.  v.  9 

9  Maclear's  Missions,  p.  229  scq.  Neand.  vi.  2, 

'0  Neand.  vi.  7,  11,  17,  28.  "  Ibid.  vi.  76. 


N£JV  RELATIONS  OF  CHURCH  AND  STATE.  I^cr 

following  the  example  of  their  king,  were  at  once     chap. 
admitted  to  the  sacred  rite  ;  the  subjects  of  Ethel-  ' 

bert  were  baptised  in  numbers  after  the  conversion 
of  their  prince,  without  preparation,  and  with  hardly 
any  instruction.  The  Germans  only  were  less  hasty 
in  following  the  example  of  others.  In  Russia,  so 
great  was  the  number  of  those  who  crowded  to  be 
baptised  after  the  baptism  of  Vladimir,  that  the 
sacrament  had  to  be  administered  to  hundreds  at  a 
time.  In  Sweden,  the  missionaries  were  still  less 
scrupulous,  and  offered  to  the  masses  death  or 
baptism  as  the  only  alternatives.  Ecclesiastical 
Rome,  like  imperial  Rome,  was  bent  on  gaining  the 
prince.  She  troubled  herself  little  about  the  subjects, 
but  required  from  them  a  blind  obedience.  And  in 
acting  thus,  she  was  aided  by  the  superstition  and 
ignorance  generally  prevailing.  There  were  few 
obstacles  to  mar  her  success.  Exercisino-  a  stranee 
fascination  over  men  who  had  been  accustomed  to 
regard  their  rulers  as  little  more  than  leaders  in  war, 
she  used  that  fascination  to  exalt  the  prince,  and 
lower  the  people.  Princes  welcomed  her  system  as 
adding  strength  to  their  own  rule;  and  the  people 
submitted,  though  not  always  without  a  protest, 
when  that  system  came  before  them,  not  merely  as 
an  accessory  of  the  religion  they  were  adopting,  but 
as  a  necessary  part  of  religious  government  and 
civilisation. 

Nor  were  the  Roman  bishops  backwards  in  encou-  (3)  The 
raging  this   view.       Leo   I.  had   already  announced  system 
that  upon  himself,  as  the  successor  of  St.  Peter,  the  ^'^'^"^^fi*^^- 


146 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


PART 
I. 

with  7-e- 
liirion 


care  of  the  whole  Church  devolved.^     This  notion, 
resting    for    its  origin    on    the  more    than  doubtful 
legend  of  St.  Peter  having  been  bishop  of  Rome,^ 
and civi-    became  from  the  time  of  Greo^ory  I.  downwards,  the 

hsation.  o>      -■ 

leading  idea  of  the  Roman  bishops.  It  was  also  the 
idea  which  took  the  firmest  hold  on  the  Germanic 
mind,  and  brought  the  Germanic  nations  to  a  form 
of  ecclesiastical  government,  otherwise  greatly  at 
variance  with  their  political  notions.  It  was  to  this 
idea  that  Laurentius  had  appealed,  and  appealed  suc- 
cessfully, to  prevent  the  breaking  up  of  the  newly  es- 
tablished Church  in  Britain  ;  ^  and  this  was  the  idea 
A.D.  664  which,  at  the  Synod  of  Streaneshalch,  decided  Oswy 
in  favour  of  Rome  against  Colman,  the  champion  of 
the  Scots,  even  more  than  the  glowing  account  of 
the  city,  and  the  glories  of  its  services,  repeated  by 
an  enthusiastic  admirer,  and  contrasted  with  the 
rustic  simplicity  of  what  he  was  pleased  to  call  these 
two  remote  islands.^  Moreover,  Gregory  III.  must 
have  been  keenly  alive  to  the  influence  of  this  idea 
740  when  he  addressed  his  letter  to  Charles  M artel,  ex- 
horting him  to  rescue  Rome,  and  conjuring  him  by 
the  living  and  true  God,  and  by  the  keys  of  St. 
Peter,  not  to  prefer  an  alliance  with  the  Lombards 
735  to  the  love  of  the  great  Apostle  :  ^  yet  not  more 
keenly  alive  than  was  one  of  his  successors,  Stephen, 
who,  in  an  agony  of  fear,  had  resorted  to  the  bold  ex- 


^  An.  444.     See  ch.  ii.  p.  17. 

*  See  ScHAFF,  History  of  the  Christian  Churchy  p.  (^t^. 
^  Bed  A,  ii.  6.  "*  Ibid.  iii.  25. 

•^  MiLMAN,  History  of  Latin    Christianity,  book    iv.   ch.   ix.  ; 
vol.  ii.  p.  429  (small  edition).     See  above,  p.  54. 


NEl'V  RELATIONS   OF  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


147 


pedient  of  addressing  a  letter  to  Pepin,  purporting    chap. 

to  come   from   the   Apostle  St.  Peter  himself/  and   ^ 

admonishing  him  in  his  own  name,  and  in  that  of 
the  Mother  of  God,  to  delay  no  longer,  but  to  cross 
the  Alps  to  save  the  beloved  city  from  the  detested 
Lombards.  If  further  proof  were  wanted  to  show 
how  readily  the  northern  nations  adopted  the  system 
of  Rome,  even  surpassing  their  teachers  in  the  length 
to  which  they  pushed  Papal  absolutism,  the  fact  may 
be  cited  that  not  in  Rome,  nor  yet  In  any  Italian  city, 
but  In  the  very  heart  of  Germany,  in  the  imperial 
city  of  Mainz,  that  successful  forgery  was  perpetrated, 
Avhich  surprised  the  world  at  the  time,  and  more  than 
anything  fostered  the  extravagant  pretensions  of  the 
Papacy.  And  yet  the  False  Decretals — for  so  the 
forgery  Is  now  called — however  spurious  they  may 
be,  were  needed  in  those  unsettled  times,  if  the  new 
institution  of  bishops  with  large  dioceses,   and  exer- 

'  The  letter  ran  :  '  I,  Peter  the  Apostle,  protest,  admonish  and 
conjure  you,  the  most  Christian  kings,  Pepin,  Charles  and  Carlo- 
man,  with  all  the  hierarchy,  bishops,  abbots,  priests,  and  all 
monks  ;  all  judges,  dukes,  counts,  and  the  whole  people  of  the 
Franks.  The  Mother  of  God  likewise  adjures  you,  and  ad- 
monishes and  commands  you,  she  as  well  as  the  thrones  and 
dominions,  and  all  the  host  of  heaven,  to  save  the  beloved  city 
of  Rome  from  the  detested  Lombards.  If  ye  hasten,  I,  Peter 
the  Apostle,  promise  you  my  protection  in  this  life  and  the  next, 
will  prepare  for  you  the  most  glorious  mansions  in  heaven,  and 
will  bestow  on  you  the  everlasting  joys  of  Paradise.  ...  Of 
all  nations  under  heaven,  the  Franks  are  highest  in  the  esteem 
of  St.  Peter.  To  me  you  owe  all  your  victories.  Obey  and 
obey  speedily,  and  by  my  suffrage,  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  will 
give  you  in  this  life  length  of  days,  security,  victory ;  in  the  life 
to  come  will  multiply  his  blessings  upon  you  among  his  saints 
and  angels.' — Labb^,  viii.  386.     See  above,  p.  65. 


j^g  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 

PART     cising  a  summary  jurisdiction  over  the  lower  clergy, 
•         was  to  be  upheld  alike  against  the  encroachments  of 
princes  and  the  attacks  of  still  greater  metropolitans. 
A  foreign  institution  required  support  from  without, 
if  it  was  to  root  itself  firmly  ;  and  in  order  to  secure 
their    independence    from    greater    prelates   near   at 
hand,  the  bishops  yielded  up  their  independence  to 
a  distant  Italian  pontiff     For  two  centuries,  until  the 
beginning  of  the  ninth  century,  the  Roman  bishops 
had  risen  to  power  as  the  successors  of  St.  Peter ; 
after  the    appearance  of  the  False  Decretals,  they 
aspired  to  a  higher  place  as  ecclesiastical  sovereigns. 
Theirs  was  to  be,  not  the  old  Roman  Empire,  but 
a  new  Empire — an  Empire  bearing  the  old  name, 
but  exercised  over  a  new  race,  nominally  a  Roman 
Empire,  really  a  German  Empire,  nominally  a  re- 
vival of  the  old  Western  Empire,  really  an  Empire 
over  countries  which  had  never  owed  allegiance  to 
Italy,    not    in    the    palmiest  days  of   its  prosperity. 
Once  the  name  of  Rome  was  associated  with  perse- 
cution   of  the   faith,  now  it  was  denied  that  Chris- 
tianity could   exist  except   in    the    communion  and 
under  the  ecclesiastical  headship  of  her  bishop. 
B.  Gains        In    many    respects    the    Church    gained    by    this 
Chiinh.     altered  state  of  things  ;  in  many,  perhaps  in  more,  she 
lost.      Her    gains    consisted    in    the    acquisition    of 
wealth,  privilege,  and  power ;  her  losses  were  caused 
by  the  interference  of  kings  and  princes  to  subvert 
her  established  customs.      Under  the  emperors  the 
ecclesiastical   hierarchy  never  received  any  regular 
endowment  by  law.      They  were  dependent  on  the 
voluntary  munificence  of  individuals,  among  the  list 


GAINS  FOR    THE   CHURCH.  j  .q 

of  whom  were  many  emperors  ;  and,  on  the  whole,     chap. 
they  had  no  cause  for  complaint.     It  was  otherwise  " 

among  the  Western  nations.      There,  not  only  was   iy}a///i 
the  Church  enriched  by  the  liberality  of  individuals  -^^'^'^  '^''' 
and  the  lavish  generosity  of  princes — the  Merovin-  tithes, 
gian,  Carolingian,  and  Saxon  emperors  vying   with  manses. 
each  other  in  their  donations  to  the  Church — but  it 
received  a  legal  endowment  in  the  obligation  imposed 
on  all  the  laity  to  pay  tithes.      That  result  was  not, 
however,  attained  all  at  once,  nor  did  it  take  place  in 
all  countries  at  the  same  time.      As  early  as  the  year 
567,  the  bishops  of  France,  in  a  pastoral  letter,  had    a.d.  567 
recommended  the   faithful  to  emulate  the  example 
of  Abraham,  by  offering  tithes  of  all  they  possessed 
in  return  for  the  safe  enjoyment  of  the  rest.      The       585 
non-observance  of  this  recommendation  was  visited 
by  the  Council  of  Matiscon  with  ecclesiastical  penal- 
ties.^    Most  of  the  sermons  preached  in  the  eighth 
century  inculcate  the  payment  of  tithe  as  a  duty,  and 
even  seem  to  place  the  summit  of  Christian  perfec- 
tion  in   its  performance.^     Pepin,  writing  to  Arch-       764 
bishop  Lull  in  the  year  764,  desires  that  the  bishops 
should  institute  a  thanksgiving-feast  on  account  of  a 
rich   harvest,   for  the  benefit  of  the  poor,  and  that 

'  Concil.  Matisconense  ii.  585  a.d.  Can.  5,  Labbe,  vi.  675  ; 
'■  Unde  statuimus  ac  decernimus,  ut  mos  antiquus  a  fidelibus  repa- 
'  retur  ;  et  decimas  ecclesiasticis  famulantibus  ceremoniis  populus 
'  omnis  inferat,  quas  sacerdotes  aut  in  pauperum  usum,  aut  in  cap- 
'  tivorum  redemptionem  praerogantes,  suis  orationibus  pacem 
'  popido  ac  salutem  impetrent.  Si  quis  autem  contumax  nostris 
'  statutis  saluberrimis  fuerit,  a  membris  ecclesiae  omni  tempore 
'  separetur.' 

2  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  ch.  vii.  pt.  i.  p.  146. 


j-Q  CHURCH  AND   STATE. 

PART  everyone  should  be  required  to  contribute  a  tenth, 
^'  whether  wilhng  or  unwilHng.  Not  many  years  later, 
^■"'  ^^^  a  capitulary  of  Charles  made  the  payment  of  tithes 
a  part  of  the  law  of  the  State,^  leaving  the  disposal  of 
them  to  the  command  of  the  Pope.  From  this  time 
forward,  tithes  became  a  regular  endowment  of  the 
Church,  and  although  at  first  they  were  often  reluc- 
tantly and  irregularly  paid,  yet,  as  time  advanced, 
the  payment  became  more  general.  Let  it,  however, 
be  borne  in  mind,  that  only  a  portion  of  the  tithes  as 
originally  paid,  was  devoted  to  the  maintenance  of 
the  clergy.  On  the  earliest  occasion  in  which  they 
were  enjoined  by  a  council,  they  were  to  be  devoted 
to  the  use  of  the  poor,  or  else  for  the  redemption  of 
captives,^  In  England,  if  they  were  ever  paid  be- 
fore the  ninth  century,^  they  must  have  been  applied 
according   to  the   rule   laid   down  by   Gregory  :   all 

*  Capit.  an.  779,  c.  vii.  :  '  De  decimis,  ut  unusquisque  suam 
'  decimam  donet,  atque  per  jussionem  Pontificis  dispensetur.' 
Capit.  de  partibus  Saxoniae,  c.  xvi.  (Pertz,  iii.  49)  :  '  Et  hoc 
'  Christo  propitio  placuit,  ut  imdecumque  census  aliquid  ad  fis- 
'  cum  pervenerit  .  .  .  decima  pars  Ecclesiis  et  Sacerdotibus  red- 

*  datur.'  See  Gies.  ii.  253  ;  Planck,  ii.  397  ;  Gfrorer,  ii.  609  ; 
Kuhlenthal's  Gesch.  des  deutschen  Zehntens,  Heilbronn,  1837  ; 
Hallam,  p.  146. 

^  See  note  on  p.  149. 

3  The  grant  of  Ethelwolf,  in  855,  has  appeared  to  some  anti- 
quaries the  most  probable  origin  of  the  right  to  tithes  in  England. 
The  subject  is  discussed  by  Hallam  in  note  i  to  ch.  vii.  of  his 
Middle  Ages.  Asser's  words  are:  '  Eodem  anno  [855]  Adelwolfus 
'  venerabihs,  rex  Occidentalium  Saxonum,  decimam  totius  regni 

*  sui  partem  ab  omni  regali  servitio  et  tribute  liberavit  et  in  sempi- 

*  terno  grafio  in  cruce  Christi,  pro  redemptione  animae  suae  et 
'  antecessorum  suorum,  Uni  et  Trino  Deo  immolavit.'  Hallam 
pronounces  the  two  extant  charters  to  be  spurious. 


CAINS  FOR    THE    CHURCH.  jr^ 

emoluments  were  to  be  divided  into  four  parts  :  one    chap. 

for  the  bishop  and  his  attendants,  because  of  hospi-   - L_ 

tahty  and  entertainments  ;  another  for  the  clergy  ;  a 
third  for  the  poor  ;  and  the  fourth  for  the  repair  of 
churches.^  The  Emperor  Charles  divided  them 
into  three  parts — one  for  the  bishop  and  his  clergy, 
a  second  for  the  poor,  and  a  third  for  the  support  of 
the  fabric.^ 

Moreover,  the  Church  obtained  wealth  by  immu- 
nity from  taxation.  In  the  Prankish  Empire  her 
estates  were,  indeed,  liable  to  be  taxed  in  the  same 
manner  as  all  property  belonging  to  the  old  landed 
proprietors,^  and  they  were  held  by  the  same  feudal 
tenures.  Nor  were  the  Anglo-Saxon  clergy  exempt, 
at  least  at  first,  from  the  so-called  trinoda  necessiias, 
consisting  of  Brigbote,  for  the  repair  of  roads  and 
bridges,  Burhbote,  for  building  and  repairing  for- 
tresses, and  Fyrd  or  general  array  of  military  service. 
Nevertheless,  on  the  Continent  the  clergy  obtained  a 
secure  endowment  in  the  inanstLs  ecclesiae^  or  small 


^  Bedae,  Hist.  Ecd.  i.  27. 

2  Schmidt,  ii.  206  (quoted  by  Hallam,  Middle  Ages.,  ii.  145)  ; 
Concil.  Bracarense  ii.  an.  563,  Can.  7,  Labbe,  vi.  521,  had  de- 
creed :  '  Placuit  ut  de  rebus  ecclesiasticis  tres  aequae  fiant  por- 
'  tiones  ;  id  est  episcopi  una,  alia  clericorum,  tertia  in  recupera- 
'  tione  vel  in  luminariis  ecclesiae.'  Capitulare  Episcoporum  vii. 
of  Charles,  an.  800,  Labbe,  ix.  251  :  '  Ut  et  ipsi  sacerdotes  sus- 
'  cipiant  decimas,  et  eorum  nomina  quicumque  dederint  scripta 
'  habeant,  et  secundum  auctoritatem  canonicam  coram  testibus 
'  dividant,  et  ad  ornamentum  ecclesiae  primam  eligant  partem  : 
'  secundam  autem  ad  usum  pauperum,  vel  peregrinorum,  per 
'  eorum  manus  misericorditer  cum  omni  humilitate  dispensent, 
'  tertiam  vero  partem  sibimetipsis  soli  sacerdotes  reservent.' 

3  Neand.  v.  135.  •*  Ibid. 


jr. 2  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 

PART     plots  of  ground  allotted  to  each  church,  which  they 

1 held,  perhaps,  from  the  beginning,  but  certainly  after 

the  time  of  Lewis  the  Pious,  free  from  all  rent  and 
taxes.;  and  in  England  the  exemption  from  feudal 
service  soon  extended  to  all  the  lands  of  the  Church. 
Hence  many  proprietors  granted  their  estates  to  the 
Church,  to  be  held  by  the  tenure  known  as  frankal- 
moigne,  and  received  them  back  by  way  of  fief  or 
lease,  discharged  from  public  burdens.^  The  clergy 
were  even  forbidden  by  a  capitulary  of  Charles  to  dis- 
8ii  charge  their  personal  service  in  the  field.  By  these 
means,  the  possessions,  the  wealth,  and  the  immuni- 
ties of  the  clergy  greatly  increased ;  and  in  the  lapse  of 
time,  legitimate  riches  accrued  to  the  monasteries  by 
the  cultivation  of  tracts  of  country  hitherto  wild  and 
deserted. 
(2)  Pri-  Nor  was  the  acquisition  of  wealth  the  only  privi- 

oftiie        lege  which  accrued  to  the  Church  from  the  favour  of 
^  '''■?'''•      nobles  and  of  princes.    Other  privileges  fell  to  her  lot 

ia)  Ex- 
emption    as  well.      In  some  cases,  the  clergy  received  judicial 

'civil jii-     power  over  their  dependents,  being  themselvesi  ex- 

Ih  s'       empted  from  secular  jurisdiction.      This  had  been  of 

rare  occurrence  under  the  Merovingians  ;  it  became 

761       more  frequent  afterwards.   Triers  received  from  Pepin 

the  privilege   of  immunity   from  the  jurisdiction  of 

Counts;^  Osnabrtick  was  exempted  by  Charles  from 

3.04       the  jurisdictions  of  all  judicial  courts,  not  excepting 

1  Hallam  ;  Ibid.  p.  144.  The  same  was  the  case  on  the  Con- 
tinent.    See  capit.  iii.  an.  811,  c.  iii.  (quoted  by  Gieseler,  ii.  255). 

"^  HoNTHEiNS,  Hist.  Dipl.  i.  120.  The  right  was  confirmed  by- 
Charles,  773  A.D.,  Ihid.  p,  132,  and  by  Lewis  the  Pious,  816  A.D., 
J  hi  1,1.  p.  167, 


GAINS  FOR   THE   CHURCH. 


153 


those  of  the  Mlssi.^    In  other  cases,  churches  received    chap. 
regalia  or  royal  rights;  Lewis  the  Pious,  in  particular, 


having  bestowed  on  many  monasteries  and  churches 
the  right  of  tolls,  markets,  and  coinage.'"^  To  such  an 
extent  were  these  secular  privileges  bestowed,  that 
in  the  time  of  Charles  all  prelates  were  required  to  813  a.d. 
keep  advocates  for  transacting  their  secular  business, 
this  business  being  considered  incompatible  with 
their  spiritual  calling.^  More  often  the  clergy  were 
exempted  from  the  jurisdiction  of  civil  courts.  The 
early  Merovingian  kings  gave  exclusive  jurisdiction 
to  the  bishop  in  all  cases  wherein  clerks  were  in- 
terested, and  the  temporal  magistrates  were  strictly 
prohibited  by  the  laws  of  Charles  from  judging 
the  causes  of  ecclesiastics,*  Laymen  who  had  suits 
with  ecclesiastics,  and  felt  themselves  aggrieved  by 
the  bishop's  verdict,  might,  however,  appeal  to  the 
sovereign.  On  the  whole,  it  may  be  doubted  whether 
the  Church  did  not  lose  quite  as  much  as  she  gained 
by  this  privilege.  For  lay  jurisdiction,  like  lay  pa- 
tronage, must  have  retarded  the  growth  of  an  over- 
bearing hierarchy ;  and  episcopal  jurisdiction  be- 
came in  subsequent  times  an  instrument  for  screening 


1  Moser's  Osnabruck,  Gcsch.  3te  Aufl.  i.  405.     Berlin,  181 9, 

-  MoNTAG,  i.  285 ;  GiES.  ii.  255  ;  Heimoldus  in  Chi'on. 
Slav.  lib.  i.  ch.  iv.  §  2. 

^  Caroli  capit.  ii.  an.  813,  c.  xiv.  :  '  UtEpiscopi  et  Abbates  Ad- 
'  vocatos  habeant,'  These  advocates  had  to  appear  in  court  on 
behalf  of  the  churches  they  represented.  Montag,  i,  232,  Some 
churches  had  also  Defensores.  Montag,  p.  250.  Both  offices 
were  soon  united,  and  the  expressions  Advocati,  Defensores,  Vice- 
domini  became  synonymous.     See  note  in  Gies.  ii.  255. 

■*  See  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  ii.  150  ;  Gieseler,  ii.  256. 


154 


CHURCH  AND   STATE. 


PART 
I. 

(b)  Ex- 
emption, 
from 
military 
service. 


A.D.  511 


the  vices  of  ecclesiastics  from  the  punishment  they 
deserved. 

Not  the  least  important  amongst  other  privileges 
which  passed  from  the  old  to  the  new  state  of  things, 
though  somewhat  modified  in  its  application,  was 
the  exemption  of  the  Church  from  military  service. 
Amongst  the  Germanic  nations,  the  obligation  to 
perform  military  service  rested  on  all  freemen, 
clerical  as  well  as  lay.  But  as  the  feeling  spread  of 
the  incompatibility  of  military  service  with  the  spiri- 
tual office,  several  attempts  were  made  to  exempt  ^ 
the  clergy  from  the  obligation,  and  to  reconcile  that 
exemption  with  the  interests  of  the  State.  Thus  a 
canon  of  the  Council  of  Orleans,  in  the  time  of  Clovis, 
forbade  any  freeman  to  be  advanced  to  the  clerical 
office,  except  by  command  of  the  king  or  the  wish  of 
the  judge  ; "  and,  in  consequence,  the  Church  selected 
for  the  lower  spiritual  offices  men  taken  from  the 
ranks  of  bondmen,  who  were  not  affected  by  the 
obligation  to  do  military  service."  Thus,  whilst  the 
Church  vindicated  her  claim  to  exemption  from  the 
duty  of  military  service,  she  was  developing  the 
distinction  of  a  high-born  and  a  low-born  clergy, 
of  a   clerical    aristocracy  and    clerical    commoners  : 


1  For  instance  that  of  Boniface  ;  Neand.  v.  74 ;  Concil.  Germ, 
an.  742,  Can.  2,  Labb^,  viii.  270. 

2  Concil.  Aurelianense  i.  a.d.  511,  Can.  4,  Labe£,  v.  544: 
'  De  ordinationibus  clericorum  id  observandum  esse  decrevimus, 
*  ut  nuUus  saecularium  ad  clericatus  officium  praesumatur,  nisi  aut 
'  cum  regis  jussione,  aut  cum  judicis  voluntate  ;  ita  ut  filii  cleri- 
'  corum  ...  in  episcoporum  potestate  ac  districtione  consistant.' 
Also  Capit.  Carol,  a.d.  805,  c.  xv.  ;  see  Neand.  v.  129. 

3  Neand.  v.  130. 


GALVS  FOR    THE   CHURCH.  jrr 

the  high-born  clergy  occupying  the  places  of  dignity     chap 

and  emolument,  discharging  the  ordinary  duties  of  '. 

freemen,  and  therefore  possessing  a  voice  in  the 
great  council  of  the  nation  ;  the  low-born  clergy 
filling  the  lower  clerical  offices,  which  were  accor- 
dingly degraded  in  dignity  and  position,  like  other 
bondmen  possessing  no  political  status,  unable  to 
claim  any  rights,  often  oppressed  by  their  feudal 
superiors,  the  bishops,  and  obliged,  without  redress, 
to  submit  to  their  wishes  and  commands.^ 

By  these  means,  that  wide  distinction  between  the  {!>)  Power 

.  oj  higher 

higher  and  the  lower  clergy,  between  the  bishops  and  c/ergy. 
the  priests,  was  developed,  which  had  been  unknown 
in  the  early  ages  of  Christianity.  And  more  than 
that,  there  rose  among  the  bishops  themselves,  tower- 
ing over  the  heads  of  the  rest,  those  great  prelates  of 
the  West,^  for  the  most  part,  relatives  or  favourites  of 
the  ruling  princes,  who  formed  the  stepping-stones 
from    episcopal    government    to    papal    absolutism. 

1  This  practice  was  condemned  by  the  Fourth  Council  of 
Toledo  in  633,  Can.  74,  Labbe,  vi.  1468  :  '  De  familiis  ecclesiae 
'  constituere  presbyteros  et  diacones  per  parochias  liceat ;  quos 
'  tamen  vitae  rectitudo  et  probitas  morum  commendat  :  ea  tamen 
'  ratione,  ut  antea  manumissi  libertatem  status  sui  percipiant  et 
'  denuo  ad  ecclesiasticos  honores  succedant ;  irreligiosum  est 
'  enim  obligatos  existere  servituti,  qui  sacri  ordinis  suscipiunt  dig- 
'  nitatem.'  Also  by  Council  of  Aix  in  816,  Can.  119,  Laeb6, 
ix.  480  :  '  Sunt  nonnulli  qui  tantum  ex  faniilia  ecclesiastica  clericos 
'  in  sibi  commissis  congregant  ecclesiis  ;  et  hoc  ideo  facere  viden- 
•  tur,  ut  si  quando  eis  aliquid  incommodum  fecerint,  aut  stipendia 
'  opportuna  subtraxerint,  nihil  querimoniae  contra  se  objicere  prae- 
'  sumant ;  timentes  scilicet,  ne  aut  severissimis  verberibus  effician- 
'  tur,  aut  humanae  servituti  denuo  crudeliter  addicantur.' 

2  They  were  recognised  by  Carloman  742  a.d.  and  Pepin  755. 
See  GiES.  ii.  238. 


156 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


PART     The  bishops  occupied  a  position  of  ahnost  absolute 

— '. command  over  an  army  of   inferior  clergy.      They 

alone  disposed  of  all  the  tithes  and  revenues  of  the 
Church  ;  they  alone  claimed  to  express  the  opinions 
of  the  Church.  Already  powerful  in  ecclesiasti- 
cal matters,  powerful  too  in  secular  matters  by  the 
acquisition  of  royal  prerogatives,  powerful  more- 
over by  the  share  which  they  had  in  the  public 
councils  of  the  realm,  they  became  still  more  power- 
ful by  means  of  the  places  which  they  already  pos- 
sessed. To  the  emperors,  and  especially  since  the 
time  of  Otto  I.,  the  ecclesiastical  oligarchy  of  prelates 
seemed  a  useful  counterpoise  to  the  overgrown  power 
of  the  nobles.^  To  make  the  bishops  equal  to  this 
task,  fresh  privileges  were  heaped  upon  them  ;^  whole 
counties  were  transferred  to  them  as  fiefs  ;  ^  they 
were  for  the  most  part  appointed  by  the  kings,  the 


^  GiES.  ii.  374. 

"^  Lewis  the  Child  conferred  on  the  abbot  of  Corvey  900  a.d., 
on  the  bishop  of  Triers  902,  on  the  bishop  of  Tengern  908,  and  on 
others,  the  rank  of  Counts  of  the  Empire.  Gatterer,  Comm.  de 
Lndov.  iv.  inf.  34,  53,  Getting.  1759;  Bohmer's  Regesta  Caro- 
lorum,  p.  15. 

^  Henry  I.  conferred  on  the  bishop  of  Toul  928  a.d.  the  duke- 
dom and  dignity  of  the  city  of  Toul  Bohmer's  Regesta  von  Conrad 
I.  bis  Heinrich  VII.  p.  3  ;  Thomassinus,  hb.  i.  pt.  iii.  c.  xxviii.  xxx.  ; 
MoNTAG,  ii.  41,  48  ;  Hullman's  Gesch.  d.  Ursprungs  d.  Regalien 
in  Deutschland,  Frankfort,  1S66.  Otto  I.  invested  his  brother 
Bruno,  archbishop  of  Cologne,  with  the  dukedom  of  Lorrain,  and 
conferred  on  him  the  privileges  of  a  count.  Otto  III.  and  Henry 
n.  bestowed  numerous  counties  on  different  churches.  The  old 
German  chronicle  in  Leibnith  Introd.  in  Script,  rer.  Bi'uns.  i.  13, 
says  of  the  time  of  Otto  I.  :  '  Da  begunten  zuerst  die  Bischopfe 
'  weltliche  Rechte  zu  haben,  das  dauchte  damals  unbillig  manchem 
'  Manne.'     See  Stenzel's  Gesch.  Ueutschlands,  ii.  127,  135. 


VI. 


CAINS  FOR    THE   CHURCH.  ir^ 

privilege  of  free  choice  being  made  subject  to  the  chap. 
royal  confirmation  ;  ^  by  Lewis  the  German,  Arnulf, 
Otto  I.,  they  were  often  installed  in  office  ;^  from  the 
time  of  Charles  they  were  required  to  take  an  oath 
of  allegiance,  like  other  vassals,^  in  return  for  their 
secular  possessions ;  they  were  obliged  in  the  tenth 
century  to  lead  their  troops  in  person  to  the  wars.* 
They  were  often  deposed  by  the  emperors — the 
bishop  of  Asti,  for  instance,  by  Henry  II.,  the  arch- 
bishop of  Milan,  and  the  bishops  of  Vercelli,  Cre- 
mona and  Piacenza,  by  Conrad  \\.;°  and  often,  too, 
their  exalted  secular  position  involved  them  in  all 
the  incidents  of  the  great  secular  lordships,^  and  drew 

^  In  1004  Henry  II.  pointed  out-Tagino  to  the  electors  to  be 
archbishop  of  Magdeburg  (Thietmar,  v.  24,  ap.  Pertz,  v.  802), 
and  in  1012  Walterd  (Thietmar,  vi.  44).  In  other  cases,  instead 
of  confirming  a  choice,  he  appointed  another  ;  Meingaud  in  1008  to 
be  archbishop  of  Triers  (Thietmar,  xi.  25),  and  Himrao,  1006,  to 
be  abbot  of  Reichenau  (Hermann,  Contractus,  ad  an.  1006,  ap. 
Pertz,  vii.  118).     Other  cases  are  quoted  by  Gies.  ii.  376  (note). 

-  Instances  of  investiture  by  Lewis  the  German  in  Vita  Rem- 
berti,  c.  iv.  Act.  SS.  Feb.  i.  562  ;  by  Arnulf  in  Adam  Brem.  i.  39 ; 
l)y  Otto  I.  in  Thietmar,  ii.  16  ;  by  Henry  II.  in  Thietmar, 
\\.  44;  by  Conrad  II.  in  Vita  Bardonis  Archiep.  Mogunt.  c.  xxiv. 
in  Act.  SS.  Jan.  ii.  381. 

3  Not,  however,  without  a  protest  on  their  part.  See  the  Epistle 
of  the  Bishops  in  858  (quoted  in  Gies.  ii.  376). 

^  See  the  instances  of  Liutberg,  archbishop  of  Mainz  in  872 
A.D.  ;  of  Arno,  bishop  of  Wiirzburg  in  892  a.d.  ;  of  Henry,  bishop 
of  Augsburg  and  Werner,  abbot  of  Fulda  in  982  a.d.  ;  of  Michael, 
bishop  of  Ratisbon,  and  others  (quoted  by  Gies.  ii.  377,  note). 

5  See  Gieseler,  ii.  377. 

^  Bishops  and  specially  abbots  were  defrauded  by  their  bailiffs. 
See  Mabillon,  Vet.  Anakcta,^.  135  ;  HIjllmann,  p.  250;  Mon- 
tag,  ii.  222  ;  Planck,  iii.  611.  They  were  forced  to  make  grants 
of  Church  property  in  order  to  obtain  men  fit  for  military  service. 
See  Gies.  ii.  37S. 


158 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


PART     down  Upon  them  the  envy  of  the  nobiHty.^     Yet  most 

'- —  of  these  drawbacks  were  not  experienced  till  the  end 

of  the  tenth  century.      It  may  be  doubted  whether, 

on  the  whole,  their  losses  were  not  quite  as  great  as 

their  gains.     They  had  gained  in  power — they  had 

lost  in  independence.      Moreover,  the  concentration 

of  authority  in  the  hands  of  a  few  individuals  may 

have  been  serviceable  at  the  time  in  strengthening 

the  clergy  against  the  world  ;  but  whether  it  was  on 

the   whole  a  gain  for  the  Church,  is  a  point  about 

which  great  difference  of  opinion  may  be  entertained. 

C.  Disad-       Foremost    among  the  disadvantages  from  which 

for  tiu'       the  Church  now  suffered,  owing  to  the  dependence 

""l/.\,    of  the  bishops  on  the  court,  and  the  dependence  of 

elections     the  lower  clergy  on  the  bishops,  was  the  disuse  of 

abolislicd.  .  i  i      -r.  -r-         • 

id)  Kiiio-s  f^^^    elections.      In    the    old    Roman     Empire    the 
nominate   influence   of  the    emperors  had  only  been  used  in 

to  bishop-  _  ...  . 

rics.  filling   up   bishoprics   in  the  more  important  cities  ; 

among  the  Western  nations  the  large  revenues  and 
great  political  privileges  of  most  of  the  new  Sees 
brought  those  Sees  more  and  more  under  the  direct 
patronage  of  the  sovereigns.'-^  The  exercise  of  this 
kind  of  patronage  was  still  further  advanced  by  the 
clergy  themselves,  who  sought  to  obtain  bishoprics 
by  appealing  to  the  interested  motives  of  princes,  or 
even    by  simony.^     In  the   Prankish  kingdom,    the 

1  HULLMANN,  p.   237  )    MONTAG.   ii.    1 7,   79. 

2  Neand.  V.  123. 

3  See  Attonis,  Ep.  Vercellensis,  Lib.  de  pressuris  ecclesiasticis, 
in  d'Achery,  Spicilcg.  i.  414.  The  bishops,  says  Atto,  Ibid.  427  : 
'  Irrehgiose  eliguntur,  inaniter  ordinantur,  indifferenter  accusantur, 
'  injuste  opprimuntur,  perfide  dejiciuntur,  crudeHter  ahquando  et 


LOSSES  FOR    THE   CHURCH. 


159 


regulations  respecting    ecclesiastical    elections  went     chap 


VI. 


wholly  into  disuse,  and  bishoprics  were  either  arbi- 
trarily bestowed  upon  favourites  or  sold  to  the 
highest  bidders.  In  England,  as  early  as  the  year 
640,  Wini  obtained  the  bishopric  of  London  by  pur- 
chase.^ The  attempts  of  the  councils  of  Paris  to  cry'^&'eu 
restore  canonical  election  proved  unavailing,^  By 
Carloman  and  Pepin,  endeavours  were  made  to  rein-  743 
state  metropolitans  in  their  ancient  rights,^  and  to 
diminish  the  abuses  of  bishoprics  and  abbacies,  being 
in  lay  hands  ;  but  the  feudal  relations  remained  unal- 
tered, and  the  nomination  to  prelacies  still  continued  to 
be  decided  by  princes.      Thus  Willibrord  was  conse- 


'  necantur.'  See  Gies.  ii.  379.  Atto  is,  however,  speaking  of  the 
state  of  things  in  the  tenth  century.  At  an  earher  period  Gregory 
OF  Tours  in  his  hfe  of  Gallus,  bishop  of  Clermont,  apud  Ruinart, 
Vifae  Patmm,  vi.  1171,  relates  how  the  clergy  of  Clermont  came 
with  many  presents  before  Theodoric,  the  son  of  Clovis,  hoping 
to  persuade  him  to  confirm  the  choice  made  by  themselves  ;  on 
which  he  observes  :  '  Jam  tunc  germen  illud  iniquum  coeperat 
'  fructificare,  ut  sacerdotium  aut  venderetur  a  regibus  aut  compara- 
'  retur  a  clericis.'  In  Hist.  Francor.  iv.  35,  it  is  mentioned  as  the 
common  means  of  obtaining  a  bishopric  :  '  Offerre  multa,  plurima 
'  promittere.' 

'  Bedae  Hist.  Fed.  iii.  7. 

^  Concil.  Paris,  iii.  an.  557,  Can.  8,  Labbe,  vi.  495,  decrees  : 
'  Nullus  civibus  invitis  ordinetur  episcopus,  nisi  quem  populi  et 
'  clericorum  electio  plenissima  quaesierit  voluntate  ;  non  principis 

*  imperio,  neque  per  quamlibet  conditionem,  contra  metropolis 
'  voluntatem,  vel  episcoporum  comprovincialium,  ingeratur.'  Con- 
cil. Paris.  V.  an.  615,  Can.  i,  Labbe,  vi.  1388,  decrees  :  '  Decedente 
'  episcopo,  in  loco  ipsius   ille   Christo  propitio  debeat  ordinari, 

*  quem  metropolitanus  a  quo  ordinandus  est  cum  provincialibus 

*  suis,  clerus  vel  populus  civitatis,  absque  uUo  commode  vel 
'  datione  pecuniae  elegerint.' 

3  Gies.  ii.  238. 


x6o  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 

PART     crated   bishop    of   Utrecht   at  the  wish   of  Pepin. ^ 
'. GewilHeb,  the  son  of  a  martial  and  married  ecclesias- 


tic, was  appointed  by  Charles  to  succeed  his  father 
Ceroid,  in  the  See  of  Mentz.^  Boniface  complained 
of  the  abuse,  but  yet  he  was  obliged  to  appeal  to 
A.D.  755  Pepin  to  recognise  Lull  as  his  successor  in  the  See  of 
Mentz,  without  which  he  felt  that  his  succession  was 
more  than  doubtful.^  To  Charles,  it  is  true,  the 
honour  belongs  of  having  in  the  year  803  restored 
the  ancient  practice  of  elections;'*  but  the  laws  on  this 
point  were  not  universally  carried  out.  Still  no 
choice  could  be  made  without  the  king's  special 
permission.^  Most  of  the  bishops  continued  to  be 
appointed  by  the  prince,  and  since  confirmation 
and  investiture  by  the  sovereign  began  to  be  every- 
where considered  necessary,^  general  opinion  con- 
ceded the  substantial  part  of  the  appointment  to  the 
sovereign,  although  ecclesiastics  considered  it  an 
abuse,  if  the  nomination  was  made  direct. 

'  Circa  700  a.d.     See  Neand.  v.  58.  2  ji^i^j  gy_ 

3  See  Neand.  v.  93,  and  the  letter  of  Boniface  there  quoted. 

"*  Ibid.  126;  GiES.  ii.  238. 

*  Concil.  Valentinum  iii.  an.  855,  Can.  7,  Labbe,  ix.  1154, 
decrees  :  'Si  quando  .  .  .  episcopus  a  vacation e  domini  deces- 
'  serit,  a  gloriosissimo  principe  supplicando  postuletur,  ut  canoni- 
'  cam  electionem  clero  et  populo  ipsius  civitatis  permittere  dig- 

*  netur.' 

6  HiNCMAR,  Epist.  12  ad  Ludov.  III.  Franc.  Regem  :  '  Episcopi 

*  talem  eligant,  qui  et  sanctae  Ecclesiae  utilis,  et  regno  proficiens 
'  et  vobis  fidehs  ac  devotus  cooperator  existat  :  et  consentientibus 
'  clero  et  plebe   eum  vobis  adducant,  ut  secundum  ministerium 

*  vestmm  res  et  facultates  Ecclesiae,  (]uas  ad  defendendun-i  et 
'  tuendum  vobis  Dominus  commendat,  suae  dispositioni  commit- 
'  tatis,  et  cum  consensu  ac  literis  vestris  eum  ad  metropolitanum 

*  Episcopum  ac  coepiscopos  ipsius  dioccseos,  qui  eum  ordinare 
'  deberet.  trnnsmittatis.' 


LOSSES   FOR    THE   CHURCH.  r6l 

Another    disadvantage    for   the    Church    arising     chap. 


VI. 


745 


nideed  out  of  her  position  as  the  possessor  of  great 

11  1  1-  •  r  1      •        •      1  {b)Church 

wealth,  was   the  diversion  oi  ecclesiastical  property  property 

to    secular  purposes.     By  the  Prankish  kings,  her  ^^  seadar 

possessions  were  not  unfrequently  resumed,  being  P'^^'Poses-. 

reorarded  as  on  the  same  footing-  with  other  feudal 

tenures.^     When  the  bishops  in  the  seventh  century 

took  part  in  the  feuds  of  the  nobles,  the  robbing  of 

Churches  became  not  uncommon  ;  and  Charles  Martel       a.d. 

717-741 
even  distributed  ecclesiastical   revenues   and  offices 

in  usufruct  to  valiant  soldiers.^  Boniface  wrote  to 
Ethelbald,  king  of  Mercia,  to  deter  him  from  a  similar 
course.^  If  bishoprics  were  no  longer  bestowed  in 
usufruct  by  the  Carolingians,  .  single  estates  and 
abbacies  were  frequently  conferred  on  valiant  sol- 
diers by  Lewis  the  Pious,  and  still  more  frequently 
by  his  sons.*     The  feudal   system  was  introduced 


'  In  France  the  prelates  lost  most  of  their  regalia  under  the 
Capet  family.     See  Gies.  ii.  380. 

2  See  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  ii.  147  ;  Neand.  v.  135  ;  Gies. 
ii.  238. 

3  Neand.  v.  92. 

^  Lewis  was  blamed  for  this  in  828  by  Wala,  abbot  of  Corvey, 
Pertz,  Moniim.  ii.  549  :  '  Ecce  rex  noster,  ut  saepe  ostensum  est, 
*  de  facultatibus  Ecclesiarum  multo  in  suis  suorumque  praesumit 
'  usibus.'  Concil.  Paris,  vi.  an.  829,  lib.  iii.  Can.  15,  Labbe, 
ix.  773,  prays  the  emperor  'utquasdam  sedes  episcopales,  quae 
'  rebus  propriis  viduatae,  nimio  annullatae  esse  videntur,  de  earum 
'  sublevatione  et  consolatione  cogitetis.'  Concil.  Aquisgran.  ii. 
an.  836,  says  in  its  letter  to  Pepin,  lib.  i.  c.  iii.,  Labb^,  ix.  844  : 
'  Sunt  etiam  quidam  dignitatem  ecclesiasticam  non  curantes,  immo 
'  suam  cupiditatem  explere  volentes  .  .  .  qui  .  .  .  solent  dicere  : 
'  Quid  mali,  quidve  discriminis  est,  si  rebus  ecclesiasticis  in  nostris 
'  pro.  libitu  nostro  utimur  necessitatibus  ? '     The  case  was  worse 

M 


1 62  CHURCH  AXD   STATE. 


PART     among-  the  lower  ecclesiastical   orders;^  and  candl- 
I.  ^  .       . 
dates  for  ordination   were  obliged  after  the  eighth 

century  to   take  a   species  of  oath  of  fealty  to  the 

bishop. 

{c)  Rights       In  this  way  those  rights  of  patronage,  which   are 

ofpatroti-  -11  1-1  •  1       11 

age.  now  universally  accepted  without  question,  gradually 

came  into  existence,  yet   only  gradually,  and  like  so 

many    other    things    having    their   foundation    in   a 

Roman  custom. 

A.D.  Two  laws  had  been   passed  by    Justinian   in  the 

541  &  555     .  . 

sixth  century,^  granting  to  those  who  founded  new 

Churches  with  specific  endowments,  a  right  for  them- 
selves and  their  posterity  to  propose  worthy  candi- 
dates to  the  bishop.  The  nomination,  however,  was 
not  absolute,  and  the  decision  was  made  to  depend 
upon  the  bishop's  examination.  From  Rome  the 
idea  of  patronage  crept  into  Europe.  It  seem^ed 
only  fair  that  the  founders  of  new  Churches  should 
have  some  guarantee  that  the  property  which  they 
had  set  apart  for  religion  should  not  be  dissipated 
by  the  negligence  or  greed  of  bishops,  or  plundered 
by  robber  laymen,^    Several  councils  recognised  this 


under  the  sons  of  Lewis.     See  the  authorities  quoted  by  GiES. 
ii.  240  (note). 

'  GiES.  ii.  240. 

"^  Quoted  by  Neand.  v.  146  :    '  Et  tic,  avicri'ipioy  oli;op  KaraaKeva- 

*  <Tfi,    Kal  fjovXrjdtiT]  ef  uvtm  KXi]piK0VQ    Trpofic'tXXtadai,   j)    avTog    T]   01 

*  Tovrov  KXripoyofioi,  eI  tciq  SaTrarriQ  avjoi  toIq  KXrjpiKol^  \opr)yri(Tovaif 
'  KUi  (i^lovc  vt'o^aaovai  tovc  (jrofxacrQerTaQ  '^eipoTorelaBai,^ 

^  Concil.  Tolet.  ix.  an.  655,  Can.  2,  Labbe,  vii.  467  :  '  Quia 
'  ergo  fieri  plerumque  cognoscitur,  ut  ecclesiae  parochiales,  vel 
'  sacra  monasteria  ita  quorumdam  episcoporum  vel  insolentia  vel 
'  incuria  horrendani  decidant  in  ruinam  .  .  .  ideo  decernimus,  ut 


VI. 


LOSSA'S  FOR    THE    CHURCH.  jg-. 

use  as  a  right,  and  permitted  to  patrons  the  oversight  ^hap 
of  such  churches,  giving  them  the  power  during  their 
Hfetime,  to  nominate  to  the  bishops  suitable  rectors 
— a  power  which  was  afterwards  conceded  to  their 
descendants.  Often  in  the  succeeding  a^es  churches 
owed  the  preservation  of  their  property  to  the  pro- 
tection of  a  patron.  More  often,  perhaps,  they 
suffered  by  the  avarice  of  their  defenders,  who, 
treating  ecclesiastical  property  as  if  it  were  their  own, 
were  as  ready  to  practise  simony  in  disposing  of 
oratories,  as  the  sovereigns  were  in  disposing  of 
bishoprics  ;  and  considering  the  clergy  as  their  retain- 
ers, strove  to  make  them  independent  of  their  dio- 
cesan bishops.^     Yet  it  may  be  questioned  whether 


'  quamdiu  earumdem  fundatores  ecclesiarum  in  hac  vita  superstites 
'  extiterint,  pro  eisdem  locis  curam  permittantur  habere  solicitam 
.  .  .  atque  rectores  idoneos  in  eisdem  basilicis  iidem  ipsi  offerant 
'  episcopis  ordinandos.'  Concil.  Francoford.  an.  794,  Can.  54, 
Labbe.  ix.  107  :  '  De  ecclesiis  quae  ab  ingenuis  hominibus  con- 
'  struuntur,  licet  eas  tradere,  aut  vendere,  tantummodo  ut  ecclesia 
'  non  destruatur,  sed  serventur  quotidie  honores.'  Syn.  Rom.  an. 
826  et  853,  Can.  21,  Labbe,  ix.  1124:  '  Monasterium  vel  orato- 
'  rium  canonice  constructum  a  dominie  constnictoris  invite  non 
'  auferatur,  liceatque  illi  id  presbytero  cui  voluerit  pro  sacro  officio 
'  illius  dioeceseos  et  bonae  auctoritatis  dimissoria,  cum  consensu 
'  episcopi,  ne  malus  existat,  commendare  ;  ita  ut  ad  placita  et  ad 
'  justam  reverentiam  ipsius  obedientes  sacerdos  recurrat.' 

^  Concil.  Cabilonense,  an.  650,  Can.  14,  Labbe,  vii.  398,  com- 
plains :  '  Quod  oratoria  per  villas  potentum  jam  longo  constructa 
'  tempore,  et  facultates  ibidem  collatas,  ipsi  quorum  villae  sunt 
episcopis  contradicant,  et  jam  nee  ipsos  clericos,  qui  ad  ipsa 
'  oratoria  deserviunt,  ab  archidiacono  coerceri  permittant.'  Ago- 
bardus  De  Privil.  Sac.  ch.  ii.  ;  0pp.  i.  134  :  '  Increbuit  consue- 
'  tudo  impia,  ut  paene  nuUus  inveniatur  .  .  .  proficiens  ad  ho- 
'  nores.  qui  non  domesticum  habeat  sacerdotemj  non  cui  obediat, 

M  2 


164 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


PART     the    churches   would  not   have    suffered    more    had 

the  patronage  been  vested  hi    ecclesiastical  hands, 

ever  be  it  said,  with  shame  and  sorrow,  of  unscru- 
pulous patrons  the  most  unscrupulous  ;  whether  they 
would  not  have  suffered  most  of  all  if  elections  had 
been  free,  and  no  rights  of  patronage  had  existed  at 
all.  Many  laws  were  enacted  by  synods  against  these 
abuses  from  the  middle  of  the  seventh  to  the  be- 
A.D.  794  ginning  of  the  ninth  century.  Amongst  others,  the 
Council  of  ^Frankfurt  required  a  siutable  presbyter 
to  be  appointed,  who  was  obliged  to  obtain  the 
bishop's  approval,  and  to  be  subject  to  him,  like 
813  other  clergy;  and  the  Council  of  Aries '^  forbade 
patrons  to  exact  presents  for  their  recommendation 
in  future.  But  all  these  attempts,  however  useful 
they  might  be  in  preventing  abuses,  sanctioned 
rather  than  curtailed  the  system  of  patronage.  If 
feudalism  did  away  with  the  free  election  of  bishops 
by  substituting  royal  nominations,  it  also  did  away 
with  the  free  election  to  the  lower  clerical  orders, 
by  introducing  the  rights  of  patronage  ;  and  thus,  at 
the  same  time,  it  established  a  new  network  of 
ecclesiastical  organisation,  better  known  as  the 
parochial  system.'^     Of  that  system,  Its  merits  and 

'  sed  a  quo  incessanter  exigat  licitam  simul  atque  illicitani  obe- 
'  dientiam,  non  solum  in  divinis  officiis,  verum  etiam  in  humanis.' 

^  Concil.  Arelat.  iv.  an.  813,  Can.  5,  Labb^,  ix.  323  :  '  Ut  laici 
'  omnino  a  presbyteris  non  audeant  munera  exigere  propter  com- 
'  mendationem  ecclesiae  :  quia  propter  cupiditatem  plerumque  a 
'  laicis  talibus  presbyteres  ecclesiae  dantur,  qui  ad  peragendum 
*  sacerdotale  officium  sunt  indigni.' 

2  The  system  of  patronage  is  one  for  which  no  precedent  can 
be  cited  from  the  lirst  age  of  Christianity.     The  earlier  councils 


LOSSES  FOR    THE   CHURCH. 


165 


I 


its   demerits,    it   is   not  for  us   here  to  obtrude  an     chap. 

.VI. 

opinion.      Suffice  it  to  say,  that  it  was  a  work  of  time,  

of  gradual  growth  and  of  compromise,  and  was  not 
fully  established  in  England  until  the  time  of  John. 
It  was  partly  a  religious  institution  and  partly 
a  political  one,  partly  dictated  by  motives  of  purest 
philanthropy  and  partly  due  to  selfishness  and  lust 
of  power.  It  gave  to  the  Church  the  tithe  which 
she  claimed.  It  gave,  however,  to  the  landlord 
power  to  dispose  of  the  tithe  which  was  raised  from 
his  own  estate.  To  the  bishops  it  gave  a  share  in  • 
the  appointment,  but  a  share  apparently  as  sub- 
uphold  the  free  election  of  the  clergy  and  declare  ordmations  not 
preceded  by  lawful  elections  invalid.  Theoi-etically  it  is  a  system 
which  can  only  be  defended  on  the  most  extreme  sacerdotal 
theory — the  theory  that  all  the  clergy  of  any  one  grade  are  so 
exactly  equal,  that  it  is  a  matter  of  no  moment  whether  one  or 
the  other  is  appointed.  The  nomination  may  then  be  safely  left 
to  an  individual.  Unfortunately,  however,  theory  and  experience 
do  not  on  this  point  agree.  Nevertheless,  practically,  a  plea  may 
be  advanced  for  patronage.  Is  it  not  better  to  have  patronage 
than  the  scandals,  the  corruption  and  the  jobbery,  which  would  be 
the  result  of  popular  elections  1  After  all,  patronage  has  grown  to 
be  what  it  is.  When  it  first  came  into  use,  none  but  the  patron 
may  have  been  competent  to  give  an  opinion  on  the  suitability  of 
the  candidate.  Besides,  when  the  feudal  system  was  strong,  any 
form  of  election  would  have  been  practically  in  the  hands  of  the 
feudal  lord.  Yet,  no  doubt  as  feudal  relations  relaxed,  it  would 
have  been  otherwise  ;  and  ecclesiastical  elections,  had  they  been 
continued,  would  have  been  quite  as  free  from  feudal  influences 
now  as  political  elections  are.  Taking,  however,  into  considera- 
tion the  abuses  of  the  latter,  one  would  hardly  plead  for  the  intro- 
duction of  ecclesiastical  elections,  which,  however  consonant  they 
may  be  with  justice  and  the  practice  of  the  early  Church,  would 
be  [tractically  a  new  system  with  us.  But  one  may  well  claim 
some  power  of  veto  for  the  congregation,  that  they  may  not  have 
clergy  forced  upon  them  against  their  will. 


i66 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


PART     stantial    as    it   was    really    slender.      And    to    all, 

'. throughout  the    length    and  breadth    of    the    land, 

it  gave  an  ecclesiastic,  maintained  in  a  great 
measure  without  their  support,  from  whom  they 
could  require  the  services  of  religion.  Thus,  every 
disadvantage  brings  a  corresponding  advantage,  and 
every  advantage  a  corresponding  disadvantage. 
It  is  the  historian's  duty  to  point  out  facts  with 
impartial  justice,  and  to  weigh  them  in  the  balance 
one  aofainst  the  other. 
(2)  Eccle-       Nor  was    the   interposition   of   the   sovereign    in 

siastical  .      .        .      .  , .      .       ,  .  .  /. 

matters      ccclesiastical  matters  limited  to  the  appointment  01 
^seailar^   the  clergy.      The  convening  of  synods,^    and  eccle- 
iribunal    siastical  legislation,  also  formed  part  of  the  duties 
nods  con-  which  he  discharged.      In   the  Roman   Empire  the 
""princes^.      Sovereign    had    only    taken    a    part   in    the  general 
councils   of  the   Church,  leaving   provincial  synods 
to  follow  their  own  devices.      It  was  otherwise  in 
the  West,  where  the    conception  of  a    double    co- 
ordinate  legislative  body,  was  beyond  the  compre- 
hension,— as  it  was  in  itself  impossible, — of  an  uncul- 
tivated people.     There  not  only  were  ecclesiastical 
synods,  convened  after  consultation  with  the  princes, 
A.D.  650    until  at  length  the  Prankish  king,  Sigebert,  decreed  '^ 

•  The  Cone.  Arel.  iv.  an.  813,  says  in  its  preface,  Labbe, 
ix.  320  :  '  Carolum  Imperatoreni,  cujus  jussu  fraternitatis  nostrae 
'  coetus  est  adunatus.'  Concil.  Mogunt.  an.  813,  ibid.  328, 
referring  to  Charles,  thanks  God  '  quia  sanctae  ecclesiae  suae 
'  tam  pium  ac  devotum  in  servitio  Dei  concessit  habere  rectorem.' 
See  also  Concil.  Rheims,  Chalons,  and  Tours  of  the  same  year. 
In  England  the  Synod  of  Whitby,  an.  664,  was  presided  over  by 
King  Oswy.     Bedae  EccL  Hist.  iii.  25. 

2  Sigebert  ad  Desiderium,  episcopum  Cadurcensem,  an.  650,  in 


LOSSES   FOR    THE    CHURCH.  1 67 

that  synods  could  not  assemble  without  the  royal    chap. 


permission  ;  not  only  had  their  decrees  to  be  con- 
firmed by  the  king,  being  previously  invalid ;   but 
ecclesiastical  and  civil  laws  were  drawn  up  at  one 
and  the  same  time,  in   the  great  meetings  of  the 
king's  vassals,^  and  purely  ecclesiastical  synods  fell 
altogether   into  abeyance.'-^     The  Abbot  Columban    ^•'^-  6°° 
complained  that,  in  his  time,  synods  were  no  longer 
held.^     Gregory   the    Great   had    to  apply    to    the    590-604 
Prankish  princes    for  permission  to  hold  a  council 
for   removing  ecclesiastical  abuses.*     In  the  eighth       74^ 
century  the  same   complaint  was  again  repeated  by 
Boniface,    no  synod   having   been    held    for   eighty 
years   in    Austrasian   France  ;  and  it  was  resolved 
that  for  the  future  one  should  be  held  every  year.^ 

Baluz,  Capitular,  i.  143  :  '  Ut  sine  nostra  scientia  synodale  con- 
'  cilium  in  regno  nostro  non  agatur.' 

^  GiES.  ii.  242;  Neand.  v.  126;  Planck,  ii.  139. 

'  Concil.  Nic.  an.  325,  Can.  5,  had  enacted  :  kuXILq  'ix^iv 
t'oo^fv  IfccioTov  iriavrov  Kud^  tKaarriv  fTrap^tav  cig  rov  'irovg 
(Tvi'ofiovQ  yivltrdai.  In  England  the  Synod  of  Hertford,  an.  673, 
Can.  7,  LABBfi,  vii.  554  j  and  Bedae  Hist.  Ecd.  iv.  5,  decreed: 
'  Ut  bis  in  anno  synodus  congregetur  :  sed  quia  diversae  causae 
'  impediunt,  placuit  omnibus  in  commune,  ut  Calendis  Augusti  in 
'  loco  qui  appellatur  Clofeshooh  semel  in  anno  congregetur.' 
Concil.  Calchutense,  an.  787,  Can.  3,  Labb£,  viii.  633. 

3  In  his  letter  to  the  bishops  convened  on  account  of  their 
quarrel  with  him,  an.  600  according  to  Labbe,  vi.  1342,  he  writes : 
'  Utinam  saepius  hoc  ageretis,  et  licet  juxta  canones  semel  aut  bis 
'  in  anno  pro  tumultuosis  hujus  aevi  dissensionibus  semper  sic 
'  servare  vos  non  vacat,  quamvis  rarius  potissimum  hoc  debuit 
'  vobis  inesse  studium,  quo  negligentes  quique  timorem  haberent 
'  et  studiosi  ad  majorem  provocarentur  profectum.'  Epist.  ii. 
MiGNE  ;  quoted  also  by  Neand.  v.  127. 

"*  See  the  letter  of  Columban  in  Migne. 

^  Concil.   Germanicum,   an.    742,    Can.    i,    Labbe,  viii.    270 : 


i68 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


PART 
I. 


A.D.  8ll 


(b)  Popu- 
lar as- 
scDiblies 
enact 
canons. 

600 


627 


Under  Pepin  and  Charles  it  continued  to  be  the 
prevaihng  custom  to  draw  up  ecclesiastical  and  civil 
laws  at  one  and  the  same  time  in  the  great  national 
assemblies  ;  and  although  Charles  decided  that  the 
bishops,  abbots,  and  counts  should  form  a  separate 
chamber  for  deliberation  on  ecclesiastical  matters/ 
the  ordinances  of  every  kind,  ecclesiastical  as  well 
as  lay,  were  published  under  the  imperial  authority, 
as  the  published  acts  of  the  assemblies  held  at  Aries, 
Rheims,  Tours,  Chalons,  Mentz  and  elsewhere  amply 
prove. 

In  other  countries  the  case  was  similar.  In  Eng- 
land Christianity  was  probably  accepted  by  a  de- 
cision of  the  witan  of  Ethelbert.^  That  of  Edwin  is 
distinctly  stated  to  have  renounced  idolatry.  On 
that  occasion  the  chief  of  the  Northumbrian  priests, 
Coifi,  and  the  thane  previously,  expatiated  on  the 
worthlessness  of  the  old  faith,  Coifi  in  the  spirit  of 
the  rankest  utilitarianism,^  the  thane   in  a   spirit  of 


'  Statuimusque  per  annos  singulos  synodum  congregari.'  Zachariae 
Epist.  i.  2  ad  Bonifac.  Labb£,  viii.  231  :  '  Nimis  moerendum  est 
'  quod  per  spatia  temporum  ibidem  synodus  sacerdotum  minime 
'  celebrata  sit' 

^  In  811.     See  Planck,  ii.  139. 

2  Kemble,  Saxons  in  England,  ii.  205.  The  so-called  Dooms 
of  Ethelbert  enacted  by  Ethelbert  cum  concilio  Sapientium,  i.e.  by 
the  Witenagemot,  distincdy  recognise  Christianity.     Beda,  ii.  5. 

3  '  Tu,  vide,  rex,  quale  sit  hoc,  quod  nobis  modo  praedicatur  : 
'  ego  autem  tibi  verissime  quod  certum  didici,  profiteor,  quia  nihil 
'  omnino  virtutis  habet,  nihil  utilitatis  religio  ilia  quam  hucusque 
'  tenuimus.  NuUus  enim  tuorum  studiosius  quam  ego  culturae 
'  deorum  nostrorum  se  subdldit,  et  nihilominus  multi  sunt,  qui 
'  amphora  a  te  beneficia  quam  ego,  et  majores  accipiunt  dignitates, 
:*  magisque  prosperantur  in  omnibus,  quae  agenda  vel  acquirenda 


LOSSES  FOR    THE   CHURCH.  l6g 

deep  earnestness,  complaining  of  the  unsatisfactori-     chap. 

ness  of  the  heathen  faith  to  solve  the  problem  of 

the  future  life.^  Nor  was  it  otherwise  in  Spain.  A 
larger  influence  was,  it  is  true,  exercised  by  eccle- 
siastics in  the  general  assemblies  of  state  there  than 
elsewhere.  Indeed,  the  seventeenth  Council  of  a.u.  694 
Toledo  had  decided  that,  during  the  first  three 
days  of  such  meeting,  only  spiritual  affairs  should  be 
transacted,  and  that  by  the  clergy  alone ;  ^  but  these 
results  were  due  to  the  peculiar  circumstances  of  the 
Visigothic  kingdom  in  Spain  ;  for  there  the  suc- 
cessors of  Reckared  were  obliged  to  make  conces- 


'  disponunt.  Si  autem  dii  aliquid  'Valerent,  me  potius  juvare 
'  vellent,  qui  illis  impensius  servire  curavi.  Unde  restat,  ut  si  ea, 
'  quae  nunc  nobis  nova  praedicantur  meliora  esse  et  fortiora, 
'  habita  examinatione,  perspexeris,  absque  ullo  cunctamine  susci- 
'  pere  ilia  festinemus.'     Bedae  Hist.  Ecd.  ii.  13. 

1  Bedae  Hist.  Ecd.  ii.  13  :  'Talis  mihi  videtur,  rex,  vita  homi- 
'  num  praesens  in  terris  ad  comparationem  ejus,  quod  nobis  in- 
'  certum  est,  temporis,  quale  cum,  te  residente  ad  coenam  cum 
'  ducibus  ac  ministris  tuis  tempore  brumali,  accenso  quidem  foco 
'  in  medio  et  calido  effecto  coenaculo,  furentibus  autem  foris  per 
'  omnia  turbidinibus  hiemalium  pluviarum  vel  nivium,  adveniens- 
'  que  unus  passerum  domum  citissime  pervolaverit ;  qui  cum  per 
'  unum  ostium  inpediens,  mox  per  aliud  exierit.  Ipso  quidem 
'  tempore,  quo  intus  est,  hiemis  tempestate  non  tangitur,  sed 
'  tamen  minimo  spatio  serenitatis  ad  momentum  excusso,  mox  de 
'  hieme  in  hiemem  regrediens  tuis  oculis  elabitur.  Ita  haec  vita 
'  hominum  ad  modicum  apparet ;  quid  autem  sequatur,  quidve 
'  praecesserit,  prorsus  ignoramus.  Unde  si  haec  nova  doctrina 
'  certius  aliquid  attulit,  merito  esse  sequenda  videtur.' 

2  Concil.  Tolet.  xvii.  an.  694,  Can.  i,  Labbie,  viii.  84  :  '  Insti- 
,'  tuendum  credimus  in  initio  totius  adunationis,  ut  trium  dierum 
*  spatiis  percurrente  jejunio,  de  mysterio  Sanctae  Trinitatis,  aliis- 
'  que  spiritualibus,  sive  pro  moribus  sacerdotum  corrigendis,  nullo 
'  saecularium  assistente,  inter  eos  habeatur  collatio.' 


170 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


PART     slons  to  the  Church,  obtaining  in  return  her  sanction 

for  their  otherwise   doubtful   rights.^     Yet  even    in 

Spain   the  kings    convened  councils    and  continued 
to    be   the    supreme  judges    of    bishops    until    the 
invasion  of  the  Saracens  put  an   end  to  their  sove- 
reignty. 
D.  Re-  By  these  alternate  gains  and  losses,  the  position 

suits  of  1    •     n  r      1  r^\  c^ 

these  in-  and  influence  of  the  Church  on  the  State  were  ma- 
oiTtJu  terially  altered,  and  assumed  an  altogether  new 
CJmrch.     character.    Roman  ideas  were  introduced  among  the 

(i)  Share  .  ,  1    •    n  i      1     •  i-  •      1    • 

of  the  Teutonic  nations,  and  influenced  their  political  in- 
seaiJar"^  stitutions.  To  what  extent  these  ideas  were  efficient 
^ifoif'^'  ^"^  producing  the  Mediaeval  Papacy  has  been  already 
seen.  It  should  not,  however,  be  forgotten,  how 
much  they  moulded  the  political  institutions  of 
Europe.  For  if  ecclesiastical  matters  were  settled 
in  national  assemblies,  on  the  other  hand,  the 
higher  ecclesiastics  who  took  part  in  those  assem- 
blies decided  in  no  small  degree  the  course  of 
civil  legislation.'"^  Side  by  side  with  the  temporal 
barons  sat  the  bishops,  enacting,  as  they  did  at 
A.D.  787  Calchuth,^  that  none  but  legitimate  princes  should 
be  raised  to  the  throne,  on  their  sole  authority 
electing  Boso  to  be  king  of  Aries,'*  and  acting 
as  special  advisers  and  counsellors  of  kings,  soon 
venturing   to  pronounce  a    sentence    of    deposition 


^  Neand.  v.  128.  2  Ibid.  V.  127  ;  GiES.  ii.  242. 

3  Concil.  Calchutense,  an.  787,  Can.  16,  Labb^,  viii.  639  : 
*  Decreto  abdicitur  filiis  meretricum  legitima  haereditas.' 

^  Recueil  des  historiens,  ix.  304  (quoted  by  Hallam,  Middle 
Ages,  ii.  157).  . 


GENERAL   RESULTS.  j-j 

on  a  sovereign.^     The  eighth,  ninth,  and  tenth  cen-     chap. 
turies  were  indeed  the  age  of  the  bishops,   as  the  " 

eleventh  and  thirteenth  century  were  the  age  of  the 
greatness  of  the  Papacy.^  The  poHtical  and  ecclesi- 
astical pressure  which  the  bishops  of  the  eighth  and 
ninth  centuries  brought  to  bear  upon  the  oppressed 
lower  clergy  and  the  superstitious  laity  was  but  an 
onward  step,  a  process  of  transition  towards  that 
concentration  of  powers  in  the  hands  of  the  Popes, 
which  was  subsequently  the  great  instrument  of 
Papal  oppression,  of  which  they  afterwards  had 
themselves  to  complain. 

Nor,  again,  was  the  position  occupied  by  the  State  {2) Effects 
towards  the  Church  without  corresponding  influence  episco- 
on  the  internal  arrangfements  of  the  hierachv.    Power-  ^^^^' 

r    1  11-1  r      1  .11  1       •       ■,  {a)   Me- 

ful  as  were  the  bishops  of  the  eighth  and  ninth  cen-  tropoli- 
turies,  they  needed  indeed  a  strong  arm  to  be  able  to  bishops 
assert  their  power  in  the  midst  of  the  reigfninpf  law-  ^?!^^  ^''''t 

i  o        J3  place  of 

lessness.     To  secure  their  own  position,  they  looked  ^^^^  ^^^ 

111  •  1  ■         1      •        1  •  bishops  oj 

both  above  and  below — within  their  dioceses  and  towns. 
without  them — to  the  bishop  of  a  see  more  inde- 
pendent than  their  own  and  less  liable  to  be  swayed 
by  the  nod  of  the  potentates  who  oppressed  them  ; 
and  to  those  among  their  clergy  who  could  be 
instrumental  in  restraining  others  either  by  their 
rank  or  wealth.  Within  their  dioceses — no  longer 
restricted  to  an  individual  town  with  its  outlyino- 
villages  and  hamlets,  but  extending  over  vast  tracts 

'  Sentence  of  deposition  was  pronounced  on  Lewis  the  Pious 
by  the  bishops,  an.  833.  See  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  ii.  156; 
Conventus  Compendiensis,  Labbe,  ix.  801. 

^  Hallam,  ii.  157. 


172 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


PART  of  thinly-populated  territory — they  sought  to  streng- 
— '- —  then  their  influence  by  the  institution  of  rural  dis- 
tricts— capitula  ruralia — at  the  head  of  which  stood 
an  archpresbyter  or  rural  dean.^  These  deans  ex- 
ercised an  oversight  over  the  parish  clergy  and 
priests,  and  convened  them  on  the  first  of  every 
month,  chiefly  for  spiritual  exercises  and  delibera- 
tions. To  the  monarchical  spirit  of  Latin  Christi- 
anity in  the  ninth  century,  this  institution  seemed 
more  congenial  than  that  of  Chorepiscopi,  the 
former  being  tinder  the  metropolitan  bishops,  the 
latter  being  on  a  footing  of  spiritual  equality  with 
them.  Thus  the  Chorepiscopi  were  gradually  re- 
moved,^ and  it  was  at  length  established  that  those 

'  Archipresbyter  or  Decanias.  See  Gies.  ii.  249.  Dioceses 
were  divided  into  Archdeaconries  about  777  a.d.  :  the  Archdea- 
conries were  then  subdivided  into  Deaneries.  Neand.  v.  143. 
It  was  arranged  that  a  court  or  Send  should  be  held  in  every  part 
of  a  diocese  once  a  year.  The  Archdeacons  were  to  go  several 
days  beforehand,  and  announce  the  bishop's  visit.  On  his  arrival 
the  bishop  was  first  to  place  the  Deans,  of  whom  there  were  seven, 
under  oath,  that  they  would  faithfully  report  abuses.  Next  he 
would  question  them,  whether  pagan  customs  were  observed, 
whether  every  father  taught  his  son  the  Creed  and  the  Lord's 
prayer,  whether  old  crimes  prevailed  among  the  people.  The 
punishments  enacted  by  law  were  inflicted  at  once  ;  and  the  civil 
authorities  were  required  to  assist  the  bishops.  See  Gies.  ii.  243, 
note  19. 

^  Zachariae  Epistol.  ad  Bonifacium,  i.  i,  an.  741,  Labb^, 
viii.  231  :  'Meministi  enim,  carissime,  quid  in  sacris  canonibus 
'  praecipimur  observare,  ut  minime  in  villulas^  vel  in  modicas 
'  civitates  episcopos  ordinemus,  ne  vilescat  nomen  episcopi.' 
Capit.  Aquis.  an.  789,  Can.  9,  Labbe,  ix.  11  :  '  Vicariis  episco- 
'  porum,  quos  Graeci  chorepiscopos  dicunt,  non  licere  presbyteros 
'  vel  diaconos  ordinare.'  Concil.  Francof  an.  794,  Can.  22, 
Labb^,  ix.  104  :  '  Quod  non  oporteat  in  villis,  nee  in  vicis  epi- 
'  scopos  ordinari.'     Gies.  ii.  250. 


GENERAL  RESULTS. 


17. 


Still  existing  should  not  have  episcopal  dignity  and     chap. 

privileges,  but  only  sacerdotal  authority.      This  was  \ 

the  triumph  of  the  episcopate  of  the  ninth  century.  '  ' 
It  changed,  however,  the  position  of  the  bishops 
entirely.  The  few  bishops  of  the  transalpine  pro- 
vinces, with  their  extensive  sees,  large  revenues,  and 
political  power,  were  perhaps  necessary  in  the  age 
which  gave  them  birth  ;  but  they  corresponded  more 
nearly  to  the  metropolitan  bishops  of  the  fourth  cen- 
tury than  to  any  others.  Meantime,  the  class  of  ordi- 
nary bishops  had  disappeared  altogether  ;  their  func- 
tions had  been  divided  between  the  parochial  clergy 
and  the  new  class  of  metropolitan  bishops.  The 
change  from  bishops  to  metropolitan  bishops  was 
no  doubt  due  to  simple  causes,  but  not  to  causes 
more  simple  than  those  which  produced  the  change 
from  the  metropolitan  system  to  the  Papacy.  In 
both  cases  the  active  power  was  the  same,  the  Latin 
love  of  centralisation. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  bishops  of  the  ninth  cen-  {b)  The 
tury  sought  to  establish  their  influence  also  by  bishops 
looking  without  their  dioceses.  Constantly  attacked  eluheir 
by  princes  and  kings,  they  needed  protection  against  P^^^^j-^'"' 
the  oppressive  tyranny  of  the  civil  rulers,  which  the  ^^^^  ^^"'- 

.    .         -  -        .  ,  .   ,  lar poiver 

right  of  appeal  to  a  foreign  bishop  at  Rome  alone  by  ac- 
secured.^     Never  would  the  False  Decretals  have  ledgi'ng 
been  accepted  so  readily  by  the  clergy  from  one  end  ^^^^  P'^P'^- 
of  Europe  to   another,  had  there  not  been  thereby 
held  out  to  them  a  protection  from  tyranny  at  home, 
which  most  of  the  clergy  felt  they  needed.      Never 


1  See  GiES.  ii.  245,  -note  28. 


174 


CHURCH  AND   STATE. 


PART     would  bishops,  themselves  only  too  greedy  of  power, 
— '- —  have  put  themselves   under  a  foreign   bishop,  had 


they  not  thereby  gained  additional  protection.  Never 
would  they  have  revived  the  canons  of  Sardica,  and 
acted  on  them  by  so  often  appealing  to  the  Popes, 
had  they  not  known  the  immeasurable  advantages 
afforded  by  the  ecclesiastical  courts  of  that  age  over 
the  secular  ones,  of  a  foreign  independent  court  over 
one  liable  to  every  kind  of  sinister  home-influence. 
When  partiality,  bribery,  and  injustice  were  the  rule 
of  the  secular  tribunals,  the  ecclesiastical  courts,  pos- 
sessing a  more  definite  code  of  laws,  at  least  aspired 
to  justice.  When  justice  could  not  be  got  at  home, 
owing  to  the  undue  influence  of  powerful  nobles,  it 
could  be  got  abroad  at  a  court  which  was  usually 
exempt  from  the  influence  of  both  contending  parties. 
And  if,  in  her  pursuit  of  power,  Rome  sometimes 
decided  on  the  side  of  wrong,  such  instances  of 
injustice  were  rare.  They  generally  arose  from  the 
unwillingness  of  one  of  the  parties  to  appear  before 
her  tribunal.  Her  decisions — be  it  said  to  her 
credit — were  mostly  just,  and  in  the  interests  of 
morality. 
/  N  ^^jj^_  The  influence  wielded  by  the  Church  was  attended 
ficialrc-    ^jj-j^    most    beneficial    results  on  the  civil  relations 

suits  of 

ecclesias-  of  society.  The  practice  of  slavery,  common  among 
fliienccon  the  Germanic  nations  as  it  had  been  among  the 
sociey.  Qj-eeJ^g  a^d  Romans,  but  inwardly  opposed  to  the 
lessening    true  spirit  of  Christianity,  was  gradually  mitigated 

flip  cuils 

ofsla-        under  the  Church's  influence  until  it  waned,  and  at 

^^''^*         length    entirely    disappeared.       Frequent    instances 

occur  of  slaves  being  set  at  liberty  by  bishops,  some- 


GENERAL  RESULTS.  175 

times,  as  in   the  case  of  Gregory  the   Great,  from     ^^^' 

the   highest    Christian  motives,^  but  at  other  times  • 

preparatory  to  their  being  received  into  the  clerical 
order.  Often,  however,  slaves  were  ordained  by 
bishops  without  being  previously  enfranchised,  or 
else  received  into  monasteries,  such  clergy  being 
absolutely  at  the  bishop's  disposal.  The  fact  that 
slaves  were  admitted  to  orders  at  all  could  not  fail 
to  place  them  in  an  advantageous  light  before  the 
eyes  of  the  people.  It  brought  home  to  that 
superstitious  race,  the  truth  of  the  common  bro- 
therhood of  all  men.  In  other  ways,  too,  the  Church 
held  out  a  helping  hand  to  lessen  the  sufferings 
of  slaves.  In  the  Church  they  met  with  shelter 
and  relief'^     The    Council    of   Epaon,  as    early    as 


'  The  deed  manumitting  them  begins,  Hb.  vi.  Ep.  12,  Gregor. 
Op.  Bened.  ed.  ii.  p.  800  :  '  Cum  Redemptor  noster,  totius  con- 
'  ditor  creaturae,  ad  hoc  propitialus  humanam  voluerit  carnem 
'  assumere,  ut  divinitatis  suae  gratia  dirupto  quo  tenebamur  capti 
*  vinculo  servitutis,  pristinae  nos  restitueret  Hbertati ;  sahibriter 
'  agitur  si  homines  quos  ab  initio  natura  liberos  protuht,  et  jus 
'  gentium  jugo  substituit  servitutis,  in  ea  qua  nati  fuerant,  manu- 
'  mittentis  beneficio,  Hbertate  reddantur.' 

2  Neand.  v.  133,  quotes  from  Gregory  of  Tours,  Histor. 
V.  I,  iii.  the  story  of  a  slave  who  had  been  engaged  to  a  fellow- 
slave  in  the  service  of  the  same  master.  They  finally  went  to  the 
priest  and  were  married.  No  sooner  had  the  master  been  in- 
formed of  what  was  happening,  than  he  hurried  to  tlie  church  and 
demanded  their  surrender.  The  priest,  however,  refused  to  give 
them  up  except  on  condition  that  their  marriage  should  be  re- 
spected and  that  they  should  not  be  separated.  To  this  the 
master  assented  ;  but  no  sooner  had  he  obtained  possession  of 
their  persons,  than  he  bound  them  together  and  buried  them  alive. 
The  priest  hearing  of  this  act  of  cruelty,  hastened  to  the  master, 
and  would  not  leave  him  until  he  had  given  his  consent  that  both 


1/6 


CHURCH  AND   STATE. 


PART 
I. 


{b)  In 
abolish- 
ing peat 
niary 
fines  for 
crime. 


5 1 7/  decreed  that  slaves  who  took  refuge  in  a  church 
should  be  excused  from  corporeal  punishment :  a  few 
A.D.  549  years  later,  the  Council  of  Aries  ^  obliged  masters  to 
keep  their  word  to  a  slave  under  pain  of  excommu- 
nication. Moreover,  the  redemption  and  manu- 
mission of  slaves  was  reckoned  as  one  of  the  principal 
works  of  charity. 

Still  more  in  the  administration  of  justice  was  the 
softening  influence  of  Christianity  felt.  Under  that 
influence,  the  practice  of  atoning  for  all  offences,  even 
murder,  by  the  payment  of  a  pecuniary  fine,  or  wer- 
gild,^ a  practice  based  on  the  theory  that  all  violence 
is  simply  an  infringement  of  another's  property, 
gradually  disappeared,  and  the  idea  of  sin  was 
brought    home    to    the    Teutonic    mind.      Positive 

should  be  dug  up  again.     It  was,  however,  unfortunately  too  late  : 
for  the  young  man  only  was  saved  ;  the  woman  was  suffocated. 

'  Concil.  Epaon.  an.  517,  Can,  39,  Labb^,  v.  716:  'Servus 
'  reatu  atrociore  culpabilis  si  ad  ecclesiam  confugerit,  a  corpora- 
'  libus  tantum  suppliciis  excusetur.  De  capillis  vero,  vel  quocum- 
'  que  opere,  placuit  a  dominis  juramenta  non  exigi.' 

2  Concil.  Aurel.  v.  an,  549,  Can.  22,  Laebj^,  v.  1382:  'De 
'  serv'is  vero,  qui  pro  qualibet  culpa  ad  ecclesiae  septa  confugerint, 
'  id  statuimus  observandum,  ut  sicut  in  antiquis  constitutionibus 
'  tenetur  scriptum,  pro  concessa  culpa  datis  a  domino  sacramentis, 
'  quisquis  ille  fuerit,  egrediatur  de  venia  jam  securus.' 

3  According  to  Lappenberg,  History  of  England  under  the 
Saxons  (Thorpe's  English  translation),  ii.  336,  337,  the  *wer' 
of  a  ceorl  was  30X.,  that  of  a  six-hynde  man  8oj.,  and  that  of  a 
twelve  hynde-man  120s.  In  case  of  murder,  the  relations  of  the 
slain  received  the  whole  wergild  annexed  to  his  rank,  the  rela- 
tions of  the  slayer  being  bound  to  present  him  to  justice  that  he 
might  be  made  to  pay.  Should  the  slayer  flee,  his  relatives  were 
called  upon  to  pay  the  wergild,  but  in  this  case  they  were  not 
required  to  pay  the  whole  but  a  sum  varying  according  to  their 
degree  of  affinity.     See  Neand.  y.  137. 


RESULTS  FOR   SOCIETY 


^17 


justice,  and  recrular  forms  of  law  succeeded  to  pecu-     chap. 

...                                  .                                                                VI. 
niary  justice,  and  to  the  license  accorded  to  wealth.  


At  the  same  time,  the  more  rigid  administration  of 
justice  which  now  grew  up,  was  tempered  by  ideas 
of  mercy  and  compassion.  Whilst  a  special  sacred- 
ness  was  attached  to  human  life,  and  the  forfeiture  of 
life  was  denounced  as  the  penalty  for  murder,  there 
were  not  wanting  pious  monks,  and  even  ecclesiastics, 
who  were  altogether  opposed  to  capital  punishment. 
Sometimes,  as  in  the  case  of  Alcuin,^  the  intellectual 
prime  minister  of  the  Emperor  Charles,  dislike  of 
capital  punishment  was  openly  avowed ;  but  more 
often  it  showed  itself  only  in  a  covert  manner.  The 
clergy  interceded  with  the  judges  to  obtain  a  milder 
punishment  for  the  guilty  ;  they  sought  to  procure 
pardon  for  those  condemned  to  death,  or,  in  case  they 
failed,  attempted  to  reanimate  their  bodies  when 
taken  down  from  the  gallows.  If  these  intercessions 
were  occasionally  carried  to  such  an  extent  as  to  inter- 
fere with  the  existence  of  civil  order,  nevertheless,  they 
brought  the  Church  before  men's  minds  as  a  benefi- 
cent and  kindly  power,  and  taught  a  lesson  of  gen- 
tleness and  charity  to  an  age  which  needed  such 
lessons  to  correct  its  hardness. 

In  the  same  spirit   of  charity,   the  privilege  and  ic)  In 
right  of  asylum  was  claimed  by  prelates  for  churches. 
Under  the  Roman  Empire,  this  privilege  had  legally  (").^/ 
attached  to  churches,  based  on  an  ancient  custom  ofasy- 

IkJii. 

1  Alcuin.  Ep.  176  :  '  Non  ego  tamen  mortem  alicujus  suadeo  ; 
'  dicente  Deo  Ezek.  xxxiii.  :   Nolo  mortem  peccatoris,  sed  ut  con- 

*  vertatur  et  vivat ;  sed  ut  sapienti  consilio  vindicta  fiat  per  alia  poe- 

*  narum  genera  vel  perpetuum  [carcerem  vel]  exilii  damnatione[m]/ 

N 


shoiving 
mercy. 


178 


CHURCH  AND   STATE. 


PART    handed   down   from    Pagan    times.      Passing    from 
— '- Rome  to  the  West,  it  became  a  most  important  and 


salutary  privilege  in  days  of  arbitrary  rule  and  im- 
petuous cruelty.  For  the  moment,  the  persecuted 
were  safe  from  their  oppressors,  serfs  from  their 
masters,  criminals  from  the  hand  of  justice.  Time 
was  allowed  for  the  outburst  of  passion  to  cool  down, 
for  the  clergy  to  interpose  as  mediators.  The 
laws  of  Ine  required  that  the  penalty  of  death  should 
be  commuted  into  a  fixed  pecuniary  fine,  in  all 
cases  in  which  the  guilty  persons  took  refuge  within 
the  asylum  of  a  church.-^  Lest,  however,  this  privi- 
lege should  be  abused,  and  those  places  of  refuge 
should  become  places  of  impunity  for  transgressors, 
A.D.  779  a  capitulary  of  Charles  commanded  that  no  means 
of  subsistence  should  be  allowed  in  them,  to  mur- 
derers and  others  liable  to  capital  punishment.^ 
Popular  feeling  was,  however,  strong  in  favour  of 
these  rights,  stronger  even  than  legal  enactment ; 
and  if,  as  from  time  to  time  occurred,  they  were 
infringed  by  the  less  scrupulous  or  more  insolent 
nobles,  men  did  not  fail  to  watch  narrowly  the  sub- 
sequent career  of  the  delinquent,  and  to  see  in  any 
misfortune  which  befel  him  a  visible  manifestation 
of  Divine  judgment,  and  a  terrible  warning  to  others 
to  abstain  from  following  his  example.^ 


'  See  Neand.  v.  139. 

^  WiLKiNS,  Condi.  Aitg.  p.  59. 

3  Neand.  v.  138,  quotes  from  Gregory  of  Tours,  iv.  19.  the 
story  of  a  duke  who  had  fled  from  the  oppression  of  the  Prankish 
prince,  Chramnus,  to  the  church  of  St.  Martin  of  Tours.  Chramnus, 
in  the  hope  of  starving  him  to  submission,  had  the  church  sur- 


RESULTS  FOR  SOCIETY.  I  79 

Nor  was  the  Church  behindhand    In   inculcatlhsf     chap. 

*  VI. 

on  her  clergy  the  duty  of  themselves  succouring  the  

needy    and    the    oppressed.      The    fifth    Council   of  7'elie%>ing 
Orleans  ^  decreed  that  on  every  Sunday,  the   arch-  tute  and 
deacon    or   presiding    clergyman    should    visit    the  ^■"^^'^ft 
prisons,    in  order   that   the  wants  of   the  prisoners  op- 

•    1      1  -11  •  '11       pressed. 

might  be  mercifully  provided  for  ;  and  it  required  the    ^  ^  ^^^ 
bishop  to  take  care  that  a  sufficient  supply  of  food 
for  this  purpose  was  furnished  by  the  Church.      In 
Spain,  the  fourth  Council  of  Toledo  ^  decreed  that       633 
bishops   should    not  neglect   the   sacred    charge    of 

rounded  and  narrowly  watched.  By  some  means  or  other,  how- 
ever, a  jug  of  water  was  conveyed  to  the  church  when  the  unfor- 
tunate man  was  nearly  dead.  The  local  judge  at  once  inter- 
posed to  prevent  his  using  it  himself,  and  poured  the  contents 
on  the  ground.  The  very  same  day  he  was  attacked  by  a  fever 
and  died.  Such  was  the  sensation  which  this  occurrence  created 
that  food  was  brought  in  abundance  from  all  quarters.  The 
unfortunate  man  was  saved,  and,  to  crown  the  whole,  Chramnus 
himself  at  a  later  period  met  with  a  miserable  end. 

^  Concil.  Aurel.  v.  an.  549,  Can.  20,  Labb^,  v,  1382  :  '  Id  etiam 
'  miserationis  intuitu  aequum  duximus  custodiri,  ut  qui  pro  qui- 
'  buscumque  culpis  in  carceribus  deputantur,  ab  archidiacono  seu 
'  a  praeposito  Ecclesiae  singulis  diebus  dominicis  requirantur,  ut 
'  necessitas  vinctorum  secundum  praeceptum  divinum  misericor- 
'  diter  sublevetur  \  atque  a  pontifice,  instituta  fideli  et  diligenti 
'  persona,  quae  necessaria  provideat,  competens  eis  victus  de 
'  domo  ecclesiae  tribuatur.' 

2  Concil.  Tolet.  iv.  an.  633,  Can.  32,  Labb^,  vi.  1460  :  '  Epi- 
'  scopi  in  protegendis  populis  ac  defendendis  impositam  a  Deo 
'  sibi  curam  non  ambigant  ;  ideoque  dum  conspiciunt  judices  et 
'  potestates,  pauperum  oppressores  existere,  prius  eos  sacerdotali 
'  admonitione  redarguant  ;  et  si  contempserint  emendare,  eorum 
'  insolentiam  regis  auribus  intiment  :  ut  quos  sacerdotalis  admo- 
'  nitio  non  flectit  ad  justitiam,  regalis  potestas  ab  improbitate 
'  coerceat.  Si  quis  autem  episcoporum  neglexerit,  concilio  reus 
*  erit.' 

N   2 


l8o  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 

PART     defending   and    protecting   the    people,  but  should 

^ — ^  endeavour  first  by  priestly  admonition,  or,  failing  that, 

by  appeal  to  the  king,  to  set  judges  and  magistrates 
right,   when  they  acted  as  oppressors  of  the  poor. 
A-D.  589    £^gj^  ^  royal  law  ^  had  already  ordained  that  judges 
and  tax-gatherers  should  learn  from  the  bishops  how 
\o   treat   the   people    with    piety   and    justice,    and 
required  the  bishops  to  keep  an  eye  on  the  conduct 
of  the  judges.     An    opportunity   was   thus    placed 
within  their  reach  of  exercising  a  great  and  salutary 
influence  on  the   habits  of  civil  society— an  oppor- 
tunity, by  many  no  doubt  neglected,  whilst  they  were 
involved  in  the  vortex  of  secular  affairs,  and  indif- 
ferent to  their  spiritual  charges  ;  but  one  warmly  em- 
braced by  others  who  took  a  higher  view  of  their 
calling,  and  were   honestly  bent  upon    raising  and 
improving  the  condition  of  their  fellow-creatures.^ 
{d)  The         Perhaps  the  most  remarkable    step  towards  this 
Cod.^       ^^^^  ^^^  o^^  most  indicative  of  the  power  of  the 
(«)  First   Church  over  the  minds  of  men,  was  the  establishment 
'    of  the  Truce  of  God  at  the  beginning  of  the  eleventh 
A-»-       century.     In  that  century,  opening  amidst  wars  and 
rumours  of  wars,  when  the  already  slender  bands  of 
government  were  still  farther  relaxed  by  the  general 
anticipation   of  the  coming  end  of  all   things,   the 


1  Concil.  Tolet.  iii.  an.  589,  Can.  i8,  LABBfi,  vi.  710,  observes  : 

*  Sunt  enim  prospectores  episcopi  scaauhun  regiam  admoiiitioneiit 

*  qualiter  judices  cum  populis  agant.'  Capitul.  Bajoar.  an.  803, 
c.  iv.  Pertz,  Monum.  iii.  127:  '  Ut  episcopi  cum  Comitibus 
'  stent,  et  Comites  cum  Episcopis,  ut  uterque  pleniter  suum  mini- 
<  sterium  peragere  possint.'     See  Gies.  ii.  243. 

'  See  the  note  Neand.  v.  140. 


RESULTS  FOR  SOCIEl^V.  l8r 

practice  of  private  warfare  had  gained  a  memorable    chap. 

ascendency.      Everywhere    noble    was    engaged    in 

war  with  noble ;  the  right  of  the  stronger  was  alone 
respected.  There  reigned  in  fact  a  political  chaos. 
Then  it  was  that  an  attempt  was  made  by  the 
bishops  assembled  at  Limoges  ^  on  the  occasion  of  an 
unlooked-for  year  of  plenty,  after  several  years  of 
severe  famine,  to  bring  the  feeling  of  gratitude  and  ^•^-  ^°32 
contrition  to  some  real  fruit.  Already  at  several 
ecclesiastical  assemblies,^  at  those  of  Orleans^  and 
Burgundy,*  the  bishops  had  exhorted  the  people  to 
peace,  in  some  instances  probably  resorting  to  pious 
frauds  to  attain  their  object.  Their  exhortations, 
coming  at  an  opportune  moment,  now  found  ready 
listeners.  Everywhere  the  cry  for  peace  resounded. 
The  people  were  admonished  to  lay  aside  all  weapons 
of  war,  and  mutually  to  forgive  all  injuries.  Every 
Friday  they  were  to  restrict  themselves  to  a  diet  of 
bread  and  water  ;  every  Saturday  to  abstain  from 
flesh  and  all  food  of  fat.  To  this  they  were  to  pledge 
themselves  upon  oath  ;  and  in  return  all  ecclesiastical 
penances  were  to  be  forgiven  them.  It  was  a  grand 
attempt,  and  a  truly  Christian  conception  ;  and  yet  it 
met  with  opposition  from  some  of  the  bishops  ;  from 
Gerhard,  for  instance,  bishop  of  Arras  and  Cambray. 

'   Concil.  Lemovic  ii.  an.  1031,  Labbe,  xi.  1232  scq. 

2  Chron.  Ademari  in  Bouquet,  x.  147,  an.  994  :  '  Pactum 
'  pacis  et  justitia  a  Duce  et  Principibus  vicissim  foederata  est' 
Mansi,  Suppl.  to  Labb6,  i.  1 199.     See  Neand.  vi.  183. 

3  Fulberti  carnot.Ep.  21  ad  Robert,  in  Bouquet,  x.  454.  King 
Robert,  an.  1016,  proposed  a  council  at  Orleans  de  pace  com- 
ponenda. 

■*  Bouquet,  x.  201. 


I82 


CHURCH  AND    STATE. 


PART 
I. 


(6)  Se- 
cond 
attempt 
success- 
ful. 

A.  D.   1042 


Nor  was  it  altogether  successful,  since  the  excitement 
of  feeling  soon  passed  away,  and  the  proposed  uni- 
versal peace,  as  has  so  often  since  been  the  case,  was 
never  realised. 

Greater  success,  however,  attended  a  second  at- 
tempt of  a  less  exacting  character,  made  ten  years 
later.  It  was  enacted  by  William  Duke  of  Nor- 
mandy, afterwards  king  of  England,  at  a  synod 
held  at  Caen,^ — and  from  that  time  forth  the  enact- 


\  Synodale  decretum  de  pace  apud  Cadomum,  an.  T042,  Labbe, 
xi.  1294:  '  Fratres  in  Domino  carissimi,  in  pace  .quae  vulgo 
'  dicitur  Trevia  Dei,  et  quae  die  Mercurii  sole  occidente  incipit, 
'  et  die  Lunae  sole  nascente  finit,  haec  quae  dicam  vobis  prom- 
'  ptissima  mente  dehinc  in  antea  debetis  observare  :  NuUus  homo 
'  nee  foemina  hominem  aut  foeminam  usquam  assaliat,  nee  vul- 
'  neret,  nee  occidet,  nee  castellum,  nee  burgum  nee  villam  in  hoc 
'  spatio  quatuor  dierum  et  quinque  noctium  assaliat  nee  deprae- 
'  detur,  nee  capiat  nee  ardeat  ullo  ingenio,  aut  violentia,  aut  aliqua 
'  fraude.  Quod  si  aliquis,  quod  absit,  illam  non  tehendo  quae 
'  praecepimus  infregerit ;  si  non  30  annorum  poenitentiam  in  exilio 
'  fecerit,  et  antequam  ab  Episcopatu  nostro  exeat,  quicquid  fecit 
'  contra  pacem  emendaverit,  a  Domino  Deo  sit  excommunicatus 
'  et  a  tota  Christianitate  sit  separatus.  .  .  . 

'  Praeterea  fratres,  hanc  pacem  et  Treviam  Dei  de  terris  ac  de 
'  bestiis,  insuper  de  rebus  omnibus  quae  haberi  possint,  tenebitis 
'  inter  vos.  Quod  si  quis  aut  aliquam  bestiam,  aut  etiam  obolum, 
'  sive  vestimentum  in  ista  pace  tulerit  alieni,  sit  excommunicatus, 
'  donee  ad  emendationem  venerit.  .  .  . 

*  Ceterum  in  hac  pace  nullus  nisi  Rex  aut  Comes  caballica- 
'  tionem  aut  hostilitatem  faciat ;  et  quicumque  in  caballicatione 

*  aut  hostilitate  Regis  fuerit,  in  hoc  Episcopatu  :  nihil  plusquam 
'  sibi  ac  suis  equis  necessaria  ad  victum  accipiant.     Mercatores 

*  autem,  et  omnes  homines  qui  ab  aliis  regionibus  per  vos  trans- 
'  ierunt,  pacem  habeant  a  vobis. 

'  Hanc  etiam  Dei  Treviam  ab  initio  Adventus  Dominici  usque 
'  ad  Octavas  Epiphaniae,  et  a  capite  jejunii  usque  ad  Octavas 
'  Paschae,  et  a  diebus  Rogationum  inchoantibus  per  omnes  dies 

*  tenebitis.' 


RESULTS    FOR  SOCIETY.  1 83 

ment  became  a  custom — that,  in   remembrance   of    chap. 

Christ's  passion  and  resurrection,  no  person  should  '- — 

be  arraigned  before  a  tribunal  from  Thursday  eve- 
ning until  Monday  morning,  nor  should  any  person 
use  violence  towards  another  during  that  interval. 
Those  four  days  were  to  be  days  of  peace,  and 
hence  they  were  called  the  Truce  of  God,  Treuga  or 
Trevia  Dei,  Moreover,  the  non-observance  of  this 
truce  was  visited  by  the  penalty  of  excommunication, 
and,  in  case  reparation  were  not  forthcoming,  the 
right  of  sepulture  was  denied  to  such  as  died  ex- 
communicated. 

Thus,  Church  and  State,  political  and  ecclesiastical 
relations,  interlaced  and  intertwined  in  a  way  pre- 
viously unknown  ;  and  thus  were  laid  the  foundations 
for  the  great  political  Church-system  which  reigned 
supreme   from   the   time   of   Hildebrand   to  that   of 
Boniface    VIII.      An    observant    eye    might   have 
already  detected  on  the  horizon  of  history  traces  of 
the  near  approach  of  the    Holy  Empire.      It  might 
have  observed  how  the  centralising  influence  of  the 
feudal  system  was  simultaneously  consolidating  both 
Church  and   State  ;  wresting   the  power  out  of  the 
hands  of  the  people  to  place  it  in  the  hands  of  the 
emperor,  out  of  the  hands  of  the  clergy  to  place  it 
in  the  hands  of  the   Popes.      The  Church  had    be- 
come an  aristocratic,   not    a  democratic   institution. 
She  was  soon  to  become  Imperial.    The  local  bishops 
of  the  three  first  centuries,  with  their  parliaments  of 
presbyters,  had  disappeared.      Metropolitan  bishops 
with    absolute    powers    had  succeeded  them :    they 
were  about  to  be  displaced  by  one  more  powerful 


tU 


CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


rART     than  themselves.     The  free  elections   of  primitive 

times  had  gone  into  disuse ;  nomination  by  great  lay 

lords  had  superseded  them.  The  voice  of  laymen  in 
Church  matters,  unless  they  happened  to  be  princes, 
was  stifled ;  the  independence  of  priests  was  gone.  A 
few  great  men  governed  the  State ;  a  few  great 
prelates  ruled  the  Church.  Once  it  had  been  a  note 
of  Christianity,  that  to  the  poor  the  Gospel  was 
preached.  Now  it  was  otherwise  :  the  Gospel  was 
for  princes,  and  the  way  to  heaven  was  open  for 
the  great  and  the  wealthy.  Was  the  change  a  falling 
away,  or  was  it  a  necessity  ?  Could  the  poor  only 
be  won  by  winning  the  great  ?  Could  they  only 
be  retained  by  retaining  the  great  ?  Or  was  it  that 
the  Church  was  leaving  her  children  to  go  after  her 
lovers  ?  Those  who  have  studied  the  subject  most 
deeply  have  given  to  this  question  the  most  opposite 
answers.  It  may,  therefore,  be  impossible  here  to 
dogmatise.  But  one  thing  is  certain.  If,  notwith- 
standing a  variety  of  opinions  on  this  point,  none  can 
deny  the  civilising  influence  of  Christianity  during 
these  centuries  of  Ignorance,  no  doubt,  but  yet  of 
heroism,  is  It  just  to  call  them  ages  of  darkness  ? 
With  all  our  intellectual  light,  does  the  light  of  our 
morality  shine  so  brightly  as  did  theirs  ? 


Part   II. 

AGE    OF    GREATNESS. 

1046— 1303. 


THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 


187 


CHAPTER   VII. 

THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 
(1046— 1085.) 


Et  doniinahitiitu,-  coniiii  jiisti  in  iiiattitino. — Ps.  xcviii.  [xcix.]  15. 


ANEW  day  dawned  on    the    Papacy  after  the    ^y^^* 
dark  night  of  Italian  party-strife  when  by  the     -„     7 
synod  at  Sutri,  acting  under  the  guidance  of  Henry  of  reform. 
HI.,  the  three  rival  claimants  were  deposed,  and  the 
German,  Clement  II.,  was  elevated  to  the  Papal  dig- 
nity.    Sunk  as  the  Church  had  been  during  the  last 
century    in    a    deep    slough    of    vice,    simony    and 
intrigue,  save  when  it  received  a  few  better  appoint- 
ments at  the  hands  of  the  emperors  Otto  I.  and  Otto 
III.,  it  now  owed  its  permanent  elevation  to  the  ap- 
pointment  made   by  another  emperor,   Henry    HI. 
The  grateful  synod  of  Sutri  owned   its  obligations 
to  Henry,  and  granted  to  him,  as  the  synod  of  Rome       ^'^' (. 
had  already   done   to  Otto    I.,    as  Hadrian  II.   had 
granted  to  Charles  the  Bald,^  the  privilege  of  nomi- 
nating the    Popes   in  future.      One  party  alone  was 
aggrieved  by  this    concession  :    the    Roman  people 

^  Both  of  these  grants  are  denied  by  Severinus  Bhiius.  See 
Labbe,  xi.  p.  892,  ad  an.  964.  He  mauitains  that  the  emperors 
never  received  the  right  of  appointing  the  pontiffs,  and  that  the 
historian  Luitprand  '  phisquam  oportebat,  Ottoni  favit.' 


I  §8  '         THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 

PART     and  clergy  who  had  formerly  enjoyed  this  right ;  and 
'■ —  the  grievance  of  the  Roman  clergy  found  a  mouth- 
piece  and  a   ready  agent  in  the  young  but  zealous 
subdeacon   Hildebrand.     This   monk,  regardless  of 
the  services  conferred  by  the  emperors,  and  with  no 
appreciation    of   the    practical   benefits    of   such    an 
arrangement,  considered  it  a  sacrilege  that  the  em- 
peror should  nominate  the  sovereign  Pontiff;  and, 
uniting  with  the  aggrieved  Roman  people  to  remedy 
this    abuse,   entered    on   a   long   struggle  with    the 
Empire,  out  of  which  he  came  forth  successful  indeed, 
but  lost  his  advantage  by  his  bitterness  towards  a 
fallen  foe. 
(^7)  ita-         The  Italians  were  alarmed  at  the  granting  away  of 
ahvmcd.    ^  right  so  valuable  for  their  own  interests.     They  had 
been  accustomed  to  look  upon  the  bishopric  of  Rome 
as  their  own   peculiar  property  during  the  last  one 
hundred  and  fifty  years.     With  few  exceptions  they 
had  seen  it  filled  by  Italian  after  Italian,  often  worth- 
less, frequently  avaricious,  but  still  Italians,  who,  to 
secure  their  own  election,  had  had  to   conciliate  the 
most  powerful  families  of  Italy,  and  whose  very  vices 
were  national.     Now  they  found  themselves  debarred 
from    all    participation    in    the    election.      Whether 
willing  or  unwilling,   they  were   forced   to    receive 
German  after  German  as  their  bishop,  at  the  bidding 
of  a  ruler  at  once  powerful,  severe,  devout.     Oppo- 
sition would  have  been  fruitless.     They  dissembled 
their  ill-will,  yielding  that  obedience  which  is  due  to 
the  stronger  until  the  death  of  the  emperor  should 
bring  a  favourable  opportunity  for  resistance. 

Meantime  there  was  a  small  but  growing  party  at 


CAUSES  OF  REFORM. 


189 


whose  head    stood   Peter  Damiani  ^  and  the  monk     chap. 

VII. 

Hildebrand,^  who  were  dissatisfied  with  the  existino-   ^ 


state  of  things  on  entirely  different  grounds.  No  (/;)  Ear- 
national  or  interested  considerations  swayed  their  "^y^^H^^'i 
pohcy  ;  but  holding  high  ideas  of  the  functions  of  the 
clergy,  and  of  the  dignity  of  the  Roman  bishop,  it 
seemed  to  them  a  sacrilegious  act  that  he  should 
owe  his  authority  to  a  secular  monarch.  A  real 
zeal  for  the  restoration  of  the  dignity  of  the  priest- 
hood, and  of  a  stricter  Church  discipline,  distinguished 
Peter  Damiani,  bishop  of  Ostia,  among  his  cotem- 
poraries  ;  but  his  zeal,  though  earnest,  was  not  free 
from  narrowness  and  bigotry.  Of  the  two,  the  mind 
of  Hildebrand  was  the  more  energetic.  His  monas- 
tic life  had  imbued  him  with  deep  earnestness,  while 
his  travels  in  company  with  the  deposed  Gregory 
VI.  had  given  him  a  knowledge  of  the  world.  Nor 
was  it  long  before  an  acquaintance  and  friendship 
with  Leo  IX.  enabled  him  to  exercise  the  greatest 
influence  over  the  policy  of  that  Pope  and  his  succes- 
sors, and  ultimately  to  place  himself  upon  the  chair  of 
St.  Peter. 

Hitherto  the  initiative  in  all  measures  of  reform  (f)  ^^- 

jorins 

^__    comefi'otn 

luithiiu 

^  Peter  Damiani,  bishop  of  Ostia,  was  an  earnest  man  but 
narrow  and  bigoted,  zealous  for  the  restoration  of  the  dignity  of 
the  priesthood,  and  of  a  stricter  Church  discipHne.  Neand. 
vi.  146. 

2  Hildebrand  was  a  native  of  Soan  in  Tuscany,  the  son  of  a 
carpenter.  He  received  his  first  training  in  the  monastic  life 
under  the  direction  of  an  uncle,  who  was  an  abbot  in  a  Roman 
monasteiy.  Among  his  teachers  were  Laurentius,  archbishop  of 
Amalfi,  and  Pope  Gregory  VI.  See  Labbe,  xii.  230 ;  Neand. 
vi.  147. 


I90 


THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 


PART     had  been  due  to  the  interposition  of  the  civil  magis- 

■ trate.      Now,  under  the  combined  influence  of  the 

Itahan  and  the  ecclesiastical  parties,  a  new  phase 
appears  in  the  history  of  the  Papacy  :  reforms  come 
no  longer  from  without  but  from  within  the  Church  ; 
they  emanate  in  fact  from  the  Popes  themselves. 
Nothing  more  clearly  marks  the  Hildebrandian  era 
than  this  change.  At  the  beginning  of  that  era, 
the  Church  seemed  sunk  in  corruption,  and  any 
checks  to  its  headlong  course  of  vice  were  set  by  the 
summary  power  of  the  imperial  party  ;  at  its  close 
this  state  of  things  had  entirely  changed.  All  lovers 
of  reform,  all  who  aspired  to  a  higher  Christian  life, 
had  rallied  around  the  standard  of  the  Popes  ;  the 
profligate,  the  dissolute,  the  worldly  clergy  were  left, 
though  not  alone,  to  defend  the  emperors.  The  pre- 
judice and  narrow-mindedness  of  modern  times  may 
see  in  Hildebrand  nothing  but  an  ambitious  Pontiff, 
endeavouring  to  enforce  on  the  clergy  a  restriction 
contrary  to  the  Gospel.  Not  so  thought  his  cotem- 
poraries  ;  not  so  thought  the  morally  earnest  men  of 
that  time  :  to  them  as  to  Hildebrand  the  marriage  of 
a  priest  seemed  little  short  of  adultery. 
B.  Chirf  One  of  the  first  objects  of  Hildebrand's  design 
refonn.  was  to  make  the  Popes  independent  of  the  emperor ; 
(i)  i>ide-   nor  was  it  lonor  before  this   desien  beeran  to  show 

pendence     ,  *  fe  & 

of  the  Itself  He  appeared  before  Leo  IX.  on  the  occasion 
(a)S/efis  ^^  ^^^^  being  appointed  by  the  emperor,  in  the  year 
iaken  in     1049,^  and  with  that  extraordinary  power  of  swaying 

*   Clement  II.  appointed  by  the  emperor  Henry  III.  in  1046, 
died  in   1048.     Damasus  was  nominated  by  Henry  in  his  place. 


CHIEF  POINTS  FOR   REFORM.  igi 

the  minds  of  others,  to  which  so  much  of  his  after     chap. 

VII. 

success  was  due,  he  induced  him  to  lay  aside  all  the  ^ 

the  life- 

insig-nia  of  the  dignity   to   which   he  had  been  ap-  time  of 
pointed,  to  travel  to  Rome  in  the  habit  of  a  pilgrim,    y^^'^ 
and  not  to  consider  himself  invested  with  the  sacred 
office  until  he  had  been  there  chosen  in  the  custo- 
mary form.^     On  the  death  of  Leo  IX.,  he  secured 
for    himself   the  appointment  of   plenipotentiary  of 
the    Roman    clergy   and    the    Roman    people,    and   a.d.  1055 
travelled  to  the  court    of  the  emperor  in  order  to 
support  the  claims  of  his  own  candidate,  Victor  II. :  ^ 
but  the  emperor  dying  in  the  next  year,  whilst  a  child 
was  left  at  the  helm  of  the   state,   Hildebrand  was 
enabled  to  take  a  bolder  line.  • 

Durinor  Hildebrand's  absence,  Stephen   IX.^  was  ^^)  Foun- 

^  _  datioji  of 

elected  by  the  people,  as  was  also  Benedict  X.^  on  the  Col- 
lege of 

■ Car- 
dinals. 
See  Labb^,  xi.   1315,  but  died  twenty-three  days  later.     He  was        1059 

succeeded  by  Bruno  in  1049,  Avho  took  the  name  of  Leo  IX.,  and 

was  followed  in   1055  by  Victor  II.     For  the  life  of  Leo  IX.  see 

Labb^,  xi.  13 1 7. 

*  Neand.  vi.  T48. 

^  Gebhard  of  Eichstadt  succeeded  Leo  IX.  in  the  year  1055  by 
the  name  of  Victor  II.  He  died  July  28,  1057,  and  was  followed 
by  Stephen  IX.  His  life,  Labb^,  xii.  i.  For  the  part  taken  by 
Hildebrand  in  his  appointment  see  Neand.  vi.  155. 

^  Stephen  IX.  succeeded  Victor  II.  in  1057.  He  died  in  April 
1058,  and  was  succeeded  by  Benedict  X.     See  Labb^,  xii.  23. 

*  Benedict  X.  was  appointed  by  Leo  of  Ostia  and  the  Count  of 
Tusculum  in  1058,  during  Hildebrand's  absence  from  Rome. 
The  election  was  therefore  a  violation  of  the  decretum  of  Stephen 
IX.  :  '  Ut  si,  antequam  Hildebrandus  Romanae  tunc  ecclesiae 
'  subdiaconus  ab  Imperatrice,  ad  quam  pro  quibusdam  reipublicae 
'  negotiis  communi  consilio  mittebatur,  rediret,  se  mori  contingeret, 
'  nullus  omnino  papam  eligere  auderet  :  sed  usque  ad  illius  reditum 
'  sedes  apostolica  intacta  vacaret,  ejus  demum  ordinandi  consilio.' 


II. 


JQ2  '^HE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 

PART  the  death  of  Stephen.  The  former  election  was  ac- 
quiesced in  by  Hildebrand  ;  the  latter  Pope  he 
deposed  and  substituted  Nicholas  11.^  in  his  place. 
Nevertheless,  to  prevent  future  cavil,  the  concurrence 
of  the  imperial  court  was  obtained  for  his  election. 
But  Nicholas  II.  had  no  sooner  been  consecrated, 
than  taking  advantage  of  the  unsettled  state  of  the 
empire,  Hildebrand  thought  the  time  come  to  deal 
a  blow  at  the  imperial  prerogative  and  to  undo  what 
the  synod  of  Sutri  had  previously  ratified.^  In  the 
Lateran  council  of  the  year  1059,  a  decree  was 
passed    by   his   influence.^      It    provided    that   the 


LABBfi,  xii.  24.  Benedict  X.  was  accordingly  regarded  by  Hilde- 
brand as  an  antipope. 

^  Gerard,  bishop  of  Florence,  who  took  the  name  of  Victor  II., 
was  elected  by  the  banished  cardinals,  an.  1058,  but  was  not 
installed  as  Pope  till  the  following  year.  He  died  in  July  1060, 
whereupon  there  was  a  vacancy  in  the  See  for  nearly  three 
months.     Labb^,  xii.  28. 

2  Neand.  vi.  156. 

3  The  decretum,  LabbS,  xii.  50,  after  recounting  the  late 
troubles,  continues  :  '  Quapropter  instruct!  praedecessorum  nos- 
'  trorum,  aliorumque  sanctorum  patrum  auctoritate,  decernimus 
'  atque  statuimus,  ut  abeunte  hujus  Romanae  ecclesiae  pontifice, 
'  in  primis  cardinales  episcopi  diligentissime  simul  de  electione 

*  tractantes,  mox  ipsi  clericos  cardinales  adhibeant,  sicque  reliquus 
'  clerus,  et  populus  ad  consensum  novae  electionis  accedat :  nimi- 

*  rum  praecaventes,  ne  venalitatis  morbus  aliqua  occasione  sub- 
'  repat.  Et  ideo  religiosissimi  viri  praeduces  sint  in  promovenda 
'  pontificis  electione  ;  reliqui  autem  sequaces.     Certus  vero  atque 

*  legitimus  electionis  ordo  perpenditur,  si  perspectis  diversorum 
'  patrum  regvilis,  sini  gestis,  etiam  in  ilia  beati  Leonis  praedeces- 

*  soris   nostri   sententia  recolatur :   Nu/ia,   inquit,  taiio  sifiit,   ut 

*  inter  episcopos  habeantur,  qui  nee  a  clericis  sunt  elect i,  nee  a  plebibus 

*  expetiti,  nee  a  eomprovineialibus  episeopis  cum  metropolitani  judicio 

*  coJisecrati.     Quia  vero  sedes  apostolica  cunctis  in  orbe  terrarum 


Chief  points  of  reform. 


193 


Pope  should  be  chosen  by  the  cardinal  bishops  and     CHAr. 

priests  with  the  consent  of  the  rest  of  the   Roman   

clergy  and  the  Roman  people  ;  and  left  to  the  emperor 
a  merely  nominal  participation  in  the  appointment. 
But  Hildebrand  had  calculated  his  strength.  He 
knew  that  he  could  not  only  rely  on  the  support  of 
the  Italians,  but  that  he  also  had  the  sympathies  of 
the  most  virtuous  prelates  of  the  day  :  and  he  knew 
that  he  could  expect  assistance  from  the  turbulent 
Normans,  whose  settlement  in  southern  Italy  had  ^.d.  1054 
been  sanctioned  by  Leo   IX.,^  and  was  anew  sane-  1059 


'  praefertur  ecclesiis,  atque  ideo  supra  se  metropolitanum  habere 
'  non  potest ;  cardinales  episcopi  procul  dubio  metropolitani  vice 
'  funguntur,  qui  videlicet  electum  episcopum  ad  apostolici  cul- 
'  minis  apiceni  provehant. 

'  Eligatur  autem  de  ipsius  ecclesiae  gremio,  si  reperitur  idoneus  ; 
'  vel  si  de  ipsa  non  invenitur,  ex  alia  assumatur  :  salvo  debito 
'  honore  et  reverentia  dilecti  filii  nostri  Henrici,  qui  impraesen- 
'  tiarum  rex  habetur,  et  futurus  imperator,  Deo  concedente, 
'  speratur,  sicut  jam  sibi  concessimus ;  et  successoribus  illius,  qui 
'  ab  apostolica  sede  personaliter  hoc  jus  impetraverunt.  Quod 
'  pravorum  atque  iniquorum  hominum  ita  perversitatis  invaluerit, 
'  ut  pura,  sincera,  atque  gratuita  fieri  in  Urbe  non  possit  electio  ; 
'  cardinales   episcopi   cum  religiosis   clericis,   catholicisque  laicis, 

*  licet  paucis,  jus    potestatis    obtineant    eligere  apostoHcae  sedis 

*  pontificem,  ubi  congruere  viderint.  Placuit  postquam  electio 
'  fijerit  facta,  si  bellica  tempestas,  vel  qualiscumque  hominum 
'  conatus,  malignitatis  studio  restiterit,  ut  is  qui  electus  est  in 
'  apostolica  sede  juxta  consuetudinem  auctorisari  non  valeat : 
'  electus  tamen,  sicut  verus  Papa  obtineat  auctoritatem  regendi 
'  Romanam  ecclesiam  et  disponendi  omnes  facultates  illius.' 

^  Leo  IX.  had  taken  the  field  against  the  Normans,  been 
defeated,  and  taken  captive  by  them.  Hereupon  he  deserted  an 
alliance  which  he  had  preached  as  the  cause  of  God,  and  ratified 
the  past  and  future  conquests  of  the  Normans.  Gibbon,  vol.  v. 
ch.  Ivi.  p.  334  ;  see  also  Milman,  vol.  iii.  book  vi.  ch.  ii.  p.  404. 

O 


194 


THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 


PART 
II. 


(2)   Cleri- 
cal celi- 
bacy. 

{a)  Rea- 
sons/or if. 

(f()  Cleri- 
cal mar- 
riage con- 
sidered 
immoral. 


A.D.  843 


tioned  by  Nicolas  11.^  Nevertheless,  at  his  own 
elevation  in  the  year  1073,  Hildebrand  took  the  pre- 
caution of  deferring  his  inauguration  until  he  had 
received  the  emperor's  assent ;  thinking  it  no  doubt 
politic  to  yield  on  this  point,^  lest  a  rival  Pope  might 
baffle  him  in  the  execution  of  his  other  reforms.  But 
at  the  same  time  that  he  yielded  to  the  emperor, 
he  was  making  a  protest  against  the  emperor's 
claim  to  interfere,  by  taking  the  title  of  Gregory 
VII.,  thus  recognising  his  predecessor,  Gregory  VI., 
as  a  lawful  Pontiff. 

Besides  securing  the  free  election  of  the  Popes  by 
the  college  of  cardinals,  two  other  points  chiefly 
occupied  the  attention  of  the  reformers  of  the  Hilde- 
brandian  era — simony  and  marriage,  or  as  it  was 
then  considered,  the  immorality  of  the  clergy.^  Many 
circumstances  combined  to  make  the  Pope  anxious  to 
put  a  stop  to  the  latter  evil.  The  growing  respect 
for  the  monastic  life  led  all,  both  clergy  and  laity,  to 
regard  a  state  of  celibacy  as  higher  than  a  state  of 
marriage.  The  influence  of  the  False  Decretals, 
drawing  as  they  did  a  hedge  of  privilege  around  the 


>  At  the  Synod  of  Amalfi  Robert  Guiscard  was  invested  by 
Nicolas  II.  with  the  ducal  title,  together  with  Apulia,  Calabria, 
and  all  the  lands  both  in  Italy  and  Sicily,  which  his  sword  could 
rescue  from  the  schismatic  Greeks  and  the  unbelieving  Saracens. 
Baronius,  An?i.  Eccls.  an.  1059,  No.  69  ;  Labbe,  xii.  53,  ad  an. 
1059;  Gibbon,  v.  337. 

2   In  his  life,  apud  Labb^,  xii.  231,  is  the  following  :  '  Patet  ex 

*  actis  vitae  hujus  Gregorii  in  quibus  refertur,  quod  cum  ille  ad 
'  regem  scripsisset,  ne  vigore  concessi  privilegii  factae  election! 

*  assensum  praeberet,   rex  non  modo  non  dissenserit,  sed  missa 
'  legatione  factam  electionem  confirmavit.' 

^  Neand.  vi.  149  ;  GiES.  iii.  9. 


CHIEF  POINTS   OF  REFORM.  igcr 

clergy,  also  led  the  laity  to  regard  clerical  marriage    chap. 

as  immoral  and  as  simply  open  vice.      It  mattered  '- — 

not  whether  this  view  were  right  or  wrong  :  as  long 
as  it  prevailed,  the  spectacle  of  clergy  living  in  the 
married  state  must  have  seemed  a  scandal.  Hence 
no  sooner  was  the  desire  manifested  to  reform  the 
Church,  than  one  of  the  first  points  to  which  attention 
was  directed,  was  that  of  clerical  immorality.  In 
theory  and  law,  the  marriage  of  ecclesiastics  had 
always  since  the  time  of  Siricius  been  forbidden  in  ^''^'  ^  ^ 
the  Western  Church;  but  it  was  now  felt  desirable  to 
enforce  by  new  sanctions  a  law,  which  constant  vio- 
lations had  almost  rendered  obsolete.^ 

Another  reason  for  insisting  on  clerical  celibacy  was,  (/3)  Celi- 
the  wish  to  separate  more  definitely  the  clergy  from  necessary 
the  world.      By  their    relationships,  their  marriages  the  clergy 
and  their  intrigues,  the  bishops  and  Popes  of  the  pre-  -£^/'t 
cedinof  epoch  had  been  entanp;led  in  all  the  disputes  o"'-'^*'- 

*      ^  .  ^  .  .        -^  whelmed 

and  struggles  which  make  up  the  ordinary  life  of  an  in  world- 

unsettled  state  of  society.      Into  how  many  troubles 

had  they  not  been  drawn  by  these  relations  !     Into 

how  many  scenes  of  bloodshed  and  violence  had  they 

not  been  brought !    The  Church  seemed  likely  to  lose 

her  distinctive  character  altogfether  amidst  the  feuds 

'  Neand.  vi.  149.  Among  the  decreta  Nicolai  II.  Labbie, 
xii.  36,  No.  iv.  :  '  Ut  presbyteri  et  diaconi  et  subdiaconi  et  omnes 
'  qui  canonici  sunt  uxores  non  habeant.  Et  si  duxerint,  depo- 
'  nantur.'  Concil.  Roman,  an.  1059,  Labbe,  xii.  44,  Can.  3  : 
'  Ut  nullus  missam  audiat  presbyteri,  quern  scit  concubinam  indu- 
*  bitanter  habere,  aut  subintroductam  muHerem.'  Concil.  Turon. 
an.  1060,  LABBfi,  xii.  60,  Can.  6  \  Concil.  Roman.  I.  an.  1063, 
Labbe,  xii.  138,  Can.  3  ;  Concil.  Gerundense,  an.  1068,  Labbe, 
xii.  174,  Can.  7  :  '  A  presbytero  usque  ad  subdiaconum  si  uxorem 
'  duxerint,  aut  concubinam  retinuerint,  de  clero  exeant.' 

o  3 


A.D.   1042 


196  THE'HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 

PART  of  her  rulers.  Besides,  it  must  be  remembered,  that 
the  practice  of  private  war  had  been  unHmited.  Not 
until  four  years  before  the  Papacy  of  Clement  II., 
had  the  Church,  by  establishing  the  Truce  of  God, 
been  able  to  put  any  check  to  this  practice.^  Before  all 
things,  therefore,  it  was  necessary  to  raise  the  bishops 
out  of  the  domain  of  private  warfare,  out  of  the  atmo- 
sphere of  the  castle  and  the  battle-field,  and  to  make 
them  realise  that  theirs  was  a  spiritual  mission  ; 
that  if  they  took  part  in  the  contentions  of  this  world, 
it  must  be  done  by  them  not  as  isolated  units,  but  as 
members  of  a  great  spiritual  body,  not  by  the  carnal 
weapons  of  flesh,  but  by  the  spiritual  weapon  of 
excommunication. 

It  may  be  said   that   such    a   separation    of  the 

clergy  from  society  was  a  withdrawal  of  a  leavening 

(7)  Cell-    influence  from  the  world  ;   but  this  statement  does 

bacy  ne-  .  ...  ^  , 

cessary  to  ^ot  give  a  true  View  01  the  case.  In  a  rude  state 
sMrUual  °^  society,  individuals  standing  alone"  are  powerless 
army.  to  Stem  the  Current ;  they  are  swept  away  by  it, 
and  are  often  even  carried  along  by  it  more  rapidly 
than  others.  Strong  lawlessness  needs  to  be  met  by 
strong  co-operation,  and  this  Hildebrand  did  not  fail 
to  remember  in  his  reforms.  His  motive  in  en- 
forcing clerical  celibacy  was  not  only  to  withdraw  the 
clergy  from  too  close  connection  with  the  world,  but 
to  unite  them  in  a  grand  spiritual  army.      His  aim 

^  The  Truce  of  God  was  sanctioned  in  1042.  See  p.  182. 
The  first  of  the  decreta  of  Nicolas  II.  Labb^,  xii.  36  is  :  '  Primum 
'  quidem  ut  pax  et  Treuga  Domini  a  fideHbus  Christianis  reperta 
'  et  laudata,  sicut  scriptura  habentur,  ita  firmiter  teneantur,  infrac- 
'  tores  vero  anatheniate  feriantur.'  It  was  again  sanctioned  by 
Alexander  II.  an.  .1065.  Labb^i  xii.  151,  and  1069,  Labb^, 
xii.  175. 


CHIEF  POINTS   OF  REFORM.  jg^ 

was  to  draw  about  him  a  band  of  many  supporters,     chap. 
In  this  aim  he  was  successful.    All  those  who  wished    ^— 


to  see  a  higher  tone  of  morality,  all  who  believed  in 
the  spiritual  functions  of  the  clergy,  all  who  had 
sufficient  foresight  to  know  that  a  strongly  concen- 
trated ecclesiastical  army  was  absolutely  necessary  to 
defend  the  Church  against  the  wild  attacks  of  a  rude 
age,  were  on  the  side  of  clerical  celibacy.  None  of 
them  probably  foresaw  how  grossly  the  power  they 
fostered  would  afterwards  be  abused. 

Nor  did  the  reform  of  clerical  immorality  come   {b)  How 

TT71  11  1  enforced. 

too  soon.  When  a  cotemporary  could  say  that  so  /  x  ^„ 
low  was  the  morality  of  the  bishops  and  clergy,  and  ^"'^-^ 
of  the  Popes  themselves,  that  no  salt  was  left  where- 
with to  salt  the  earth  ;  when  a  bishop  could  be  al- 
lowed to  seduce  the  betrothed  wife  of  his  uncle 
with  such  impunity,  that  the  latter  could  not  even 
obtain  a  hearing  from  the  Pope ;  ^  when  Bishop 
Ratherius  could  complain,-  that  among  his  clergy, 
not  one  was  free  from  adultery  or  a  worse  vice  ;  it 
was  indeed  necessary  that  a  stern  and  sweeping 
reform  should  be  inaugurated.  Leo  IX.  began  by 
reviving  the  ancient  laws  concerning  celibacy;^  but  it 

1  Berengar  of  Tours,  De  Coena  Sacra,  tells  this  story  of  the 
bishop  of  Vercelli,  an.  1050,  and  Leo  IX.  was  the  Pope  from 
whom  the  injured  nobleman  could  obtain  no  redress. 

^  '  Quam  perdita  tonsuratorum  universitas,  si  nemo  in  iis,  qui 
'  non  aut  adulter  aut  sit  arsenokoita  1  Adulter  enim  nobis  est, 
'  qui  contra  canones  uxorius.'     See  Neand.  vi.  150. 

^  Capitulare  xii.  Labbe,  xi.  1380:  'Nulla  foemina  cum  pres- 
'  bytero  in  una  domo  habitet.'  Concil.  Coyacense,  an.  1050, 
Can.  3  :  '  Presbyteri  vero  et  diacones,  et  qui  ministerio  funguntur 
'  ecclesiae  arma  belli  non  deferant,  semper  coronas  apertas  ha- 
'  beant,  barbas  radant,  mulieres  secum  in  domo  non  habeant.' 


198 


THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 


PART  was  found  impossible  to  carry  them  out  at  once/  not- 
— withstanding  the  many  synods  held  at  Rome,  not- 
withstanding Leo's  frequent  journeys  to  France, 
to  Germany,  and  even  to  Hungary.  More  stringent 
measures  were  taken  by  Nicolas  II.,  who  at  the 
Lateran  Council  of  1059,  prohibited,  under  pain  of 
excommunication,  all  ecclesiastics  who  lived  in  wed- 
lock from  celebrating  mass  or  holding  divine  service.^ 
The  same  laws  were  renewed  by  Alexander  11.;^ 
and  when  Hildebrand  had  succeeded  to  the  chair  of 
St.  Peter,''=  he  repeated  the  ordinances  of  his  prede- 
cessors at  the  Lenten  synod  of  the  year  1074,  and 
determined  henceforth  to  enforce  them  at  every 
hazard.'' 

>  Damiani,  Opnscul.  17,  De  Coelibatu  sace?'dotum,  iii.  188,  says 
circa  1058  :  '  Nostris  temporibus  genuina  quodammodo  Romanae 
'  ecclesiae  consuetudo  servatur,  ut  de  ceteris  quidem  ecclesiasticae 
'  disciplinae  studiis,  prout  dignum  est,  moneat,  de  clericorum  vero 
'  libidine  propter  insultationem  saecularium  dispensatorie  contis- 
'  cescat.' 

2  Can.  3,  Labb£,  xii.  44. 

3  See  the  authorities  quoted  in  note  i  on  page  195. 
*  The  hst  of  the  Popes  of  this  period  is  as  follows  : 

Popes  Antipopes 

Clement  II.  1046. 

Damasus  II.  1048,  died  1048. 


Leo  IX.  1049. 

Victor  II.  1055. 

Stephen  IX.  1057,  died  1058. 


Benedict  IX.  1048. 


Benedict  X.  1058. 


Nicolas  II.  1059,  died  1060.  

3  months'  vacancy. 
Alexander  II.  1061,  died  1072.  Hono? ins  II.  1061. 

Gregory  VII.  1073,  died  1085.  Clement. 

^  See  the  somewhat  lengthy  Canons  13   and    14   of  Concil. 
Roman.  I.  an.  1074,  in  Labb^,  xii.  561. 


CHIEF  POINTS   OF  REFORM, 


199 


The  means  which   Nicolas   II.   had  as  vet   em-     chap. 

.  VII. 

ployed,  declaring  ecclesiastics  who  lived  in  marriage   

incapable  of  administering  the  duties  of  their  office,  appeal  to 
were  found  by  experience  to  be  insufficient.  It  was  '"■^" 
necessary  to  employ  new  means.  Already  Nicolas 
had  called  upon  the  laity  not  to  be  present  at  any 
service  performed  by  married  ecclesiastics.  Gregory 
VII.  addressed  himself  anew  to  the  laity  with  a  view 
to  stir  them  up  against  the  clergy.  He  wrote  to 
princes,  on  whose  submission  and  interest  he  thought 
he  could  rely,  exhorting  them  to  refuse  all  priestly 
offices  from  priests  who  lived  in  unchastity.^  He 
bade  them  publish  these  laws  everywhere,  and  by 
force  to  hinder  married  ecclesiastics  from  adminis- 
tering the  sacraments.  He  told  them  not  to  be 
abashed  if  the  bishops  neglected  their  duty,  but 
to  labour  for  their  own,  and  their  people's  salvation. 
The  experiment  was  a  dangerous  one.  Though 
successful  for  the  time,  it  defeated  its  own  end.  The 
laity  who  had  learnt  from  Gregory  VII.  to  oppose 
their  clergy,  in  the  next  century  learnt  from  Arnold 
how  to  oppose  their  Pope,''^  and  the  full  harvest  of  the 
rebellion  of  which  Gregory  sowed  the  seed  in  the  year 
1074  was  gathered  in  in  the  time  of  Luther,  when  the 
Teutonic  laity  threw  off  their  allegiance  to  the  Pope 
for  ever. 


^  Ep.  lib.  ii.  45  ad  Rudolphum  ducem  Sueviae,  ap.  Labb^, 
xii.  331  :  '.  .  .  rogantes  te,  ut  quicquid  episcopi  dehinc  loquan- 
'  tur  aut  taceant,  vos  officium  illorum  quos  aut  simoniace  promotes 
'  .  .  .  aut  in  crimine  fornicationis  jacentes  cognoveritis,  nuUatenus 
'  recipiatis.' 

2  Arnold  of  Brescia,  an.  1154.     See  Chap.  VIII. 


200 


THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 


PART  The  Other  chief  instrument  by  which  Gregory  VII. 

sought  to  enforce  his  decree  was  by  means  of  coun- 


councih     cils  held  in  different  countries,  and  by  sending  papal 

^le^ates      legates  to  assist  the  metropolitans,  and  to  stir  up  the 

laity  against    the    clergy.      Two    synods  which    the 

archbishop  of  Menz,   Sigfrid,   convened  to  put  the 

papal  decree  in  execution,  ended  in  tumult.     When 

A.D.       Sigfrid  required  his  clergy  assembled  at  Erfurt,^  either 

to  separate  from  their  wives  or  to  resign  their  places, 

the    most  determined    resistance  was  offered.     The 

clergy  threatened  to  depose  and  even  to  murder  their 

archbishop  if  he  persisted  in  carrying  the  measure. 

Oct.  1075   At  Mainz  '-^  in  the  following  year,  the  resistance  was 

still    more  determined  :   the  papal   legate  who  was 

present  to  enforce  obedience  nearly  lost  his  life,  and 

Sigfrid  contented  himself  with  ordering  that  in  future 

none  but  unmarried  persons  should  be   elected    to 

1074      spiritual     offices.      Similar    disturbances    happened 

elsewhere,  at  Rouen  ^  and  Paris.     At  the  latter  synod, 

the  bishops,  abbots,   and  assembled  clergy  declared 

Hildebrand's  orders  to  be  unendurable,  and  therefore 

irrational ;  the  abbot  of  Pont- 1  sere,  who  had  ventured 

to  speak  in  behalf  of  the  papal  order,  was  beaten  and 

spit  upon,  and  loaded  with  insults.* 

1  Oct.  1074.  See  GiES.  iii.  10.  Neand.  vii.  128,  confounds 
the  order  of  the  two  synods.  The  Synod  of  Erfurt  is  not  noticed 
at  all  by  Laebe. 

2  Concil.  Mogunt.  Oct.  1075,  Labb^,  xii.  582  :  '  Exurgentes 
'  qui  undique  assidebant  clerici,  ita  eum  [Sigefridum]  verbis  con- 
'  fundebant,  ita  nianibus  et  totius  corporis  gestu  in  eum  debaccha- 
'  bantur,  ut  se  vita  comite  a  synodo  discessurum  desperaret.' 
See  also  Gregory's  Letter  to  Sigfrid,  lib.  iii.  4. 

3  Concil.  Rotomag.     Labbe,  xii.  579. 

''  Concil.   Paris,  an.   1074,  Mansi,  Suppl.  ii.  6:  '  Vehementes 


CHIEF  POINTS   OF  REFORM.  20I 

Nothing   daunted,    however,    by  this   opposition,     chap. 
Gregory  continued  to  pursue  the  path  which  he  had 


111  (^)  '^"^" 

once  struck  out.      Legates  ^  were  despatched  every-  cess. 

where  armed  with  full  penal  powers  to  suspend  and 
to  excommunicate  the  married  clergy,  and  to  stir  up 
the  people  against  them.  Gerhard,  bishop  of  Salz- 
burg, was  rebuked  ^  because  he  allowed  his  clergy  to 
go  on  in  their  old  manner  of  life.  Otto,  bishop  of 
Constance,^  was  reprimanded  for  the  same  offence. 
The  monks  were  supported  against  the  free-minded 
bishop  of  Turin,  Cunibert,  who  had  allowed  his 
clergy  to  marry.*  Partly  by  the  fanaticism  of  the 
people,  partly  by  the  help  of  the  monks,  and  partly 
too  by  the  energy  of  his  own-  character,  Gregory  was 
at  last  so  far  successful,  that  his  decrees  were  every- 
where outwardly  adopted.  In  England  only,  where 
William  the  Conqueror  maintained  his  supremacy 
over  the  Church  with  an  iron  arm,  the  law  of  celibacy 
received  important  alterations  at  the  synod  of  Win- 
chester,^  and  the    king   refused    the   bishops,  com- 

'  ira  succensi  qui  aderant  adversus  Dei  famulum,  mancipia  regis 

*  suo  sceleri  conjungentes,  exclamantesque  omnes  in  una  conspi- 
'  ratione  consurgunt,  ipsum  de  concilio  rapiunt,  trahunt,  impin- 
'  gunt,  colaphizant,  conspuunt,  multisque  contumeliis  affectum  ad 
'  domum  regis  perducunt.' 

1  On  Legates,  see  below,  chap.  xii. 

^  Ep.  lib.  i.  30,  Labb^,  xii.  260. 

3  Ep.  App.  B.  LABBfi,  xii.  538  ;  and  Neand.  vii.  129. 

*  Neand.  vi.  150  ;  vii.  131. 

•^  Concil.  Winton.  an.   1076,  Labbe,  xii.  593  :  '  Decretum  est, 

*  ut  nullus  canonicus  uxorem  habeat :  sacerdotum  vero  in  castellis, 
'  vel  in  vicis  habitantium,  habentes  uxores,  non  cogantur,  ut  dimit- 

*  tant  ;    non    habentes,    interdicantur   ut   habeant.     Et   deinceps 

*  caveant  episcopi  ut  sacerdotes  vel  diaconos  non  praesumant 
'  ordinare,  nisi  prius  profiteantur  ut  uxores  non  habeant.' 


202 


THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 


PART 
II. 

(3)  Sir 

mo)iy. 


missioned  by  the    synod,    permission    to    travel    to 
Rome.' 

The  other  point  to  which  the  attention  of  the  re- 
forming party  was  directed,  was  the  suppression  of 
simony.  So  universal  was  the  practice  of  purchasing 
preferment  from  the  lowest  to  the  highest  offices,  that 
Berengar  could  speak  of  it  ^  as  a  notorious  fact  that 
no  cities  received  bishops  by  canonical  appointment. 
Indeed  one  of  the  first  acts  which  marked  the  dawn 
of  a  new  day  for  the  Papacy,  was  the  holding  of  a 
synod  at  Rome  to  devise  measures  for  suppressing 
simony.^  Above  other  churches,  Milan  was  distin- 
guished for  her  traffic  in  benefices  :  the  condition  of 
the  clergy  was  correspondingly  bad,*  and  violent 
disputes  broke  out  on  two  occasions  in  that  city,  when 
attempts  were  made  to  suppress  the  abuse.^  One  of 
the  first  measures  of  reform  undertaken  by  Leo  I X, 
had  been   the  revival  of  the  laws  against  simony.^ 


'  GiEs.  iii.  27. 

2  Berengar.  De  sacra  Coena,  p.  63  :  '  Novi  nostrorum  tempo- 
'  rum  episcopos  et  abbates,  quam  nuUae  urbes  hoc  tempore  eccle- 
'  siastica  institutione  episcopos  accipiant' 

^  Concil.  Rom.  an.  1047.     Labb^,  xi.  1314. 

*  In  Landulph  de  St.  Paulo's  Life  of  Ariald  (published  by 
PuriceiU),  the  following  account  is  given,  ch.  ii.  :  '  Istis  temporibus 
'  inter  clericos  tanta  erat  dissolutio,  ut  alii  uxores,  alii  meretrices 

*  publice  tenerent ;  alii  venationibus,  alii  aucupio  vacabant ;  par- 
'  tim  foenerabantur  in  publico ;  partim  in  vicis  tabernas  exerce- 

*  bant  cunctaque  ecclesiastica  beneficia  more  pecudum  vendebant.' 
This  had  been  the  state  of  things  at  Rome  and  elsewhere.  See 
p.  125.  See  the  complaint  of  Ratherius  apud  LabbS,  xi.  814,  ad 
an.  932. 

*  First  in  the  Papacy  of  Nicolas  II.,  Neand.  vi.  164,  afterwards 
in  that  of  Alexander  II.     Neand.  vi.  169. 

6  Capit.  16  Leonis  IX.  apud  Labb^,  xi.  1380;  Concil.  Roman. 


CHIEF  POINTS   OF  REFORM.  203 

Both  Nicolas  II.  and  Alexander  11.^  repeated  enact-     chap, 

.  .  VII. 

ments  on  the  same  subject,  but  apparently  with  little   

effect,  and  both  of  them  had  attempted  to  quell  the 
disturbances  which  had  broken  out  in  the  church  of 
Milan  in  the  attempt  to  suppress  simony.  After  ten 
years  of  toil,  Ariald,  who  had  first  appeared  as  a 
preacher  of  repentance  against  the  corruption  of  the 
Milanese  Church,^  but  had  afterwards  become  the 
leader  of  the  popular  party,  fell  a  victim  to  the  ven- 
geance of  the  aristocracy,^  and  now  Alexander  II.  a. d.  1067 
succeeded  in  time  in  healing  the  schism  in  that 
church,  and  renewed  the  former  ordinances  against 
simony.  At  Florence,  divisions  ending  in  bloodshed 
had  resulted  between  the  party  accused  of  simony  ^ 
and  the  more  zealous  clergy,  nor  could  they  be  allayed 
until  the  archbishop  who  supported  the  former  party 
had  resigned.  But  although  the  tide  of  popular 
sympathy  set  against  the  simoniacal  prelates,  and 
simony  had  been  so  frequently  denounced  by  the 
preceding  Popes,  yet  the  vice  was  the  most  formid-  « 

able  one  which  Gregory  had  to  overcome.  It 
involved  him  in  a  struggle  with  the  emperor ;  it 
caused  him  to  threaten  Philip  king  of  France  with 


I.  an.    1049,   Labb^,  xi.   1394 ;    Concil.  Roman.  III.  an.   1050, 
LABBf,  xi.  1446. 

1  Enactments  on  simony  in  the  time  of  Victor  II.  at  Concil. 
Lugd.  1055,  Labbe,  xii.  4  and  Concil.  Tolos.  an.  1056,  Labbe, 
p.  13  ;  in  the  time  of  Nicolas  II.,  Decretum  contra  simoniacos  at 
Concil.  Roman.   1059,  Labbe,  xii.  45  ;  in  the  time  of  Alexander 

II.  at   Concil.   Rom.   I.  an.   1063,   Labb^,  xii.    137,  at   Concil. 
Mogun.  II.  an.  1071,  Labbe,  xii.  185. 

^  Neand.  vi.  159. 

3  Ibid.  p.  164,  171.  *  Ibid.  p.  171. 


204 


THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 


PART     the  ban  ;  it  was  the  beginning  of  the  long  train  of 

'- —  opposition  which  he  encountered,  which  ended  in  his 

own  death  in  exile. 
^'/^^'"yf        Iri  3-  synod  held  at   Rome  in  the  year  1075/  the 
princes      decree    went    forth    that    if  any  person  accepted  a 
of  the        bishopric  or  an  abbacy  from  the  hands  of  a  layman, 
?ejonn.      g^^j-j  person  should  not  be  regarded  as  a  bishop  or 
Threat-     abbot,  nor  be  allowed  to  enter  a  church,  till  he  had 
Philip  of  given  up  the  place  thus  obtained  ;  and  it  declared 
tanu.      ^^^  ^^  same  should  hold  good  of  inferior  Church 
offices.       By   one    blow    aimed    at    the  root  of   the 
matter,  and  by  forbidding  lay  investiture  at  all,  Gre- 
gory   thought    to    eradicate  simony  for  ever.      For 
this    offence    he    excommunicated    five    privy  coun- 
cillors of  the  German  king,    Henry    IV. ^     He  had 
already  threatened   King  Philip  of  France   with  a 
similar  penalty.^     This  last  step  was  followed  up  by 
a  letter  addressed  to  the  French  bishops,'*  reproach- 

^  1  In  Ansclmus  Luccensis  contra  Giiibert,  ii.  383,  in  Canish  Led. 

ed.  Basnage,  iii.  i  :  '  Si  quis  deinceps  episcopatum  vel  abbatiam 
'  de  manu  alicujus  laicae  personae  susceperit,  nullatenus  inter 
'  Episcopos  vel  Abbates  habeatur,   nee  ulla  ei  ut  Episcopo  vel 

*  Abbati  audientia  concedatur,  insuper  ei  gratiam  beati  Petri  et 

*  introitum  ecclesiae  interdicimus,  quousque  locum,  quern  sub 
'  crimine  tam  ambitionis  quam  inobedientiae,  quod  est  salus  idola- 
'  triae,  cepit,  resipiscendo  non  deserit.     Similiter  etiam  de  inferio- 

*  ribus  ecclesiasticis  dignitatibus  constituimus.     Item  si  quis  Im- 

*  peratorum,  Regum,  Ducum,  Marchionum,  Comitum,  vel  quilibet 

*  saecularium  potestatum  vel  personarum,  investituram  episco- 
'  patuum  vel  alicujus  ecclesiasticae  dignitatis  dare  praesumserit, 
'  ejusdem  sententiae  vinculo  se  adstrictum  sciat.' 

2  Concil.  Rom.  II.  an.  1075,  Labbe,  xii.  581. 

^  Lib.  i.  Ep.  35,  an.  1073,  Labbe,  xii.  263. 

*  Lib.  ii.  Ep.  5,  an.  1074,  Labb£,  xii.  302  :  'Quod  si  nee  hujus- 

*  modi   districtione   voluerit   respiscere,    nulli   clam   aut   dubium 


STRUGGLE    WITH    THE   EMPIRE. 


205 


inor  them  most  severely  for  not  exercisinof  a  restrain-     chap. 

.  .  .  .  VII. 

ino-  influence  on  the   kin^,   and  assuring  them  that  


should  the  king  not  listen  to  their  representations 
and  show  signs  of  repentance,  he  would,  with  God's 
help,  use  every  means  to  wrest  the  kingdom  of 
France  from  his  hands. 

Greater  matters,  however,    than  mere  simoniacal 
abuses    diverted    Gregory's    attention  from   France  strul^le 
to    Germany,    when    the    ungoverned    passions    of  ^^^^^^ 
Henry  IV.  were  aroused  to  their  highest  pitch  by  IV. 
the  excommunication  of  his  ministers.     Vacillatingf  ^f>  ^"^^' 

o    lejice  of 

and  licentious,  passionate  and  wayward,  Henry  IV.  the  Pope, 
had  already  estranged  the  affections  of  a  great  part 
of  his  subjects,  upon  whose  support  Gregory  could 
count  with  certainty  if  the  quarrel  were  pushed  to 
extremities.  When,  therefore,  it  appeared  that  the 
king  defied  the  sentence  of  excommunication  pro- 
nounced upon  his  ministers,  and  that  he  continued  to 
fill  vacant  bishoprics  in  Germany  and  Italy  in  an 
arbitrary  manner,  Gregory,  taking  advantage  of  the 
disaffection  of  Henry's  subjects,  ventured  to  do 
what  he  dared  not  attempt  towards  the  haughty 
William  the  Conqueror,  guilty  of  the  same  offence  : 
he  summoned  Henry  to  appear  before  his  judgment- 
seat  at  Rome.  The  heading  of  his  letter  '  Gregory 
to  King  Henry,  health  and  Apostolic  greeting,  i.  e. 
in  case  he  obeys  the  Apostolic  See,  as  becomes  a 
Christian  prince,^  was  of  itself  enough  to  arouse  the 


'  esse  volumus,  quin  modis  omnibus  regnum   Franciae   de   ejus 
'  occupatione,  adjuvante  Deo,  tentemus  eripere.' 

^   Lib.  iii.  Ep.    10,  an.   1075,  LABBfi,  xii.   367  :   '  Gregorius  epi 
'  Scopus  servus  servorum  Dei  Henrico  rege,  salutem  et  apostolicam 


2o6  THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 

PART     anger  of  the  emperor,  and  was  an  indignity  offered 
'- —  to  the  greatest  monarch  in  Christendom.      Nor  was 


the  indignity  rendered  less  by  his  sending  three 
legates,  natives  of  countries  subject  to  the  emperor, 
to  reprove  him  for  his  transgressions,  and  to  inform 
him  that  unless  he  appeared  at  Rome,  he  would  be 
cut  off  from  the  cornmunion  of  the  Church.  Well 
might  Henry  feel  the  indignity,  and  declare  that  the 
Pope  was  overstepping  the  limits  of  his  spiritual 
duties.  But  it  was  a  rash  act  on  his  part  to  meet 
A.D.  1076  that  threat  by  convening  a  Council  at  Worms  ;  ^  still 
more  rash  was  it  for  him  to  receive  against  Gregory 
the  charges  of  the  cardinal,  Hugo  Blancus,  once  the 
Pope's  friend,  now  his  bitterest  enemy,  and  to  ele- 
vate a  German  council  to  be  a  court  of  inquiry  on 
an  absent  bishop.  But  perhaps  the  rashest  act  of  all 
was  the  way  in  which  that  Synod  of  Worms,  on 
January  24,  1076,  pronounced  sentence  of  deposition 
on  Gregory  ;  bishops  and  abbots,  without  hearing  one 
word  in  his  defence,  allowing  themselves  to  be  used  as 
blind  tools  of  the  emperor,  and  all,  with  two  excep- 
tions, acquiescing  in  the  sentence  of  deposition.  If 
Gregory  had  before  overstepped  his  powers,  Henry 
in  turn  overstepped  his,  and  thus  the  false  step  of 
the  Pope  was  recovered  by  the  precipitation  of  the 
emperor. 
{l^  Inso-  Still  more  did  Henry  put  himself  in  a  position  of 
Henry.      disadvantage  by  the  way  in  which  he  announced  this 


'  benedictionem,  si  tamen  apostolicae  sedi  ut  Christianum  decet 
'  regem  obedierit.' 

^  An.  1076.     Labbe,  xii.  595. 


STRUGGLE    WITH   THE  EMPIRE. 


207 


decision  to  the  Pope.      If  Gregory's  letter  to  Henry     chap. 

had  been  insulting,  Henry's  reply  to  the  Pope  was   

not  less  insulting.^  '  Henry,  king  by  the  grace  of 
God,  and  not  by  the  will  of  man,  to  Hildebrand,  no 
longer  Apostolical,  but  a  false  monk.'  It  ended — 
*  This  sentence  of  condemnation  having  been  pro- 
nounced upon  you  by  us  and  all  our  bishops,  descend 
from  the  Apostolical  chair  you  have  usurped  :  Let 
another  mount  the  chair  of  St.  Peter,  who  will  not 
cloak  deeds  of  violence  under  religion,  but  set  forth 
the  sound  doctrines  of  St.  Peter.  I,  Henry,  and  all 
our  bishops  bid  you  come  down,  come  down.'  If 
Gregory  had  treated  Henry  with  indignity  by  send- 
ing three  of  his  subjects  as  legates,  Henry  now  sent 
this  letter  to  Gregory  by  an  Italian  ecclesiastic,  Ro- 
land of  Parma.  If  Henry's  indignation  had  been 
great  when  he  received  the  Pope's  message,  not  less 
was  the  indignation  great  at  the  synod  of  Rome, 
when  Roland  delivered  the  emperor's  message. 

Gregory  sat  among  the  assembled  bishops  in  the  W  Hetiry 
Lateran.  The  hymn  imploring  the  descent  of  the  muni- 
Holy  Ghost  had  scarcely  ceased,  when  Roland  ap- 
peared in  the  midst  of  the  assembly,  and  delivering 
his  letter,  announced  its  contents  by  bidding  Gregory 
come  down.  The  bishop  of  Porto  shouted  *  Seize 
him  ; '  and  already  Cencius,  the  governor  of  the  city, 
had  sprung  forth  with  his  soldiers,  when  Gregory 
interposed  his  own  person,  protected  the  ambassador, 
and  restored  order.     Then  standing  up,  he  spoke  of 

^  An.  1076,  Mansi,  Suppl.  ii.  16:  '  Henricus  non  usurpative, 
'  sed  pia  Dei  ordinatione  rex,  Hildebrando,  jam  non  apostolico 
'  sed  falso  mon-acho.' 


2o8  THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 

PART     the  coming  latter  days ;  of  the  dry  harvest  about  to 
be  wet  with  the  blood  of  the  saints  ;  of  the  time  for 


venofeance  belngf  come ;  of  the  little  flock  for  whom 

the  kingdom  was  prepared  ;  and  waiting  till  the  next 

day  to  give  greater   solemnity  to   his  sentence,   he 

pronounced   the  interdict  on   Henry  in  the  name  of 

the  Father,  the  Son  and  the  Holy  Ghost,  and,  by  the 

authority  of  St.  Peter,  declared  him  deposed  from  the 

government  of  Germany  and  Italy,  and  absolved  all 

subjects  from  their  oath  of  allegiance  to  him.^ 

A.D.  This  sentence  was  hailed  with  delight  by  Henry's 

Oct.  1076       .  .  ^  . 

discontented  subjects.  The  Saxon  and  Suabian 
princes  assembled  at  Tribur  in  the  autumn  of  the 
same  year,  and,  after  hearing  the  Papal  legates,  de- 
cided to  elect  a  new  king.^  A  variety  of  fruitless 
negotiations  with  Henry  ensued;  and  at  length  it  was 
agreed  that  the  disputes  between  Henry  and  his 
subjects  should  be  laid  before  the  Pope  at  Augsburg 
on  the  festival  of  the  Purification  next,  and  that  if, 
by  any  fault  of  his  own,  the  emperor  remained  ex- 
communicate for  a  year,  he  should  be  for  ever  after- 
wards incapable  of  holding  the  government.^ 
{d) Henry  This  was  by  far  the  most  galling  of  the  conditions 
pcnatice  to  wliich  Henry  Submitted.  Yet  it  would  have  been 
well  if  he  had  calmly  adhered  to  these  conditions. 
Now  everything  seemed  to  him  to  depend  on  his 
being  absolved  from  the  Papal  sentence.  Without 
such  absolution  he  thought  he  had  no  hope  of  being 
able  to  treat  with  the  princes  on  an  equal  footing. 

'  Concil.   Roman,   iii.    1076,  Labbe,  xii.  598;  Mansi,  Suppl. 
ii.  18  ;  MiLMAN,  book  vii.  chap.  ii.  vol.  iv.  p.  75   (small  edition). 
*  GiES.  iii.  17.  ^  Neand.  vii.  150. 


/lossa. 


STRUGGLE    WITH   THE  EMPIRE. 


209 


Hence  he  determined  to  risk  everything  to  obtain     chap. 

absolution.     From  Speier  he  set  out,  and  in  the  un-  X 

usually  cold  winter  of  the  year  1076,  he  crossed  the 
Alps  with  his  wife  and  little  son,  and  one  attendant 
of  no  rank.  And  there  encouraged  by  the  mild 
treatment,  which  the  excommunicate  bishops  and 
laity  who  had  preceded  him  met  with  at  the  hands  of 
Gregory,  Henry  determined  to  throw  himself  at  the 
feet  of  the  Pope,  and  to  implore  forgiveness. 

On  a  dreary  winter  morning,  with  the  ground  deep 
in  snow,  the  king,  the  heir  of  a  long  line  of  empe- 
rors, was  permitted  to  enter  within  the  two  outer  of 
the  three  walls  which  girded  the  castle  of  Canossa, 
within  which  were  Gregory,  -the  aged  Abbot  of 
Clugny,  and  the  Countess  Matilda.  With  no  mark 
of  royalty  about  him,  clad  only  in  the  thin  white 
dress  of  a  penitent,  and  fasting,  he  awaited  the 
pleasure  of  the  Pope.  But  the  gates  did  not  unclose. 
A  second  day  he  stood  cold,  hungry,  and  mocked  by 
vain  hope  ;  and  yet  a  third  day  dragged  on,  from 
morning  to  evening  ;  and  every  heart  was  moved 
save  that  of  the  representative  of  Jesus  Christ.^ 
Yielding,  however,  at  length  to  the  pressing  en- 
treaties of  the  countess,  Gregory  so  far  relented, 
that  he  allowed  the  king  to  approach  his  presence. 
But  there  his  reception  was  most  humiliating.  He 
was  required  to  take  an  oath  that  he  would  fulfil  the 
severe  conditions  which  Gregory  announced.  Only 
on  these  terms  could  absolution  be  granted  him. 
The  emperor,  who  had  humbled  himself  so  far  to 

1   MlLMAN,  iv.  97. 

p 


2^1 0  THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 

PART     obtain  the  one  object  which  he  had  in  view,  did  not 
'. shrink    from    the    new    conditions.       He    consented 


rekictantly,  perhaps  even  with   a  mental  reservation, 
and  absolution  was  bestowed  on  him. 

But,  at  the  very  moment  that  Gregory  gave  him 
absolution,  as  though  to  humble  him  still  more,  he 
called  on  him  to  vindicate  his  innocence  by  the  ordeal 
of  the  sacrament.  Taking  in  his  hands  the  conse- 
crated host,  the  Pope  referred  to  the  accusations 
which  Henry  had  raised  against  him ;  and  praying 
that  if  he  had  usurped  the  Apostolic  See  by  simo- 
niacal  practices,  he  might  be  struck  dead  at  once,  or  if 
innocent,  that  God  would  acquit  him  that  day,  he 
partook  of  the  consecrated  host.^  A  sudden  burst  of 
admiration  thrilled  the  whole  congregation,  when 
he  was  seen  to  stand  unscathed  in  calm  assurance. 
But  when  he  appealed  to  Henry  to  follow  his  ex- 
ample, and  by  one  short  course  to  free  the  Church 
from  scandal,  and  himself  from  a  long  and  doubtful 
trial,  the  emperor  paused,  and  trembled.  Was  it 
that  he  was  really  guilty,  or  was  it  that  he  was  broken 
down  by  the  sufferings  of  the  last  few  days  ?  He 
declared  that  though  this  trial  might  be  satisfactory 
to  the  few  present,  it  would  have  no  effect  on  his 
most  violent  enemies  who  were  absent,  and  prayed 
that  the  whole  question  might  be  reserved  for  a 
general  council. 
{e)  Gre-  Gregory  had  now  pushed  matters  too  far.  Earnest 
^dcath  i7i  ^'^^  sincere  as  he  was  in  his  desire  to  reform  the 
Church,  and  in  his  view  of  his  own  exalted  position, 

'  Neand.  vii.  154. 


exile. 


STRUGGLE    WITH  THE  EMPIRE.  2  I  I 

he  had  too  deeply  entrenched  on  the  prerogative  of    chap. 
the  secular  power  to  escape  the  penalty  of  his  rash- 


ness. The  German  princes  might  meet  and  elect 
a  rival  emperor;  Gregory  might  anew  pronounce 
sentence  of  excommunication  on  Henry,  when  Henry 
seemed  completely  conquered  at  the  battle  of  Flarc- 
heim;^  but  retribution  at  length  overtook  the  Pope.  a.d.  ioSo 
He  had  invoked  the  sword  to  defend  his  prerogative. 
To  the  sword  he  owed  his  own  exile  from  Rome. 
The  scene  at  Canossa  had  been  one  of  insolent  triumph 
for  the  priest ;  the  scene  at  Salerno  was  its  counter- 
part for  the  emperor. 

The  Emperor  Rudolph  of  Swabia  was  dead,  slain  by 
the  hand  of  a  future  crusader,  Godfrey  of  Boulogne. 
The  lands  of  the  Countess  Matilda  were  in  Henry's 
hands,  laid  waste  by  the  vengeance  of  his  soldiers. 
Rome  itself  was  a  mass  of  smoking  ruins ;  the  Nor- 
mans, who  appeared  as  the  champions  of  the  Pope, 
and  had^  wrested  it  from  Henry,  having  plundered, 
murdered,  defiled,  destroyed  everything.  There  only 
a  year  previously  the  solemn  ceremonial  had  taken 
place  of  the  coronation  of  the  victorious  Henry,  by 
the  antipope,  Clement  HI.  Now,  although  the  Nor- 
mans had  recovered  Rome,  Henry  and  the  antipope 
were  still  all  powerful.  Gregory  could  not  trust 
himself  in  his  own  episcopal  city.  In  exile  he  lived 
at  Salerno,  and  there  death  came  upon  him  slowly. 
Unrelenting  even  in  his  last  moments,  he  excepted 
from   the  general   absolution  which  he   pronounced 

^  GiES.  iii.  19. 

*  The  Norman  prince,  Richard,  had  taken  an  oath  of  fidelity  to 
Gregory  in  1073.     Lib.  i.  Ep.  21,  LabbS,  xii.  252.  ' 

p  2 


212  THE  HILDEBRANDIAN  ERA. 

PART     on  mankind,  his   implacable  enemies,   the  Emperor 

Henry,    and    the    usurping    Pontiff,    together    with 

their  counsellors  and  abettors,  and  then  giving  vent 
to  the  bitterness  of  his  soul,  he  uttered  his  last 
memorable  words,  '  I  have  loved  justice,  and  hated 
iniquity,  therefore  I  die  in  exile.'  An  ecclesiastic 
who  attended  on  him,  replied  :  '  Thou  canst  not  die 
in  exile,  Vicar  of  Christ  and  his  apostle  :  for  thou 
hast  the  heathen  for  thine  inheritance,  and  the  utter- 
most parts  of  the  earth  for  thy  possession,'  ^ 
A.D.  But  in   exile   Gregory  did  die,  forlorn,   deserted, 

1085'  friendless  ;  in  exile  he  atoned  for  his  undue  severity 
to  Henry  at  Canossa.  Beginning  his  Pontificate 
with  a  sincere  wish  to  reform  the  Church,  he  had 
soon  confounded  the  end  with  the  means,  his  own 
theory  of  government  with  reform.  Afterwards,  as 
this  theory  obtained  a  firmer  hold  upon  his  mind,  the 
enthusiasm  of  a  fanatic  grew  upon  him,  and  he  ended 
his  life  the  champion  of  the  Papal  theocracy.  He  had 
pushed  his  theory  to  its  logical  consequences,  and 
asserted  it  against  kings  and  bishops;  but  his  conduct 
was  premature.  Gregory's  treatment  of  the  em- 
peror unmasked  his  projects,  and  turned  back  for  a 
time  the  course  of  papal  victories.  In  the  storm, 
which  his  own  conduct  had  raised  about  the  Papacy, 
his  life  was  ended.  It  was  reserved  for  his  suc- 
cessors to  realise  the  schemes  which  their  daring 
predecessor  had  mapped  out.  Meantime  the  Hilde- 
brandian  era  did  not  pass  away  without  seeing  the 
fall  of  both  its  great  actors — Henry  humbled  at 
Canossa,  Gregory  dying  in  exile. 


'   Neand.  vii.  161  ;  GiES.  ii.  23. 


ACE  OF  GREATNESS. 


213 


CHAPTER   VIII. 

THE  POPES   AND  ANTIPOPES :    ALEXANDER  IL    TO 
ALEXANDER  IIL 

(1059—1179.) 

Super  aspidem  et  basiliscum  ambulabis  ;  et  conculcabis  leonem  et 
di-aconem. — Ps.  xc.  [xc]  13, 


T 


HE  struggle  between  the  Popes  and  antipopes,     chap. 


which  occupies  the  central  place  in  the  history 
of  the  See  of  Rome  for  rather  more  than  a  century, 
beginning  with  the  Papacy  of  Alexander  II.  and 
ending  with  that  of  Alexander  III.,  was  but  one  ex- 
pression of  a  general  rivalry,  which  dates  from  the 
coronation  of  Charles  the  Great,  and  does  not 
conclude  until  the  collapse  of  the  Holy  Empire.  It 
was  a  struggle,  in  fact,  between  two  rival  powers 
for  the  appointment  to  the  most  important  place 
in  Christendom.  If  the  Bishop  of  Rome  was  the 
supreme  sovereign  of  Christendom,  it  could  not  be 
indifferent  to  the  powers  of  Europe,  whether  he  were 
appointed  in  their  own  interests  and  by  their  influence, 
or  whether  he  were  created  by  a  body  opposed  to 
themselves.  Hence  they  who  aspired  to  lead  the 
Christian  world,  naturally  aspired  to  have  a  voice  in 
the  election  of  the  Pontiff.  No  wonder,  therefore,  that 
the  age  of  antipopes  should  begin  with  the  coronation 
of  Charles.    For  were  there  not  after  that  coronation 


214  "^^^  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 

PART  two  rival  aspirants  to  supremacy,  the  newly-crowned 
■ '- —  Transalpine  emperors,  and  the  people  of  Rome,  jea- 
lous of  their  old  privilege  of  election  ?  No  wonder, 
too,  that  antipopes  should  continue  to  be  raised 
up  from  time  to  time,  even  after  the  submission  of 
the  emperors,  until  the  age  of  the  reformation.  For 
were  not  the  interests  of  the  Transalpine  and  Cis- 
alpine Churches  divided,  and  was  not  therefore  each 
Church  anxious,  whenever  it  had  an  opportunity,  to 
secure  a  Pope  favourable  to  itself  ? 
A.  Causes  It  is  not,  however.  with  the  earlier  or  the  later 
pearanca  forms  of  this  Hval  Struggle  that  we  are  at  present  con- 
%ol^^^  cerned.  In  a  preceding  chapter,  several  instances  of 
antipopes  raised  up  to  resist  the  imperial  authority 
in  Italy  have  been  mentioned.^  In  a  subsequent 
chapter,  the  great  schism  of  the  West,  and  its  con- 
clusion after  the  Council  of  Basle,  will  engage  discus- 
sion.^ One  period  therefore  only  occupies  our  atten- 
tion here,  the  period  of  antipopes  in  the  narrower 
sense  of  the  term,  the  period  which  was  ushered  in 
by  the  bull  of  Nicolas  II.,  constituting  the  Electoral 
College,  and  which  was  concluded  by  that  of 
Alexander  III.,  requiring  a  majority  of  two-thirds  in 
that  college  to  make  an  election  valid.  The  bull  of 
Nicolas  II.  indeed  limited  the  right,  which  had  hitherto 
either  belonged  to  the  people  or  been  exercised  by 
the  emperors,  to  the  College  of  Cardinals  at  Rome;  but 
as  within  that  elective  body  there  was  the  same  play 
and  antagonism  of  interests  as  in  Christendom  gene- 
rally, it  likewise  compressed  this  rivalry  and  an- 
tagonism within  narrower  limits.    Antipopes  became 


»  See  Chap.  V.  pp.  128,  137.  2  chap.  XIV. 


CAUSES  OF  THE  RIVALRY. 


215 


more  common  than  they  had  been  heretofore.     With-     chap. 

.  VIII. 

in  the  newly-erected  College  of  Cardinals  the  same    

struggles  went  on  which  were  going  on  in  the  world 
at  large — struggles  between  the  Italian  and  the  Ger- 
man, between  the  Roman  and  the  imperial  parties. 
The  Roman  party,  with  which  the  clerical  was  now 
combined,  was  anxious  to  emancipate  itself  from  all 
other  control ;  the  imperial  to  vindicate  the  preroga- 
tives of  the  Empire.  The  rival  elections  of  the 
college  represent  these  parties  respectively,  and  were 
made  in  the  interests  of  either  the  one  or  the  other 
party.  They  were  but  another  instance  of  the  rivalry 
of  interests  which  lay  at  the  root  of  the  strife  about 
investitures,  which  was,  involved  in  Becket's  dis- 
pute with  Henry  II.  about  jurisdiction,  and  which 
prompted  the  papal  interference  with  clerical  pro- 
perty. The  rivalry  was,  in  fact,  as  old  as  the  intro- 
duction of  Latin  Christianity  among  the  Teutonic 
races.  It  was  the  same  rivalry  which,  under  other 
forms,  agitates  the  world  now. 

The  first  period  in  the  history  of  the  struggle  dates  (0  De- 

cyee  of 

from  the  Papacy  of  Alexander  II.,  and  extends  to  Nicolas 
the  time  of  the  compromise  on  the  subject  of  investi-  p.^^ 
tures  concluded  at  Worms,  between   Henry   I.  and  '^^"'•^^• 
Calixtus  II.     After  that  compromise  follows  a  period 
during  which  the  struggle  was  temporarily  in  abey- 
ance, both  the  Pope  and  the  emperor  being  engaged 
with  other  matters.      And  again,  thirty  years  later, 
the  struggle  was  revived  between  Frederic    I.   and 
Hadrian    IV.,  and  continued    until    the    year   1179, 
when    Alexander    III.,    by    a    new    bull,    rendered 
a  double  election  within  the  college  of  cardinals  im- 
possible. 


II 


2i6  THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 

PART  In  founding  the  College  of  Cardinals,  and  commit- 

ting to  it  the  election  of  all  future  Popes,  Nicolas 
was  unmistakably  raising  up  a  new  rival  authority  to 
that  of  the  emperor.  The  emperor  was  no  longer  to 
have  the  privilege — granted  by  Hadrian  1 1,  to  Charles 
the  Bald,  by  Leo  VIII.  to  Otto  I.,  and  exercised  by 
Otto  I.  in  the  appointment  of  Leo  VIII.,  by  Otto  III. 
in  that  of  Gregory  V.  and  Sylvester  II.,  by  Henry  III. 
in  that  of  Clement  II. — the  privilege  of  nominating  the 
Pope.  Only  a  limited  right  of  approval  was  allowed 
to  him ;  the  election  was  to  rest  with  the  cardinals  of 
the  people  and  city  of  Rome.^  It  was  the  emperor's 
wish  to  assert  the  imperial  authority  in  Italy  :  that 
of  the  Pope  was  to  have  Italy  independent  and 
himself  supreme  in  Rome.  With  interests  so  op- 
posed, it  was  natural  to  expect  that  the  views  of 
the  Pope  and  the  emperor  would  clash;  that  the 
papal  and  imperial  parties  would  come  into  collision. 
Nor  were  those  expectations  mistaken.  When  at 
the  next  vacancy  of  the  papal  chair  after  the  decree 
of  Nicolas  II.,  Alexander  II.  was  elected  according 
to  its  provisions,^  the  imperial  party,  headed  by  the 
Count  of  Galeria,  refused  to  accept  his  election  as 
valid,  and  at  Basle  elected  an  antipope  in  the  person 
of  Honorius  11.^ 

*  See  the  decree  quoted,  Chap.  VII.  p.  192  (note). 

2  Neand.  vi.  167  ;  Labb^,  Vit.  Alex.  II.  xii.  70. 

3  The  Hst  of  Popes  during  this  period  is  as  follows  : 

Popes  Antipopes 

Alexander  II.  1061,  died  1072.  Honor  his    II.    106 1,    died 

1066. 

Clement    III.    1080,   died 

HOC. 


Gregory  VII.  1073,  died  1085. 


CAUSES   OF   THE  RIVALRY.  2  17 

Taken  by  itself,  the  decree  of  Nicolas  would  have     chap. 

been   powerless    to    secure   success    to    the   Roman  '— 

party.       Nay,    more,    it    would    have    been    readily  man  as- 
superseded  by  the  imperial  authority.     But  there  were  ^^^^^"'^^• 
other  circumstances,  which  helped  to  give  it  weight. 
Chief  among  these  were  the  military  support  which 
the  Popes  had  latterly  experienced  from  a  new  power 
settled  in   Italy — the   Normans — and  the  moral  sup-   a.d.  1054 
port  which  they  gained  from  the  anti-German  sym- 
pathies   of  the   people.     Once    Leo    IX.,    when    a 
captive,  had  sanctioned  the  conquests  of  his  captors.^ 
Since  then  Nicolas  had  confirmed  Robert  Guiscard, 
the  Norman   Duke,  in   the  possession  of  Southern 
Italy  and  Sicily  ;^  and,  what  was  more,  had  received      '073 
from  him  in  return  an  oath  of  fealty  and  a  promise 
of  support.      To  cement  the  friendship  between  the 
Normans  and  the  Popes,  Alexander  II.  sent  a  con- 
secrated banner  to  William,  when  about  to  undertake 
the  conquest  of  England  ;^  and  the  Normans  had  in 

Popes  Antipopes 

Victor  III.  1086,  died  1087. 

Urban  II.  1087,  died  1099. 

Paschal  II.  1099,  died  11 18. 

Gelasius  II.  11 18,  died  11 19.  Gregory  VIII.  11 18,  taken 

prisoner  1121. 
Calixtus  II.  1 1 19,  died.  11 24, 

The  hfe  of  Alexander  II.  will  be  found  in  Labbe,  xii.  70; 
that  of  Gregory  VII.,  ibid.  p.  230  ;  that  of  Victor  III.,  ibid. 
p.  703  ;  that  of  Urban  II.,  ibid.  p.  711  ;  that  of  Paschal  II.,  ibid. 
p.  963  ;  that  of  Gelasius  II.,  ibid.  p.  1235  ;  that  of  Calixtus  II., 
ibid.  p.  1 25 1. 

1  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  Ivi.  p.  333. 

2  Gibbon,  ibid.  p.  334;  Gregorii  VII.  Ep.  i.  21;  Labbe, 
xii.  252. 

3  LiNGARD,  vol.  i.  ch.  vi.  p.  186. 


I  8  THE  POPES  AND  A  NT  I  POPES. 

PART  return  shown  their  fideHty  to  the  Pope.  When 
Gregory  VI  I.  was  enclosed  by  the  victorious  em- 
peror in  the  castle  of  St.  Angelo,  Robert  Guiscard 
came  to  his  relief,  and  rescuing  him  from  confinement, 
recovered  Rome  from  the  emperor's  hands.  The 
friendship  between  the  Popes  and  the  Normans 
increased  whilst  Urban  II.  was  an  exile.  He  found 
a  refuge  in  a  Norman  city  under  Norman  protection. 
At  a  later  time,  Eugenius  III.  was  brought  back  from 
exile  by  Roger,  King  of  Sicily,  and  the  gratitude  of 
Hadrian  IV.  confirmed  Roger's  successor,  William, 
in  his  newly-won  conquests. 

The  other  cause  which  favoured  the  growth  of 
papal  independence  was  popular  sympathy.  No- 
where was  this  so  clearly  manifested  as  in  the  life  of 
Gregory  VII.  Once  the  lawless  Roman,  Cencius, 
had  ventured  to  carry  him  off  by  force  from  the 
church,  when  he  was  keeping  the  vigil  on  the  eve 
of  Christmas  Day,  but  it  was  no  sooner  discovered 
that  Gregory  was  a  prisoner,  than  the  populace  surged 
round  the  castle  of  Cencius,  anxious  to  effect  a 
rescue  by  force.  Engines  were  brought  from  all 
quarters  :  the  walls  began  to  yield :  they  were 
broken  down  or  climbed  over.  When  at  length 
Gregory  stood  in  the  midst  of  his  deliverers,  a  res- 
cued man,  so  great  was  the  enthusiasm  in  his  favour, 
that  he  was  borne  in  triumph  to  the  church  of  St. 
Maria  Maggiore,  and  thence  to  the  Lateran.'  When 
the  first  crusade    had    been    preached,  the  popular 

'  MiLMAN,  book  vii.  vol.  iv.  ch.  ii.  p.  66  (small  edition). 


FIRST  PERIOD   OF   THE  RIVALRY.  2  10 

sympathy  again  showed  itself  on  the  side  of  the  chap. 
Popes.  A  crusading  army  marched  upon  Rome  — — — 
to  dethrone  the  antipope,  to  re-estabhsh  Urban  11. 
And  who  will  say,  to  what  extent  popular  sympathy 
was  influential  in  facilitatinof  the  return  of  Euee- 
nius  III.  to  Rome,  at  the  very  time  that  the  second 
crusade  was  being  undertaken  ?  The  Popes  would 
have  had  a  slender  chance  of  success  in  a  lenethened 
struggle  with  so  mighty  a  potentate  as  the  emperor, 
had  not  the  sympathies  of  the  people  been  enlisted 
in  their  behalf.  In  advancing  to  power  they  only 
expressed  the  popular  wish.     All  men  of  any  moral  • 

earnestness  were  to  be  found  in  the  ranks  of 
their  supporters — Anselm,  Peter  Damiani,  Bernard, 
Thomas  a  Becket.  Those  who  opposed  the  Pope 
were  mostly  the  licentious  and  lawless  prelates.  It 
may  be  granted  that  the  channel  in  which  the  popular 
sympathy  flowed,  was  one  likely  to  lead  to  mischief, 
but  it  ought  never  to  be  forgotten  that  it  was  the 
one  in  which  all  the  earnest  and  devout  men  of 
the  day  were  to  be  found. 

Until  the  time  of  Gregory  VII.,  the  contest  be-  b.  First 
tween   the  rival  parties   did  not   assume  any  great    ^^^^  * 
importance.      Honorius  II.  had  been  set  up  in  oppo-  1061-1122 
sition    to    Alexander    II.,  but    the    emperor  was    a  alder  iT. 
child  at  the  time,  and  the  schism  was  soon  healed  bv  '^"^.^'^- 

•'    nortus  II. 

the  intervention  of  his  guardian,  Anno  of  Cologne.       1061 
No   doubt    the  desire  felt  by  the   German    princes 
to  weaken  the   royal    power   may  have   helped   to 
settle  the  dispute,   since  to  them  it  was  a  matter  of 
moment  to  strengthen  the  Pope's  hand  against   the 


2  20  '~  THE  POPES  AND  A  NT  IP  OPES. 

PART     emperor.^     Honorius  was  soon  forsaken,  and  Alex- 


II. 


ander  was  universally  acknowledged  at  Mantua. 


inent  III. 

A.D. 


(2)  Gre-  Far  different  was  the  case  of  the  rival  Pope, 
andcie-'  Clement  III.,  who  was  elected  at  Brescia  in  the  year 
1080  1080  by  the  imperial  party — a  party  then  consoli- 
dated by  Henry's  unfortunate  struggle  with  Gregory 
VII.,  and  daily  gaining  in  strength.  Gregory's  designs 
had  been  unmasked,  and  the  rival  emperor  was  dead.^ 
For  ten  years,  the  antipope,  Clement  III.,  ruled  at 
Rome.  Meantime,  Gregory  VII.  ended  his  days  at 
Salerno,  Victor  III.  lived  and  died  at  Monte  Casino, 
and  Urban  II.  was  an  exile  at  Amalfi,  Monte  Casino, 
or  some  other  of  the  Norman  cities  under  Norman 
protection.  It  seemed  as  though  the  emperor  had 
recovered  all  his  ancient  authority,  as  though  the 
decree  of  Nicolas  would  henceforth  be  no  more  than 
a  dead  letter.  Suddenly  a  new  power  was  thrown 
into  the  scale  of  the  Pope,  and  all  was  changed. 

This  new  power  was  no  other  than  popular  sym- 
pathy, which  found  an  opportunity  for  expressing 
itself  in  the  first  crusade.  In  the  spring  of  the  year 
1095,  there  assembled  at  Piacenza,  at  the  summons  of 


^  Neand.  vi.  1 68.  Alexander  was  first  acknowledged  at  the 
Synod  of  Osborn,  1062,  afterwards,  generally,  at  the  Synod  of 
Mantua,  1064. 

2  After  Henry  IV.'s  penance  at  Canossa,  January  1077,  the 
majority  of  German  princes  assembled  at  Forchheim,  March  1077, 
and  elected  Rudolph,  Duke  of  Swabia,  to  be  their  king.  Gregory 
VII.  declared  for  Rudolph,  March  1080,  whereupon  Henry's  par- 
tisans, meeting  at  Mainz  and  Brescia,  elected  Guibert,  Archbishop 
of  Ravenna,  to  be  Pope,  June  1080.  He  took  the  name  of 
Clement  III.  The  rival  emperor  died  in  October  1080.  See 
GiES.  iii.  20,  LABBf,  xii.  646. 


FIRST  PERIOD   OF   THE   RIVALRY.  221 

Urban,  a  vast  concourse  of  people,  of  bishops  and     chap. 

abbots,  of  clergy  and  of  laity  :  no  church  or  public  

building  could  contain  the  host :  they  met  in  the 
great  plain  outside  the  city.  One  spirit  seemed  to 
have  possessed  them  all ;  one  petition  seemed  to  be 
in  the  mouth  of  all — to  go  forth  against  the  unbe- 
lievers who  had  captured  Jerusalem.  Not  less  was 
the  enthusiasm  shown  at  Clermont,  where  another 
council  was  held,  and  where  Urban  himself,  in  glow- 
ing terms,  described  how  the  infidels  were  the  lords  of 
the  Holy  City,  hallowed  by  the  life  and  death  of  the 
Saviour ;  how  now  the  churches  and  the  Holy  Sepul- 
chre had  become  stalls  for  cattle,  and  Christian  men 
were  massacred,  and  Christian  women  ravished  within 
its  holy  precincts.  The  desire  to  respond  to  the  sum- 
mons spread  like  an  epidemic  madness  ;  ^  and  those 
whose  enthusiasm  had  been  enkindled  against  the 
enemies  of  Christendom,  were  not  less  bitter  against 
the  enemies  of  the  Pope  who  had  fanned  the  enthu- 
siasm. A  crusading  army  marched  upon  Rome,  to 
restore  the  Pope  before  it  marched  to  Jerusalem. 
The  antipope,  Clement  HI.,  was  driven  from  Rome  ; 
his  influence  was  gone;  and  he  died  in  obscurity,  a.d.  noo 
Urban  H.  was  restored  to  his  See. 

No  rival  Pope  ventured  to  contest  the  chair  of  St.   T/u^ 
Peter  during  the  Papacy  of  Paschal  H.     His  nine-  V/ab^y. 
teen  years  of  office  were  occupied  with  other  troubles,   f//^^^^ 
In  England  the  struggle  respecting  investitures  was  P^^c^ial 
going  on  between  Anselm  and  King  Henry  I.,  and  1099-1118 
not  concluded  till  the  year  1106  :  in  Germany,  those       '"^ 


1  Neand.  vii.  168 ;  Gies.  iii.  31. 


222 


THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 


PART 
II. 


between  the  Pope  and  Henry  IV.  and  the  Pope  and 
Henry  V.  on  the  same  subject — Henry,  stern  and 
exacting  ;  the  Pope,  weak  and  vacillating,  agreeing  to 
a  compact  one  year  and  annulling  his  grant  the 
next.  But  no  sooner  was  Paschal  H.  dead,  than  the 
emperor  set  up  Gregory  VHI.  in  opposition  to  the 
(3)  Gela-  regularly-elected  Pope,  Gelasius  H.^     For  the  third 

sins  lit 

and  time  since  the  decree  of  Nicolas,  within  the  space  of 

VIIL^  sixty  years,  an  antipope  had  been  set  up.  This  time 
A.D.  1 1 18  the  emperor  seemed  determined  to  carry  matters 
with  a  high  hand,  and  the  rightful  Pope  lingered  and 
died  in  exile.  And  yet  it  was  only  so  in  appearance, 
the  imperial  victory  was  short-lived.  Three  years 
after  the  rival  pope,  Gregory  VHI.,  had  been  ap- 
pointed, Calixtus  H,  was  master  of  Rome,  the  anti- 
pope  his  prisoner.  Over  the  Concordat  of  Worms, 
the  first  scene  in  the  history  of  antipopes  closes.^  The 
last  Franconian  emperor,  Henry  V.,  is  seen  releasing 
to  God  and  St.  Peter  all  investiture  by  ring  and  staff, 


1  GiES.  iii.  44. 

2  Conventus  Wormati.  an.  1122,  LabbiS,  xii.  1325  :  'Ego  Cal- 
'  listus  Episcopus,  servus  servorum  Dei,  tibi  dilecto  filio  Henrico, 

*  Dei  gratia  Romanorum  imperatori  augusto,  concedo  electiones 
'  episcoporum  et  abbatum  Teutonici  regni,  qui  ad  regnum  perti- 
'  nent,  in  praesentia  tua  fieri,  absque  simonia  et  aliqua  violentia. 

*  .  .  .  Electus  autem  a  te  regalia  accipiat  per  sceptrum  ;  exceptis 
'  omnibus  quae  ad  Romanam  ecclesiam  pertinere  noscuntur.  .  .  . 

*  Ego  Henricus   Romanorum  imperator  augustus,  pro   amore 

*  Dei  et  sanctae  Romanae  ecclesiae,  et  domini  papae  Callisti,  et 
'  pro  remedio  animae  meae,  remitto  Deo  et  Sanctis  apostolis  Dei 
'  Petro  et  Paulo,  sanctaeque  catholicae  ecclesiae,  omnem  investi- 
'  turam  per  annulum  et  baculum ;  et  concedo  in  omnibus  ecclesiis 
'  quae  in'  regno  et  imperio  meo  sunt,  canonicam  fieri  electionem 
'  et  liberam  fieri  consecrationem.' 


DEPRESSION  OF  PAPACY  AND  EMPIRE. 


223 


restoring  to  the  Roman  Church  the  possessions  and     chap. 

regaha  of  St.    Peter,  and  declaring  true  peace  with  

his  lord,  Pope  Calixtus  and  the  Roman  Church. 
Calixtus  is  seen  allowing  ecclesiastical  elections  to  be 
made  in  the  presence  of  the  emperor,  and  permitting 
the  person  elect  to  receive  the  regalia  by  the  sceptre. 
Then  the  curtain  falls.  When  it  next  rises,  it  is  on 
a  new  scene.  The  imperial  house  of  Franconia  has 
become  extinct;  Lothar  II.,  an  emperor  devoted  to 
the  Papacy,  has  succeeded  to  the  throne.^ 

And  yet  the  troubles  of  the  Papacy  were  by  no  C.  De- 
means  over,  although  its  first  struggle  for  re-  o/thT'' 
cognised  equality  with  the  empire  had  ended  in  a  ^^n^f^^ 
successful  compromise.^  For  a  time  it  withdrew  from  ^»^P"'e. 
the  struggle.  Its  power  was  depressed.  Foremost  p-ession 
among  the  causes  of  this  depression  was  an  internal  %fll^ 
struggle,  a  rivalry  of  Pope  against  Pope,  not  of  an       {a) 

Schism, 

A.D.   1 1 30 

'  Henry  V.  died  11 25.  Lothar  II.,  who  followed  him,  was  a 
Saxon. 

^  The  Popes  during  the  next  epoch  are  as  follows  : 

Popes  Antipopes 

Honorius  II.  11 24,  died  1130. 

Innocent  II.  1 130,  ^/V^  11 43.  Anadetus  II.   1130,  died 

1138. 
Coelestine  II.  1143,  died  1144. 
Lucius  II.  1 144,  died  1145. 
Eugenius  III.  1145,  died  1153. 
Anastasius  IV.  1153,  died  11 54. 
Hadrian  IV.  11 54,  died  1159. 

The  lives  of  these  Popes  will  be  found  in  Labb^  ;  that  of 
Honorius  II.,  Labb^,  xii.  1349 ;  that  of  Innocent  II.,  ibid. 
p.  1407  ;  that  of  Coelestine  II.,  ibid.  p.  1549  ;  that  of  Lucius  II., 
ibid.  p.  1561  j  that  of  Eugenius  III.,  ibid.  p.  157 1  ;  that  of 
Anastasius  IV.,  ibid.  xiii.  p.  i  ;  that  of  Hadrian  IV.,  ibid.  p.  1 1. 


224 


THE  POPES  AND  AN TI POPES. 


PART     antipope  set   up   in  the  imperial   interest  against  a 

—    Pope  elected  in  the  interests  of  Italy,  but  of  two  rival 

Popes,  each  of  whom  had  the  support  of  a  party 
among  the  cardinals.  Such  a  division  would  have 
been  impossible  but  for  the  decree  of  Nicolas. 
It  would  also  have  been  impossible,  if  that  decree 
had  been  explicit  as  to  the  number  of  votes  neces- 
sary to  secure  an  election.  The  rival  Popes  were 
A.D.  1130  Innocent  II.  and  Anacletus  11.^ — Innocent,  who 
had  the  advantage  of  an  earlier  election,  but 
of  doubtful  validity  ;  Anacletus,  who  had  the  majo- 
rity of  the  cardinals  in  his  favour,  and  who  early 
gained  the  support  of  Roger,  Duke  of  Sicily.  But 
there  was  one  circumstance  which  from  the  first  told 
against  Anacletus.  He  was  a  Jew  by  descent,  the 
grandson  of  a  rich  Jewish  banker,  who  had  embraced 
Christianity.  It  is  difficult  to  say  to  what  extent  the 
prejudice  against  his  birth  told  against  his  cause.  In 
most  countries  Jews  were  hated,  plundered,  pro- 
scribed, executed ;  ecclesiastics  had  no  mercy  for 
them ;  and  even  the  spiritual  St.  Bernard,  who  from 
the  first  warmly  espoused  the  cause  of  Innocent, 
called  on  the  emperor  to  vindicate  his  throne  from 
the  Sicilian  usurper,  and  to  defend  the  Church  from 
the  Jewish  schismatic.  It  is  probable  that  this  pre- 
judice weighed  greatly  in  the  mind  of  St.  Bernard, 
and  to  St.  Bernard  Innocent  was  indebted  for  the 
possession  of  his  See  in  the  long  run.  Driven  from 
Rome,  where  Anacletus  reigned  supreme.  Innocent 
had  taken  refuge  in  France.    There  by  St.  Bernard's 

'  Neand.  vii.  130. 


DEPRESSION  OE  PAPACY  AND  EMPIRE. 


225 


influence  he  was  acknowledged  as  lawful   Pope  by    chap. 
the  kings  of  France,  England,  Spain,  and  at  last  by 


VIII. 


the  Emperor  Lothar.  Yielding  to  the  instances  of 
St.  Bernard,  the  latter  even  crossed  the  Alps,  and  a.d.  1133 
advanced  on  Rome  in  company  with  Innocent.^  To 
reward  his  fidelity,  the  Pope  solemnly  crowned  him 
in  the  Lateran  Church,  when  Lothar  swore  to  pro- 
tect the  Pope  and  the  royalties  of  St.  Peter  to  the 
utmost  of  his  power,  and  to  enforce  the  restoration 
of  all  the  rights  and  possessions  withheld  by  violence 
from  the  See.  Three  years  later,  he  again  appeared  "3^ 
with  the  intention  of  restoring  Innocent  to  Rome, 
and  Rome  to  Italy  ;  but  the  death  of  Anacletus,  whilst 
he  was  being  besieged  in  the  impregnable  fortress  of  Jan.  1138 
St.  Angelo,  relieved  him  of  his  formidable  antagonist. 
At  Rome,  on  April  4,  11 39,  a  thousand  bishops,  "39 
countless  abbots,  and  other  ecclesiastical  dignitaries, 
assembled  for  the  second  Lateran  Council,  to  com- 
memorate the  termination  of  the  schism,  which  had 
so  long  depressed  the  Papal  power ;  and  there  the 
Pope  distinctly  enunciated  the  new  doctrine  that  he 
was  a  spiritual  liege-lord  on  a  level  with  temporal 
liege-lords,  of  whom  all  ecclesiastical  dignities  were 
held,  as  temporal  dignities  were  held  of  kings. 
There,  too,  he  denounced  the  sacrilegious  ambition 
of  the  antipope,  degraded  all  whom  he  had  promoted, 
expelled  and  deposed  all  whom  he  had  consecrated.^ 

1  Lothar's  first  appearance  in  Italy  was  in  the  year  1133.  His 
second  visit  1136.  He  died  before  the  siege  of  Rome,  December 
1 137.  See  MiLMAN,  vol.  iv.  book  viii.  ch.  iv.  p.  320;  Neand. 
vii.  195. 

2  Chronicon  Mauriniacense,  apud  Labbe,  xii.   1507,  an.   1139, 

Q 


226 


THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 


PART 
II. 

{b)  Ro- 
man Re- 
public. 


But  the  voice  of  triumph  had  hardly  died  away, 
when  the  council  had  to  treat  of  another  subject, 
which  threatened  the  papal  power  with  new  danger. 
Arnold,  a  young  clergyman  of  Brescia,  trained  in  the 
school  of  Abelard,  who  had  learnt  from  Gregory  VII. 
the  lesson  of  stirring  up  the  laity  against  the  corrupt 
clergy,  had  come  forward  as  a  preacher  of  righteous- 
ness. His  aim  was  to  make  a  distinction  between 
the  Church  and  the  State ;  to  bring  back  the  Church 
to  the  pattern  of  Apostolic  times  ;  to  leave  the  State 
to  take  care  of  itself.^  At  the  second  Lateran  Coun- 
cil he  was  condemned  and  driven  from  Italy.  But 
from  his  exile  in  France  his  teachinsf  came  back  to 
Italy  and  Rome.  The  old  dream  of  a  Roman  re- 
public revived  in  men's  minds,  as  they  heard  that  the 
Pope's  claim   to    temporal    sovereignty  was  a    new 


the  Pope  in  his  allocution  says  :  '  Nostis,  quia  Roma  caput  est 
'  mundi,  et  quia  a  Romani  pontificis  licentia  ecclesiastici  honoris 
'  celsitudo  quasi  feodalis  juris  consuetudine  suscipitur  et  sine  ejus 
'  permissione  legaliter  non  tenetur.  Scitis  etiam,  quia  ejus  pro- 
'  prium  est,  ut  dissentientes  pacificet,  et  confusa  sapienter  disponat 
'  et  ordinet.  Porro  impossibile  est,  ut  unguentum  in  barbam  de- 
'  scendat,  si  in  capite  non  redundat.'     See  Can.  30. 

1  According  to  the  authorities  in  Labbe,  xii.  15 10:  '[Arnold] 
'  dicebat  nee  clericos  proprietatem,  nee   episcopos   regalia,   nee 

*  monachos  possessiones  habentes,  aliqua  ratione  salvari  posse  ; 

*  cunctaque  haec  principis  esse,  ab  ejusque  beneficentia  in  usum 
'  tantum  laicorum  cedere  oportere.     Praeter  haec  de  sacramento 

*  altaris  et  baptismo  parvulorum  non  sane  dicitur  sensisse.'  Pro- 
bably Canon  23,  ibid.  1505,  was  directed  against  Arnold  : 
'  Eos  autem  qui  religiositatis  speciem  simulantes,  Domini  corporis 
'  et  sanguinis  sacramentum,  baptisma  puerorum,  sacerdotium,  et 
'  caeteros  ecclesiaslicos  ordines,  et  legitimarum  damnant  foedera 
'  nuptiarum,  tanquam  haereticos  ab  ecclesia  Dei  pellimus  et  dam- 

*  namus  et  per  potcstatcs  exteras  coerceri  praecipimus.' 


DEPRESSION  OF  PAPACY  AND  EMPIRE. 


227 


thing.      They  required  the  Pope  to  confine  himself    chap. 
to  spiritual  affairs.      They  committed  to  a  senate  es-  L 


tabllshed   on  the  capital,   the  supreme   direction  of 
affairs.^     They  renounced  their  allegiance  to   Inno-    a.d.  1143 
cent.      His   successor,  Lucius    II.,  met  his   death  In       1145 
attempting  to  storm  the  capital.    And  Eugenius  III. 
was  forced  to  yield  to  superior  force,  and  to  take       1146 
refuge  In  France,     The  Papacy  seemed  prostrate  ; 
this     time     prostrate    before     the    Romans    them- 
selves. 

Meantime   the  Imperial   prerogative  was  also  de-  W  De- 
pression 
pressed.      The   nobles  had   taken  advantage  of  the  of  Em- 

long  state  of  anarchy  under  Henry  IV.  and  Henry  ^^*^' 
V.  to  make  their  fiefs  hereditary  ;  and  these,  when 
now  vacant,  could  only  be  granted  afresh  by  the  con- 
sent of  the  states.  The  jurisdiction  of  the  crown  had 
been  confined  within  narrower  limits.  The  principle 
of  Imperial  elections  was  gradually  supplanting  that 
of  hereditary  descent.^  Lothar  II.  and  Conrad  III. 
both  owed  their  elevation  to  election.  Instead  of  the 
reverence  which  had  formerly  encircled  the  emperor, 
as  the  august  head  of  Christendom,  enjoying  the 
privilege  of  naming  his  successors,  a  greater  import- 
ance was  now  attached  to  the  commonwealth  of 
princes  and  barons.  And  there  was  not  wanting  in 
Germany  a  strong  party,  that  of  the  Welfs,  related 
but  opposed  to  the  ruling  family  of  the  Hohen- 
staufen,  and  supported  by  the  descendants  of  those 


*  Neand.  vii.  200;  GiES.  iii.  52. 
2  See  the  note  in  Chap.  XVI I, 
Q  2 


228 


THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 


TART     who  had  been  attached  to  the  old  house  of  Saxony/ 

— '. —   which  preferred  to  side  with  the  Pope  rather  than 

give   allegiance   to    the  new  imperial   house.     The 
clergy,  too,  had  become  dangerous,  partly  owing  to 
the   Hildebrandian  reforms,  which  knit  them  more 
closely  together,  partly  owing  to  the  spiritual  feudal- 
A.D.  1 122   ism  which  the  Concordat  of  Worms  implied  and  the 
1 139      second    Lateran    council    expressed.      Neither   Lo- 
thar    II.    nor    Conrad    III.    were   able   to   contend 
against  these  disadvantages.     Lothar  had    not   de- 
manded the  homage  of  the  clergy  for  their  imperial 
fiefs  ;  he  had  received  Matilda's  allodial  lands  as  a 
"33      fee  to  be  held  of  the  Pope.^     Conrad  III.  had  been 


^  The  genealogy  of  the  Welfs  is  as  follows  : 

Welf  IV.,  Duke  of  Bavaria,  died  iioi. 


Welf  V. 

m.  Matilda  of  Tuscany, 

died  1 1 20. 


I 

Henry  the  Black, 

Duke  of  Bavaria, 

m.  Wulfhilde  Bilking, 

died  1 1 26. 


HENRY  the  Proud, 
m.  Gertrude  of  Supplinburg. 


Judith, 
m.  Frederick,  Duke 
of  Swabia. 


Welf  VI. 
died  1 191. 


HENRY  the  Lion,  Emperor  FREDERICK  I.  Welf, 

Duke  of  Saxony  and  Bavaria,  (Barbarossa),  died  wd'j. 

m.  Matilda  of  England,  of  Hohenstaufen. 

died  1 195. 


Henry  the  Younger,  LoTilAR,         OTTO  IV.        William  Longsword, 

of  the  Palatinate,  died  1190.       vt.  Beatrix  of       m.  Helen  of  Denmark, 

m.  Agnes  of  Hohen-  Hohenstaufen,  died  12 13. 

staufen,  died  \2.2.1.  died  1218,  as  Emperor  I 

OTTO  the  Child, 

Duke  of  Brunswick-Luneburg, 

Ancestor  of  the  House  of 

Bmnswick,  died  1252. 

2  The  document,  Innocent  II.,  Ep.  ii.  Labbe,  xii.  1409. 


DEPl^ESSION  OF  PAPACY  AND  EMPIRE. 


229 


involved  in  domestic  troubles ;  he  had  been  absent    chap. 

on  a  crusade,  without  having  gained  any  advantage    '. 

in  battle.  The  emperors  were  in  fact  too  weak  to 
take  advantage  of  the  depressed  state  of  the  Papacy 
for  recovering  their  own  power. 

Just  as  the  first  crusade  turned  the  ebbino^-tide  of  (2)  ^f- 

^  tuniiiig 

Papal  advancement,  so  the  second  crusade  was  the  power". 
signal  for  the  return  of  the  Popes  to  prosperity  and 
to  Rome.  The  same  year  that  saw  the  return  of 
Conrad  and  Louis,  and  the  remains  of  the  vast  host, 
whose  enthusiasm  at  Vezelay  under  the  preaching  of 
St.  Bernard  knew  no  bounds,  and  which  had  vented 
itself  in  a  tumultuous  cry  of  'the  Cross  !  the  Cross  !' 
saw  Eugenius  III.  return  from  his  exile  to  Italy.^ 
The  following  year  saw  him  at  Rome.  His  return  a.d.  1149 
to  Rome  was  brought  about  by  the  help  of  Roger, 
King  of  Sicily,  and  the  Normans,  the  ancient  allies 
of  the  Popes.  Probably,  too,  the  enthusiasm  for  the 
crusades  directed  popular  sympathy  at  Rome  towards 
their  bishop,  and  disposed  the  Roman  people  to  re- 
ceive Eugenius  as  their  Pope,  whilst  they  refused  to 
own  him  as  their  sovereign.^  Once  at  Rome,  his 
influence  rapidly  increased.  His  skilful  and  well- 
timed  use  of  means  wrought  wonders  in  his  favour, 
far  more  than  arms  or  excommunications  could  have 
done.  His  gentleness,  generosity,  magnificence,  and 
charity    slowly    supplanted    the    senate    in    popular 

'  He  returned  to  Rome,  an.  1149,  by  the  help  of  Roger,  King 
of  Sicily.     GiES.  iii.  54. 

2  After  his  first  return  to  Rome  Eugenius  III.  went  away.  On 
his  second  return,  an.  1152,  he  won  the  city.  See  Mil.  vol.  iv. 
book  viii.  ch.  vii.  p.  404. 


2'>o  THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES, 

PART     attachment     Arnold's  power  was  wasting  away,  and 

'. the  victory  which  was  inaugurated  by  Eugenius  III. 

was  completed  by  Hadrian  IV.  This  Pope,  the 
only  Englishman  who  ever  filled  the  Papal  chair, 
confronted  Arnold  with  severer  weapons  than  his, 
predecessor  had  done.^  He  pronounced  on  him 
sentence  of  banishment ;  he  laid  Rome  under  an 
interdict.  His  spiritual  censures  overcame  the  senate. 
A.D.  1 155  Arnold  was  banished  ;  the  Republic  was  at  an  end  ; 
the  Pope  was  master  in  the  metropolis  ;  and  Hadrian 
IV.,  in  return  for  the  support  vouchsafed  by  the 
Normans  to  his  cause,  confirmed  William,  King  of 
Sicily,  in  all  his  conquests.^  Well  might  the  lan- 
guage addressed  by  St.  Bernard  to  Eugenius  III. 
appear  to  his  contemporaries  not  unfitting  language 
to  be  addressed  to  Hadrian  after  such  a  success :  ^ 


1  Between  Eugenius  III.  and  Hadrian  IV.  a  Pope,  Anastasius 
IV.,  intervenes,  who  held  the  dignity  for  one  year  only. 

^  Ep.  viii.  ad  Willelmum  Regem  Siciliae,  Labb^,  xiii.  21  : 
'  Hadrianus  episcopus  servus  servorum  Dei,  carissimo  in  Christo 
'  Filio  Willelmo  illustri  et  glorioso  Siciliae  regi  ejusque  heredibus, 
'  quos  pro  voluntaria  ordinatione  sua  statuerit  in  regnum,  in  per- 
'  petuum.  .  .  .  Ut  autem  quae  supra  diximus  tani  nostro  quani 
'  successorum  nostrorum  tempore  perpetuam  obtineant  firmitatem, 
'  et  nee  tuis,  nee  tuorum  heredum  temporibus,  alicujus  valeant 
'  praesumptione  turbari  :  nos  ea  de  communi  consilio  et  voluntate 
'  fratrum  nostrorum  auctoritate  apostolica  confirmamus,  et  vali- 
'  tura  in  perpetuum  praesentis  scripti  pagina  communimus  ;  et 
'  tam  a  nobis  quam  a  nostris  successoribus  perpetuis  temporibus 
'  statuimus  observanda.' 

3  S.  Bernard.  De  Cojisid.  ii.  8  :  '  Tu  quis  es  %  Sacerdos  mag- 
*  nus,  summus  I'ontifex.  Tu  princeps  Episcoporum,  tu  haeres 
'  Apostolorum,  tu  primatu  Abel,  gubernatu  Noe,  patriarchatu 
'  Abraham,  ordine  Melchisedech,  dignitate  Aaron,  auctoritate 
'  Moyses,  judicatu  Samuel,  potestate    Petrus,  unctione  Christus. 


LAST  PERIOD   OF   THE  STRUGGLE.  2"! 

'  Chief  of  bishops,  heir  of  the  apostles,  in  precedence     chap. 
an  Abel,  in  government  a  Noah,  in  sireship  an  Abra-  L_ 


\ 


ham,  in  order  a  Melchisedek,  in  dignity  an  Aaron, 
in  authority  a  Moses,  in  judgeship  a  Samuel,  in 
power  a  Peter,  in  unction  a  Christ ;  to  thee  are  de- 
livered the  keys,  to  thee  the  sheep  are  entrusted. 
Others  too  are  porters  of  heaven,  and  shepherds  of 
flocks  ;  but  thou  art  more  glorious  than  they,  inas- 
much as  thou  hast  inherited  a  name  far  above 
the  rest.  They  have  each  one  a  single  flock  to  tend, 
but  to  thee  all  are  entrusted,  to  thee  as  one  fold  : 
Nor  art  thou  the  guardian  only  of  the  flocks,  but 
also  of  all  the  shepherds,  thou  alone.' 

A  thrill  of  enthusiasm  runs  through  every  historian  d.  Re- 
at  the  mention  of  the  name  of  the  great  emperor,  stnis^gle 
Frederic   Barbarossa,  under  whom  the  Empire  re-  ^Lfj^^^' 
covered  from  its  depression,  but  recovered  only  to       a.d. 
succumb  afresh  to  the  growing  power  of  the  Popes  ; 
his  reign  being  like  the  last  bright  ray  which  lights 
up  the  heaven  at  sunset,  before  the  evening  finally 
closes   in.     About   the   person   and    history  of   this 
emperor,  '  of  stature  moderately  tall,  with  red  hair 
and  beard,  with  sparkling  eyes,  broad  shoulders,  and 
manly  bearing,'  ^  there  hangs  a  tale  of  interest,  not 
merely  connected  with  the  circumstances  under  which 
he  lost  his  life,  but  with  his  whole  relations  to  the 

'  Tu  es,  cui  claves  traditae,  cui  oves  creditae  sunt.  Sunt  quidem 
*  et  alii  caeli  janitores,  et  gregum  pastores  ;  sed  tu  tanto  gloriosius, 
'  quanto  et  differentius  utrumque  prae  ceteris  nomen  haereditasti. 
'  Habent  illi  sibi  assignatos  greges,  singuli  singulos  ;  tibi  universi 
'  crediti,  uni  unus.  Nee  modo  ovium,  sed  et  pastorum  tu  unus 
'  omnium  pastor.' 

'  Itinerar.  Reds  Audor.  Ric.  ch.  xxiv. 


232  THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES, 

PART     Popes.      It    was    his   destiny  first   to   help  them   to 

- '. recover  their ^  power  in  Rome,  and  then  to  learn  to 

his  cost   what    it   was  to  be  the  first  victim    upon 
whom  that  recovered  power  was  exercised. 

During  the  Papacy  of  Hadrian  IV.,  ^  the  struggle 
(0  ,     broke  out  between  the  Popes  and  the  emperors  on 

struggles  ^  ^  ^ 

of  Frcde-    three  separate  occasions.      Twice   Frederic  crossed 
until  the  Alps  and  visited   Italy,  and  on  each  occasion  he 

jY^  '^'^"    returned  victorious  from  the  conflict.     On  the  first 
occasion    a    rupture    seemed    imminent.       He    had 
A.D.  1154   crossed  the  Alps  intending  to  restore  the  almost  for- 
gotten imperial  rights  in   Italy,  and  had  refused  to 
hold  the  Pope's  stirrup  as  his  predecessor,  the  Em- 


'  Hadrian  IV.  in  the  first  year  of  his  Pontificate,  an.  1155,  had 
placed  Rome  under  a  ban,  because  one  of  the  Cardinals  had  been 
attacked  and  wounded  by  Arnold's  followers.  This  was  more 
than  the  Romans  could  bear,  and  Arnold  was  driven  from  Rome. 
He  thereupon  found  protection  and  an  asylum  among  some  Italian 
nobles  ;  but  he  was  torn  from  his  protectors  by  order  of  the 
Emperor  Frederic,  and  handed  over  to  the  papal  authority.  His 
punishment  was  inflicted  by  the  prefect  of  Rome  :  he  was  hung ; 
his  body  was  burned,  and  his  ashes  were  thrown  into  the  Tiber. 
See  Neand.  vii.  217. 

2  The  Popes  during  this  period  are  as  follows  : 

Popes  Antipopes 

Hadrian  IV.  11 54,  died  11 59. 

Alexander  in.  1159,  <:'^.  11 80.  Victor  IV.  ii^g,  ol>.  1164. 

Paschal  III.  1164,  oif.  11 68. 
Calixtiis  III  1 168,  deposed 
by  Lateran   Council,  an. 
1179. 
Lucius  III.  1 181,  oh.  1 185.  


For  the  life  of  Hadrian  IV.,  see  Labb^,   xiii.    11;  for  that  of 
Alexander  III.,  ibid.  65  ;  for  that  of  Lucius  TIL,  ibid.  630. 


LAST  PERIOD   OF  THE  STRUGGLE. 


233 


peror    Lothar  II.,  had  done.       But  the  threatened     chap. 

rupture  was  this  time  averted  by  mutual  concessions  :  '— 

Frederic  yielding  the  point,  in  order  to  obtain  the 
imperial  crown,  without  which  his  claims  to  rule 
might  have  been  constantly  disputed ;  Hadrian  willing  June  18, 
to  give  the  crown  in  return  for  the  emperor's  help  in 
overthrowing  Arnold  and  his  party. ^  When,  how- 
ever, Hadrian,  in  a  letter  addressed  to  the  emperor, 
prayed  for  the  punishment  of  some  German  knights 
who  had  plundered  a  bishop  returning  from  a  pil- 
grimage, and  reminded  him  of  the  imperial  crown 
and  other  dene/ida,  which  had  been  bestowed  on 
him  by  the  favour  of  the  Popes,  his  language^  was  the 
signal  of  a  renewed  outbreak,  in  which  all  estates, 
not  excluding  the  bishops,  took  part.^  For  the 
second  time,  Frederic  marched  into  Italy.^    The  Pope 


'  GiES.  iii.  58.     Frederic  was  crowned  June  18,  1155. 
"^  Ep.  ii.  Labbe,  xiii.  16  :  Ad  Fredericum  Imperatorem,  de  non 
'  vindicata  injuria  Lundoniensi  archiepiscopo  illata  :  '  Debes  enim, 

*  gloriosissime  fili,  ante  oculos  mentis  reducere,  quam  gratanter  et 
'  quam  jucunde  alio  anno  mater  tua  sacrosancta  Romana  ecclesia 

*  te  susceperit,  quanta  cordis  aftectione  tractaverit,  quantam  tibi 
'  dignitatis  plenitudinem  contulerit  et  honoris,  et  qualiter  imperialis 
'  insigne  coronae  libentissime  conferens,  benignissimo  gremio  sue 
'  subliniitatis  apicem  studuerit  confovere  :  nihil  prorsus  efficiens 
'  quod  regiae  voluntati  vel  in  minimo  cognosceret  obviare.  Neque 
'  tanien  poenitet  nos  desideria  tuae  voluntatis  in  omnibus  imple- 
'  visse  ;  sed  si  majora  beneficia  excellentia  tua  de  manu  nostra 
'  suscepisset,  si  fieri  posset,  considerantes  quanto  ecclesiae  Dei  et 

*  nobis  per  te  incrementa  possint  et  commoda  provenire,  non 
'  immerito  gauderemus.' 

Nor  was  this  letter  all.     For  the  feudal  grant  of  Matilda's  lands 
to  Conrad  III.  was  explained  to  mean  a  grant  of  empire. 
'  GiES.  iii.  59. 
*  Frederic  was  five  times  in  Italy  ;  and  twice  his  visits  occurred 


234 


THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 


TART     sent  a  milder  explanation  of  the  offensive  terms,  de- 
'. —  daring  that  his  language  had  been  misunderstood/ 


A.D.  115S   and  on  the  fields  of  Roncaglia  a  brilliant  diet  was  held, 
in  which  the  imperial  privileges  were  defined  accord- 
ing to  the  principles  of  Roman  jurisprudence  by  civi- 
lians from  Bologna.     But  from  these  very  definitions, 
which  seemed  to  infringe  on  the  Papal  prerogatives, 
arose  a  renewal  of  the  struggle,  from  which,  after 
lengthy  and  fruitless  negociations,^  death  took  away 
Hadrian  IV.,  but  only  just  in  time  to  save  Frederic 
from  the  threatened  sentence  of  excommunication." 
(2)  Alex-       The  death  of  Hadrian  IV.  came  opportunely  for 
JIL  and    the  two  contending  parties,  and,  as  might  have  been 
^oles         expected,  it  was  the  signal  for  raising  up  a  new  anti- 
1159-1177  pope  in  the  imperial  interest.     The  College  of  Car- 
(/)  Yl'^'     dinals  was  divided  between  Roland,  the  chancellor  of 

tor  IV. 

Antipope.  the  ApostoHc  See — the  same  individual  who  had  so 
1159-1164  ....... 

arrogantly  pressed  the  papal  clamis  m  the  disputes 

between  Frederic  I.  and  Hadrian  IV.,  and  who  now 
assumed  the  name  of  Alexander  III. — and  the  car- 
dinal priest,  Octavian,  who  took  the  title  of  Victor 
IV.*     Following   the    example    of   his    predecessor 

in  the  Papacy  of  Hadrian:  (i)  In  1154-55,  rcemorable  for  the 
destruction  of  Tortona.  On  this  occasion  he  was  crowned  king  of 
Italy  at  Pavia,  and  emperor  at  Rome.  (2)  In  1158-62  Milan  was 
reduced.  The  diet  of  Roncaglia  was  held,  and  the  rival  Popes, 
Victor  IV.  and  Paschal  III.,  were  supported.  (3)  In  1163.  (4)  In 
1166-68,  Alexander  III.  was  driven  from  Rome,  and  he  was  again 
crowned  by  Paschal  III.  His  army  suffered  from  fever.  (5)  In 
1174-76,  Siege  of  Alessandria.  He  was  deserted  by  Henry  the 
Lion  and  defeated  at  Legnano. 

*  Ep.  iv.  T.ABBE,  xiii.  18. 

2  See  the  two  letters  of  the  Pope.     Ep.  v.  vi.  Labee,  xiii.  19. 

'  GiES.  iii.  61.  ^  Neand.  vii.  225. 


LAST  PERIOD   OF   THE  STRUGGLE.  2''=; 

Henry  III.,  Frederic  summoned  a  council  to  meet  at    chap. 

Pavia  in  the  year  1 1 60,  there  to  decide  their  claims, L_ 

and  cited  the  two  Pontiffs  to  appear  before  it.  He 
was  met  by  Alexander,  in  the  spirit  of  Gregory  VH., 
with  a  refusal  to  answer  before  a  lay  judge  ;  and 
Victor  IV.  was  accordingly  recognised  by  the  coun- 
cil.^ Many  countries,  however,  still  upheld  Alexander 
HI.  Nevertheless,  so  great  for  the  time  being  was 
the  success  of  the  imperial  party  that  Alexander  was 
compelled  to  take  refuge  in  France. 

But  the  times  were  troublous  ;  Frederic's  power 
was  crippled  by  the  hatred  and  rebellion  of  the 
Lombard  cities,  while  the  cause  of  Alexander  was  in 
proportion  advanced  by  their  disaffection.  Besides, 
Alexander  was  zealously  supported  by  the  monks 
and  recognised  by  the  kings  of  England  and  France. 
Bold  and  experienced  though  Frederic  might  be, 
he  was  not  a  match  for  the  united  forces  of  the 
hierarchy  and  the  Lombard  cities.  Supported  by 
the  sympathy  of  the  French,  it  is  true,  he  was 
able  to  secure  the  election  of  Paschal  HI.  as  anti-  {b)  Pas- 
pope  on  the  death  of  Victor  IV.,  that  of  Calixtus  HI.  '^caiixtiis 
on   the   death   of  Paschal   HI.,  each   one  of  whom,  ^i^-r. 

'    ^  _  '   Anti- 

however,  possessed  less  authority  than  his  prede-  popes. 
cessor.  But  meantime,  Alexander  HI.  had  returned  "^"^les  ^ 
to  Rome.  Encouraged  by  this  step,  the  Veronese 
league  quickly  expanded  itself,  and  became  a  league 
of  the  Lombard  cities  under  the  leadership  of  Mi- 
lan. Frederic's  success  in  ao^ain  drivinof  Alexander 
from  Rome  was  only  temporary.^     Harassed  by  the 

*  Concil.  Papiense,  an.  1160,  LabbiS,  xiii.  266. 

"^  These  events  happened  on  the  occasion  of  his  fourth  visit  to 


236  THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 

PART     disaffection  at  home  of  Henry  the  Lion,  the  leader 
II. 
'. of  the  Welfs ;  weakened  abroad  by  losses  through 

fever  and  on  the  battle-field;  meeting  with  continually- 
increasing  resistance  in  Italy;  he  was  unable  to  bear 
up  in  the  unequal  conflict.  The  victory  which  was 
A.D.  1 1 76  eventually  gained  by  the  confederate  cities  at  Leg- 
nano  was  hallowed  by  being  fought  on  the  side  of 
the  Pope  ;  and  in  the  following  year  at  Venice,  on  the 
1177  Eve  of  St.  James,  a  six  years'  truce  was  concluded 
between  the  Pope  and  the  emperor,  according  to 
which  Frederic  finally  abandoned  the  cause  of  the 
antipope  Calixtus.-^ 


Italy,  in  1166-68  ;  the  following  on  his  fifth  visit,  1174-76.  See 
Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  i.  pt.  i.  ch.  iii.  p.  376. 

'  The  account  of  this  is  given  in  Labbe,  xiii.  386,  under  Concil. 
Venet.  an.  1177  :  '  In  vigilia  sancti  Jacobi  summo  mane  Pontifex 
'  misit  ad   Imperatoris  praesentiam   Humbaldum   Ostiensem   et 

*  Willelmum  Portuensem  episcopos.  .  .  .  Qui  ad  eum  venientes, 

*  postquam  Imperator  renunciavit  schisma  Octaviani,  Guidonis 
'  Cremensis,  et  Joannis  de  Struma  .  .  .  ipsum  a  sententia  excom- 
'  municationis  pariter  absolverunt.  .  .  .  Exinde  Imperator  tan- 
'  quam  catholicus  princeps  accessit  ad  praesentiam  ipsius  pontificis, 
'  qui  ante  fores  ecclesiae  sancte  Marie  cum  fratribus  suis  cardinali- 
'  bus  residebat,  in  communi  unionem  pacis  expectantibus ;  et 
'  dcposita  chlamyde,  prostravit  se  in  terram,  et  deosculatis  ponti- 

*  fitis  .  .  .  pedibus,  verae  pacis  osculum  ipse  devotissime  dedit. 

*  Tunc  repleti  sunt  omnes  gaudio  magno,  et  prae  nimia  laetitia 
'  vox  clamantium  Te  Deum  laudanms,  insonuit  usque  ad  sidera  ; 
'  statimque  Augustus  apprehensa  Pontificis  dextera,  cum  canticis 
'  et  laudibus  usque  ad  chorum  ecclesiae  ipsum  deduxit,  et  incli- 
'  nato  capite  benedictionem  ipsius  reverenter  suscepit. 

'  In  sequenti  vero  die,  qua  celebratur  festum  sancti  Jacobi 
'  apostoH,  idem  Alexander  papa  rediit.  .  .  .  Decantata  itaque 
'  Missa    [Imperator]    dexteram    pontificis    apprehendit,    et    extra 

*  ecclesiam  usque  ad  album  caballum  conduxit  ipsum,  et  streguam, 

*  stapham  scilicet,  fortiter  tcnuit.     Cum  autem  frenum  acciperet, 


LAST  PERIOD   OF  THE  STRUGGLE. 


237 


Absolved  from  his  sentence  of  excommunication,     chap. 


VIII. 


Frederic  now  advanced  to  the  presence  of  the  Pope, 
who  awaited  him  surrounded  by  the  cardinals  before  "  ^ 
the  great  doors  of  St.  Mark's.  It  was  a  scene  solemn  1176 
and  joyous  to  the  bystanders,  to  behold  the  emperor, 
throwing  off  his  imperial  mantle,  kneeling  and 
kissing  the  feet  of  the  Pope,  and  then  bestowing  on 
him  the  kiss  of  peace.  One  loud  Te  Deum  burst 
forth,  and  rose  up  to  heaven.  Thereupon  Frederic, 
taking  hold  of  the  hand  of  the  Pope,  led  him  to  the  1177 
choir  of  the  church,  and  then  knelt  to  receive  his 
benediction.  The  next  day,  when  mass  had  been 
sung,  the  emperor  again  todk  the  Pope's  hand,  led 
him  from  church  to  his  horse,  then  held  his  stirrup, 
and  would  have  attended  him  to  the  port,  holding 
his  bridle,  had  not  the  courtesy  of  Alexander  been 
pleased  to  accept  the  will  for  the  deed.  Such  a 
humiliating  experience  proved  that  Frederic,  whom 
a  cotemporary,  himself  a  foreigner,^  describes  as  '  the 
ruler  of  the  Roman  Empire  ever  august,  in  whom 
the  glory  of  ancient  Rome  again  flourished,  its 
honour  again  revived,  and  its  power  was  augmented,' 
had  succumbed  before  a  power  still  more  august.  It 
proved  that  the  Pope  was  master  of  the  occasion, 
that  he  had  established  his  claim  to  be  exalted  above 
kings.  He  had  trodden  under  foot  the  greatest 
potentate  of  the  West. 

Alexander  followed  up  his  victory  by  a  measure 

'  et  stratoris  officium  vellet  adimplere,  Pontifex,  quia  iter  ad 
'  mare  nimis  videbatur  prolixum,  pro  facto  habuit  quod  afifectuose 
'  voluit  adimplere.' 

^  I  tin.  Regis  Anglor.  Ric,  c.  xxiv. 


2.^.8 


THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 


A.D. II79 


PART  destined  to  prevent  the  election  of  an  antipope  ever 
'- —  again.  A  decree  of  the  third  Lateran  Council  en- 
acted that  the  election  of  a  Pope  lay  with  the  cardi- 
nals alone,  that  the  concurrence  of  two  thirds  of  the 
cardinals  was  necessary  for  a  valid  election,  and  that 
if  the  minority  thought  of  setting  up  their  nominee, 
both  themselves  and  their  candidate  should  be  lia- 
ble to  excommunication.^  To  this  decree  Frederic 
offered  no  resistance.  It  was  probably  out  of  his 
power  to  do  so.  Besides,  it  would  only  have  im- 
perilled the  descent  of  the  crown  to  his  son,  which 
he  was  most  anxious  to  secure.  Four  years  later, 
when  the  truce  had  expired,  another  treaty  was  con- 
cluded at  Constance,  by  which  the  relations  of  the 
emperor  and  the  Lombard  republics  were  fixed  on 
lasting  grounds  :  little  was  left  to  the  emperor  but 
a  titular  supremacy  in  Italy;  the  Lombard  republics 


1083 


1  Concil.  Lateran.  iii.  an.  1179,  cap.  i.  Labb6,  xiii.  417: 
Statuimus  igitur,  ut  si  forte  inimico  homine  superseminante 
zizania,  inter  cardinales  de  substituendo  pontifice  non  potuerit 
Concordia  plena  esse,  et  duabus  partibus  concordantibus  tertia 
pars  noluerit  concordare,  aut  sibi  alium  praesumpserit  ordinare  : 
ille  Romanus  pontifex  habeatur,  qui  a  duabus  partibus  fuerit 
electus  et  receptus.  Si  quis  autem  de  tertiae  partis  nominatione 
confisus,  quia  rem  non  potest,  sibi  nomen  episcopi  usurpaverit ; 
tam  ipse,  quam  qui  eum  receperint,  excommunication i  subjaceant, 
et  totius  sacri  ordinis  privatione  mulctentur  .  .  .  et  nisi  resi- 
puerint,  cum  Dathan  et  Abiron,  quos  terra  vivos  absorbuit,  acci- 
piant  portionem.  Praeterea  si  a  paucioribus  aliquis  quam  a  dua- 
bus partibus  fuerit  electus  ad  apostolatus  officium,  nisi  major 
Concordia  intercesserit ;  nullatenus  assumatur,  et  praedictae  poe- 
nae  subjaceat,  si  humiliter  noluerit  abstinere.  Ex  hoc  tamen 
nullam  canonicis  constitutionibus  et  aliis  ecclesiasticis  prae- 
judicium  generetur.  ...  In  Romana  vero  ecclesia  aliquid  speciale 
constituitur,  quia  non  potest  rccursus  ad  superiorem  haberi.' 


VIII. 


LAST  PERIOD   OF   THE  STRUGGLE.  239 

were  established  in  real  independence.  The  age  of  chap. 
antipopes  was  now  at  an  end  ;  the  right  of  the  em- 
peror to  control  the  election  of  the  Roman  bishop 
was  formally  denied.  The  Papacy  had  secured  its 
independence,  it  had  risen  to  equality,  nay  more,  it 
had  risen  to  supremacy.  For  elsewhere,  too,  the 
Pope  had  set  kings  at  defiance.  In  face  of  the 
claims  of  Castile  and  Leon,  he  had  declared  in  favour 
of  the  independence  of  Portugal,  and  had  granted  to 
the  new  kingdom  all  the  territory  which  it  could 
recover  from  the  Saracens.-^ 

Well  might  the  Germans  of  a  later  day,  when  they 
saw  the  Popes  disposing  of  the  imperial  crown,  and 
filling  their  land  with  bloodshed  and  violence,  look 
back  with  reverential  fondness  to  the  great  Frederic, 
with  his  manly  form  and  chivalrous  disposition,  and 
invest  him  with  a  kind  of  shadowy  superhuman  exis- 
tence, as  the  national  hero  who  had  fought  their  last 
battle  for  freedom.  Well  might  a  legend  gather 
about  his  death — a  death  so  sudden,  so  far  from  his 
country,  and  endured  in  the  sacred  cause  of  a  cru- 
sade atrainst  the  infidels — not  unlike  that  which  has 
gathered  about  the  death  of  St.  John,  and  the  seven 
sleepers  of  Ephesus  ;  '-^  telling  how  far  up  the  moun- 
tain  Kyffhauser,  in  an  enchanted  cave,  Barbarossa 

'  See  the  documents  in  Lucii  II.  Ep.  xi.  Labbe,  xii.  1570;  and 
quoted  by  Gies.  iii.  68,  §  52. 

2  The  legend  about  St.  John  is  that  he  did  not  die  at  all,  but  is 
only  slumbering,  moving  the  grave-mound  with  his  breath  till  the 
return  of  the  Lord.  The  legend  of  the  seven  sleepers  who  went 
to  sleep  in  the  third  century,  and  awoke  in  the  fifth,  is  well-told  in 
Dr.  Neale's  Lent  Legends,  and  J.  Martineau's  Endeavours  after 
the  Christian  Life. 


240 


THE  POPES  AND  ANTIPOPES. 


PART     sits  dosing  on  a  slab  of  stone,  waiting  the  hour  when 

'. the  ravens  shall  cease  to  hover  round  the  peak,  and 

the  pear-tree  blossom  in  the  valley  ;  when  he  will 
issue  forth  with  his  knights  to  punish  the  murderer 
and  oppressor,  and  to  bring  back  to  Germany  the 
golden  age  of  peace  and  strength  and  unity. ^     Yet, 

^  The  legend  of  Barbarossa  is  told  by  Heinrich  Heine  in  his 
Poem  on  Germany,  cap.  xiv. ;  and  by  Ruckert  in  the  striking 
ballad  of  Barbarossa. 

'  I,  Der  alte  Barbarossa, 
Der  Kaiser  Friederich, 
Tm  unterird'schen  Schlosse 
Halt  er  verzaubert  sich. 

'  2.  Er  ist  niemals  gestorben, 
Er  lebt  darin  noch  jetzt ; 
Er  hat  im  Schloss  verborgen 
Zum  Schlaf  sich  hingesetzt. 

'  3.  Er  hat  hinabgenommen 
Des  Reiches  Herrlichkeit 
Und  wird  einst  wiederkommen 
Mit  ihr  zu  seiner  Zeit. 

'  4.  Der  Stuhl  ist  elfenbeinern, 
Darauf  der  Kaiser  sitzt ; 
Der  Tisch  ist  marmelsteinern, 
Worauf  sein  Haupt  er  stiitzt. 

'  5.  Sein  Bart  ist  nicht  von  Flachse, 
Er  ist  von  Feuersglut, 
Ist  durch  den  Tisch  gewachsen, 
Worauf  sein  Kinn  ausruht. 

*  6.  Er  nickt  als  wie  im  Traume, 
Sein  Aug'  halb  ofifen  zwinkt ; 
Und  je  nach  langem  Raume 
Er  einem  Knaben  winkt. 


.     LAST  PERIOD   OF   THE  STRUGGLE.  24 1 

whilst  the  Empire  lasted,  that  ag^e  was  not  to  come    chap. 

.       .  VIII. 

back,  and  darker  times  were  still  in  store.      In  fact,  .-     1_ 

will  that  expectation  be  ever  realised  ?  Will  a 
second  Barbarossa  ever  appear  again  to  reunite  Ger- 
many once  more,  perhaps  under  another  name,  and  to 
revive  the  struggle  with  the  now  worn-out  Papacy, 
dealing  to  it  a  final  death  blow,  and  inaugurating  a 
regenerated  Empire  ? 

*  7.  Er  spricht  im  Schlaf  zum  Knaben  : 

*'  Geh  hin  vor's  Schloss,  o  Zwerg, 
Und  sieh,  ob  noch  die  Raben 
Herfliegen  um  den  Berg. 

*  8.  Und  wenn  die  alten  Raben 

Noch  fliegen  immerdar, 

So  muss  ich  audi  noch  schlafen, 

Verzaubert  hundert  Jahr."  ' 


R 


242 


CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 


PART 
II. 


CHAPTER    IX. 

CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 
(1183— 1303.) 


Si  dormiatis  inter  medios  cleros,  pennae  cohinibae  deargeittatae,  et  posieriora 
dorsi  ejus  in  pallore  aicri. — Ps.  LXVii.  14  [lxviii.  13].' 


A.  First 
period. 
The  era 
of  Inno- 
cent III. 

A.D. 

1 1 79-1 243 

(i)   The 

Popes 

before 

Innocent 

III 

1179-1198 

{a)  De- 
pression 
of  the 
Einpire. 


THE  treaty  of  Constance  which  had  been  con- 
cluded during  the  Pontificate  of  Pope  Lucius 
HI.^  seemed  to  fix  the  relations  of  the  emperor  and 
the  Lombard  republics  on  lasting  ground.  Depriv- 
ing the  former  of  many  of  the  rights  which  he  had 
hitherto  claimed  over  those  republics,  and  regarded 
as  a  sequel  to  his  treaty  with  Alexander  HI.  at 
Venice  six  years  previously,  it  seems  to  mark  the 
climax  of  the  papal  power,  and  to  be  the  beginning 
of  a  new  age,  in  which  the  Pope  would  reign  supreme 
without  a  rival. ^  In  this  light,  too,  it  appeared  to 
many  historians  of  a  later  day,  who  delighted  to 
speak  of  the  emperor  as  a  beast  of  prey,  and  re- 
counted with  satisfaction  how  at  Venice  the  young 


*  Vide  Innocent's  Sermon  at  Lateran  Council,  an.  12 15,  Labbe, 
xiii.  921. 

2  Lucius  III.  succeeded  Pope  Alexander  III.  in  ti8i.  He 
died  November  1184,  and  was  succeeded  by  Urban  III.  His 
life  in  Labb^,  xiii.  639. 

3  See  Chap.  VIII.  p.  236. 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  III.  24 1 

lion  and  the  dragon  had  been  trampled  under  foot.     chap. 
Yet  there  was  another  aspect  to   this    treaty,  and       ^^' 
until   Jerusalem  had  fallen  and  Frederic  had  been 
drowned  in  his  unfortunate  crusade,  the  course  of 
events  went  decidedly  in  favour  of  the  emperor. 

On  the  death  of  Alexander  III. — in  his  lifetime  (d)  Ele- 
almost  a  stranger  in  Rome — five  Popes  followed  in  ^^//fj* 
rapid  succession,^  two  only  of  whom  were  even  as  ^-"^P^^^' 
well  known  to  the  Romans  as  Alexander  had  been. 
Their  tenure  of  office,  if  the  last  of  them,  Coelestine 
III.,  is  excepted,  was  short;  their  administration,  if 
the  turbulent  violence  of  Urban  III.  is  excluded,  was 
feeble.  Meantime,  Frederic-  Barbarossa  was  not 
less  active  than  before,  and  possessed  now  the  full 
experience  of  age  ;  his  son  Henry  VI.  was  ferocious 
and  cruel,  and  not  willing  to  yield  one  iota  of  his 
father's  pretensions.  The  Treaty  of  Constance  had 
set  Frederic  at  liberty  to  reunite  his  forces  and  to 
consolidate  his  power.  The  territories  of  the  Coun- 
tess Matilda  were  in  his  hands,  and  though  he  had 
promised  to  restore  them,  he  prudently  delayed  to 
perform  his  promise.  Moreover,  his  son  Henry  VI. 
had  obtained  the  hand  of  Constantia,  the  heiress  of 
the  kingdom  of  Sicily,'-^  and  thus  a  country,  which  had 

^  The  Popes   from  Alexander   III.   to    Innocent  III.  are  as 
follows  : 

Died 

Lucius  III.         1 181         Nov.  1 1 84,  his  life  in  Lab  be,  xiii,  639. 
Urban  III.  1185        Sept.  1187,  ibid.  p.  651. 

Gregory  VIII.    1187        Dec.   1187, /<5/^.  p.  661. 
Clement  III.       1188         April  1191,  ibid.  p.  665. 
Coelestine  III.    iigr        Jan.    1198,  ibid.  p.  687. 
^  The  Norman  Kingdom  in  Italy  was  founded  by  Robert  Guis- 
card  in  1054.    He  assumed  the  title  of  Duke  of  Apulia  in  1060,  and 

R  2 


544 


CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 


PART     been  the  stronghold  of  the  Popes  since  the  time  of 

. '- -  Leo  IX.,  and  their  chief  lay-assistant  in  the  struggle 

with  the  Empire,  was  detached  from  its  former  alle- 
giance, and  its  forces  thrown  into  the  imperial  scale. 
Accordingly,  when  Frederic  died,  Coelestine  III. 
did  not  dare  to  refuse  the  coronation  of  his  son  Henry 
VL;  and  although  he  might  behold  with  secret  satis- 
faction the  seizure  of  the  kingdom  of  Sicily  by  the 
Norman  Tancred,  he  could  not  refuse  to  crown  the 
rightful  heiress,  Constantia,  together  with  her  hus- 
band. Fortune  might  oscillate  from  time  to  time — 
now  the  surrender  of  Tusculum  beine  wrunQ"  from 
the  emperor  by  the  Pope,  and  his  queen  being  cap- 
tured by  the  Normans  at  Salerno  ;  anon  Apulia  and 
Sicily  being  reconquered,  and  his  rival  Tancred  dead; 

died  1085.  His  younger  brother,  Roger,  1060-1090,  completed 
the  conquest  of  Sicily,  and  is  known  as  Count  Roger.  His  son, 
Roger,  reigned  iioi  to  1154  as  great  Count  of  Sicily,  and  was 
succeeded  by  William  I.  (the  Bad),  and  afterwards  by  William  H., 
who  died  without  issue.  Thereupon  the  inheritance  passed  to  his 
aunt  Constantia,  who  had  married  the  Emperor  Henry  VI.  in 
1 186.  See  Gibbon,  ch.  Ivi.  ;  and  Istoria  Civile  of  Giannore, 
tom.  ii.  1.  xi.-xiv.  pp.  136-340;  and  Muratori's  Italian  Annals^ 
vols,  ix.,  X.  The  genealogy  is  as  follows  : 
Tancred  de  Hauteville. 


ROBERT  GUISCARD,  Roger, 

born  1 1 20,  fl'/nv/ 1085,  1060-1090, 

Duke  of  Apulia.  Count  of  Sicily. 


Boemund  ROGER,  ROGER, 

the  Crusader.        1085-1101,  1101-1154.  Frederic  I. 

Duke  of  Apulia.     Great  Count  of  Sicily.  Emperor. 


WILLIAM  I.  (the  Bad),     Constantia  =  Henry  VI.,  Emperor, 
1154-1166.  I  1 189. 

I  I 

WILLIAM  II.  (the  Good),         FREDERIC  II. 
I165-1189.  Emperor. 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  III. 


245 


now  the  emperor  retaining  possession  of  Matilda's  chap. 
lands  in  spite  of  the  Pope's  threats,  and  anon,  being  — IJ — 
excommunicated  for  his  cruelties  at  Palermo ;  but  on 
the  whole,  Henry  was  more  than  a  match  for  his 
rival.  Popular  at  home,  and  successful  abroad,  he 
could  defy  another  Lombard  league  which  was  fornir 
ing  to  control  him  ;  he  could  with  ease  quell  every 
threatened  insurrection.  He  could  level  the  walls  of 
Capua  and  Naples,  and  besiege  the  castle  of  a  rebel- 
lious chieftain  at  St.  John.  But  he  could  not  avert 
destiny.  A  copious  draught  of  cold  water  after  a 
day's  hunting,  on  an  autumn  evening  in  a  southern 
clime,  brought  on  an  attack  of  fever,  and  he  died  at 
Messina  in  the  arms  of  his  wife.  He  was  followed 
within  four  months  by  Coelestine  HI.  to  the  grave. 
Thirteen  months  later  his  wife  -Constantia  followed 
him,  leaving  Innocent  HI.  the  guardian  of  her  infant 
son  Frederic.^ 

Greatest  without  exception  among  the  great  Popes  ^^j^^  "]j' 
of  the  Middle  Ages  was  Innocent  HI.,  the  arbiter  of      a.d. 
the  destinies  of  the  Empire,  the  liege  lord  of  vassal  U)  Creai- 
kinofs.^     None    amonof    his    predecessors    could    lav  "f^^  '^ 


III. 


^  For  genealogy  of  the  House  of  Hohenstaufen,  see  pp.  228, 
244  and  279. 

"^  A  short  life  of  Innocent  III.  in  Labbe,  xiii.  737.  He  suc- 
ceeded Coelestine  III.  in  1198,  and  died  in  July  1216,  being  suc- 
ceeded by  Honorius  III.  His  life  and  labours  are  summed  up 
by  MiLMAN,  vol.  V.  book  ix.  ch.  i,  p.  180,  under  the  following 
twelve  heads.  His  labours  (i)  in  Rome  ;  (2)  in  Italy  ;  (3)  in  the 
Empire ;  (4)  in  France  ;  (5)  in  England  ;  (6)  in  Spain  ;  (7)  in  the 
northern  kingdoms  ;  (8)  in  Bulgaria  and  Hungary  ;  (9)  in  the 
Byzantine  Empire  and  the  East ;  (10)  In  the  wars  of  Languedoc ; 
{'ti)"and  (12)  In  establishing  the  two  grent  monastic  orders  of  St; 
Dominic  and  St.  Francis.  His  letters  may  be  found  in  the  gol- 
lections  by  Bzovius,  Raynaldus,  Vadlingus,  and  Spondanus. 


CLIMAX   OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 


246 

PART  claim  to  a  sovereignty  so  extensive  and  undisputed ; 
L__  among  his  successors  none  ruled  with  such  acknow- 
ledged authority.  By  Gregory  VII.  the  idea  of  the 
papal  monarchy  had  been  conceived  as  clearly  as  by 
Innocent ;  ^  Gregory  had  held  the  belief  that  to  him, 
as  the  successor  of  St,  Peter,  the  care  of  all  the 
Churches  belonged  :  his  humiliation  of  Henry  IV. 
at  Canossa  might  seem  to  be  a  triumph  which  it  was 
impossible  for  anyone  to  surpass.  But  that  triumph 
was  transient ;  the  struggle  had  to  be  fought  over 
again  by  his  successors  :  his  victory  was  short-lived, 
and  Gregory  himself  died  in  exile.  Moreover, 
Gregory's  strength  had  been  principally  manifested 
in  opposing  one  individual  :  towards  the  kings  of 
England  and  France  he  had  held  a  different  tone. 
Much  too  of  what  he  had  dared  in  his  struo^o-les  with 
the  emperor  had  been  undertaken,  not  in  bare  re- 
liance on  his  own  resources,  but  in  confidence  in  the 
sympathies  of  Italy,  and  the  more  available  support 
of  the  Normans."  But  the  position  of  Innocent  III. 
was  a  far  different  one. 

The  young  prince,  Frederic  II,,  King  of  the 
Romans  elect,  was  a  child;  Innocent  was  the  guar- 
dian of  his  kingdom.  Rival  princes,  Philip  of  Suabia 
and  Otto  of  Saxony,  contended  for  the  Imperial  dig- 
nity :  Innocent  was  the  arbiter  of  their  disputes.  At 
Innocent's  bidding,  Philip  of  France  took  back  his 
divorced  wife.  At  Innocent's  bidding  he  prepared 
to  invade  England,  Before  Innocent's  legate,  John, 
who    could    for   a   time   defy   the    interdict,  was    at 

*  Neand.  vii.  233.  2  Seg  Chap.  VII.  p.  193. 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  III. 


247 


length  forced  to  bow,  acknowledging  the  Pope  as  his     chap. 

liege-lord,  and  resigning  his  crown  into  his  hands.   1L_ 

England  and  France,  Germany  and  Italy,  Norway 
and  Hungary,  all  felt  the  power  of  Innocent :  Na- 
varre, Castile  and  Portugal,  acknowledged  his  sway  : 
even  Constantinople  owned  his  supremacy,  and 
owned  it  to  her  cost.^ 

Uniting  in  himself  the  three  qualifications  which 
Alexander  III.  required  from  an  occupant  of  the 
chair  of  St.  Peter — zeal  in  preaching,  ability  in 
government,  skill  in  the  management  of  penance ;  ^ — 
possessed  moreover  of  an  extensive  learning  in  eccle- 
siastical law  ;  well  acquainted  with  the  state  and  the 
wants  of  the  Church,  both  personally  and  by  means 
of  his  legates  ;  Innocent  III.  was  in  every  way  most 
fitted  to  assert  without  concealment  the  idea  of  the 
papal  theocracy.  That  idea  had  been  silently  grow- 
ing apace  since  the  time  of  Gregory ;  it  was  now 
maintained  by  Innocent  in  all  its  severity. 

The  Pope  was  '  the  vicegerent  of  God  upon 
earth  ; '  ^  to  him  '  was  intrusted  by  St.  Peter  the  go- 
vernment not  only  of  the  whole  Church,  but  of  the 
whole  world  ;  '  ^  '  next  to  God  he  was  to  be  so  hon- 
oured by  princes,  that  their  claim  to  rule  was  lost  if 
they   failed   to   serve  him  ; '  ^    '  princes    might    have 

'   Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.  199. 

2  Neand.  vii.  232. 

^  Lib.  i.  Ep.  326  :  '  Non  hominis  puri  sed  veri  Dei  vere  vicarius 
*  appellatur.' 

^  Lib.  ii.  Ep.  209  ad  Patriarch.  Const.  :  '  Dominus  Petro  non 
'  solum  universam  Ecclesiam  sed  totum  reliquit  saeculum  guber- 
'  nandum.' 

*  Lib.  xvi.    Ep.   131    ad   Joannem   Anglorum    Regem  :    'Rex 


CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 


248 

PART     power  on  earth,  but  priests  had  power  in  heaven  ; '  ^ 

the  claim  of  princes  to  rule  rested  '  on  human  might, 

that  of  priests  on  a  divine  ordinance  ; '  ^  '  two  lights 
had  been  planted  by  God  in  the  firmament  of  the 
Church,  the  greater  light  to  lighten  men's  souls,  the 
lesser  light  to  preside  over  their  bodies  ;  but  as  the 
moon  derived  her  light  from  the  sun,  so  the  authority 
of  princes  was  derived  from  that  of  the  Pope.'  ^  In 
short,  all  the  prerogatives  which  had  once  attached 
to  the  emperors,  were  wrested  from  them,  and  trans- 
ferred with  additions  to  the  Popes. 

'  Regum  et  Dominus  Dominantium  Jesus  Christus  .  .  .  ita  reg- 
'  num  et  sacerdotium  in  Ecclesia  stabilivit,  ut  sacerdotale  sit  reg- 
'  num,  et  sacerdotium  sit  regale,  sicut  in  epistola  Petrus,  et  Moyses 
'  in  lege  testantur,  unum  praeficiens  universis,  quem  suum  in  terris 
'  vicarium  ordinavit ;  ut  sicut  ei  Hectitur  omne  genu  coelestium, 
'  terrestrium,  et  etiam  infernorum,  ita  illi  omnes  obediant  et  inten- 
'  dant,  ut  sit  unum  ovile  et  unus  pastor.     Hunc  itaque  reges  sae- 

*  culi  propter  Deum  ita  venerantur,  ut  non  reputent  se  rite  regnare, 
'  nisi   studeant   ei   devote    servire.'      Quoted   by   Gies.    vol.    iii. 

§  54,  P-  78. 

^  Ep.  18:  'Principibus  datur  potestas  in  terris;  sacerdotibus 
'  autem  potestas  tribuitur  et  in  coelis.' 

2  Ep.  18  :  '  Utrumque  tarn  regnum  quam  sacerdotium  institu- 
'  turn  fuit  in  populo  Dei  :  sed  sacerdotium  per  ordinationem  divi- 
'  nam,  regnum  autem  per  extorsionem  humanam.' 

^  Lib.   i.   Ep.   401   ad   Acerbum  :    'Sicut  universitatis  conditor 

*  Deus  duo  magna  luminaria  in  firmamento  coeli  constituit,  lumi- 

*  nare.majus,  ut  praeesset  diei,  et  luminare  minus,  ut  nocti  praees- 

*  set  ;  sic  ad  iirmamentum  universalis  Ecclesiae,  quae  coeli  no- 

*  mine  nuncupatur,  duas  magnas  instituit  dignitates,  majorem, 
'  quae  quasi  diebus,  animabus  praeesset,  et  minorem,  quae  quasi 
'  noctibus,  praeesset  corpoiibus  ;  quae  sunt  pontificalis  auctoritas, 
'  et  regalis  potestas.     Porro  sicut  luna  lumen  suum  a  sole  sortitur, 

*  quae  ne  vera  minor  est  i!lo  quantitate  simul  et  qualitate,  situ 
'  pariter  et  effectu  ;  sic  regalis  potestas  ab  auctoritate  pontificali 
'  suae  sortitur  dignitatis  splendorem.' 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  III.  249 

Not  without  a  struggle  could  the  sovereigns  of    chap. 


IX. 


{b) 


Europe   acquiesce  in   these  claims,  and   renouncing 

their  just   rights  to  independence,    own  themselves  strul^le 

the  subjects  of  another.      In  the  case  of  many  the  "'^'^{^'^ 

■'  ■'  prDices. 

struggle  was  short;  in  the  case  of  all  it  ended  in  con-  (,)  with 
fusion.     The  first  to  enter  the  lists  was   Philip  Au-  y" 

^  A  iigiis- 

gustus,^  the -King  of  France,  who  had  divorced  his  ''"■^• 
lawful  wife,  Isemburga  of  Denmark.     The  interdict   a.d.  1196 
was   laid  on   France ;    the  dead  lay  unburied  ;    the 
living   were    deprived    of   the    services  of   religion. 
Against  an  antagonist  armed  with  such  a  weapon, 
even  Philip  Augustus,  brave  and  firm  though  he  was, 
was  not  a  match.^    The  idea  of  the  papal  power  had 
too  firmly  taken  hold  of  men's  minds  ;  the  French 
would  gladly  have  remained  true  to  their  king  ;  they 
dared  not  disobey  the  Vicar  of  Christ.       Besides,  as 
in  the  case  of  Nicolas  I.'s  intervention  with  Lothar, 
Innocent's  power  was  exercised  on  behalf  of  morality, 
Philip  was  obliged  to  take  back  his  divorced  wife,       1201 
not    yielding,   as  one    of  his    predecessors,   Robert, 
had  done,^  to  a  feeble  superstition,  not  subdued  like 


'   Philip  II.  (Augustus)  was  King  of  France  1 180-1223. 

2  MiLMAN,  vol.  V.  book  ix.  ch.  iv.  p.  246  (small  edition)  ;  GiES. 
vol.  iii.  §  54,  p.  86. 

^  Robert  I.,  King  of  France  996-1031,  son  of  Hugh  Capet,  sur- 
named  the  Pious,  had  abandoned  his  wife  Bertha,  to  whom  he 
was  deeply  attached,  because  the  Church  discovered  some  remote, 
impediment  to  his  union,  and  had  undergone  seven  years  pe- 
nance. MiLMAN,  vol.  iv.  book  vii.  ch.  i.  p.  32.  Another  king  of 
France,  Philip  I.,  1060-1108,  had  been  excommunicated  by  Pope 
Urban  II.  an.  1095  for  having  divorced  his  wife  Bertha,  and 
seduced  Beltrada,  the  daughter  of  a  powerful  noble.  This  time' 
the  excommunication  attracted  little  attention,  all  minds  being 
engaged  with  the  Crusades.    Milman,  vol  iv.  book  vii.  cL  v.  p.  165.; 


2  CO  CLIMAX   OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 

PART     Henry  IV.  by  internal  dissensions,  but  vanquished 

'       in  open  fight  with  an  opponent  stronger  than  him- 

(^)        self.     Somewhat  similar  was  the  fate  of  Alfonso  IX., 

Sh'uggh  .  .... 

with         J^ing'  of  Leon,   who,  contrary  to  the  ecclesiastical 
iXKiiiP  canons,  forbidding  marriages  up  to  the  seventh  de- 
o/Leon.     gree,^  had  married  his  cousin.     To  enforce  the  ob- 
servance of  the  canon,  Leon  was  laid  under  an  in- 
terdict.     In  vain  the  clergy  petitioned  Innocent  to 
remove  It,  pleading,  In  support  of  their  petition,  the 
fact  that  the  laity  refused   to  pay  tithes,  and  were 
going  after  heretical  teachers.      Not  till  Alfonso  sent 
back  his  cousin  would  Innocent  hear  of  surrender,  or 
relieve  the  klno-dom  from  the  dreaded  ban.^ 
(r)  Nor  was  John,  King  of  England,  more  successful 

with  than  the  kings  of  France  and  Leon  had  been, 
jThn.  although  his  cause  was  juster  by  far  than  theirs.  As 
early  as  the  year  1208,  the  second  week  before 
Easter  saw  the  interdict  published  throughout  Eng- 
land, its  object  being  to  compel  John  to  admit 
Stephen  Langton,  Innocent's  nominee,  to  the  arch- 
bishopric of  Canterbury.^  In  vain  John  protested 
against  this  encroachment  on  the  prerogatives  of  the 
crown  ;  In  vain  he  visited  with  severity  the  clergy, 


On  the  present  occasion  Philip  II.,  after  divorcing  Isemburga  or 
Ingeburga,  1196,  had  entered  into  an  adulterous  intercourse  with 
Agnes  of  Meran.  Milman,  vol.  v.  book  ix.  ch.  iv.  p.  246.  There 
is  a  close  parallel  between  the  case  of  Philip  II.  and  that  of 
Lothar  II.     See  Chap.  IV.  p.  98. 

*  See  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  vii.  p.  208. 

2  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.    199  ;  GiES. 
vol.  iii.  §  54,  p.  86. 

3  LiNGARD,  vol,  ii.  ch.  v.  p.  158;  GiES.  vol.  iii.  §  54,  p.  87; 
Neand.  vii.  235. 


THE  ERA    Oh   INNOCENT  III. 


251 


regular  and  secular,  who  obeyed  the  papal  mandate  ;    chap. 

in  vain  he  affected  to  despise  the  menaces  of  the  1— 

Pope.  His  successes  against  his  defaulting  vassal, 
William  of  Scotland,  against  the  lawless  chieftains  in 
Ireland,  and  against  the  intrepid  Lewellyn  in  Wales, 
did  not  frighten  Innocent.  The  interdict  had  been 
previously  proclaimed.  And  more  than  that,  a  bull 
of  excommunication  was  fulminated  against  the  king.^  a.d.  121; 
Still  the  king  held  out ;  still  the  struggle  went  on, 
and  the  obstinacy  of  the  Pope  and  the  king  were 
nearly  evenly  matched.  It  had  already  lasted  for 
years,  when  the  terror  of  a  French  invasion,  to  which 
the  Pope  had  invited  Philip  Augustus,  threw  a  deci- 
sive weight  into  the  papal  balance.  To  secure  his 
kingdom  against  so  formidable  a  foe  as  Philip,  John 
was  fain  to  yield  the  point  in  dispute,  and  not  only 
yielded,  promising  to  admit  Langton  to  the  arch- 
bishopric, but  perpetrated  an  act  of  disgraceful  cow- 
ardice, which  has  heaped  everlasting  infamy  on  his 
memory.  On  the  fifteenth  day  of  May,  in  the  year 
1 21 3,  in  the  church  of  the  Templars  at  Ewell,  the 
king  put  into  the  hands  of  Pandulph,  the  papal  envoy, 
a  charter  subscribed  by  himself,  one  archbishop,  one 
bishop,  nine  earls,  and  three  barons,  setting  forth  ^ 
that,  '  as  an  atonement  for  his  offences  against  God 
and  the  Church,  he  had  determined  to  humble  him- 
self, and  therefore  of  his  own  free-will  granted  to 
God,  to  the  holy  Apostles  Peter  and  Paul,  to  Pope 
Innocent,  and     Innocent's    rightful    successors,    the 


J  Concil.  Northampton,  an.  121 1  ;  Mansi,  Snppl.  vol.  ii.  p.  8i< 
2  LiNGARD  vol.  ii.  ch.  V.  p.  165,  and  Appendix  D,  p.  311. 


k 


i252 


CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 


PART     kingdom  of  England  and  the  kingdom  of  Ireland,  to 
'. be  holden  by  himself  and  the  heirs  of  his  body,  of 


the  bishops  of  Rome  in  fee,  by  the  annual  rent  of 
one  thousand  marks,  reserving  however  to  himself 
and  his  heirs  the  administration  of  justice,  and  all 
other  rights  of  the  crown.'  ^      He  then  took  the  oath 


•  In  Rymer,  i.  Ill,  115,  the  charter  is  :  'Johannes  Dei  gratia 
'  Rex  Anghae  .  .  ,  omnibus  Christi  fidehbus  .  .  .  salutem.  Uni- 
'  versitati  vestrae  per  hanc  chartam  nostram  sigillo  nostro  muni- 
'  tarn  volumus  esse  notum,  quia,  cum  Deum  et  matrem  nostram 
'  sanctam  Ecclesiam  offenderimus  in  multis,  et  proinde  divina 
'  misericordia  plurimum  indigere  noscamur,  nee  quid  digne  ofFerre 
'  possimus,  pro  satisfactione  Dei  et  Ecclesiae  debita  facienda, 
'  nisi  nos  ipsos  et  Regna  nostra  humiUemus  :  volentes  nos  ipsos 
'  humiliare  pro  Illo,  qui  se  pro  nobis  humihavit  usque  ad  mortem, 

*  gratia  Sancti  Spiritus  inspirante,  non  vi  inducti  nee  timore  coacti, 

*  sed  nostra  bona  spontaneaque  voluntate,  ac  communi  consilio 
'  Baronum   nostrorum,  offerimus    et   Ubere   concedimus    Deo   et 

*  Sanctis  Apostohs  ejus  Petro  et  Paulo,  et  sanctae  Romanae 
'  ecclesiae  matri  nostrae,  ac  domino  nostro  Papae  Innocentio 
'  ejusque  catholicis  successoribus  totum  regnum  Angliae  et  totuni 
'  regnum  Hiberniae  cum  omni  jure  et  pertinentiis  suis,  pro  remis-. 

*  sione  peccatorum  nostrorum  et  totius  generis  nostri,  tam  pro 
'  vivis  quam  defunctis  :  et  amodo  ilia  a  Deo  et  Ecclesia  Romana 

*  tanquam  feodatarius  recipientes  et  tenentes,  in  praesentia  pru- 

*  dentis  viri  Pandulphi,  domini  Papae  sub-diaconi  et  familiaris,- 
'  fidelitatem  exinde  praedicto  domino  nostro  Papae  Innocentio,- 

*  ejusque  catholicis  successoribus,  et  Ecclesiae  Rornanae  secun- 
'  dum  subscriptam  formam  facimus  et  juramus,  et  homagium 
'  ligium  in  praesentia  domini  Papae,  si  coram  eo  esse  poterimus, 

*  eidem  faciemus  ;  successores  et  haeredes  nostros  de  uxore  nostra 

*  in  perpetuum  obligantes,  ut  simili  modo  sumrao  Pontifici,  qui 
'  pro  tempore  fuerit,  et  Ecclesiae  Romanae,  sine  contradictione 

*  debeant  fidelitatem  praestare  et  homagium  recognoscere.     Ad 

*  indicium  autem  hujus  perpetuae  nostrae  obligationis  et  conces- 

*  sionis  volumus  et  stabilimus,  ut  de  propriis  et  specialibus  reddi- 
'  tibus   praedictoruui   regnorum   nostrorum,  pro  omni  servitio  et 

*  consuetudine,  quod  pro  ipsis  facere  debcremus,  salvo  per  omnia 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  III.  253 

of  fealty  in  the  very  same  terms  which  vassals  took     chap. 

IX 

to  their  lords,  swearini^  to  be  faithful  to  God,  to  the  ' 


blessed  Peter,  to  the  Roman  Church,  to  Pope  Inno- 
cent, and  Innocent's  rightful  successors  ;  not  to  abet 
their  enemies  to  the  loss  of  life,  limb,  or  liberty, 
either  by  word,  deed,  or  assent ;  to  keep  their  coun- 
sel, and  to  aid  them  to  the  best  of  his  power ;  to  pre- 
serve and  defend  against  all  men  the  patrimony  of 
St.  Peter,  and  especially  the  two  kingdoms  of  Eng- 
land and  Ireland.^  He  did  more.  On  the  third  of 
October  of  the  same  year,  when  the  Papal  legate  had 
arrived,  he  put  into  the  hands  of  the  legate  a  charter 
of  recognition,  an  exact  counterpart  of  that  which  he 
had  given  to  Pandulph  :  he  then  took  the  oath  of 
fealty  again  ;  and  afterwards  performed  homage  to 
the  legate  as  the  representative  of  Innocent.  That 
charter  was  the  signal  of  Innocent's  victory  over 
John,  Two  years  later,  a  similar  charter,  extorted  at 
Runnymede,  marked  the  victory  of  the  barons  over 
the  same  king.^ 

Nor  was  England  the  only  country  over  which  In-  (0  ^ur- 

r        r       ^    ^  •  T       render  OJ 

nocent  acquired  the  rights  of  a  feudal  suzeram.      In  Peter  of 
order  to  make  his  crown  independent  of  his  power-  ^  '^^■^'"'* 
ful  vassals,  and  to  baffle  the  claim  to  supremacy  of 
the   King  of  Castile,    Peter    II.,   of  Aragon,  volun-  a. d.  1204 
tarily  made  himself  tributary  to  the  Pope,  binding 
himself  and  his  successors  to  the  annual  payment  of 

'  denario  beati  Petri,  Ecclesia  Romana  mille  marcas  sterlingorum 
'  percipiat  annuatim  etc'  Reference  was  made  to  this  document 
at  Concil.  Londinen.  an.  12 13.     Mansi,  Suppl.  ii.  848. 

^  The  oath  in  Rvmer,  ed.  Clarke  i.  112. 

'  For  the  Great  Charter  see  Appendix  I. 


2K.  CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 

PART  200  pieces  of  gold.^  In  return  he  was  crowned  by 
^^'  Innocent  at  Rome,  and  took  an  oath  to  the  Pope 
as  his  feudal  suzerain.'"^  From  Innocent,  too,  as  his 
liege-lord,  John  Duke  of  Bavaria  accepted  the  kingly- 
crown.  Over  Sicily  Innocent  ruled  in  the  character 
of  guardian  to  Frederic  IL,  whom  his  mother  had, 
on  her  death-bed,  commended  to  his  care,  Denmark 
looked  to  him,  and  obtained  from  him  justice  and 
redress  for  the  injury  inflicted  on  her  royal  daughter  ; 
and  his  legate  was  despatched  to  Iceland  to  warn 
the  inhabitants  not  to  submit  to  the  excommunicated 
and  apostate  priest  Swero.  Perhaps  it  was  well,  that 
in  those  asfes  there  should  be  some  recoQ^nised  tribu- 
nal  and  fountain  for  royal  honour ;  and  in  times  of 
turbulence,  princes  probably  gained  more  than  they 
lost  by  becoming  the  vassals  of  the  pontiffs.  Still 
such  power  vested  in  the  hands  of  an  ecclesiastic  was 
a  new  thing  in  the  Church,  and  placed  beyond  dis- 
pute the  greatness  which  the  papal  power  had 
reached. 

(c)  Inter-       Most  clearly  of  all,  however,  was  the  greatness  of 

fey €71  C€   Z  }t 

Germany,  the    papal   power  manifested,  in  the  way   in   which 
{")  De-      Innocent   influenced   the   destinies    of   the    Empire. 

cures  for  ^^ 

Otto  IV.  To  him  it  was,  no  doubt,  a  subject  of  congratulation, 
that  two  claimants  were  contending  for  the  imperial 
crown,  so  evenly  matched  as  Otto  and  Philip  ;  and 
hence  he  had  no  sooner  consolidated  his  power  in 
Italy  than  he  commenced  a  spirited  interference  in 
German  politics.     As  a  preliminary  step  to  deciding 

'  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.  200  ;  Gies. 
vol.  iii.  §  54,  p.  86  ;  Milman,  vol.  v.  book  ix.  ch.  vi.  p.  314. 
^  Quoted  by  Milman,  ibid.  p.  313. 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  III. 


■255 


the  rival    claims,  a  writing   was   drawn    up  in   the     chap. 

IX 

usual    scholastic   form,    reciting   the   arguments    in  '. 

favour  of,  and  those  against,  the  claims  of  each. 
Philip  it  charged  with  belonging  to  a  race  hostile  to 
the  Church,  and  therefore  likely  to  be  punished, 
since  the  sins  of  the  fathers  were  visited  upon  the 
children  to  the  third  and  fourth  generation.  Otto, 
on  the  other  hand,  it  stated,  belonged  to  a  race  de- 
voted to  the  Church,  and  therefore  declared  that  the 
Pope  would  support  Otto  in  case  the  princes  failed 
to  unite  in  choosing  him.^  For  Otto,  accordingly, 
Innocent  declared  in  i2or,  and  proceeded  to  excom- 
municate his  rival  Philip.^  This  step  on  the  part  of 
the  Pope  aroused  a  determined  resistance  on  the 
part  of  Philip  and  his  adherents.  It  seemed  for  a 
time  as  though  Philip  would  have  been  successful. 
Even  Innocent  was  obliged  to  enter  into  negotia- 
tions with  him  ;  but  his  assassination,  which  happened 
soon  afterwards,  gave  a  new  turn  to  the  case.  No 
power  now  remained  to  oppose  King  Otto  ;  Otto  had 
previously  taken  an  oath  of  allegiance  to  the  pontiff;^ 

^   Neand.  vii.  237  ;  and  Rcgist.  Imp.  Ep.  29. 

2  Regist.  Imp.  Ep.  ^^-i^  :  '  Personam  Philippi,  tanquam  indignam 
'  quoad  Imperium,  praesertim  hoc  tempore,  obtinendum,  penitus 
'  reprobamus,  et  juramenta,  quae  ratione  regni  sunt  ei  praestita, 
'  decernimus  non  servanda.  .  .  .  Cum  autem  carissimus  in  Christo 
'  filius  noster  Otto  vir  sit  industrius,  providus  et  discretus,  fortis  et 
'  constans,  et  per  se  devotus  existat  ecclesiae,  ac  descendat  ex 
'  utraque  parte  de  genere  devotorum  .  ,  .  nos  auctoritate  beat! 
'  Petri  et  nostra  eum  in  regem  recepimus,  et  regalem  ei  praecepi- 
*  mus  honorificentiam  exhiberi,  ipsumque  ad  coronam  Imperii, 
'  sicut  decet,  vocare  curabimus.' 

^  The  oath  was  taken  atNeuss  on  June  8,  1201.  It  ran  {Regist. 
Itiip.  Ep.   77)  :  '  Juro  quod  omnes  possessiones,  honores  et  jura 


256 


PART 
II. 


(')  De. 

poses 

Olio  IV. 

Supports 

Fiederic 

II. 


CLIMAX   OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 

Innocent's  first  triumph  in  Germany  was  complete, 
and  his  vassal-emperor  was  temporal  lord  of  the 
West.  The  Pope  had  played  the  old  game.  He 
had  fostered  division,  and  he  had  reaped  the  fruits 
thereof. 

A  further  triumph  was  yet  in  store  for  him.  The 
Empire  had  been  bestowed  upon  Otto  by  the  help 
of  his  intervention.  But  could  not  the  power  which 
had  given,  also  take  away  ?  It  was  not  long  before 
circumstances  suggested  to  Innocent  a  practical  an- 
swer to  this  question.  No  sooner  had  Otto  ob- 
tained the  imperial  crown  at  the  hands  of  the  Pope,^ 
than  the  good  understanding  between  himself  and 
Rome  was  at  an  end.     The  imperial  rights  in  Italy 


'  Romanae  Ecclesiae  pro  posse  meo  bona  fide  protegam  et  ser- 
'  vabo.     Possessiones  autem,  quas  Ecclesia  Romana  recuperavit, 

*  liberas  et  quietas  sibi  dimittam,  et  ipsam  ad  eas  retinendas 
'  bona  fide  juvabo  ;  quas  autem  nondum  recuperavit,  adjutor  ero 

*  ad  recuperandum.  .  .  .   Ad  has  pertinet  tota  terra,  quae  est  a 
Radicofano  usque  Ceperanum,  exarchatus  Ravennae,  Pentapolis, 

*  Marchia,  ducatus   Spoletanus,  terra  comatissae  Matildis,  comi- 

*  tatus  Brittenorii  cum  aliis  adjacentibus  terris  expressis  in  multis 

*  privilegiis  Iir.peratorum  a  tempore  Ladoici.  .  .  .  Adjutor  etiam 
'  ero  ad  retinendum  et  defendendum  Ecclesiae  Romanae  regnum 
'  Siciliae.  Tibi  etiam  Domino  meo  Innocentio  Papae  et  succes- 
'  soribus  tuis  omnem  obedientiam  et  honorificentiam  exhibebo, 

*  quam  devoti  et  catholici  Imperatores  consueverunt  sedi  apostoli- 
'  cae  exhibere.  .  .  .  Similiter  etiam  consilio  tuo  et  mandato  parebo 

*  de  pace  vel  concordia  facienda  inter  me  et  Philippum  regem 
'  Francorum.' 

'  Otto  was  crowned  by  Innocent  on  September  27,  1209,  but 
five  months  previously,  on  March  22,  1209,  he  had  been  obliged 
to  take  a  new  oath  to  the  Pope  at  Speier,  adding  firesh  conditions 
to  those  of  the  oath  taken  eight  years  previously.  See  Rcgist.  Imp. 
Ep.  189  ;  and  GiES.  vol.  iii.  §  54,  p.  84,  who  quotes  the  terms  of 
the  oath. 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  III. 


257 


were  vindicated  :    the   Pope's    new  creations    over-     chap, 

.4  IX. 

thrown.^     Remonstrances    proving    vain,''^    sentence  ^^_ 

of  excommunication  and  dethronement  followed.^ 
Meantime,  Frederic  II.,  whose  interests  had  been 
hitherto  so  unscrupulously  sacrificed  in  the  previous 
contests,  was  judiciously  brought  forward  as  a  candi- 
date for  the  now  vacant  throne,  and  the  legality  of 
his  election  having  been  tested  at  the  Lateran  Coun- 
cil, he  was  crowned  emperor  at  Aachen.*  For  the 
second  time.  Innocent  was  triumphant  in  Germany. 
Twice  he  had  decided  an  imperial  election.  Against 
one  of  the  emperors  whom  he  supported,  he  had 
made  his  sentence  of  excommunication  and  deposi- 
tion valid  ;  the  other  he  had  put  forward,  Intending 
him  to  be  a  mere  puppet  and  Instrument  in  his  own 
hands.  But  terrible  was  the  vengeance  about  to 
recoil  on  the  heads  of  the  Papacy  for  these  abuses  of 
its   power.     In  the  proudest  moment  of  Innocent's 

1  Math.  Paris,  ad  an.  1210  :  'Circa  dies  istos  Otto  Romano- 

*  rum  Imperator,  memor  sacramenti  quod  fecerat,  cum  a  Papa  ad 
'  Imperium  fuerat  sublimatus,  quod  videlicet  dignitates  Imperii 
'  conservaret,  et  jura  dispersa  pro  possibilitate  sua  revocaret ; 
'  fecit  per  sacramentum  legalium  hominum  Imperii  dominica  cas- 
'  tella  sua,  et  alia  jura  ad  dignitatem  imperialem  spectantia  per- 
'  quiri,  et  quaecumque  per  recognitionem  ad  jus  Imperii  spectare 

*  didicerat,  in  usus  suos  convertere  laborabat.' 

2  The  first  letter  from  Innocent  to  Otto  complains  :  '  Turbamur 

*  non  modicum  et  dolemus,  te  subito  conversum  in  arcum  perver- 

*  sum,    quem    fore    sedis    apostolicae    magnificum    protectorem, 

*  quondam  firmissime  credebamus.'  It  goes  on  to  threaten  him 
with  the  fate  of  Nebuchadnezzar,  Pharaoh,  and  the  family  of  the 
Hohenstaufen. 

'  November  10,   12 10,  a   Concil.  Roman,  an.   12 10.     LabbjS, 
xiii.  818. 

*  Additio  ad  Concil.  Lat.  iv.  an.  12 15.     Labb£,  xiii.  1024. 

S 


2rg  CLIMAX  OF   THE  PAPAL  POWER. 

PART     life — the  Lateran  Council  of  the  year  1 2 1 5^ — when  all 

'. his  projects  seemed  to  be  successful,  when  all  Europe 

was  obedient  to  his  beck,  when  even  one  part  of  the 
Eastern  Church,  thanks  to  the  success  of  the  crusades 
against  Constantinople,  had  been  brought  Into  sub- 
jection to  the  Roman  See,  and  the  accomplishment  of 
another  crusade  was  solemnly  decreed  ''^ — in  that  mo- 
ment of  triumph.  Innocent  little  thought  that  a  storm 
was  impending,  and  was  even  then  gathering  on  the 
horizon  which,  a  few  years  later,  under  Frederic  II., 
was   about  to   burst  over  the    Papacy,   but   not  till 
Innocent    III.    and    his    more    yielding    successor, 
Honorius  III.,  had  passed  away. 
(3)  inno-       The  papal  power,  like  the  surface  of  the  sea,  pre- 
succes-  '     sents  in  its  growth  a  constant  succession  of  varying 
sors  to       levels.^     At  one  moment  it  rises  on  the  crest  of  a 

the  tune 

of  Inno-     wave  ;  at  another,  it  is  depressed  in  the  adjoining 

^p        hollow.      Under    Innocent     III.,    that    power    had 
1216-1243 

1  Amongst  other  things  decreed  by  this  Council,  an.  1215 
(Labb^,  xiii.  926  seq.),  were  :  The  election  to  bishoprics  per  scru- 
tinium  vel  compromissum.  Can.  24  ;  the  prohibition  of  plurali- 
ties, Can.  29  ;  the  exclusion  of  the  sons  of  capitular  clerks  from 
capitular  benefices,  Can.  31.  Can.  44  ruled  that  the  enactments 
of  princes  should  not  prejudice  the  Church ;  Can.  50  diminished 
the  prohibited  degrees  to  the  fourth  degree  of  affinity  ;  Can.  54 
places  tithes  before  taxes  ;  Can.  60  forbids  abbots  to  encroach  on 
episcopal  duties  ;  Cans.  67-70  impose  restrictions  on  the  Jews. 

2  LABBfi,  xiii.  1007. 

'  The  Popes  after  Innocent  III.  were  Honorius  III.,  12 16. 
He  died  in  March  1227.  His  life  in  Labb^,  xiii.  1037.  Honorius 
III.  was  succeeded  by  Gregory  IX.  in  1227.  He  died  in  August 
1241.  His  life,  ibid.,  p.  mo.  Coelestine  IV.  followed  Gregory 
in  1 241,  and  ruled  for  fourteen  days.  Ibid.  p.  1463.  The  See  of 
Rome  was  then  vacant  for  some  time,  until  Innocent  IV.  was 
elected  June  24,  1243.     Labb^,  siv.  i. 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  I  IT.  250 

risen  on  the  summit  of  its  highest  wave  ;  then,  under  chap, 
Honorius  III.,  came  a  period  of  comparative  de-  __-H__ 
pression,  during  which  Httle  resistance  was  offered 
to  Frederic's  attempts  to  restore  the  rights  of  the 
crown  in  his  Sicihan  dominions  ^  and  to  reduce  Lom- 
bardy  to  the  Empire,^  But  under  Gregory  IX.  the 
Papacy  was  again  borne  aloft  on  the  top  of  a  new 
wave,  which  threatened,  as  it  broke,  to  submerge 
the  only  temporal  sovereign  who  still  ventured  to 
encounter  the  Pope.  Under  Gregory^ X.,  too,  the 
storm,  which  had  long  been  gathering,  burst  forth, 
first  on  the  Papacy,  then  on  the  Empire.  When  it 
had  passed  away,  neither  held  the  position  which 
they  formerly  enjoyed.  For  terrible  was  the  collision 
between  the  two  mightiest  elements  of  society,  the 
political  and  the  ecclesiastical  powers.  Gregory  IX. 
represented  the  moral  and  religious  forces  of  society, 
but  these  forces  distorted  by  superstition  into  a 
power,  the  rival  of  political  government.  Frederic 
II.,  the  knight,  the  poet,  the  lawgiver,  the  patron 
of  arts,  letters  and  science,  the  Teutonic  emperor, 
was  the  champion  of  civil  order.  Gregory  IX.  was 
passionate  and  headstrong;  Frederic  II.  bold,  un- 
scrupulous and  crafty. 

The  first  collision  between  these  forces,  broke  out  {a)  First 

.,  .      ,  ,     -  -  ,    collision, 

m    the    year    1227;    it  lasted  tor   three  years,    and  ofGre- 
though  at  its  close    Frederic  had  the  upper   hand,  S'j/;.^! 

_^_   deric  II, 

A.D. 

^  See  the  letter  of  Honorius  III.  to  Frederic  II.,  an.   1226,    1223-1230 
beginning  '  Miranda  tuis  sensibus,'  attributed  by  mistake  to  Gre- 
gory IX.  and  found  among  his  letters.    Ep.  xvii.  Labbe,  xiii.  1161 ; 
cf.  GiEs.  vol.  iii.  §  55,  p.  94. 

2  MiLMAN,  vol.  vi.  book  X.  ch.  iii.  p.  94  (small  edition). 

s  2 


26o  CLIMAX   OF   THE  PAPAL   POWER. 

PART     yet  he  understood  too  well  the  spirit  of  the  age,  to 
II 
^ —  push  matters  to  extremities,  and  at  St.  Germano  he 

concluded  a  treaty  with  the  Pope  to  the  advantage 
of  the  latter.  The  sentence  of  excommunication 
which  had  been  pronounced  on  Frederic,^  because 
he  had  failed  to  start  on  his  crusade  at  the  appointed 
time,  which  had  been  again  pronounced  upon  him  as 
soon  as  he  prepared  ^  to  start,  which  had  followed  him 
into  Palestine,  branding  him  as  a  persecutor  of  the 
Church,^  and  thwarting  him  at  every  step,  was  with- 
drawn :  Frederic  granted  a  complete  amnesty  to  all  his 
rebellious  subjects  ;  he  consented  to  restore  all  the 
places  he  occupied  in  the  papal  dominions,  and  all  the 
estates  which  he  had  seized  belonging  to  churches, 
monasteries,  the  Templars,  Hospitallers,  and  other 
adherents  and  supporters  of  the  Pope ;  he  renounced 
the  right  of  judging  the  ecclesiastics  of  his  realm, 
surrendered  the  claim  to  lay  taxes  on  ecclesiastical 

^  The  reasons  for  the  sentence  of  excommunication  pronounced 
on  Frederic,  September  30,  1227,  are  set  forth  by  Gregory  IX. 
Ep.  ii.  ad  Stephan.  Archiep.  Cant.     LABBfi,  xiii.  11 12. 

2  The  first  sentence  was  pronounced  September  30,  1227,  the 
second  March  23,  1228.  One  of  the  sentences  in  Greg,  ix, 
Ep.  xi.  Labb]^,  xiii.  1147.    See  Milm.  vol.  vi.  book  x.  ch.  iii.  p.  112. 

3  Gregor.  IX.  Ep.  3  ad  Romanum  Francorum  legatum,  Labb^, 
xiii.  1 1 16;  'Attende  quaesumus,  et  vide,  si  est  dolor  sicut  dolor 
'  noster,  quia  filium  quern  nutrivit  ecclesia  Romana  et  exaltavit, 
'  sperans  eum  propugnatorem   habere   contra  perfidas  nationes, 

*  ecce  nunc  persecutorem  sentit  immanem  et  hostem  validum 
'  experitur.  Et  ne  taceamus  atroces  injurias  et  jacturas  enormes, 
'  quibus  Fredericus  dictus  imperator  ecclesiam  et  personas  eccle- 
'  siasticas  damnabiliter  hactenus  flagellavit,  patrimonium  aposto- 
'  licae  sedis  per  Saracenos  et  alios  impugnat :  et  quod  detesta- 

*  bilius  est,  cum  Soldano  et  aliis  Saracenis  nefandis  contrahens 
'  pactiones,  illis  favorem,  Christianis  odium  exhibet  manifestum.' 


THE  ERA    OF  INNOCENT  III.  26 1 

property,  and,  it  was  said,  promised  to  defray  tlie     chap. 
expenses  of  tlie  war.     The  Pope  and  the  emperor  — 1^— 
were  once  more  at  one.^ 

But  this  friendship  was  not  destined  to  be  of  long  {b) Second 

1  •  T  1         r    T      T  collision. 

duration.      It  was  wrecked    on  the  rock  of    Itahan       ^  ,^ 

A.  IJ. 

pohtics.  Frederic  was  anxious  to  recover  the  old  1239-1241 
right  of  the  emperors  in  Lombardy  ;  the  Pope  was 
equally  anxious  to  prevent  his  doing  so.  When 
Frederic,  having  experienced  the  futility  of  media- 
tion, took  up  arms  to  effect  his  object,  Gregory 
espoused  the  cause  of  the  Lombard  towns ;  and 
charging  him  with  oppressing  the  Church,  and 
spoiling  her  of  her  possessions,  again  pronounced 
on  him,  on  Palm  Sunday  in  the  year  1239,  the 
sentence  of  excommunication.^  Still  Gregory  was  1239 
able  to  do  little  more  than  threaten,  prefer  charges, 
and  attempt  unsuccessful  schemes.  The  force  of 
circumstances  added  to  the  energetic  and  politic 
character  of  Frederic  ever  thwarted  his  projects. 
He  might  indite  letters  ^  in  which  the  emperor  was 

'  Treaty  of  St.  Germane  was  concluded  August  28,  1230.  See 
GiES.  vol.  iii.  §  55,  p.  99;  Rayn.  an.  1230,  No.  3;  Raumer, 
iii.  458;  MiLMAN,  vol.  vi.  p.  145. 

-  MiLMAN,  vol.  vi.  book  X.  ch.  iv.  p.  182. 

^  Gregor.  IX.  Ep.  12  ad  Archiep.  Cant.  Labbe,  xiii.  1149  : 
'  Ascendit  de  mari  bestia  blasphemiae  plena  nominibus  ;  quae 
'  pedibus  ursi  et  leonis  ore  desaeviens,  ac  membris  formata  ceteris 
'  sicut  pardus,  os  suum  in  blasphemias  divini  nominis  aperit, 
'  tabernaculum  ejus  et  sanctos  qui  in  coelis  habitant,  similibus 
'  impetere  jaculis  non  omittit.     Haec  unguibus  et  dentibus  ferreis 

*  cuncta  confringere,  et  suis  pedibus  universa  desiderans  conculcare, 
'  fidei  occultos  olim  paravit  arietes  ;  et  nunc  apertas  machinas 
'  instruit  Ismaelitarum,  gymasia  animas  avertentia  construit,  et  in 

*  Christum  humani  generis  redemptorem,  cujus  testamenti  tabulas 
'  stylo  pravitatis  haereticae  nititur  abolere,  fama  testante  consurgit 


262  CLIMAX   OF   THE  PAPAL  POWER. 

PART  portrayed  in  the  blackest  colours,  as  the  beast  rising 
'  from  the  sea  full  of  names  of  blasphemy,  with  the 
feet  of  a  bear,  and  the  jaws  of  a  lion,  raging  against 
the  saints  of  God  ;  as  the  dragon  set  for  the  annoy- 
ance of  himself,  and  pouring  forth  from  his  lips 
waters  of  persecution  against  the  Church ;  as  the 
staff  of  the  impious,  the  sledge  hammer  of  the  earth, 
building  up  the  walls  of  Babylon  on  the  habitations 
of  Christians  ;  as  holding  Christ,  Moses,  and  Mahomet 
alike  for  impostors,  and  asserting  that  nothing  ought 
to  be  believed  except  what  could  be  rationally  sup- 
ported. Such  charges,  whether  true  or  untrue,  could 
not  injure  the  victorious  monarch,  but  they  could 
injure  the  Pope,  since  their  whole  tone  was  one  of 
the   most  violent  rancour.     Hence,  when   Gregory 

* .  .  .  ut  ejus  resistere  aperta  veritate  mendaciis,  ac^illius  confutare 
'  fallacias  puritatis  argumento  possitis,  caput,  medium,  et  finem 
'  hujus  bestiae  Frederic!  dicti  imperatoris  inspicite.  .  .  . '  Ibid. 
p.  1154  :  '  Licet  draco  iste,  qui  ad  illudendum  nobis  formatus,  et 
'  in  escam  populo  Aethiopum  datus  existit,  aquas  persecutionum 
'  in  subversionem  ecclesiae   ex  ore  quasi  fluvium  miserit ;  apos- 

*  tolica  tamen  sedes  ipsius  nequitiam  inaestimabili  beneficiorum 
'  misericordia  superavit.  .  .  .  Iste  baculus  impiorum,  terrae  mal- 
'  leus,  universam  conturbare  terram  .  .  .  cupiens  .  .  .  personas 
'  ecclesiasticas  carceri  mancipavit,  .  .  .  et  bona  ecclesiastica  .  .  . 
'  exulare  coarctat.  Ecclesiis  pastorum  solatio  viduatis  non  per- 
'  mittit  sibi  sponsum  eligere.  .  .  .  De  Christianorum  habitaculis 
'  construens  moenia  Babylonis.  .  .  .  '  Jbid.  p.  1 1 5  7  :  '  Sicque 
'  affirmans  non  esse  apud  ecclesiam  a  Domino  beato  Petro  et 
'  ejus  successoribus  ligandi  atque  solvendi  traditam  potestatem. 
'  .  .  .  Sed  quia  aminus  bene  ab  aliquibus  credi  possit  quod  se  verbis 
'  illaqueaverit  oris  sui,  probationes  in  fidei  victoriam  sunt  paratae  : 
'  quia  iste   rex  pestilentiae  a  tribus  baratatoribus,  ut  ejus  verbis 

*  utamur,  scilicet  Christe  Jesu,  Moyse,  et  Machometo,  totum 
'  Mundum  fuisse  deceptum.  .  .  .  Insuper  quod  omnes  fatui  sunt, 
'  qui  credunt  nasci  de  Virgine  Deum,  qui  creavit  naturam.' 


INNOCENT  IV.   AND  HIS  SUCCESSORS. 


263 


tried  to  raise  up  a  rival  emperor,  Germany  resisted,     chap. 

and   loudly  expressed  her  indignation   because  her   U 

natural  defender  was  detained  in  Italy,  whilst  the 
Mongols  were  devastating  her  borders  :  ^  France 
refused  to  hear  of  the  project,  although  the  crown 
was  offered  to  Robert,  the  king's  brother :  and 
England,  already  the  victim  of  most  impudent  plun- 
dering, resounded  with  most  bitter  outcries  against 
Rome  and  the  Roman  policy. 

Frustrated  in  his  last  attempt  to  convene  a  council 
at  Rome,  to  identify  his  cause  with  the  cause  of  ^•^-  ^^41 
the  Church,  Gregory  IX.  died,  whilst  the  power  of 
Frederic  was  still  unbroken.  _  He  had  begun  his 
papal  career  by  stating  the  claims  of  the  Popes  at 
the  exalted  pitch  at  which  the  great  Innocent  had 
placed  them.  He  had  ended  in  vexation,  since  he 
found  in  Frederic  an  antas^onist  more  than  his 
equal.  The  storm  had  burst  over  the  Papacy,  and 
temporarily  humbled  it,  but  not  to  such  an  extent 
that  it  could  not  recover.  Tenfold  was  the  ven- 
geance which  it  ultimately  wreaked  on  its  opponent, 
but  not  immediately. 

As  long  as  Frederic  was  alive,  the  state  of  things 
continued  nearly  unaltered  ;   Innocent  IV.,  the  sue-  B.  The 
cessor  of  Gregory,^  only  becoming  more  hostile  to  ivwAhe 
the    emperor,    in    proportion    as    the    adherents    of  ^"^P'^^- 

i  1       r  Jnnocent 

Frederic   rallied    more    closely   about    him.     After  ^^-  ^"^ 

his  suc- 

vainly    seeking   to    obtain    a   reception    in  Aragon,  cessors. 
France,  and  England,^  the  Pope  suddenly  escaped  to   ^^^3- 1294 

1  See  the  passages  quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iii.  §  55,  p.  104. 

2  After  Coelestine  IV.     See  note  3  on  p.  258, 

3  Math.  Par.  p.  655. 


264 


CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL   POWER. 


PART     Lyons,  and  there  proceeded  to  convene  a   general 
council  in   1245,  in  which  sentence  of  excommuni- 


^cuffon'tf   cation  and  dethronement  against    Frederic  was  re- 
Hohcn-      newed  on  the  ground  of  perjury,  sacrilege,  heresy,  and 
{a)  In       defiance  of  the  Church.^     A  rebellion  was  stirred  up 
iiZlifo-    '^"^  Sicily,  a  rival  king  set  up  in  Germany.     For  the 
time.         sentence    Frederic   cared  little  ;   the    rebellion  was 
1243-1250  soon  quelled  ;  the  rival  king  fell  before  King  Conrad  ; 
and    soon    Frederic's    ascendency  was    so    decisive, 
that  the  Pope  could  find  no  one  willing  to  accept  the 
offered  crown,  except  William,   Count  of   Holland. 
It  seemed  as  though  the  work  of  Innocent  III.  were 
undone  ;  as  though  for  the  second  time  since  Innocent 
III.  the  fortunes  of  the   Papacy  had  sunk  to  a  low 
ebb  ;    this    time  lower  than  before,   as   though   the 
storm  which  had  burst  forth  had  utterly  prostrated 
it.     Then  by  one  of  those  changes  apparently  slight, 
but    fraught    with    great    consequences    in    history, 
the    tide  turned    once  more  ;    a  new  wave  of  ele- 
vation  rolled   in.      Innocent  IV.  was  still  Pope,  but 
Frederic  II.   was  gone,  having  died  on  December 
13th,  1250. 

{b)  Perse-       Now  follows  a  period  of  eiQfhteen  years,  includine 

ciiiiou  of  . , 

Hohen-      the  last  years  of  the  pontificate  of  Innocent  IV.,  and 

after  the    the  pontificates  of  Alexander  IV.,   Urban  IV.  and 

Frederic.    Clement   IV.,   all  Popes  of  average  ability,  all   up- 

i2=;'cw-'68  ^"^ol^i'^g  the  principles  of  Innocent  III.,  all  furthering 

the    two    schemes  which  engaged  the  attention    of 

their    predecessors — the    overthrow    of    the    house 

of    Hohenstaufen,    and    the    decision    of    imperial 

'  The  sentence  in  Labb£,  xiv.  47,  an.  1245. 


INNOCENT  IV.   AND  HIS  SUCCESSORS. 


265 


elections  in  Germany.     Of  the  Hohenstaufen  three     chap. 

representatives  alone  survived,   Conrad   the   son  of . 

Frederic  II.,  his  son  Conradin,  born  in  1252,  and 
his  half-brother  Manfred.  Against  Conrad  Inno- 
cent could  do  little  ;  the  rival  emperor  whom  he 
favoured  in  Germany  commanded  feeble  respect, 
and  Manfred  defended  for  Conrad  his  ancestral 
kingdom  of  Sicily.  The  year  1254,  however,  saw 
the  death  of  both  Conrad  and  his  rival.  Innocent 
IV.,^  yet  not  of  Innocent  till  he  had  treacherously 
presented  the  crown  of  Sicily  to  the  English 
prince  Edmund,  whilst  at  the  same  time  he  had 
engaged  to  Manfred  to  respect  the  rights  of  Con- 
radin, the  infant  son  of  Conrad.  Roused  by  this 
act  of  perfidy,  Manfred  anew  took  up  arms  as  the 


^  The  Popes  during  this  period  are  as  follows  :  Innocent  IV. 
elected  in  1243,  died  December  1254  ;  for  his  life,  Labb^,  xiv.  2. 
Innocent  IV.  was  succeeded  by  Alexander  IV.  in  1254:  he  died 
April  1 261  ;  for  his  life,  ibid.  p.  145.  After  a  vacancy  of  three 
months  Urban  IV.  was  elected  in  1261:  he  died  October  1264; 
his  life,  ibid.  p.  305.  Clement  IV.  succeeded  in  February  1265, 
and  died  November  1268;  his  life,  ibid.  p.  325.  The  See  was 
then  vacant  for  two  years  and  nine  months,  until  the  election  of 
Gregory  X.  in  1271  :  Gregory  died  January  1276  ;  his  life,  ibid. 
p.  467.  Innocent  V.  succeeded  February  1276,  dying  five  months 
later;  ibid.  p.  561.  Hadrian  V.  elected  July  1276,  died  forty 
days  later ;  ibid.  He  was  followed  by  John  XIX.  [XX.]  Sep- 
tember 1276,  who  died  in  the  following  year ;  his  life,  ibid.  p.  585. 
Nicolas  III.  succeeded  December  1277,  and  died  1280;  ibid. 
p.  595.  After  a  five  months'  vacancy  Martin  II  [IV.]  was  elected 
February  1281,  and  died  1285  ;  ibid.  p.  721.  Next  followed 
Honorius  IV.  in  April  1285  to  April  1287  ;  ibid.  p.  851.  Then 
after  a  year's  vacancy  in  1288,  Nicolas  IV.,  who  held  it  until  1292  ; 
ibid.  p.  1 16 1.  After  a  two  years'  vacancy  Coelestine  V.  suc- 
ceeded in  1294;  his  life,  ibid.  p.  1206. 


266  CLIMAX  OF   THE  PAPAL  POWER. 

PART     guardian  and  protector  of  his  nephew.     Supported 

'. by  his  brave  and  faithful  Saracens,  he  bade  defiance 

to  Alexander  IV.,  who  had  almost  exhausted  Eng- 
A.D.  1258  land  in  his  endeavours  to  support  Edmund's  cause  ; 
he  was  himself  elected  to  the  crown  of  Sicily, 
overran  the  states  of  the  Church,  and  compelled 
1260  the  Pope  to  sue  for  peace.  When  England  could 
pay  no  more,  the  crown  was  offered  by  Urban  IV. 
to  Charles  of  Anjou  ;  but,  nothing  daunted,  Manfred 
came  forth  to  meet  his  new  opponent,  and  at  Urban's 
death  was  in  possession  of  a  great  part  of  the 
states  of  the  Church.  How  long  the  contest  would 
have  been  prolonged,  it  is  impossible  to  say.  But 
a  papal  bull  gathered  an  army  of  crusaders  from 
Provence  about  Charles,  and  treachery  aided  his  de- 

Feb.  26,        .  '  -^  . 

1266      signs.     At  Benevento,  the  noble  Manfred  fell,  losing 
the  battle  together  with  his  life. 

And  now  the  time  was  come  for  the  lofty  race 
of  the  Hohenstaufen  to  fall.  Conradin,  the  grandson 
of  Frederic,  alone  survived.  That  unhappy  youth, 
Aug.  23,  making  one  ineffectual  attempt  to  recover  his  father's 
dominions,  was  defeated  and  taken  prisoner  at  Tag- 
liacozzo,  and  bloody  vengeance  executed  on  him. 
On  a  scaffold  at  Naples,  the  execution  of  five 
persons  might  have  been  witnessed  on  October  29, 
1268,  undertaken  by  command  of  the  Count  of 
Anjou,  among  them  being  two  in  particular,  the 
one  Frederic  of  Bavaria,  the  other  Conradin.^  As 
the  latter  knelt  with  uplifted  hands,  awaiting  the 
blow  of  the  executioner,  and  uttered  these  last 
words  :     '  O    my    mother !    how    deep    will  be   thy 

*  See  MiLMAN,  vol.  vi.  book  xi.  ch.  iii.  p.  391. 


INNOCENT  IV.   AND  HIS  SUCCESSORS. 


267 


sorrow  at  the  news  of  this  day  ! '  even  the  followers     chap. 

of  Charles  could  hardly  restrain  their  pity  and  indig-  '— — 

nation.  Yet  their  pity  did  not  avail  him.  He  lies 
not  in  consecrated  ground — the  inexorable  rancour 
of  his  enemies  would  not  grant  that  boon.  No 
death-knell  except  his  own  words  sounded  over  the 
decease  of  the  last  scion  of  the  house  of  Hohen- 
staufen,  dead  in  his  early  youth.  That  house,  greatest 
of  Germany's  imperial  families,  had  for  nearly  a  cen- 
tury and  a  half  headed  the  van  of  opposition  to  the 
growing  papal  claims.  Rarely  had  it  been  defeated, 
except  when  other  circumstances  combined  against 
it,  as  they  did  against  the  great  Frederic  at  Venice, 
or  the  second  Frederic  at  St.  Germano.  But  now 
its  glory  was  gone  for  ever ;  its  last  gleam  of  light 
was  extinguished,  itself  the  victim  of  the  enduring 
hatred  of  Clement  IV.  Ignobly  sacrificed  to  the 
rancour  of  an  Ignoble  foe.  The  Papacy  had  tri- 
umphed, and  the  Hohenstaufen  were  extinct. 

The  other  point  to  which   Innocent   IV.  and  the  iz)  De- 
succeeding  Popes  chiefly  directed  their  attention  was  imperial 
the  decision  of  imperial  elections.^    Already,  in  1 246,  ^  ^''  ^^"'^' 
Innocent  IV.  had  put   forward   '  the   priest's  king,' 
Henry  Raspe,  and  on  his  death  William  of  Holland, 
as  a  rival  emperor  to  Frederic  II.     When  death  had 
carried  off  both   Frederic  and  William,   Alexander 
IV.  possessed  sufficient  influence  to  prevent  the  elec- 
tion of  Frederic's  son  Conrad.     At  a  still  later  time,    ^  ^  1259 
Alexander    was    looked  to    by  Germany  to   decide 
between  the  two  candidates,  Richard  of  Cornwall  and 

^  See  note  on  imperial  elections,  Chap.  X.  infra. 


268  CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER, 

PART     Alfonso  of  Castile.^    Although  he  decided  in  favour 


II. 


of  Richard,  who  was  supported  by  the  Archbishop 
of  Cologne,  and  among  others  by  the  cities  of 
Frankfurt,  Oppenheim,  Wesslar  and  Friedberg, 
yet  his  successor,  conscious  of  his  own  strength, 
professed  to  regard  the  question  as  still  open,  and 
repeatedly  summoned  the  candidates  before  his 
throne,  but  without  pronouncing  any  decision.  At 
length,  by  a  long  series  of  aggressions,  the  idea  of 
the  ascendency  of  the  papal  power  over  the  German 
crown  was  so  firmly  established,  that  on  Richard's 
death,  Gregory  X.  wrote  to  the  electors,  threatening 
himself  '  to  provide  for  the  desolate  conditions  of  the 
Roman  Empire,  unless  within  the  time  prescribed 
they  agreed  in  their  choice.'^  Once  the  emperors 
had  decided  papal  elections,  now  the  Popes  took 
upon  themselves  to  decide  imperial  elections.  Such 
is  the  nemesis  of  history.  The  newly  elected  emperor, 
Rudolph  of  Hapsburg,  was  obliged  to  acknowledge 
the  papal  supremacy,  and  to  swear  '  to  preserve  and 
protect  the  honours  and  rights  of  the  Roman 
Church,  and  to  honour  and  obey  his  lord,  Gregory 
X,,  and  his  successors.'  By  a  threat  of  excom- 
munication, Alfonso  was  induced  to  renounce  his 
pretensions ;   and  to    complete    the  triumph,  a   few 


'  See  the  documents  quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iii.  §  57,  p.  119. 

2  An  historian  in  Urctisii,   German.  Historie,   ii.  93  relates  : 

*  Gregorius  P.  X.  .  .  .  praecepit  principibus  Alemanniae  electoribus, 

*  ut  de  Romanorum  Rege,  sicut  sua  ab  antiqua  et  approbata  con- 

*  suetudine  intererat,  providerent,  infra  tempus  eis  ad  hoc  de 
'  Papa  Gregorio  statutum  :  alias  ipse  de  consensu  Cardinalium 
'  Romani  Imperii  providere  vellet  desolationi.' 


BONIFACE   VI I  I. 


A.D.  1278 


269 

years    later,    not   ten    years    after   the    unfortunate    chap. 

IX 

Conradin  had  perished  on  the  scaffold,  Nicolas  III. 
secured  the  territorial  independence  of  the  states  of 
the  Church  by  gaining  from  Rudolph  an  absolute 
release  from  imperial  sovereignty  for  all  the  do- 
minions already  granted  to  the  Roman  See.^ 

The  historian  tracing;  the    srrowth   of   the    papal  c.  Boni- 

11  r  1  'd  .faceVIIL 

power,   naturally  passes  on  irom  the   pontincate  01  1294-1303 
Nicolas  III.  to  that  of  Boniface  VIII.,  who,  by  a  (0  His 

...  .      tyj'aniiy. 

combination  of  ambition,  daring  and  craft,  made  his 
way  to  the  papal  throne,  and  now  carried  its  pre- 
tensions to  power  to  their  highest  pitch.  Without 
any  claim  to  spiritual  character,  without  even  moral 
worth,  avaricious,  unscrupulous,  and  revengeful,  dig- 
nified only  in  distress,  Boniface  VIII.,  In  wanton 
abuse  of  power,  went  far  beyond  his  great  prede- 
cessor. Innocent  III.,  but  his  moral  ascendency  over 
the  minds  of  men  was  far  less  than  that  of  Innocent. 
Innocent's  acts  were  those  of  a  monarch  powerfully 
heading  the  current  of  popular  sympathies  ;  those  of 
Boniface  were  the  acts  of  a  cruel  tyrant,  whose 
might  is  his  only  right,  and  whose  dominion  Is 
sullenly  endured.  Innocent's  pontificate  prepared 
the  way  for  the  greatest  triumphs  of  the  Papacy ; 
that  of  Boniface  for  the  great  reaction  against  It, 
which  culminated  In  the  Reformation.^ 

The  accession  of  Boniface  is  marked  by  an  occur-  (2)  His 
rence  unprecedented  In  the  annals  of  the  Papacy  since  /^y/^  '^^ 

^  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  i.  pt.  ii.  ch.  iii.  p.  114  (smal 
edition). 

'  For  the  life  of  Boniface  VIII.,  who  succeeded  Coelestine  V. 
in  1294,  and  died  October  1303,  see  Labb^,  xiv.  1222. 


270 


CLIMAX   OF  THE  PAPAL   POWER. 


PART 
II. 


(3)  Perse- 
ciitio)i 
of  ike 
Colonnas, 


the  era  of  the  Hildebrandian  Church  reforms.  Before 
that  era,  instances  had  occurred  of  Popes  resigning 
their  See.  The  worthless  Benedict  IX.  had  been  de- 
posed to  make  way  for  Silvester  III.  ;  he  had  after- 
wards sold  his  See  to  Gregory  VI.  ;  ^  Benedict  X.  had 
been  displaced  to  make  way  for  Nicolas  11.^  But 
how  could  a  Pope  be  lawfully  deposed  or  be  able 
to  resien,  now  that  he  was  conceived  to  be  invested 
wath  the  highest  dignity  upon  earth,  and  stood  forth 
as  the  vicar  of  Christ  ?  Benedetti,  however,  artfully 
taking  advantage  of  the  feeble  Coelestine  V,,  whom 
age  and  monkish  life  ill  fitted  for  the  round  of  busi- 
ness in  the  papal  court,  suggested  scruples  of  con- 
science, and  induced  him  to  retire  to  his  former 
life  ;  then,  having  secured  his  own  election,  he  kept 
his  predecessor  in  close  confinement  for  the  rest  of 
his  days,  lest  he  should  at  any  time  reassert  his 
claims.  In  acting  thus,  he  certainly  established  the 
greatness  of  his  own  power,  but  he  weakened  that  of 
his  successors  by  giving  a  precedent,  of  which  the 
Councils  of  Pisa  and  Constance  were  afterwards  not 
slow  to  avail  themselves. 

A  like  result  followed  from  another  of  Boniface's 
most  overbearinof  and  revengeful  acts.  That  terrible 
vengeance  which,  for  the  offence  of  one  knight,  who 
had  plundered  a  convoy  of  papal  treasure,  placed 
the  entire  family  of  the  Colonnas  under  the  ban, 
and,  recounting  the  sins  of  that  family  from  distant 
generations,  deposed  all  its  members  from  every  spi- 
ritual and  secular  office,  destroyed  their  castles,   and 


>  See  Chap.  V.  p.  138. 


See  Chap.  VII.  p.  192. 


BONIFACE   VIII. 


271 


confiscated   their   estates,    was  a  stretch    of  power    chap, 

IX. 

which,  even  if  exerted  in  a  just  cause,  went  beyond  '— — 

the  Hmits  of  human  endurance.^  Great,  therefore, 
was  the  resentment  which  it  called  forth,  when  it  was 
seen  to  be  an  act  of  personal  revenge,  aimed  at 
two  cardinals  of  the  Colonna  family,  who  had  op- 
posed the  Pope's  election.  From  their  humiliation 
those  cardinals  called  for  justice.  Boniface,  it  is 
true,  gained  the  day ;  nothing  remained  for  the 
Colonnas,  when  a  crusade  had  been  preached  against 
them,  but  to  throw  themselves  at  the  feet  of  the 
Pope,  and  sue  for  mercy.  When  he  anew  persecuted 
them,  they  fled  to  France.  But  the  fact  remained 
on  record  to  form  a  precedent  for  future  times,  that 
an  appeal  had  been  made  to  a  general  council,  and 
that  a  higher  tribunal  had  been  invoked  which  should 
pass  j  udgment  even  on  the  Pope. 

A   Pope  who   could  travesty  the    solemn    words,  (4)  Grant 

T-\  1  1  1111  J  •  cf  Indul- 

'  Dust  thou  art,  and  unto  dust  shalt  thou  return,  mto  gences. 
'  A  Ghibelline  thou  art,  and  unto  dust  shalt  thou 
return  with  the  Ghibellines,'  might  be  expected  on 
other  occasions  to  sacrifice  religious  proprieties  for 
wordly  gains.  And  so  it  actually  happened.  Taking 
advantage  of  the  close  of  the  century,  Boniface,  on 
January  i,  1300,  ascended  the  pulpit  of  St.  Peter's, 
which  was  draped  with  rich  tapestry  for  the  occasion 
and  crowded  with  expectant  votaries.  There,  having 
concluded  his  sermon,  he  unfolded  a  bull,  sealed 
with  the  pontifical  seal,  granting  to  all  Romans 
who  for  thirty  days,  to  all  strangers  who  for  fifteen 

•  Neand.  ix,  5. 


272 


CLIMAX  OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 


PART 
II. 


(5)   Cc"- 
fiict  with 
Philip 
the  Fair. 


(a)  First 
struggle. 

A.D. 

Feb.  24, 
1296 


days  after  Easter,  should  devoutly  visit  the  churches 
of  St.  Peter  and  St.  Paul  in  Rome,  the  fullest  Indul- 
gence, on  condition  that  they  truly  repented  and  con- 
fessed their  slns.^  The  bull  was  received  as  a 
general  boon,  and  Rome  was  thronged  with  crowds 
of  penitents — a  source  of  gain  to  the  Romans,  a 
mine  of  untold  wealth  to  Boniface.  Far  exceeding 
what  any  one  of  his  predecessors  had  ventured  to 
do  before,  this  lavish  exercise  of  spiritual  jurisdiction 
by  Boniface  displayed  in  Its  fullest  dimensions  the 
extravagance  of  his  assumptions  ;  but,  like  so  many 
of  his  other  acts.  It  weakened  the  papal  power,  pro- 
voking opposition  by  its  wantonness,  though  in  this 
case  the  opposition  was  directed  against  its  spiritual, 
and  not  against  its  temporal  pretensions. 

And  now  began  the  memorable  conflict  between 
Boniface  and  Philip  the  Fair  of  France,  the  last 
great  struggle  between  a  Pope  and  a  king — Philip 
in  avarice  and  ambition  the  equal  of  Boniface,  in  un- 
flinching unscrupulousness,  if  It  were  possible,  his 
superior.  Neither  shrunk  from  pushing  his  claims 
to  their  extreme  limit ;  neither  from  couchlno-  them 
in  the  plainest  and  most  abrupt  language. 

The  conflict  began  In  1296,  when  the  Pope  issued 
a  bull,  known  from  its  initial  words  as  Clericis  laicos, 
which  pronounced  the  ban  on  all  princes  and  nobles, 
who  under  any  pretext  imposed  tallages  on  the 
Church    and    clergy.-     Although  the   bull    did    not 

*  Neand.  ix.  3. 

2  Quoted  in  Lib.  Sex.  Decretal,  lib.  iii.  t.  xxiii.  cap.  iii.  ;  in 
Rymer,  Focd.  ed.  Clarke,  i.  ii.  836  ;  in  Gies.  vol.  iii.  §  59,  p.  134: 
*  Clericis  laicos  infestos  oppido  tradit  antiquitas,  quod  et  praesen- 


IX. 


BONIFACE    VIII.  27 1 

mention  Philip  by  name,  it  was  clearly  aimed  at  him ;  chap. 
the  Pope's  object  being  to  induce  Philip  by  fear  of 
wanting  supplies  to  refer  his  dispute  with  the  English 
king  Edward  I.  to  himself  for  decision.  In  this 
object  he  failed  at  the  time,  having  entirely  misjudged 
the  character  of  his  opponent.  Philip  retaliated  by 
prohibiting  the  exportation  of  gold  and  silver  out  of 
France,  thus  depriving  Boniface  of  an  important 
portion  of  his  revenues,  and  Boniface  found  it  best 
for  his  own  interests  to  repeal  the  bull  with  regard  to 
France,^  and  to  court  the  favour  of  Philip.     Friendly 

'  tium  experimenta  temporum  manifeste  declarant  dum  suis  finibus 
'  non  contenti  nituntur  in  vetitum,  ad  illicita  fraena  relaxant  nee 
'  prudenter  attendunt,  quae  sit  eis  ii;  clericos,  ecclesiasticasve 
'  personas  et  bona  interdicta  potestas  :  .  .  .  et  (quod  dolenter 
'  referimus)  nonnulli  Ecclesiarum  Praelati  .  .  .  trepidantes,  ubi 
'  trepidandum  non  est,  .  .  .  plus  timentes  majestatem  temporalem 
'  offendere  quam  aeternam,  talium  abusibus  .  .  .  adquiescunt, 
'  sedis  apostolicae  auctoritate  seu  licentia  non  obtenta.  Nos 
'  igitur,  talibus  iniquis  actibus  obviate  volentes,  de  fratrum  nos- 
'  trorum  consilio  apostolica  auctoritate  statuimus,  quod  quicumque 
'  Praelati,  ecclesiasticaeque  personae  .  .  .  collectas  vel  tallias, 
'  decimam,  vicesimam  seu  centesimam  suorum  et  Ecclesiarum  pro- 
'  ventiuum  .  .  .  laicis  solverint  vel  promiserint,  aut  quamvis  aliam 
'  quantitatem  .  .  .  sub  adjutorii,  mutui,  subventionis,  subsidii  vel 
'  doni  nomine,  seu  quovis  alio  titulo,  modo,  vel  quaesito  colore, 
'  absque  auctoritate  sedis  ejusdem  ;  necnon  Imperatores,  Reges 
'  seu  Principes,  .  .  .  qui  talia  imposuerunt,  exegerint  vel  rece- 
'  perint,  aut  apud  aedes  sacras  deposita  Ecclesiarum  .  .  .  arres- 
'  taverint,  saisiverint,  seu  occupare  praesumserint,  necnon  omnes, 
'  qui  scienter  dederint  in  praedictis  auxilium,  .  .  .  eo  ipso  sen- 

*  tentiam  excommunicationis  incurrant.  ...  A  supradictis  autem 
'  excommunicationum  et  interdicti  sententiis  nullus  absolvi  valeat, 
'  praeterquam  in  mortis  articulo,   absque   sedis  apostolicae  auc- 

*  toritate.' 

^  Or  rather  to  explain  it  twice;  first,  February  7,  1297,  after- 
wards, July  31,  1297.     The  former  explanation  in  Raynald  ad  h. 

T 


2^/4'^ 


CLIMAX   OF  THE  PAPAL  POWER. 


PART  relations  were  restored,  and  Philip  agreed  to  accept 
-  ' —  the  arbitration  of  the  Pope.  Thus  by  a  yielding- 
policy  Boniface  succeeded  in  obtaining  a  success, 
which  he  had  been  unable  to  gain  by  force ;  but 
whilst  the  gain  was  personal,  a  sacrifice  had  been 
made  of  the  dignity  of  his  office. 

{b)  Second       A  year  or  two  later  the  quarrel  broke  out  afresh  ; 

A^D^^^gS  Philip  being  dissatisfied  with  the  Pope's  award  ; 
Boniface  charging  Philip  with  oppressing  the  Church. 
Saiset  de  Pamiers,  the  papal  legate,  threatened  the 
king  with  excommunication,  his  whole  kingdom  with 
the  interdict.^  To  Philip  Boniface  wrote  :  '  Thou 
art  to  know  that  in  things  spiritual  and  temporal  thou 
art  subject  to  us.  .  .  .  Those  who  think  otherwise 
we  hold  to  be  heretics.'  ^  The  French  prelates  he 
summoned  to  Rome  to  confer  with  him  on  the  abuses 
in  Philip's  administration  ;   Philip  himself  he  cited  to 

an.  No.  49,  and  Gies.  vol.  iii.  §  59,  p.  137  :   'Quia  ejus  est  inter- 

*  pretari  cujus  est  condere,  ad  cautelam  tuam  .  .  .  decernimus, 

*  quod  si  Praelatus  aliquis  .  .  .  voluntarie  .  .  .  donum  aut  mu- 
'  tuum  tibi  dare  .  .  .  voluerit,  .  .  .  te  Praelatos  etc.  ipsa  consti- 
'  tutio  non  astringat.'  The  latter,  idid.  No.  50,  and  Gies.  idid. : 
'  Adjicimus  insuper  hujusmodi  declarationi  nostrae,  quod  si  prae- 
'  fatis  Regi  et  successoribus  suis  pro  universali  vel  particulari  ejus- 
'  dem  regni  defensione  periculosa  necessitas  immineret,  ad  hujus- 
'  modi  necessitatis  casum  se  nequaquam  extendat  constitutio  nie- 
'  morata.' 

*  See  the  documents  in  Du  Puy,  p.  621  ;  Martene,  Thesaurus, 
i.  1319. 

2  BuLAEUS,  iv.  7  ;  Baillet,  p.  163  :  '  Deum  time  et  mandata 
'  ejus  observa.     Scire  te  volumus,  quod  in  spiritualibus  et  tempo- 

*  ralibus  nobis  subes.  Beneficiorum  et  Praebendarum  ad  te  col- 
'  latio  nulla  spectat :  et  si  aliquorum  vacantium  custodiam  habeas, 

*  fructus  eorum  successoribus  reserves.  .  .  .  Aliud  auteni  credentes 
'  haereticos  reputamus.' 


BONIFACE    VIII. 


275 


appear   before   them,  bidding   him  observe,  so    the     chap 
letter  ran,  '  what  the  Lord  our  God   utters  through  1^- 


us.'^  The  celebrated  bull,  Unam  Sanctam,  was  put  ^^:^\<^ 
forth,  repeating  in  a  still  more  advanced  form  the  '302 
principles  of  Innocent  III.,  declaring  that  to  St.  Peter, 
as  the  one  head  of  the  Church,  and  to  his  successors, 
two  swords  had  been  committed,  the  one  temporal, 
the  other  spiritual  ;  that  the  temporal  sword  was  to 
be  usedy^r  the  Church,  the  spiritual  by  the  Church  ; 
and  concluding  by  the  assertion  that  for  every 
human  being  subjection  to  the  Pope  was  necessary 
for  salvation.^  To  crown  the  whole,  a  bull  was  issued 
on  April  13,  1303,  pronouncing  sentence  of  excommu- 
nication on  the  king.^ 

To  all  these  menaces   Philip  replied  with   equal 

'  Raynald,  1.  c.  No.  31  ;  Bulaeus,  iv.  7  ;  Du  PuY,  p.  48  : 
'  Ausculta,  fili  carissime,  praecepta  patris,  et  ad  doctrinam  magistri, 
'  qui  gerit  illius  vices  in  terris,  qui  solus  est  Magister  et  Dominus, 
'  aurem  tui  cordis  inclina.  .  ,  .  Tu  autem  audies,  quid  loquetur  in 

*  nobis  Dominus  Ueus  noster.' 

2  Raynald,  an.  1302,  No.  13  ;  Gies.  vol.  iii.  §  59,  p.  146  : 
'  Unam  sanctam  Ecclesiam  catholicam  et  ipsam  apostolicam  ur- 

*  gente  fide  credere  cogimur  et  tenere.  .  .  .  Igitur  Ecclesiae  unius 

*  et  unicae  unum  corpus,  unum  caput,  non  duo  capita,  quasi  mon- 
'  strum,  Christus  videlicet  et  Christi  vicarius  Petrus,  Petrique  suc- 

*  cessor.  ...  In  hac  ejusque  potestate  duos  esse  gladios,  spiri- 
^'  tualem  videlicet  et   temporalem,   evangelicis   dictis   instruimur. 

*  Nam  dicentibus  Apostolis  Ecce  gladii  duo  hie  (Luc.  xxii.  38)  in 

*  Ecclesia  scilicet.  .  .  .  uterque  ergo  est  in  potestate  Ecclesiae, 
'  spiritualis  scilicet  gladius  et  materialis.     Sed  is  quidem  pro  Ec- 

*  clesia,  ille  vero  ab  Ecclesia  exercendus.    Ille  sacerdotis,  is  manu 

*  Regum  et  militum,  sed  ad  nutum  et  patientiam  sacerdotis.  .  .  . 

*  Porro  subesse  Romano  Pontifici,  omni  humanae  creaturae  de- 

*  claramus,  dicimus,  definimus  et  pronunciamus  omnino  esse  de 
■*  necessitate  salutis.' 

3  Du  Puv,  p.  98  ;  Bulaeus,  iv.  38. 

T  2 


276 


CLIMAX   OF   THE  PAPAL   POWER. 


PART 
II. 


A.D.  April, 
1302 


June  13, 
1303 


(0  Fall 
of  Boni- 
face. 


boldness ;  Saiset,  the  legate,   who  was  moreover  a 
subject  of  France,  he  contemptuously  sent  out  of  the 
kinofdom  unanswered.     To  Boniface's  laconic  letter 
he  replied  by  one  equally  laconic  :  '  Let  thy  most 
consummate  folly  know  that  in  temporal  things  we 
are  subject  to  no  man.  .  .  .  Those  who  think  other- 
wise we  hold  to  be  foolish  or  mad.'^  He  forbade  the 
prelates  to  leave  the  kingdom  and  sequestrated  the 
goods  of  those  who  disobeyed,  and  assembling  the 
States  General,  to  assure  himself  of  the  support  of  his 
subjects,  he  recounted  the  attacks  which   had  been 
made  on  his  sovereignt}^     The  bull,  Unam  Sanctam, 
was  publicly  burnt,  and  to  the  bull  of  excommunica- 
tion he  replied  by  preferring  before  the  States  Gene- 
ral a  list  of  charges  against  tlie    Pope,  and  making 
a  solemn  appeal  to  a  general  council  to  examine  these 
charges.      Thus  for  the  second  time  in  Philip  s  reign 
an  appeal  was  made  from  the   Pope  to  a   council ; 
the  sympathies  of  the  States  General  were  enlisted 
on   the  side   of  the    king ;    and    the  weapon  which 
Hildebrand  had  first   employed   against   the   clergy 
was  now  employed  by  Philip  against  Hildebrand's 
successor. 

The  sequel  of  the  struggle  is  soon  told.      Boniface 

'  BuLAEus,  iv.  II ;  Baillet,  p.  Ill  ;  Gies.  vol.  iii.  §  59,  p.  143. 
'  Philippus  Dei  Gratia  Francorum  Rex  Bonifacio  se  gerenti  pro 
'  summo  Pontifice  salutera  modicam,  seu  nullam.  Sciat  maxima 
'  tua  fatuitas,  in  temporalibus  nos  alicui  non  subesse ;  Ecclesiarum 

*  ac  Praebenclarum  vacantium  collationem  ad  Nos  jure  regio  per- 
'  tinere  ;  fructus  earum  nostros  facere ;  collationes  a  nobis  hac- 
'  tenus  factas  et  in  posterum  faciendas  fore  validas  in  praeteritum 

*  et  futurum  ;  et  earum  possessores  contra  omnes  viriliter  nos 
'  tueri ;  secus  autem  credentes  fatuos  et  dementes  reputamus.' 


IX. 


BOXIFACE    VI I L  2  77 

had  gone  too  far  to  be  able  to  withdraw,  and  PhiUp  chap. 
was  not  disposed  to  give  way.  Whilst  the  Pope 
thought  to  celebrate  his  triumph  over  France,  the 
handwriting  was  seen  on  the  wall.  Before  Anagni, 
his  native  city,  whither  he  had  withdrawn  with  his 
cardinals  from  the  summer  heat  of  Rome,  William 
de  Nogaret,  Philip's  keeper  of  the  seals,  appeared  on 
September  7,  1303,  at  the  head  of  a  troop  of  armed 
men.  He  entered  the  city  at  early  dawn,  and  soon 
the  cry  resounded  :  '  Death  to  Pope  Boniface  !  Long 
live  the  King  of  France!'  The  people  took  part 
with  the  soldiers  ;  the  cardinals  fled.  Not  losing  his 
self-command,  but  declaring  himself  ready  to  die  like 
Christ,  If  like  Christ  he  were  betrayed,  Boniface  put 
on  the  stole  of  St.  Peter,  and  with  the  imperial  crown 
on  his  head,  the  keys  of  St.  Peter  In  one  hand,  the 
cross  in  the  other,  took  his  seat  on  the  papal  throne  ; 
and,  like  the  Roman  senators  of  old,  awaited  the  ap- 
proach of  the  Gaul,^  But  he  had  not  been  three 
days  In  the  hands  of  Nogaret,  when  the  citizens  of 
Anagni  by  a  sudden  impulse  turned  round ;  the 
French  were  driven  from  Rome,  and  Boniface  was 
once  more  at  liberty.  To  Rome  he  returned  ;  no 
longer  to  exercise  that  sway  over  men's  minds  which 
he  had  wielded  in  the  days  of  his  prosperity,  but 
to  find  himself  a  prisoner,  the  Sacred  College  his 
enemies.  In  an  access  of  fury,  the  Ghibelllne  his- 
torians relate,  brought  on  by  wounded  pride  and 
ambition,  the  fallen  Pontiff  sat  gnawing  the  top  of  his 
staff,  and  at  length  beat  out  his  brains  against  the  wall. 

^  See  MiLMAN,  vol.  vii.  book  xl.  ch.  ix.  p.  T4f). 


278  CLIMAX   OF   THE  PAPAL   POWER. 

PART         In  the  fall  of  Boniface  was  shadowed  forth  the  fall 

. .^—  of  the  papal  supremacy,  which  for  so  long  had  held 

dominion  over  men's  minds  and  bodies.  In  the 
bold  and  unscrupulous  use  of  ecclesiastical  power  no 
Pope  had  ever  been  the  equal  of  Boniface ;  there  is 
nothing  in  the  life  of  the  great  Innocent  III.  which 
equals  Boniface's  crusade  against  the  Colonnas, 
nothing  in  that  of  Gregory  VII,  which  approaches 
the  series  of  bulls  hurled  at  the  head  of  Philip, 
Nevertheless,  had  all  other  signs  of  decline  been 
wanting,  and  could  the  last  scene  of  Boniface's  life  be 
expunged  from  history,  those  two  appeals  to  a 
general  council,  that  successful  enlistment  of  the 
sympathies  of  the  States  General  against  Boniface, 
showed  that  the  papal  power  had  begun  to  decline. 
The  year  of  Jubilee,  with  its  lavish  grant  of  indul- 
gences, provoked  the  reaction  which  prepared  the 
way  for  the  era  of  the  Reformation. 


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28o  THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


CHAPTER   X. 

THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 
(1046— 1303.) 


Fecitque  Deus  duo  luniinaria  magna. — Gen,  I,  16. 


sion. 


PART      IV  T  O  greater  error  can  be  committed  in  studying 

'- L  \       the  history  of  any  epoch,  than  that  of  bring- 

lioly         irig  the  ideas  of  one  age  to  explain  those  of  another. 
Empire,     'p^jg  statement  applies  in  particular  to  the  developed 

{i)Meati-  .  •I'll  •         r 

ing  of  the  ideas  of  modern  times,  in  which  there  is  often  very 
expres-  ]i^|-|g  analogous  to  the  ideas  of  a  remote  past.  That 
sharp  distinction  between  the  Church  and  the  State, 
which  has  grown  so  familiar  to  most  of  us,  but  only 
by  a  long  course  of  training,  had  no  existence  in  the 
period  from  the  eleventh  to  the  fourteenth  century. 
Then  the  Church  was  co-extensive  with  the  State. 
All  who  were  members  of  the  Church  were  members 
of  the  State.  Those  who  were  excluded  from  the 
fellowship  of  the  Church  were  excluded  from  the 
protection  of  the  State.  The  laws  of  the  Church 
were  the  laws  of  the  State.  Religious  ceremonies 
were  also  civil  ceremonies.  The  civil  act  of  crown- 
ing a  king  was  performed  by  the  Church,  and  be- 
came an  ecclesiastical  act.  The  ecclesiastical  act 
of  framing  canons  was  jointly  performed  by  the 
State.     In  short,   Church  and  State  were  involved 


IDEA    OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


2«I 


in  each  other,  not  in  the  same  way  that  Church  and  chap. 
State  are  now  involved  as  distinct  bodies  inter-  ^' 
twining,  but  as  one  and  the  same  body  viewed  from 
different  aspects.  The  Church  of  the  eleventh 
century  is  identical  with  the  Empire  of  the  eleventh 
century  ;  the  Church  representing  the  spiritual,  the 
Empire  representing  the  temporal  aspect ;  but  both 
being  aspects  of  one  and  the  same  community.  In 
that  one  community  Church  and  State  unite,  their 
union  giving  rise  to  an  Ecclesiastical  State,  or  Holy 
Empire,  itself  one  body,  but  a  body  having  two 
heads,  the  Pope  and  the  emperor,  having  two 
orders  of  nobility,  a  spiritual  and  temporal  nobility, 
having  two  sets  of  officers,  priests  and  knights. 
The  Pope  is  the  ecclesiastical  counterpart  to  the 
emperor ;  the  bishop  to  the  noble,  the  priest  to  the 
knight.  Neither  exercises  a  distinct  authority  apart 
from  the  other ;  but  both  co-exist,  and  govern  col- 
laterally in  one  spiritual  polity.^ 

Let  this  idea  of  a  Holy  Empire — the  term  first 
appears  under  Frederic  I. — be  once  realised,  and  it 
will  be  seen  how  inadequate  are  the  modern  terms, 
Church  and  State,  to  express  the  relations  of  the  two 
collateral  authorities  in  the  society  of  the  twelfth 
century.  Nevertheless,  with  a  caution  against  their 
misuse,  the  terms  may  be  conveniently  retained,  to 
designate  the  spiritual  and  temporal  sides  respec- 
tively of  the  Holy  Empire,  The  idea  of  such  a 
state,    however,    was    not    one  of    sudden    growth. 


^  See  the  excellent  ch.  vii.  in  Bryce's  Holy  Roman  Empire^  on 
the  '  Theory  of  the  Mediaeval  Empire,' 


2^2  ^^^^  //OLV  EMPIRE. 

PART     Men  had   unconsciously  drifted  towards  it  by  the 

. '- circumstances  of  the    preceding    times ;    it    already 

existed  at  the  beginning  of  the  Hildebrandian  era  ;  it 
was  gradually  expanded  in  the  time  from  Clement  II. 
to  Boniface  VIII. 
(2)  The  f  Q  Greeorv  VII.   it  presented  itself  in  the  form 

idea  in  . 

the  time  of  a  revived  Jewish  theocracy.  As  in  the  Jewish 
gory  VII.  theocracy  of  old,  spiritual  and  political  authority 
1073-^1085  were  united  under  the  joint  government  of  a  priest 
and  military  leader,  so  the  spiritual  and  temporal 
powers  were  to  be  united  on  terms  of  equality  in 
the  new  theocracy  ;  and  as  Joshua  and  Eleazar  were 
the  two  heads  of  the  Israelitish  community,  so  the 
Pope  and  emperor  were  to  be  the  two  heads  of  the 
new  monarchy.  *  As  God  has  disposed  the  sun  and 
moon,  lights  that  outshine  all  others,  to  make  the 
beauty  of  this  world  manifest  to  fleshly  eyes  at 
different  seasons,'  so  said  Gregory,  writing  to  William 
the  Conqueror,^  '  He  has  provided  in  the  apostolic 
and  royal  dignities  different  offices  for  ruling  the 
beings  whom  He  has  created  after  His  own  image, 
lest  they  should  be  drawn  astray  into  fatal  errors.' 
The  language  of  Gregory  frequently  goes  beyond 
this.  Not  content  with  placing  the  Papal  power  on 
a  footing   of    eqviality    with    that    of   the    emperor, 


*  Lib.  vii.  Ep.  xxv.  LabbI?,  xii.  476:  '  Sicut  enim  ad  mundi 
'  pulcritudinem  oculis  carneis  diversis  temporibus  repraesentandam 
'  Solem  et  Lunam  omnibus  aliis  eminentiora  disposuit  luminaria ; 
*  sic  ne  creatura,  quam  sui  benignitas  ad  imaginem  suam  in  hoc 
'  mundo  creaverat,  in  erronea  et  mortifera  traheretur  pericula, 
'  providit  in  apostolica  et  regia  dignitate  per  diversa  regeretur 
'  officia.' 


IDEA    OF   THE   HOLY  EMPIRE.      ^  283 

Gregory  occasionally   claims  for  the  Popes  a  pre-     chap. 
eminence    above    kings.      '  Kings   and    princes,'    he  '. 


says,  *  owe  their  power  to  those  who,  ignoring  God, 
have  by  pride,  plunder,  perfidy,  murder,  and  by 
every  species  of  vice  aspired  to  hold  a  place  above 
their  fellowmen ;  but  the  priests  of  Christ  are  the 
fathers  and  masters  of  kings  and  princes,  as  well  as 
of  all  the  faithful.'^  Speaking  of  his  predecessor, 
Zachary,  he  says  that  '  he  deposed  the  king  of  the 
Franks  (Childeric  III.),  and  substituted  Pepin  in 
his  place,  absolving  all  the  Franks  from  their  oath 
of  allegiance,'^  not  so  much  for  his  sins,  as  because 
he  w^as  incompetent  to  rule.'  In  the  Dictatus  of 
Gregory,^  the  genuineness  of  which  has,  however, 
been  called  in  question,  it  is  said,  that  '  only  the 
Pope    may  use  the  emblems  of   Empire ;  that   his 


•  Lib.  viii.  Ep.  xxi.  ad  Herimannum,  Labbe,  xii.  499  ;  '  Itane 
'  dignitas  a  saeciilaribus  etiam  Deum  ignorantibus  inventa  non 
'  subjicietur  ei  dignitati  quam  omnipotentis  Dei  providentia  ad 
'  honorem  suum  invenit,  mundoque  misericorditer  tribuit  ?  .  .  . 
'  Quis  nesciat  reges  et  duces  ab  iis  habuisse  principium,  qui  Deum 
*  ignorantes,  superbia,  rapinis,  perfidia,  homicidiis,  postremo  uni- 
'  versis  paene  sceleribus,  mundi  principe  diabolo  scilicet  agitante, 
'  super  pares,  scilicet  homines,  dominari  caeca  cupiditate  et  intole- 
'  rabili  praesumptione  affectaverunt  %  .  .  .  Quis  dubitet  sacerdotes 
'  Christi  regum  et  principum  omniumque  fidelium  patres  et  magis- 
'  tros  censeri  ? ' 

2  Lib.  viii.  Ep.  xxi.  ad  Herimannum,  LABBfi,  xii.  500  :  '  Zacha- 
'  rias  videlicet,  regem  Francorum  non  tam  \)xo  suis  iniquita- 
'  tibus  quam  eo  quod  tantae  potestati  non  erat  utilis,  a  regno 
'  deposuit.' 

?  The  Dictatus  is  probably  only  a  list  of  titles  of  letters  or 
treatises.  It  may  be  found  in  Gregor.  vii.  Ep.  lib.  ii.  Labbk, 
xii.  340. 


284 


THE  HOLY  EMPH^E. 


PART 
II. 


(3)   The 
idea  in 
the  time 
of  Inno- 
cent HI. 

A.D. 
II99-I216 


feet  should  be  kissed  by  all  princes ;  that  it  is 
lawful  for  him  to  depose  emperors  ;  that  he  can 
absolve  subjects  from  their  allegiance  ?'  Still,  even 
supposing  it  to  'be  genuine,  this  language  is  of  rare 
occurrence  in  the  time  of  Gregory.  The  Papacy 
was  as  yet  only  struggling  for  equality  with  the 
Empire.  It  had  not  yet  entered  on  its  struggle  for 
supremacy.  Undoubtedly,  the  latter  pretensions  to 
supremacy  were  the  legitimate  consequence  of  the 
idea  as  then  conceived ;  nevertheless  Gregory  had 
enough  to  do  to  assert  for  the  Popes  a  dignity  equal 
to  that  enjoyed  by  their  civil  representatives.  Gre- 
gory was  the  universal  bishop  of  the  Church,  the 
vicar  of  St.  Peter.  He  was  not,  however,  the 
supreme  monarch  of  the  world  or  the  liege-lord  of 
vassal  kings. 

The  idea  of  the  papal  theocracy  advanced  con- 
siderably between  the  time  of  Gregory  VII.  and 
that  of  Innocent  III.  The  struggle  of  Popes  and 
antipopes  resulted  in  bringing  out  the  Popes  as  the 
rivals  and  equals  of  the  emperors ;  and  they  now 
boldly  asserted  that  theirs  being  a  spiritual  autho- 
rity ought  to  take  precedence  of  temporal  authority. 
Innocent  III.  claims  not  only  to  be  the  representa- 
tive of  St.  Peter,  as  the  emperor  was  the  represen- 
tative of  Augustus,  but  he  calls  himself  '  in  very 
truth  the  Vicar  of  the  living  God.'^  '  To  St.  Peter,' 
he  writes,  '  has  been  entrusted  not  only  the  govern- 
ment of   the   Church,  but   the   government  of  the 


1  Lib.  iii.  Ep.  326  ad  Faventin  :  '  Summus  Pontifex  non  homi- 
'  nis  puri,  sed  veri  Dei  vere  Vicarius  appellatur.' 


IDEA    OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


285 


1 294-1 303 


whole  world.'  ^      Using  the  same  simile  as  his  pre-    chap. 

decessor  Gregory  VII.,  he  is  not  content  with  com-  '. 

paring  the  Pope  and  the  emperor  to  two  lights 
outshining  all  others  in  the  sky,  but  he  describes 
these  lights  as  placed  '  in  the  firmament  of  the  uni- 
versal Church,'  ^  and  asserts  that  '  as  the  moon 
borrows  her  light  from  the  sun,  so  the  royal  au- 
thority is  derived  from  the  papal.'  '  Princes  have 
only  power  upon  earth ;  priests  have  power  in 
heaven  ;  princes  have  only  power  over  the  body  ; 
priests  have  power  over  the  soul.'^ 

The  claim  to  universal  sovereignty  was  put  for-  (4)  The 
ward  by  Boniface  VIII.  in  its  most  extravagant  and  ^ffi^fi^.jg 
revolting  form.      No  langruas^e  is  for  him  too  hio-h.  '^^f/";, 

^  ^  fe       fe.  &       y^^i-g  VIII. 

*  Emperors,  kings,  and  princes,  who  should  impose       a.d. 
tallages  on  the  clergy,'  he  declares,  '  incur   thereby 
the  sentence  of  excommunication.'*     Sitting  on  his 

1  Lib.  ii.  Ep.  209  ad  Patriarch.  Cons.  :  '  Dominus  Petro  non 
'  solum  universam  Ecclesiam,  sed  totum  reliquit  saeculum  giiber- 
'  nandum.' 

2  Lib.  i.  Ep.  401,  and  Gies.  vol.  iii.  §  54,  p.  79  :  '  Sicut  univer- 
'  sitatis  conditor  Deus  duo  magna  luminaria  in  firmamento  coeli 
'  constituit,  luminare  majus,  ut  praeesset  diei,  et  luminare  minus, 
'  ut  nocti  praeesset ;  sic  ad  firmamentum  universalis  Ecclesiae, 
'  quae  caeli  nomine  nuncupatur,  duas  magnas  instituit  dignitates, 
'  majorem,  quae  quasi  diebus  animabus  praeesset,  et  minorem, 
'  quae  quasi  noctibus  praeesset  corporibus  ;  quae  sunt  pontificalis 
'  auctoritas  et  regalis  jDotestas.  Porro  sicut  luna  lumen  suum  a 
'  sole  sortitur,  quae  re  vera  minor  est  illo  quantitate  simul  et  quali- 
'  tate,  situ  pariter  et  effectu  ;  sic  regalis  potestas  ab  auctoritate 
'  pontificali  suae  sortitur  dignitatis  splendorem,'  etc. 

^  Registr.  de  negotio  Imp.  Ep.  18  :  '  Principibus  datur  potestas 
'  in  terris,  sacerdotibus  autem  potestas  tribuitur  et  in  coelis  :  illis 
'  solummodo  super  corpora,  istis  etiam  super  animas.' 

■*  See  the  Bull  Clericis  laicos  in  Rymer-Clarke's  Foedcra, 
i.  ii.  8^,6. 


286  THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART     throne,    armed    and   girt    with    a   sword,    with    the 

^ diadem  of  Constantine   on  his  head,  and  his  right 

hand  on  the  handle  of  his  sword,  Boniface  proudly- 
inquired  of  the  ambassadors  of  the  German  king, 
Albert  I.  :  '  Am  not  I  the  high  priest  ?  Is  not 
that  the  chair  of  St.  Peter  ?  Cannot  I  protect 
the  rights  of  the  Empire  ?  I  am  Caesar !  I  am 
emperor  ! '  ^ 

When  confirming  Albert's  election,  he  explained 
his  predecessor's  simile  of  two  great  lights  in  a  new 
sense,  declaring  'the  sun  to  be  the  emperor,  because 
it  is  the  emperor's  duty  to  illuminate  all,  and  to 
defend  the  spiritual  power  ; '  but  the  Pope  himself 
to  be  above  both  sun  and  moon,  as  '  The  Vicar  of 
Christ,  and  to  possess  the  right,  if  he  should  so 
please,  of  transferring  the  Empire  from  the  Germans 
to  whomsoever  he  might  choose.'  In  the  bull 
Unam  Sanctam,  he  even  declared  '  it  necessary  for 
salvation  for  every  human  being  to  be  subject  to 
the  Pope's  authority.'^  Thus  culminated  in  Boniface 
that  idea  of  the  papal  theocracy,  which  supplies  the 
clue  to  the  labyrinth  of  complications  between  the 
civil  and  religious  powers  of  his  day,  and  of  the 
succeeding  period. 

The  causes  of  so  absolute  a   confusion    of  two 


1  Francis  Pipinus  Chron.  iii.  c.  47,  in  Murat.  ix.  745  :  '  Sedens 
'  in  solio  armatus  et  cinctus  ensem,  habensque  in  capita  Constan- 
'  tini  diadema,  stricto  dextera  capulo  ensis  accincti,  ait :  Numquid 
'ego  summus  sum  Pontifex  ?  Nonne  ista  est  cathedra  Petri] 
'  Nonne  possum  Imperii  jura  tutari  %  Ego  sum  Caesar,  ego  sum 
'  Imperator  :  eosque  talibus  verbis  dimisit.' 

^  See  Cliap.  IX.,  p.  275,  note. 


CAUSES  PRODUCING    THE  HOLY  EMPIRE.  ^87 

distinct  provinces  of  life  must  be  sought  in  the  cir-    chap. 

X 

cumstances  of  the  preceding  epoch.      The  breaking  ' . 

up  of  society  which  had  come  over  Europe,  conse-  causes. 
quent  on  the  breaking  up  of  the  Western   Empire,  (i)  Evils 
had  been  going  on  from  the  seventh  to  the  eleventh  anarchy 
centuries.^     The    Franks   had    no    sooner   risen    to  ahve^of 
power,   than  a  fresh  dynasty  supplanted  the  Mero-  ^y^^^"^- 
vingians.       An  empire  created  by  the  extraordinary 
ability  of   the   great  Charles,   was   divided   and  re- 
divided  under  his  successors.    The  Imperial  dignity, 
after  being  held   by  the   Frankish  Carolingians  for 
eighty-eight  years,  was  contended  for  by  rival  Ital- 
ians, and  then  recovered  by  the  Saxon  Otto.     To 
the  east  of  the  Empire,  Magyars,  Czechs,  and  Obo- 
trites    were    making    encroachments  :    Normans    on 
the  seaboards.      Private  wars  and  lawlessness  were 
everywhere    rife  ;     there    was   no    security    for    life 
or  property  except   in  organisation.     Civil  security 
could  only  be  ensured  by  drawing  tighter  the  bond 
of  outward  union  ;   hence   came  the  feudal  system. 
Religious    influence     could     only    be    exerted    by 
strengthening  the  bonds  of  ecclesiastical   organisa- 
tion ;    hence  arose  the  feudalism  of  the   Mediaeval 
Papacy. 

Naturally  enough,  the  ecclesiastical  organisation, 
which  society  sought  to  set  up,  was  that  which  had 
been  in  vogue  at  Rome,  and  was  itself  based  on  the 
civil  organisation  of  imperial  Rome.  Rome,  no 
longer  the  political  capital,  had  become  the  religious 


'  See  the  excellent  ch.  iii.  on  the  barbarian  invasions  in  Brvce's 
Holy  Roman  Empire. 


2  88  THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART  capital  of  Western  Europe,  commanding  reverence 
'  by  her  name,  when  her  civil  power  had  long  since 
waned ;  and  of  that  civil  power  no  small  part  had 
passed  over  to  the  Papacy.  Men  who  were  suffering 
severely  from  the  miseries  of  anarchy,  did  not  stop 
to  enquire  on  what  foundations  the  ecclesiastical 
system  of  Rome  was  based ;  but,  on  the  contrary, 
hailed  any  and  every  approach  to  system  as  an  ad- 
vance to  better  things.  To  the  Pope  they  therefore 
professed  allegiance  as  readily  as  they  gave  allegi- 
ance to  the  emperor.  For  both  the  Pope  and  the 
emperor  were  regarded  as  promoters  of  the  same  end 
under  different  forms,  the  one  of  ecclesiastical,  the 
other  of  civil  oro-anisation.  Under  the  shelter  of  the 
Pope  they  felt  themselves  sure  of  religious  sympa- 
thy, under  that  of  the  emperor  of  some  degree  of 
civil  security.  What  men  yearned  for  after  centuries 
of  anarchy,  was  some  fixed  basis  on  which  to  build 
up  an  organised  society  ;  and  they  found  what  they 
wanted  in  two  institutions — the  Papacy  and  the 
Empire. 
(2)  Other  circumstances,  too,  in  the  preceding  epoch 

Church  .  ,  .  .    . 

and  had  tended  to  foster  confusion  between  things  civil 

been  con-  and  things  ecclesiastical.  For  the  most  part  the 
^i'recedin  ^^^^Y  ^^^  ^^^^^^  time  or  inclination  for  thinking  of 
what  was  taking  place  in  the  world  about  them,  and 
without  thought  it  would  have  been  impossible  to 
distinguish  politics  from  religion.  The  clergy  owned 
property,  for  which  they  had  to  discharge  the  same 
services  as  laymen,  taking  part  in  the  wars,  either 
themselves  or  by  deputy,  and  contributing  to  the 
treasury  of  the  community.     They  were  the  secret 


era. 


CAUSES  OF  THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


289 


councillors  of  kings,  directing  the  affairs  of  state,  as     chap. 
well  as  those  of  the  Church.      They  sat  in  the  public  ' 

assemblies  ;  they  crowned  kings  and  emperors. 
In  their  conduct  there  was  little  to  distinguish  them 
from  the  laity ;  in  their  privileges,  influence,  and 
learning  there  was  much.  The  participation  of  the 
clergy  in  the  administration  of  politics  seemed 
indispensable.^  They  were  a  power  in  the  state 
collateral  with  princes  ;  in  morality,  culture,  and 
beneficent  use  of  their  position,  greatly  the  superiors 
of  princes.  Hence,  when  the  struggle  arose  between 
the  religious  and  civil  heads  of  the  Empire,  and  men 
were  called  upon  to  decide  for  one  or  the  other,  all 
the  supporters  of  morality,  and  learning,  and  culture 
sided  with  the  Popes  against  the  emperors. 

In  this  fact   may  be  seen  another  reason  of  the  (3)  Gene- 
success  which  attended  the  papal  policy.      Gregory  fusion  in 
in  proclaiming  the  idea  of  a  papal  theocracy,   Inno-  ^,^i'if/j/ 
cent  and  Boniface  in  developing  that  idea,  were  not 
acting,  as   they  have  sometimes  been   represented, 
simply  on  private  motives  or  from  personal  ambition. 
In  the    case   of   Boniface    such    motives   may  have 
existed  together  with  others ;  but  such  motives  alone 
would   never    have  achieved  a  victory  against  em- 
perors  and  kings    strong  in  the  affections   of  their 
subjects.      In  fact,  the  idea  of  the  papal  theocracy 
was   one  which   had   generally  taken   possession  of 
men's    minds.      It    was    espoused    by  all    the    most 
thoughtful,  pious,  and  learned  men.       It  was  an  idea 


'  See  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  iii.  pt.  iii.  ch.  viii.  p.  4  (sma!! 
edition). 

U 


290 


THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART 
II. 


C.  Conse- 
quences 
of  the 
idea. 


(i)   On 
the  State. 

{a)  Em- 
peror. 


deep-rooted  in  the  spirit  of  the  age,  which,  when 
once  expressed,  commended  itself  to  the  general 
consciousness  ;  and  the  success  of  the  Popes  in  their 
pretensions  was  mainly  due  to  the  fact  that  what 
they  claimed  others  were  prepared  to  grant.  Not 
as  aggressors  doing  violence  to  the  common  sense 
of  their  contemporaries  do  those  Popes  who  most 
clearly  enunciated  this  view  deserve  to  be  considered, 
but  rather  as  the  champions  of  progress,  helping  to 
bring  to  birth  the  ideas  already  conceived  in  the 
minds  of  their  fellow- Christians. 

Unconsciously,  but  none  the  less  certainly,  this 
idea  of  the  papal  theocracy  gave  a  colouring  to  both 
the  political  and  religious  aspects  of  society ;  spread- 
ing a  veil  of  religious  sanctity  over  the  state,  attach- 
ing a  civil  Importance  to  the  Church,  and  even 
affecting  the  points  on  which  the  two  came  into 
collision. 

The  emperor,  the  head  of  the  state,  was  Invested 
with  a  religious  dignity,  as  being  the  temporal  head 
of  the  theocratical  society — the  Holy  Empire.  He 
was  elected  by  a  mixed  body  of  archbishops  and 
princes.^  He  was  admitted  to  his  dignity  by  the  re- 
ligious ceremony  of  consecration  ;  receiving — besides 
other  symbols  of  temporal  power,  the  sword,  globe, 
and  sceptre — a  ring  to  symbolise  his  spiritual  faith. 
At  the  same  time  he  was  ordained  a  subdeacon, 
assisted  the  Pope  in  celebrating  mass,  and  par- 
took of  the  Communion  in  both  kinds.  He  was 
styled  '  Head  of  Christendom,'  '  Temporal  Head  of 

'  See  the  note  on  Imperial  Elections,  Chap.XII.  infra. 


CONSEQUENCES   OF   THE  IDEA. 


291 


the  Faithful,'  '  Advocate  of  the  Christian  Church/    chap. 

X 

'  Protector  of  the  CathoHc  Faith.' ^  ! 


The  same  thingf  was  done  with  regard  to   kniofht-       (^) 

1  1  T-l  •  /-  1  •       1  -11      J^'^^?'^*- 

hood.  1  he  primary  duty  of  a  knight  was  considered  hood. 
to  be  the  defence  of  God's  law  against  the  infidels. 
His  investiture  was  regarded  as  analogous  to  the 
ordination  of  a  priest,  and  was  surrounded  with 
religious  ceremonies.  *  The  candidate  passed  nights 
in  prayer  among  priests  in  church  ;  he  received  the 
sacraments ;  he  entered  into  a  bath,  and  was  clad 
with  a  robe  of  white ;  his  sword  was  solemnly 
blessed  ; '  and  whenever  afterwards  he  was  present 
at  the  mass,  he  held  the  point  of  his  sword  before 
him  while  the  Gospel  was  being  read,  to  signify  his 
readiness  to  support  it.^ 

Moreover,  a  religious  colouring  was   extended   to  {c)  War. 
wars  that  were  undertaken  with  the  sanction  of  the 
Pope,   or,   as  it    was   expressed,    '  wars    undertaken 
in    the   cause    of  the    Church.'      The   case  of  the 


•  The  above  paragraph  is  chiefly  taken  from  Bryce's  Ifoly 
Ro7)ian  Empire^  vii.  121.  See  also  Liber  Ceremojiialis  Romafius, 
lib.  i.  sect.  5  ;  also  the  Coronatio  Romana  of  Henry  VII.  in 
Pertz  ;  MuRATORi's  Dissertation  in  vol.  i.  Antiquitates  Italiae ; 
GoLDAST,  Collection  of  Imperial  Constitutions  ;  Moser,  Romische 
Kaiser;  Sismondi,  iv.  290;  Raumer,  v.  62.  Dante  Alighieri, 
De  Monarc/iia,  lib.  iii.,  endeavours  to  prove  :  '  Monarcham  Ro- 
'  manum  de  jure  esse  Monarcham  mundi,  et  immediate  a  Deo 
'  dependere,  non  ab  aliquo  Dei  vicario  vel  ministro.'  Henry  VII. 
in  a  law  issued  at  Pisa  in  131 2  {Extravagantes,  tit.  i.)  speaks  of: 
'  Divina  praecepta,  quibus  jubetur,  quod  omnis  anima  Romanorum 
'  Principi  sit  subjecta.' 

^  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  iii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  ix.  p.  396  (small 
edition)  ;  Du  Cange,  Miles,  and  twenty  second  Dissertation  on 
Joinville. 

u  2 


292 


THE  HOLY   EMPIRE. 


PART     Norman  conquests  in   Italy  approved  by  Leo  IX,, 

- ^ of  the  subsequent  confirmation  of  those  conquests, 

first  by  Nicolas  II.,  afterwards  by  Gregory  VI  I.,  and 
again  by  Hadrian  IV,,  have  been  already  referred 
to;^  and  it  is  well  known  how  Alexander  II.  sanc- 
tioned the  conquest  of  England.  But  above  all, 
those  wars  bear  a  peculiarly  religious  character, 
which  were  carried  on  with  a  view  to  recovering 
Jerusalem  from  the  Mahommedans,  and  went  by 
the  name  of  the  Crusades.^  As  the  power  of  the 
Popes  increased,  crusades  became  more  frequent ; 
and  soon  this  term,  instead  of  being  confined  to  wars 
with  the  Unbelievers,  was  applied  indiscriminately 
to  all  wars  undertaken  by  the  Pope's  desire ;  such 
wars  being  thus  invested  with  the  sanction  of  reli- 
gion. The  capture  of  Constantinople  in  the  year 
1204  was  called  a  crusade.  Innocent  III.  invited 
Philip  Augustus  to  undertake  a  crusade  against  King 
John.^  A  crusade  was  undertaken  at  the  Pope's 
bidding  by  Charles  of  Anjou  against  the  gallant 
Manfred,  and  Boniface  gratified  his  private  revenge 
by  a  crusade  against  the  Colonnas.'* 
lyd)  Pro-  Moreover,  the  sanction  of  religion  also  applied  to 
'  ^'  the  possession  of  property.  Property  in  the  hands 
of  the  Church  or  of  her  dependents  was  secured 
by  the  fear  of  that  most  terrible  of  all  punish- 
ments, excommunication — a  punishment,  not,  as  it 
has    been   frequently    represented,   an  overstraining 


'  See  Chaps.  VII.  p.  193,  and  VIII.,  p.  231. 

"^  They  are  described  in  Chap.  XL 

3  Chap.  IX.  p.  251.  •»  Ibid.  p.  271. 


CONSEQUENCES   OF   THE  IDEA.  293 

of   ecclesiastical  authority,  against    which    the  laity     chap. 

were  powerless,  but  one  regarded  by  them  as  the  '- 

natural,  because  the  only  weapon  of  ecclesiastical 
warfare.^  This  penalty  had  been  denounced  in  seve- 
ral capitularies  of  Charles  the  Great  against  incen- 
diaries or  deserters,  and  Charles  the  Bald  had  pro- 
cured similar  censures  against  his  revolted  vassals  ; 
but  now  the  whole  property  of  the  Church  or  of  those 
holding  under  the  Church  was  protected  by  this  safe- 
guard. Hence  it  became  a  customary  fraud  for  lay 
proprietors  to  grant  estates  to  the  Church,  which 
they  received  back  by  way  of  fief  and  release ;  and 
hence  the  idea  dawned  on  the  minds  of  the  Popes  of 
concentrating  in  their  own  hands  all  the  kingdoms  of 
Europe,  Germany,  Sicily,  England,  Castile,  France, 
and  granting  them  out  as  fiefs  to  kings — a  truly 
magnificent  dream  of  universal  monarchy  under  one 
ecclesiastical  head,  which,  could  it  have  been  realised, 
might  have  been  attended  with  the  most  important 
consequences,  but  which  shattered  on  the  rocks  on 
which  all  irresponsible  governments  must,  sooner  or 
later,  be  wrecked — the  caprice  and  incapacity  of  the 
head,  the  insolence,  venality,  and  avarice  of  his 
subordinates. 

At  the  same  time  that  the  idea  of  a  Holy  Empire       (2) 
threw    a   veil   of  sanctity   over   the   Emperor,  over  on  the 
Knighthood,   over  War,  and  Property,  it  had  also  'J)" The 
affected  the  Church  and  the  Clergy,  imparting  to  them  ^^^^' 
a  secular  character,  by  bringing  them  into  connection 

'  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.   170   (small 
edition). 


II. 


2g.  THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART     with  the  world.     The  Pope  was  not  only  the  head 
of  the  Church  ;  he  was  also  the  religious  head  of 
the   Empire  ;  and,  as   might   have  been    expected, 
his    religious   character   was  thereby  more    or  less 
impaired ;  his   power  was   not  confined  to  spiritual 
matters  ;  his  administration   was   conformed  to  the 
practice  of  his  civil  rival.     When  the  emperor  was 
styled   *  Lord  of  the    World,'  and    called  '  a  living 
law   upon    earth  ; '    when    a   bishop  could    say  that 
*  to    the    emperor    belongs    the    protection    of  the 
whole  world  ; '   and  an  archbishop  addressing  him 
on  behalf  of  the  assembled  magnates  of  Lombardy 
could  say :  *  Do  and  ordain  whatsoever  thou  wilt ; 
thy  will  is  law  ;  '^  it  might  be  expected  that  similar 
language  would  be  used  of  the  Pope  ;  that  similar 
power  would  be  allowed    to   him.     Thus   the  out- 
ward   state   of  the    Pope   and    his    own  claims    to 
power  must  not  be  taken  for  signs  of  an  aggressive 
policy.     They  were  a  simple  vindication  for  him  of 
a  power  and  an  authority  equal  to  that  which  was 
claimed  for  the  emperor ;  and  they  were  to  a  great 
extent  the  result  of  the  doctrines  current  since  the 
revival  of  the  study  of  the  Civil  Law  respecting  the 
imperial  dignity.     The   Pope's  character  of  bishop 
and  patriarch  was  merged  in  that  of  an  ecclesiastical 
sovereign.      He  claimed  the  right  of  '  deposing  and 
instituting   bishops    at  will.'  ^     He  claimed   for    his 


1  See  Bryce's  Holy  Roman  Empire,  xi.  191, 

"^  Thom.  Aq.  Lejit.  lib.  ii.  dist.  44,  qu.  2,  in  fine  :  '  Et  sic  se 

*  habet  potestas  Dei  ad  omnem  potestatem  creatam ;  sic  etiam  se 

*  habet  potestas  Imperatoris  ad  potestatem  proconsulis  :  sic  etiam 

*  se  habet  potestas  Papae  ad  omnem  spiritualem  potestatem  in 


CONSEQUENCES   OF   THE  IDEA.  295 

legates  the  privilege  of   '  taking  precedence  of  all     chap. 

clergy,  even  those  of  a  higher  order.'     He  claimed  '. — 

the  sole  power  of  *  dividing  bishoprics,  or  of  uniting 
several  in  one ; '  that  of  '  framing  new  laws ; '  that 
of  '  ordaining  clergy  to  any  church  ; '  that  of  '  trans- 
lating bishops  ; '  of  *  convening  general  councils  ; ' 
of  *  pronouncing  a  final  sentence,  from  which  there 
could  be  no  appeal.'  He  was  '  the  fountain  of 
Catholicity.'  ^      He  too,  as  we  have  seen,  claimed  to 

'  Ecclesia  :  quia  ab  ipso  Papa  gradus  dignitatum  diversi  in  Eccle- 

*  sia  et  disponuntur  et.ordinantur  :  unde  ejus  potestas  est  quod- 
'  dam  Ecclesiae  fundamentum.' 

'  See  the  Dictatus  of  Gregory  VII.  at  the  end  of  Hb.  ii.  Ep.  55, 
Labb^,  xii.  340  :  '(i)  Quod  Romana  Ecclesia  a  solo  Domino  sit 
'  fundata.  (2)  Quod  solus  Romanus  Pontifex  jure  dicatur  univer- 
'  salis.  (3)  Quod  ille  solus  possit  deponere  Episcopos  vel  recon- 
'  ciUare.  (4)  Quod  legatus  ejus  omnibus  Episcopis  praesit  in  con- 
'  cilio  etiam  inferioris  gradus,  et  adversus  eos  sententiam  depo- 
'  sitionis  possit  dare.  (5)  Quod  absentes  Papa  possit  deponere. 
'  (6)  Quod  cum  excommunicatis   ab   illo,    inter  caetera,  nee   in 

*  eadem  domo  debemus  manere.     (7)  Quod  illi  soli  Hcet  pro  tem- 

*  poris  necessitate  novas  leges  condere,  novas  plebes  congregare, 
'  de  canonica  abbatium  facere  et  econtra,  divitem  episcopatum 
'  dividere,  et  inopes  unire.     (8)  Quod  solus  possit  uti  imperiali- 

*  bus  insigniis.  (9)  Quod  solus  Papae  pedes  omnes  principes 
'  deosculentur.  (10)  Quod  illius  solius  nomen  in  ecclesiis  reci- 
'  tatur.  (11)  Quod  unicum  est  nomen  in  mundo.  (12)  Quod 
'  illi  liceat  Imperatores  deponere.     (13)  Quod  illi  liceat  de  sede 

*  ad  sedem  necessitate  cogente  Episcopos  transmutare.  (14) 
'  Quod  de  omni  ecclesia,  quacumque  voluerit,  clericum  valeat 
'  ordinare.  (15)  Quod  ab  illo  ordinatus  alii  ecclesiae  praeesse 
'  potest,  sed  non  militare,  et  quod  ab  aliquo  Episcopo  non  debet 
'  superiorem  gradum  accipere.  (16)  Quod  nulla  synodus  absque 
'  praecepto  ejus  debet  generalis  vocari.  (17)  Quod  nullum  capi- 
'  tulum,  nuUusque  liber  canonicus  habeatur  absque  illius  auctori- 
'  tate.  (18)  Quod  sententia  illius  a  nullo  debeat  retractari,  et 
'  ipse  omnium  solus  retractare  possit.     (19)  Quod  a  nemine  ipse 


296 


THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART 
II. 


(b)  Metro- 
politans. 


be  above  kings,  and  to  be  the  supreme  feudal  lord 
of  Christendom.  In  most  of  these  claims  the  secu- 
larising influence  of  the  state  may  be  traced,  the 
Popes  being  anxious  to  be  in  all  respects  the  eccle- 
siastical counterparts  of  the  emperors ;  but,  unfortu- 
nately, these  claims  resulted  in  a  system  by  which 
the  other  clergy  were  greatly  depressed. 

The  great  metropolitans  were  the  first  to  suffer. 
By  means  of  an  oath  of  vassalage  they  were  brought 
into  a  position  analogous  to  that  of  the  great  princes 
of  the  Empire.  The  earliest  instance  of  such  an 
oath  had  been  met  with  in  the  time  of  Gregory  II. 
in  723  ;  Boniface  then  swearing  *  to  abide  in  the  unity 
of  the  Catholic  faith  ;  to  agree  with  nothing  con- 
trary to  the  unity  of  the  Catholic  Church,  but  in 
every  way  to  maintain  his  faith  pure,  and  his  co- 
operation constantly  for  St.  Peter,  and  for  the  benefit 
of  his  Church,  on  which  was  bestowed  by  God  the 
power  to  bind  and  to  loose.'  ^  That  instance  formed 
a  precedent  for  subsequent  times,  and  when  the  idea 


judicari  debeat.  (20)  Quod  nullus  audeat  condemnare  apostoli- 
cam  sedem  appellantem.  (21)  Quod  majores  causae  cujuscum- 
que  ecclesiae  ad  earn  referri  debeant.  (22)  Quod  Romana  ec- 
clesia  iiunquam  erravit,  nee  in  perpetuum,  Scriptura  testante, 
errabit.  (23)  Quod  Romanus  Pontifex  si  canonice  fuerit  ordi- 
natus,  mentis  beati  Petri  indubitanter  efficitur  sanctus,  testante 
s.  Ennodio  Papiensi  Episcopo,  et  multis  Sanctis  Patribus  faven- 
tibus,  sicut  in  decretis  beati  Symmachi  P.  continetur.  (24)  Quod 
illius  praecepto  et  licentia  subjectis  liceat  accusare.  (25)  Quod 
absque  synodali  conventu  possit  Episcopos  deponere  et  recon- 
ciliare.  (26)  Quod  catholicus  non  habeatur,  qui  non  concordat 
Romanae  Ecclesiae.  (27)  Quod  a  fidelilate  iniquorum  subjec- 
tos  potest  absolvere.' 
*  See  Chap.  II.  p.  43. 


CONSEQUENCES   OF   THE  IDEA,  297 

of  the  Holy  Empire  had  taken  hold  on  men's  minds,     chap. 

an  oath  was  as  readily  taken  to  the  Pope  as  to  the  '. 

emperor.     Wibert,   Archbishop   of  Ravenna,  at  his 

consecration  in  the  year  1073  swore  '  that  he  would 

be  true  to  Pope  Alexander  [II.]  and  his  successors 

who  should  be  chosen  by  the  better  Cardinals.'  ^   The  ^.d.  1073- 

1079 

Patriarch  of  Aquileia  likewise  took  an  oath  that 
'he  would  be  true  to  Pope  Gregory  [VII.],  and  his 
successors  who  should  be  chosen  by  the  better 
Cardinals  ; '  '  that  he  would  neither  be  concerned  by 
word  or  deed  in  causing  the  Pope  to  lose  life,  or  limb, 
or  office ;  that  he  would  appear  at  every  synod  to 
which  the  Pope  might  summon  him ;  and,  saving 
his  order,  would  assist  in  guarding  and  defending 
the  Papacy  and  the  regalia  ;  that  he  would  hold 
aloof  from  those  whom  the  Pope  had  excommuni- 
cated ;  and  that  when  called  upon  to  do  so,  he  would 
faithfully  uphold  the  Church  with  the  secular  arm.'  ^ 

1  BoNizoNis,  Lib.  ad  Amicum  in  Oefelii,  Rer.  Boic.  Script. 
ii.  810  :  '  Se  fidelem  esse  Papae  Alexandre  ejusque  successoribus, 

*  qui  per  meliores  essent  electi  Cardinales.' 

^  The  oath  in  Concil.  Roman,  vi.  an.  1079,  Labb^,  xii.  631  : 
'  Ab  hac  hora  et  inantea  fidehs  ero  beato  Petro  et  Papae  Gre- 
'  gorio,  suisque  successoribus,  qui  per  meliores  Cardinales  intra- 
'  verint.  Non  ergo  in  consilio,  neque  in  facto,  ut  vitam,  aut 
'  membra,  aut  papatum  perdant,  aut  capti  sint  mala  captione.  Ad 
'  synodum,  ad  quam  me  vocabunt,  vel  per  se,  vel  per  suos  nuncios, 
'  vel  per  suas  literas  veniam,  et  canonice  obediam,  aut,  si  non 
'  potero,  legatos  meos  mittam.     Papatum   Romanum  et  regalia 

*  sancti  Petri  adjutor  ero  ad  retinendum  et  defendendum,  salvo 
'  meo  ordine.     Consilium  vero  quod  mihi  crediderint  per  se,  aut 

*  per  nuncios  suos,  sive  per  literas,  nuUi  pandam  me  sciente  ad 

*  eorum  damnum.    Legatum  Romanum  eundo  et  redeundo  honori- 

*  fice  tractabo,  et  in  necessitatibus  suis  adjuvabo.  His  quos  nomi- 
'  natim  excommunicaverint  scienter  non  communicabo  :    Roma- 


298 


THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART  From  the  time  of  Gregory  VII.  this  oath  was 
'- required  of  all  metropolitans,  and  soon  the  Arch- 
bishops of  Toledo  and  Milan  were  included  among 
their  number  ;  the  former  in  the  eleventh  century, 
the  latter  in  the  twelfth,  though  not  till  after  a  pro- 
longed resistance. 
(t)  Nor  were  the  inferior  Bishops  exempt  from  the 
IS  tops,  gpjj-j^-^^j  feudalism  of  the  Popes.  To  make  sure  of 
the  allegiance  of  all  the  officers  in  the  ecclesiastical 
army,  the  Popes  had,  as  early  as  1080  a.d.,  begun  to 
confirm  episcopal  elections.'  In  doing  this  they  were 
aided  by  the  frequent  occurrence  of  disputed  elections. 
From  confirming  an  election,  it  was  an  easy  trans- 
ition to  nominating  a  bishop ;  and  in  the  year  1093 
for  the  first  time  there  occurs  a  case  of  nomination ; 
the  Bishop  of  Amatus  in  his  will  styling  himself 
bishop  '  by  the  grace  of  God  and  the  favour  of  the 
Apostolic  see.'  '-^  After  the  beginning  of  the  twelfth 
century  the  oath  of  allegiance  was  taken  by  all 
bishops ;  and  as  the  Pope  advanced  from  being  the 
Vicar  of  St.  Peter  to  being  the  Vicar  of  God,  his 
fellow  bishops  were  degraded  to  the  rank  of  mere 
vicars  of  the  Pope.^  Already  in  the  middle  of  the 
twelfth  century  their  depression  was  complete,  and 
at  the  second  Lateran  Council,  in  the  year  1139, 
Innocent  II.  declared   in   his  opening  speech  *  that 


'  nam  ecclesiam  per  saecularem  militiam  fideliter  adjuvabo,  cum 
'  invitatus  fuero,  Haec  omnia  observabo ;  nisi  quantum  sua 
'  certa  licentia  remanserit.' 

^  Concil.  Roman,  vii.  an.  1080,  Labbe,  xii.  637. 

2  Ughelli,  Italia  Sacra,  vii.  535. 

3  GiES.  vol.  iii.  §  61,  p.  160. 


C0NSE(2UENCES   OF   THE  IDEA. 


!99 


vinces.'  ^ 


On  the  other  hand  this  depression  of  the  bishops 
was  not  unattended  by  secular  advantages.  What 
they  lost  in  independence,  they  gained  in  influence. 
The   bishop  was   no  longer  an  individual  standing 


1  Labbe,  xii.  1507  ad  Concil.  Later,  ii.  an.  1139  :  '  Nostis,  quia 

*  Roma  caput  est  mundi,  et  quia  a  Romani  Pontificis  licentia 
'  ecclesiastici  honoris  celsitudo  quasi  feudalis  juris  consuetudine 
'  suscipitur,  et  sine  ejus  permissione  legaliter  non  tenetur.' 

^  Innocent  III.  Ep.  495  and  496  :  '  Potestatis  apostolicae 
'  plenitudo  longe  lateque  diffusa,  licet  ubique  praesens  potentia- 
'  liter  habeatur,  tamen  quia  ea,  quae  ad  tantum  officium  pertinent, 
'  per  se,  prout  singulis  expediret,  non  valet  praesentialiter  exercere,' 

*  tarn  vos  quam  alios  miniStros  Ecclesiarum  in  partem  solicitudinis 
'  advocavit,  ut  sic  tanti  onus  officii  per  subsidiarias  actiones  com- 
'  modius  supportetur.' 

3  Thom.  Aq.  Lent.  lib.  iv.  dist.  20,  art.  4,  solut.  3  :  '  Papa 
'  habet  plenitudinem  pontificalis  potestatis,  quasi  Rex  in  regno  : 
'  sed  Episcopi  assumuntur  in  partem  solicitudinis,  quasi  judices 
'  singulis  civitatibus  praepositi.' 


Rome  is  the  head  of  the  world,  and  as   in  feudal     chap. 

relations,   so   in   ecclesiastical,   the  highest  dignities  '- — 

can  only  be  undertaken  by  license  from  the  Pope  of 
Rome,  nor  can  they  be  lawfully  held  without  his  per- 
mission.' ^  The  theory  of  Innocent  III.  would  almost 
dispense  with  bishops.  It  considers  that  bishops  and 
other  ministers  have  been  summoned  to  take  part  in 
the  care  of  the  Church  only  because  *  the  Popes  are 
not  able  to  exercise  their  duties  everywhere  in  per- 
son ; '  ^  and  the  same  theory  is  advocated  by  St. 
Thomas  Aquinas  in  the  words  :  *  The  Pope  hath  the 
plenitude  of  priestly  power,  as  a  king  has  of  secular 
power ;  but  bishops  are  appointed  to  share  his  cares, 
as  judges  are  appointed  by  kings  over  different  pro- 


300 


THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART    by  himself,  whose  decision  might  be  questioned  and 

'- —  overruled  by  the  Pope,  as  policy,  swayed  him  now  in 

one  direction,  and  now  In  another.  He  spoke  with 
all  the  authority  of  one  who  acted  as  deputy  for  a 
mighty  sovereign,  who  belonged  to  a  powerful  system, 
and  felt  sure  of  support  unless  he  forfeited  it  through 
an  excess  of  folly.  He  was  present  in  the  national 
assemblies,  often  a  minister,  frequently  a  secret 
councillor  of  a  prince  ;  he  was  always  a  necessary 
ally,  frequently  a  formidable  one  ;  and  that  not  only  as 
formerly  because  of  his  own  intellectual  superiority, 
nor  yet  because  of  his  knowledge  of  law,  but  prin- 
cipally because  he  was  connected  with  the  clergy  of 
every  district,  and  could  thus  gain  admittance  to 
every  country  or  place  ;  In  short,  because  he  be- 
longed to  a  powerful  fraternity,  spread  over  Europe, 
knowing  no  national  distinctions,  and  closely  held 
together  by  the  will  of  one  who  commanded  an 
obedience  far  more  implicit  than  any  civil  monarch  In 
Christendom. 
(3)  Whilst  the    idea  of  a    Holy   Empire    was  influ- 

on  the  enclng  both  the  civil  and  ecclesiastical  institutions  of 
ofChtirch  society,  it  did  not  fail  to  affect  the  mutual  relations 
%fate  ^^  ^^  ^^^'  Though  It  may  seem  paradoxical  to 
say  so,  that  idea.  In  itself  so  grand  and  inspiring, 
could  only  be  realised  as  long  as  it  was  imperfect : 
two  rival  authorities  intrenchlne  on  each  other's 
province  could  only  exist  side  by  side  when  the 
reins  of  all  authority  hung  loosely.  But  when  so- 
ciety became  more  settled  and  better  regulated,  one 
of  the  two  rival  powers  must  stand,  and  the  other 
must  fall.     The  idea  itself  was  clung  to  with  extreme 


CONSEQUENCES   OF   THE   IDEA.  ^q^ 

tenacity  for  more  than  two  centuries,  until  men  had     chap, 

come  to  perceive  that  the  Popes,  by  encroaching  on '. . 

civil  matters,  were  undermining  the  foundations  of  a.d.  1296 
all  settled  political  government.  When  Philip  of 
France  wrote  to  Boniface  VIII.,  '  Render  to  Caesar 
the  things  that  are  Caesar's,  and  to  God  the  things 
that  are  God's,'  he  exposed  the  untenableness  of  the 
idea  of  the  ecclesiastical  state ;  but  before  that  blow 
was  dealt  it  had  given  rise  to  many  an  internal 
struofMe. 

Such  was  that  struggle  in  which  the  two  heads  {a)  AhH- 
of  the  Holy  Empire,  the  Pope  and  the  emperor,  were  rival 
brought  into  collision  with  each  other.    The  religious  ^"^P^^^^^- 
character  of  the  emperor  gave  him  a  religious  sanc- 
tion for  interfering  in  matters   connected  with   the 
Papacy,  and  thus  Popes  in  the  imperial  interest  were 
raised  up  to  dispute  the  See  of  Rome  with  Popes  in 
the  Roman  interest.     On  the  other  hand,  the  Pope, 
owing-  to  his  relations  to  the  world,  had  reasonable 
grounds  for  interfering  in  the  affairs  of  the  Empire, 
and  on  more  than  one  occasion  set  up  a  rival  em- 
peror, when  his  claims  to  authority  had  been  denied 
by  those  in  power. 

For  more  than  a  century — from  the  decree  of 
Nicolas  II.  to  the  decree  of  Alexander  III. — the 
Papacy  was  disturbed  by  antipopes ;  Honorius  II., 
Clement  III.,  Gregory  VIII.,  Victor  IV.,  Paschal 

III.  being  set  up  and  supported  by  the  emperors 
Henry  IV.,  Henry  V.,  and  Frederic  Barbarossa. 
For  nearly  two  centuries — from  the  time  of  Henry 

IV.  to  the  fall  of  the  House  of  Hohenstaufen — 
the     Empire    was    distracted    by    rival    emperors, 


202  '^^HE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART  Rudolph  of  Swabia,  Conrad  and  Henry,  Henry 
'  Raspe,  William  of  Holland — emperors  whom  the 
Popes  had  approved,  and  whom  they  had  put  for- 
ward in  their  own  interests.  The  antipopes  and  the 
rival  emperors  were  counterparts  to  each  other.  Both 
were  a  consequence  which  might  have  been  easily 
anticipated  from  the  attempt  to  realise  the  idea  of  the 
Holy  Empire.-^ 
{b)  invcs-  Passing  from  the  two  heads  to  those  next  in 
rank,  another  struggle  is  encountered,  arising  from 
the  divided  allegiance  of  the  bishops  and  nobles. 
On  the  one  hand,  bishops  were  no  longer  inde- 
pendent spiritual  functionaries,  since  the  Popes  had 
been  carrying  out  in  the  Church  the  institutions  of 
the  State.  On  the  other,  the  nobles  felt  that  they 
had  duties  to  the  Church  as  well  as  duties  to  their 
sovereign.  Nothing-  could  be  more  unlike  the  in- 
dependent  bishops  of  earlier  centuries  than  were 
their  doubly  dependent  successors  of  the  eleventh 
and  twelfth  centuries,  dependent  on  the  Pope  for 
liberty  to  exercise  their  spiritual  functions,  de- 
pendent on  temporal  sovereigns  for  permission  to 
receive  the  revenues  of  their  sees.  In  their  parade 
and  magnificence  they  were  quite  the  equals,  fre- 
quently the  rivals,  of  their  lay  compeers  ;  in  their  lust 
for  power,  their  ambition,  their  intrigues,  their  inter- 
meddling in  secular  affairs,  their  rapacity,  they  were 
chiefly  distinguished  by  surpassing  other  nobles.  And 
to  crown  all,  they  owed  allegiance  to  the  Pope  at  the 
same  time  that  they  owed  allegiance  to  the  emperor. 


1  See  Chap.  VIII. 


CONSEQUENCES   OF   THE   IDEA.  ^JOX 

Dealing  with    prelates   so    worldly,   so    contentious,     chap. 

so  sharp-witted,  kings  and  emperors  might  well  feel  it  L 

necessary  to  be  on  their  guard  ;  they  might  well  hesi- 
tate to  invest  with  the  temporalities  of  a  see  any  person 
who  should  happen  to  be  elected  without  having  pre- 
viously made  trial  of  his  fidelity ;  they  might  well 
demand  that  a  bishop  elect  should  take  the  oath  of 
fealty,  and  do  homage  like  the  lay  barons  of  their 
kingdoms.  But  not  so  thought  the  Pope.  He  would 
have  an  undivided  allegiance  from  his  liegemen.  No 
homage  or  fealty  should  they  render  to  any  but  him- 
self Least  of  all  would  he  allow  the  ecclesiastical 
power  to  be  degraded  by  any  sign  of  subservience  to 
the  civil  power.  Thus  arose  the  dispute  on  investi- 
ture.^ It  was  another  instance  of  a  strugfale  broueht 
on  by  attempting  to  realise  the  idea  of  the  Holy 
Empire.  Within  forty  years  of  the  death  of  Gregory 
Vn.  It  had  ended,  concluded  by  a  compromise,  a.d.  1122 
More  important  subjects  occupied  the  minds  of  later 
Popes  ;  for  had  it  been  revived  in  the  time  of  Inno- 
cent III.,  it  would  probably  have  had  a  very  different 
termination. 

On    yet  another  point  the   royal  and  papal  pre-  (5)  Rival 

•  1        1   .  1,.   .  .  .     .     jurisdic- 

rogatives  were  nivolved  m  a  collision  owing  to  their  tlon. 
very  nearness  ;  but  the  collision  was  brief,  the  struggle 
was  confined  to  one  country,  and  the  issue  was  too 
decidedly  in  favour  of  the  Popes  to  lead  any 
subsequent  monarch  to  seek  to  revive  the  contest. 
In  the  lapse  of  centuries  the  ecclesiastical  courts, 
which  had  been  originally  founded  to  avoid  litigation 

'  See  Chap.  XII. 


on/I  THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

TART     '  before  the  unbelievers,'  had  assumed  a  fixed  form, 
'        and  acquired  a  legal  sanction.      Into  England,  which 

A.D.  1066  in  j;hJs  respect  was  behind  the  rest  of  Europe,  they  had 
been  first  introduced  by  William  the  Conqueror,  and 
soon  began  to  encroach  on  the  province  of  the  civil 
courts,  particularly  after  their  jurisdiction  had  been 
extended  by  the  revived  study  of  the  civil  law.  These 
encroachments  led  to  the  memorable  struggle  between 
King  Henry  II.  and  Thomas  a  Becket,  Archbishop  of 
Canterbury — Henry  the  champion  of  the  civil  courts, 
Becket  the  upholder  of  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction. 
The  barbarous  assassination  of  Becket  threw  the 
whole  weight  of  popular  sympathy  into  the  scale 
of  the  Church,  and  secured  the  triumph  of  the  Papal 
party.  Hence,  as  the  result  of  the  struggle,  Becket 
was  canonised,  and   Henry  had  to  undergo  a  dis- 

29  Dec.     graceful  penance  at  the  tomb  of  his  adversary.^ 

Thus  by  many  a  struggle — at  one  time  on  the 
domain  of  the  Papacy,  at  another  on  that  of  the 
Empire,  at  one  time  respecting  investitures,  at 
another  respecting  jurisdiction — was  proved  to  a 
world  unwilling  to  admit  it,  the  impracticability  of 
realising  the  idea  of  the  Holy  Empire.  Grand  as 
was  the  idea,  able  as  were  its  adherents,  zealous 
as  were  its  supporters,  it  was  tried  in  the  balance 
of  history  and  found  wanting.  It  shattered  on  the 
maxim,  *  Render  unto  Caesar  the  things  that  are 
Caesar's,  and  unto  God  the  things  that  are  God's.' 
But  long  after  these  words  had  been  quoted  against 
it  by  an  ambitious  and   stubborn   opponent,  like  a 

•  See  Chap.  XII. 


CONSEQUENCES  OF   THE  IDEA.  305 

great  oak  dying  away  and  decaying,  which  still  lasts     chap. 
for  ages,  a  mere  skeleton  of  former  greatness,  the  ' 

relics  of  that  idea  continued  to  survive,  destitute  of 
power,  but  strong  in  the  affections  of  men.  In  one 
form  or  other  they  have  affected  the  religious  legis- 
lation of  most  countries ;  and  in  this  way  have 
lingered  on  to  our  time.  Yet  the  beginning  of  the 
present  century  has  seen  the  original  tree  swept 
away  by  the  storm  of  reaction,  obviously  suggesting 
the  inquiry,  '  Will  its  later  offshoots  be  able  to  bear 
the  violence  of  the  storm.-*  Will  they  be  able  to 
survive  until  the  period  of  reaction  is  over  ?  Or 
is  the  Church  destined  to  enter  upon  a  new  phase 
of  existence,  such  as  it  has  never  yet  known  since 
Christianity  first  reached  Europe  .-*  The  work  of 
Constantine  may  be  indeed  undone — but  will  the 
doctrine  of  the  '0[xoo6<nov  survive  the  change  ? 


3o6 


IHE   CRUSADES. 


CHAPTER   XL 

THE   CRUSADES. 
(1046— 1303.) 


PART 
II. 

A.  Crzt- 
sades  in 
general. 
(i)  Idea 
of  a 
Crusade. 


Deus!  venerunt  g£7ites  in  hereditate77i  tuam:  polbieriint  tanplnm  sanctum 
tiium  ;  pos7urunt  y ei-tisalem  in  pomorum  ciistodiam. — Ps.  Lxvill.' 


I 


N  the  crusades  was  realised  once  for  all,  as  never 
afterwards,  that  ideal  of  a  Christian  common- 
wealth, which  forms  the  centre  of  the  political  and 
religious  life  of  the  Middle  Ages.      United  Chris- 
tendom, forgetting  her  internal  differences  and  ever- 
lasting feuds,  stood    arrayed    in    arms    against    the 
enemies  of  the  Cross  ;  she  drew  the  sword,  not  to 
bathe  it  in  a  brother's  blood,  but  to  defend  her  faith ; 
and  she  took  the  field,  at  the  bidding  of  an  ecclesi- 
astic, against  an  external   foe.     The  dream  of  uni- 
versal monarchy,  which  for  nearly  a  century  before 
had  from  time  to  time  risen  before   the  minds  of 
the  more  distinguished  Popes,  suggesting  to  them 
the  idea  of  a  campaign  against  all  unbelievers,  was 
now    about    to    be    carried    into    execution.      The 
eleventh  century  saw  the  first  attempt  made.      The 
two  next  centuries  saw  the  same  attempt  frequently 
repeated,  but  Jerusalem  was  not  permanently  wrested 


'  In  Pope  Urban's  speech,  an.  1095,  Labb]^,  xii.  839. 


GENERAL    VIEW  OF  THE   CRUSADES. 


307 


from  the  Turks,  nor  was  Christendom  united,  except     chap. 

XI 

to  be  again  divided.  '- — 

Already  to  the  mind  of  Sylvester  II.  the  con-  a.d. 
ception  of  the  whole  of  the  Christian  world  taking 
the  field  against  the  Mohammedans  had  been  present. 
He  had  exhorted  the  soldiers  of  Christ,  if  indeed  the 
Complaint  of  the  desolated  Jerusalem  is  his,  to  bestir 
themselves,  to  bear  the  banner  and  to  fight,  or  if 
unable  to  do  so  by  arms,  at  least  to  help  others  to- 
wards doing  so  by  advice  and  donations.^  Seventy 
years  later,  in  the  mind  of  Gregory  VII.,  the  idea  1075 
had  assumed  a  more  definite  shape.  Struck  with 
compassion  at  the  sad  state  of  Palestine,  which  had 
lately  been  overrun  by  the  Turks,  and  longing  to 
recover  the  holy  places  from  the  yoke  of  the  infidels, 
and  to  reunite  the  Eastern  and  the  Western  Churches 
in  one  community  presided  over  by  himself,  Gregory  1074 
had  responded  to  the  invitation  which  Oriental  Chris- 
tians addressed  to  him.  He  had  secured  the  services 
of  50,000  men,  prepared  to  march  to  the  Holy 
Sepulchre  under  his  direction.^     At  this  moment  his 

*  Enitere  ergo  miles  Christo  !     Esto  signifer  et  compugnator  et 

*  quod  armis  nequis,  consilii  et  opum  auxilio  subveni '  :  quoted  by 
Neand.  vi.  140. 

2  Gregor.  VII.  Ep.  ii.  31,  Labbe,  xii.  322  :  'Praeterea  indico 
'  tuae  magnitudini  [the-  Emperor  Henry  IV.]  quia  Christiani,  ex 
'  partibus  ultramarinis,  quorum  maxima  pars  a  Paganis  inaudita 

*  clade  destruitur,  et  more  pecudum  quotidie  occiditur  ...  ad 
'  me  humiliter  miserunt,  nimia  compulsi  miseria  implorantes,  ut 
'  modis  quibus  possem  eisdem  fratribus  nostris  succurrerim.    Ego 

*  autem  nimio  dolore  tactus  .  .  .  procuravi  Christianos  quosque 

*  ad  hoc  provocare.  .  .  .  Quam  admonitionem  Italici  et  ultramon- 
'  tani,  Deo  inspirante  .   .    .  libenter  acceperunt,  et  jam  ultra  quin 

'  quaginta  millia  ad  hoc  se  praeparant,  ut  si  me  possunt  in  expe- 

X  2 


3o8 


PART 
II. 


{2)  Causes 
of  Cru- 
sades, 
(a)  A 
corollary 
from  the 
Holy 
Empire. 


THE   CRUSADES, 

attention  was  diverted  elsewhere  by  his  disputes 
with  Henry,  and  thus  the  plan  which  he  had  con- 
ceived was  left  for  his  successors  to  execute.  Nor 
were  his  successors  indifferent  to  these  schemes. 
Victor  III.,  some  ten  years  later,  issued  an  invitation 
for  a  crusade  to  be  undertaken,  under  the  banner  of 
Sl  Peter,  against  the  Saracens  in  North  Africa, 
promising  plenary  indulgence  to  all  who  should  bear 
a  part  in  it ;  ^  and  at  length  Urban  II.,  favoured  by  a 
variety  of  circumstances,  and  the  fiery  energy  of  the 
hermit  Peter,  actually  succeeded  in  arming  Europe 
for  the  conflict. 

A  holy  war,  undertaken  in  the  service  of  the 
Cross  against  the  infidels,  was  a  natural  corollary 
growing  out  of  the  idea  of  the  Holy  Empire.  It 
would  have  been  strange  had  this  corollary  not  been 
seen.  For  the  Empire,  with  its  two  aspects,  one  re- 
ligious, the  other  political,  had  also  religious  as  well 
as  political  enemies,  with  both  of  whom  it  had  to  do 
battle.  At  the  command  of  the  emperor,  the  field 
was  taken  against  a  political  foe ;  at  the  command 
of  the  Pope,  against  a  spiritual  one.  Nay,  more 
spiritual  and  temporal  weapons  were  used  indiscri- 
minately. The  spiritual  weapon  of  excommunication 
was  used  against  political  offenders.  And,  what 
more  natural   than  that  the  temporal    weapon,   the 

'  ditione  pro  duce  ac  pontifice  habere,  armata  manu  contra  inimi- 
'  cos  Dei  volunt  insurgere,' 

'  Vita  Victoris  III,  Labb^,  xii.  703  :  '■  Exercitum  congregans, 
'  illisque  vexillum  beati  Petri  apostoli  tradens,  sub  remissione 
'  peccatorum  omnium  contra  infideles  impiosque  in  Africam  diri- 

*  git.     Christo  itaque  duce  ingressi  Africam  centum  millia  pugna- 

*  torum  occiderunt,  urbe  illorum  praecipua  capta  et  occisa.' 


GENERAL    VIEW  OF  THE   CRUSADES. 


309 


sword,  should  be  used  against  spiritual  enemies  ?    The     chap. 

same  feeling  which  led  the  Popes  to  excommunicate  

those  who  set  themselves  apfainst  the  sovereigns 
recognised  and  approved  by  themselves,  also  led 
temporal  sovereigns  to  wage  war  against  the  enemies 
of  the  Popes.  It  would  have  led  the  emperors  to  do 
so  also,  and  indeed  it  once  actually  did  so,  had  not  the 
emperors  been  constantly  embroiled  with  Rome. 

Moreover,  the  creed  of  Mediaeval    Christendom  {b)  Union 
had  so  fused  the  military  spirit  with  the  religion  of  tary 
Europe — the  ferocity,  love  of  adventure,  licentious-  ^/^/^ 
ness,  and  contempt  of  life  of  the  knight,  with  the  ^'^^^S^^"- 
fervent  faith,  the  strict  obedience,  the  prayerfulness, 
and  the  humility  of  the  monk — that  a  Christian  soldier 
using  temporal    arms   to    obtain  a  spiritual  reward 
became  the  true  type  of  knighthood,  which  naturally 
commended  itself  to  the  minds  of  that  age.     When, 
therefore,  to  the  knights  of   Europe  the   invitation 
went  forth,  bidding  them  come  to  the  deliverance  of 
Jerusalem,  to  rescue  their  brother  Christians  in  the 
East,  it  found  a  ready  response  among  men  already 
too  martially  inclined.     All  rejoiced  to  take  part  in 
a  war,  and  here  was  a  war  sanctioned  by  the  Church. 

Those  were  indeed  the  heroic  ages  of  European  (c)  Latent 
history,  not  only  because  they  were  ages  in  which  o77he7oe 
rudeness,  valour,  endurance,  self-sacrifice,  develop- 
ment of  strength,  displays  of  subtlety  and  craft,  reigned 
supreme  ;  nor  yet  because  in  them,  as  in  other  heroic 
ages,  individuals  were  seen  to  tower  over  the  heads 
of  the  common  herd  of  soldiers,  a  Godfrey  of  Bou- 
logne, a  Tancred  of  Hauteville,  a  Raymond  of  Tou- 
louse, whilst  the  mass  of   the  crusading  army  was 


2IO  THE   CRUSADES. 

PART     entirely  ignored,  allowed  either  to  fight  bravely,  or 

. '. to  die  in  suffering  with  equal  indifference  ;  but  they 

were  the  heroic  ages  of  European  society,  because 
they  occupy  in  the  history  of  the  Western  nations 
the  same  position  which  the  heroic  ages  occupy  in 
the  history  of  Greece.  They  were  the  intermediate 
ages  between  the  unsettledness  of  barbarian  life  and 
settled  forms  of  civilised  society;  between  a  time  of 
perpetual  private  war  and  a  state  of  social  compact ; 
because  In  them  a  spirit  of  order  was  being  first  in- 
fused by  a  few  chieftains  into  the  lawlessness  of 
wild  nations,  and  the  recklessness  of  the  many  was 
being  relieved  by  the  exploits  of  the  few ;  because 
in  them  the  cruelties  and  asperities  of  war  were 
softened  and  redeemed  by  the  chivalry  of  the  com- 
batants. The  barons  of  the  eleventh  and  twelfth 
centuries  were  not  unlike  the  heroes  of  Greek  history. 
A  summons  was  all  that  was  needed,  and  they  were 
prepared  to  besiege  another  Troy.  Hence,  when 
the  summons  came,  calling  them  to  the  rescue  of 
Jerusalem,  they  obeyed  it  as  readily,  nay,  more  read- 
ily than  the  Greeks  had  obeyed  the  call  of  Menelaus: 
and  their  exploits  against  the  Turks  were  not  less 
illustrious  than  those  of  the  Greeks  had  been  against 
the  Dardanlans. 
(d)  Gross       To  a  rude  and  grossly  sensual  people,  the  duty  of 

7ne%vs  of  .      .  1     .  ,.,.,., 

mission-     missionary  work  is  apt  to  appear  to  be  identical  with 
a>y  ^ " y-    tiig  duty  of  using  force  as  a  means  of  propagandism, 

and  of  punishing  those  who  refuse  to  be  converted. 

In  the   eleventh  century,  however,  the   business  of 

spreading  the  faith  was  still  keenly  felt  to  be  a  duty. 

The  three  preceding  centuries  had  been  rich  in  mis- 


GENERAL    VIEW  OF   THE   CRUSADES. 


311 


sionary  labours,  to  which  the  conversion  of  Europe     chap, 

XI 

was  itself  due  :  the  converted  northern  nations  burned  L_ 


to  send  the  faith  to  other  nations,  and  to  roll  back  upon 
Asia  the  tide  of  faith  which  had  originally  come 
from  thence.  But  the  Christians  of  Europe  were  as 
yet  novices  in  Christianity.  Gross  and  sensual  them- 
selves, they  apprehended  Christianity  in  a  gross  and 
sensual  shape ;  they  had  not  yet  learnt  to  distinguish 
between  the  sphere  of  things  which  are  of  this  world 
and  things  which  are  not  of  this  world,  between  the 
claims  of  Caesar  and  the  claims  of  God.  To  them  it 
seemed  far  easier  to  convert  the  pagans  by  raising 
an  army,  and  spreading  Christianity  at  the  edge  of 
the  sword,  as  had  been  already  done  in  Sweden  and 
Iceland,  rather  than  by  sending  forth  missionaries  to 
labour  hard  and  long,  and  to  see  but  little  result. 
Besides,  it  was  doubtful  whether  proselytising  clergy 
would  have  been  at  all  tolerated  by  the  Saracens, 
and  would  not  have  suffered  the  penalty  of  immediate 
death  as  soon  as  their  designs  became  known.  The 
zeal  for  extending  the  boundaries  of  Christendom 
naturally  took  a  course  congenial  with  the  spirit  of 
the  age ;  and,  instead  of  sending  forth  missionaries 
supported  by  contributions  from  home,  the  heroic 
ages  of  Europe  sent  forth  crusaders  to  convert  the 
infidels  by  carnal  weapons,  and  to  spread  the  religion 
of  peace  by  resorting  to  the  appliances  of  the  sword. 

Besides,   there  were  at  this  time  many  knights  {e  )Reiief 
of  high  and  low  degree,  oppressed  with  the  burden  penances. 
of  penances,  which  the  constant  repetition  of  sins, 
some  of  the  most  grievous  kinds,  had  incurred.    The 
guilt  of  adultery  was  multiplied  by  daily  repetition, 


312 


THE  CRUSADES. 


PART     that  of  homicide  was  still  more  frequent,  every  one's 

hand  being  against  his  neighbour's ;  and  no  barrier 

was  effectual  against  the  licentiousness  of  morals.  A 
graduated  scale  of  penances,  framed  with  regard  to 
the  peculiar  wildness  of  the  people,  and  numbering 
each  act  separately,  without  looking  to  the  spirit  of 
the  doer,  was  rigidly  enforced,  A  modest  sinner 
might  easily  incur  a  debt  of  300  years'  penance,  and 
although  commutations  or  indulgences  were  allowed, 
a  year  of  penance  being  appreciated  at  thirty  shillings, 
still  a  debt  of  300  years  or  450/.  was  enough  to  im- 
poverish a  plentiful  fortune.  When  the  offer  came 
of  plenary  indulgence  to  all  who  should  enlist  under 
the  banner  of  the  Cross,  the  robber,  the  incendiary, 
the  homicide  arose  by  thousands  to  redeem  their 
souls.  The  crusades  afforded  a  means  of  compound- 
ing with  spiritual  creditors.^  By  one  clean  sweep 
those  who  despaired  of  ever  being  able  to  discharge 
their  debts  to  the  Church,  were  restored  to  her 
favour ;  their  debt  was  forgiven,  and  heaven  assured 
to  them  if  they  fell  in  battle.^  The  Church  would 
still  grant  forgiveness  freely  to  those  who  loved  much. 
{f)  Policy       At  the  same  time,  the  crusades  contributed  also  to 

of  the  ' 

Popes.  the  benefit  of  order  and  settled  society.  By  drawing 
off  the  most  lawless  and  warlike,  they  left  Europe  in 
a  state  of  comparative  peace ;  and  it  cannot  be  sup- 
posed that  the  Popes  were  altogether  blind  to  this 


•  Concil.  Clarom.  an.  1095,  Can.  2,  Labbi^,  xii.  830  :  '  Quicum- 

*  que  pro  sola  devotione,  non  pro  honoris  vel  pecuniae  adeptione, 

*  ad  liberandam  ecclesiam  Dei  Jerusalem  profectus  fuerit,  iter  illud 
'  pro  omni  poenitentia  reputetur.' 

'  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  Iviii.  p.  416, 


GENERAL    VIEW  OF  THE   CRUSADES. 


313 


result  at  the  time  they  promoted  them.      No  doubt     chap. 

the  crusade   may  have  appeared  to  them  a  useful  

means  for  turning  lawlessness  and  love  of  war  into  a 
lawful  channel.  One  of  the  first  acts  of  the  Council 
of  Clermont,  which  decreed  the  first  crusade,  was 
to  pronounce  a  severe  censure  against  private  war, 
and  to  confirm  the  Truce  of  God  ;^  and  in  his  speech 
delivered  at  that  council,  Urban  II.  complained, 
that  while  Christians  were  shedding  Christian  blood, 
they  were  abandoning  the  sacred  field  of  fighting 
against  the  unbelievers  ;  they  were  warring  on  each 
other,  when  they  ought  to  be  soldiers  of  Christ.^  No 
great  foresight  was  needed  to  jcnow  that  the  offer  of 
a  plenary  indulgence  would  draw  away  the  worst  and 
most  reckless  members  of  society,  as  well  as  the  most 
adventurous,  in  short,  the  very  classes  whom  the 
Church  had  found  it  most  difficult  to  manao-e.      For 

^  Concil.  Clarom.  an.  1095,  Can.  i,  Labb^,  xii.  630  :  'Statutum 
'  est  ut  in  omni  die  et  monachi  et  clerici  et  feminae,  et  quae  cum 
'  eis  fuerint  in  pace,  permaneant ;  tribus  auteni  diebus,  scilicet 
'  secunda  tertia  et  quarta  ab  aliquo  alicui  illata  non  reputabitur 
'  pacis  fractio  :  quatucr  autem  reliquis  diebus  si  quis  alicui  injuriam 
'  intulerit,  fractionis  sanctae  pacis  reus  habeatur  et  prout  judica- 
'  turn  fuerit  puniatur.' 

2  Labbe,  xii.  840  :  '  Fulcrum  sit  vobis  in  ilia  civitate  mori  pro 
'  Christo,  in  qua  pro  vobis  Christus  mortuus  est.  Caeterum  si  vos 
'  antea  mori  contigerit,  idipsum  autumate  mori  in  via,  si  tamen 
'  Christus  in  sua  vos  invenerit  militia.  .  .  .  Horrendum  est,  fratres, 
'  horrendum  est,  vos  in  Christianos  rapacem  manum  extendere. 
'  In  Sarracenos  gladium  vibrare,  singulare  bonum  est,  quia  et  cari- 
'  tas  est  pro  fratribus  animas  deponere.  .  .  .  Jam  nunc  ergo  auc- 
'  toritate  loquamur  prophetica  :  '  Accingere  homo  unusquisque 
'  gladio  tuo  super  femur  tuum,  potentissime.  Accingimini,  inquam, 
'  et  estote  filii  potentes,  quoniam  melius  est  nobis  mori  in  bello, 
*  quam  videre  mala  gentis  nostrae  et  sanctorum.' 


3^4 

PART 
II. 


iS)  Effects 
of  the 
Crusades, 
(a)  In- 
crease of 
Papal 
power. 


THE   CRUSADES. 

had  not  these  very  classes  been  the  chief  supporters 
of  the  emperors  in  their  struggles  with  the  Pope  ? 
Might  it  not  be  expected  that  the  cause  of  the 
Papacy  would  be  completely  triumphant,  if  they  were 
removed  ?  Perhaps  after  all  there  is  more  truth  than 
has  often  been  supposed,  in  the  suggestion  ^  that 
the  first  crusade  was  the  result  of  a  plan  concerted 
between  Urban  II.  and  Boemund,  his  Norman  ally, 
and  was  intended  to  deal  a  blow  at  the  Western 
emperor,  by  depriving  him  of  his  principal  allies. 

Whether,  however,  the  result  was  anticipated  by 
the  policy  of  the  Popes,  or  whether  it  was  unex- 
pected, certain  it  is  that  one  of  the  first  effects  of  the 
crusades  was  to  greatly  increase  the  papal  power. 
From  their  commencement  to  their  end,  an  enormous 
dispensing  power  attached  to  the  Pontiff,  not  merely 
from  the  penalties  of  sin  in  this  world,  or  from  the 
pains  of  purgatory,  but  from  all  temporal,  civil  and 
social  obligations.  The  prince  who  took  the  Cross, 
left  his  dominions  under  the  protection  of  the  Holy 
See.  The  noble  became  exempt  from  most  feudal 
claims.  Even  the  bonds  of  the  villain,  the  serf,  and 
the  slave  were  broken.  The  creditor  could  not 
arrest  the  debtor.  The  crusader  was  the  soldier  of 
the  Church.  To  the  Church  he  owed  his  first 
allegiance,  and  this  released  him  from  every  other 
obligation.  The  Pope,  from  whom  all  these  dispen- 
sations  emanated,  was  invested  with  new  authority. 
He  was  general-in-chief  of  the  armies  of  the  Faith. 
He  soon  aspired  to  be  the  liege-lord  of  mankind. 


^  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  Iviii.  p.  426. 


GENERAL    VIEW  OF  THE   CRUSADES. 


315 


Moreover,    the    crusades   contributed   greatly  to-    chap. 


XI. 


wards  realising  the  idea  of  the  Holy  Empire — the 
very  idea  out  of  which  they  had  arisen.  They  towards 
swept  away,  as  it  were,  the  last  impediment  to  the  ^/^^^^-^j^f 
wedlock  of  religfion  with  the  warlike  propensities  of  of  Holy 

1  .     .  .  ,  Empire. 

the  age.  They  elevated  Christian  knighthood  into  a 
second  hierarchy,  investing  the  noble  warrior  with 
ceremonies  closely  resembling  those  of  ordination.^ 
They  hallowed  war,  diverting  it  from  wanton  de- 
struction, and  directing  it  against  the  enemies  of  the 
Holy  Empire,  thus  drawing  a  clear  line  of  demarca- 
tion between  the  Christian  world,  which,  in  theory  at 
least,  was  co-terminous  with  the  Empire,  and  the 
heathen  world  which  lay  beyond  it.  The  bishop  and 
abbot  stood  side  by  side  with  the  prince  or  noble  in 
the  wars  with  the  Saracens.^  Every  knight  was  a 
soldier  of  the  Cross  ;  every  soldier  of  the  Cross  was 
as  ready  to  be  a  knight.^     And  thus  it  will  be  seen, 


^  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  iii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  ix.  p.  396  :  'Writers 
'  of  the  Middle  Ages  compare  the  knightly  to  the  priestly  charac- 
'  ter  ill  an  elaborate  parallel,  and  the  investiture  of  the  one  was 
'  supposed  analogous  to  the  ordination  of  the  other.  The  cere- 
'  monies  upon  this  occasion  were  almost  wholly  religious.  The 
'  candidate  passed  nights  in  prayer  among  priests  in  a  church  ;  he 
'  received  the  sacrament ;  he  entered  into  a  bath  and  was  clad 
'  with  a  white  robe,  in  allusion  to  the  presumed  purification  of  his 
'  life  ;  his  sword  was  solemnly  blessed  ;  every  thing,  in  short,  was 
'  contrived  to  identify  his  new  condition  with  the  defence  of 
*  religion  or  at  least  of  the  Church.'     See  also  Neand.  vii.  169. 

2  In  the  first  crusade,  for  instance,  the  two  leaders  of  the  forces 
from  the  south  of  France  were  Adhemar,  Bishop  of  Puy,  the  Pope's 
legate,  and  Raymond,  Count  of  St.  Giles  and  Toulouse.  In  the 
fifth  crusade  the  papal  legate  Pelagius  superseded  the  lay  generals. 

^  This   was,    however,    strictly   speaking,   forbidden.      Concil. 


o 


J 5  THE   CRUSADES. 


PART     how  it  became  possible  in  later  times  to  speak  of 

'- —  crusades    against   heretics,    as  well  as    of  crusades 

against  the  Pope's  enemies,  to  initiate  a  war  of  ex- 
termination against  the  Albigenses,  as  well  as  one  of 
intended  conquest  against  England,  to  call  the  taking 
of  Constantinople  a  crusade,  equally  with  the  war  of 
Charles  of  Anjou  against  Manfred,  with  the  perse- 
cution of  Frederic  II.  by  Innocent  III.,  or  with  that 
of  the  Colonnas  by  Boniface  VIII. 
{c)  Es-  Perhaps  the  saddest  feature  about  the    crusades 

meiiTof  was  their  effect  in  estranging  the  Eastern  and  the 
fves/"^  Western  Churches — a  result  the  very  opposite  of 
that  which  had  been  originally  intended.  The  Greek 
emperors  had  invited  the  crusaders  to  come  to  their 
rescue  :  they  found  that  their  friends  might  be  as 
dangerous  as  their  enemies.  They  were  appalled  by 
the  utter  want  of  discipline  and  self-control  of  the 
abandoned  multitude  that  set  forth  under  the  guid- 
ance of  Peter  the  Hermit  and  Walter  the  Penniless. 
They  were  terrified  with  their  numbers,  host  follow- 
ing host;  and  they  dreaded  the  power  of  the  Franks, 
should  they  think  of  turning  their  power  upon  them- 
selves. To  extort  the  recognition  of  their  own 
sovereignty,  they  treated  the  crusading  chiefs  with 
craft  and  cunning.  On  more  than  one  occasion  they 
basely  deceived  them,  and  it  is  said  that  they  conde- 
scended to  intrigues  with  the  Saracens.  Could  thej" 
wonder  if,  in  return  for  the  mistrust,  hatred  and  con^ 
tempt,  which  they  displayed  towards  the  friends  they 
had   invited,  they  had  to  experience  the  contempt 

Clarom.  an.   1095,  Can.  4,  Labbe,  xii.  830  :  '  Ne  aliquis  clericus 
'  arma  deferat.' 


Crtisade. 

A.D. 
I 096- I 099 


THE  FIRST  CRUSADE.  ^j- 

and  insolence  of  the  Franks  ? — or  that  this  contempt,  chap. 
increased  by  other  difficulties,  advanced  towards  its  — '~ — 
culminating  point,  until  Constantinople  was  taken, 
and  a  Latin  kingdom  established  in  place  of  the 
effete  Greek  kingdom  ?  Perhaps  the  rudeness  of 
the  Franks  may  have  been  as  much  to  blame  for 
these  results  as  the  treachery  of  the  Greeks ;  but  the 
results  were  in  any  case  sad.  The  Greeks  were 
henceforth  known  to  the  Franks  only  as  treacherous, 
the  Franks  to  the  Greeks  only  as  rude  barbarians. 
Tenfold  was  the  flame  of  hatred  increased,  already 
burning  between  the  East  and  West.^ 

The    causes    which    led    to   the    crusades    might  B.  First 
have  existed  in  full  force,  without  a  crusade  having 

'  The  causes  of  the  disunion  of  the  Eastern  and  Western 
Churches  must  be  sought  two  centuries  back.  The  usurpation 
of  the  patriarchate  of  Constantinople  by  Photius,  and  the  claims  of 
Constantinople  to  ecclesiastical  supremacy  over  Bulgaria,  had 
led  to  a  schism  between  the  two  Churches  in  the  Papacy  of 
Nicolas.  It  had  been  healed  by  the  deposition  of  Photius  and 
the  accession  of  the  Emperor  Basil,  the  Macedonian,  in  869. 

Ten  years  later,  in  879,  the  schism  broke  out  afresh.  Photius 
had  been  restored  on  the  death  of  Ignatius,  but,  refusing  to  allow 
a  supremacy  over  the  whole  Church  to  John  VIII.,  or  to  cede  the 
ecclesiastical  province  of  Bulgaria,  had  been  anew  excommuni- 
cated. Communion  was  temporarily  restored  in  886  by  the  depo- 
sition of  Photius  for  the  second  time. 

Overtures  between  the  two  Churches  had  been  revived  in  1024, 
but  without  effect.  A  new  series  of  overtures  was  attempted  in 
1053,  but  the  only  result  was  the  final  separation  of  the  two 
Churches.  On  July  16,  1054,  the  papal  legates  deposited  on  the 
altar  of  the  Church  of  St.  Sophia,  at  Constantinople,  a  bull  of 
excommunication.  The  breach  then  caused  was  increased  in  the 
succeeding  centuries  by  the  following  causes  :  (i)  the  growth  of 
the  Papacy,  (2)  the  growth  of  the  Western  Empire,  (3)  the  Cru- 
sades, and  (4)  scholasticism. 


A.D. 
IO76-IO96 


-l3  THE   CRUSADES. 

PART  ever  actually  come  to  pass,  had  not  a  fitting  occasion 

' offered  to  bring  these  causes   into  play.     That  oc- 

jJLj/'^^"  casion  was  the  conquest  of  Jerusalem  by  the  Turks. 

{a)  Cap-  Some   twenty   years    before   the   first   crusade  left 

tiire  of  ■'      ■' 

jerusa-     Europe,  a  change  had  come  over  the  political  re- 

lein  by  the         .  r  t-.   1       '•  t  1      r    1  1 

Turks.  lations  of  Palestme.  Instead  of  the  regular  govern- 
ment of  the  Fatimlte  Caliphs,^  the  house  of  Seljuk 
was  enthroned  at  Jerusalem,  and  the  government 
was  entrusted  by  them  to  the  chief  of  a  tribe  of 
Turkmans,  Ortok  by  name,  whose  fierceness  and 
cruelty  were  the  terror  of  all  from  Palestine  to  Nice 
and  Bythinia.  This  change  of  government  in  a 
foreign  country  was  felt  all  the  more  at  the  moment, 

1024  owing  to  the  new  zeal  for  pilgrimages  which  had 
arisen  in  Europe,  and  which  on  one  occasion,  some 
thirty  years  before  the  first  crusade,  had  brought  as 
many  as  7,000  at  a  time  to  visit  the  tomb  of  the 

1064  Redeemer.^  Now  these  pilgrims  were  treated  with 
severity.  The  tax  which  they  were  required  to  pay 
was  increased :  the  patriarch  was  cast  into  a  dungeon 
to  extort  a  heavy  ransom  ;  and  divine  services  in  the 
Church  of  the  Resurrection  were  often  interrupted 
by  the  rudeness  of  the  Mohammedans. 
{b)  Peter        The  tale  of  these  p^rievances  when  borne  back  to 

the  Her-  ^  1  ,        .  1 

mit.  Europe,  and  there  repeated  by  the  glowmg  eloquence 

^  The  Fatimite  caliphs  reigned  over  Palestine  from  969  to  1076. 
In  the  last-named  year  Jerusalem  was  conquered  by  the  Turks. 
See  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  Ivii.  p.  403. 

^  The  Archbishop  of  Mentz  with  the  bishops  of  Utrecht,  Bam- 
berg and  Ratisbon,  travelled  from  the  Rhine  to  Jeioisalem,  an. 
1064,  with  a  retinue  of  some  7,000  persons.  Baronius  (an.  1064, 
No.  43-56)  has  transcribed  the  narratives  of  Ingulphus,  Marianus, 
and  Lambertus. 


THE  FIRST  CRUSADE. 


319 


of   Peter    the    Hermit,    was    not  likely   to   lose    in     chap. 

dimension.      Short  in   stature    and    contemptible  in 

appearance,  with  a  keen  eye  and  the  eloquence  of 
conviction,  once  a  knight  of  the  sword,  then  re- 
nouncing the  sword  for  the  convent,  passing  from 
the  convent  to  a  hermitage,  and  from  a  hermitage  to 
a  pilgrimage,  Peter  had  gone  the  round  of  every 
career  in  life.  He  could  speak  with  experience,  and 
address  all  classes.  Herein  lay  the  secret  of  his 
success.  Abstemious  in  diet,  liberal  in  giving  away 
what  he  received,  with  bare  head  and  naked  feet, 
wrapt  in  a  coarse  garment,  and  bearing  a  crucifix,  he 
rode  about,  telling  what  he  had  seen,  and  enlisting 
alike  the  noble  and  the  peasant,  the  priest  and  the 
layman,  the  regular  and  the  secular,  in  the  cause 
which  he  had  at  heart — the  first  instance  of  a  Men- 
dicant Friar.  None  could  resist  his  appeal ;  Pope 
Urban  H.  was  won;  and  so  great  was  the  number  of 
those  who  flocked  to  the  Council  of  Piacenza, 
that  no  church  could  contain  them,  and  the  assembly 
was  held  in  the  open  plain.  An  embassy  from  the  a.d.  1095 
Eastern  emperor  was  there  to  plead  the  cause  of  the 
Eastern  Christians,  and  many  promised  on  the  spot 
to  go  to  their  rescue.^ 

1  Account  of  the  Concil.  Placent.  an.  1095,  Labbe,  xii.  821  : 
'  Facta  est  autem  haec  synodus  circa  mediam  quadragesimam 
'  Placentiae  :  ad  quam  synodum  multitudo  tam  innumerabilis  con- 
'  fluxit,  ut  nequaquam  in  qualibet  ecclesia  illius  loci  posset  com- 
'  prehendi.     Unde  et  dominus  Papa  extra  urbem  in  campo  illam 

*  celebrare  compulsus  est.  Hoc  tamen  non  absque  probabilis 
'  exempli  auctoritate  :  nam  primus  legislator  Moyses  populum 
'  Dei  in  campestribus,  legalibus  praeceptis,  Deo  jubente,  instituit ; 
'  et  ipse  Dominus  non  in  domibus,  sed  in  monte  et  in  campestri- 

*  bus,  discipulos  suos  evangelicis  statutis  informavit.  .  .  . 


320 


THE   CRUSADES. 


PART         Nor  was  it   otherwise  at  Clermont,  where  Pope 

II. 
Urban  II.  appeared  himself  as  the  preacher.      He 

spoke   of  Jerusalem    being   trodden    down    of    the 

Gentiles,  how  Christians  were  become  a  scorn  and 

derision  to  those  round  about  them.      He  praised 

the  first  martyr,  St.  Stephen,  and  John  the  Baptist, 

and  called  upon  those  who  heard  him  to  fight  more 

bravely  than  the  Israelites  of  old  had  done,  against 

Turks  who  were  worse  than  the  Jebusites,  declaring 

that  he,  like  Moses,  would  pray  whilst  they  went  up 

to  fight  against  the  Amalekites.^     His  speech  was 

'  Item  legatio  Constantinopolitani  imperatoris  ad  hanc  synodum 
'  pervenit,  qui  dominum  Papam  omnesque  Christi  fideles  suppli- 

*  citer  imploravit,  ut  aliquod  auxilium  sibi  contra  paganos  pro 
'  defensione  sanctae  ecclesiae  conferrent.  .  .  .  Ad  hoc  ergo  auxi- 
'  Hum  dominus  Papa  multos  incitavit,  ut  etiam  jurejurando  pro- 

*  mitterent  se  illuc,  Deo  annuente,  ituros.' 

'  Concil.  Clarom.  an.  1095,  LabbS,  xii.  839  :  '  Nos  miseri,  nos 

*  infelices,  quorum   tempore   Dei   prophetia   ista   completa   est : 

*  Deus,  venerunt  gentes  in  hereditatem  tuam  :  polluerunt  templum 

*  sanctum  tuum  :  posuerunt  Jerusalem  in  pomorum  custodiam.  .  .  . 
'  Quam  terram  merito  sanctam  diximus,  in  qua  non  est  etiam 
'  passus  pedis  quem  non  illustraverit  et  sanctificaverit  vel  corpus 
'  vel  umbra  Salvatoris,  vel  gloriosa  praesentia  sanctae  Dei  geni- 
'  tricis,  vel  amplectendus  apostolorum  commeatus,  vel  martyrum 

*  ebibendus   sanguis  effusus.      Quam   beati,   O    Stephane   proto- 

*  martyr,  qui  te  laureaverunt  lapides  !  Quam  felices,  O  tunc, 
'  Baptista  Joannes,  qui  tibi  ad  Salvatorem  baptizandum  servierunt 
'  Jordanici  latices  !     Filii   Israel  ab  Aegyptiis   educti,  qui  rubri 

*  maris  transitu  vos  praefiguraverunt,  terram  illam  armis  suis,  Jesu 

*  duce,  sibi  vendicaverunt ;  Jebusaeos,  et  alios  convenas  inde 
'  expulerunt,  et  instar  Jerusalem  coelestis,  Jerusalem  terrenam 
'  excoluerunt.  .  .  . 

'  Haec  ideo  fratres,  dicimus,  ut  et  manus  homicidas  a  fraterna 

*  nece  contineatis,  et  pro  fidei  domesticis  vos  externis  nationibus 
'  opponatis,  et  sub  Jesu  Christo  duce  vestro  acies  Christiana,  acies 
'  invictissima,  melius  quam  ipsi  veteres  Israelitae  pro  vestra  Jeru- 


THE  FIRST  CRUSADE. 


321 


rabble. 


interrupted   by  loud    cries    of   '  God    wills  it  !    God     chap. 

wills  it ! '     The  cross  was  distributed  as  a  badee  to   1_ 

the  crowds  who  pressed  forward  to  receive  it.  The 
crusade  was  decreed,  and  the  Pope  was  invited  to 
march  at  its  head. 

The  story  of  that  crusade  is  a  well-known  one.  (2)  The 
It  is  really  a  story  of  several  crusades,  and  brings  in^ 
before  us  in  vivid  colours  the  devotion  of  some,  the 
heroism  of  others,  the  ferocity  of  many,  the  ignorance 
of  all.  There  was  the  first  outburst  of  enthusiasm, 
the  more  than  sixty  thousand  of  both  sexes,  who  im- 
patient of  delay  set  forth  from  France  and  Lorraine 
under  the  generalship  of  Waltqr  the  Penniless ;  the 
fifteen  or  twenty  thousand  peasants  from  the  villages 
of  Germany,  led  by  the  monk  Godescal ;  the  indis- 
criminate herd  of  two  hundred  thousand  who  pressed 
their  rear,  guided,  it  is  said,  by  a  goose  and  a  goat. 
The  impatience  of  these  pilgrims  brought  on  them  a 
sad  retribution.  Distinguished  in  the  early  part  of 
their  route  for  their  rapine  and  drunkenness,  and  the 
wild  fury  with  which  they  persecuted  and  massacred 
the  Jews;  bringing  down  on  themselves  by  their 
rude  injuries,  the  revenge  of  the  native  Christians 
amidst  the  morasses  and  forests  of  Bulgaria  ;  escaping 
with  but  one  third  of  their  number  to  the  mountains 
of  Thrace,  and  thence  reaching  Constantinople  ; 
there   received  with  kindness,  and  retaliating  with 

*  salem  decertetis,  et  Turcos,  qui  in  ea  sunt  nefandiores  quam 

•  Jebusaei,  impugnetis  et  expugnetis.  .  .  . 

*  Vos  autem  qui  ituri  estis,  habebitis  nos  pro  vobis  oratores  : 
'  nos  habeamus  vos  pro  populo  Dei  pugnatores.  Nostrum  est 
'  orare,  vestrum  est  contra  Amalecitas  pugnare.' 

Y 


122 


THE   CRUSADES. 


PAKT     depredations  ;   unable   to  control  themselves,  and  a 

'- —  burden  to    others  ;  they  were   conveyed  across   the 

Bosporus  by  the  emperor  Alexius,  only  to  fall  an 
easy  prey  to  the  arts  of  the  sultan.  A  false  rumour 
tempted  them  into  the  plain  of  Nice,  and  all  that 
remained  to  tell  of  the  sad  fate  which  befell  the  three 
hundred  thousand  crusaders  who  first  set  forth  in 
obedience  to  Peter's  summons,  was  a  heap  of  whiten- 
ing bones. 
(3)  The  A  better  fate   awaited  the  more  disciplined  army 

sade.         which  set  out  in  the  autumn  of  the  same  year,  under 
{d)  The     the  leadership  of  Godfrey   of  Bouillon,  the  princes 

leaders.  ^  . 

of  Northern  and  Southern  France,  and  the  pnnces 
of  Italy.  No  character,  however,  shines  so  bright 
in  their  midst  as  does  that  of  the  noble  Godfrey 
of  Bouillon,  valorous,  pious,  humble,  and  virtuous. 
With  his  two  brothers,  Eustace  and  Baldwin,  he  was 
at  the  head  of  some  90,000  men.  Four  princes 
commanded  the  contingent  from  Northern  France  : 
Hugh,  Count  of  Vermandois,  brother  of  the  king, 
and  hence  called  the  Great ;  Robert,  the  eldest  son  of 
William  the  Conqueror  ;  Robert,  Count  of  Flanders, 
the  sword  and  lance  of  the  Christians,  and  the 
wealthiest  prince  of  the  age  ;  Stephen,  Count  of  Char- 
tres,  Blois,  and  Troyes,  who  had  castles  as  many  as 
the  days  of  the  year.  In  Southern  France  the  com- 
mand was  assumed  by  Adhemar,  Bishop  of  Puy,  the 
Pope's  legate,  and  Raymond,  Count  of  St.  Giles  and 
Toulouse;  and  Italy  sent  forth  at  once  the  base  and 
intriguing  Boemund,  and  his  cousin,  the  chivalrous 
Tancred.' 


'   Sec  tlie  account  in  Gu?bon,  vol.  v.  ch.  Iviii.  p.  423  scq. 


THE  FIRST   CRUSADE. 


2>^^:> 


Advanclnof    by    three    different    routes,    all    the    chap. 
...                                                                                 .                            XI. 
divisions   of   the    army  reached    Constantinople    by 

May  in    the    following    year,    yet    not    without    en-  fonte.  ^ 
countering  many  difficulties.      The  Hungarians  had 
attacked  Godfrey's  army,  smarting  under  the  injuries 
inflicted  by   the    first  Christian    rabble.       Probably 
owing  to  the  same  cause,  Raymond  had  to  complain 
of   the    hostility    of   the    natives    of    Dalmatia    and 
Sclavonia.      Hugh  was  at  Constantinople,  a  prisoner 
in    the    hands    of   Alexius.      From    Constantinople, 
after    experiencing    the  treachery  of   Alexius,   they 
crossed  the  Bosporus.      In  Asia  Minor  they  mustered 
a  force,  if  the  authority  may  be  believed,  of  600,000  ,4  May  to 
men.      Their   first  exploit  in    paynim  land  was  the       T.-d^' 
siege  of  Nice,  wrested  from  them,  however,  by  the       ^°^^ 
treachery  of  Alexius.      The  successful  battle  of  Dory-     July  4, 
laeum  followed,  when,  besides   3,000  pagan  knights, 
a  countless   multitude   of  pagans   fell.      Next  came 
the   celebrated    siege    of    Antioch,    five-and-twenty 
days  being  spent  by  the  Christians  on  the  verge  of 
destruction  ;   then    they  were    in    turn    besieged    in 
Antioch,  and  owed  their  deliverance  to  the  discovery 
of  the   Holy  Lance.      But  by  this  time,  most  of  the 
leaders    who    had    first    set    out    had   turned    back, 
the  Duke  of  Normandy  to  face  the  Church's  censures, 
Stephen  to  enjoy  his  ease,  Peter   to  avoid  the  pen- 
ance of  a  fast,  Baldwin  to  found  the  principality  of 
Edessa.       Few    only   remained,   who,    having    once 
taken  the  Cross,  refused  to  look  back  ;  and  amono- 
these   the  principal  ones  were   Godfrey,  actuated  by 
motives  of  disinterested  piety,  Tancred  by  chivalry, 


324 


THE   CRUSADES. 


PART     and  the  two  Roberts.     Worse  than  all,  the  soldiers 
'- —  were  discouraged,  because  William  of  Melun,  their 


favourite,  who  from  the  violence  of  his  blows  had 
obtained  the  name  of  Carpenter,  had  also  deserted 
the  cause. 
{c)  Cap-  Saddened  but  yet  not  daunted,  after  a  long  delay 
Jem-  at  Antioch,  the  relics  of  the  mighty  host,  some 
^^  A^D.  40,000  in  number,  set  out  for  Jerusalem.  Laodicea, 
May,  1099  ^j^^  Libanus,  Caesarea,  Lydda,  Ramla,  Emmaus  and 
Bethlem  ^  were  soon  reached,  and  when  the  first 
glimpse  of  the  holy  city  was  obtained,  they  felt 
amply  recompensed  for  their  toils,  and  were  animated 
with  new  couragfe.  On  the  first  swell  of  Mount 
Calvary  Godfrey's  standard  was  erected  :  to  the  left, 
the  line  of  attack  was  continued  by  Tancred  and  the 
two  Roberts ;  Raymond  established  his  quarters  from 
the  citadel  to  the  foot  of  Mount  Sion.  For  forty 
days  the  siege  went  on — forty  days  of  calamity  and 
anguish  indeed  ;  and  at  length,  on  July  15,  in  the  last 
year  of  the  century,  more  than  four  years  after  the 
crusade  had  been  first  preached,  their  labours  were 
ended,  and  the  city  was  taken.  On  that  day,  a 
Friday,  at  three  in  the  afternoon,  the  day  and  hour 
of  the  Passion,  Godfrey  of  Bouillon  stood  victorious 
on  the  walls.  Success  had  at  length  crowned  the 
crusaders'  efforts  :  the  holy  sepulchre  was  now  free ; 
and  the  victors  prepared  to  accomplish  their  vow. 
But  how  few  were  left  of  those  who  had  first  listened 
to  Peter's  preaching,  or  taken  the  vow  at  Clermont ! 


^  Gibbon,  vol.    v.    ch.    Iviii.   452.     Bethlem  is   not   the  well- 
ktiown  Bethlehem,  south  of  Jerusalem. 


THE   FIRST  CRUSADE.  325 

The  capture  of  Jerusalem  was  not  the  sole  result     chap. 
of  the  first  crusade.      For   that  crusade,  unlike  any 


other  except  the  fourth,  left  permanent  results  behind  Franki  h 
it  in  the  establishment  of  Prankish  princedoms    in  /,"f/ig"^^ 
the  East.     Nice  migfht  have  formed  the  seat  of  one  ^^^^' 
such  princedom,  had  not  Alexius  craftily  persuaded 
the  inhabitants  to  accept  his  protection,  and  to  sur- 
render to  the  Eastern  Empire.^     Boemund,  Prince 
of   Tarento,    had    secured    for    himself   the    city  of 
Antioch    before    it    was    taken,  and  now    held  that 
principality  as  an  independent  sovereign,  owning  no 
feudal  superior."     Baldwin  was  established  at  Edessa.^   a.d.  1098 
At  Tripoli  and  Tiberias  princedoms  were  likewise 
established,  which  owned  themselves  the  vassals  of 
Jerusalem.      And  above  them  all  towered  the  king- 
dom of  Jerusalem,  memorable  for  the  modesty  of  its 
first  king,  Godfrey,  who,  although  elected  to  be  its 
sovereign  by  universal  acclamations,  refused  to  wear 
the  insignia  of  dignity,  a  golden  crown,  in  the  place 
where    the    Redeemer  had    only  .worn  a  crown   of 
thorns  ;     memorable,    too,    for    its    code    of    feudal 
jurisprudence,   commonly   known   as   the   Assise   of 
Jerusalem  ;  and  memorable  for  its  overthrow,  after  a 
duration  of  eighty-eight  years,  by  the  arms  of  Sala- 
din.     The  eleventh  century  closed  over  the  estab- 
lishment of  all  these  kingdoms.    It  seemed  as  though  " 
a  new  field  of  conquest  and  settlement  had  opened 
out  for  the   Franks    in   the  East.     But  soon  those 


'  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  Iviii.  439.  ^  Ibid.  p.  444. 

^  Ibid.  p.  442.     The  kingdom  of  Edessa  subsisted  forty -four 
years,  from  1099  to  1144. 


126 


THE   CRUSADES. 


PART 
II. 


C.   Cru- 
sades of 
Hvelfth 
ceiitury. 


(i)  Crti- 
sade  of 
1101-1103 


prospects  were  blighted.  Within  fifty  years,  Edessa 
had  fallen,  giving  occasion  to  the  second  crusade  ; 
within  one  hundred,  Tripoli,  Tiberias  and  Jerusalem  ; 
within  a  hundred  and  fifty,  Antioch  ;  and  before  the 
thirteenth  century  closed,  Ptolemais  or  Acre,  the  last 
possession  of  the  Christians  in  Palestine,  had  followed 
the  fate  of  its  predecessors. 

The  zeal  for  crusades  having  been  once  called 
forth,  and  success  having  crowned  the  first  attempt 
to  gain  Jerusalem,  there  was  no  stopping  the  flow  of 
pilgrims  which  now  set  towards  the  Holy  Land. 
Christians  from  the  West  combined  with  Christians 
in  the  East  to  drive  out  the  Turks.  But  whilst  the 
Franks  did  the  most  of  the  fighting,  the  Eastern 
emperors  contrived  to  get  the  most  of  the  results, 
and,  openly  avowing  friendship,  secretly  indulged 
in  treachery.  No  wonder,  therefore,  that  when  the 
Franks  became  alive  to  their  double-handedness, 
they  had  to  pay  the  penalty  of  their  perfidy.  In  the 
twelfth  century,  however,  there  was  still  enough  to 
occupy  both  in  dealing  with  their  common  enemy. 
In  this  century,  not  less  than  three  great  emigrations 
marched  by  land  to  the  relief  of  Palestine,  the  first 
of  them  less  known  than  the  others,  the  two  latter 
usually  bearing  the  names  respectively  of  the  second 
and  third  crusade. 

And  yet  as  far  as  numbers  are  concerned,  the  first 
of  these  three  crusades,  which  left  Europe  in  the  year 
1 10 1,  under  the  guidance  of  the  Dukes  of  Burgundy, 
Bavaria  and  Aquitaine,  a  crusade  so  little  known  that 
it  is  hardly  ever  reckoned  as  a  separate  crusade,  was 
not  inferior  to  either  of  the  two  which  came  after  it. 


CRUSADES   OF   THE    TWELFTH   CENTURY.  ^2  7 

Two  columns  of  pilorrlms  composed  it,  the  one  con-     chap. 

XI 

sisting  of  two  hundred  and  sixty  thousand  persons,  '- — 

the  other  of  sixty  thousand  horse,  and  one  hundred 
thousand  foot.  With  them,  too,  went  the  Archbishop 
of  Milan,  and  the  repentant  renegades,  Hugh  of 
Vermandois  and  Stephen  of  Chartres.^  It  was  a 
mighty  crusade,  the  sequel  to  Godfrey's  conquest  of 
Jerusalem. 

Forty  years  later  the  news  reached  Europe  that  (2)  The 
Edessa  had  fallen  before  the  attacks  of  Emadeddin  Crusade. 
Zengi,  and  simultaneously  therewith  there  arose  a  ii4^'_^i'ig9 
preacher  equal  to  the  occasion,  a  second  Peter  the 
Hermit,  to  kindle  the  flagging  energies  of  the  Franks, 
no  other  than  the  well-known  Bernard,  Abbot  of 
Clairveaux.  At  Vezelay  he  appeared  before  the 
King  of  France,  Louis  Vn.,and  uttered  his  glowing 
words.  Nor  were  they  uttered  in  vain ;  the  king  and  his 
wife,  Alienordis,  took  the  Cross.  They  were  followed 
by  the  great  men  of  the  realm,  by  bishops  and  abbots. 
Louis  Vn.  exhorted  them  to  avert  from  the  family 
of  David  the  disgrace  of  a  defeat  at  the  hands  of 
the  Philistines  ;  he  reminded  them  of  the  valour  of 
the  Franks,  even  in  chains.  He  called  on  them 
to  rise  up  against  the  worshippers  of  idols,  and 
assured  them  that  God  would  arise  on  their  behalf, 
and   that  his  enemies  would  be  scattered.^     Equal 


*  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  Iviii.  468. 

2  Concil.  Vizeliac.  an.  1146,  Labb£,  xii.  1633  :   'Rex  ut  audivit 
'  inimicos  crucis  in  tantam  praesumptionem  prorupisse   .  .  .  in- 

*  juriam  proposuit   vindicare  ;  et  .  .  .  eodem  anno  castro  Vize- 
'  liaci  magnum  parlamentum  congregavit.  .  .  .  Nee  defuit  ibi  S. 

*  Bernardus  Claraevallis  abbas,  qui  .  .  .  monuit  barones  et  popu- 


II. 


THE   CRUSADES. 

rART  success  attended  Bernard's  preaching  in  Germany.^ 
The  Emperor  Conrad  took  the  Cross,  as  well  as 
his  grandson  Frederic,  afterwards  emperor.  Many 
German  and  Saxon  nobles  followed  their  example  : 
with  them  were  the  kings  of  Bohemia  and  Poland  ; 
and  it  is  computed  that  not  less  than  four  hundred 
thousand  crusaders  set  out  under  the  Emperor  Con- 
rad III.  and  the  King  Louis  VII. 

The  failure  of  this  crusade,  if  it  may  be  assigned 

lum  ut  ad  vindicandas  Christi  injurias  viribus  totis  insurgerent. 
.  .  .  Cujus  OS  in  praedicando  opitulante  sanctitate  non  laboravit 
in  vacuum.  Nam  rex  primus  prosiliens  cum  magno  devotionis 
ardore  signum  sanctae  crucis  assumpsit,  et  post  ipsum  regina 
Alienordis  uxor  sua.  .  .  .  Tunc  videntes  regeni  et  reginam  sig- 
num crucis  assumsisse,  cum  magno  devotionis  affectu  isti,  quos 
litera  nominabit  cnicem  unanimiter  assumpserunt.  Videlicet 
Alphonsus  comes  S.  Aegidii  ;  Thiericus,  Comes  Flandriae  : 
Henricus  filius  comitis  Theobaldi  Blesensis  ;  Guido  comes  Niver- 
nensis  ;  Reginaldus  frater  ejus  Comes  Thenodori  ;  Comes  Dro- 
charum  Robertus  frater  regis  ;  Yvo  comes  Suessionensis  ;  Gul- 
lielmus  comes  Pontiviensis ;  Gullielmus  comes  Guarentiae  ;  Ar- 
cambandus  de  Borbonio  ;  Engerranus  de  Conciaco  ;  Gaufridus 
de  Ramonio  ;  Hugo  de  Lusigniaco  ;  Gullielmus  de  Cortegniaco ; 
Renondus  de  Monte-Argiz  ;  Ytherus  de  Thociaco  ;  Guicherus  de 
Monte-Gaii ;  Evrardus  de  Bretholio ;  Droeo  de  Moniaco  ;  Ma- 
nasserus  de  Bugues  ;  Ansellus  de  Trienello  ;  Guerinus  frater 
ejus  ;  Gullielmus  Buticularius ;  Gullielmus  Agilous  de  Tria,  et 
plures  alii  nobiles.  .  .  .  De  praelatis  Simon  episcopus  Novib- 
mensis,  Godefridus  episcopus  Lingonensis  ;  Arnulphus  episcopus 
Lisievensis.  De  abbatibus,  Herbertus  abbas  S.  Petri  vivi  Leno- 
nensis  ;  Theobaldus  abbas  S.  Columbae  Lenonensis,  et  mullae 
aliae  personae  nobiles.  .  .  .  Eodem  anno  Conradus  Alemannus 
imperator,  et  Fredricus  dux  Saxon iae  nepos  suus  qui  postea  fuit 
Imperator.  .  cruces  similiter  assumpserunt.'  Another  source,  ibid.  : 
Famosiores  autem  inter  omnes  qui  cum  rege  hujus  itineris  angus- 
tiam  subierunt,  fuerunt  hi.  Alamannorum  imperator  Henricus, 
Robertus  frater  regis,'  &c. 
'  Concil.  Carnotense,  an.  1146,  Labb^,  1637. 


CRUSADES   OF    THE    TWELFTH   CENTURY. 


;29 


to  any  one  cause  in  particular,  was  occasioned  by  the     chap. 

treachery  of  the  Greek  emperor,  Manuel.      Rivalry  '. 

and  emulation  already  existed  between  Franks  and 
Germans.  This  rivalry  was  fostered  by  Manuel. 
By  him,  seasonable  intelligence  was  conveyed  to  the 
sultan,  and  treacherous  guides  were  given  to  the 
Latin  princes.  Inferior  in  the  arts  of  simple  warfare 
to  the  Turks,  this  inferiority  was  felt  overwhelmingly 
by  the  Latins,  when  their  forces  were  divided  and 
themselves  taken  at  a  disadvantage.  The  greater 
part  of  Conrad's  army  fell  in  unsuccessful  action  on 
the  banks  of  the  Maeander,  that  of  Louis  VII.  was 
left  to  perish  at  the  foot  of  the  Pamphylian  hills  for 
lack  of  transport  ships.  The  emperor  and  the  king 
met  and  wept  at  Jerusalem,  safe  themselves,  but  their 
armies  mere  shadows.  They  returned  to  Europe, 
bearing  a  name  for  piety  and  courage,  but  unable  to 
effect  the  object  for  which  they  had  started.^ 

Nor  did   the   Turks,  who  had  braved  the  joint-  (3)  The 
armies  of  a  king  and  an  emperor,  relax  their  efforts  cmsade. 
after   the    departure    of    the    Franks.     Arabia   was   ^'^'  '*^^ 
already  theirs,  Egypt  was  wrested  from  the  Fatimites, 
and  Syria  was  soon  in  their  hands.    They  had  gained 
Tripoli  and  Tiberias  by  Christian  connivance,  and 
the   hero  of  the  hour,  Saladin,  captured  Jerusalem     Oct.  2, 
without  difficulty. 

The  golden  cross  that  for  eighty  eight  years  had 
glittered  on  the  dome  of  the  mosque  of  Omar,  had 
been  cast  down  and  dragged  through  the  streets,  and 
Christians   of  every  sect,  themselves  the  objects  of 

'  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  lix.  p.  472. 


. -,0  1'HE   CRUSADES. 

PART  Saladin's  clemency,  groaned  lamentably  at  the  sad 
- — '- —  spectacle.  Pathetic  tales  were  borne  to  Europe  of 
the  servitude  and  profanation  of  Jerusalem,  of  the 
banished  king,  of  the  oppressed  pilgrims  :  and  there, 
too,  the  cry  went  up  that  God  would  arise,  and  let  his 
enemy  be  scattered.  The  groans  of  the  oppressed 
Christians  in  the  East  awakened  a  kindred  strain  in 
the  bosoms  of  their  brethren  in  the  West,  and  found 
voice  in  the  pitiful  plaints  of  Pope  Gregory  VIII. 
He  has  heard  of  the  terrible  judgment  of  God,  and 
can  only  say  with  the  Psalmist:  'O  God!  the  heathen 
are  come  into  thine  heritage.'  He  has  heard  of  the 
captured  cross,  of  the  slain  bishops,  of  the  imprisoned 
king,  of  the  multitudes  put  to  death  at  the  edge  of  the 
sword  ;  and  with  the  prophet  he  can  only  say :  '  O  that 
my  head  were  waters,  and  mine  eyes  a  fountain  of 
tears,  that  I  might  weep  night  and  day  for  the  slain  of 
my  people.'  But  yet  he  encourages  not  to  despair. 
He  bids  men  regard  the  calamity  as  a  punishment 
for   sin,    and    ends    with   seasonable   advice.^     The 


^  See  the  three  letters  of  Gregory  VIII.  an.  1187,  in  LabbiS, 
xiii.  661.  The  first  is  addressed,  'Ad  omnes  Christi  fideles.'  It 
ends  with  the  following  practical  advice  :  '  Eis  autem  qui  corde 
'  contrite  et  humiliato  spiritu,  itineris  hujus  laborem  assumpserint, 
'  et  in  poenitentia  peccatorum  et  fide  recta  decesserint,  plenam 
'  suorum  criniinum  indulgentiam,  et  vitam  pollicemur  aeternam. 
'  .  .  .  Bona  quoque  ipsorum,  ex  quo  crucem  acceperint,  cum  suis 
'  familiis,  sub  sanctae  Romanae  ecclesiae  .  .  .  protectione  con- 
'  sistant ;  et  nuUam  de  his  quae  in  susceptione  crucis  quiete  pos- 
'  sederunt  .  .  .  sustineant  quaestionem.  .  .  .  Ad  dandas  quoque 
*  usuras,  si  tenentur  alicui,  non  cogantur.  Nee  eant  in  vestibus 
'  preciosis,  et  cum  canibus,  sive  avibus,  aut  aliis  quae  ostentationi 
'  potius  et  lasciviae,  quam  necessariis  videantur  usibus  deservire  : 
'  sed  in  modesto  apparatu  et  habitu,  in  quo  poenitentiam  potius 


CRUSADES   OF    THE    TWELFTH   CENTURY 


331 


achievement  of  the  first  crusade  was  undone,  but  he     chap. 

XL 

calls  on  Christendom  to  come  to  the  rescue. 

The  Emperor  Frederic  Barbarossa,  King  Henry  1 1, 
of  England,  and  Philip  Augustus  of  France  re- 
sponded to  the  call,  and  came  forward  as  the  cham- 
pions of  a  new  movement^ — a  movement  not  less  po- 
pular than  the  preceding  ones,  but  more  tragic  in  its 
results.  There  was  again  the  same  enormous  multi- 
tude of  crusaders,  estimated  at  from  five  to  six  hun- 
dred thousand ;  the  same  losses  on  the  journey, 
although  this  time  it  was  undertaken  by  sea,  and  not 
by  land  ;  the  same  account  of  the  masses  dying  in 
fight,  and  by  disease  ;  of  battles  won  and  lost,  of  the 
reinforcements  who  crowded  to  occupy  the  places 
left  vacant  by  death,  and  of  the  hardships  which  all 
had  to  endure.  But  the  third  crusade  has  also  points 
which  invest  it  with  a  more  than  ordinary  interest. 

Such  was  the  heroic  defence  of  Tyre  by  Conrad  of 
Montferrat,'^  who  braved  the  sultan's  threats,  that  he 


'  agere  quam  inanem  afifectare  gloriam  videantur.'  The  second 
letter  is  '  De  jejunio  servando  ad  placandum  Deum  otfensum'; 
the  third,  '  Pro  justitia  facienda  et  htibus  componendis.' 

1  Conventus  ad  Gisortium,  an.  1188,  Labb^,  xiii.  671  :  'Factum 
'  est  colloquium  intra  regem  Franciae  Philippum  et  Henricum 
'  regem  Angliae  inter  Triam  et  Gisortium,  ubi,  praeter  omnium 

*  hominum  opinionem.  Domino  miraculose  operante  factum  est, 
'  quod  per  inspirationem  Spiritus  sancti  coelitus  missi,  illi  duo 

*  reges  in  eodem  loco  pro  liberatione  sancti  sepulcri  Domini  .  .  . 
'  signum  sanctae  crucis  assumpserunt,  et  multi  archiepiscopi,  epi- 
'  scopi,  et  comites,  duces  et  barones  cum  eis  :  scilicet  Galterus 
'  Rotomagensis  archiepiscopus  ;  Balduinus  Cantuariensis  archi- 
'  episcopus  ;  episcopus  Belvacensis  ;  episcopus  Carnotensis  ;  Dux 

*  Burgundiae  ;  Richardus  comes  Pictaviae  ;  Philippus  comes  Flan- 
'  driae  ;  Thibaldus  comes  Blesensis,'  etc. 

"^  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  lix.  p.  489. 


^^2  ^"^^    CRUSADES. 

PART     would  expose  his  aged  parent,  a  prisoner  in  the  hands 

\ of  the  Turks,  to  the  darts  of  the  besieged  ;  such  was 

the  siege  of  Acre,  which  lasted  nearly  two  years,  and 
consumed  in  a  narrow  space  the  forces  of  Europe 
and  Asia ;  such  were  the  prowess  and  the  emulation 
of  the  two  kings,^ — Philip  Augustus  brave,  but  a 
statesman,  Richard  possessing  the  brutal,  thoughtless 
courage  of  a  beast  of  prey  ;  the  departure  of  Philip, 
the  further  conquests  of  Richard,  his  treaty  with 
Saladin,  his  retreat  when  in  sight  of  Jerusalem,  and 
his  return  to  Europe,  there  to  encounter  a  long  cap- 
tivity, and  a  premature  grave.  But  most  telling  and 
touching  of  all,  is  the  plaintive  tale  of  the  Emperor 
Frederic  Barbarossa,  trained  by  forty  campaigns  to 
lead  and  to  command.  He  had  advanced  from 
Philadelphia  to  Laodicea,  and  there  plunged  into  the 
salt  and  barren  desert,  a  land  of  horror  and  tribula- 
tion. During  twenty  days  his  march  was  besieged 
by  hordes  of  Turcmans,  until  he  reached  Iconium 
with  no  more  than  a  thousand  knights.  By  a  sudden 
and  resolute  assault,  Iconium  was  captured,  the 
June  lo,  sultan  reduced  to  sue  for  pardon  and  peace  ;  and 
^'^°  when  about  to  advance  towards  the  Holy  City,  and 
a  halt  had  been  made  before  a  petty  stream,  until 
the  sumpter  horses  should  have  crossed  it,  the 
emperor,  impatient  of  delay,  put  his  horse  to  the 
waters  and  thought  to  cross  the  Selesius  by  swim- 
ming, when,  '  O  heaven  !  O  earth  !  O  sea  ! '  says  the 
chronicler,'-^  '  the  ruler  of  the  Roman  Empire,  ever 
august,  in  whom  the  glory  of  ancient  Rome  again 

'  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  lix.  p.  492.     ^  Itiner.  Ric.  J.  ch.  xxiv. 


CRUSADES   OF   THE    THIRTEENTH  CENTURY. 


ZZTi 


flourished,  its  honour  again  Hved,  and  its  power  was    chap. 

augmented,    was   overwhelmed    in  the   waters,  sud-  

denly  swept  away,  and  perished.'  When  his  funeral 
rites  were  over,  they  left  the  fatal  spot,  bearing  with 
them  the  body  of  the  emperor  adorned  with  royal 
magnificence,  that  it  might  be  carried  to  Antioch. 
There  the  flesh  reposes  in  the  church  of  the  apostolic 
See,  and  the  bones  were  conveyed  by  sea  to  Tyre, 
thence  to  be  transported  to  Jerusalem.  '  It  was 
indeed  fit  and  wonderfully  contrived  by  God's  pro- 
vidence, that  one,  who  had  contended  gloriously  for 
Christ,  should  repose  in  the  two  principal  churches 
of  the  Christian  religion,  for  both  of  which  he  had 
been  a  champion — part  of  him  in  the  one,  part  in 
the  other — the  one  which  our  Lord's  burial  ren- 
dered the  most  distinguished,  the  other  that  which 
was  honoured  by  being  the  See  of  the  chief  of  the 
apostles.'  ^  But  it  was  a  melancholy  end  to  the  last  of 
the  great  crusades  to  Palestine.  To  the  succeeding 
ones  a  new  character  attached.  There  was  more  in 
them  of  policy,  and  less  of  zeal.  They  were  not  di- 
rected as  they  had  hitherto  been,  exclusively  against 
the  enemies  of  Christendom  ;  but  fellow-Christians 
were  the  objects  of  vengeance.  The  fatal  privilege  of 
fighting  against  the  Turks  had  been  dearly  purchased. 

One  of  the  great  objects  contemplated  in  organis-  d.  The 
ing  the  crusades  had  been  to  bring  the  East   and  J];^^  ^^ 
the  West  into  closer  union  with  each  other.      This  -^''^i  ^}^^f 

flftnir- 

object   had  been  so   far   obtained  in  the   preceding  tccnth 
crusades  that  the  Franks  had  learned  to  look  upon 

'  Itincr.  Ric.  I.  ch.  xxiv.  ad  fin. 


PART 
II. 

(I)    " 
Fourth 
Ci-i(sade 
to  Con- 
stanti- 
nople. 

A.D. 

1 1 98- 1 204 

{a)  Hos- 
tility of 
Vene- 
tians to 
the 
Greeks. 


Preach- 
ers and 
leaders 
of  the 
Crusade. 


THE   CRUSADES. 

the  Greeks  as  treacherous,  and  the  Greeks  had  come 
to  consider  the  Franks  as  barbarians.  More  than 
once  the  flower  of  the  chivalry  of  Europe  had  met  with 
an  untimely  end,  owing  to  the  baseness  of  the  Greek 
emperors.  Alexius  at  least  contrived  the  absence 
of  the  formidable  pilgrims;  his  successors,  Manuel 
and  Isaac  Angelus,  conspired  with  the  Moslems  for 
the  ruin  of  the  greatest  princes  of  the  Franks.^  The 
temporary  encouragement  which  the  Venetians,  the 
Pisans,  and  the  Genoese  received  at  Constantinople 
from  Manuel  and  his  successor  Alexius  was  bitterly 
atoned  for  by  the  violence  with  which  they  were 
visited  in  the  tumult  which  announced  the  return 
and  elevation  of  Andronicus.  The  people  rose  in 
arms  against  the  Franks  :  neither  age  nor  sex  could 
protect  them  ;  and  they  were  mercilessly  slaughtered 
in  their  houses  and  in  the  streets,  amid  the  loud 
denunciations  of  the  schismatical  priests  and  monks. 
And  in  consequence,  as  might  be  expected,  no  good- 
feeling  existed  between  the  Greeks  and  the  Franks. 
The  Venetians  were  embittered  more  than  others 
against  the  foes  who  had  deprived  them  of  their 
lucrative  trade. 

At  this  moment  there  appeared  in  France  a 
new  preacher  of  a  holy  war,  in  learning  and  ability 
far  below  St.  Bernard,  in  wild  extravagance,  second 
only  to  Peter  the  Hermit,  an  illiterate  priest  en- 
circled with  a  halo  of  sanctity,  by  name  P\dk 
of  Neuilly.  Assuming  the  character  of  an  itine- 
rant preacher,  he  traversed   the  country,  declaiming 


'  GiP.KON,  vol.  vi.  ch.  Ix.  p.  5. 


CRUSADES   OF   THE    THIRTEENTH    CENTURY. 


335 


against  the  vices  of  the  age,  and  warmly  espousing    chap. 
tlie  new  crusade  which  Innocent  III,  on  his  accession  — 


was  anxious  to  promote.  Amongst  princes  his 
preaching  found  little  favour.  Philip  Augustus  had 
been  once  to  Jerusalem;  so  had  Richard  of  Eng- 
land; and  the  emperor  Frederic  II.  was  a  child.  So 
much  the  greater,  however,  was  the  success  which 
he  obtained  among  nobles  of  the  second  order. 
Thibaut,  Count  of  Champagne,  was  the  foremost  in 
the  holy  race  :  his  companions  in  arms  were  Louis, 
Count  of  Blois  and  Chartres,  Mathew  of  Montmor- 
ency, the  famous  Simon  of  Montfort,  the  chronicler 
of  the  crusade,  Jeffrey  of  Villehardouin,  and  Baldwin, 
Count  of  Flanders.  It  was  resolved  that  the  Turks 
should  be  assailed  in  Egypt.  ^ 

This  resolve,  however,  obliged  the  crusaders  to  (t)  Cru- 
apply  to  Venice  ;  for  how  could  Egypt  be  reached  enlisted 
except  by  sea  ?  and  who  but  the  Venetians  could  '''    . ,    . 

f^         -'  service  oj 

supply  ships  sufficient  to  transport  so  large  a  host  ?  Venice, 
The  application  was  accordingly  made,  and  was  a.d.  1201 
courteously  received  by  the  Doge  Henry  Dandolo  ; 
and  it  was  agreed  between  the  French  ambassadors, 
acting  on  behalf  of  the  crusaders  and  the  Venetians, 
that  those  who  had  taken  the  Cross  should  assemble 
at  Venice  on  the  feast  of  St.  John  in  the  ensuing 
year;  that  vessels  should  be  provided  for  transporting 
four  thousand  five  hundred  horses,  nine  thousand 
squires,  four  thousand  five  hundred  knights,  and 
twenty  thousand  foot ;  that  during  a  term  of  nine 
months  they  should  be  supplied  with  provisions,  and 


'    GlCLON,  vol.  \\.  ch.  l.\.   I^ 


THE   CRUSADES. 


PART     transported  to  whatsoever  coast  the  service  of  God 

' and  Christendom  should  require  ;  and  that,  in  return, 

the  pilgrims  should  pay  before  their  departure  a  sum 
of  85,000  marks  of  silver,  and  hereafter  share  equally 
with  the  Venetians  all  conquests  which  should  be 
made  by  land  or  sea.  The  terms  were  hard,  but  the 
Franks  had  no  alternative  but  to  accept  them.  When, 
however,  the  time  came  for  the  payment  of  the 
stipulated  sum,  notwithstanding  all  the  contributions 
and  self-sacrifice  of  the  chiefs  and  pilgrims,  34,000 
marks  were  still  wanting  to  complete  the  total  sum. 
Many  had  already  sailed  from  Marseilles  and  Apulia 
to  the  Holy  Land.  The  crusade  could  not  be 
abandoned.  But  whence  were  the  lacking  funds  to 
be  supplied  ?  The  warriors  were  at  the  mercy  of 
their  creditors.  In  this  distress,  the  Venetians 
treated  them  well.  Yielding  to  the  persuasions  of 
the  doge,  they  agreed  to  postpone  the  time  of  pay- 
ment, until  some  rich  conquest  should  supply  the 
Franks  with  the  necessary  means,  provided  the 
latter  would  accede  to  one  condition,  and  would  join 
their  arms  in  reducing  some  revolted  cities  of  Dal- 
matia.  There  was  no  option  but  to  obey;  the  terms 
were  accepted,  and  the  first  hostilities  of  the  fleet 
and  army  were  directed  against  the  revolted  city 
of  Zara.^ 
and  But    soon    events    happened,    which    turned    the 

directed 


against  united  forces  of  the  Venetians  and  crusaders  against 
nobler  game.  Innocent  III.  had  excommunicated 
the  false  crusaders  for  pillaging  and  massacring  at 


'  Gibbon,  vol.  vi.  ch.  Ix.  p.  22. 


CRUSADES  OF   THE   THIRTEENTH  CENTURY. 


137 


Zara    brother    Christians.      He    orave    his    warmest     chap. 

XI. 

sanction  to  the  new  scheme,  concocted  in  this  emer-   

gency  at  Venice,  and  eagerly  promoted  by  the  young 
Alexius,  the  exiled  son  of  the  deposed  Eastern 
emperor,  Isaac.  The  scheme  was  simply  this.  The 
crusaders  should  sail  to  Constantinople,  and  restore 
the  deposed  emperor  Isaac  to  his  throne.  They 
should  avenge  the  blood  of  the  Latins  shed  by  the 
wanton  Greeks  ;  open  to  the  Venetians  a  new  field 
of  commerce,  and,  reuniting  East  and  West,  bring 
the  Greek  Church  to  acknowledge  the  Pope's  su- 
premacy. As  Gregory  VII.  had  thought,  so  Inno- 
cent III.  thought  also.  The  Holy  Empire  should 
be  made  coextensive  with  the  civilised  world  ;  and 
two  emperors,  not  one  alone,  should  be  brought  to 
offer  homage  to  the  successor  of  St.  Peter.  The 
scheme  was  favourably  received  by  all,  by  the  Pope, 
the  Venetians,  and  the  Franks,  and  accordingly  it 
was  acted  upon. 

Preg^nant  it  was  with  results,  since  it  broke  the  (^0  ^^' 

.  .  .  suits  of 

spell  of  the  belief,  which  had  gathered  during  nine  the 
centuries  about  Constantinople,  that  the  city  was  in-  t-ivojold. 
vincible,  destined,  like  old  Rome,  to  survive  every  (")  Cap- 

ii'i  r        r         •  ^   •  tiirc  of 

Storm.     It  led  to  the  establishment  of  a  foreign  kmo-  Constan- 
dom  in  that  metropolis,  which  asserted  itself  for  fifty-    ^'^"^  '" 
six  years,  and  was  thus  the  prelude  to  the  establish-  1203-1204 
ment  of  that  foreign  dominion,  which  the  Turks  set  j./^^,C^, 
up   exactly   two   and   a    half   centuries    later.      The  J^^^^  7-i8, 
Bosporus  was  passed  by  the  Franks  In  safety  :  Con-      1203  ' 
stantinople  was  reached  ;   Isaac  was  restored  to  his 
throne.      Then  the  Franks  were  requested  to  stay  to 
secure  him  in  possession  of  his  throne;  then  jealousies 

z 


2^8  THE   CRUSADES. 

PART     broke    out   between    the  Latins    and    the    Franks  ; 

'- —  a  cunning  courtier,  Mourzoufle,  seizing  his  oppor- 
tunity, deposed  and  put  to  death  Alexius ;  his 
father  Isaac  followed  him  ;  Mourzoufle  was  master 
of  the  occasion,  and  the  Latins  were  shut  out  of 
the  city.^ 

Second  Vowingf  veup-eance  on  the  Greeks,  the  Franks  set 

siege.  . 

A.D.       themselves  a  second  time  to  besiege  Constantinople, 

Jan.  to  , 

April,      their  hostility  against  a  usurping  family  having  been 

now  exchanged  for  a  deep  animosity  towards  a  whole 

race.     This  time  the  siege  was  longer  than  before, 

but  this  time  also  the  city  was  taken,  and  so  much 

severer  was  the  vengeance  when  it  was  taken.     The 

scenes  of  bloodshed,  rapine,  and  plunder  which  then 

ensued,  need  not  engage  our  attention  long,  since  an 

event  far  more  important  than  any  of  them,  resulted 

from  the  capture. '-^ 

kf-  f'^i'"']       In  the  chapel  of  the  palace  at  Constantinople,  on 

of  Latin     May  1 6,  1204,  the  twelve  electors  met,  six  of  them 

(ion?.         French  prelates,  and  six  the  principal  officers  of  the 

May  16,    state  of  Venice,  to  whom  the  task  had  been  assigned 
1 204  '  f> 

of  electing  an  emperor  of  the  East  who  should  hold 
the  throne  vacant  by  the  death  of  Isaac,  and  recovered 
from  the  usurper  Mourzoufle.  Around  the  chapel 
were  gathered  the  French  barons,  with  the  doge, 
Dandolo,  and  the  Marquis  of  Montferrat  at  their 
head,  both  of  v/hom  had  been  proposed  as  candidates, 
though  the  one  had  refused  the  honour,  and  the 
other  was  diffident  of  success,  awaiting  the  decision 
of  the  electors  whom  they  had  appointed.    '  Sirs,'  said 


'  GiBuoN,  vol.  vi.  ch.  Ix.  p.  27.  2  /^/^/_  p_  ^3. 


CRi'SADES   OF  THE    THIRTEENTH  CENTURY. 


339 


the  Bishop  of  Soissons,  speaking  in  the  name  of  his    chap. 

colleagues,  '  ye  have  swore  to  obey  the  prince  whom  

we  should  choose  :  by  our  unanimous  suffrage, 
Baldwin,  Count  of  Flanders  and  Hainault,  is  now 
your  sovereign,  and  the  emperor  of  the  East.'  Loud 
bursts  of  joy  greeted  this  announcement.  Baldwin 
was  elevated  on  a  buckler,  transported  to  the  cathe- 
dral, and  solemnly  invested  with  the  purple  buskins. 
All  were  gladdened  at  his  elevation,  excepting  per- 
haps the  disappointed  Marquis  of  Montferrat ;  but 
he  was  the  first  to  kiss  the  hand  of  his  rival. ^  It  was 
the  birthday  of  a  new  Empire.^  Strange  and  che- 
quered had  been  the  crusaders'  career.  They  had 
not  wrested  Jerusalem  from  the  Turks,  but  they  had 
won  Constantinople  from  the  Greeks. 

To  return  to  Palestine.      Success  always  promotes  (2)  Fiflh 

-,  .  11TTIT  1  Mi'i        Crusade. 

fresh  enterprise,  and  the   Holy  Land  was  still  in  the   a.d.  1218 


'  Gibbon,  vol.  vi.  ch.  Ixi.  p.  45. 

2  The  Latin  kingdom  of  Constantinople  was  established  in  1204, 
and  lasted  until  the  year  1260.  The  following  were  its  five  sove- 
reigns :  (i)  Baldwin,  Count  of  Flanders,  1204-1206  ;  (2)  his 
brother  Henry,  1206-1217  ;  (3)  Peter  Courtney,  Count  of  Auxerre, 
who  had  married  their  sister  Yolande,  12 17-122 1  ;  (4)  the  son  of 
Yolande,  Robert,  1221-1228  ;  and  (5)  her  other  son,  Baldwin  II., 
1 228-1 260.  The  granddaughter  of  the  second  Baldwin,  Catharine, 
married  Charles  of  Valois.  See  Gibbon,  ch.  Ixi.  The  genealogy 
is  therefore  as  follows  : 

Count  of  Flanders  i 


BALDWIN,           HENRY,            Yolande.  =PETEk  COURTn£V, 
Emperor  1204- 1206.      Emperor,                               I     Emperor  1217-1221. 
1206-1217.  I 

I  ^  I 

ROBERT,  BALDWIN  II. 

Emperor  1221-1228.      Emperor  1228-1260.  ■ 

Z  2 


-  .Q  THE   CRUSADES. 

PART     hands    of    pagans.     The    Popes    were    zealous    in 

. '. preaching  crusades  against  their  enemies,'  nor  was 

their  preaching  in  vain.  In  the  year  1212  a  number 
of  children  set  out  to  undertake  a  crusade.  It  was 
supposed  that  God  must  favour  the  efforts  of  the 
innocents.  Six  years  later,  two  hundred  thousand 
Franks  were  landed  at  the  eastern  mouth  of  the  Nile. 
They  thought  to  carry  out  the  scheme  which  had 
been  abandoned  in  the  last  crusade,  that  of  attacking 
the  sultan  from  Egypt.  Damietta  was  captured,  but 
then  the  exploit  ended.  Under  the  incompetent 
generalship  of  the  papal  legate,  Pelagius,  the  war- 
riors of  the  Cross  were  encompassed  by  the  waters  of 
the  Nile,  their  ranks  were  thinned  by  pestilence,  and 
themselves  attacked  by  the  forces  of  the  Moslems. 
Only  too  gladly  they  surrendered  their  conquest  in 
return  for  a  safe  retreat,  some  concessions  for  the 
pilgrims,  and  restitution,  of  the  wood  of  the  true  Cross.^ 
The  fifth  crusade  ended  without  more  glory  than  any 
which  preceded  it. 
(3)  Cru-       Nor  was  it  otherwise  with  the  expedition  which 

sade  of         ^  , 

Frederic    Frederic  II.  undertook  ten  years  later,  in  obedience 

A.D.  1228    to  the   Pope's  commands,^     Early  forced  to  assume 

the  Cross  at  the  bidding  of  his  guardian,  forced  after- 

'  Concil.  Paris,  an.  1186,  Labb^,  xiii.  657,  sub  Urbano  III.; 
letters  of  Gregory  VIII.  already  referred  to,  ibid.  p.  661  ;  Convent. 
Cenoman.  an.  1188,  sub  Clementi  III.,  ibid.  p.  673;  Concil. 
Paris,  an.  1188,  ibid.  p.  675  ;  Concil.  Avenio.  an.  1209,  cap.  ii. 
ibid.  J).  797  ;  Epist.  Innoc.  III.  ad  Concil.  Lat.  spectans,  ibid. 
p.  905  scq..,  and  Rcgist.  Epist.  Innoc.  III.  lib.  xvi.  Eps.  28,  30,  31, 
33)  34)  36  ;  Later  Concil.  iv.  an.  12 15,  ibid.  p.  1024  ;  Gregory  IX. 
Ep.  i.  an.  1227,  ibid.  p.  iiii. 

^  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  lix.  p.  496.         ^  Ibid.  p.  497. 


CRUSADES   OF  ST.  LOUIS. 


341 


wards  to  renew  the  vow  at  his  royal  and  imperial     chap. 

coronations,  forced  anew  by  his  marriage  with  the  '■ — 

heiress  of  Jerusalem  to  defend  the  kingdom  of  his 
son  Conrad,  that  prince  had  with  advancing  age,  re- 
pented of  the  engagements  of  his  youth,  and  sought 
to  escape  the  toils  in  which  he  had  been  ignorantly 
involved.  Perhaps,  too,  he  had  divined  the  secret  of 
the  Pope's  zeal  for  crusades,  and  was  loath  to  pro- 
mote a  measure  intended  for  his  own  abasement. 
Compelled,  however,  to  fulfil  his  promise,  he  had  set 
about  his  task  with  a  caution,  not  more  than  the 
magnitude  of  the  undertaking  required.  Excommu- 
nicated for  his  caution,  he  set  forth  on  the  enter- 
prise :  and  for  venturing  to  move,  he  was  again 
excommunicated.  Whilst  engaged  In  a  crusade 
to  Palestine,  a  crusade  was  preached  against  him  in 
Italy.  Everywhere  the  clergy  and  military  orders 
were  against  him.  Yet  Jerusalem  was  reached,  and 
entered  in  triumph ;  and  in  Jerusalem,  from  the  altar 
of  the  holy  sepulchre,  with  his  own  hands  he  took 
the  crown  which  no  one  else  was  willing  to  bestow. 
The  Christians  intrigued  to  betray  him  ;  the  Turks 
were  disposed  to  be  his  friends ;  and  preferring  to 
conclude  an  advantageous  treaty  to  carrying  on  a 
hopeless  struggle,  he  returned  to  his  Empire,  bearing 
the  brunt  of  the  Pope's  indignation.  How  changed 
the  idea  of  crusades  had  been  within  a  century  and  a 
quarter  !  Once  they  had  been  holy  wars  against  the 
paynim  ;  now  they  were  unholy  wars  against  the 
Pope's  personal  enemies. 

The  age  of  crusades  did  not,  however,  pass  away  E.  T/ie 

....  .  ,        Crusades 

Without  witnessmg  two  more  attempts  to  revive  the  o/Sf. 

Louis, 


342 


THE   CRUSADES. 


PART     old  idea.^     The  author  of  those  attempts  was  Louis 
IX.,  Kinof  of  France,  better  known  by  the  title  of 

(i)  Sixth  ^  ..... 

Crusade.  Saint ;  but  they  were  both  the  attempts  of  an  mdivi- 
1249-1254  dual  to  revive  an  idea  the  day  of  which  had  passed 
away  for  ever.  Down  the  Rhone,  St.  Louis  marched. 
He  embarked  for  Cyprus.  From  Cyprus  he  invaded 
Africa.  Damietta  was  abandoned  by  the  Saracens. 
The  French  were  masters  of  the  city.  But  Damietta 
was  at  once  the  first  and  the  last  of  his  conquests. 
The  same  causes  brought  disaster  on  the  sixth 
crusade,  that  brought  disaster  on  the  preceding  one. 
Visited  by  epidemical  disease,  incessantly  exposed  to 
showers  of  Greek  fire,  cut  off  from  supplies  both  by 
land  and  water — by  land  owing  to  the  Arabs,  by 
water  owing  to  the  Egyptian  galleys — wasted  by 
famine  and  sickness,  the  French  barons  and  nobles 
succumbed  to  misfortune ;  St.  Louis  was  taken 
prisoner  with  the  greatest  part  of  his  attendants ; 
those  who  could  not  redeem  their  lives  were  inhu- 
manly massacred  or  sold  into  slavery,  and  the  king 
was  only  set  free  by  restoring  Damietta,  and  paying 
a  sum  of  100,000  marks. 
Seventh  ^^^  once  again  some  sixteen  years  later,  St.  Louis, 
Crusade,    nothing  daunted  by  previous  failures,  in  the  ardour 

A.D.  1270  .     ,  ''     ^ 

of  religious  zeal,  set  out  to  undertake  the  seventh  and 
last  crusade — a  crusade  the  most  ignoble,  and  not  the 
least  calamitous  of  all  the  crusades.  The  loss  of 
Antloch  had  provoked  the  enterprise.  Its  course  was 
directed    to  Africa,   in  the  belief  that  the  king  of 


1  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  lix.  499.     For  the  account  of  these  cru- 
sades, see  Joinville's  Memoirs  of  St.  Louis. 


CRUSADES   OF  ST.   LOUIS. 


34: 


Tunis  would  be  a  convert.     The  belief  proved  to  be     chap. 

a  false  one,  and  the  French  army  sat  down  before  ■ 

Carthage.  Then,  as  many  of  his  soldiers  had  perished 
before  him,  the  king  was  seized  with  an  illness,  and 
took  to  his  bed.  Well  knowing  that  he  was  about  to 
quit  this  life  for  another,  he  called  for  his  children, 
and  gave  them  his  parting  wishes.  '  He  then  ordered 
his  body  to  be  placed  on  a  bed  of  ashes,  and  crossing 
his  hands  on  his  breast,  with  eyes  uplifted  to  heaven, 
rendered  his  soul  back  to  his  Creator,  at  the  very 
same  hour  that  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  expired  on 
the  Cross  for  the  salvation  of  his  people,  passing 
from  this  life  to  another,  the  morrow  after  the  feast 
of  St.  Bartholomew.'  ^ 


^  Joinville's  Life  of  St.  Louis  (English  translation),  ad  fiji.  : 
'  When  the  good  king  St.  Louis  had  finished  giving  the  above 
'  instructions  to  the  lord  Philip,  his  son,  his  disorder  so  greatly 
'  increased,  that  he  asked  for  the  sacraments  of  the  Holy  Church, 
'  which  were  duly  administered  to  him,  while  he  enjoyed  full  life 

*  and  perfect  memory.  This  was  very  apparent  when  they  came 
'  to  the  unction  ;   for  when  they  chanted  the  seven  penitential 

*  psalms,  he  himself  repeated  the  responses  with  the  assistants, 
'  who  replied  to  the  priest  that  was  anointing  him.  I  have  since 
'  heard  from  my  lord  the  Count  d'Alengon,  his  son,  that  while  the 
'  good  king  was  in  the  agonies  of  death,  he  made  efforts  to  call  on 
'  all  the  saints  in  paradise  to  come  and  aid  him  in  his  distress. 
'  He,  in  particular,  called  on  my  lord  St.  James,  repeating  his 
'  prayer,  which  begins,  '  Esto  Domine.'  He  prayed  to  my  lord 
'  St.  Denis  of  France,  in  words  that  were  nearly  as  follows  : — "Lord 
'  "  God,  give  us  grace  to  have  the  power  of  despising  and  forgetting 
'  "  the  things  of  this  world,  so  that  we  may  not  fear  any  evil."     He 

*  called,  likewise,  on  St.  Genevieve.  He  then  ordered  his  body  to 
'  be  placed  on  a  bed  of  ashes,  and  crossing  his  hands  on  his 

*  breast,  with  eyes  uplifted  to  heaven,  rendered  his  soul  back  to 

*  his  Creator  at  the  very  same  hour  that  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
'  expired  on  the  Cross  for  the  salvation  of  his  people.' 


11. 


,..  THE   CRUSADES. 

PART  With  the  death  of  Louis  IX.,  at  once  a  king  and 
a  hero,  a  devout  monk  and  a  chivalrous  man,  frank, 
honest,  gentle,  affable,  humane,  who  '  had  lived  like 
a  saint,  had  taken  good  care  of  his  kingdom,  and 
done  many  religious  acts  towards  God,'  the  seventh 
crusade,  not  more  successful  than  any  of  those  before 
it,  came  to  an  end.  It  was  a  melancholy  ending  to 
enterprises  worthy  of  a  better  cause,  in  which  so  much 
of  the  best  blood  of  Europe  had  been  spilt,  and  spilt  to 
little  purpose.  Yet  nothing  can  show  more  clearly 
the  change  In  the  spirit  of  the  age,  than  does  the 
history  of  these  crusades.  Undertaken  at  first  as 
holy  wars,  as  wars  in  behalf  of  the  spiritual  side  of 
the  Holy  Empire,  they  end  at  last  as  ecclesiastical 
wars,  as  wars  undertaken  in  the  interests  of  the 
Papacy  ;  and  the  popularity  which  attached  to  them 
in  the  first  ages  dwindles  away  in  proportion  as  they 
become  directed  to  extraneous  objects.  The  cry 
which  raised  them  was  the  cry  of  suffering  anguish  : 
'  O  God,  the  heathen  are  come  Into  thine  heritage  ; 
they  have  defiled  thy  temple ;  they  have  made 
Jerusalem  an  heap  of  stones  ! '  The  motive  which 
set  them  on  foot,  was  the  desire  to  rescue  Jerusalem 
upon  earth  in  her  conflict  with  Babylon.  The 
memory  of  her  glory  was  then  fresher  than  now. 
The  memory  of  her  independence  more  recent. 

But  as  time  elapsed,  and  the  papal  pretensions 
increased,  as  the  Popes  aspired  to  higher  place,  and 
claimed  to  be  regarded  as  the  vicegerents  of  God 
upon  earth,  the  cry  Is  another  one.  It  is  no  longer 
the  cry  of  suffering,  but  the  exultation  of  triumph. 
The  watchword  Is  henceforth  another  one  :  '  Let  God 


CRUSADES  OF  ST.   LOUIS. 


34S 


I 


arise,  and  let  his  enemies  be  scattered  ;  and  let  them     chap. 

XI. 

that  hate  Him  flee  before  Him.'     Nay  more,  it  is  no  ^ — 

longer  the  triumph  of  a  good  cause  merely,  but  of  the 
Papacy,  for  the  enemies  of  God  and  the  enemies  of 
the  Papacy  are  identical.  Henceforth  the  term 
crusade  is  no  longer  applied  to  the  wars  of  united 
Christendom  against  the  infidels,  but  to  every  petty 
feud  undertaken  with  the  sanction  of  the  Pope,  either 
for  the  purpose  of  advancing  his  own  temporal  well- 
being,  or  for  the  sake  of  punishing  his  enemies. 
Yet,  looking  back  upon  the  crusades,  and  seeing  how 
far  they  fell  short  of  securing  the  objects  for  which 
they  were  undertaken,  and  how  far  they  fall  short  of 
expressing  the  highest  view  of  Christianity,  it  would 
still  be  a  great  mistake  to  suppose  that  they  passed 
away  without  leaving  any  trace  behind  them  in  history. 
For  did  they  not  found  the  kingdom  of  Jerusalem,^ 
which,  during  its  eighty-eight  years  of  duration,  gave 
to  Europe  her  noblest  system  of  feudal  jurisprudence  ? 
Did  they  not  establish  a  Latin  Empire  at  Constanti- 
nople, which  rudely  disturbed  the  self-complacent 
dream  of  Eastern  power,  and  maintained  itself  for 
fifty-six  years  in  spite  of  opposition  ?  Did  they  not 
teach  the  sterner  virtues  of  unselfishness  and  self- 
restraint,  to  a  selfish  and  unrestrained  age  ;  enforcing 
the  lesson  too  by  bright  examples,  a  Godfrey  of 
Boulogne,  a  Frederic  Barbarossa,  a  St.  Louis  ?    Did 

^  The  kingdom  of  Jerusalem  lasted  from  1099  to  1187;  the 
sovereigns  who  reigned  over  it  were  the  following  :  (i)  Godfrey  of 
Boulogne  ;  (2)  his  brother,  Baldwin  I.  ;  (3)  his  cousin,  Baldwin 
II.  ;  (4)  Fulk,  Count  of  Anjou  ;  (5)  his  son,  Baldwin  III.  ;  (6) 
his  other  son,  Amaury;   (7)  Baldwin    IV.,  son  of  Amaury  ;   (8) 


546 


THE  CRUSADES. 


PART     they  not,  whilst  purging  Europe  of  its  social  dross, 

create  the  new  feeling  of  chivalry?^     Have   they 

then    passed    away   without   a   mark  ?     Has    their 
heroism  been  simply  a  prodigal  waste  of  power  ? 

Baldwin  V.,  nephew  to  Baldwin  IV.  ;  (9)  Guy  of  Lusignan.    The 
following  is  the  genealogy  : 
Eustace  =  Ida. 


GODFREY       Eustace     BALDWIN  I.     cousin  to     BALDWIN  II. 


of  Boulogne, 
first  king  of 
Jerusalem. 


Prince  of  Edessa,  third  king  of 

and  second  king  of  Jemsalem. 

Jerusalem.  I 


Stephen,  =  Matilda.  Melisenda=FuLK  of  Anjou, 


king  of  England. 


fourth  king  of 
Jerusalem. 


I  I 

BALDWIN  III.         AMAURY, 

fifth  king.  sixth  king. 


BALDWIN  IV.      Sybilla  =  GUY  OF  LUSIGNAN, 
seventh  king.  I  ninth  king  of  Jerusalem. 

BALDWIN  V. 
eighth  king. 

^  The  feeling  of  chivalry  is  analysed  by  Hallam,  Middle  Ages, 
vol.  iii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  ix.  p.  402,  and  the  result  obtained  is  this  : 
'  Valour,  loyalty,  courtesy,  munificence  formed  collectively  the  cha- 
*  racter  of  an  accomplished  knight.  .  .  .  Yet  something  more  was 
'  required  for  the  perfect  idea  of  chivalry,  and  enjoined  by  its 
'  principles  ;  an  active  sense  of  justice,  an  ardent  indignation 
'  agaitisi  wrojtg,  a  determination  of  courage  to  its  best  end,  the 
'  prevention  or  redress  of  injury.' 


AGE   OF  GREATNESS. 


547 


CHAPTER   XII. 

INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION :   CLERICAL 
TAXATION. 


Etenim  sederiDit  priiicipcs  et  adversum  me  loquebantitr. — Ps.  cxix.  23.' 


A 


MONG  the  various  struggles  which  necessarily     chap 


grew  out  of  the  attempt  to  realise  the  idea  of  the 
Holy  Empire,  none  perhaps  are  more  famous  than 
those  which  arose  respecting  investitures  and  juris- 
diction, none  possess  a  deeper  interest  for  the  English 
reader,  none  involve  more  of  the  manifold  relations 
of  the  Church  to  the  State.  The  former  of  these 
struggles — that  about  investitures — revolves  prin- 
cipally about  two  points — the  possession  of  property 
by  the  Church,  and  the  question  of  feudal  symbols. 
The  latter  struggle  about  jurisdiction  refers  not  only, 
as  In  the  case  of  Henry  II.  and  Becket,  to  the  limits 
of  the  civil  and  ecclesiastical  courts,  but  it  includes 
the  whole  question  of  the  rights  which  laymen  pos- 
sess over  the  property  of  the  clergy,  whether  it  be  a 
right  to  decide  who  shall  enjoy  the  revenues  of  a 
benefice,  or  the  right  enjoyed  by  sovereigns  of  taxing 
ecclesiastical  property.  Out  of  all  these  struggles 
the  Popes  came  forth  triumphant,  not  only  rising  to 
a  supremacy  over  the  princes  of  the  earth,  but  draw- 

'  Becket  at  Northampton. 


XII. 


-  .g  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART     inor  into  their  own  hands  all  civil  government,  and 
II 
'- —  aspiring  to  be  the  supreme  disposers  of  the  Christian 

world  with  all  its  belongings.     Since  the  possession 

of  property  was  at  the  root  of  the  struggles,  both 

about  investitures  and  jurisdiction,  as  well  as  of  the 

less  famous  one  about  the  taxation  of  the  clergy,  it 

may  not  be  amiss  to  say  a  few  words  about  the 

property  of  the  Church. 

A.  Pro-         By    the    liberality    of    the    northern    nations    the 

perty. 

(i)  Real  Western  Church  was  in  possession  of  considerable 
proper  y.  ^^^^^^  both  personal  and  real,  at  the  time  when  the 
Hildebrandian  reforms  began.  The  Carlovingian 
and  Saxon  emperors,  the  kings  of  England  and 
{fi)  Leon,  had  vied  with  their  predecessors  in  bestowing 
on  her  in  lavish  benefaction,  and  the  clergy  were  in 
consequence  no  strangers  to  wealth.  Many  churches 
possessed  seven  or  eight  thousand  manses ;  one  with 
only  two  thousand  passed  for  indifferently  rich. ^  Of 
the  lands  possessed  by  the  clergy  the  greater  part 
might  be  of  little  value  at  the  time  they  had  been 
given,  perhaps  consisting  of  wild  and  deserted  tracts 
of  country  ;  but  they  were  capable  of  cultivation  and 
Improvement ;  and  as  civilisation  and  population 
Increased,  they  became  a  source  of  gain  and  profit 
Not  unfrequently,  too,  estates  had  been  obtained  by 
forged  charters,  laymen  ignorant  of  writing  being 
unable  to  detect  the  frauds  of  those  who  alone  pos- 
sessed the  key  of  knowledge ;  and  clerks  being  un- 
willing to   betray   their  fellow-clerks.      Besides,    the 


'  Hallam's  Middle  Ages^  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.   ch.  vii.  p.   142  (small 
edition). 


I 


I 


PROPERTY  OF   THE   CHURCH.  o.q 

property  of  the  Church,  already  considerable  In  the     chap. 

.        .  XII. 

beginning  of  the  eleventh  century,  was  from  a  variety   '- — • 

of  causes  greatly  increased   in  the  two  succeeding 
centuries.     Partly  it  had  increased  in  value  with  the 
steady  increase  of   population  ;    partly  it  had  been  ii^  I'n- 
brought  under  prudent  management  and  an  improved  value. 
style  of  agriculture.     Large  tracts  hitherto  unpro- 
ductive, had  been  rescued  from   the  marsh  or  the 
forest,  and  began  to  yield  appreciable  returns.      If 
occasionally  individual  prelates  alienated  the  estates 
of  their  churches,  if  Church  property  was  occasion- 
ally plundered  and  diminished  by  feudal  lords  claim- 
ing the  property  of  deceased  bishops  and  the  revenues 
of  vacant  benefices,  these  losses  were  amply  com- 
pensated  for   by   the  continual  purchase  of  landed 
estates  during  the  crusades,^  when  the  fiefs  of  the 
nobility  were  frequently  offered  for  sale  or  mortgage, 
and  few  were   able    to    purchase  them.     Thus  the  {c)  Puf-^ 
Church  acquired  still  greater  territorial  possessions  '^^'^^^' 
on  the  easiest  of  terms.     Not  unfrequently  lay  pro- 
prietors, in  order  to  be  exempted  from  public  burdens,  C*^)  ^■"- 

feiida- 

granted  their  estates  to  the  Church,  receiving  them  Hon. 
back  by  way  of  fief  or  lease  ;  and  in  such  cases  the 
Church  always  took  care  to  derive  some  profit  for 
her  services.     Soon  the  accumulation  of  lands  in  the 


1  Eugenii  III.  Ep.  i.  ad  Ludov.  Reg.  Labb^,  xi.  1577  :  '  Qui- 
'  cumque  vero  aere  premuntur  alieno,  et  tarn  sanctum  iter  puro 
'  corde  inceperint,  de  praeterito  usuras  non  solvant.  .  .  .  Liceat 
'  eis  etiam  terras  sive  ceteras  possessiones  suas,  postquam  commo- 
*  niti  propinqui  sive  domini,  ad  quorum  feudum  pertinent,  pecu- 
'  niam  commodare  aut  noluerint  aut  non  voluerint,  Ecclesiis  vel 
'  aliis  quoque  fidelibus  libere  sine  ulla  reclamatione  impignorare.' 


350 


INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 


PART 
II. 


{e)  Re- 

stric- 

tions. 


hands  of  the  clergy  progressed  so  rapidly,  that  it 
excited  the  jealousy  of  sovereigns.  In  Kent,  for 
instance,  in  the  time  of  William  the  Conqueror,  out 
of  twelve  landowners,  eight  were  clerical ;  in  Middle- 
sex out  of  twenty-five,  seven  were  clerical ;  in  the 
county  of  Worcester  out  of  twenty-six,  ten  were 
clerical ;  in  Berkshire,  fifteen  out  of  sixty-three ;  in 
Devonshire,  twelve  out  of  fifty-three ;  ^  and  the 
estates  of  the  clerical  proprietors  were  often  far 
greater  in  size  than  those  of  the  lay  proprietors. 
Besides  they  were  always  being  increased  and  hardly 
ever  diminished.  Hence  the  sovereigns  experienced 
a  falling  off  in  the  reliefs  upon  succession  and  other 
feudal  dues  ;  they  found  the  number  of  their  military 
nobles  diminished,  and  saw  great  parts  of  their  king- 
doms in  the  hands  of  men,  who  paid  them  a  half- 
hearted allegiance,  and  were  really  devoted  to  the 
A.D.  1 158  interests  of  another.  As  early  as  the  middle  of  the 
twelfth  century  restrictions  were  placed  in  the  Em- 
pire by  Frederic  Barbarossa  on  alienations  in  mort- 
main, as  gifts  to  the  Church  were  called.''^     Similar 


1  MiLMAN,  vol.  ix.  book  xiv.  ch.  i.  p.  16  (small  edition),  says 
that  according  to  Doomsday  in  the  whole  county  of  Kent,  besides 
the  king  and  two  churches,  appear  as  landowners,  '(i)  the  Arch- 
'  bishop  of  Canterbury  ;  (2)  the  monks  of  Christ  Church  ;  (3)  the 
'  Bishop  of  Rochester  ;  (4)  the  Bishop  of  Bayeux  ;  (5)  the  Abbey 
'  of  Battle;  (6)  St.  Augustine's ;  (7)  Abbey  of  St.  Peter's,  Ghent; 
'  and  (8)  Albert  the  chaplain.'  There  were  only  four  knights. 
The  state  of  things  in  other  countries  was  only  a  little  better. 

"^  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  vii.  p.  227.  Ac- 
cording to  GiES.  sec.  66,  ch.  iii.  p.  215*  the  leaving  of  lands  in 
mortmain  was  prohibited  in  Montpelier  as  early  as  1113A.D.  It 
was  also  forbidden  in  Liibeck.  In  the  year  1211  Alfonso  II., 
king  of  Portugal,  forbade  churches  and  monasteries  to  acquire 


PROPERTY  OF   THE   CHURCH.  ^S'l 

restrictions  were  imposed  in  England  by  the  great    chap. 
Charter,  and  again  in  the  reign  of  Edward  I.     F" ranee, 


A,  D, 

in  the  EstabHshments  of  St.  Louis,  followed  the  same       1279 
course,  as  did  also  Castile ;  and  by  the  end  of  the 
thirteenth  century  the  Church  was  only  allowed  to 
acquire  lands  by  special  license  from  the  crown. 

But  the  means  by  which  the  coffers  of  the  Church  (2)  Per- 
were  constantly  kept  replenished  were  not  only  de-  property. 
rived  from  lands.  They  came  also  from  several  other  (^)  Tithe, 
sources.  Chief  among  these  was  the  payment  of 
tithes,  the  gradual  growth  of  which  has  been  already 
traced  in  the  preceding  epoch.  In  the  ninth  century 
indications  are  found  of  legal  sanctions  for  this  pay- 
ment ;  but  it  does  not  appear  to  have  become  uni- 
versal until  some  time  later. ^  Tithes  were  mostly 
paid  to  the  bishop,  and  were  by  him  distributed 
among  his  assistant  clergy.  Previously  to  the  eighth 
century  the  cathedral  churches  were  the  only  recog- 
nised churches ;  rural  chapelries  being  served  by 
itinerant  ministers  at  the  bishop's  discretion  ;  but  in 
the  early  part  of  the  ninth  century  there  existed  a 
large  number  of  rural  churches  in  England,  which 
obtained  by  the  bishop's  concession  a  fixed  share  of 
ecclesiastical    profits,    and    came    to    be    viewed    as 

lands,  except  such  as  were  needed  for  anniversaries  and  other 
duties  for  the  dead  :  but  the  law  was  inoperative. 

'  Thus  in  Portugal  it  was  recognised  at  the  end  of  the  eleventh 
century,  and  in  the  twelfth  prevailed  universally.  Schafer's 
Gesch.  v.. Port.  i.  167.  In  Castile  and  Leon  it  obtained  force  of 
law  under  Alfonso  X.  Gies.  sec.  66,  ch.  iii.  p.  213.  In  Denmark 
the  payment  was  introduced  by  Canute  the  Saint  in  1086,  but  not 
regularly  observed  till  more  than  a  century  later.  In  Norway  it 
was  enforced  by  King  Magnus  in  1267.     MUnter,  ii.  i.  37. 


352  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART     distinct  parishes.       It  also  frequently  happened  that 

'- —    landowners  diverted  tithe,  which  had  been  originally 

paid  to  the  bishop  towards  the  support  of  particular 
churches,  or  to  monastic  foundations  ;  and  parishes 
distinct  from  capitular  offices  with  revenues  attached 
came  into  existence.  The  division  of  parishes  as  they 
now  stand  In  England  appears  to  have  been  settled 
before  the  Norman  Conquest.^  Still  the  payment 
of  tithes  was  a  thing  of  gradual  growth,  and  the 
setting  of  them  apart  for  the  support  of  particular 
parishes  was  also  a  thing  of  gradual  growth,^  which 
did  not  attain  Its  full  development  till  the  end  of  the 
twelfth  century,  when  the  obligations  of  tithe  was 
extended  from  the  simple  fruits  of  the  earth,  or 
what  are  called  predial  tithes,  to  every  kind  of 
produce,  to  wool,  and  hay,  to  orchards,  bees,  and 
fisheries.^ 
ib)  Obla-  Another  source  of  Income  was  derived  from  the 
iio7is.  ^^^^  donations  and  offerings  of  the  laity.  Some 
made  oblations  to  the  Church  before  entering  on 
military  expeditions  ;  bequests  were  made  by  others 
in  the  terrors  of  dissolution.  It  became  a  pious 
{c)  lutes-  custom  for  a  portion  of  the  property  of  deceased 
persons  to  be  granted  to  the  clergy,  to  be  distributed 

'  Collier's  Ecclesiastical  History,  vol.  i.  book  iii.  ch.  xi.  p.  542. 

^  Concil.  Melfit.  an.   1090,  Can.  5,  Labbe,  xii.   781  :  '  Nullus 

'  laicus  decimas  suas,  aut  ecclesiam  aut  quicquid  ecclesiastici  juris 

*  est,  sine  consensu  episcopi,  vel  Romani  concessione  pontificis, 

*  monasteriis  aut  canonicis  offerre  praesumat.'     Concil.  Clarom. 
an.   1095,  Can.   19,  ibid.  p.  831  :  '  Ne  laid  decimam  partem  de 

*  laboribus  suis  retineant.' 

3  See  four  letters  of  Alexander  III.  in  Concil.  Later,  iii.  an. 
1179,  Labbe,  xiii.  477. 


PROPERTY  OF  THE   CHURCH. 


353 


among  the  poor  and  needy  ;    by  degrees  churches    chap. 

came  to  be  ranked  among  the  poor  :  and,  as  it  was   

beHeved  that  the  deceased  would  regard  them  with 
special  favour,  they  absorbed  the  lion's  share  of  the 
alms,  until  the  other  poor  were  forgotten  altogether. 
Thus  what  at  first  was  a  pious  custom,  ended  in 
being  imposed  as  a  compulsory  tribute.^  In  general, 
however,  and  in  the  early  part  of  the  Middle  Ages, 
the  Church  was  liberal  to  the  poor,  and  whatever 
might  be  the  feelings  of  the  king  and  the  nobles,  the 
people  at  large  were  pleased  to  see  her  in  the  pos- 
session of  wealth. 

That  *  softening  of  penance  belonging  to  wealthy  id)  Pen- 
men,'   which    had   been    discussed   in    the  code   of 
St.  Dunstan,  had  in  this  epoch  assumed  formidable    a.d.  959 
dimensions,  and  become   another   fertile  source   of 
gain  to  the  Church.^     The  canonical  penances  im- 

1  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.  143  (small 
edition). 

2  Johnson's  Ejiglish  Laws  ajtd  Canons,  i.  445-447 ;  Wilkins' 
Concil.  i.  238,  239  :  '  When  the  [wealthy]  man  fasts  let  him  dis- 
'  tribute  to  all  God's  poor  all  the  entertainments  which  he  should 

*  himself  have  enjoyed ;  and  let  him  lay  aside  all  worldly  business 
'  for  the  three  days  of  fasting ;  and  frequent  the  church  night  and 
'  day  as  oft  as  possible,  and  watch  there  with  alms-light,  and  call 
'  on  God,  and  pray  earnestly  for  forgiveness  with  weeping  and 
'  wailing,  and  often  kneel  before  the  sign  of  the  Cross,  and  some- 

*  times  in  an  erect  posture,  and  sometimes  prostrating  himself  on 

*  the  ground.     And  let  the  great  man  learn  diligently  to  shed  tears 

*  from  his  eyes,  and  to  weep  for  his  sins ;  and  let  him  feed  as  many 
'  poor  as  possible  for  those  three  days,  and  on  the  fourth  day  let 
'  him  bathe  them  all,  and  distribute  provision  and  money ;  and 
'  in  his  own  person  make  satisfaction  for  his  sins  by  washing  of 
'  their  feet.  And  let  masses  be  said  for  him  this  day,  as  many  as 
'  can  possibly  be  procured ;  and  at  the  time  of  the  masses  let 

A  A 


354 


INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION. 


PART     posed  upon   repentant  offenders,  which  in  days   of 

'- —   lawlessness  would  have  taken  more  than  an  average 

lifetime  to  discharge,  were  allowed  to  be  commuted 
for  money  payments.  One  day's  fasting  might  be 
redeemed  with  a  penny  ;  a  year's  fasting  with  thirty 
shillings,  or  with  freeing  a  slave  that  was  worth  that 
money.  ^^    Many  In  a  glow  of  zeal  vowed  to  go  on  a 

'  absolution  be  given  him,  and  then  let  him  go  to  housel  unless  he 
'  be  yet  involved  in  so  much  guilt,  that  he  ought  not  to  receive 
«  it.  .  .  . 

*  This  is  that  softening  of  penances,  which  belongs  to  wealthy 

*  men  and  such  as  abound  in  friends  ;  but  one  in  a  lower  condition 
'  cannot  make  such  dispatch ;  but  therefore  he  must  pursue  it  in 
'  his  own  person  with  greater  earnestness.   ... 

'  Infirm  men,  however,  may  j-edeeni  their  fasting. — One  day's 
'  fasting  may  be  redeemed  with  a  penny  or  with  two  hundred 
'  psalms.  A  year's  fasting  may  be  redeemed  with  thirty  shillings, 
'  or  with  freeing  a  slave  that  is  worth  that  money.  A  man  for  one 
'  day's  fasting  may  sing  Beati  six  times,  and  six  times  Pater  N'oster. 

*  And  for  one  day's  fasting,  let  a  man  bow  down  to  the  ground 
'  with  Pater  Noster  sixty  times.  And  a  man  may  redeem  one 
'  day's  fasting,  if  he  will  prostrate  himself  on  all  his  limbs  to  God 
'  in  prayer,  and  with  sincere  grief  and  sound  faith  sing  fifteen 
'  times  Miserere  mei  Dens,  and  fifteen  times  Pater  Noster ;  and 
'  then  his  penance  for  the  whole  day  is  forgiven  him.' 

'  Gibbon,  vol.  v.  ch.  Iviii.  p.  414,  says:  'A  modest  sinner 
'  might  easily  incur  a  debt  of  three  hundred  years.  His  insolvency 
'  was  relieved  by  a  commutation  or  indulgence  :  a  year  of  penance 
'  was  appreciated  at  twenty-six  solidi  of  silver,  about  four  pounds 
'  sterling  for  the  rich  ;  at  three  solidi,  or  nine  shillings,  for  the 
'  indigent.'  Morinus,  De  Sacram.  Poenitentiae,  lib.  vii.  ch.  xi. 
p.  16  :  '  Itaque  judicabatur  grande  scelus  viginti  et  quatuor  asses.' 
Ibid.  ch.  xii.  p.  3,  gives  the  rules  of  Fulbert,  Bishop  of  Carnutum, 
who  died  1028  :   'Si  quis  hominem  occiderit  sponte,  septem  annis 

*  poeniteat  ;  si  immeritum  decern  annis  poeniteat ;  si  Diaconum 
'  quatuordecim  annis ;  si  presbyterum,  uno  et  viginti  annis  poe- 
'  niteat.  Si  quis  hominem  non  sponte  occiderit,  tribus  annis  ;  si 
'  publico  bello,  uno  anno.  ...    Si  quis  fornicatur  inter  femora 


PROPERTY   OF   THE   CHURCH. 


355 


crusade,  but  when  the  first  ardour  had  cooled  down     chap, 

XII. 

were  glad  to  purchase  exemption.      Many,  to  atone  

for  their  sins,  set  out  on  pilgrimages  to  well-known 
shrines;^  and  as  the  clergy  had  not  failed  to  inculcate 
that  no  atonement  could  be  so  acceptable  to  heaven 
as  liberal  presents,  large  offerings  were  presented  at 
such  churches  by  the  remorse  of  repentance.  At  ^.d.  1300 
Rome,  in  the  year  of  Jubilee,  two  priests  stood  with 
rakes  in  their  hands  sweeping  the  uncounted  gold 
and  silver  from  the  altars.  Similar  accounts  are 
given  of  the  lavishness  with  which  at  favourite 
shrines — that  of  St.  Thomas  a  Becket,  for  instance — 
wealth  was  poured  into  the  hands  of  the  clergy.^ 
Well  might  the  bishops  and  clergy,  with  such  large 
possessions  and  such  fertile  resources,  become  objects 
of  suspicion  to  their  sovereigns,,  and  objects  of  envy 
to  their  fellow  nobles.  Well  might  the  emperor  and 
the  King  of  England,  in  order  to  prevent  such  an 
influence  being  thrown  into  the  hands  of  men  hostile 
to  themselves,  require  to  be  allowed  to  recommend 
trusty  persons  for  bishoprics,  and  demand  from  the 
persons  appointed  an  oath  of  fealty  and  homage, 
as  in  the   case  of  other  barons.     Yet  out  of  these 


'  semel,  quatuor  Quadragenis  poeniteat ;  si  consueverit  tribus 
'  annis.  ...  Si  quis  adulterat  simpliciter,  quinque  annis  poeni- 
'  teat ;  si  dupliciter,  decern  annis.  ...  Si  quis  nonnam  con  uperit, 
'  septem  annis  ;  si  quis  consanguineam  quinque  annis.'  Extensive 
regulations  on  price,  apud  Morinus,  lib.  x.  cap.  xvi. 

*  According  to  Morinus,  De  Sac.  Poen.  lib,  vii.  ch.  xv.,  pilgrim- 
ages and  the  profession  of  monasticism  were  among  the  oldest 
kinds  of  penance. 

"^  MiLMAN,  vol.  ix.  book  xiv.  ch.  i.  p.  23. 

A  A   2  ./ 


356 


PART 
II. 


B.  Inves- 
titures. 

(i)  Causes 
of  the 
struggle. 

Property 
attd 
Feudal 
emblems. 


(2)  Be- 
ginning 
of  the 
struggle. 


INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION. 

just  demands  arose  the  famous  struggle  respecting 
investiture. 

The  possession  of  property  by  the  Church  was, 
as  has  been  seen,  the  primary  cause  of  this  struggle, 
which  was  carried  on  in  Germany  and  England  at 
the  close  of  the  eleventh  and  the  beginning  of  the 
twelfth  century.  Nevertheless,  the  struggle  really 
broke  out  about  the  symbols  incidental  to  feudal 
tenures.  Investiture  by  the.  lord  and  an  oath  of 
fealty  by  the  tenant,  which  were  necessary  in  the 
case  of  all  lay  barons,  had  as  early  as  the  time  of 
Charlemagne  been  required  of  ecclesiastics  before 
they  were  admitted  to  the  temporalities  of  a  see ;  ^ 
but  whereas  fealty  and  homage  were  required  of  a 
lay  baron,  the  symbols  used  in  the  investiture  of 
ecclesiastics  were  the  ring  and  the  crozier.^  For 
more  than  two  centuries  the  practice  had  continued 
without  exciting  scandal  or  resistance,  when  excep- 
tion was  taken  to  it  by  Gregory  VII.  In  France 
only,  where  the  ring  and  the  crozier  were  not  in  use, 
no  such  struggle  occurred,  although  the  possessions 
of  the  Church  were  not  less  there  than  elsewhere. 
In  England  and  Germany  the  struggle  was  waged 
most  fiercely. 

The  gauntlet  was  thrown  down  by  Gregory  VII. 
at  the  beginning  of  the  year  1075.  A  decree  was 
promulgated  in  a  synod  held  at  Rome  that,  if  any 
bishop,  abbot,  or  inferior  ecclesiastic  should  receive 


^  Hallam's  Middle  Ages ^  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.  181. 
^  LiNGARD,  vol.  ii.  ch.  i.  p.  7  J  Church's  Essays  and  Reviews, 
p.  176;  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.  185. 


INVESTITURES.  ,57 

investiture   from   any   lay  person,  his  appointment     chap. 

should  be  considered  null  and  void.      He  was  cut  off  ^ '— 

from  communion  with  St.  Peter,  and  forbidden  to 
enter  the  Church  until  he  should  have  abandoned 
the  place  so  acquired.  Moreover,  any  emperor, 
duke,  marquis,  count,  or  secular  potentate  who 
should  presume  to  grant  such  investiture  was  con- 
demned in  a  similar  penalty.^  Twelve  years  later  a.d.  1087 
this  decree  was  renewed  by  Gregory's  successor, 
Victor  1 1 1.,^  and  again,  three  years  later,  by  Urban  1 1.  1090 
in  a  still  more  stringent  form.^  The  latter  occasion 
was  well  chosen. 

During  the  lifetime  of  Gregory  other  and  more 
important  subjects,  however,  occupied  the  attention  of 
the  Pope  as  well  as  that  of  the  emperor ;  Victor  1 1 1.'s 


•  See  the  decree  already  quoted,  Chap.  VII.  (note).  The  con- 
cluding clause  is  :  '  Item  si  quis  Imperatoruni,  Regum,  Ducum, 
'  Marchionum,  Comitum,  vel  quilibet  saecularium  potestatum  vel 
'  personarum,  investituram  episcopatuum  vel  alicujus  ecclesiasticae 
'  dignitatis  dare  praesumserit,  ejusdem  sententiae  vinculo  se  adstric- 
'  turn  sciat'    See  also  Gies.  vol.  iii.  sec.  47,  p.  14  ;  Neand.  vii.  135. 

2  Concil.  Benev.  an.  1087,  Labbe,  xii.  710. 

3  Concil.  Melfit.  an.  1090,  Can.  11,  Labbe,  xii.  781  :  'Ne  gra- 
'  vamen  aliquod  sancta  patiatur  ecclesia,  nullum  jus  laicis  in  cleri- 

*  cos  esse  volumus  et  censemus.  Unde  cavendum  est,  ne  servilis 
'  conditionis,  aut  curialium  officiorum  obnoxii  ab  episcopis  promo- 

*  veantur  in  clerura.  Neque  liceat  laicis  exactionem  aliquam  pro 
'  ecclesiae  beneficiis  aut  paternis  maternisve  facultatibus  quaerere. 
'  Quod  si  forte  clericorum  aliquis  cujuslibet  laici  possessionibus 

*  usus  fuerit,  aut  vicarium  qui  debitum  reddat  inveniat,  aut  posses- 

*  sione  cadat.'     Concil.  Clarom.  an.  1095,  Can.  161,  ibid.  p.  831  : 

*  Interdictum  est,  ne  reges  vel  alii  principes  aliquam  investituram 

*  de  ecclesiasticis  honoribus  faciant.'     Can.   17:    '  Ne  episcopus 

*  vel  sacerdos  regi  vel  alicui  laico  in  manibus  ligiam  fidelitatem 

*  faciat.' 


"3^8 


PART 
II. 


(3) 
Struggle 
hi  Eng- 
land. 

{a) 
William 
the  Con- 
queror. 

A.D. 

1066-1087 


INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

life  was  spent  in  exile,  from  whence  he  might  issue 
decrees,  but  was  powerless  to  enforce  them  ;  and 
Urban  II.  was  not  in  a  much  better  condition  during 
the  earlier  years  of  his  administration.  But  the 
same  enthusiasm  which  brought  Urban  II.  back  to 
Rome,  gained  respect  for  his  decision,  and  whilst 
Urban  was  in  power  no  attempt  at  any  compromise 
was  made.  It  was  otherwise  on  the  accession  of 
his  successor.  Paschal  II.  His  name  is  prominently 
connected  with  the  question  of  investitures  both  in 
England  and  Germany. 

In  England  William  the  Conqueror  had  main- 
tained his  supremacy  over  the  Church  with  an  iron 
arm.  Thus  no  one  was  allowed  to  acknowledge  the 
Pope,  when  chosen,  except  by  the  king's  permission  ; 
no  one  might  receive  letters  from  Rome,  unless  they 
had  been  previously  shown  to  him  for  approval. 
The  archbishop  was  not  permitted  to  frame  any 
canon,  although  with  the  assistance  of  the  bishops 
of  the  realm,  unless  it  had  been  previously  sanctioned 
by  the  sovereign.^      Nor  was  any  bishop  allowed  to 


^  Eadmeri   Historia   novorum,   lib.   i.   apud   Anselmi  Op.  ed! 
Gerberon,  p.  29:   '  Cuncta  ergo  divina  simul  et  humana  ejus 

*  nutum  expectabant.     Non  ergo  pati  volebat,  quenquam  in  omni 

*  dominatione  sua  constitutum  Romanae  urbis  Pontificem  pro 
'  apostolico,  nisi  se  jubente,  recipere  ;  aut  ejus  literas,  si  primitus 
'  sibi  ostensae  non  fuissent,  ullo  pacto  suscipere.     Primatem  quo- 

*  que  regni  sui,  Archiepiscopum  dico  Cantuariensem,  si  coacto 
'  generali  Episcoporum  concilio  praesideret,  non  sinebat  quicquam 
'  statuere  aut  prohibere,  nisi  quae  suae  voluntati  accommoda  et  a 
'  se  primo  essent  ordinata.     Nulli  nihilominus  Episcoporum  suo- 

*  rum  concessum  iri  permittebat,  ut  aliquem  de  Baronibus  suis  seii 

*  Ministris,  sive  incesto,  seu  adulterio,  sive  aliquo  capitali  crimine 


INVESTITURES. 


'359 


excommunicate  a  baron  or  minister  of  the  crown,  on     chap. 

XII 

any  charge,  without  having  first  obtained  the  king's  '— 

consent.^      The  same  poHcv  was  pursued  bv  his  son       a.d. 

...  .  .         1087-1100 

WilHam  Rufus  without  any  difficuhies  being  raised 

on  the  part  of  the  Popes.  They  had  too  many 
reasons  for  concihating  the  friendship  of  the  Nor- 
mans in  Italy  to  venture  to  oppose  their  wishes  in  Eng- 
land. Anselm  had  to  bear  alone  the  whole  brunt  of 
the  indignation  of  Rufus  and  Henry  I,,  when  they 
felt  their  prerogatives  invaded  by  the  Pope's  prohibi- 
tion of  lay  investiture. 

More  than  twenty-five  years  have  elapsed  since        (^) 
the  conquest  of  England  by  William   the   Bastard.   Rufus 
The  gentle,  unworldly  monk  and  philosopher,  Anselm,  Anselm. 
is  Archbishop    of   Canterbury  ;    the  avaricious  and       '°93 
profligate  William   Rufus   is   oh  the  throne,  having 
just  recovered  from  his  illness,  and  having  lost  his 
former  remorse.^     Accustomed  to  be  flattered  on  all 
sides,  to  have  his  every  word  taken  for  absolute  law, 
the  impetuous  Norman  could   ill   brook  the  gentle 
obstinacy  of  Anselm,  who  had  allowed  seven  months 
to   elapse  before   he   would  consent   to   do  homage 
to  the  king ;  and  he  had  already  formed  a  plan  for 


*  denotatum,  publice  nisi  ejus  praecepto  implacitaret  aut  excom- 
'  municaret,  aut  uUa  ecclesiastici  rigoris  poena  constringeret.' 

^  After  the  conquest,  bishops  *id  abbots  of  Enghsh  birth  had 
been  deposed  with  the  concurrence  and  full  sanction  of  the  Pope 
to  make  way  for  others  in  the  Norman  interest.  See  Hallam's 
■Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  viii.  p.  305  (small  edition). 

2  Anselm  was  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  from  1093  to  1109  a.d. 
William  Rufus  reigned  from  1087  to  iioo  a.d.  Henry  I.  from 
1 100  to  1 135  A.D.  Anselm's  episcopate,  therefore,  falls  in  both 
reigns. 


360  INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION. 

PART     subduing  the  independent  spirit  of  the  archbishop. 
'- —  Anselm   was    summoned    to   answer   in  the   king's 


court,  and  being  unable  to  supply  the  demands  of 
the  king  for  money,  William  swore  that  he  would 
never  acknowledge  him  as  archbishop,  and  charged 
him  with  a  breach  of  allegiance  for  acknowledging 
Urban  11.  as  Pope,  before  Urban  had  been  acknow- 
ledged by  himself.  For  this  offence  he  endeavoured 
to  prevail  on  the  other  prelates  to  depose  him. 
This  time  he  failed  in  his  attempt  But  those  two 
acts  of  Anselm — his  hesitation  upon  doing  homage 
to  the  king  and  his  independent  recognition  of 
Urban  II. — had  embittered  the  mind  of  William 
against  him  for  ever ;  and  he  was  forced  to  leave 
England.  To  Rome  he  removed,  where  his  cause 
was  feebly  taken  up  by  the  Pontiff,  and  from  Rome 
he  repaired  to  the  Archbishop  of  Lyons.  Soon  the 
Oct.  1099   death  of  Urban,  and  the  death  of  William   in  the 

Aug.  1100 

following  year,  occurred  to  put  an  end  to  the  first 
act  in  the  dispute.^      Anselm  was  able  to  return  to 
his  see. 
{c)  Henry       Qn  the  accession  of  Henry   I.,^  the  dispute  was 

/.  and  ,  ,  ^•'  ^ 

Anselm.     for  a  time  in  abeyance.      It  is  true,  that  at  his  first 

"°°      interview  with  the  king,  Anselm   had   declared  his 

inflexible  determination  to  abide  by  the  laws  passed 

against  lay  investiture,^  and  the  king  had  avowed  an 


'  For  a  fuller  account,  see  Lingard,  vol.  i.  ch.  ix.  p.  272  ; 
Church's  Essays  and  Reviews.  Anselm  stopped  with  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Lyons  until  he  was  recalled  by  Henry. 

2  The  relationship  of  the  English  sovereigns,  see  p.  396. 

3  Anselm  during  his  exile  had  been  present  at  the  councils  of 
Bari,  1097,  and  Rome,  1098  a.d.    At  the  former  he  is  said  to  have 


A.D. 


XII. 


INVES  TIT  U RES,  ^  5  j 

equally  fixed  determination  to  retain  what  he  con-  chap. 
sidered  the  lawful  prerogative  of  his  crown.  But 
Henry  was  aware  that  his  own  position  was  a  critical 
one,^  and  could  not  at  the  moment  hazard  a  rupture 
with  the  primate.  Without  waiving  his  rights,  the 
controversy  was  for  the  moment  suspended  by  being 
referred  to  the  Pope,  and  Henry,  no  doubt,  hoped  to 
be  able  to  extort  from  the  gratitude  of  the  Pope  an 
answer  favourable  to  himself 

In  this  hope  he  was,  however,  disappointed. 
Message  after  message  was  sent  to  Rome,  and 
answer  after  answer  returned  to  England ;  artifices 
were  employed  to  deceive,  and  expedients  suggested 
to  mollify  Anselm,  till  at  last,  by  the  king's  request, 
the  archbishop  undertook  a  journey  to  Rome  to  lay 
the  whole  controversy  before  the  Pope.  Suddenly, 
when  he  was  returning,  and  had  reached  Lyons, 
Henry's  delegate  communicated  to  him  his  master's 
wishes.  The  king  earnestly  desired  his  return  to 
England  if  he  was  willing  to  do  all  that  his  prede- 
cessors had  done  to  former  kingrs.  Anselm  could 
not  mistake  the  purport  of  the  message,  and  for  the 
second  time  was  obliged  to  take  refuge  under  the 
hospitable  roof  of  the  Archbishop  of  Lyons.      After 

interceded  in  behalf  of  William  Rufus.  The  latter  council  allowed 
William  Rufus  a  longer  time  for  repentance.  Labbe,  xiii.  951  ; 
See  Ling.  vol.  ii.  ch.  i.  p.  8. 

^  Robert,  Duke  of  Normandy,  Avas  his  elder  brother,  and  had 
therefore  a  better  claim  to  the  crown,  although  he  was  expressly- 
excluded  by  his  father's  will.  Besides  Henry  the  Clerk  and 
Scholar  was  despised  by  the  Norman  barons.  To  secure  his 
throne  he  was  obliged  to  conciliate  the  people,  and  above  all  to 
conciliate  the  clergy. 


-52  INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION. 

PART     waiting  a  year  and  a  half,  criticised,  mistaken,  mo- 

'- — ■   lested  alike   by  friends  and  foes,  Anselm's  patience 

was  at  length  exhausted,  and  Henry  was  admonished 
that  within  a  few  weeks  the  sentence  of  excommuni- 
cation,  which  had  been  already  pronounced  on  his 
advisers,  would  be  pronounced  against  himself. 
Henry  was  not  prepared  for  excommunication  at 
A.D.  1106  this  crisis.  His  people  were  disaffected.  At  the 
Abbey  of  Bee  he  met  Anselm,  and  there,  in  the  true 
spirit  of  conciliation,  the  king,  allowing  that  the 
ring  and  crosier  denoted  spiritual  jurisdiction,  re- 
nounced all  sorts  of  investitures,  and  Anselm,  ad- 
mitting that  fealty  and  homage  were  civil  duties, 
consented  that  they  should  be  exacted  from  every 
clergyman  before  he  received  the  temporalities.  The 
agreement  was  solemnly  proclaimed  at  a  synod  in 
London  in  1 107.^  By  it  Henry,  whilst  surrendering 
an  unnecessary  ceremony,  retained  a  substantial 
power ;  and  Anselm's  scruples  were  set  at  rest  by  a 
letter  from  Paschal,  in  which  he  frees  those  who  had 
received  lay  investiture  from  the  penalties  pronounced 
by  his  predecessor.^ 


'  Eadmar  ap.  Labbe,  xii.  1137  :  '  Dehinc  praesente  Anselmo, 

*  adstante  multitudine,  annuit  rex  et  statuit,  ut  ab  eo  tempore  in 
'  reliquum  nunquam  per  donationem  baculi  pastoralis  vel  annuli 
'  quisquam  de  episcopatu  vel  abbatia  per  regem  vel  quamlibet 

*  laicam  manum  investiretur  in  Anglia  :  concedente  quoque  An- 
'  selmo,  ut  nullus  in  praelationem  electus,  pro  hominio  quod  regi 
'  faceret,  consecratione  suscepti  honoris  privaretur.' 

2  Pasch.  ii.  Ep.  xvi.  ad  Anselmum,  Labbe,  xii.  990 :  '  Te 
'  autem  in  Christo  venerabilis  et  carissime  frater,  ab  ilia  prohi- 
'  bitione,  sive,  ut  tu  credis,  excommunicatione  absolvimus,  quam 
'  ab  antecessore  nostro  sanctae  memoriae  Urbano  papa  adversus 


INVESTITURES.  ^5^ 

Still  more  fortunate  than  the  English  kings  were     char 

the  kings  of  Castile,  who,  by  discreetly  yielding  when    '- 

Urban's  decree  was  first  published,   obtained  from  ofCasWe. 
him  an  absolute  privilege  of  nomination  to  all  bishop- 
rics in  their  dominions — a  privilege  which  they  have 
since  retained  by  virtue  of  a  particular   indulgence 
renewed  by  the  Pope  for  the  life  of  each  prince.^ 

But  in  Germany  the  struggle  about  investitures       (5) 
was  waged  most  fiercely,  and  there  it  also  continued  {a)  Henry 
longest.      Not  only  had  Paschal  II.  begun  his  career  paschal 
by    denouncing    lay  investiture    as    strongly   as   his  ^^' 
predecessor,  Urban  II.,  but  he  had  also  followed  the 
tactics  of  Urban  in  his  struggle  with  the  emperor, 
Henry  IV.,  by  instigating  the  emperor's  second  son, 
Henry,    to    rebellion    against    his    father.       When, 
therefore,  Henry  IV.  died  in  iio6,  the  Pope  might 
well   think   that    he  was  sure  of  success,    and  that 
the  young  emperor,  Henry  V.,  would  yield  the  points 
in  dispute.      He  might  almost  seem  to  be  justified 
in  triumphantly  boasting  that  '  the  Church  had  now 
risen  again  to  true  liberty,  since,  by  the  grace  of  God, 
the  authors  of  this  iniquity  had  been  taken  away.'  ^ 


'  investituras  aut  hominia  factam  intelligis.  Tu  vero  eos  qui  aut 
'  investituras   accepere   aut    investitas   benedixere,    aut   hominia 

*  fecere,  cum  ea  satisfactione  .  .  .  suscipito,  et  eos  vice  nostrae 
'  auctoritatis  absolvito.' 

1  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.   190  (small 
edition). 

2  Concil.  Guastallense,  an.  1106,  cap.   al.    Labbe,  xii.   1127: 
'  Jamdiu  a  pravis  hominibus  tam  clericis  quam  laicis,  catholica  est 

*  ecclesia  conculcata  ;  unde  plura  nostris  temporibus  schismata 
'  et  haereses  emerserunt.  Nunc  autem  per  Dei  gratiam,  hujus 
'  nequitiae  deficientibus  auctoribus,  in  ingenuam  libertatem  resur- 


^5  I  INVESTITURES  A^D  JURISDICTION. 

PART     Yet  how  empty  was  that  boast !     He  had  not  to  wait 

'- long  before  he  discovered  its  vainness.    For  Henry  V. 

V.  auT^  was  no  sooner  in  undisputed  possession  of  the  throne, 
Paschal  ^j^^j^  j^^  maintained  as  stoutly  as  his  father  had  done 
his  own  right  to  invest  bishops.  When  he  was 
unable  to  bring  the  Pope  to  the  same  way  of  think- 
A.D.  1107  ing  by  a  conference  at  Chalons,  he  resorted  to  arms. 
When  he  appeared  in  Italy,  the  Pope  in  terror  gave 
way,  and  concluded  with  him  a  compact.  When 
the  German  bishops  refused  to  sanction  that  com- 
Apriiiiii  pact,  Paschal  H.  yielded  to  a  new  agreement,  grant- 
ma  ing  investiture  to  the  emperor.  Finally,  when  this 
agreement  was  disapproved  by  the  Hildebrandian 
party,  nothing  remained  for  Paschal,  weak  and 
vacillating  Paschal,  but  to  annul  the  grant  ^  and  to 
assemble  a  council  in  the  Lateran,  and  to  plead 
before  it  that  the  agreement  had  been  concluded 
under  the  pressure  of  circumstances,  in  order  to  save 
the  cardinals  and  the  city  of  Rome  ;  that  it  was 
beyond  his  power  to  surrender  any  of  the  liberties 
and  rights  of  the  Church  ;  that  it  was  for  the  as- 
sembly to  examine  the  agreement  and  pronounce 
thereupon  ;  but  that  for  himself  he  would  adhere  to 
his  oath,  and  undertake  nothing  personally  against 
Henry.  Thus  Paschal  pleaded  ;  and  thus  he  ex- 
cused his  own  wavering,  and,  as  his  temporising 
policy  deserved,  he  died  in  banishment.      The  coun- 


'  git'    See  also  the  letter  of  Paschal  to  Henry  V.,  Ep.  xxii..LABB£, 
xiii.  993. 

•  According  to  Gif.s.  iii.  40,  this  took  place  in  iiii  ;  according 
to  LABBf,  xiii.  1 155,  it  took  place  at  the  Synod  of  Capua,  an.  1 1 10. 


INVESTITURES.  ^65 

cil  reversed  the  agreement.^      It  was  the  legitimate     chap. 
consequence  of  Boniface's  oath.  '- 


A.D. 


The    glory    of    concluding    the    long-protracted     jaii.  21 


struggle    was    reserved   for    Calixtus    II.,    but   not 


1118 

(<:)  Henry 

before  one  preliminary  contract  had  been  concluded  v.  and 

Calixtus 

and  as  soon  violated,  nor  before  the  utterance  of  a  //. 
sentence  of  excommunication  and  dethronement  on 
Henry  V.  at  the  great  synod  at  Rheims.^  By  that  i"9 
preliminary  contract  Henry  had  renounced  the  in- 
vestiture of  churches,  and  the  Pope  had  promised 
him  peace. ^  Upon  second  thoughts,  however,  they 
relented.  The  Pope  decided  that  the  imperial  fief 
should  still  remain  attached  to  the  prelacies,  whilst 
the  emperor  maintained  that  no  fief  could  be  be- 
stowed without  feudal  investiture.  Thus  the  struggle 
was  renewed :  the  disturbances  in  Germany  grew  more 
dangerous;   Calixtus  II.  was   once   more   master  of 


'  Concil.  Lateran.    an.   11 12,  Labbe,  xii.   1165  :    '  Privilegium 

*  illud,  quod  non  est  privilegium  .  .  .  pro  liberatione  captivorum, 

*  et  ecclesiae  a  domino  Papa  Paschali  per  violentiam  Henrici  regis 
'  extortum,  nos  omnes  in  hoc  sancto  concilio  cum  eodem  domino 
'  papa  congregati,  canonica  censura  et  ecclesiastica  auctoritate, 
'  judicio  sancti  Spiritus  damnamus  et  irritum  esse  judicamus,  atque 
'  omnino  cassamus,  et  nequid  auctoritatis  et  efficacitatis  habeat 
'  penitus  exconimunicamus.' 

2  Concil.  Remens.  an.  11 19,  Labb^,  xii.  1291. 
^  In  Hessonis  Scholastici  Descripta  Concil.  Remen.  an.  11 19, 
Labb£,  xii.   1302,    it  is  quoted  as  follows:   'Ego  Henricus,  Dei 

*  gratia  Romanorum  Imperator  Augustus,  pro  amore  Dei  et  beati 

*  Petri,  et  domini  papae  Calixti,  dimitto  omnem  investituram  om- 

*  nium  ecclesiarum  et  do  veram  pacem.  .  .  . 

*  Ego   Calixtus  secundus,   Dei  gratia  Romanae  ecclesiae  epi- 

*  Scopus  catholicus,  do  veram  pacem  Henrico  Romanorum  impera- 

*  tori  augusto,  et  omnibus  qui  pro  eo  contra  ecclesiam  fuenmt  vel 
'  sunt :  .  .  . ' 


II. 


^55  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART  Rome,  the  antipope  his  prisoner.  The  Pope's  de- 
mands were  severer  than  ever.  Still  Henry  refused  to 
yield.  At  length  the  course  which  had  been  pointed 
out  by  Ivo  of  Chartres/  and  the  monk  Hugo  of 
Fleury,''^  began  to  commend  itself  to  both  parties, 
now  growing  weary  of  the  struggle.  It  was  an  in- 
termediate course  between  the  extreme  views  of  the 
Gregorian  party  on  the  one  hand,  and  the  secularising 
tendencies  of  their  opponents  on  the  other.  It  com- 
bated the  Gregorian  position  that  it  was  a  degradation 
for  the  priesthood  to  own  itself  subject  to  any  lay 
authority,  and  held  fast  to  the  principle  that  to  God 
must  be  rendered  that  which  is  God's  and  to  Caesar 
that  which  is  Caesar's.  It  therefore  maintained  that 
the  king  ought  not  to  invest  the  candidate  bishop 
with  staff  and  ring,  these  being  the  symbols  of 
spiritual  jurisdiction,  and,  as  such,  belonging  to  the 
archbishop  ;  but  it  allowed  homage  to  be  done  to  the 

A.D.  emperor,  and  the  use  of  some  other  symbol  for 
bestowing  the  temporalities.  In  September,  1122, 
was  concluded  the  Concordat  of  Worms,  which 
finally  settled  the  question  of  the  investitures. 
Henry,  from  love  to  God  and  for  the  welfare  of  his 
soul,  releases  to  God  and  to  his  apostles,  St.  Peter 
and  St.   Paul,  all  investiture  by  ring  and  staff,  and 

*  See  Ep.  69,  an.  1099,  of  Ivo  to  Hugo,  Archbishop  of  Lyons. 

"^  Hug.  Floriacensis  Tract,  de  regia  potest,  etc.  in  Baluz. 
Miscell.  iv.  5  :  '  Post  election  em  autera  non  annulum  aut  bacuhnn 
'  a  manu  regia,  sed  investituram  rerum  saecularium  electus  antistes 
'  debet  suscipere,  et  in  suis  ordinibus  per  annuhnn  aut  bacukmi 
'  animarum  curam  ab  Archiepiscopo  suo  :  ut  negotium  hujusmodi 
'  sine  disceptatione  agatur,  et  terrenis  et  spiritaHbus  potestatibus 
'  suae  auctoritatis  privilegium  conservetur.' 


Sept.  1 122 


JURISDICTION.  ,57 

pledges  himself  to  restore  the  possessions  and  tern-     chap. 

poralities  of  St.  Peter ;   Calixtus  allows  the  elections   — — 1— 

of  bishops  and   abbots  within   the   Empire   to  take 

place   in    Henry's  presence,  free   from  simony    and 

violence,  and  permits  the  persons  elected  to  receive 

the    temporalities    by  investiture    with    the   sceptre. 

In  the  following  year  this  concordat  was  ratified  by 

the  first  Lateran  Council.^     Henceforth  the  imperial 

influence    in    episcopal   elections    came    into   vogue 

which  Otto   IV.  and  Frederic  II.  had  to  disclaim  as 

a  right. '^     Henceforth  the  feudal  obligations  of  the 

prelates  were  so  fully  acknowledged  that  not  even 

Innocent  III.  ventured  to  call  them  in  question. 

The   rivalry,   however,   between   the   secular  and    ^    C. 

.  .  struggle 

ecclesiastical  authorities  was  too  deeply  seated  to  be  for  jHr^s- 
'  -i      ■,    ■,         ■,  •  -I  1       diction  in 
extmguisned   by  the  compromise  arrived  at  on  the  England. 

subject  of  investitures.      It   could  not  fail   to   show 

itself  in  other  matters  also  wherever  the  provinces 

'  Concil.  Later,  i.  an.  1123,  Labbe,  xii.  1338  :  'Ego  Henricus, 
Romanorum  Imperator,  pro  amore  Dei  et  sanctae  Romanae 
ecclesiae  et  domini  papae  Callisti,  et  pro  remedio  animae  meae, 
dimitto  Deo,  et  Sanctis  ejus  apostolis  Petro  et  Paulo,  et  sanctae 
Catholicae  ecclesiae,  omnem  investituram  per  annulum  et  bacu- 
lum,  et  concedo  in  omnibus  ecclesiis  fieri  electionem  et  liberam 
consecrationem.  Possessiones  et  regalia  beati  Petri,  quae  a  prin- 
cipio  hujus  discordiae  usque  ad  hodiernam  diem,  sive  tempore 
patris  mei,  sive  etiam  meo  ablata  sunt,  quae  habeo  .  .  .  restituo, 
quae  autem  non  habeo,  ut  restituantur  fideliter,  adjuvabo. 

'  Ego  Callistus,  servus  servorum  Dei,  tibi  dilecto  filio  Henrico 
Dei  gratia  Romanorum  Imperatori  augusto,  concedo  electiones 
episcoporum  et  abbatum  Teutonici  regni,  quae  ad  regnum  perti- 
nent, in  praesentia  tua  fieri,  absque  simonia  et  aliqua  violentia. 
.  .  .  Electus  autem  regalia  per  sceptrum  a  te  accipiat,  exceptis  ■ 
omriibus  quae  ad  Romanam  ecclesiam  pertinere  noscuntur.' 

^  GiES.  ch.  iii.  sec.  63,  p.  190. 


II. 


^58  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART  of  Church  and  State  overlapped.  Within  the  Empire 
itself,  the  rivalry  added  fuel  to  the  engrossing  dis- 
putes of  Popes  and  antipopes,  emperors  and  rival 
emperors.  It  was  in  fact  coloured  by  the  political 
struggles  which  distracted  the  Empire.  Nor  was  it 
otherwise  in  England — a  country  not  distracted  like 
Germany,  between  adherents  of  rival  Popes,  but 
agitated  between  English  and  Norman  sympathies ; 
the  bulk  of  the  population  being  English,  the  greater 
part  of  the  nobles  being  Normans.  Here,  too,  it 
assumed  the  colouring  of  its  political  surroundings, 
and  embittered  the  political  rivalries  of  the  kingdom. 
Nor  was  it  a  matter  of  no  importance  that  Thomas 
a  Becket,  the  leader  of  the  clerical  party  in  the 
struggle  for  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  with  the  Nor- 
man king,  Henry  H,,  was  the  first  Englishman 
who  had  risen  to  distinction  since  the  Conquest. 
This  fact  gave  to  the  struggle  a  national  character. 
It  was  not  therefore  simply  a  struggle  between  ec- 
clesiastical and  lay  jurisdiction — between  the  Church 
and  the  State — but  it  was  a  strueele  between  Enehsh- 
men  and  Normans.  On  the  side  of  the  Church  was 
Becket,  an  Englishman  himself,^  a  leader  of  the 
English  party,  whose  name  long  after  his  death  was 
held  in  highest  esteem  in  England,  whose  shrine 
was  the  favourite  one  for  pilgrims.  On  the  side 
of  the  state  was  Henry  II.,  an  Angevin  by  birth, 
but  yet  through  his  mother  a  descendant  of  the 
Conqueror,  supported  by  Norman  barons,  and  anxious 


'  Lord   Lyttleton's   History   of  Henry   II.   vol.    ii.  p.   22; 
Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  viii.  p.  306. 


JURISDICTION.  ^5^ 

to  make  the  Norman  courts,  in  which  justice  could     chap. 

never  be  obtained  without  purchase  (if  it  could  be  ^- L_ 

obtained  at  all  by  Englishmen),  the  sole  tribunals  in 
the  country.  Hence  the  joy  of  the  English  when 
he  had  to  do  penance  at  the  tomb  of  the  martyred 
ecclesiastic  and  Englishman.  Hence  the  enthusiasm 
which  Becket's  name  inspired  among  the  people. 

Difficult    thouo-h    it    may  be    to    fix   the    orig-inal  {'^)Causes 

.  .      ^  of  the 

ground  of  dissension  between   Henry  and  his  arch-  struggle. 
bishop,  it  is  sufficiently  clear  that  the  circumstance  if)7j"'^^- 

^  ■'  aicttoii  oj 

which  brought  the  two  into  immediate  collision,  was  ecdesias- 
a  controversy  respectmg  the  jurisdiction  of  the  eccle-  courts. 
siastical  courts.  These  courts  were  new  in  Ene- 
land.  Not  as  in  the  Empire,  where  since  the  days 
of  the  great  Charles  ecclesiastical  courts  existed  side 
by  side  with  the  secular  tribunals,  in  England  the 
decision  of  causes,  both  lay  and  ecclesiastical,  had 
originally  rested  with  a  mixed  tribunal,  consisting  of 
laymen  and  bishops  together.^     Only  recently,  since 


'  In  England  before  the  Conquest  the  bishops  had  always 
heard  and  decided  spiritual  causes  in  the  courts  of  the  hundred. 
William  disapproved  of  the  custom,  and  authorised  them  to  esta- 
bhsh  tribunals  of  their  own,  commanding  the  sheriffs  to  compel 
obedience  to  the  citations  of  the  ecclesiastical  judge.  See  Lin- 
GARD,  vol.  i.  ch.  viii.  p.  247.  These  Courts  Christian  were  not 
abolished  by  Henry  I.,  as  Blackstone  supposes.  See  Lingard, 
vol.  ii.  ch.  iii.  p.  63.  On  the  contrary,  they  soon  obtained  a 
marked  superiority  over  secular  courts,  partly  because  they  pro- 
ceeded on  fixed  principles — such  as  the  collection  of  Isidore, 
that  of  Burchard  of  Worms,  that  of  Ivo  of  Chartres,  and  after  the 
year  1151  the  Decretum  of  Gratian  (Hallam,  Middle  Ages, 
vol.  iii.  pt.  ii.  ch.*ix.  p.  415) — partly  because  the  clerical  judges 
were  men  of  talent  and  education,  which  the  lay  judges  were  not ; 
and  most  of  all  because  they  were  less  biassed  by  fear  and  favour 

B  B 


370  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

TART     the   Conquest,  had  the   two  branches  of  judicature 

'. been  separated  and  ecclesiastical  tribunals  brought 

into  existence.  But  the  working  of  the  Christian 
Courts  was  new,  and  as  yet  their  province  was  not 
strictly  defined  ;  or  rather  it  varied  as  the  earlier 
kings  from  time  to  time  relaxed  or  tightened  their 
hold  on  the  Church.  In  the  troubles  under  Stephen, 
however,  the  clergy  had  greatly  increased  in  power. 
They  were  therefore  not  disposed  to  yield  the 
prerogatives  which  they  had  acquired,  at  the  bid- 
ding of  a  king  like  Henry  II.  Moreover,  the  eleva- 
tion of  Thomas  a  Becket  to  the  see  of  Canterbury 
came  for  them  most  opportunely,  since  it  supplied 
them  with  a  champion  able  and  willing  to  defend 
these  prerogatives  against  the  king. 
(b)  Ques-  The  struggle  broke  out  more  particularly  on  a 
criminal  questlon  of  Criminal  jurisdiction.  The  punishment 
^tion.  ^'^"  which  the  ecclesiastical  courts  had  imposed  on  Philip 
de  Brois,  canon  of  Bedford,  when  convicted  of  man- 
slaughter, seemed  altogether  inadequate  to  the  great- 
ness of  his  offence.  When  killing  a  deer  was 
punished  with  loss  of  eyesight,  a  pecuniary  fine  for 
killing  a  man  seemed  no  punishment  at  all.  The 
somewhat  severer  punishment  which  the  ecclesias- 
tical courts  afterwards  imposed  on  the  same  canon 
for  using  expressions  of  insult  and  contempt  to  the 
king's  justiciary,  Fitz-Peter,  seemed  also  inadequate 
to  a  sovereign  already  chafing  against  the  jurisdic- 
tion of   the   ecclesiastical  courts.     To  appease    the 


than   the   secular   courts.     They   accordingly  rapidly  gained    in 
popularity.     Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  vii.  p.  202. 


JURISDICTION.  -7  J 

king  for  the  indignity  offered  to  himself  in  the  person     chap. 
of   his  justiciary,   the    canon    was   condemned   to  a  " 

public  Avhipping,  and  to  suspension  for  two  years. 
But  it  was  all  to  no  purpose,  Henry  would  not  be 
appeased.  He  revolted  against  the  leniency  of  the  a.d.  1162 
ecclesiastical  courts,  and  at  Westminster  addressed 
a  demand  to  his  assembled  bishops,  that  whenever  a 
clergyman  had  been  degraded  for  a  public  crime  by 
the  sentence  of  the  spiritual  judge,  he  should  be 
immediately  delivered  into  the  custody  of  a  lay 
officer  to  be  punished  by  the  sentence  of  a  lay  tri- 
bunal. In  itself  the  demand  was  not  an  unreason- 
.  able  one.  It  allowed  to  ecclesiastical  courts  the 
jurisdiction  they  already  possessed,  but  it  sought  to 
make  the  penalties  imposed  on  ecclesiastics  as  severe 
as  those  to  which  laymen  were  subject.  Neverthe- 
less, with  the  ideas  then  prevalent  as  to  the  powers 
and  rights  of  the  clergy,  it  was  tantamount  to  an  attack 
upon  them.  It  was  an  attempt  to  subvert  a  gene- 
rally received  position,  and  to  lower  the  clergy  in 
order  to  give  more  power  to  the  sovereign.^ 
j  In  this  light  it  was  regarded  by  the  bishops,  and,  (^)  2^^^-^- 
as  might  have  been  anticipated,  it  met  with  a  refusal,  custom. 
But  Henry  was  determined  to  gain  his  point,  and 
adroitly  changing  his  ground,  preferred  a  second 
question,  '  Whether  the  bishops  would  promise  to 
observe  the  ancient  customs  of  the  realm?'  The 
first  demand  was  now  dropped  altogether,  and  the 
point  which  henceforth  becomes  the  watchword  of  the 
dispute  is  the  observance  of  the  customs  of  the  realm. 


'  LiNGARD,  vol.  ii.  ch.  iii.  p.  65. 

B  B    2 


372  INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION. 

PART     The  question  was  an  ingenious  one,  and  involved  an 

'. —  ambiguity,  and    was  no  doubt  put    in   the   hope  of 

entrapping  the  clergy  on  the  horns  of  a  dilemma. 
For  although,  when  Becket  afterwards  asked  what 
the  customs  of  the  realm  were,  no  definite  reply 
could  be  given  him  till  a  commission  had  been  ap- 
pointed, so  that  the  clergy  would  have  been  giving 
in  their  adherence  to  an  unknown  quantity  :  yet  it 
required  no  great  knowledge  of  the  events  of  the 
preceding  reigns  to  perceive  that  the  powers  of  the 
clergy  had  been  far  less  under  the  three  first  Norman 
monarchs  than  they  now  were  or  claimed  to  be. 
But  the  bishops  were  alive  to  Henry's  ruse ;  and, 
bent  on  maintaining  their  newly  acquired  power, 
they  returned  an  ambiguous  answer,  declaring  their 
willingness  to  observe  the  customs,  '  saving  their 
order.'  This  answer  only  embittered  Henry  more 
than  before.  Threats  and  promises,  hope  and  fear, 
were  freely  employed.  At  length  the  obnoxious 
clause  was  withdrawn,  and  even  the  archbishop, 
sacrificing  his  own  judgment  to  the  entreaties  of  his 
fellow  bishops,  reluctantly  gave  way,  promising  on 
the  word  of  truth  to  observe  the  'customs.'  Success 
seemed  to  have  crowned  Henry's  attempt. 
{2)Course  But  no  sooner  had  those  customs  been  ascertained 
struggle,  by  a  committee  of  inquiry,  and  the  famous  sixteen 
{a)  The     Constitutions  of  Clarendon  ^  been  exhibited,  and  sub- 

Constitu- 

tions  of 

Claren- 
don. 
A.D.  1164       '  '^^^  sixteen  Constitutions  of  Clarendon,  Concil.  Claren.  an. 

1 164,  Labb^,  xiii.  318,  ar^as  follows  : 

'(i)  De  advocatione   et  praesentatione  ecclesiarum  si  contro- 

'  versia  emerserit  inter  laicos,  vel  inter  clericos  et  laicos,  vel  inter 


JURISDICTION.  373 

scribed  by  the  king,  the  prelates,  among  them  the     chap. 
archbishop,  and   thirty-seven  barons,   than   Becket's   ^ — 


'  clericos  et  clericos,  in  curia  domini  regis  tractetur  et  terminetur. 
'  — Condonned  by  Alexander  III. 

'  (2)  Ecclesiae  de  feudo  domini  regis  non  possunt  in  perpetuum 

*  dari  absque  assensu  et  concessione  ipsius. — Tolerated. 

'  (3)  Clerici  citati  et  accusati  de  quacumque  re,  moniti  a  justitia 
'  regis,  venient  in  curiam  ipsius,  responsuri  ibidem  de  hoc,  unde 
'  videbitur  curiae  regis,  quod  sit  ibi  respondendum.  Ita  quod  jus- 
'  titia  regis  mittet  in  curiam  sanctae  ecclesiae  ad  videndum,  qua 
'  ratione  res  ibi  tractabitur ;  et  si  clericus  convictus  vel  confessus 
'  fuerit,  non  debet  de  cetero  eum  ecclesia  tueri. — Condemned. 

'  (4)  Archiepiscopis,  episcopis,  et  personis  regni,  non  licet  exire 
'  de  regno  absque  licentia  domini  regis.  Et  si  exire  voluerint,  si 
'  domino  regi  placuerit,  assecurabunt,  quod  nee  in  eundo,  nee  in 
'  moram  faciendo,  nee  in  redeundo,  perquirent  malum  vel  damnum 

*  domino  regi  vel  regno. — Condemned. 

'  (5)  Excommunicati  non  debent  dare  vadium  ad  remanens,  nee 

*  praestare  juramentum,  sed   tantum   vadium  et  plegium  standi 

*  judicio  ecclesiae,  ut  absolvantur. — Condemned. 

'  (6)  Laici  non  debent  accusari  nisi  per  certos  et  legales  accusa- 
'  tores  et  testes  in  praesentia  episcopi  :  ita  quod  archidiaconus 
'  non  perdat  jus  suum,  nee  quidquam  quod  inde  habere  debeat. 
'  Et  si   tales  fuerint   qui  culpantur,  quod  non  velit  nee  audeat 

*  aliquis  accusare  eos  :  vicecomes  requisitus  ab  episcopo  faciet 
'  jurare  duodecim  legales  homines  de  visueto,  seu  de  villa  coram 

*  episcopo,  quod  inde  veritatem  secundum  conscientiam  manifes- 
'  tabunt. — Tolerated. 

'  (7)  Nullus  qui  de  rege  teneat  in  capite,  nee  aliquis  domini- 
'  corum  ministrorum  ejus,   excommunicetur,  nee   terrae   alicujus 

*  eorum  sub  interdicto  ponantur,  nisi  prius  dominus  rex  si  in  terra 
'  fuerit,  conveniatur,  vel  justitia  ejus,  si  fuerit  extra  regnum,  ut 
'  rectum  de  ipso  faciat,  et  ita  ut  quod  pertineat  ad  curiam  regiam, 
'  ibidem  terminetur,  et  de  eo  quod  spectabat  ad  ecclesiasticam 

*  curiam,  ad  eundem  mittatur,  ut  terminetur. — Condemned. 

'  (8)  De  appellationibus,  si  emerserint,  ab  archidiacono  debent 

*  procedere  ad  episcopum,  et  ab  episcopo  ad  archiepiscopum  :  et 
'  si  archiepiscopus  defuerit  in  justitia  exhibenda,   ad   dominum 

*  regem  perveniendum  est  postremo,  ut  praecepto  ipsius  in  curia 


II. 


274  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART     conscience  smote  him  for  the  deed  he  had   done. 
He  had  pledged  himself  to  observe  the  Constitutions, 


'  archiepiscopi  controversia  terminetur,  ita  quod  non  debeat 
'  ulterius  procedere  absque  assensu  regis. — Condemned. 

'  (9)  Si  calumnia  emerserit  inter  clericum  et  laicum,  vel  e  con- 
'  verso,  de  uUo  tenemento,  quod  clericus  velit  ad  eleemosynam 
'  attrahere,  laicus  vero  ad  laicum  feudum  :  recognitione  duodecim 
'  legalium  hominum,  per  capitalis  justitiae  regis  considerationem 
'  terminabitur,  utrum  tenementum  sit  pertinens  ad  eleemosynam, 
'  sive  ad  feudum  laicum  coram  ipsa  justitia  regis.  Et  si  recog- 
'  nitum  fuerit  ad  eleemosynam  pertinere,  placitum  erit  in  curia 
'  ecclesiastica  ;  si  vero  ad  laicum  feudum,  nisi  ambo  tenementum 
'  de  eodem  episcopo  vel  barone  advocaverint,  erit  placitum  in 
'  curia  regia.  Si  uterque  advocaverit  de  feudo  illo  eundem  epi- 
'  scopum  vel  baronem,  erit  placitum  in  curia  ipsius,  ita  quod  prop- 
'  ter  factam  recognitionem  saisinam  non  amittat  qui  prius  saisitus 
'  fuerat. —  Condemned. 

'(10)   Qui   de   civitate   vel   castello   vel   burgo   vel   dominico 

*  manerio  regis  fuerit,  si  ab  archidiacono  vel  episcopo  de  aliquo 
'  delicto  citatus  fuerit,  unde  debeat  eidem  respondere,  et  ad  cita- 

*  tiones  eorum  satisfacere  noluerit :  bene  licet  eum  sub  interdict© 
'  ponere,  sed  non  debet  excommunicari,  priusquam  capitalis  mini- 
'  ster  regis  villae  illius  conveniatur,  ut  justitiet  eum  ad  satisfactio- 
'  nem  venire.  Et  si  minister  regis  inde  defecerit,  ipse  erit  in 
'  misericordia  regis,  et  exinde  poterit  episcopus  ipsum  accusatum 
'  ecclesiastica  justitia  coercere. — Co/idejmied. 

'(11)  Archiepiscopi,  episcopi,  et  universae  personae  regni,  qui 
'  de  rege  tenent  in  capite,  habeant  possessiones  suas  de  dominio 
'  regis,  sicut  baroniam,  et  inde  respondeant  justitiariis  et  ministris 
'  regis,  et  sequantur  et  faciant  omnes  consuetudines  regias  et  recti- 
'  tudines  :  et  sicut  ceteri  barones,  debent  interesse  judiciis  curiae 

*  domini  regis  cum  baronibus,  quousque  perveniatur  in  judicio  ad 

*  diminutionem  membrorum,  vel  ad  mortem. — Allowed. 

'  (12)  Cum  vacaverit  archiepiscopatus,  vel  episcopatus,  vel 
'  abbatia,  vel  prioratus  de  dominio  regis,  debet  esse  in  manu  ejus, 
'  et  inde  percipiet  omnes  reditus  et  exitus,  sicut  dominicos.  Et 
'  cum  ventum  fuerit  ad  consulendum  ecclesiae,  debet  dominus  rex 
'  mandare  potiores  personas  ecclesiae,  et  in  capella  ipsius  debet 
'  electio  fieri  assensu  regis,  et  consilio  personarum  regis,  quas  ad 


JURISDICTION.  375 

and  yet  many  of  them  went  against  what  he  con-    chap. 

ceived  to  be  the  riorhts   of  the   Church.     Amongst  ~ ^ . 

other  things  it  was  enacted  by  the  Constitutions,  that 
the  custody  of  every  vacant  archbishopric,  bishop- 
ric, abbey  or  priory  of  royal  foundation  should  be 
given,  and  its  revenues  paid,  during  a  vacancy,  to  the 
king,  and  that  the  election  of  a  new  incumbent  should 
be  made  in  consequence  of  the  king's  writ  by  the 
chief  clergy  assembled  in  the  king's  chapel,  with  the 
assent  of  the  king,  and  the  advice  of  such  clergy  as 
the  king  might  call  to  his  assistance.  It  was  further 
enacted  that  in  every  suit  in  which  a  clergyman  was 
concerned,  proceedings  should  commence  before  the 
king's  justices,  who  should  determine  whether  the 
cause  ought  to  be  tried  in  the  secular  or  episcopal 
courts,  and  that  in  the  latter  case,,  if  he  were  convicted 
in  a  criminal  action,  he  should  lose  the  benefit  of 
clergy.      It  was  ordained  that  no  tenant-in-chief  of 

'  hoc  faciendum  vocaverit.  Et  ibidem  faciet  electus  homagium  et 
'  fidelitatem  domino  regi,  sicut  ligio  domino,  de  vita  et  membris, 
'  et  de  honore  suo  terreno,  salvo  ordine  suo,  priusquam  sit  conse- 
'  cratus. — Conde?nned. 

'(13)  Si  quisquam  de  proceribus  regni  dififortiaverit  archiepi- 
'  scopo  vel  episcopo,  vel  archidiacono,  de  se  vel  de  suis  justitiam 
'  exhibere  :  rex  debet  justitiare.  Et  si  forte  aliquis  diffortiaverit 
'  domino  regi  rectitudinem  suam  :  archiepiscopi,  vel  episcopi  et 
'  archidiaconi  debent  emu  justitiare  ut  domino  regi  satisfaciat. — 
'  Allowed. 

'(14)  Catalla  eorum,  qui  sunt  in  regis  forisfacto,  non  detineat 

*  ecclesia  vel  coemeterium,  contra  justitiam  regis ;  quia  ipsius  regis 
'  sunt,  sive  in  ecclesiis  sive  extra  fuerint  inventa. — Alloioed. 

'  (15)  Placita   de   debitis,  quae  fide    interposita   debentur,  vel 

*  absque  interpositione  fidei,  sint  in  curia  regis. — Condemned. 

'(16)  Filii  rusticorum  non  debent  ordinari  absque  assensu 
'  domini,  de  cujus  terra  nati  dignoscuntur. — Allowed.' 


376  INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION. 

PART     the  kino-,  no  officer  of  his  household  or  of  his  de- 
II. 
— mesne,  should  be  excommunicated,  or  his  lands  put 


under  an  interdict,  until  application  had  been  made 
to  the  king  or  his  justiciary,  who  would  determine 
what  belonged  to   the  king's  courts  and  what  be- 
longed   to   the    ecclesiastical    courts.      Archbishops, 
bishops,  or  parsons  were  forbidden  to  go  beyond  the 
sea  without  the  king's  permission  ;  and   in  case  of 
appeals,  it  was  provided  that  no  appeal  should  lie 
from  the  archbishop  to  the  Pope  without  the  king's 
consent ;  but  that  if  the  archbishop  failed  to  do  justice, 
the  cause  should  be  carried  before  the  king,  that  by 
his  precept  the  suit  might  be  terminated  in  the  arch- 
bishop's court.      All  these  were  points  which  Becket 
could  not  approve.      He   could    not   feel   happy  in 
having  given  them  his  sanction.      He  relented.      In 
an  agony  of  mind,  he  interdicted  himself  from  the 
exercise  of  his  functions,  wrote  to  Alexander  HI.  a 
full  account  of  the  transaction,  and  humbly  solicited 
absolution. 
{b)  Ruin        If  Becket's  refusal  to  observe  the  customs  uncon- 
the  king's  ditionally  had  previously  incensed  King  Henry,  his 
present  repentance  now  incensed  him  still  more,  since 
it  reopened   a    question  which    he    had  hoped    was 
already  settled.      Henceforth    the  ruin  of  a  single 
prelate  became  one  of  the  chief  objects  which   en- 
gaged the  perplexed  monarch's  attention.       A  series 
of  charges  was  prepared  against  the  archbishop,  and 
the  primate  was  summoned  before  a  great  council  at 
Northampton.^     That  was  indeed  a  curious  instance 

'  Concil.  Northampton,  an.  1164,  Labb£,  xiii.  320. 


JURISDICTION. 


377 


of  the  administration  of  justice,  where  the  accused    chap. 

-.  XII 

was  the  greatest  prelate  in  England,  the  highest  in  '— 

dignity  next  to  the  sovereign,  and  the  accuser 
the  king  himself;  where  the  judge  was  a  favourite 
clerk  of  the  king,  and  the  jury  bishops  who  had 
taken  an  oath  of  fealty  to  the  accused  ;  where  Henry 
was  preferring  charges  against  an  ecclesiastic  once 
his  most  intimate  friend,  and  the  spiritual  father  of 
the  land  was  arraigned  before  a  tribunal  of  his  own 
liege  children.  There  could  be  no  doubt  as  to  the 
king's  aim  at  Northampton.  He  wished  to  ruin 
Becket  by  the  enormous  demands  for  money  made 
on  him,  now  for  an  imaginary  contempt  of  court, 
then  for  the  rents  which  he  had  received  as  warden 
of  Eye  and  Berkhamstead,  again  for  a  sum  which 
the  king  had  formerly  given  him  before  the  walls  of 
Toulouse,  and  then  for  the  receipts  which  had  come 
Into  his  hands  as  chancellor  from  vacant  abbeys  and 
bishoprics.^  He  wilfully  ignored  the  fact  that  Becket 
had  been  previously  released  by  his  own  commands 
from  all  these  claims.  Nor  was  the  archbishop 
ignorant  of  the  object  which  the  king  had  in  view. 
Still  he  refused  to  yield  to  the  advice  which  was 
privately  tendered  by  the  prelates,  to  surrender  and 
to  avert  Henry's  wrath  by  resigning  his  see.  Mat- 
ters grew  more  serious;  Henry's  feelings  became 
more  embittered  ;  it  seemed  as  though  his  perse- 
verance would  lead  to  bloodshed.  One  after  another 
the  bishops  withdrew  from  the  judgment  hall,  each 
as  he  passed  renouncing  his  fealty  to  the  archbishop, 

1  LiNGARD,  vol.  ii.  ch.  iii.  p.  69. 


^-g  INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION. 

PART     and  appealing  to  the  Pope.       Becket  was  left  alone 

'        with  the  lay  barons.   But  when  the  Earl  of  Leicester, 

his  private  friend,  called  on  him  to  hear  his  sentence, 

this  language  was  more  than  he  could  endure,  and 

the  hio-h  bearine  of  the  former  chancellor  burst  forth, 

blended  with  the    tone  of  a  martyred  ecclesiastic  : 

'  My  sentence,'  said  the  archbishop  ;  '  hear  me  first. 

You   know  with  what  fidelity  I  served   the   king ; 

how  reluctantly,  to  please  him,  I  accepted  my  present 

office.  .  .   .  Know  moreover  that  you  are  my  children 

in   God.      Neither    law    nor    reason    allows    you    to 

judge    your    father.      I    decline    your    tribunal,    and 

refer  my  quarrel  to  the  Pope  for  decision.     To  him 

I  appeal,  and  shall  now  under  the  protection  of  the 

Catholic  and  Apostolic  Church  depart' 

(3)  Under  that  protection  Becket  did  depart.      Crowds 

,.  '     of  people  flocked  about  him  as  he  passed  through 

Beckefs     Northampton.      They  saluted  him  with  acclamations; 

exile, 

threw  themselves  on  their  knees  to  receive  his 
blessing,  and  accompanied  him  to  the  monastery  of 
St.  Andrew's.  His  knights  and  his  clerks  came  to 
him,  and  begged  him  with  tears  to  return  them  their 
homage  and  license  them  to  depart.  With  three 
companions  he  left  St.  Andrew's.  Three  weeks  later 
he  landed  safely  In  France.  Into  Alexander  III.'s 
hands  he  surrendered  his  archbishopric,  but  only  to 
be  reinvested  by  Alexander  with  the  archieplscopal 
dignity.  Driven  from  Pontigny  by  Henry's  threat 
that  if  it  afforded  him  an  asylum  any  longer  all  the 
Cistercians  should  be  expelled  from  England,  he 
removed  to  Sens,  and  there,  as  he  had  done  at  Pon- 
tigny, continued  to  live  the  life  of  a  recluse.     Gradu- 


JURISDICTION.                    -  27g 

ally  his  opinions  became  tinQ^ed  with  enthusiasm  ;  he  chap. 

.  XII 

identified  his  cause  with  that  of  God  and  the  Church  ;  1_ 


and  assuming  a  bolder  tone,  he  promulgated  a  decree 
with  more  than  ordinary  severity,  cutting  off  from 
the  society  of  the  faithful  such  of  the  royal  ministers 
as  had  communicated  with  the  antipope,  those  who 
had  framed  the  Constitutions  of  Clarendon,  and  all 
who  had  invaded  the  property  of  the  Church. 

Before  this  weapon  Henry  quailed,  however  much  {b)  ^ 
he  might  affect  to  despise  it.  Whilst  Becket  was  at  return. 
Pontigny  he  had  denounced  the  punishment  of  trea- 
son against  any  person  who  should  presume  to  bring 
into  England  letters  of  excommunication  or  interdict. 
Now  he  had  still  greater  reason  to  fear  such  a  sen- 
tence :  for  the  antipope  was  dead,  and  Alexander  III.  a.d.  1165 
had  returned  to  Rome  and  was  supporting  Becket. 
He  therefore  condescended  to  receive  the  primate, 
and  twice  conferred  with  him  on  the  points  at  issue ; 
but  the  conferences  on  each  occasion  broke  down,  as 
Henry  refused  to  give  the  kiss  of  peace.  At  length 
circumstances  became  too  pressing  for  the  king :  the 
French  king,  Louis,  invaded  Normandy ;  Alexander 
threatened  to  lay  all  his  Continental  territories  under 
the  interdict,  and  he  consented  to  receive  the  arch- 
bishop. In  the  meadows  of  Freteville  Henry  and 
Becket  met; — Henry  embittered,  but  forced  to  ac- 
quiesce under  the  pressure  of  circumstances  ;  Becket 
sad  but  resolute,  and  conscious  of  coming  troubles. 
The  king  was  relieved  from  his  sentence  ;  Becket 
was  restored  to  favour ;  Henry  repaired  to  Bure  in 
Normandy,  to  celebrate  the  holidays  in  the  midst  of 
his  prelates  and  nobles ;   Becket  hastened  to  revisit      "7° 


ogo  INVESTITURES   AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART     his  church  at  Canterbury,  from  which  he  had  been  six 
II.  ., 
years  an  exile. 

Although  he  was  joyfully  received  by  the  clergy 
and  people,  he  had  not  been  long  there  before  signs 
appeared  of  a  gathering  storm.  His  provisions 
were  hourly  intercepted;  his  property  was  plundered; 
his  servants  were  beaten  and  insulted.  The  excom- 
munication which  he  pronounced  on  Christmas  Day 
on  Ranulph  and  Robert  de  Broc  did  not  lessen  the 
ill-will  of  the  enemies,  who,  for  seven  years,  had 
inflicted  every  injury  in  their  power  on  him  and  his 
church.  Only  a  few  days  later  four  knights — 
Reginald  Fitzurse,  William  Tracy,  Hugh  de  Mor- 
ville,  and  Richard  Brito — assembled  at  Saltwood 
to  compass  the  death  of  the  archbishop,  which  a 
hasty  expression  of  Henry's  had  suggested. 
if)  On   the   Wednesday   after    Christmas,    the    four 

knights  appeared  before  the  palace  of  the  archbishop, 
and  demanded  to  speak  with  him  on  business  from 
the  king.  Finding  him  unwilling  to  absolve  the  ex- 
communicated bishops  until  they  professed  submis- 
sion to  the  Church,  they  left  him,  and  withdrew  to  a 
large  house  opposite  to  arm  themselves.  Becket's 
attendants  anticipated  their  intentions.  It  was  the 
hour  of  evening  service,  and  at  the  sound  of  the 
psalmody  in  the  choir,  a  voice  exclaimed  :  '  To  the 
Church  :  It  will  afford  protection.'  Thither  Becket 
was  hurried  by  his  attendants,  but  not  till  the  knights 
were  close  in  pursuit,  and  the  door  was  closed  behind 
him.  Slowly  and  calmly  he  passed  through  the 
transept,  and  ascended  the  steps  which  led  to  his 
favourite  altar — the  well-known  steps  which  he  was 


JURISDICTION,  381 

now  ascendinof  for  the  last  time — when  the  cries  of    chap. 

....  XII 

the  kniehts  demandingf  admission  without  were  heard.    '- 

o  o 

Scorning  the  material  defences  of  bars  and  bolts,  he  at 
once  ordered  the  doors  to  be  thrown  open,  and  turned 
to  meet  his  assassins.  It  was  a  scene  not  easily  to  be 
forgotten.  Stationed  with  his  back  against  a  column 
between  the  altars  of  St.  Mary  and  St.  Bennet,  the 
archbishop  quietly  awaited  their  approach,  whilst 
they  burst  into  the  church,  and  rushed  in  furiously, 
demanding, '  Where  is  the  traitor  ?  '  To  this  question 
no  answer  was  returned.  But  when  they  asked  : 
'  Where  is  the  archbishop,'  Becket  replied  :  '  Here  I 
am,  the  archbishop,  but  no  traitor.'  '  Then  die,' 
exclaimed  a  voice.  '  I  am  ready,'  returned  the  prelate, 
'  to  die  for  the  cause  of  God  and  his  Church  ;  but  I 
forbid  you  in  the  name  of  the  Almighty  God  to  touch 
any  one  of  my  household,  clerk  or  layman.'  It 
seemed  as  though  they  were  afraid.  There  was  a 
few  minutes'  pause.  An  attempt  was  made  to  drag 
him  from  the  church.  In  the  struggle  which  ensued, 
Fitzurse  dealt  a  blow,  wounding  the  archbishop  on 
the  crown.  Feelino-  the  blood  trickling-  down  his 
cheek,  he  wiped  it  away  with  his  sleeve,  then  joined 
his  hands,  and  bent  his  head  in  the  attitude  of 
prayer,  uttering  the  words  :  '  Into  thy  hands,  O  Lord, 
I  commend  my  spirit.'  In  this  posture,  with  his  face 
to  his  murderers,  he  awaited  the  blows  which  ended 
his  life. 

The  archbishop  was  murdered,  but  that  death,  so   (4)  The 
sudden,  so  tragic,  so  unmerited,  procured  the  most  victo- 
brilliant  victory  for  the  cause  for  which  he  contended.   '^'^"'*' 
The  assassins,  with  all  their  abettors,  were  excommu- 


;82 


INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 


PART 
II. 


D.  In- 
roads on 
the 

wealth 
of  the 
clergy. 


(r)  Dis- 
posal of 
benefices. 


nicated  by  Alexander  :  the  interdict  on  Henry's 
dominions  in  Gaul  was  confirmed.  Crowds  flocked 
to  pray  before  the  tomb  of  the  martyred  archbishop  ; 
stories  got  abroad  of  the  miraculous  cures  there 
performed.  Henry  himself  was  deeply  affected.  He 
made  every  effort  to  justify  himself  before  the  Pope. 
He  acquiesced  in  all  the  conditions  prescribed,  and 
yielded  more  than  Thomas  a  Becket  had  been  able 
to  gain  during  his  lifetime.  To  crown  the  whole, 
he  made  a  pilgrimage  to  the  tomb,  and  as  his 
hasty  words  had  been  the  cause  of  the  crime,  he  sub- 
mitted to  the  penance  imposed.  A  night  and  a  day 
was  spent  in  prayers  and  tears,  imploring  the  inter- 
cession in  heaven  of  him  whom  he  had  pursued 
with  relentless  animosity  on  earth.^  The  Church 
was  triumphant,  but  her  victory  was  dearly  pur- 
chased with  the  martyrdom  of  one  of  her  most  loyal 
sons. 

In  each  strusfSfle  in  which  the  Church,  or  rather 
the  Papacy — for  the  Papacy  now  becomes  identical 
with  the  Church — engaged,  greater  success  attended 
her  efforts.  The  struggle  for  investitures  had  ended 
in  a  favourable  compromise,  that  for  jurisdiction  had 
resulted  in  a  complete  triumph.  Subsequent  triumphs 
were  gained  almost  without  any  struggle  at  all,  and 
among  them  three  in  particular — the  power  of  the 
Popes  to  tax  the  clergy,  the  administration  of  the 
Church  by  means  of  legates,  and  the  right  to  dispose 
of  benefices. 

The  right  to  dispose  of  benefices  was  in  fact,  at 

'  LiNGARD,  vol.  ii.  ch.  iii.  pp.  83,  loi. 


INVASION  OF  CLERICAL  RIGHTS.  Vg^ 

first,  no  right  at  all,  but  simply  an  innovation  on  the    chap. 


XII. 


rights  of  the  recognised  patrons,  which  was  ac- 
quiesced in  as  a  matter  of  courtesy.  Nevertheless,  it  ^%  0/^1/16 
followed  as  a  necessary  corollary  from  the  advanced  ^^S^^^- 
claims  of  the  Papacy.  In  the  middle  of  the  twelfth 
century  it  was  still  in  its  infancy.  Hadrian  IV.  then  a.d.  1154 
addressed  a  letter  to  Theobald,  bishop  of  Paris,  on 
behalf  of  Hugh  Chancellor  of  France,  urgently  beg- 
ging the  bishop  to  confer  on  him  the  first  place  of 
emolument  or  dignity  which  should  be  in  his  gift,  that 
both  the  chancellor  might  experience  the  benefit  of 
the  Pope's  intercession,  and  the  Pope  might  be  able 
to  thank  the  bishop  for  his  kindness.^  Under 
Hadrian's  successor,  however,  Alexander  III.,  these  1159-1185 
letters  besfan  to  assume  a  tone  of  command.'^  It 
w^as  the  same  story  as  formerly  with  the  Pope's 
decretal  letters.  From  the  tone  of  advice,  these 
commendatory  letters  passed  to  the  tone  of  command. 
They  no  longer  recommended  a  suitable  person  for 
an  office,  but  they  asked  for  a  personal  favour ;  and 
who  could  refuse  a  favour  asked  for  by  the  vicege- 
rent of  Christ  ? 

In  the  time  of  Innocent   III.,  the  privilege  had   1198-1216 
advanced  a  step  further.      Having  now  come  to  be 

'  Ep.  xiii.  Had.  IV.,  Labe^,  xiii.  p.  24  :  '  Fraternitatem  tuam 
'  pro  his  qui  nobis  cari  suntet  accepti,  vagare  non  dubitamus.  .  .  . 
'  Inde  est  quod  ilium  [Hugonem]  fraternitati  tuae  duximus  pluri- 
'  mum  commendandum,  rogantes  attentius,  .  .  .  primum  perso- 
'  natum  vel  honorem  qui  in  tua  vocabit  ecclesia  ei  concedas.' 

"^  Ep.  App.  vi.  Alex.  III.  Labb^,  xiii.  122  :  '  Ipsum  [Ubertum] 
*  caritati  tuae  sollicite  commendamus,  rogantes  et  rogando  man- 
'  dantes  .  .  .  praebendam  in  ecclesia  S.  Timothei,  si  qua  nunc 
'  vacat,  vel  quae  primo  vacaverit,  ei  concedas  liberaliter.' 


-g.  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART     regarded  as  a  right,  it  was  maintained  in  spite  of  all 

- '. opposition  by  officers  appointed  for  the  purpose,  and 

ecclesiastical  penalties  were  threatened  in  case  of 
non-compliance.^  Everywhere  the  best  livings  and 
dignities  were  filled  with  the  nominees  of  the  Popes, 
able  indeed  to  discharge  the  necessary  services,  un- 
less too  these  were  neglected,  but  often  foreigners 
unknown  to  the  people,  speaking  a  foreign  language, 
unable  to  understand  the  people,  and  mostly  non- 
resident. Hence  arose  the  outcry,  afterwards  pro- 
minent at  the  Reformation,  against  non-resident 
clergy,  who  fed  themselves  but  not  their  flocks  ;  and 
hence  in  part  came  the  prejudice  against  service  in 
any  but  the  language  of  the  people.  It  was  not 
that  in  itself  the  people  would  understand  the  mass 
better  whether  it  were  in  the  vernacular,  or  whe- 
ther it  were  in  the  ecclesiastical  language,  but  it  was 
that  the  people  were  impatient  of  ecclesiastics  who 
could  not  understand  or  be  understood  by  their 
parishioners. 
{b)  .  Nowhere,  probably,  was  the  practice  of  papal  pro- 
England,  visions  carried  to  a  greater  extent  than  it  was  in 
England,  and  hence  nowhere  was  so  strong  a  pre- 
judice engendered  against  a  non-resident  clergy  and 
against  foreign  ecclesiastics.  Thus  in  the  thirteenth 
A.D.  1231  century,  according  to  Mathew  of  Paris,  a  conspiracy 
was  made  against  the  Roman  legates,  who  arbitrarily 
disposed  of  benefices  according  to  their  good  pleasure, 
and    compelled  the    collators  to    obey  their  wishes 


1  Innoc.  III.  lib.  i.  Ep.  cxvi.  cxxvii.  cxlv.  ;  lib.  xvi.  Ep.  clxxvii. 
See  Hurter's  Innocent  III.  iii.  109. 


INVASION  OF  CLERICAL  RIGHTS. 


385 


under  the  threat  of  suspension.^     Indeed,  how  could     chap. 

XII 

the    Pope's   power  be   other   than   oppressive    in   a  . '. 

country  which  was  at  the  time  held  by  the  king  as  a 
fief  of  the  Roman  See  ?  The  conspirators  tore  down 
the  tithe  barns  of  the  Roman  clergy  throughout  the 
length  and  breadth  of  the  land.  The  Italians  were  a.d.  1232 
obliged  to  conceal  themselves  in  the  monasteries.^ 
The  papal  messengers  who  brought  over  new  bulls 
of  collation  fared  no  better,  and  Gregory  IX.,  in  con- 
sequence, accused  the  English  bishops  of  seizing  and 
destroying  his  bulls  ;  of  imprisoning  and  plundering  1232 
his  clergy,  of  offering  violence  to  his  messengers,  one 
having  been  cut  to  pieces,  and  the  other  having  been 
left  all  but  lifeless.  Yet,  notwithstanding  all  that 
had  happened,  Gregory  IX.  had  the  audacity  to 
write  to  the  English  bishops,  a  few  years  later,  1240 
charging  them  to  appoint  three  hundred  Romans  to 
the  benefices  next  vacant.^  No  wonder  that  to 
the  English  mind  papal  bulls  came  to  be  associated 
with  acts  of  oppression  and  grasping !  No  wonder 
that  the  Pope  came  to  be  regarded  with  abhorrence 
as  a  usurping  foreigner.  No  wonder  that  the  Eng- 
lish legates  at  the  Council  of  Lyons  complained  that 
Italians  grew  fat  in  England,  that  an  infinite  number 
of  them  had  obtruded    themselves  as  rectors  upon      1245 


'  Math.  Par.  (p.  313)  says  that  the  Roman  Legates  arbitrarily 
dispose  of  the  beneficia  regni^  suis,  secundum  quod  eis  ;placet,  con- 
ferendo,  and  compel  the  collators  to  obey  their  wishes  suspensionis 
sententias  fubuinaiido. 

2  Ibid.  p.  316  :  'Distracta  sunt  horrea  Romanorum  per  totam 
'  fere  Anglia^.  .  .  .  Delituerunt  clerici  Romani  in  abbatiis.' 

3  Ibid.  p.  532. 

C   C 


285  INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION.   ' 

PART     churches,  for  which  they  cared  nothing  at  all,  that 

'       they  received  in   England  a  sum  of  60,000  marks, 

and  derived  from  the  realm  a  greater  revenue  than 

the  king  himself^ 

(f)  Abuse       Nor  was  England  the  only  country  which  com- 

France.     plained  of  this  abuse.     The  Church  of  France  also 

A.D.  1246   j-^iggfj  ]-^gj.  voice  against  the  injustice  of  collation  in 

the  Gravamina,  presented  by  Lewis  IX.  to  Innocent 

IV.    '  Churches,'  it  ran,  '  are  oppressed  in  the  collation 

to  benefices  and  prebends.    For  in  every  church  you 

have  bestowed  many  prebends,  even  before  they  are 

vacant,  and  not  only  prebends  but  also  livings,  which 

seems  to  us  all  a  strange  thing-,  and  such  has  been 

unknown  heretofore.      Alexander  once  took  refuge 

with  King  Lewis  in  France,  but  he  never  ventured  to 

bestow  a  benefice  or  prebend  while  there.     Nor  did 

any   of  his    predecessors.      Of  his    successors,  few, 


^  Math.  Par.  Concil.  Lugd.  an.  1245,  Labbe,  xiv.  71  :  'Sed 
'  ecce  per  vos  et  praedecessores  vestros,  nullam  considerationem 

*  habentes,    quod    praeter   subsidia    supradicta,    jam    ditantur   in 

*  Anglia  Italic!,  quorum  est  jam  numerus  infinitus  in  ecclesiis  ad 
'  ipsorum  religiosorum  spectantibus  patronatus,  qui  rectores  eccle- 

*  siarum  dicuntur,  praefatos  religiosos,  quos  deberent  defendere, 
'  relinquentes  penitus  indefensos,  nullam  curam  animarum  gerentes, 
'  sed  lupos  rapacissimos  gregera  dispergere  et  oves  rapere  permit- 
'  tentes.  Unde  vere  dicere  possunt,  quod  non  sunt  boni  pastores, 
'  quoniam  oves  suas  non  cognoscunt,  nee  pastorum  notitiam  oves 

*  habent ;  hospitalitate  eleemosynarumque  largitioni,  sicut  statu- 
'  turn  est  in  ecclesia,  non  insistunt,  sed  fructus  tantum  percipiunt, 
'  extra  regnum  asportantes,  regnum  non  mediocriter  depauperando 
'  et  redditus  occupando.  .  .  .  Ut  autem  vobis  Veritas  plenius 
'  innotescat,  Italici  percipientes  in  Anglia  sexaginta  millia  mar- 

*  carum  et  eo  amplius  annuatim,  plus  emolumento  meri  reditus  de 
'  regno  reportant  quam  ipse  rex,  qui  est  tutor  ecclesiae  et  regni 

*  gubernacula  moderatur.' 


INVASION  OF  CLERICAL  RIGHTS.  ^S/ 

too,   bestowed   of  their   own    authority  a   benefice    chap. 

until    the    time    of   Innocent    III.,    whose    example  '. 

Honorius  and  Gregory  followed.  And  yet  all  your 
predecessors  together  did  not  confer  so  many  bene- 
fices as  you  have  already  done  in  your  short  tenure  ^.d.  1266 
of  office.'^  Yet  twenty  years  later,  Clement  IV. 
actually  declared  that  the  plenary  disposition  of 
all  benefices  belonofed  to  the  sovereio^n  Pontiff.^ 

The  right  of  appointment  to  vacant  bishoprics  was        (2) 
not,  however,  so  universally  claimed  by  the  Popes  imtead  of 
as  that  to  dignities  and  benefices.      Probably  the  old  mtnts  to 
struofSfles  for  investitures  had  taus^ht  them  where  to  !.f!f^' 
expect  resistance  ;  and,  in  general,  their  pretensions  to  {a)  Share 

,.      .       ,  .  -i        ill  bishoi- 

appomt  to  sees  were  limited  to  certain  cases  only,  ^-i^s. 
In  France,  England,  and  Spain,  a  regulation  was 
established  by  law,  that  the  king's  permission  to 
elect,  and  afterwards  his  confirmation  of  the  election, 
must  be  obtained.  Theoretically,  therefore,  the  ap- 
pointment lay  with  the  chapter.  But  not  unfrequently  ^^15 
the  Popes,  as  in  the  election  of  Simon  Langton  to  be 
archbishop  of  York,  refused  to  sanction  the  choice  of 
the  chapter  and    required   a  fresh  election   to  take 


^  Gravamina  Ecclesiae  Gallicanae  in  Brown,  App.  ad  Fascicu- 
lum  rerum  cxpet.  et  fugicnd.  p.  238,  and  in  Gies.  vol.  iii.  sec.  62, 
p.  186. 

^  Sexti  Decretal,  lib.  iii.  tit.  iv.  c.  2  :  '  Licet  ecclesiarum,  per- 
'  sonatuum,  dignitatum,  aliorumque  beneficiorum  ecclesiasticorum 
'  plenaria  dispositio  ad  Romanum  noscatur  Pontificem  pertinere, 
'  ita  quod  non  solum  ipsa,  cum  vacant,  potest  de  jure  conferre, 
'  verum  etiam  jus  in  ipsis  tribuere  vacaturis ;  collationem  tamen 

*  ecclesiarum,  personatuum,  dignitatum  et  beneficiorum  apud  sedem 
'  apostolicam  vacantium  specialius   caeteris   antiqua  consuetude 

*  Romanis  pontificibus  reservavit.' 

c  c  2 


II. 


388  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART  place.^  In  Germany,  imperial  nomination  of  bishops, 
or  imperial  influence  over  the  elections,  came  into 
vogue  after  the  settlement  of  the  struggle  about 
Investitures  In  the  twelfth  century.  Yet  as  the 
power  of  the  Popes  triumphed  over  that  of  the 
emperors,  the  Imperial  influence  became  less  and  less, 
and,  in  the  climax  of  the  papal  power.  Otto  IV.^and 
Frederic  11.^  had  to  disclaim  the  right.  In  Naples, 
Hungary,  Denmark,  and  Sweden,  nomination  by  the 
king  continued  till  the  thirteenth  century.  In  general 
it  was  a  wise  discretion  on  the  part  of  the  Popes 
which  left  the  appointment  to  bishoprics  in  the  hands 
of  the  chapters.  The  bishops  did  not,  however, 
escape  the  Papal  covetousness.^ 

'  The  chapter  of  York  chose  Simon  Langton,  the  brother  of 
Stephen,  to  be  their  archbishop.  The  Pope  refused  to  sanction 
the  choice,  and  the  chapter  had  to  make  another  election  during 
the  Lateran  Council  in  Rome,  an.  12 15.  See  Math.  Par.  p.  271 
seq.  The  account  will  also"  be  found  in  Additio  ad  Concil. 
Lateran.  iv.  an.  12 15,  Labb^,  xiii.  1020. 

2  Otto  had  been  obliged  to  take  a  new  oath  to  the  Pope  in 
Speier,  March  22,  1209.  Regist.  Imp.  Ep.  189:  'Ilium  igitur 
'  abolere  volentes  abusum  .  ,  .  concedimus  et  sancimus,  ut  elec- 

*  tiones  Praelatorum  libere  ac  canonice  fiant,  quatenus  ille  prae- 
'  ficiatur  ecclesiae  viduatae,  quem  totum  capitulum  vel  major  et 
'  sanior  pars  ipsius  duxerit  eligendum,  dummodo  nihil  ei  obstet  de 
'  canonicis  institutis.     Appellationes  autem  in  negotiis  et  causis 

*  ecclesiasticis  ad  apostolicam  sedem  libere  fiant,  earumque  pro- 
'  secutionem  sive  processum  nullus  impedire  praesumat.' 

3  Two  promises  were  made  by  Frederic  II.  :  one  at  Eger,  June 
28,  1213,  the  same  as  that  made  by  Otto  (Pertz,  iv.  224)  ;  the 
other  at  Strasburg,  July  i,  12 16  (Pertz,  iv.  228). 

'^  The  newly  elected  Archbishop  of  York  returned  from  the 
Lateran   Council,    an.    12 15    '  obligatus    in    Curia    Romana    de 

*  decem  millibus  librarum  legalium  esterlingorum.     In  fine  autem, 

*  soluto  Concilio,  extorsit  Papa  de  unoquoque  Praelato  infinitam 


INVASION  OF  CLERICAL   RIGHTS. 


389 


For  as  far  as  the  power  exercised  by  bishops  was    chap. 


XII. 


concerned,  the   Popes  obtained  ample  compensation 
for  any  power  which  the  appointment  would  have 
given  them  in  the  new  institution  of  legates.      Boni- 
face had  as  papal  legate   crowned   King   Pepin  at   a.d.  752 
Soissons.     One  hundred  and  twenty  years  later,  the 
institution  was  anew  revived,  and  then  in  the  cha- 
racter in  which  it  was  afterwards  known,  as  a  super- 
seding of   the  power   of  the  bishops.     John  VIII.     872-882 
appointed   Ansegis,  Archbishop  of  Sens,  Apostolic 
Vicar  with  legatine  powers,  for  the  purpose  of  hum- 
bling   the    great    archbishop    Hincmar.      After    the 
night  of  the  Papacy,  papal  legates  with  a  universal 
commission  to  visit  the  churches,  appear  in  the  time 
of  Leo  IX.  and  Victor  II.     They  were  one  of  the 
great  instruments  by  which  Gregory  VII.  worked  his 
reforms.^     Since  it  was  impossible  for  the  Pope  to  be 
everywhere,  and  he  was  yet  supposed  to  have  the 
care  of  all  the  churches,  legates  were  appointed  to 
act  as   his   representatives  and  vicegerents,   and   to 
receive  the  same  obedience  from  the  bishops  as  he 
would  have  received  himself^    Such  obedience  would 
have  been  impossible  until  the  doctrines  of  the  False 
Decretals  had  taken  firm  root. 


'  pecuniam,  quam  cum  viaticis  cogebantur  ab  usurariis  suis  mutuo 
'  duris  conditionibus  sumere.'     See  Math.  Par.  p.  274. 

'  See  Hallam's  Middle  Ages,  vol.  ii.  pt.  i.  ch.  vii.  p.  194  ; 
Neand.  vii.  119  ;  Gies.  vol.  iii.  sec.  47,  p.  11,  and  vol.  iii.  sec.  62, 

P-  175- 

2  Greg.  VII.  lib.  v.  Ep.  ii.  Labbe,  xii.  408  :  '  Misimus  ad  vos 
'  hunc  fratrem  nostrum  .  .  .  cui  et  vicem  nostram  in  vobis  com- 
'  misimus  .  .  .  cui  vos  obedire  et  unanimites  assistere  volumus, 
'  admonentes  .  .  .  ut  .  .  .  talem  sibi  honorem  et  reverentiam 
'  exhibeatis  qualem  oportet.   .  .  .' 


^QQ  INVESTITURES  AND  JURISDICTION. 

PART  Under  Gregory's   successors,    legates   became   a 

'        numerous  and  an  established  order.    Ro^er,  Count  of 


A.D.  109  5j(,j|y^  received  the  dignity  from  Urban  II. :  perhaps, 
in  his  case,  it  was  not  meant  to  be  more  than  a  dig- 
iioo  nity.^  Paschal  II.,  the  great  champion  of  investiture, 
was  present  at  the  Synod  of  Poictiers  by  his  legates, 
and  through  them  caused  Philip  king  of  France  to 
be  excommunicated.^  Pandulph  appeared  in  Eng- 
land as  the  legate  of  Innocent  III.,  and  received 
from  King  John  the  oath  of  fealty.  Secure  of 
the  powerful  support  of  the  Popes,  the  legates  ap- 
peared everywhere,  invested  with  marks  of  rank, 
superseding  the  bishops,  flaunting  the  pontifical 
insignia,  disposing  of  benefices,  even  interfering  with 
free  elections,  and  rendering  themselves  infamous  by 
their  shameless  extortions.^  Can  the  Popes  be  said 
to  have  lost  much  in  not  claiming  the  appointments 
to  bishoprics  when  they  took  the  administration  of 
every  diocese  into  their  own  hands  by  means  of  their 
legates  ?  Were  they  not  possessed  of  a  more  sub- 
stantial power  wielded  under  another  name  ? 

(3)  Taxa-       The  noblest  monument  of  Saladin's  successes,  and 

tion  of  r      1  I'll-  ••11 

clergy.  of  the  terror  which  his  name  inspired  throughout 
Christendom,  is  the  Saladin  tenth,  a  general  tax 
imposed  on  the  laity,  and  likewise  on  the  clergy  of 
the  Latin  Church,  for  the  service  of  a  Holy  war.^ 


^  GiES.  vol.  iii.  sec.  48,  p.  t^t^. 

2  Concil.  Pict.  an.  iioo,  Labbi5,  xii.  1081. 

3  GiES.  vol.  iii.  sec.  62,  p.  176  (note). 

■*  This  tax  was  authorised  in  France  at  Concil.  Paris,  an.  1188, 
Labb£,  xiii.  677,  in  the  time  of  Clement  III. ;  in  England  at 
Concil.   Angl.  an.    n88,  ibid.  p.  675.     In   1199,   Innocent  III. 


INVASION  OF   CLERICAL  RIGHTS. 


391 


Orlofinatine    in    the    panic    created    by    the    fall    of    chap. 

.  .  .  XII 

Jerusalem,  the  payment  survived  the  occasion  which  _ 

gave  it  birth,  and  passed  down  to  later  times  under 
a  new  sanction  as  a  relic  of  the  crusades.  In 
the  struggles  between  the  Popes  and  the  emperors, 
it  was  a  convenient  mode  of  supplying  the  Popes 
with  funds,  nor  was  this  employment  of  it  for  other 
purposes  than  crusades  against  Infidels  regarded  as 
a  perversion  of  it  to  strange  purposes,  since  all  the 
Popes'  wars  were  now  designated  crusades.  Besides, 
a  theory  was  started,  based  on  the  old  rule  of  the 
Jewish  law  that  a  tenth  of  the  Levites'  tithe  went 
to  the  high-priest,  that  the  tithe  of  all  benefices  was 
the  rightful  due  of  the  supreme  Pontiff. 

In  the  thirteenth  century,  a  native  historian  tells  of 
the  unpopularity  of  the  tax,  and'  the  way  in  which  the 
clergy  were  compelled  to  pay  it  in  England.  *  In  the 
year  1229,  the  Pope  demanded  a  tenth  of  all  move- 
ables both  from  clergy  and  laity,  for  the  purpose  of 
carrying  on  his  war.  The  laity  refused ;  but  the 
clergy  were  compelled  to  pay  the  tax  by  the  legate 
Stephen,  under  pain  of  interdict  and  excommunica- 
tion. They  were  even  obliged  to  give  the  tithe  of 
the  harvest  before  It  was  gathered  in.  The  legate 
had  with  him  money-lenders  of  the  worst  kind,  dis- 
guising usury  under  the  name  of  business,  who 
offered  loans  to  the  needy  oppressed  by  exactions, 


imposed  upon  the  whole  Church  a  fortieth  of  moveable  estate, 
pledging  himself  that  the  money  should  be  applied  to  the  purposes 
of  a  crusade.  The  Church  of  England  was  taxed  by  Gregory  IX. 
to  carry  on  his  crusade  against  the  Emperor  Frederic  II.  Hal- 
lam's  Middle  Ages ^  vol.  ii.  pt.  ii.  ch.  vii.  p.  216. 


292  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART     which  the  latter  were  obHged  to  accept  at  high  interest, 

'. as  Stephen  dictated.'  ^    Five  years  later,  a  tale  is  told 

234  ^£.  ^^  same  kind  of  exaction,  leading  to  a  waning  of 
zeal  for  the  Cross,  and  a  general  cooling  down  of 
charity.^  Again,  in  the  year  1240,  the  Pope,  not 
content  with  a  tenth,  demands  from  the  clergy  a  fifth 
part  of  their  chattels,  that  he  might  have  the  means 
for  overcoming  his  powerful  enemy.  After  a  long 
struggle,  the  Archbishop  of  Canterbury  was  obliged 
to  give  way,  and  the  rest  of  the  English  prelates 
'  seeing  this,  fell  into  the  same  error.'  ^  On  another 
occasion,  when  the  Pope  presented  the  Sicilian  crown 
to   the   English   prince   Edmund,   he  wrote    to    the 

1254  bishops,  charging  them  to  borrow  on  behalf  of  the 
king  as  much  money  as  they  were  able,  pledging 
their   churches    collectively    and    severally   for    its 

1255  repayment*  Alexander  IV.  confirmed  the  grant  of 
his  predecessor  on  still  more  usurious  conditions, 
requiring  20,000  pounds  sterling  to  be  given  by  the 
king  to  the  Pope  and  the  cardinals,  besides  requiring 
him  to  defray  all  the  expenses  of  the  war,  and  he 

*  Math.  Par.  an.  1229,  p.  361. 

^  Jbid.  an.  1234,  p.  400:  '  Ut  efficacius  [legati]  thesauros 
'  omnium  emungerent,  et  pecuniam  quasi  ad  succursum  Terrae 
'  Sanctae  coUigerent,  scripsit  dominus  Papa  verba  elegantissima. 
.  .  .'  P.  402  :  'Haec  cum  per  Christian orum  climata,  praecipue 
'  per  Angliam,  Christi   fidelibus   innotescerent   .  ,  .    sese   multi 

*  cruce  signaverunt.     Sed  .  .  .  parvo  tempore   succedente   facta 
'  est  tanta  commutatio,  tam  multiformis  pecuniae  exactio  ;  nee 

*  sciri  poterat,  in  quam  abyssum  tanta  pecunia  ...  est  demissa  ; 
'  quod  fidelium  circa  negotium  crucis  tepuit,  imo  potius  caritas 

*  refriguit  generalis.' 

3  Ibid.  an.  1240,  p.  527. 

*  Ibid.  an.  1254,  p.  892  ;  Rymer-Clarke,  book  i.  ch.  i.  297,  301. 


INVASION  OF   CLERICAL  RIGHTS. 


393 


authorised  the  king-  to  take  up   larg^e   sums  in   the     chap 

.  .  XII 

name  of  EngHsh  prelates  with  ItaHan  bankers.^  '- 

Nor  was  England  the  only  country  which  was 
thus  treated,  although  it  might  be  pillaged  more  than 
others.  In  France,  in  Germany,  and  elsewhere,  a 
tithe  was  likewise  required  to  be  paid  by  the  clergy 
to  the  Pope.^  It  was  this  payment  which  gave 
Philip  the  Fair  such  a  handle  in  his  struggle  with 
Boniface  VIII.,  and  at  one  stage  in  the  struggle, 
Boniface  found  it  conducive  to  his  interest  to  grant 
to  the  king  for  three  years  the  tithe  from  the  clergy. 
In  Germany,  one  voice  alone  in  the  thirteenth  cen- 
tury, that  of  Joannes  Semeca,  dared  to  raise  itself 
against  the  imposition.  For  doing  this,  John  was 
excommunicated  by  Clement  IV.  The  nobles  of 
Germany,  however,  espoused  his  cause,  and  possibly 
a  struo^ele  migfht  have  broken  out,  similar  to  the 
struggle  about  investitures  in  a  preceding  century, 
and  certainly  not  inferior  to  that  which  took  place  soon 
after  between  Philip  and  Boniface  in  France,  had  not 
death  swept  away  both  John  and  the  Pontiff.^  The 
German  clergy  might  grumble  at  the  exaction,  but 
there  as  elsewhere,  it  was  vain  to  try  to  resist  the 
papal  authority. 

Thus,  as  the  thirteenth  century  closed,  the  Popes 
found  themselves  successful  in  all  their  assumptions 
of  power  over  this  world's  goods  and  their  clergy. 

1  Math.  Par.  an.  1255,  p.  910;  Rymer-Clarke,  book  i.  ch.  i. 
p.  316.  See  two  letters  of  Innocent  IV.,  Ep.  i.  Labbe,  xiv.  2  ; 
Ep.  V.  ibid.  p.  6. 

"^  See  the  authorities  quoted  by  GiES.  vol.  iii.  sec.  55,  p.  98. 

^  GiES.  vol.  iii.  sec.  62,  p.  75. 


294  INVESTITURES  AND   JURISDICTION. 

PART  Victorious  over  the  emperors,  whom  they  had  hunted 
'. —  down  and  deposed  ;  successful  in  the  struggle  for  in- 
vestitures ;  triumphant  in  asserting  clerical  jurisdiction 
and  upholding  the  clergy  in  the  possession  of  wealth 
by  the  unscrupulous  use  of  the  dreaded  instruments, 
excommunication,  the  interdict,  a  crusade  ;  in  the 
plenitude  of  their  power  they  turned  the  grasping 
hand  of  covetousness  upon  the  very  clergy  who  had 
themselves  assisted  in  securing  their  success.  All 
the  privileges  and  possessions  which  the  clergy  had 
won  for  themselves,  either  by  fraud  or  by  force,  aided 
by  the  terrible  penalties  of  a  foreign  ecclesiastic, 
were  now  ruthlessly  invaded  by  that  ecclesiastic  him- 
self, and  torn  from  their  grasp  with  a  high  hand. 
All  the  injurious  devices  which  they  had  resorted  to, 
to  feed  themselves  at  the  expense  of  their  flocks, 
were  now  employed  against  themselves  by  one  still 
more  greedy  and  insatiable  than  they  had  been. 
Everywhere  the  clergy  were  superseded,  degraded, 
over-reached  by  the  minions  of  the  Pope,  who,  making 
common  cause  with  the  people,  turned  upon  the 
deposed  seculars.  It  was  a  terrible  Nemesis  ;  but 
not  a  more  terrible  one  than  in  turn  awaited  the 
usurper,  when  his  cup  of  oppression  was  full.  The 
tale  of  the  hierarchical  abuse  of  power  in  the  Middle 
Ages  is  indeed  a  sickening  one.  We  can  well 
understand  the  violence  of  the  reaction  which  ensued 
at  the  Reformation.  Let  not  those  decry  the  latter 
event  who  have  not  studied  the  former !  Let  not 
the  greed  and  the  vices  of  a  king  be  unscrupulously 
attacked  by  those  who  shut  their  eyes  to  the  greed 


XII. 


INVASION   OF  CLERICAL   RIG  HIS.  ^^r 

and  vices  of  an  overgrown  clergy  !     Let  not  those     chap. 
who  seek  to  revive  the  arrogant  pretensions  of  the 
hierarchy,  forget  that  sooner  or  later  will  come  the 
Nemesis  of  those  pretensions  too,  and  that  retribu- 
tion will  be  all  the  severer  the  longer  it  is  delayed. 


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APPENDIX    I. 


MAGNA    CARTA,    TRANSLATED. 

John,   by  the  grace  of  God,  King  of  England,  Lord  of  Ireland,       APP. 
Duke  of  Normandy  and  Aquitaine,  and  Earl  of  Anjou  :  To  the  ■'^• 

Archbishops,  Bishops,  Abbots,  Earls,  Barons,  Justiciaries,  Foresters, 
Sheriffs,  Reves,  Ministers,  and  all  Bailiffs  and  others,  his  faithful 
subjects.  Greeting.  Know  ye  that  We,  in  the  presence  of  God, 
and  for  the  health  of  Our  soul,  and  the  souls  of  Our  ancestors  and 
heirs,  to  the  honour  of  God,  and  the  exaltation  of  Holy  Church, 
and  amendment  of  Our  kingdom,  by  the  advice  of  Our  reverend 
Fathers,  Stephen,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  Primate  of  all  Eng- 
land, and  Cardinal  of  the  Holy  Roman  Church  ;  Henry,  Arch- 
bishop of  Dublin  ;  William  of  London  ;  Peter  of  Winchester, 
Jocelin  of  Bath  and  Glastonbury,  Hugh  of  Lincoln,  Walter  of 
Worcester,  William  of  Coventry,  Benedict  of  Rochester,  Bishops ; 
and  Master  Pandulph,  the  Pope's  subdeacon  and  familiar  ;  Brother 
Aymeric,  Master  of  the  Knights  of  the  Temple  in  England  ;  and 
the  noble  persons,  WiUiam  Marshal,  Earl  of  Pembroke  ;  William, 
Earl  of  Salisbury ;  William,  Earl  of  Warren  ;  William,  Earl  of 
Arundel ;  Alan  de  Galloway,  Constable  of  Scotland  ;  Warin  Fitz- 
Gerald,  Hubert  de  Burgh,  Seneschal  of  Poictou,  Peter  Fitz- 
Herbert,  Hugo  de  Neville,  Matthew  Fitz-Herbert,  Thomas  Basset, 
Alan  Basset,  Philip  Daubeney,  Robert  de  Roppelay,  John  Mar- 
shall, John  Fitz-Hugh,  and  others,  our  liegemen,  have,  in  the  first 
place,  granted  to  God,  and  by  this  Our  present  Charter  confirmed 
for  Us  and  Our  heirs  for  ever — .That  the  English  Church  shall  be 
free  and  enjoy  all  her  rights  in  their  integrity  and  her  liberties 
untouched.  And  that  We  will  this  so  to  be  observed  appears  from 
the  fact  that  We  of  Our  mere  and  free  will,  before  the  outbreak  of 
the  dissensions  between  Us  and  Our  Barons,  granted,  confirmed, 
and  procured  to  be  confirmed  by  Pope  Innocent  III.,  the  free- 


398  APPENDIX  I. 

PART      dom  of  elections  which  is  considered  most  important  and  neces- 
II'         sary  to  the   EngHsh  Church,  which  Charter  We  will  both  keep 
Ourself  and  will  it  to  be  so  kept  by  Our  heirs  for  ever.     We  have 
also  granted  to  all  the  free  men  of  Our  Kingdom,  for  Us  and  Our 
heirs  for  ever,  all  the  liberties  underwritten,  to  have  and  to  hold 
to  them  and  their  heirs  of  Us  and  Our  heirs.    If  any  of  Our  Earls, 
Barons,  or  others  who  hold  of  Us  in  chief  by  Knight's  service, 
shall  die,  and  at  the  time  of  his  death  his  heir  shall  be  of  full  age 
and  owe  a  relief,  he  shall  have  his  inheritance  by  ancient  relief; 
to  wit,  the  heir  or  heirs  of  an  Earl  of  an  entire  Earl's  barony, 
100/.  ;  the  heir  or  heirs  of  a  Baron  of  an  entire  Barony,  100/.  ; 
the  heir  or  heirs  of  a  Knight  of  an  entire  Knight's  Fee,  xoos.  at 
the  most  ;  and  he  that  oweth  less  shall  give  less,  according  to  the 
ancient  custom  of  fees.     If,  however,  the  heir  of  any  such  shall  be 
under  age  and  in  ward,  he  shall,  when  he  comes  of  age,  have  his 
inheritance  without  relief  or  fine.     The  guardian  of  the  land  of 
any  such  heir  so  under  age  shall  take  therefrom  reasonable  issues, 
customs,  and   services   only,  and   that  without   destruction   and 
waste  of  men  or  property ;  and  if  We  shall  have  committed  the 
custody  of  any  such  land  to  the  Sheriff  or  any  other  person  who 
ought  to  be  answerable  to  Us  for  the  issues  thereof,  and  he  com- 
mit destruction  or  waste  upon  the  ward-lands.  We  will  take  an 
emend  from  him,  and  the  land  shall  be  committed  to  two  lawful 
and  discreet  men  of  that  fee,  who  shall  be  answerable  for  the 
issues  to  Us  or  to  whomsoever  We  shall  have  assigned  thena. 
And  if  We  shall  give  or  sell  the  wardship  of  any  such  land  to  any 
one,  and  he  commit  destruction  or  waste  upon  it,  he  shall  lose  the 
wardship,  which  shall  be  committed  to  two  lawful  and  discreet 
men  of  that  fee,  who  shall,  in  like  manner,  be  answerable  unto  Us 
as  hath  been  aforesaid.     But  the  guardian,  so  long  as  he  shall 
have   the  custody  of  the  land,  shall  keep  up  and  maintain  the 
houses,  parks,  fish  ponds,  pools,  mills,  and  other  things  pertaining 
thereto,  out  of  the  issues  of  the  same,  and  shall  restore  the  whole 
to  the   heir  when  he  comes  of  age,  stocked  with  ploughs  and 
wainage  according  as  the  season  may  require  and  the  issues  of  the 
land  can  reasonably  bear.     Heirs  shall  be  married  without  dis- 
paragement, to  which  end  the  marriage  shall  be  made  known  to 
the  heir's  nearest  of  kin  before  it  be  contracted.     A  widow,  after 
the  death  of  her  husband,  shall  immediately  and  without  difficulty 
have  her  marriage  portion  and  inheritance,  nor  shall  she  give  any- 
thing for  her  marriage  portion,  dower,  or  inheritance  which  her 


MAGNA    carta: 


399 


husband  and  herself  held  on  the  day  of  his  death  ;  and  she  may       ^pp^ 
remain  in   her  husband's  house  for  forty  days   after  his  death,  I- 

within  which  time  her  dower  shall  be  assigned  to  her.  No  Avidow 
shall  be  distrained  to  marry  so  long  as  she  has  a  mind  to  live 
without  a  husband ;  provided,  however,  that  she  give  security 
that  she  will  not  marry  without  Our  assent  if  she  holds  of  Us,  or 
that  of  the  Lord  of  whom  she  holds,  if  she  hold  of  another. 
Neither  We  nor  Our  baihfifs  shall  seize  any  land  or  rent  for  any 
debt  so  long  as  the  debtor's  chattels  are  sufficient  to  discharge  the 
same  ;  nor  shall  the  debtor's  sureties  be  distrained  so  long  as  the 
chief  debtor  hath  sufficient  to  pay  the  debt,  and  if  he  fail  in  the 
payment  thereof,  not  having  wherewithal  to  discharge  it,  then  the 
sureties  shall  answer  it,  and,  if  they  will,  shall  hold  the  debtor's 
lands  and  rents  until  satisfaction  of  the  debt  which  they  have 
paid  for  him  be  made  them,  unless  the  chief  debtor  can  show 
himself  to  be  quit  thereof  against  them.  If  any  one  shall  have 
borrowed  money  from  the  Jews,  more  or  less,  and  die  before  the 
debt  be  satisfied,  no  interest  shall  be  taken  upon  such  debt  so 
long  as  the  heir  be  under  age,  of  whomsoever  he  may  hold  ;  and 
if  the  debt  shall  fall  into  Our  hands  We-  will  only  take  the  chattel 
mentioned  in  the  Charter.  And  if  any  one  die  indebted  to  the 
Jews,  his  wife  shall  have  her  dower  and  pay  nothing  of  that  debt  ; 
and  if  the  children  of  the  said  deceased  be  left  under  age  they 
shall  have  necessaries  provided  for  them  according  to  the  con- 
dition of  the  deceased,  and  the  debt  shall  be  paid  out  of  the 
residue,  saving  the  Lord's  service  ;  and  so  shall  it  be  done  with 
regard  to  debts  owed  to  other  persons  than  Jews.  No  scutage  or 
aid  shall  be  imposed  in  Our  kingdom  unless  by  common  council 
thereof,  except  to  ransom  Our  person,  make  Our  eldest  son  a 
knight,  and  once  to  marry  Our  eldest  daughter,  and  for  this  a  rea- 
sonable aid  only  shall  be  paid.  So  shall  it  be  with  regard  to  aids 
from  the  City  of  London,  and  the  City  of  London  shall  have  all 
her  ancient  liberties  and  free  customs,  both  by  land  and  water. 
Moreover,  We  will  and  grant  that  all  other  cities,  boroughs,  towns, 
and  ports  shall  have  all  their  liberties  and  free  customs.  And  for 
obtaining  the  common  council  of  the  kingdom  concerning  the 
assessment  of  aids  other  than  in  the  three  cases  aforesaid  or  of 
scutage.  We  will  cause  to  be  summoned,  severally  by  our  letters, 
the  Archbishops,  Bishops,  Abbots,  Earls,  and  great  Barons  ;  and 
in  addition  We  will  also  cause  to  be  summoned,  generally,  by  Our 
sheriffs  and  bailiffs,  all  those  who  hold  of  Us  in  chief,  to  meet  at 


400 


APPENDIX  I. 


PART  ^  certain  day,  to  wit,  at  the  end  of  forty  days  at  least,  and  at  a 
II-  certain  place  ;  and  in  all  letters  of  such  summons  We  will  explain 
the  cause  thereof,  and  the  summons  being  thus  made  the  business 
shall  proceed  on  the  day  appointed,  according  to  the  advice  of 
those  who  shall  be  present,  notwithstanding  that  the  whole  num- 
ber of  persons  summoned  shall  not  have  come.  We  will  not,  for 
the  future,  grant  permission  to  any  man  to  levy  an  aid  upon  his 
freemen,  except  to  ransom  his  person,  make  his  eldest  son  a 
knight,  and  once  to  marry  his  eldest  daughter,  for  which  a  reason- 
able aid  only  shall  be  levied.  No  man  shall  be  distrained  to  per- 
form more  service  for  a  knight's  fee  or  other  fee  tenement  than  is 
due  therefrom.  Common  pleas  shall  not  follow  Our  Court,  but 
be  holden  in  some  certain  place.  Recognisances  of  Novel 
Disseisin,  Mort  d'Ancestor,  and  Darrein  Presentment  shall  be 
taken  in  their  proper  counties  only,  and  in  this  wise  : — We 
Ourself,  or,  if  We  be  absent  from  the  realm.  Our  Chief  Justiciary, 
shall  send  two  justiciaries  through  each  county  four  times  a  year, 
who,  together  with  four  knights  elected  out  of  each  shire  by  the 
people  thereof,  shall  hold  the  said  assizes  on  the  day  and  in  the 
place  aforesaid.  And  if  the  said  assizes  cannot  be  held  on  the 
day  appointed,  so  many  of  the  knights  and  freeholders  as  shall 
have  been  present  thereat  on  that  day  shall  remain  as  will  be  suf- 
ficient for  the  administration  of  justice,  according  as  the  business 
to  be  done  be  greater  or  less.  A  free  man  shall  not  be  amerced 
for  a  small  fault,  but  according  to  the  measure  thereof,  and  for  a 
great  crime  according  to  its  magnitude,  in  proportion  to  his 
degree  ;  and  in  like  manner  a  merchant  in  proportion  to  his  mer- 
chandise, and  a  villein  in  proportion  to  his  wainage  if  he  should 
fall  under  Our  mercy  ;  and  none  of  the  said  amercements  shall  be 
imposed  unless  by  the  oath  of  honest  men  of  the  venue.  Earls 
and  Barons  shall  only  be  amerced  by  their  peers  in  proportion  to 
the  measure  of  the  offence.  No  clerk  shall  be  amerced  for  his  lay 
tenement,  except  after  the  manner  of  the  other  persons  aforesaid, 
and  not  according  to  the  value  of  his  ecclesiastical  benefice. 
Neither  shall  any  vill  or  person  be  distrained  to  make  bridges 
over  rivers,  but  they  who  are  bound  to  do  so  by  ancient  custom 
and  law.  No  sheriff,  constable,  coroners,  or  other  Our  bailiffs 
shall  hold  pleas  of  Our  Crown.  All  counties,  hundreds,  tithings, 
and  wapentakes  shall  stand  at  the  old  farms,  without  any  increased 
rent,  except  Our  demesne  manors.  If  any  one  die  holding  a  lay 
fee  of  Us,  and  the  sheriff  or  Our  bailiff  show  Our  letters  patent 


MAGNA    CARTA. 


401 


of  summons  touching  the  debt  due  to  Us  from  the  deceased,  it       ^PP. 
shall  be  lawful  to  such  sheriff  or  bailiff  to  attach  and  register  the  I- 

chattels  of  the  deceased  found  in  the  lay  fee  to  the  value  of  that 
debt,  by  view  of  lawful  men,  so  that  nothing  be  removed  there- 
from until  Our  whole  debt  be  paid  ;  and  the  residue  shall  be  given 
up  to  the  executors  to  carry  out  the  will  of  the  deceased.  And  if 
there  be  nothing  due  from  him  to  Us,  all  his  chattels  shall  remain 
to  the  deceased,  saving  to  his  wife  and  children  their  reasonable 
shares.  If  any  free  man  shall  die  intestate  his  chattels  shall  be 
distributed  by  the  hands  of  his  nearest  kinsfolk  and  friends  by 
view  of  the  Church,  saving  to  every  one  the  debts  due  to  him 
from  the  deceased.  No  constable  or  other  Our  bailiff  shall  take 
corn  or  other  chattels  of  any  man  without  immediate  payment  for 
the  same,  unless  he  hath  a  voluntary  respite  of  payment  from  the 
seller.  No  constable  shall  distrain  any  knight  to  give  money  for 
castle-guard,  if  he  will  perform  it  either  in  his  proper  person  or  by 
some  other  fit  man,  if  he  himself  be  prevented  from  so  doing  by 
reasonable  cause  ;  and,  if  We  lead  or  send  him  into  the  army,  he 
shall  be  quit  of  castle-guard  for  the  time  he  shall  remain  in  the 
army  by  Our  command.  No  sheriff  or 'other  Our  bailiff,  or  any 
other  man,  shall  take  the  horses  or  carts  of  any  free  man  for 
carriage  except  with  his  consent.  Neither  shall  We  or  Our  bailiffs 
take  another  man's  timber  for  Our  castles  or  other  uses,  unless 
Avith  the  consent  of  the  owner  thereof.  We  will  only  retain  the 
lands  of  persons  convicted  of  felony  for  a  year  and  a  day,  after 
which  they  shall  be  restored  to  the  Lords  of  the  fees.  From 
henceforth  all  weirs  shall  be  entirely  removed  from  the  Thames 
and  Medway,  and  throughout  England,  except  upon  the  sea 
coast.  The  writ  called  '  Praecipe  '  shall  not  for  the  future  issue  to 
any  one  of  any  tenement  whereby  a  freeman  may  lose  his  court. 
There  shall  be  one  measure  of  wine  throughout  Our  kingdom,  and 
one  of  ale,  and  one  measure  of  corn,  to  wit,  the  London  quarter, 
and  one  breadth  of  dyed  cloth,  russetts,  and  haberjects,  to  wit, 
two  ells  within  the  lists.  And  as  Avith  measures  so  shall  it  be  also 
with  weights.  From  henceforth  nothing  shall  be  given  for  a  writ 
of  inquisition  upon  life  or  limbs,  but  it  shall  be  granted  gratis,  and 
shall  not  be  denied.  If  any  one  hold  of  Us  by  fee-farm,  socage 
or  burgage,  and  hold  land  of  another  by  knight's  service.  We  will 
not  have  the  wardship  of  his  heir,  or  the  land  which  belongs  to 
another  man's  fee,  by  reason  of  that  fee-farm,  socage  or  burgage ; 
nor  will  We  have  the  wardship  of  such  fee-farm,  socage,  or  burgage, 

D    D 


402 


APPENDIX  I. 


PART  unless  such  fee-farm  owe  knight's  service.  We  will  not  have  the 
II.  wardship  of  any  man's  heir,  or  the  land  which  he  holds  of  another 
by  knight's  service,  by  reason  of  any  petty  serjeanty  which  he 
holds  of  Us  by  service  of  rendering  Us  daggers,  arrows,  or  the 
like.  No  bailiff  shall  for  the  future  put  any  man  to  trial  upon  his 
simple  accusation  without  producing  credible  witnesses  to  the 
truth  thereof  No  freeman  shall  be  taken,  imprisoned,  disseised, 
outlawed,  banished,  or  in  any  way  destroyed,  nor  will  We  proceed 
against  or  prosecute  him  except  by  lawful  judgment  of  his  peers 
or  the  law  of  the  land.  To  no  one  will  We  sell,  to  no  one  will  We 
deny  or  defer,  right  or  justice.  All  merchants  shall  have  safe 
conduct  to  go  and  come  out  of  and  into  England,  and  to  stay  in 
and  travel  through  England  by  land  and  water  for  purchase  or 
sale,  without  maltolt,  by  ancient  and  just  customs,  except  in  time 
of  war,  or  if  they  belong  to  a  country  at  war  with  Us.  And  if  any 
such  be  found  in  Our  dominion  at  the  outbreak  of  war,  they  shall 
be  attached,  without  injury  to  their  persons  or  goods,  until  it  be 
known  to  Us  or  Our  Chief  Justiciary,  after  what  sort  Our  mer- 
chants are  treated  who  shall  be  found  to  be  at  that  time  in  the 
country  at  war  with  Us,  and  if  they  be  safe  there  then  these  shall 
be  also  with  Us.  It  shall  be  lawful  in  future,  unless  in  time  of 
war,  for  any  one  to  leave  and  return  to  Our  kingdom  safely  and 
securely  by  land  and  water,  saving  his  fealty  to  Us,  for  any  short 
period,  for  the  common  benefit  of  the  realm,  except  prisoners  and 
outlaws  according  to  the  law  of  the  land,  people  of  the  country  at 
war  with  Us,  and  merchants  who  shall  be  dealt  with  as  is  afore- 
said. If  any  one  die  holding  of  any  escheat,  as  of  the  honour  of 
Wallingford,  Nottingham,  Boulogne,  Lancaster,  or  other  escheats 
which  are  in  Our  hands  and  are  baronies,  his  heir  shall  not  give 
any  relief  or  do  any  service  to  Us  other  than  he  would  owe  to  the 
baron  if  such  barony  should  have  been  in  the  hands  of  a  baron, 
and  We  Avill  hold  it  in  the  same  manner  in  which  the  baron  held 
it.  Persons  dwelling  without  the  forest  shall  not  for  the  future 
come  before  Our  justiciaries  of  the  forest  by  common  summons, 
unless  they  be  impleaded  or  are  bail  for  any  person  or  persons 
attached  for  breach  of  forest  laws.  We  will  only  appoint  such 
men  to  be  justiciaries,  constables,  sheriffs,  or  bailiffs  as  know  the 
law  of  the  land  and  will  keep  it  well.  All  barons,  founders  of 
abbeys  by  charters  of  English  Kings  or  ancient  tenure,  shall  have 
the  custody  of  the  same  during  vacancy  as  is  due.  All  forests 
which  have  been  afforested  in  Our  time  shall  be  forthwith  dis- 


MAGNA    CARTA. 


465. 


afforested,  and  so  shall  it  be  done  with  regard  to  rivers  which  have       app. 
been  placed  in  fence  in  Our  time.     All  evil  customs  concerning  I- 

forests  and  warrens,  foresters,  warreners,  sheriffs,  and  their  officers, 
rivers  and  their  conservators,  shall  be  immediately  inquired  into 
each  county  by  twelve  sworn  knights  of  such  shire,  who  must  be 
elected  by  honest  men  thereof,  and  within  forty  days  after  making 
the  inquisition  they  shall  be  altogether  and  irrevocably  abolished, 
the  matter  having  been  previously  brought  to  Our  knowledge  or 
that  of  Our  Chief  Justiciary  if  We  Ourself  shall  not  be  in  England. 
We  will  immediately  give  up  all  hostages  and  charters  delivered  to 
Us  by  the  English  for  the  security  of  peace  and  the  performance 
of  loyal  service.  We  will  entirely  remove  from  their  bailiwicks 
the  kinsmen  of  Gerard  de  Atyes,  so  that  henceforth  they  shall  hold 
no  bailiwick  in  England,  Engelard  de  Cygoyney,  Andrew,  Peter, 
and  Gyon  de  Cancelles,  Gyon  de  Cygoyney,  Ralph  de  Martiny 
and  his  brothers,  Philip  Marc[elJ  and  his  brothers,  and  Ralph  his 
grandson,  and  all  their  followers,  and  directly  after  the  restoration 
of  peace  We  will  dismiss  out  of  Our  kingdom  all  foreign  soldiers, 
bowmen,  serving  men,  and  mercenaries,  who  come  with  horses 
and  arms  to  the  nuisance  thereof.  If  any  one  shall  have  been 
disseised  or  deprived  by  Us,  without  -the  legal  judgment  of  his 
peers,  of  lands,  castles,  liberties,  or  rights,  We  will  instantly  re- 
store the  same,  and  if  any  dispute  shall  arise  thereupon,  the  matter 
shall  be  decided  by  judgment  of  the  twenty-five  barons  men- 
tioned below  for  the  security  of  peace.  With  regard  to  all  those 
things,  however,  whereof  any  person  shall  have  been  disseised  or 
deprived,  without  the  legal  judgment  of  his  peers,  by  King  Henry 
Our  Father,  or  Our  Brother  King  Richard,  and  Avhich  remain  in 
Our  hands  or  are  held  by  others  under  Our  warranty.  We  will  have 
respite  thereof  till  the  term  commonly  allowed  to  the  crusaders, 
except  as  to  those  matters  on  which  a  plea  shall  have  arisen,  or  an 
inquisition  have  been  taken  by  Our  command  prior  to  Our 
assumption  of  the  Cross,  and  immediately  after  Our  return  from 
Our  pilgrimage,  or  if  by  chance  We  should  remain  behind  from 
it.  We  will  do  full  justice  therein.  We  will  likewise  have  the 
same  respite  and  in  like  manner  shall  justice  be  done  with  respect 
to  forests  to  be  disafforested  or  let  alone,  which  Henry  Our  Father 
or  Richard  Our  Brother  afforested,  'and  to  wardships  of  lands 
belonging  to  another's  fee,  which  We  have  hitherto  held  by  reason 
of  the  fee  which  some  person  has  held  of  Us  by  knight's  service, 
and  to  abbeys  founded  in  another's  fee  than  Our  own,  whereto  the 

D  D  2 


404 


APPENDIX   I. 


PART      ^o^<^  <^^  t^^^  ^^^  asserts  his  right.     And  when  We  return  from  Our 
II.         pilgrimage,  or  if  We  remain  behind  therefrom,  We  will  forthwith 

■~  do  full  justice  to  the  complainants  in  these  matters.    No  one  shall 

be  taken  or  imprisoned  upon  a  woman's  appeal  for  the  death  of 
any  other  person  than  her  husband.  All  fines  unjustly  and  unlaw- 
fully made  with  Us,  and  all  amercements  levied  unjustly  and 
against  the  law  of  the  land,  shall  be  entirely  condoned  or  the 
matter  settled  by  judgment  of  the  twenty-five  barons  of  whom 
mention  is  made  below,  for  the  security  of  peace,  or  the  majority 
of  them,  together  with  the  aforesaid  Stephen,  Archbishop  of  Can- 
terbury, if  he  himself  can  be  present,  and  any  others  whom  he  may 
wish  to  summon  for  the  purpose,  and  if  he  cannot  be  present  the 
business  shall  nevertheless  proceed  without  him.  Provided  that 
if  any  one  or  more  of  the  said  twenty-five  barons  be  interested  in 
a  plaint  of  this  kind,  he  or  they  shall  be  set  aside,  as  to  this  par- 
ticular judgment,  and  another  or  others  elected  and  sworn  by  the 
rest  of  the  said  barons  for  this  purpose  only,  be  substituted  in  his 
or  their  stead.  If  We  have  disseised  or  deprived  the  Welsh  of 
lands,  liberties  or  other  things,  without  legal  judgment  of  their 
peers,  in  England  or  Wales,  they  shall  instantly  be  restored  to 
them,  and  if  a  dispute  shall  arise  thereon  the  question  shall  be 
determined  on  the  Marches  by  judgment  of  their  peers  according 
to  the  law  of  England  with  regard  to  English  tenements,  the  law 
of  Wales  respecting  Welsh  tenements,  and  the  law  of  the  Marches 
as  to  tenements  in  the  Marches.  The  same  shall  the  Welsh  do 
to  Us  and  Ours.  But  with  regard  to  all  those  things  whereof  any 
Welshman  shall  have  been  disseised  or  deprived,  without  legal 
judgment  of  his  peers,  by  King  Henry  Our  Father  or  Our  Brother 
King  Richard,  and  which  We  hold  in  Our  hands  or  others  hold 
under  Our  warranty.  We  will  have  respite  thereof  till  the  term 
commonly  allowed  to  the  crusaders,  except  as  to  those  matters 
whereon  a  plea  shall  have  arisen  or  an  inquisition  have  been  taken 
by  Our  command  prior  to  Our  assumption  of  the  Cross,  and 
immediately  after  Our  return  from  Our  pilgrimages,  or  if  by  chance 
We  should  remain  behind  from  it,  We  will  do  full  justice  therein, 
according  to  the  laws  of  the  Welsh  and  the  parts  aforesaid.  We 
will  immediately  give  up  the  son  of  Llewellyn  and  all  the  Welsh 
hostages,  and  the  charters  which  were  delivered  to  Us  for  the 
security  of  peace.  We  will  do  the  same  with  regard  to  Alexander, 
King  of  the  Scots,  in  the  matter  of  giving  up  his  sisters  and 
hostages,  and  of  his  liberties  and  rights,  as  We  would  with  regard 


MAGNA    CARTA. 


405 


to  Our  other  barons  of  England,  unless  it  should  appear  by  the       app. 
charters  which  We  hold  of  William  his  father,  late  King  of  the  I- 

Scots,  that  it  ought  to  be  otherwise,  and  this  shall  be  done  by 
judgment  of  his  peers  in  Our  Court.  All  which  customs  and 
liberties  aforesaid,  which  We  have  granted  to  be  enjoyed,  as  far  as 
in  Us  lies,  by  Our  people  throughout  Our  kingdom,  let  all  Our 
subjects,  clerks  and  laymen,  observe,  as  far  as  in  them  lies,  towards 
their  dependants.  And  whereas  We,  for  the  honour  of  God  and 
the  amendment  of  Our  realm,  and  in  order  the  better  to  allay  the 
discord  arisen  between  Us  and  Our  barons,  have  granted  all  these 
things  aforesaid,  We,  willing  that  they  be  for  ever  enjoyed  wholly 
and  in  lasting  strength,  do  give  and  grant  to  Our  subjects  the 
following  security,  to  wit,  that  the  barons  shall  elect  any  twenty- 
five  barons  of  the  kingdom  at  will,  who  shall,  with  their  utmost 
power,  keep,  hold,  and  cause  to  be  holden  the  peace  and  liberties 
which  We  have  granted  unto  them,  and  by  this  Our  present 
Charter  confirmed,  so  that,  for  instance,  if  We,  Our  Justiciary, 
bailiffs,  or  any  of  Our  ministers,  offend  in  any  respect  against  any 
man,  or  shall  transgress  any  of  these  articles  of  peace  or  security, 
and  the  offence  be  brought  before  four  of  the  said  five  and  twenty 
barons,  those  four  barons  shall  come- before  Us,  or  Our  Chief 
Justiciary  if  We  are  out  of  the  kingdom,  declaring  the  offence,  and 
shall  demand  speedy  amends  for  the  same.  And  if  We  or  in  case 
of  Our  being  out  of  the  kingdom,  Our  Chief  Justiciary,  fail  to 
afford  redress  within  the  space  of  forty  days  from  the  time  the 
case  was  brought  before  Us  or  Our  Chief  Justiciary,  the  aforesaid 
four  barons  shall  refer  the  matter  to  the  rest  of  the  twenty-five 
barons,  who,  together  with  the  commonalty  of  the  whole  county, 
shall  distrain  and  distress  Us  to  the  utmost  of  their  power,  to  wit, 
by  capture  of  Our  castles,  lands,  possessions,  and  all  other  possible 
means,  until  compensation  be  made  according  to  their  decisions 
saving  Our  person  and  that  of  Our  Queen  and  children,  and  as 
soon  as  that  be  done  they  shall  return  to  their  former  allegiance. 
Any  one  whatsoever  in  the  kingdom  may  take  oath  that,  for  the 
accomplishment  of  all  the  aforesaid  matters,  he  will  obey  the 
orders  of  the  said  twenty-five  barons,  and  distress  Us  to  the 
utmost  of  his  power  ;  and  We  give  public  and  free  leave  tq 
every  one  wishing  to  take  such  oath  to  do  so,  and  to  none  will 
We  deny  the  same.  Moreover  We  will  compel  all  such  of  Our 
subjects  who  shall  decline  to  swear  to,  and  together  with  the  said 
twenty-five  barons  to  distrain  and  distress  Us  of  their  own  free 


466  APPENDIX  L 

PART      will  and  accord,  to  do  so  by  Our  command  as  is  aforesaid.    And  if 
^^-         any  one  of  the  twenty-five  barons  shall  die  or  leave  the  country, 
'  or  be  in  any  way  hindered  from  executing  the  said  oftice,  the  rest 

of  the  said  twenty-five  barons  shall  choose  another  in  his  stead,  at 
their  discretion,  who  shall  be  sworn  in  like  manner  as  the  others. 
And  in  all  cases  which  are  referred  to  the  said  twenty-five  barons 
to  execute,  and  in  which  a  difference  shall  arise  among  them, 
supposing  them  all  to  be  present,  or  that  all  who  have  been  sum- 
moned are  unwilling  or  unable  to  appear,  the  verdict  of  the 
majority  shall  be  considered  as  firm  and  binding  as  if  the  whole 
number  should  have  been  of  one  mind.  And  the  aforesaid  twenty- 
five  shall  swear  to  keep  faithfully  all  the  aforesaid  articles,  and,  to 
the  best  of  their  power,  cause  them  to  be  kept  by  others.  And 
We  will  not  procure,  either  by  Ourself  or  any  other,  anything  from 
any  man  whereby  any  of  the  said  concessions  or  liberties  may  be 
revoked  or  abated ;  and  if  any  such  procurement  be  made  let  it 
be  null  and  void ;  it  shall  never  be  made  use  of  either  by  Us  or 
any  other.  We  have  also  wholly  remitted  and  condoned  all  ill-will, 
wrath,  and  malice  which  have  arisen  between  Us  and  Our  sub- 
jects, clerks  and  laymen,  during  the  disputes,  to  and  with  all  men; 
and  We  have  moreover  fully  remitted,  and  as  far  as  in  Us  lies, 
wholly  condoned  to  and  with  all  clerks  and  laymen  all  trespasses 
made  in  consequence  of  the  said  disputes  from  Easter  in  the  six- 
teenth year  of  Our  reign  till  the  restoration  of  peace ;  and,  over 
and  above  this.  We  have  caused  to  be  made  in  their  behalf  letters 
patent  by  testimony  of  Stephen,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury,  Henry, 
Archbishop  of  Dublin,  the  Bishops  above-mentioned,  and  Master 
Pandulph,  upon  the  security  and  concession  aforesaid.  Where- 
fore We  will,  and  firmly  charge,  that  the  English  Church  be  free, 
and  that  all  men  in  Our  Kingdom  have  and  hold  all  the  aforesaid 
Hberties,  rights,  and  concessions,  well  and  peaceably,  freely, 
quietly,  fully,  and  wholly,  to  them  and  their  heirs,  of  Us  and  Our 
heirs,  in  all  things  and  places  for  ever,  as  is  aforesaid.  It  is  more- 
over sworn,  as  well  on  Our  part  as  on  the  part  of  the  Barons,  that 
all  these  matters  aforesaid  shall  be  kept  in  good  faith  and  without 
malengine.  Witness  the  above-mentioned  Prelates  and  Nobles 
and  many  others.  Given  by  Our  hand  in  the  meadow  which  is 
called  Runnymede  between  Windsor  and  Staines,  on  the  Fifteenth 
day  of  June  in  the  Seventeenth  year  of  Our  reign.       Lincoln. 

{Indorsed)  Agreement  between  King  John  and  the  Barons  by 
grant  of  liberties  to  the  Church  and  Kingdom  of  England. 

Lincoln. 


Part  III. 

AGE    OF    DECLINE. 

1303—1515- 


AGE   OF  DECLINE. 


409 


CHAPTER    XIII. 

THE  POPES  AT  A  VIGNON. 
(1309— 1378.) 


Super  flumina  Babylonis  illic  sedimits  etjlei'imus,  cum  recordarejnur 
Sion. — Ps.  CXXXVI.  [CXXXVII.]  I. 


U 


NDER  Innocent  III.  and  his  immediate  sue-    ^^^7' 


cessors  the  Papacy  had  attained  Its  greatest 
power.  The  gigantic  oak  of  the  Holy  Empire  had 
spread  forth  Its  branches  and  overshadowed  all 
lands.  Glorious  In  its  own  luxuriance,  it  could  hence- 
forth only  await  the  slow  decline  of  time,  and  the 
storms  which  would  break  it  to  pieces  in  ages  to 
come.  Already  under  Boniface  VIII.  the  signs  of  a 
coming  tempest  were  gathering  in  the  horizon.  The 
sharp  breeze  which  in  his  time  set  from  France 
against  Rome  portended  evil.  Now  Boniface  was 
dead  :  the  breeze  had  increased  to  a  gale  ;  and  the 
first  storm  which,  sweeping  over  the  Mediaeval 
Papacy,  left  it  despoiled  of  a  portion  of  Its  power, 
was  the  successful  assertion  of  their  political  authority 
by  the  kings  of  France  during  the  seventy  years' 
residence  of  the  Popes  at  Avignon.  That  change 
of  residence,  marking  as  it  does  the  time  when 
the  glories  of  the  Papacy  were  over,  and  when  It 
lost  the  political  supremacy  which  it  had  previously 


,  jQ  THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

PART     enjoyed,  has  not  inaptly  been  called  the  Babylonish 

'       captivity.     It  was  the  beginning  of  a  new  epoch  in  the 

•  history  of  the  Papacy  and  the  history  of  the  Empire — 

a  period  of  decline  for  both.     The  work  of  the  Middle 

Ages  was  complete.     The  fabric  which  the  last  six 

centuries   had  been  employed  in   building,   the  next 

two  centuries  were  engaged  in  destroying.     History 

is  never  in  repose.     No  sooner  is  progress  arrested 

than  decay  immediately  supervenes. 

A.  Loss         Amongst  other  losses  which  the  change  of  resi- 

calsilpre-  dence  frome  Rome  to  Avignon  entailed,  one  of  the 

wrt^         foremost  was  the  loss  of  political  power.     Still,  even 

Benedict    before  that  chano-e,  the  decline  of  the  Pope's  political 

XI.  and  .    M  1  T^      •         1-1  •  r     .    1 

cievient  powcr  was  Visible.  During  his  short  reign  of  eight 
A.D.       months,  BenedictXI.,Mvho  succeeded  Boniface  VIII., 

1303-1315  presented  the  spectacle  of  a  Pope  independent  in 
spirit,  but  in  fact  unable  to  hold  his  own  against  the 

(i)  Bene-  machinations  of  the  PVench  king.  His  independence 
of  spirit  was,  however,  too  much  for  his  own  safety. 
Possibly  it  was  the  cause  of  his  death,  if  the  report 
that  he  died  by  poison  is  to  be  believed.  A  Pope 
enjoying  the  independence  of  an  Innocent  III.  or 
Innocent  IV.  would  never  have  repealed  the  acts  of 
his  predecessor  immediately  on  his  own  elevation. 
But  by  Benedict  the  king,  the  prelates,  the  barons, 
and  the  people  of  France  were  declared  absolved 
from  the  excommunication  pronounced  on  them  by 
Boniface  VIII.  ;  the  censures  against  the  con- 
tumacious prelates  were  rescinded  ;  the  tenths  on  the 


diet  XL 
1 303- 1 304 


^  Benedict  VIII.  died  in  October  1303.  Benedict  XI.  suc- 
ceeded, dying  in  July  of  the  following  year,  see  Labb£,  xiv.  1359, 
and  was  followed  by  Clement  V. 


LOSS  OF  POLITICAL   SUPREMACY.  ^U 

clergy  were  granted  for  two  years  to  the  king  ;  the     chap. 

Bull  Clcricis  Laicos  was  mitigated.     These  acts,  ap-  _J L_ 

parently  emanating  from  Benedict's  free-will,  place 
beyond  dispute  the  fact  that  the  zealous  Dominican 
was  not  really  free,  but  that  he  hoped  by  timely  con- 
cessions to  retain  at  least  a  portion  of  his  power. 
When,  however,  Philip,  not  content  with  these  con- 
cessions, despatched  an  embassy  to  Rome,  to  per- 
secute the  memory  of  Boniface  VIII,,  the  step  was 
more  than  Benedict  could  tolerate.  The  spirit  of 
defiance  was  awakened  within  him.  A  Bull  was 
published  pronouncing  sentence  of  excommunication 
on  the  actors  of  the  tragedy  at  Anagni.  Twenty 
days  later  Benedict  was  a  corpse.^ 

Well  would  it  have  been  for  the  Popes  if  they  (2)  Ch- 
had    never    lost    more    power  .  than  they  did  under 
Benedict  XI,     A    far   different   fate   awaited  them  1305-1314 
under  Clement  V.,^  who  removed  the  papal  residence  raiiolT' 
to  Avigfnon,  and  under  his  successors  who  resided  in  ^'f"'f^' 

&  '  pcndence. 

the  same  city.  It  was  clear  that  in  the  face  of  a 
powerful  monarch,  such  as  was  Philip  the  fair  of 
France,  with  the  altered  sentiments  of  the  Catholic 
laity — a  stronger  feudal  tie,  a  greater  indifference  to 
ecclesiastical  censures — it  was  no  longer  possible  for 
the  Pope  to  enjoy  the  independence  and  supremacy 
which  had  humbled  the  Emperor  Frederic.     But  it 


*  See  Neand.  ix.  26  ;  ivIilman,  vol.  vii.  book  xi.  ch,  x.  p.  156 
(small  edition);  Gies.  vol.  iii.  sec.  59,  p.  155. 

2  Benedict  XI.  died  July  7,  1304.  Clement  V.  was  elected  to 
succeed  him  June  5,  1305.  Clement  V.  died  April  20,  1314,  and 
was  succeeded  by  John  XXII.  For  Clement's  life,  see  Labee, 
xiv.  1369. 


412 


THE  POPES  A  T  A  VIGNON. 


PART     was  a  question,   how  much    of  their  independence 
III 
'. would  have  to  be  sacrificed  ;  whether  concessions  Hke 

those  of  Benedict  XI.  would  be  enough,  or  whether 
they  would  be  reduced  to  a  state  of  servile  depen- 
dence on  some  emperor  or  king.  On  the  one  hand, 
the  Italian  cardinals  were  anxious  to  sacrifice  as 
little  as  possible ;  on  the  other  hand,  the  French 
cardinals,  prompted  by  a  blind  hatred  to  Boniface, 
were  straining  every  nerve  to  bring  Rome  under  the 
influence  of  the  French  king.  On  the  decease  of 
Benedict  the  struggle  between  fhe  two  parties  lasted 
long.  For  nine  months  the  election  of  a  Pontiff  was 
delayed,  neither  party  agreeing  to  the  candidate 
belonging  to  the  other  section.  At  length  the  crafty 
cardinal,  Du  Prat,  dexterously  contrived  to  secure  the 
election  of  a  Frenchman,  who  took  the  name  of 
Clement  V.,  and  who  was  already  bound  by  a  secret 
compact  to  do  Philip's  bidding. 
{b)  His  The  means    by  which  this    result   was    obtained 

election.  ...  ....  - 

deserve  to  be  noticed,  as  explammg  the  state  of 
dependence  on  the  French  king  to  which  the  Pope 
was  now  reduced.  Owing  to  the  continued  disagree- 
ment between  the  cardinals,  it  was  arranged  that 
three  individuals  should  be  selected  by  the  Italian 
cardinals  from  their  own  number,  and  that  of  the 
three  so  selected,  one  should  be  chosen  by  the 
French  cardinals  as  the  future  Pope.  But  no  sooner 
had  the  three  been  nominated  by  the  Italian  cardinals 
than  Du  Prat,  knowing  the  value  of  the  prize  which 
the  French  cardinals  had  to  bestow,  entered  into 
private  communications  with  Philip,  and  with  the 
Bishop  of  Bordeaux,  one   of  the   three   nominees. 


LOSS   OF  POLITICAL   SUPREMACY. 


413 


The  prospect  of  the  papal  dignity  was  too  much  for     chap. 

the  ambitious  bishop.     To  secure  it  he  was  ready  1_ 

to  change  his  principles  ;  to  give  up  the  cause  of 
Boniface,  to  which  he  had  hitherto  adhered  ;  to 
support  the  cause  of  Philip,  and  to  pledge  himself  to 
observe  six  conditions,  the  chief  among  them  being 
that  he  should  reconcile  the  king  to  the  Church, 
pardon  everything  that  had  taken  place,  give  up  the 
tenths  for  five  years,  restore  to  the  Colonnas  their 
dignities,  promote  several  of  the  king's  friends  to  the 
rank  of  cardinals,  institute  a  searching  investigation 
into  the  heresies  of  Boniface,  and  even  promise  to 
observe  one  more,  which  for  the  present  was  kept  a 
profound  secret.^ 

Notwithstanding   the   humiliating    conditions    to  W  J^^- 

7HOV6S  to 

which  Clement  V.  had  been  obliged  to  submit,  in  Avignon. 
order  to  obtain  the  papal  dignity,  it  was  open  to  ^■^-  '309 
him  to  take  an  independent  line  after  his  ap- 
pointment, had  he  only  been  residing  in  Rome, 
free  from  the  influence  of  the  court  of  France.  But 
to  complete  his  miserable  dependence,  and  to  undo 
all  that  Boniface  had  done,  Clement,  following  his 
own  inclination,  yielded  to  the  wishes  of  the  French 
king,  and  remained  in  France.  The  ceremony  of 
his  coronation  was  performed  at  Lyons,  and  in  the 
year  1309,  Clement  took  up  his  residence  in  the 
city  of  Avignon.  It  was  a  truly  disastrous  policy 
for  the  Roman  Church.  The  free  political  con- 
dition of  Rome  had  in  times  past  largely  contributed 


'  Neand,  ix.  27.     See  the  two  accounts  by  cotemporaries  in 
^.luRATORi,  Script.  Rer.  Jtal.  ix.  1014,  and  xiii.  415. 


.  J  .  THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

PART     to  the  political  triumphs  of  the  Papacy.      Henceforth 

.        the  political  dependence  of  Avignon  was  destined  to 

involve  the  Papacy  in  political  decline.  The  Popes 
at  Avignon  were  often  little  better  than  tools  of  the 
French  kings.  They  served  those  kings  in  matters 
which  were  directly  opposed  to  their  spiritual  voca- 
tion. They  made  themselves  contemptible  by  their 
conduct.  The  papal  court  became  the  seat  of  a 
corruption  greater  than  had  prevailed  before.  The 
Popes  at  Avignon  elevated  to  the  highest  dignities 
men  the  least  fitted  by  age,  character,  or  education — 
their  own  relatives,  or  the  nominees  of  the  French 
court ;  and  the  cardinals  in  a  foreign  city  abandoned 
themselves  to  every  species  of  luxury  and  de- 
bauchery, seeking  in  a  vortex  of  profligacy  to  forget 
the  servitude  of  the  Church.-^ 
id)  De-  It  was  now  absolutely  impossible  for  a  Pope  to 

on  Philip,  oppose   the  wishes  of  a  king  of  France  except  by 
(")  Pre-     stealth ;    and    this    fact    Clement    soon    discovered, 

iieiits 

Charles'  when  those  wishes  affected  the  bestowal  of  an  Em- 
by stealth,  pi^.  The  cheHshed  plan  of  Philip,  by  which  he 
A.D.  1308  thought  to  elevate  his  brother  Charles  of  Valois  to 
the  imperial  throne,  and  to  use  the  Pope  as  the 
instrument  for  carrying  it  into  execution, — this  plan, 
the  sixth  condition  imposed  on  Clement,  which 
had  been  kept  a  profound  secret,  could  only  be 
frustrated  by  guile  and  deception.  It  was  a  plan 
which  would  have  thrown  the  destinies  of  Europe 
into  the  house  of  Valois,  and  doubled  the  servitude 
of  the    Popes.     Not    trusting   the    Pope's    fidelity, 


:'  See  -Neand.  Ix.  28. 


LOSS  OF  POLITICAL   SUPREMACY.  a^^ 

Philip  resorted  to  stealth  to  enforce  the  execution  of    chap. 

this  plan  ;  and  suddenly  surprising  Clement  with  a  _J 1_ 

band  of  armed  followers,  carried  him  off  prisoner. 
Stealth  was  met  by  equal  stealth.  Employing  the 
agency  of  the  same  cunning  Du  Prat,  who  had 
secured  for  him  the  Papacy,  Clement,  whilst  ostensibly 
granting  the  king's  request,  secretly  invited  the 
German  princes  to  hasten  the  election  of  Henry  of 
Luxemburg  :  ^  and  actually  he  gained  his  point.  But 
though  successful  in  this  instance,  his  success  was 
secured  by  low  and  underhand  dealing.  It  was  the 
success  of  cunning,  not  the  success  of  strength.  He 
did  not  meet  with  equal  success  in  opposing  other 
measures  which  Philip  forced  upon  his  notice. 

Thus    he    could   not    prevent    proceedings    being  (<3)  Pro- 

1    .       ,  .  ...  ,  ceedings 

instituted  in  liis  court  against  his  predecessor  and  against 
former  patron,  Boniface  VHI.,  against  whom  charges   vul 
were  preferred  by  the  unflinching  adherents  of  Philip,     ^  ^■^■ 
until  Aragon  and  Spain  were  startled,  and  begged 
the  Pope  to  put  a  stop  to  the  scandalous  spectacle.^ 
In   this  emergency  Clement  V.,  unwilling  to  see  his 
patron  impeached,  but  unable  to  refuse  the  demands 
of  the  French  king,   resorted  to  an  expedient  which 
had  been  twice  suggested  in  the  time  of  Boniface, 
and  which  was  then  taken  to  be  indicative  of  decay 

1  Neand.  ix.  29  ;  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  98,  p.  7  ;  Villani,  lib.  viii, 
c.  ci.  fol.  437. 

2  As  early  as  1307  Philip  pressed  the  Pope  to  condemn  his 
predecessor.  See  Villani,  lib.  viii.  c.  xci.  The  Pope  was  forced 
in  1309  to  open  a  formal  inquiry  into  the  conduct  of  Boniface 
VIII.  in  which  Nogaret  and  Du  Plessis  were  the  accusers.  See 
Du  PuY,  Hist,  du  differeud  entre  le  Pape  Boniface  VIII  et  Philippe- 

e-£el,  p.  325,  fol.     Paris,  1655. 


4i6 


PART 
III. 


(r)  Abo- 
lition  of 
the  Tem- 
plars. 

A.D. I3II 


THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

in  the  papal  power  :  he  induced  Philip  to  suspend 
his  charges  for  the  present,  in  order  to  refer  the 
matter  to  a  general  council  which  was  about  to  meet 
at  Vienne,  Philip  consented.  The  matter  was 
broueht  before  the  council,  and  the  result  was  that 
the  memory  of  Boniface  was  vindicated.^  Never- 
theless the  dignity  of  the  Pope  suffered  in  con- 
sequence of  that  reference.  For  the  council,  not  the 
Pope,  cleared  his  predecessor's  memory.  And,  more- 
over, to  protect  Philip,  a  declaration  was  set  forth  by 
Clement  securing  the  king  against  the  consequences 
which  might  flow  from  his  acts  against  Boniface,  and 
expunging  or  altering  the  expressions  in  the  previous 
Bulls  which  were  hostile  to  the  interests  of  France. 

Not  less  servile  was  Clement's  conduct  in  the 
condemnation  of  the  Templars.  The  wealth  of  that 
order  had  incurred  the  jealousy  of  many,  and  above 
all  had  excited  the  greediness  of  the  French  king. 
Suddenly  in  the  year  1307,  all  the  Knights  Tem- 
plars in    France   were    by    Philip's    order    arrested. 


'  The  decision  of  the  Council  might  have  been  foreseen,  if  the 
language  of  the  Bull  of  April  27,  13 it,  is  considered.  That  Bull 
in  Raynaldi,  ad  h.  an.  no.  26,  has  the  following  amongst  other 
passages  :  '  Nos  .  .  .  apud  eundem  Regem  .  .  .  institimus,  .  .  . 
'  ut  rejectis  anfractibus  denunciationum  et  objectionum  hujusmodi, 
'  .  .  .  ipsius  negotii  persecutionem  nostrae  et  Ecclesiae  ordinationi 
'  relinqueret.  .  .  .   Et  si  qua  calumnia,  macula,  sive  nota  ex  prae- 

*  missis  denunciationibus,  .  .  .  aut  quibuscunque  contumeliis, 
'  blasphemiis  .  .  .  eidem  Bonifacio  .  .  .  illatis,  praefato  regi, 
'  posteritati  suae,  .  .  .  et  denunciatoribus,  .  .  .  nee  non  et  adju- 

*  toribus  ...  ex  captione,  insultu  et  aggressione  praedictis  .  .  . 

*  impingi,  imponi,  vel  imputari  possent  in  posterum  quoque  modo  ; 

*  hujusmodi  calumnias,  notas,  maculas  .  .  .  totalitei  abolemus  et 
'  tollimus.' 


LOSS   OF   POLITICAL    SUPREMACY. 


417 


The  sovereign   Pontiff  took    no  steps    to    interfere,     chap. 

The    trials  were    conducted    in    the  most  arbitrary   -1 1_ 

manner.  Many  of  the  accused  were  condemned  un- 
heard. Clement,  it  is  true,  protested  against  charges 
of  infidelity  and  heresy  being  entertained  by  a  secu- 
lar tribunal,  but  beyond  protesting  he  dared  not  go. 
Finally,  when  he  saw  that  Philip  was  intent  on 
destroying  the  whole  Order,  he  joined  the  king  in 
carrying  on  proceedings  against  them,  and  after  three 
years  of  persecution,  at  the  council  of  Vienne,  declared 
the  Order  abolished.-^  Strange  charges  were  pre- 
ferred against  those  knights.^      Perhaps  they  were 


'  The  sentence  in  Labbe,  xv.  22,  May  2,  13 12.  The  order  was 
dissolved,  and  their  property  bestowed  on  the  Hospitallers  :  '  Du- 

*  dum  siquidem  Ordinem  domus  militiae  templi  Hierosolymitani 
'  propter  magistrum  et  fratres  .  .  .  variis,  .  .  .  infandis  obscoenitati- 
'  bus,  pravitatibus,  maculis  et  labe  respersos,  .  .  .  ejusque  Ordinis 
'  statum,  habitum,  atque  nomen,  .  .  .  non  per  modum  diffinitivae 
'  sententiae,  cum  earn  super  hoc  secundum  inquisitiones  et  pro- 
'  cessus  super  his  habitos  non  possemus  ferre  de  jure,  sed  per 

*  viam  provisionis,  seu  ordinationis  apostolicae,  irrefragibili,  et  per- 
'  petuo  valitura  sustulimus  sanctione.' 

^  LabbiS,  XV.  42  :  '  Depositum  nempe  fuit  contra  Templarios, 
'  et  compertum,  quod  quando  recepeinint  quenquam  ad  ordinem, 
'  amotis  omnibus  exceptis  fratribus  ejusdem  ordinis,  adduxerunt 

*  ilium  ad  locum  privatum,  et  totaliter  denudaverunt,  et  tunc  unus 
'  accederet  ad  eundem,  et  eum  oscularetur  in  posteriori  parte, 
'  deinde  induceretur  et  cingeretur  corrigia  de  sambuco.  Et  post 
'  crux  portaretur,  et  ibi  diceretur  sibi,  quod  crucifixus  non  est 
'  Christus,  sed  quidam  falsus  propheta  deputatus  per  Judaeos  ad 
'  mortem  propter  delicta  sua,  et  fecerunt  eum  ter  spuere  super 
'  illam,  et  postea  projecerunt  crucem  ad  terram,  et  earn  pedibus 
'  conculcari  fecerunt,  deinde  ostenderunt  sibi  caput  cujusdam  idoli, 
'  quod  quotidie  adorabant.  Et  praeter  haec  depositum  est  contra 
'  eos,  quod  vitio  foedabantur  Sodomitico,  statuentes  quod  nullus 
'  ulatur  mulieribus,  sed  quilibet  alterutro,  cum  voluerit.' 

E    E 


4x8 


THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 


TART     true  ;  more  probably  they  were  not  so ;  but  whether 
^^^'       true    or   not,    they   were,  at   least,    not   the   causes 


of  the  condemnation  of  the  Templars.  That  con- 
demnation was  the  result  of  other  causes.  It  was 
proposed  by  Philip,  with  the  view  of  depriving  a 
powerful  corporation  of  their  wealth.  It  was  carried 
out  by  the  Pope,  thanks  to  the  servile  dependence 
of  Clement  on  Philip. 
(e)  High  Nothing  daunted  by  their  own  actual  condition 
ViePflpcs.  of  dependence,  the  Popes  at  Avignon  were  not 
behind  their  predecessors  in  advancing  their  claims 
to  power ;  nor  had  these  claims  grown  less  as  time 
advanced.  They  seem,  in  fact,  to  have  increased  in 
proportion  as  the  real  power  of  the  Popes  diminished. 
Before  the  kings  of  France,  these  pretensions  were 
always  kept  in  abeyance,  but  they  were  asserted  all 
the  more  strongly  towards  other  princes,  and  in 
particular  towards  such  as  might  chance  to  incur  the 
hostility  of  France. 
{n)  Con-  A  quarrel  about  the  possession  of  Ferrara  had 
towards  involved  the  Pope  in  a  struggle  with  Venice.  Venice 
Venice.  ^^^  j^^  consequence  visited  with  the  ecclesiastical 
ban.  Not  content  with  that  punishment,  Clement 
pronounced  sentence  of  secular  outlawry  on  the  Vene- 
tians with  such  terrible  threats  that  the  historian,  Ray- 
nald,  is  ashamed  to  communicate  in  full  the  penal- 
ties threatened,  and  only  gives  a  report  of  them.^ 

1  Raynald.  an.  1309,  no.  6  (quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  98, 
p.  14)  :  '  Ni  parerent,  sacrorum  usu  et  commercio  publico  Vene- 
'  torum  omnem  ditionem  privavit :  incessit  infamiae  notam  magis- 
'  tratibus,  legum  et  judiciorum  beneficio  privatos  pronunciavit, 
'  vires  ecclesiasticos  abire  ditione  Veneta  jussit,  exceptis  iis,  qui 
'  baptismalia  infantibus  et  morituris  confessionis  sacra  conferrent. 


LOSS   OF  POLITICAL   SUPREMACY.  ^ig 

The  sentence  was  not  only  pronounced,  but  executed ;    chap. 

and  Venice  could  not  obtain  absolution  until,  as  hap-  '— 

pened  four  years  later,  she  professed  unconditional 
submission. 

Not  less  overbearing  was  Clement's  conduct  to-  (/3) 
wards  the  emperor  Henry  VII.,  with  whose  reign  witk"^ 
the  heyday  of  the  Empire  closes  as  that  of  the  y/j'^ 
Papacy  does  with  the  administration  of  Boniface 
VI 1 1.  Both  the  Papacy  and  the  Empire  had  risen 
by  mutual  assistance  from  the  time  of  Pope  Ste- 
phen II.  to  that  of  Gregory  VII.;  both  now  declined 
by  injuries  mutually  inflicted.  Since  the  death  of 
Frederic  II.,  no  emperor  had  attempted  to  vindicate 
the  ancient  rights  of  the  Empire  in  Italy  ;  since  that 
time  the  Popes  had  celebrated  some  of  their  greatest 
triumphs  in  Germany.  But  in  .Henry  VII.  the  old 
chivalric  spirit  of  the  Hohenstaufen,  with  all  their 
dreams  of  imperial  greatness  and  imperial  glory,  ■ 
revived,  shedding  a  lustre  on  a  power  which  was 
soon  destined  to  become  a  mere  name,  a  shadow, 
and  an  empty-sounding  title.  Success  attended 
Henry's  efforts  across  the  Alps.  Supported  by  the 
old  respect  for  the  imperial  name,  supported  too  by 
Clement  V.,  who  dreaded  at  the  same  time  that  he 
served  the  ambition  of  the  French  king,  Henry  at 
first  found  the  cities  of  Lombardy  willing  to  receive 
him,  and  was  crowned  at  Rome  on  the  southern  bank 
of  the  Tiber.     Was  this  success  too  great  to  please 

'  Denum  si  in  coeptis  perstarent,  praefixo  ad  veniam  poscendam 
'  tempore,  ducem  insignibus  ducalibus  exuendum,  et  omnes  Vene- 
*  torum  fortunas  fisco  addicendas,  regumque  in  eos  imploranda 
'  arma  pronunciavit,  donee  Ferrariam  Ecclesiae  restituissent.' 

E  E    2 


^^  THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

PART  Clement  ?  Or  had  he  hitherto  only  acquiesced  in 
"^-  Henry's  projects,  waiting  till  a  fitting  opportunity 
should  occur  to  compass  his  own  ends  ?  What- 
ever his  motives  may  have  been,  the  fact  is  beyond 
dispute  that  Henry  was  no  sooner  involved  in  open 
hostilities  with  Robert,  King  of  Naples,  whom  he 
treated  as  a  vassal  of  the  Empire,  than  Clement  V. 
put  forth  his  claims  to  power ;  and  not  content  with 
asserting  his  own  feudal  sovereignty  over  Sicily, 
ventured,  in  the  spirit  of  the  haughtiest  of  his  prede- 
cessors, to  address  both  the  emperor  and  Robert  as 
his  own  vassals,  bidding  them  refer  to  himself  the 
matter  in  dispute,  as  their  feudal  superior.^  Once 
again  a  struggle  between  a  Pope  and  an  emperor 
seemed  on  the  verge  of  breaking  out,  in  this  case  the 
Pope  being  comparatively  weak,  and  the  emperor 
comparatively  strong,  when  sudden  death  carried  off 
A.D.  Henry  at  Siena  ;  and  Clement,  left  without  an  oppo- 
1313  '  nent,  promulgated  in  a  formal  Bull  -  the  superiority 
of  the  papal  to  the  imperial  power.     The  same  year 

March  21,  he  died  himself. 
1314 

'  In  Raynald.  an.  131 2,  no.  44,  Clement  writes  to  Henry  and 
Robert :  '  Quod  cum  ipsi  Reges,  ejusdem  Ecclesiae  specialissimi 
'  filii,  sibi  juramento  fidelitatis  et  alias  multipliciter  assent  adstricti, 

*  ipsius  Ecclesiae  debeant  esse  promptissimi  defensores.' 

2  Clanentin.  lib.  ii.  tit.  ix.  :  '  Romani  Principes  ,  .  .  non  repu- 
'  taverunt  indignum  .  .  .  Romano  Pontifici,  a  quo  approbationem 
'  personae,  ad  imperialis  celsitudinis  apicem  assumendae,  necnon 
'  unctionem,   consecrationem,   et  Imperii  coronam   accipiunt,  se 

*  adstringere  vinculo  juramenti.  .  ,  .  Nos,  ne  quis  in  Romanum 
'  assumptus  Principem,  vel  in  posterum  assumendus,  an  juramen- 
'  tum  hujusmodi  .  .  .  fidelitatis  rationabi liter  dici  possit,  in  dubi- 
'  tationera  ducere  audeat,  vel  super  hoc  contrarium  adstruere  veri- 


STRUGGLES   OF  POPES  FOR  POWER.  a  2  I 

And  now  began  a  new  series  of  struggles  on  the     chap. 
part  of  the  Popes,  John  XXL,  Benedict  XII.,  and 


Clement  VI. ,^  to  regain  their  independence,  and  to  stru'o-<ries 
reassert  their  supremacy.      In  both  these    attempts  ^^'f  r 
they  were  destined  to  meet  with  failures.    Whatever  power 

A.D. 

they  might  attempt,  it  was  impossible  for  them  to  be  1316-1347 
politically  independent,  as  long  as  they  continued  to  tempts  to 
reside  at  Avicrnon,  as  those  who  ventured  on  an  im-  ^'^^S'^^'J- 

^  Dtdepen- 

practicable   project   soon   learned   to   their  cost.      If  deuce 
Clement  V.   was  powerless  to  do  anything  against  France. 
the  wishes  of  Philip  the  Fair,  John  XXL,  who  sue-  ^^V?''"* 
ceeded  him,  found  himself  equally  paralysed  under  1316-1334 
Philip's    successors,    Philip    V.,     Charles     IV.,    and  1316-1322 
Philip   VI.      By   the   last-named   king    he    was    not  1328-1350 
only  deprived  of  such  independence  as  he  still  pos- 
sessed, but  his  liberty  of  action  .in  purely  ecclesiasti- 
cal  matters  was   imperilled  also.     An  assembly  of 
prelates  and  theologians  was  convened  by  the  king, 
on  the  fourth  Sunday  in  Advent  in  the  year  1333,  at 
the  castle  of  Vincennes,  and  two  questions  were  laid 
before  it,  touching  opinions  which  John  had  uttered 
as  to  the  state  of  the  soul  after  death. ^     To  guard 

*  tati  :  auctoritate  apostolica  de  fratrum  nostrorum  consilio  .  .  . 
'  declaramus,  illud  juramentum  fidelitatis  existere  ac  censeri 
'  debere.' 

^  After  a  two  years'  vacancy  John  XXI.  [XXII.]  became  Pope, 
August  7,  1316.  He  died  December  4,  1334.  For  his  hfe,  see 
Labbe,  XV.  147.  Benedict  XII.  followed  December  20,  1334, 
dying  April  25,  1342.  His  life,  ibid.  p.  419.  Next  after  Benedict 
XII.  came  Clement  VI.  May  7,  1342.  He  died  December  6, 
1352.     For  his  life,  ibid.  p.  563. 

2  The   two  questions  were  :    '  (i)  Whether  the   holy  souls  in 

*  heaven  would  be  able  to  behold  God's  essence  before  the  resur- 
'  rection  and  day  of  judgment  %  and  (2)  Whether  the  same  intuition 


III. 


.22  THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

PART  the  honour  of  the  Pope,  it  was  remarked  that  John 
had  given  no  definite  opinion,  but  only  expressed 
himself  problematically.  Nevertheless,  a  decision 
was  given  by  the  council  adverse  to  the  Pope.^  A 
copy  of  the  decision  was  forwarded  to  John  together 
with  a  private  intimation  from  Philip,  that  the  fagot 
awaited  him  in  case  he  refused  to  recant.^  So 
complete  was  John's  dependence  on  the  king,  that 
he  drew  up  a  letter,  which  was  not  published,  how- 
ever, till  after  his  death,  enunciating  a  view  the  very 
opposite  of  what  he  had  previously  held,  and  de- 
claring that  purified  souls  found  themselves  at  once 
after  death  in  heaven  or  paradise.^ 

*  of  the  divine  essence,  which  they  now  enjoy,  would  be  renewed 
'  at  the  day  of  judgment  or  another?'  See  Bulaei  Hist.  Univ. 
Paris,  torn.  iv.  p.  237  ;  Neand.  ix.  50. 

1  Their  decision,  given  January  2,  1333,  may  be  found  in 
D'Argentre,  i.  316.  It  ruled  :  '  Quod  a  tempore  mortis  Domini 
'  nostri   Jesu    Christi,   per   quam    pretium   redemptionis   humani 

*  generis  extitit  persolutum,  omnes  animae  SS.  Patrum,  quas  idem 

*  Salvator  noster  ad  inferos  descendens  eduxit  de  limbo,  caetero- 
'  rumque  fidelium  animae,  quae  de  corporibus  exierant,  nihil 
'  habentes  purgabile,  vel  quae  jam  in  Purgatorio  sunt  purgatae,  ad 
'  visionem  nudam  et  claram,  beatificam,  intuitivam  et  immediatam 

*  divinae  essentiae  et  benedictissimae  Trinitatis  .  .  .  erunt  as- 
'  sumptae,  ipsaque   Deitate  beata  perfecte  fruuntur.  .  .  .  Quan- 

*  quam  dicta  visio,  quam  nunc  habent,  resuraptis  corporibus 
'  minime  evacuabitur,  alia  succedente,  sed  ipsamet  in  eis,  cum  sit 
'  earum  vita  aeterna,  perpetuo  remanebit.' 

2  'Qu'il  se  revoquast,  ou  qu'il  le  feroit  ardre.'  Bulaei  Jlist. 
Univ.  Far.  tom.  iv.  p.  238. 

'  Ep.  i.  LABBfi,  XV.  149  :  'Fatemur  siquidem  et  credimus  quod 
'  animae  purgatae  separatae  a  corporibus,  sint  in  coelo,  caelorum 

*  regno,  et  paradiso  cum  Christo  in  consortio  angelorum  congre- 
'  gatae,  et  videant  Deum  facie  ad  faciem  et  Divinam  essentiam 

*  clare,  in  quantum  conditio  et  status  patitur  animae  separatae.' 


STRUGGLES   OF  POPES  FOR  POWER. 


423 


Notwithstandinof  the  state  of  humiliation  to  which     chap. 

XIII. 

John  XXI.  was  reduced,  one  attempt  was  made  by 


his  successor,   Benedict  XII.,  himself  a  severe  re-  Jet xn. 
former,  to  cure  the  evils  from  which  the  Papacy  was      ^•'^• 
suffering.    Nepotism  found  no  favour  in  his  eyes.    His 
relations  could  oret  nothino^  from  him.     The  vacant 
sees  were  filled  with  able  and  pious  men.      The  de- 
generate clergy,  especially  the  monks,  were  severely 
censured.      His    reforms    stirred    up    the    voice    of 
slander.      He  was    charged  with    being   harsh    and 
covetous,  given  to  drinking,  and  the  author  of  the 
saying,  '  Bibamus  Papaliter.'    The  charges  were  pro- 
bably   unfounded.'     Above    all,    with    the   view   of 
shaking  off  the  bondage  of  France,  he  formed  the 
intention  of  returning  to  reside  in   Italy,  and  making 
terms  with  the  German  emperor,  Lewis   IV.      The 
former  part  of  the  project  was  frustrated  by  the  pre- 
ponderance of  the  French  cardinals  who  refused  to 
exchanofe   Avignon  for    Rome.^     As  to    the  latter, 
Philip  always  contrived  to  prevent  an  actual  recon- 
ciliation between  the   Pope  and  the  emperor  from 
being   brought  to  pass.      Benedict    XII.   ended  his 
career  as  he  had  begun,  still  wholly  dependent  on  the 
court  of  France  ;   nor  did    his  worldly-minded  suc- 
cessor, Clement  VI.,  share  the  same  desires  as  his 
pious  and  ascetic  predecessor. 

The  policy  of  the  earlier  Popes  at  Avignon  ap-  (2)  At- 
pears  to   have   been    to    indemnify  themselves   for  gainsu- 
their  dependence    on    France   by   advancing   their  ^I^q^^/ 
pretensions  to  power  in  Germany.    Weak,  avaricious,  ^"any. 

1  Neand.  ix.  54.  2  Raynald.  an.  1335,  No.  3. 


424 


THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 


PART  and  luxurious  themselves,  they  had  most  commonly 
'. to  encounter  emperors  who  were  weak  and  power- 
less also.  Hence,  the  struggles  between  the  em- 
perors and  the  Popes,  which  had  once  gone  on 
when  both  the  Empire  and  the  Papacy  were  in  the 
height  of  their  glory,  were  repeated  in  a  milder  form 
when  both  were  decaying ;  and  lasted  for  some  time 
between  opponents  nearly  evenly  matched.  Those 
struggles  are  no  longer  struggles  between  the  two 
foremost  powers  of  Europe.  It  is  no  longer  a 
question  whether  the  Pope  or  the  emperor  shall  be 
the  supreme  head  of  western  Christendom  ;  for  the 
spell  which  the  name  of  both  once  exercised  over 
the  mind  of  society  has  been  broken.  Both  are 
declining  institutions,  names  commanding  respect 
and  veneration,  but  no  longer  names  of  power  and 
dread.  The  Pope  is  powerless,  a  slave  of  the 
French  king.  The  emperor  is  powerless,  dependent 
on  the  great  electors. 
(^7)  First        'pj-^g   f^j-st  strup-p;le   between    the    Pope    and    the 

struggle  "^^  ^ 

between      emperor  broke  out  after  the  death  of  Henry  VH., 

LeivisIV.  -v^         ^        •  r       \  •  ^      t  •  r     -n> 

A.D.       when    rrederic   01    Austria  and    Lewis   of   Bavaria 

aint  John  were  Candidates  for  the   Imperial  dignity.      An  op- 

1M6-13-4  portunity  seemed   to    have    occurred    of  practically 

applying  the  Bull  lately  issued  by  Clement  V.    John 

XXI.  was  anxious  not  to  lose  the  opportunity,  and 

tried  to    bring    the    decision    into    his    own    hands. 

Sept.  28,    Virtually,  the  batde  of  Muhldorf  had  already  settled 
1322 

the   dispute  in   favour  of   Lewis.     For   Lewis  had 

taken   his    antagonist   prisoner,   and    was  acting  as 

emperor  without  waiting  for  the  papal  confirmation. 

For  doing  so,  John  XXI.  summoned  him  to  account, 


STRUGGLES   OF  POPES  FOR  POWER. 


425 


and  finding  that  he  persisted   In  deriving   his  rank     chap 
from  the  choice  of  the  electors,  he  pronounced  on 


XTII. 


him  the  sentence  of  excommunicated,  and  laid  those  March'21, 
parts  of  Germany  where  he  was  recognised  under      ^^^^ 
the  Interdict.^ 

Several  circumstances  which  happened  during  the  («)  Popn- 
course  of  this  struggle  show  the  decline  of  the  power  pathy 
of  the  Papacy  in  a  very  clear  light.      It  is  character-  '^l^jsjv. 
istic  that  Lewis  in  his  reply  to  the   Pope  derives  his 
rank  from  the  choice  of  electoral  princes.     Would 
such  a  view  have   found  general  acceptance  among 
the  German  people  after  the  Council  of  Lyons,  in  the 
time  of  the  Hohenstaufen  ?    And  more  than  that,  not 
only  was  Lewis  supported  by  the  Ghibelllnes  in  Italy, 
but  he  was  supported  by  popular  opinion,  once  the 
most    powerful  ally  of  the  Se.e   of  Rome,  now  the 
most  dangerous  among  its  opponents.      That  fact,  if 
nothing  else,  shows   that  the  spell  of  reverence  for 
the  Popes  was  broken. 

Moreover,  it  was  indicative  of  an  altered  respect  (/^)  ^"i- 

peror 

for  the   Popes,  that   Lewis  should  appeal  from  the  appeals  to 
Pope  to  a  general  council.     Two  such  appeals  had  council. 

^  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  99,  p.  20.  The  protest  of  Lewis  before  a 
notary  and  witnesses  at  Nuremberg,  December  16,  1323,  is  there 
quoted  from  Olenschlager's  Urkundenbuch,  p.  84  :  'A  tempore, 

*  cujus  non  est  memoria,  circa  electos  Romanorum  Reges  et 
'  Principes  sic  est  de  jure  et  consuetudine  observatum,  .  .  . 
'  quod  Romanus  Rex  eo  solum,  quod  electus  est  a  Principibus 
'  Electoribus  .  .  .  omnibus  vel  majori  numero  eorundem,  et 
'  coronatus  corona  regia  in  solitis  locis  et  consuetis,  Rex  est  .  .  . 

*  et  jura  Regni  libere  administrat.  .  .  .  Nee  concedimus,  ita  sim- 
'  pliciter  ut  proponitur,   ad  sedem   apostolicam  examination  em, 

*  admissionem  et  approbationem  electionis  et  personae  nostrae, 

*  [aut]  repulsionem  et  reprobationem,  sicut  asserit.  .  .  .' 


.^5  '^HE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

PART     been  made  in  the   time  of   Boniface   VIII.      They 
^^^'       were   then    noticed   as   the    harbinrers    of  dechne. 


& 


Once  since  then,  Clement  V.  had  referred  the 
enquiry  into  his  predecessor's  conduct  from  his  own 
tribunal  to  that  of  a  general  council.  Here,  how- 
ever, was  the  spectacle  of  an  emperor,  appealing 
from  the  pretensions   of  a    Pope,  who    was    using 

A.D.  1324  spiritual  weapons  for  secular  purposes,  to  a  general 
council,  and  appealing  with  the  consent  and  ap- 
proval of  the  greater  part  of  his  subjects.^  The 
example  set  by  Lewis  in  1324  was  followed  by 
Philip  some  nine  years  later,  when  he  consulted  a 
body  of  divines  respecting  the  supposed  heresies  of 
the  same  Pontiff. 

(v)  Leivis       But  that  consent  and  approval,  in  short,  the  sup- 

scts  lip  an  _     ,  .  .  -  -  ~ 

antipopc,  port  oi  his  people,  was  the  unlortunate  cause  01 
^iLO  as  i-m-j-^jj-^g  |-]-^g  head  of  Lewis,  and  leading  him  to  take 
1328  a  step  most  injurious  to  his  own  interests.  The  ex- 
aggerated advocacy  of  Marsilius  of  Padua,  and  John 
of  Jandun,  did  more  harm  than  good  to  his  popu- 
larity,^ whilst,  at  the  same  time,  they  encouraged 
his  temerity.  The  ancient  device  of  appointing  an 
antipope  was  once   more   resorted  to,   and   on   the 


1  Baluz.  Vitae  pp.  Aven.  vol.  ii.  p.  478,  in  May  1324  :  '  Nos 
'  Ludovicus  Dei  gratia  Romanorum  Rex  semper  Augustus  pro- 
'  ponimus  contra  Johannem,  qui  se  dicit  Papam  XXII,  quod  ini- 
'  micus  sit  pads,  et  intendit  ad  discordias  et  scandala  suscitanda. 
'  .  .  ,  Ad  generale  Concilium,  quod  instanter  et  cum  instantia 
'  repetita  in  loco  tuto  nobis  et  nostris  convocari  petimus,  et  ad 
'  rerum  legitimum  futurum  summum  Pontificem,  et  ad  sanctam 
'  matrem  Ecclesiam  et  apostolicam  sedem,  et  ad  aliura  vel  ad  alios, 
'  ad  quem  vel  ad  quos  fuerit  appellandum,  provocamus  et  appel- 
'  lamus.' 

2  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  99,  p.  26. 


STRUGGLES   OF  POPES  FOR  POWER.  427 

place  in  front  of  St.   Peter's  at  Rome,  an  assembly    chap. 

XIII. 

was  convened  in  the  year   1328,  before  which  John  '- — 

XXL  was  charged  with  being  a  heretic.  The  charges 
were  significant.  John  was  said  to  have  replied 
when  he  was  urged  to  war  against  the  Saracens, 
that  there  were  Saracens  enouQ-h  at  home.     He  had 

^  A.D. 

taught  that  Christ  and  his  apostles  held  property,  April  18, 
whereas  He  had  ever  loved  poverty.  He  was  further 
charged  with  aspiring  to  secular  power,  contrary 
to  the  command  of  Christ,  who  would  have  the 
things  of  Caesar  rendered  to  Caesar,  and  who  had 
taught  that  his  kingdom  was  not  of  this  world. ^ 
For  these  crimes,  sentence  of  deposition  was  pro- 
nounced on  him  ;  and  by  a  second  assembly,  held  in 
the  same  place  on  Ascension  Day,  an  antlpope  was  May  12, 
elected  who  took  the  name  of  Nicholas  V.^ 

But   Lewis   was  not  able  to  follow  up  this  step.  ((>)  De- 
The  Popes  political  power  had  greatly  declined,  it  of  Lewis. 
is  true ;  but  to  see  the  Vicar  of  Christ  deposed  by 
imperial   authority  was  too  great  a  shock  for  that 

*  April  18,  1328.  Baluz.  Vitae  pp.  Aven.  ii.  512:  '  Ludovicus 
*  Dei  gratia  Romanorum  Imperator  et  semper  Augustus  in  per- 
'  petuam  rei  memoriam.  .  .  .  Eapropter  ex  imperialis  celsitudinis 
'  debito  excessus  enormes  Jacobi  de  Caturco,  qui  nunc  se  Papam 
'  Johannem  XXII.  asserere  non  veretur,  .  .  .  nullatenus  sufferre 
'  valentes  ...  in  Italiam  venimus.  .  .  .  Quapropter  ipsum  Jaco- 
'  bum  in  haeresi  deprehensum,  .  .  .  quia  haeresim  publice  prae- 
'  dicat,  perfectionem  altissimae  paupertatis  in  Christo  penitus 
'  denegando  .  .  .  eo  quod  indigne  gerit  et  gessit  vicariatus  offi- 
'  cium  ...  a  Christo  privatum  esse  .  .  .  denunciamus,  nostraeque 
'  imperialis  auctoritatis  sententia  episcopatu  Romano  et  universalis 
'  Ecclesiae  Dei  seu  Papatu  .  .  .  privamus.' 

2  Ibid.  p.  522,  May  12,  1328.  See  Villani,  x.  c.  yr ;  Neand. 
ix.  p.  49. 


428 


THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 


PART 
III. 


A.D. 
1332 

{b)  Second 
struggle 
betweett 
LeivisIV. 
and  Bene- 
dict XII. 
1334-1342 
(a)   The 
Estates 
decide 
against 
the  Pope. 


age.  '  Wise  men  in  Rome  were  much  disturbed 
thereat,  and  the  rest  of  the  simple  folk  did  not 
greatly  exult.^  Lewis  was  obliged  to  flee  from  Italy, 
fresh  anathemas  followed  him  on  his  return  into 
Germany  :  ^  the  antipope,  Peter  of  Corvaro,  was  com- 
pelled to  submit,  and  to  beg  for  absolution  ;  and 
Lewis,  wearied  with  persecution,  made  offers  of  sub- 
mission, all  of  which  were  rejected  by  John  XXL 
At  length,  finding  his  croAvn  too  burdensome  to  be 
borne,  he  resolved  to  resign  it  in  despair.^ 

The  sufferingfs  of  Lewis  did  more  for  him  than 
his  successes.  The  struggle  was  renewed,  this  time 
with  another  Pope.  For  John  XXI,  had  escaped 
by  death  from  the  council  which  was  preparing  to 
judge  him.  Nothing  shows  more  clearly  the  decline 
of  the  Pope's  power,  than  the  conduct  of  the  estates 
and  the  electoral  princes,  when  Lewis'  last  endeavour 
to  be  reconciled  with  Benedict  XI I.  had  failed. 
The  estates  assembled  at  Frankfurt,  They  pro- 
nounced the  papal  sentence  of  excommunication 
invalid,  declaring  upon  oath  that  the  services  so 
long  intermitted  throughout  the  length  and  breadth 
of  the  land  ought  by  rights  to  be  continued.*     The 


'   ViLLANI,  X.  c.  68. 

2  April  20,  1329,  and  June  25,  1329.    See  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  99, 

P-  39- 

3  See  the  authorities  quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  99,  p.°'42. 

"*  Jo.  ViTADURAMUS,  p.  49  :  '  Qui  discutientes  causas  et  motiva 
'  singula  tarn  Papae  quam  Imperatoris,  diligentesque  examinantes 

*  ,  .  ,  repererunt,  Imperatorem  cuncta,  quae  debuit,  sufficienter 
'  peregisse,  et  sibi  aditum  et  accessum  omnis  gratiae  et  justitiae 

*  interclusum,  et  obstructum,  et  indiscrete  temereque  penitus  dene- 
'  gatum.      Sententia   ergo   matura   et  unanimi    Principes   etiam 


STRUGGLES  OF  POPES  FOR  POWER. 


429 


electoral  princes  withdrew  to  Rense,  and  there  made     chap. 

XIII. 

a  formal  declaration  that  the  Roman  kine  receives '~ 


A.D. 


his  rank  and  power  solely  from  the  choice  of  the  juiy  15, 
electoral  princes.^  This  was  the  first  electoral  league, 
and  this  declaration  was  immediately  afterwards 
established  as  the  law  of  the  land.'^^  Public  opinion 
was  general  in  behalf  of  Lewis ;  and  the  clergy  who 
wished  to  maintain  the  interdict  were  banished.  All 
these  were  important  steps  ;  but  among  them  the 
most  important  without  doubt  was  the  declaration, 
distinctly  denying  the  Bull  of  Clement  V.    It  showed 

*  jurejurando  praestito  determinaverunt,  omnes  processus  a  Domino 
'  Papa  contra  Dominum  Imperatorem  latos,  indebitos  et  prorsus 
'  nuUius  fore  roboris  vel  momenti,  sed  eos  irritos  et  inanes  et  ab 
'  aequitatis  lance  penitus  alienos.  Adstruxeruntque  eodem  jure- 
'  jurando  sententia  diffinitiva,  per  totan,i  terram  Imperii  .  .  .  divi- 

*  num  cultum,  diu  indebite  .  .  .  interdictum  et  suspensum,  legi- 
'  time  liciteque  omni  scrupulo  conscientiae  deposita  debere  resumi.' 

^  Olenschlager's  Urkundenbuch,  p.  188,  quoted  by  Gies. 
vol.  iv.  sec.  99,  p.  49,  gives  the  declaration  of  the  first  Churvcre'ui 
as  follows  :  '  Wir  .  .  .  han  uns  des  vereint,  das  wir  dats  egenant 
'  Rich,  und  unser  fiirstlich  Er,  die  wir  von  Im  haben,  nemlichen 
'  an  der  Kur  des  Richs,  an  sinen  und  unsern  Rechten,  Friheiten, 
'  und  Gewonheiten,  als  von  Alter  an  uns,  und  an  des  Richs  Kur- 

*  fiirsten  herkommen  und  bracht   ist    handhaben,  beschurn,  und 

*  beschirmen  wollen,  nach  aller  unser  Macht  und  Craft  an  Geverde, 
'  wider  aller  meniglichen,  nieman  ausgenommen,  wan  es  unser  Er 
'  und  Aid  auget,  und  wollen  das  nit  lassen,  durch  dheinerlei 
'  Gebot,  von  wem  oder  wie  es  chom,  .  .  .  und  geloben  an  diesn 
'  gegenwertigen  Brief  bi  unsern  fiirstlichen  Eren,  und  haben  es 

*  auch  gesworen  zu  den  Heiligen  fiir  uns  und  unser  Nachkommen, 
'  stet  und  rest   zehalten.  .  .  .  Und   geloben,  .  .  .  das  wir  .  .  . 

*  uns  dawider  nit  behelfifen  sint  dheiner  dispensation,  absolution, 
'  relaxation,  abolition,  in  integrum  restitution,  dheinerleie  beneficio, 
'  wie  das  genant  sie,  wan  es  chum,  oder  Avie  es  chum.' 

2  Promulgated  by  the  Emperor,  August  8,  1338,  and  sanctioned 
by  the  diet,  March  1339. 


.^Q  THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

PART     that  the  German  nation  was  emancipated  from  the 
^ poHtical  thraldom  of  the  Papacy.    When  it  was  eman- 
cipated from  the  ecclesiastical  and  moral  thraldom  of 
that  same  power,  then  came  the  Reformation. 
(fi)  De-  But  again  Lewis'  rashness  injured  his  own  cause. 
of  Lewis.    Elated  with  his  success,  and  disgusted  with  a  new 
act  of  deception  on  the  part  of  Benedict  XII.,  he 
A.D.  1341    seemed  to  wish  to  cut  away  every  hope  of  future 
reconciliation  by  encroaching  on  the  Pope's  acknow- 
ledged rights.   He  dissolved  the  marriage  of  Margaret 
of  Maultasch,  and  granted  the  dispensation  necessary 
for  her  to  wed  his  own  son.^     By  this  rash  act  he 
forfeited   anew   the    confidence    of  his    people ;    he 
awakened  the  jealousy  of  the  nobles,  and  put  fresh 
weapons  into  the  hands  of  the  Pope,  which  Clement 
VI.  was  able  adroitly  to  employ  against  him. 
{c)  Third       The  first  overtures  which  were  made  by  Lewis  to 
between      Clement  VI.,  the  successor  of  Benedict  XII.,  only 
aiiTcie- '  hivolved  him  in  a  new  and  third  struggle  with  the 
vient  VI.    Papacy,  but  they  also  called  forth  a  new  protest  on 
1342-1347  the  part  of  the  estates  of  the  Empire   against  the 
1344       exorbitant  demands  advanced  by  the   Italian  eccle- 
siastics.^    Still  the  success  of  Lewis  was  not  what  it 
might  have  been.      For  if  the  Pope  could  no  longer 
count  on  the  sympathies  of  the  people,  the  weak  and 
vacillating  conduct  of  Lewis,  and  the  aggrandisement 
of  his  own  house,  had  estranged  the  affections   of 
Germany.      Germany   was    prepared    to    resist    the 
political    pretensions  of  the   Popes ;  it  was  not  pre- 
pared heartily  .to  support  Lewis.     Both  the  emperor 

'  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  100,  p.  52.  2  ii)i^j_  p.  24. 


PUBLIC  OPINION  ADVERSE. 


431 


and  the  Pope  struggled  with  enfeebled  forces;  hence    chap. 
neither  was  absolutely  victorious.     Lewis  IV.  died 


XIII. 


as  emperor,  but  excommunicated.     The  prince  whom  Charles 
....  .  .  .IV. 

Clement  had,  in  his  lifetime,  raised  up  against  him,    a.d.  1347 

succeeded  him  as  emperor. 

Many   unmistakable    signs    now    began    to    show  c.  Public 

themselves  of  the  decline  of  the  support^  given  by  against^ 

public   opinion  to  the    Papacy,  proving   that  if  the  \\\^cf/^' 

Popes  wished  to  retain  what  political  influence  they  ^'^'-^'^^  ^^^ 

1343-1352 

still  possessed,  this  end  could  only  be  accomplished  by  ^^^  Career 

showino^  deference  to  the  wishes  of  the  Catholic  la-  ^^f^^^''-^- 

...  ^247 

ity.      Perhaps  the  clearest  evidence  of  this  growing 

indifference  of  feeling  may  be  observed  in  the  career 
of  Rienzi  at  Rome.^  Bereft  of  her  bishop,  now  resi- 
dent at  Avignon,  Rome  had  fallen  into  a  hopeless 
state  of  anarchy.  Ill-situated,  for  trade,  and  pos- 
sessing no  internal  resources,  she  had  hitherto  sub- 
sisted on  the  glories  of  the  past,  and  grown  rich  on 
the  wealth  and  the  offerings  which  were  attracted  by 
the  presence  of  her  bishop.  But,  since  the  residence 
of  the  Popes  at  Avignon,  this  source  of  wealth  was 
gone.  A  few  great  families — the  Orsini  and  the 
Colonnas — with  their  dependants  ruled,  or  rather 
plundered,   the    citizens  ;    and  an    absence   of  forty 

^  The  Popes  of  the  period  are  as  follows  :  Clement  VI.  died 
December  6,  1352,  and  was  succeeded  by  Innocent  VI.  Decem- 
ber 18,  1352.  His  life  in  Labbe,  xv.  707  ;  he  died  September  12, 
1362,  and  was  succeeded  by  Urban  V.  October  28,  1362.  Urban's 
life,  ibid.  p.  787.  On  the  death  of  Urban  V.  December  19,  1370, 
Gregory  XI.  succeeded,  December  30,  1370.  For  his  life,  ibid. 
p.  911  ;  he  died  March  27,  1378. 

2  See  Dr.  T.  Papencordt's  Cola  di  Rienzo  luid  seine  Zcit. 
Hamburg  and  Gotha,  1841. 


432  THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

PART     years  had  accustomed  the  Romans  to  beHeve  that 

'. —  they  were  no  longer  cared  for  or  governed  by  their 

bishop.  At  this  crisis  Rienzi  appeared,  and  appeal- 
ing to  the  sympathies  of  his  countrymen  for  the 
glories  of  the  past,  set  up  a  form  of  secular  govern- 
ment intended  to  revive  antiquity.  Had  Rienzi's 
scheme  succeeded,  and  the  government  of  consuls 
and  tribunes  been  permanently  established,  it  might 
have  materially  hastened  the  downfall  of  the  Papacy. 
It  was  well  for  the  Papacy  that  it  was  short-lived. 
Still  it  did  not  pass  by  without  making  Clement 
aware  of  the  volcano  which  lay  beneath  his  feet. 
lyb)  jjiM-        The  Popes  learned  therefrom  that  they  could  no 

lee  of  .  . 

1350.  longer  threaten,  but  must  conciliate  ;  and  that  the 
first  people  to  be  conciliated  were  the  Romans.  It 
was,  therefore,  an  ingenious  device  on  the  part  of 
Clement  VI.  to  hold  at  the  end  of  fifty  years  the 
jubilee  which  had  hitherto  only  been  observed  at  the 
end  of  a  century.  By  this  expedient  the  Romans 
were,  to  some  extent,  indemnified  for  what  they  had 
lost  by  the  long  absence  of  the  Popes.  To  justify 
the  act,  however,  the  sacredness  of  the  number  fifty, 
according  to  the  Old  Testament,  was  appealed  to  ; 
and  the  famous  constitution  Uiiigcnitus,  which  was 
published  in  1349,  and  which  announced  the  jubilee, 
set  forth  the  fullest  doctrine  of  indulgences.^  It 
declared  that  Christ  had  gained  for  his  Church  a 
treasure,  and  had  committed  it  to  the  keeping  of 
St.   Peter  and   his  successors  ;   to   this  treasure  the 


'   Neand.  ix.  55.     The  Bull  in  Ravnaldi  Annalcs,  an.   1349, 
sec.  II. 


PUBLIC  OPINION  ADVERSE.  .,, 

merits  of  Mary  and  all  the  elect  had  been  added,     chap. 

\'  TT  T 

So  great,  moreover,  was  it,  that  there  was  no  fear  of  -^ '— 

its  being  diminished ;  for  the  greater  the  number  of 
those  who  desired  to  appropriate  it,  the  greater 
would  be  the  number  of  the  saints  increasing  it. 
Nor  were  the  Romans  the  only  people  whom  Cle- 
ment deemed  it  prudent  to  conciliate.      In  Germany  {c)  Con- 

,       ,       ,  ,  ,  .      .        _  .  cessions 

he  had  to  make  every  kma  ot  concession  to  secure  in  Gcr- 
the  recognition  of  Charles  IV.      In  many  places,  in  "'^'^■^• 
Basle  amongst  others,   it  was    found    necessary    to 
suspend  the  interdict  without  delay.      In  others  the 
consecration  of  burial-grounds  had  to  be  repeated  on 
payment   of  a   small    nominal    charge.      It    is    even 
asserted  that  a  second  election  of  Charles  had  to  be 
permitted,  followed  by  a  second  coronation.^     And    a.d.  July, 
yet,  notwithstanding  all  these  concessions,  the  mind       ^^^'^ 
of  Germany  was  embittered  against  the  Pope,  and 
his  power  was  despised.      The  Germans  sighed  for 
the  time  to  come,  when,  according  to  the  old  legend, 
Frederic  II.  should  arise  from  the  dead  to  execute 
justice,   with   the   aid  of  his  knights,  on    a    corrupt 
clergy,  and  restore  the  Church  to  a  new  splendour. '^^ 

1  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  loo,  p.  62. 

^  The  legend  also  applied  to  Frederic  I.  See  Chap.  VIII.  p.  240. 
Jo.  ViTURODAMNUS  writes  :  '  In  his  temporibus  apud  [homines 
'  diversi  generis,  immo  cuncti  generis  multos  valde  assertissime  vul- 
'  gabantur,  Imperatorem  Fredericum  secundum  hujus  nominis  ad 
'  reformandum  statum  omnino  depravatum  Ecclesiae  venturum  in 
'  robore  maximo  potentatus.  Adjiciunt  quoque  homines  prnedicta 
*  sentientes  quod  necesse  sit  eum  venire,  si  in  mille  partes  secatus 
'  asset,  immo  si  in  pulverem  per  combustionem  redactus  foret,  eo 
'  quod  divinitus  sit  decretum  ita  de  hoc  fieri,  quod  immutari  im- 
'  possibile  est.  Secundum  igitur  istam  assertionem  cum  resusci- 
'  tatus  ad  Imperii  sui  culmen  reversus  fuerit,  puellae  vel  feminae 

F  F 


434 

PART 
III.       . 

(2)  Iiuio- 
ccnt  VI. 

A.D. 
1352-1362 


(3)   Ur- 
ban V. 
1362-1370 
{a)  Con- 
it'ssiofi  to 
Beniarbo 
Visconti. 

1364 

Nov.  30, 

1362 


1363 


THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 

A  further  sign  of  declining  power  appeared  under 
the  quiet,  reforming  Pope  Innocent  VI.,  the  successor 
of  Clement  VI.  To  such  an  extent  had  the  Popes 
lost  their  influence  in  the  States  of  the  Church, 
where  a  host  of  petty  principalities  had  grown  up, 
that  the  warlike  Cardinal  Aegidius  Albornoz  had  to 
be  sent  to  reconquer  those  domains.^  Had  any  one 
but  Charles  IV.  been  emperor,  it  is  doubtful  what 
success  the  cardinal  might  have  had. 

Greater  troubles  were  in  store  for  Innocent's  suc- 
cessor. Urban  V.  Aegidius  had  wrested  Bologna 
from  the  powerful  Bernarbo  Visconti,  ruler  of  Milan; 
a  noble,  bold  and  unscrupulous,  to  whom  all  fear, 
alike  of  God  and  man,  of  the  Church  or  the  Roman 
See,  was  unknown.  The  citation  to  appear,  which 
had  been  served  on  him  by  the  Pope,  Bernarbo  set 
at  defiance.  Moved  by  grievous  complaints.  Urban 
V.  at  length  pronounced  on  him  the  sentence  of 
excommunication.      He    did    more ;  he    preached    a 


'  pauperi    in   matrimonio   junget  virum  divitem,   et  e  converse  ; 

*  moniales  et  sorores   in  saeculo   degentes  maritabit,  monachos 

*  uxorabit ;  pupillis,  orphanis,  viduis  omnibus  et  singulis  spoliatis 
'  res  ablatas  restituet,  cunctisque  faciei  justitiae  complementum. 
'  Clericos  persequetur  adeo  atrociter,  quod  coronas  et  tonsuras 
'  suas  stercore  bovino,  si  aliud  tegumentum  non  habuerint,  obdu- 

*  cent,  ne  appareant  tonsorati  :  religiosos,  qui  denunciando  pro- 
'  cessus  papales  contra  eum,  praecipue  fratres  minores,  ipsum  de 
'  Imperio  repulerant,  de  terra  fugabit.  Post  resumptum  Imperium 
'  justius  et  gloriosius  gubernatum  quam  ante,  cum  exercitu  copioso 
'  transfretabit,  et  in  monte  Oliveti  vel  apud  arborem  aridam 
'  Imperium  resignabit.' 

^  See  Clement  VI. 's  Bull  of  July  16,  1346,  in  Bidlarium 
Romanum,  i.  302  ;  Vn,LAXi,  lib.  iii.  ch.  Ixxxiv;  Schlosser,  Welige- 
sc/ikhtc,  book  iv.  ch.  i.  jip.  408,  618  ;  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  loi,  p.  65. 


PUBLIC  OPINION  ADVERSE.  a-^c 

crusade  against  him.      But  within  a  year  afterwards,     chap. 
Urban  found  that  it  was  useless  to   contend  with  L_ 


Bernarbo,  that  it  was  advisable  to  come  to  terms 
with  him.^  Regardless,  therefore,  of  the  ban,  he 
concluded  a  treaty  of  peace  with  the  Italian  on  equal 
terms,  receiving  Modena  and  Ramandiola  instead  of 
Bologna,  but  promising  to  pay  500,000  gold  florins 
by  way  of  compensation. 

Even   in  countries  which  lay  further  away  from  ^f)  ^"S- 

''  ,•'  land 

the  scene  of  action  than  Italy  or  Germany,  Urban  refiises 
found,  that  his  influence  was  waning.   When  he  made  tribute. 
application    to    Edward    III.    of   England    for    the   ^'^'  '•^ 
tribute  which  that  country  had  been  in  the  habit  of 
paying  to  the  Popes  since  the  time  of  King  John, 
but  which  had  been  in  arrear  since  the  beginning  of 
the  English  wars  with  France,^  he  received  a  haughty 
reply.^     John,  the  Parliament  replied,  had  no  power 
to  put   his   realm  or  his  people  in  such  subjection 
without  their  consent.      It  declared,  moreover,  that 


'  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  loi,  p.  67. 

2  Raynald,   1365,  No.   13.     The  tax  had  been  unpaid  since 
1332.     Urban  V.  appHed  for  it  in  1365. 

^  Rotuli  Parliament,  tent.  Eduardi  III.  p.  290  :  '  Que  le  dit  Roi 

*  Johan  ne  nul  autre  purra  mettre  lui  ne  son  Roiahne  ne  son 
'  Poeple  en  tiele  subjection  saunz  Assent  de  eux,  et  comme  piert 

*  par  plusours  Evidences,  que  si  ce  feust  fait  ce  feust  fait  saunz  leur 

*  Assent,  et  encontre  son  Serment  en  sa  Coronation.  Et  outre 
'  ce,  les  Dues,  Countes,  Barons,  Grantz  et  Communes  accord erent 

*  et  garanterent  qu'en  cas  que  le  Pape  se  aftbrceroit  ou  rien 
'  attempteroit  par  Proces  ou  en  autre  manere  de  fait,  de  con- 

*  streindre  le  Roi  ou  ses  Subgetz  de  perfaire  ce  qu'est  dit  qu'il 
'  voet  clamer  celle  partie,  qu'ils  resistront  et  contre-esterront  ove 
'  toute  leur  peussance.' 

F  F  2 


436 


THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 


PART     they  would  resist  to  the  utmost  of  their  power  any 
^^^'       attempt  on  the  Pope's  part  to  recover  such  a  tribute. 


{c)  Tern-        At  any  other  time  the  EngHsh   ParHament  would 
7-ctuni  to   have  placed  no  obstacle  in  the  way  of  the  payment ; 
Rome.        i^^^ji-  ^^  j-]^g  \!\m.Q.  of  Urban's  application,  England  was 
eneaeed   in  a  war   with   France.      Hence,   to    send 
supplies  to  a  Pope  living  at  Avignon,  was  really  to 
assist  the  kingdom  of  an  enemy.     Urban  felt  that  all 
circumstances  seemed  to  point  to  Rome  as  his  proper 
residence.     There   he  would  be   emancipated  from 
the    shackles  of  the    French    monarch.     There   he 
would  be  able  to  keep  Italy  in  check.     There,  too, 
he  might  reckon  on  obtaining  help  from   England 
and  Germany.      He  had  felt  what  it  was  for  a  sove- 
reign Pontiff  to  be  the  subject  of  another  kingdom  ; 
and  could  not  fail   to  admit   the  justice  of  the  com- 
plaint urged  against  the  Papacy,  that  it  prostituted 
ecclesiastical   power  to  worldly   ends.      All   this  he 
A.D.  1367  felt,   and   resolved   upon  a   change.     To   Rome    he 
accordingly  returned  in  the  following  year,   leaving 
five    French    cardinals   behind    at    Avignon.       But 
Urban  had  no  sooner   taken   the  step  than  he  was 
induced  to  repent  of  it,  and  once  more,  after  three 
1370      years  stay  at  Rome,  he  returned  to  Avignon.^ 
(4)  Ore-         The  full  measure  of  the  political  powerlessness  of 
f 370-1378  the  Popes  piay  be  seen  in  the  Papacy  of  Gregory  XI., 
{a)  Spin-  ^1-^^  1^5^-  Qf  ^-]-jg  Popes  who  resided  at  Avignon.    That 

^ons 
r- 

themas  on  Galeazzo  and   Bernarbo  rumbled  feebly 


weapons     Pope,  like  his  predecessors,  chose  to  assert  his  rights 

poruer-  ...  n  1  1  1  /-  1  • 

less.  by  spiritual  censures.      But  the  thunder  of  his  ana- 


1372 


'  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  10 1,  p.  d^. 


PUBLIC  OPINION  ADVERSE. 


437 


when  coming  from  a  distance  ;  and  whilst  ecclesias-     chap. 
tical  censures  were  uttered  in  France,  in  Italy  there 1 


was  no  one  to  enforce  them.  The  cities  of  the  eccle- 
siastical states  asserted  their  independence,  and  en- 
tered into  an  alliance  with  Florence  and  the  Visconti. 
Gregory  was  obliged  to  recognise  Frederic  III.  as 
King  of  Trinacria,  thus  closing  the  long  struggle  of 
the  Popes  against  the  Aragonese  rulers  of  Sicily. 
The  unquestioned  claims  of  the  See  in  Italy  he  was 
compelled  to  forego.  His  own  sovereignty  was 
reduced  to  a  shadow.  And  now  but  one  alternative 
lay  before  him  unless  he  was  content  to  lose  his  hold 
on  Italy  for  ever  ;  the  alternative  of  a  return  to  Rome 
in  person.  Upon  this  alternative  he  resolved.  Em-  {b)  Gre- 
barking  at  Marseilles  on  September  29,  1376,  after  ^tunis7o 
an  unfortunate  voyage,  in  which  several  ships  were  ^'^"^^' 
lost,  he  arrived  in  April  of  the  following  year  in  the 
ancient  metropolis,  where  he  was  greeted  with  out- 
ward splendour  and  rejoicing,  with  processions,  and 
banquets.  In  the  first  flush  of  joy  at  his  return,  the  ^■'^-  ^377 
people  hailed  him  with  enthusiasm :  the  Bannerets 
of  the  Regions  threw  down  their  ensigns  of  autho- 
rity at  his  feet.  Everything  seemed  favourable.  All 
were  disposed  to  welcome  the  return  of  order. 

But  the  Popes  had  been  too  long  absent  from 
Rome.  The  Italian  nobles  had  been  too  lone  ac- 
customed  to  own  no  superior  to  themselves.  Soon 
the  scenes  of  festivity  were  exchanged  for  scenes  of 
violence.  The  Bannerets  resumed  their  independent 
rule.  Arms  were  employed  by  both  parties,  and 
violent  deeds  were  wrought  by  Cardinal  Robert,  by 
Hawkwood  and   his  freebooters,   which  revived   in 


438 


THE  POPES  AT  AVIGNON. 


TART     full   force  the  aversion  to  the  Pope.     Gregory  was 
'       powerless  in   Italy.     All  things  were  in  irreparable 


confusion.  He  was  obliged  to  open  negotiations 
with  his  enemies ;  but  these  were  soon  interrupted 
by  his  death. 
A.D.  137S  After  an  absence  of  nearly  seventy  years  the 
Popes  were  once  more  established  at  Rome,  but 
neither  Gregory  XI.  nor  his  successors  could  ever 
afterwards  recover  what  they  had  lost.  During  the 
seventy  years  of  exile,  the  glories  of  the  Papacy  had 
set.  The  Romans  had  tasted  freedom.  The  Popes 
had  become  subjects.  Their  political  supremacy  was 
gone,  and  had  vanished  for  ever.  Those  who  longed 
for  its  return  might  well  look  back  upon  the  papal 
residence  at  Avignon  as  a  period  of  captivity,  and 
speak  of  hanging  their  harps  upon  the  willows  and 
weeping,  when  they  remembered  the  greatness  which 
had  been. 


ACE   OF  DECLINE. 


439 


CHAPTER    XIV. 

THE   CREAT  SCHISM  OF  THE    WEST. 
(1378— 1417.) 


Omne  regimm  divisiim  contra  se  desolabitm- ;  et  omnis  civitas,  vcl  domiis,  divisa 
contra  se,  nan  stahit. — Matt.  xii.  25. 


H 


ARDLY  had  the  first  storm  which  assailed    chap. 

XIV. 

the  Papacy  during  the  long  residence  of  the 


Popes  at  Avignon,  depriving  it  of  its  political  su- 
premacy, passed  away,  when  .a  new  storm  broke 
over  its  head,  depriving  it  of  still  more  of  its  great- 
ness, and  nearly  obliterating  its  existence  altogether. 
This  time  the  storm  was  not  occasioned  by  a  resi- 
dence in  a  foreign  country,  which  brought  the  Popes 
into  political  dependence  on  a  foreign  sovereign ;  but 
it  was  a  storm  gathered  in  a  purely  ecclesiastical 
atmosphere,  and  hence  inflicting  damage  on  anodier 
side  of  the  Papacy — the  ecclesiastical  independence  of 
the  Popes.  It  was,  in  short,  no  other  event  than 
that  known  as  the  Great  Schism  of  the  west.  Of 
that  event  the  disastrous  effects  were  far-reachinof  and 
wide-spread.  The  shock  which  th-e  Schism  itself 
produced  on  the  minds  of  the  clergy  and  the  laity 
was  but  small  part  of  the  result ;  and  most  momentous 
were  its  after-consequences.  For  that  Schism  called 
into  being  those  independent  councils  of  the  west, 


..Q  THE  GREAT  SCHISM  OF  THE    WEST. 

PART     which  rudely  assailed  the  sovereign  Pontiff ;  during 
^"'       that  Schism,    too,  those  abuses  became  rife  which 


called  forth  on  a  large  scale,  though  not  for  the  first 
time,  the  demand  for  reform,  and  thus  hastened  on 
the  event  which  involved  the  Papacy  in  ruin. 
A.  The  The  death  of  Pope  Gregory  XI.    revived  the  old 

^progress  dispute  between  the  Italian  and  French  cardinals — a 
%ycat  dispute  for  a  long  course  of  years  apparently  in  abey- 
Schism.     a^j^ce.     Ever  since  the  election  of  Clement  V.,  and  dur- 

A  D 

1378-1404  ing  the  residence  of  the  Popes  at  Avignon,  the  French 
party  had  predominated.  Now,  with  the  return  of 
the  Popes  to  Italy,  the  struggle  between  the  French 
and  Italian  interests  broke  out  afresh.  On  the  one 
hand,  the  French  cardinals  commanded  a  decided 
majority  in  the  Sacred  College,  numbering  seventeen 
out  of  twenty-three.  On  the  other  hand,  the  Italian 
cardinals,  although  in  numbers  far  inferior  to  their 
French  associates,  were  possessed  of  two  advantages. 
The  French  were  divided  amongst  themselves,  some 
desiring  to  have  a  Pope  from  the  province  of  Limoisin. 
others  protesting  against  such  a  choice  ;  whereas  the 
Italians  were  a  united  body.  And,  again,  the  elec- 
tion would  take  place  in  Italy,  where  the  Romans 
were  pressing  the  demand,  that  a  Roman,  or  at  least 
an  Italian  Pope  should  be  chosen,  threatening  violence 
in  case  their  wishes  were  not  granted.^  Besides,  not 
more  than  eleven  out  of  the  seventeen  French 
cardinals  were  present  in  Italy,  the  remaining  six 
being  resident  in  Avignon. 

(0  Ur-  Asa  matter  of  fact,  the  earliest  election  by  the  cardi- 

ban  VI.  ^ 

^  See  Neand,  ix.  60. 


ITS  RISE  AND  PROGRESS. 


441 


nals  regularly  assembled  at  Rome,  that  on  April  8,     chap. 
1378,  resulted  in  favour  of  the  Italian,  Bartholomy,  _1^^1_ 
Archbishop  of  Bari,  a  Neapolitan  who  took  the  name  1378-1389 
of    Urban   VI,,^  and  his  election   was  formally  an-  ^^^'^ ^H' 

^  me  lit  VII. 

nounced  by  the  cardinals  at  Rome  to   their  absent  the 

11  A      •  -^r  111        French 

brethren    at    Avignon.       Yet   no    sooner    had  the  Pope. 
cardinals  escaped  from  Rome  than  they  repaired  to  ^'p  ^P^ 

^  ■'        ^  election. 

Anagni,  and  there,  before  the  Archbishop  of  Aries, 
chamberlain  of  the  Roman  Church,  solemnly  pro- 
tested against  the  validity  of  Urban's  election  :  then 
having  adjourned  to  a  place  of  safety  at  Ferredi,  they 
proceeded  to  a  new  election,  and  on  September  20 
of  the  same  year  their  choice  fell  on  Robert,  Bishop 
of  Cambray,  a  man  in  every  sense  adapted  to  carry 
out  the  wishes  of  the  French  party.  He  took  the 
name  of  Clement  VII. ^ 

Very   different  views   may   be  taken  of  facts  so  ip)  Pro- 
plain    as   these  by  zealous  partisans    in  either  the  causes 
Italian  or  French  interest.     The  plea  of  compulsion  %ouble 
may  be  urged  against  the  validity  of  the  election  of  ^^^'^^>'<^"- 
Urban  VI.  ;  and  indeed  the  French  historians  say 
that  the  choice  of  an  Italian  was  forced  upon   them 
by  a  rising  of  the  people.^     The  Italians  say  that  the 
election  was  quite  free,  and  that  a   passing  tumult 
which  arose  was  the  result  of  some  misunderstanding 

•  Urban  VI.  was  Pope  from  April  8,  1378,  to  October  15,  1389. 
His  life  in  Labb^,  xv.  939. 

2  He  held  the  See  from  September  20,  1378,  to  September  16, 
1394.  See  Ep.  i.  Urbani  in  Labbe,  xv.  941.  See  the  account  of 
the  transaction  in  Acta  Concil.  Pis.  an.  1409,  Labb^,  xv.  1188, 
and  xvi.  2. 

3  Baluz.  pp.  Aven.  i.  442  ;  and  Secunda  Vita  ejusd.  Baluz.  i. 
456. 


,  .2  THE   GREAT  SCHISM   OF   THE    WEST. 

TART     and  did  not  take  place  till  the  election  was    over.^ 

L._   No   immediate  violence  overruled  the  election,  but 

certainly  fear  of  violence  may  have  influenced  it.  On 
the  other  hand,  it  would  appear  more  probable  that 
the  indiscreet  and  passionate  behaviour  of  Urban 
after  his  election  had  given  offence  to  the  cardinals, 
and  that  the  French  party,  who  felt  they  could  com- 
mand a  majority,  were  dissatisfied  with  him  for  not 
returning  to  Avignon.  At  any  rate  Clement  VII. 
was  not  elected  till  after  a  considerable  interval. 
And  probably  Ufban's  election  would  never  have 
been  protested  against,  had  not  other  and  secondary 
motives'"^  decided  the  French  cardinals  to  take  up  an 
attitude  of  opposition.  Before  his  election.  Urban 
VI.  had  only  been  known  as  a  rigid  ascetic,  who  oc- 
cupied himself  with  nothing  but  the  administration  of 
his  episcopal  office.  As  a  Pope  he  was  passionate, 
cruel,  and  avaricious.      His  passionateness  appeared 

^  Theod.  a  Niem.  i.  2;  Raynald.  an.  1378,  No.  2,  p.  1379, 
No.  3. 

2  Dislike  of  his  censures.  See  the  passage  from  Theod.  a 
Niem.  i.  4,  quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  104,  p.  95  :  '  Incepit 
'  increpare  Episcopos  .  .  .  dicendo  quod  omnes  essent  perjuri, 
'  quia  Ecclesias  suas  desererent  in  eadem  Curia  residendo.'  Then 
he  preached  a  sermon  (ch.  v.)  :  '  In  quo  etiam  mores  .  .  .  Cardi- 
'  nalium  et  Praelatorum  incepit  redarguere,  quod  ipsi  aegre  tule- 
'  runt.  .  .  .  Veniens  etiam  illo  tempore  quidam  Collector  fruc- 
'  tuum  Camerae  apostolicae  de  quadam  provincia  ad  praesentiam 
'  dicti  Urbani,  ei  quandam  pecuniae  summulam  ratione  sui  Col- 
'  lectaneae  officii  offerebat ;  cui  respondens  ait  :  pecunia  tua  tecum 
'  sit  in  perditionem  ac  illam  recipere  non  curavit.  Similia  multa 
'  insolita  et  abusiva  de  die  in  diem  faciens,  per  quae  paene  omnium 
'  Cardinalium  et  Praelatorum  contra  se  magis  iracundiam  conci- 
'  tavit.'  .  .  .  Ch.  vii.  :  '  Eum  delirum  communiter  ipsi  Cardinales 
'  judicabant.' 


ITS  RISE  AND  PROGRESS. 


44: 


within  the  first  months  after  his  election,  and  disgusted     chap. 

XIV 

the  cardinals.   His  cruelty  was  seen  on  a  later  occasion,  L. 


when  having  narrowly  escaped  from  the  arms  of 
Charles  of  Durazzi  to  Genoa,  he  vented  his  rage  on  all 
whom  he  suspected  of  being  complicated  in  the  plot; 
five  cardinals  even  being  tortured  on  the  rack  and  put 
to  death.  A  proof  of  his  avarice  was  given  in  his 
shortening  the  time  yet  to  intervene  before  the  year 
of  jubilee  and  proclaiming  another  jubilee  after  the 
lapse  of  thirty-three  years — a  jubilee,  however,  the 
benefits  of  which  it  fell  to  the  lot  of  his  successor  to 
reap.^ 

Had  the  powers  of  the  emperor  been  now  what       W 
they  once  were,  the  King  of  the  Romans  would  have  divided 
come  forward  to  decide  the  dispute,  and  the  Schism  ^//^/ 
would  have  been  nipped  in  the  bud  and  quickly  at  S^^^"^^- 
an  end.     One  Pope  would  have  been  recognised  as 
the  rightful  Pope,  the  other  would  have  existed  as  an 
antipope  who  had  a  few  supporters.     But  it  was  not 
so.     Matters  had  changed  since  the  time  of  the  first 
Otto,    or    the    third    Henry.     The   power    of    the 
emperor  was  declining  as  rapidly  as  that  of  the  Popes. 
Other  nations  were  comino-  into  the  foregfround  of 
history,    independent    and    hardly    respecting    the 
venerable  but  decayed  trunk  of  the  Empire.     Since 
the  death   of  Henry  VH.,  the    Empire   was  itself  a.d.  1313 
breaking  up  into  separate  communities.     The  Schism 
which  in  the  first  place  had  only  divided  the  College 
of  Cardinals,  in  the  absence  of  anything  to  prevent 
it,  now  proceeded  to  divide  the  Church  into  parties 

1  Neand.  ix.  69. 


.  .  .  THE   GREAT  SCHISM  OF  THE    WEST. 

PART     and   completed    the    rent  in   the  poHtical    unity    of 

III.  T- 

burope. 


(a)  Sup-        The  blood-stained  Joanna  was  the  first  who  came 

Clemoit     forward  in   support  of  Clement  VII.  and  the  later 
^■p        election.^  The  French  king  was  nextgained,  Clement 

1378-1394  having  betaken  himself  to  Avignon,  and  put  himself 
under  French  protection ;  but  not  before  King 
Charles  had  carefully  examined  the  claims  of  the  two 
Popes  at  an  ecclesiastical  assembly  at  Vincennes  and 
declared  in  favour  of  the  later  election,^  By  dint  of 
French  influence  he  was  immediately  recognised  as 
Pope  in  Scotland.  Savoy  and  Lorraine  followed  the 
example  of  Scotland.  Not  long  afterwards  the  same 
influence  gained  for  his  adherence  Castile,  Aragon 
1 38 1  and  Navarre.^ 
^3^7  On  the  other  hand,  Germany  and  England  sup- 

(,^)  Slip-    ported    Urban  VI.     Italy   naturally  did  the  same  ; 

porters  of  Denmark,  Sweden,  and  Poland  also  remained  faith- 

Urban 

VI.  ful  to  the  Italian    Pope.     The  verdict  of  posterity 

appears   also    to  have  been  given  for   Urban   VI., 

excepting  in  France,  where  it  became  a  question  of 

national    honour   to  defend    the    French    nominee ; 

and  hence,  in  the  modern  lists  of  Popes,  the  French 

Popes  are  passed  over  as  usurpers.     The  name  of 

1523       Clement  VII.  appears  again  in  the  sixteenth  century, 

^"^^^      as  does  also  that  of  Benedict  XIII.  in  the  eicrhteenth. 

id)  Seat-        Not  only  was  the  allegiance   of  Europe  divided 

fare.     '    ^y  the  Schism,  but  in  Italy  the  war    between  the 

rival    Popes   was    even    waged   with    secular   arms. 


^  Theod.  a  Niem.  i.  8;  Raynald.  an.  1378,  No.  46. 

2  Neand.  ix.  65.  3  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  104,  p.  87. 


ITS  RISE  AND   PROGRESS.  A^r 

There  the  kingdom    of   Naples    alone    adhered    to     chap. 

Clement  VII.;   the  rest  of  Italy  supported  Urban  _^ ^ 

VI.  Thereupon  Urban  declared  the  kingdom  of 
Naples  forfeited ;  and  granted  it  in  fee  to  Charles 
Duke  of  Durazzi.  It  would  be  tedious  to  trace  all 
the  intricacies  of  the  relations  which  thereupon 
ensued  between  Urban  and  Charles,  between 
Charles  and  Louis  of  Anjou,  whom  the  Queen  of 
Naples,  Joanna,  adopted  for  her  son  and  successor ; 
to  narrate  how  Charles  was  at  first  successful  in 
gaining  Naples  ;  how  he  then  became  embroiled  with 
Urban  ;  how,  soon  after,  he  was  excommunicated  by 
Urban,  and  retaliated  by  besieging  the  Pope  at 
Salerno  ;  how  Urban  well-nigh  damaged  his  own  a.d.  1385 
cause  by  refusing  to  invest  Ladislaus,  the  son  of  1386 
Charles,  with  Naples  ;  and  how  Naples  was  on  the 
verge  of  falling  into  the  hands  of  the  young  Louis  1387 
of  Anjou  and  the  French  Pope,  when  Urban  VI. 
died,  and  his  successor,  Boniface  IX.,  at  the  right 
moment,  saved  the  kingdom  he  was  losing.  For 
Boniface  not  only  invested  Ladislaus,  but  supported  1390 
him  also  in  retaining  it  by  all  the  means  at  his  dis- 
posal. Suffice  it  to  say,  that  the  Schism  was  the 
cause  of  bloodshed  and  strife  in  Italy ;  that  that 
strife  was  prolonged  by  differences  between  the 
Popes  and  their  supporters  ;  and  that  Charles  Duke 
of  Durazzi  gained  a  kingdom  by  supporting  Urban 
VI.,  and  his  son  Ladislaus  secured  to  himself  the 
same  kingdom  by  supporting  Boniface  IX. 

In  the  midst  of  these  struggles  Urban  VI.  passed  (2)  Bom- 
away,  and  was  succeeded  by  Boniface  IX.  The  i!s9-uo4 
hopes  of  the  French  cardinals  that  on  the  death  of 


446 


THE   GREAT  SCHISM  OF   THE    WEST. 


TART     Urban  VI.,  Clement  VII.  would  be  generally  recog- 

"^' nised,  were  now,  it  was  seen,  destined  to  be  dashed  to 

the  ground.  The  Schism  was  perpetuated.  Described 
by  a  cotemporary  as  being ^  '  in  secular  things  not  a 
little  fortunate,  but  weak  in  spiritual  things,'  Boni- 
face is  chiefly  known  for  his  shameless  love  of 
money  ,^ — a  love  to  which  he  was  so  devoted  that 
he  often  allowed  himself  to  be  interrupted  during 
mass  to  attend  to  pecuniary  arrangements;^  that 
simony  was  carried  on  in  the  most  shameless 
manner  at  his  court ;  *  that  a  tax  called  annates,  which 
had  to  be  paid  into  the  papal  chancery,  was  levied  on 
all  presentations  to  the  more  important  ecclesiastical 
offices  ;^  that  not  content  with  the  wealth  which  the 

1  Theod.  a  Niem.  lib.  ii.  ch.  xiii.  :  *  In  temporalibus  non  medio- 
'  criter  fortunatus,  sed  in  spiritualibus  debilis.' 

2  Neand.  ix.  69 ;  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  104,  p.  105. 

3  Theod.  a  Niem.  book  ii.  ch.  xi. 

*  Theod,  a  Niem.  Le  Schis?jie,  book  ii.  ch.  vii.  :  *  Ipse  [Boni; 
'  facius]  reperit  plures  bonos  et  legales  Cardinales,  .  .  .  qui  simo- 
'  niae  vitium  detestabantur  omnino,  quorum  prae  timore,  quoad 
'  vivebant,  quasi  per  septem  annos  non  audebat  simoniam  publice 
'  exercere,  attamen  per  aliquos  mediatores  .  .  .  secrete  exercebat, 
'  intercedentibus  pactis  clandestinis  de  promotionibus  per  ipsum 
'  faciendis.  .  .  .  Cardinalibus  autem  pro  majori  parte  successive 
'  defunctis,  quos  ipse  simoniam  odio  habere  cognovit,  exhilaratus 
'  est  animo,  quia  tunc  liberas  habebat  habenas  simoniam  pro 
'  libito  etiam  publice  exercendi.' 

^  Theod.  a  Niem.  Le  Schisme,  book  ii.  ch.  vii.  :  'Sed  demum 
'  circa  decimum  annimi  sui  regiminis,  ut  cautius  ageret  in  hac 
'  parte,  palliaretque  simoniam  quam  exercuit,  quodam  necessitatis 

*  colore  primos  fructus  unius  anni  omnium  Ecclesiarum  cathedra- 

*  lium  et  Abbatiarum  vacantium  suae  camerae  reservavit,  ita  quod 

*  quicunque  ex  tunc  in  Archiepiscopum  vel  Episcopum  vel  Abba- 
'  tem  per  eum  promoveri   voluit,   ante  omnia  cogebatur  solvere 

*  primos    fructus    ecclesiae    vel   monasterii,    cui    pracfici   voluit. 


ATTEMPTS   TO  HEAL    THE  SCHISM.  ^aj 

jubilee   poured  into   his   coffers,   he  sent  letters    of    chap. 

indulgence    and    preachers    of   indulgence    into    all   [ 

countries  ;^  and  that  the  *  Bonifacian  plantation  '  be- 
came a  byword  in  every  one's  mouth  to  denote  the 
most  corrupt  members  of  the  clergy.  Terrible  was 
the  retribution  which  that  abuse  of  indulgences 
brought  on  his  successors,  when  it  had  run  its 
course  and  the  time  was  come. 

Meantime  there  had  not  been  wanting  attempts  to  B.  A/- 
heal    the   Schism,  though   too  often  these  attempts  heal  the 

were    frustrated,  owing^   to   national   interests   beingr     ^  "•^''''• 
■      .  ,  ^   {})  At- 

involved   in  the   dispute.      The  whole   Church   was  tempts 

divided   into    three    parties,   the    supporters    of   the  /ng/ro'm 

Italian  Pope,  the  supporters  of  the  French   Pope,  "^"^^^'^^^• 

and   a    party    of    neutrals,    who    were   unwilling  to  ofHcssia. 

espouse  the  cause  of  either.  ,  At  the   head  of  the 

latter  party  stood   Henry  of  Hessia,   and  he  early 

expressed  his  opinion  in  the  '  Letter  of  Peace,'  that   a.d.  1381 

there  was  *  no  other  means  of  restoring  the  peace  of 

the  Church  on  a  solid  basis,  than  that  by  assembling 

all  the  prelates  in  a  general    council '  ^- — an  opinion 

'  etiamsi  nunquam  possessionem  ejusdem  consequi  posset'  In 
England  it  is  well  known  that  at  the  Reformation  the  first  fruits, 
which  had  been  previously  paid  to  the  Pope,  were  transferred  to 
the  sovereign,  and  continued  to  be  paid  to  the  sovereign  until  the 
time  of  Queen  Anne,  who,  instead  of  receiving  them  herself,  made 
them  over  to  a  commission  for  certain  purposes.  Hence  they  now 
exist  in  the  shape  of  payments  to  Queen  Anne's  bounty. 

1  Theod.  a  Niem.  i.  68  :  '  Erat  enim  insatiabilis  vofago  et  in 
'  avaritia  nullus  ei  similis.  .  .  .  Quia  omnia  peccata  etiam  sine 
'  poenitentia  ipsis  confitentibus  relaxaverunt.' 

2  Extract  from  the  Epistola  pacis  in  Bulaeus.  It  runs  (p.  578) : 
'  Absque  cujus  conventu  credo  vix  unquam  posse  ad  plenum  corda 
'  quietari  omnium.'  See  Neander's  account  of  the  work,  vol.  ix. 
p.  66. 


448 


THE   GREAT  SCHISM  OF  THE    WEST. 


PART     which  was  endorsed  by  the  assembled  heads  of  the 

'- —  university  of  Paris  in  the  year  1381.      Here  was  one 

-vcrsi'/y'of  indication  not  only  that  the  Pope's  political  inde- 
Pans.  pendence  was  lost,  but  that  his  ecclesiastical  supre- 
vatc  ex-     macy  was  soon  about  to  follow. 

^'fofyiii-  ^'■^^  ^^  y^^  ^^^^^  ^^^  '^^^  ^  private  expression  of 

ion.  opinion,    important,    no    doubt,  from    the    influence 

(-^ Public  which  the  university  wielded,  but  little  able  to  allay 
cypres-      ^|-^g  h(^ated  oassions  of  the  rival  parties.     Soon,  how- 

SlO)l  of  ^  ^ 

opinion      ever,  the  university  contrived  to  obtain  permission 
to    set  forth    publicly   before  the    king  its    opinion 


inoii 

St) 

ih 


^  "^'pope    respecting  the  means  of  restoring  tranquillity.      That 


1394  judgment  as  drawn  up  by  Nicolas  de  Clemangis,  a 
disciple  of  the  Chancellor  Gerson,  was  thereupon 
Charles  submitted  to  the  king.  It  set  forth  three  alternative 
^>'q  J  means  for  ending  the  Schism  :  either  both  Popes 
should  resign,  or  they  should  submit  their  claims  to 
arbitration,  or  a  general  council  should  be  con- 
vened.-^ When  the  king  replied  by  an  evasive 
answer,  and  begged  the  University  not  to  discuss 
or  consider  the  matter  any  further,  the  latter  sus- 
pended   her   sermons    and  lectures,   and  addressed 

1  BuLAEUS,  iv.  687  it  is  quoted.  The  University  proposed 
'  tres  vias  ad  pacem  in  Ecclesia  obtinendam,'  viz.  ccssiojiis,  which 
it  most  recommended,  '■  compromissionis  et  Concilii  gcneralls,  aut 
'  secundum  formam  juris  ex  Praelatis  tantummodo  celebrandi,  aut 
'  quia  plures  eorum  sunt  .  .  .  hodie  iUiterati,  pluresque  ad  alter- 
'  utram  partem  inordinate  affecti,  mixtis  una  cum  Praelatis  ad 
*  aequalem  eorum  numerum  magistris  et  doctoribus  theologiae  ac 
'  juris  de  studiis  solemnibus  utriusque  partium  antiquitus  appro- 
'  batis.  ...  Si  alter  dissidentium  aut  uterque  vias  tres  expositas 
'  mire  obstinatius  refugeret,  cum  veUit  schismaticum  pertinacem  et 
'  haereticum  .  .  .  judicandum.'  Sec  also  the  account  in  Neand. 
ix.  71. 


ATTEMPTS   TO  HEAL   IT. 


449 


an    outspoken    letter   to    Clement    VII.,    protesting     chap. 
ao-ainst  the  intrioruintr  conduct  of  the  cardinal,  Peter   


*&' 


de  Luna,  and  begging  him  to  do  all  in  his  power  to 
put  an  end  to  the  Schism.^  But  beyond  drawing 
forth  Clement's  indignation,  this  letter  made  no  im- 
pression at  Avignon  ;  for  in  the  same  year  Clement  a.d.  1394 
died,  and  the  French  cardinals,  notwithstanding  all 
the  attempts  of  the  University  to  prevent  it,  per- 
petuated the  Schism,  by  electing  the  said  cardinal, 
Peter  de  Luna,  as  his  successor,  who  thereupon 
took  the  name  of  Benedict  XI 11.^ 

Such  conduct  had  a  most  disheartening  effect  on  {-D Second 
all  who  were  conscientiously  striving  to  promote  the  strance 
good  of  the  Church.    Their  eyes  began  to  be  opened  "//^'^f^f^^ 
to  the  corruptions  prevailing  in  high  places,  when  ^^^'^i-'^ilJ- 
acts  like  these  could  be  tolerated  ;.  and  already  voices, 
as  that  of  Clemangis  in  his  book  '  De Ruina  Ecclesiae' 
were  heard,  complaining  that  these  corruptions  must 
be  purged  away.      Now  the  cry  for  reformation  com- 
mences to  sound  in  the  ears  of  the  historian.      The 
University  issued  a  letter  to  Benedict  XIII.,  calling 
upon  him  in  the  most  pressing  manner  to  promote 
the  cause  of  union  without  delay.     But  what  could  be 
expected  from  a  Pope  so  wily  as   Benedict,  so  un- 
scrupulous in  his  use  of  means,  so  faithless  to  his 
own  pledges,^  so  obstinate  in  clinging  to  a  dignity 


1  Neand.  ix.  74.     See  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  106,  p.  no  (note). 

2  Neand.  ix.  75. 

^  Before  proceeding  to  an  election,  the  cardinals  had  pledged 
themselves  upon  oath,  that  whoever  of  their  number  should  be 
chosen  '  omnes  vias  utiles  et  accommodas  ad  unitatem  Ecclesiae 
'  .  .  .  sine  machinatione  seu  excusatione  vel  dilatione  quacumque 

G    G 


450 

PART 
III. 


(2)  Af- 
tempts 
viadc  by 
the 

French 
king  and 
Estates. 
A.D. 1398 

{a)  Pro- 
ject of  the 
French 
king  to 
depose 
both 
Popes. 


1400 


{p)  States 
General 
renounce 
obedience. 
1398 
&  1407 


THE   GREAT  SCHISM  OF  THE    WEST. 

when  once  it  had  been  secured  ?  A  courteous  letter 
was  returned  to  the  University  :  all  did  not  depend 
on  Benedict,  and  Benedict  felt  himself  pledged  to 
nothing.^ 

But  the  University  was  not  content  to  let  matters 
rest  there.      She  contrived  to  induce  the  king  to 
convene  a  council  at  Paris  in  the  year  1 394,  which  re- 
commended the  Pope's  resignation  ;  ^  and  when  Bene- 
dict forbade  the  cardinals  who  favoured  the  scheme 
to  sign  a  declaration  to  this  effect,  she  found  means 
to  induce  Charles  VI.  to  combine  with  the  Emperor 
Wenceslaus,  with  the  view  of  forcing  both  the  Popes 
to  resign.     Now   not  only  the  University,  but  also 
the  king  and  estates  of  France  were  enlisted  in  the 
attempt  to  end  the  Schism.     The  scheme,  it  is  true, 
resulted  in  failure  ;  the  fault  was  not,  however,  on  the 
side  of  the  French  king.     Wenceslaus,  too  weak  to 
keep  his  word,  and  overreached  by  the  secret  machi- 
nations of  Boniface  IX.,  found  himself  deposed  in- 
stead of  deposing,  and  his  own  weapons  were  turned 
against  himself. 

The  States  General  first  come  Into  notice  in 
France  In  the  reign  of  Philip  the  Fair,  when  by 
their  decisions  they  strengthened  the  hands  of 
the  king  against  the   demands   of  Boniface  VI 11.^ 


'  servabit  et  procurabit  .  .  .  usque  ad  cessionem  etiam  inclusive 
'  per  ipsum  de  Papatu  faciendam,  si  dominis  Cardinalibus  .  .  . 
*  hoc  pro  bono  Ecclesiae  et  unitatis  praedictae  videatur  expedire.' 
Quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  106,  p.  no,  from  Bulaeus,  iv.  730. 

1  Neand.  ix.  85. 

2  The  acts  of  the  Council,     Labb:^,  xv.  995,  Concil.  Paris,  an. 

1394- 

3  See  Chap.  IX.  p.  276. 


ATTEMPTS   TO  HEAL  IT.  4c  i 

On  that  occasion  they  appeared  as  the  opponents  of    chap. 

the  Papacy,  showing  that  henceforth  kings  and  em-  '— 

perors  were  not  the  only  antagonists  of  the  Popes, 
but  that  their  former  supporters,  the  people,  had 
changed  sides,  and  joined  the  ranks  of  the  op- 
position. In  Germany,  too,  the  states  assembled  at  a.d.  1338 
Frankfurt  had  pronounced  the  sentence  of  Benedict 
XII.  invalid.^  Now  the  French  clergy  stepped  into 
their  places,  and  at  several  synods  took  active  mea- 
sures against  the  Pope.  At  the  synod  of  Paris,  in 
the  year  1398,^  they  solemnly  renounced  their  allegi- 
ance to  Benedict  XIII.  Their  example  was  fol- 
lowed by  Castile,  and  the  Pope  was  confined  in 
prison  at  Avignon.  Again,  some  ten  years  later,  Jan.  1408 
when  the  negotiations  between  Benedict  and  Inno- 
cent were  flagging,  and  it  was -clear  that  Benedict 
had  not  been  sincere  in  his  overtures  for  peace, 
France,  for  the  second  time,  withdrew  from  the 
obedience  of  Benedict.^ 

The     French    cardinals    had    shown    a    certain  (3)  At- 

r      .  .         .  1      .  r        •  r  •  tempts 

amount  01  smcerity  m  their  proiessions  01  anxiety  made  by 
for  peace ;  so  much,  at  least,  that  they  pledged  them-  Ji,iais.' 
selves  before   they  proceeded  to  elect   Benedict   to       {a) 

FfoicJt 

use  every  effort  to  heal  the  Schism,  and  agreed  that  car- 
whoever  should  be  chosen  Pope,  should  at  any  time       '^  ^' 
resign  his  dignity  if  it  was  considered  necessary  for 
the  cause  of  union.^     The  attempt  on  their  part  was 
truly  laudable,  but  it  was  frustrated  by  the  faithless- 


'  Jo.  ViTODURAMus,  p.  49.     See  Chap.  XIII.  p.  428. 
2  An.   1398,  Concil,  Paris.  LabbiS,  xv.  1003.     The  subtractio 
totahs  obedientiae,  ibid.  p.  1072. 

^  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  106,  p.  114.         *  See  note  ^  on  p.  449. 

G  G  2 


.^2  THE   GREAT  SCHISM   OF  THE    WEST. 

PART     ness  of  Benedict.      Benedict  refused  to    be  bound 
by  any  promises ;  even  when  he  had  been   finally 


A.D.  141 7   deposed  by  a  council,  he  died  still  calling  himself 
^^~^      Pope,  with  the  single  town  of  Peniscola  giving  him 
her  allegiance. 
{b)  ita-  When    the    Schism   had  continued    more  than  a 

dbmls!^'   quarter  of    a   century,  even    the    Italian    cardinals, 
{a)  At  the  ^j^o  considered  the  justice  of  their  claims  unassail- 

election 

ofintio-     able,  began    to   grow   weary   of  the   struggle,    and 

1404      before  proceeding  to  the  election  of  Innocent  VII., 

they  too  followed  the  example  of  their  brethren  at 

Avignon,  taking  a  solemn  oath  that  whoever  of  them 

should  be  chosen   would  abdicate  the  Popedom  so 

soon  as  the  rival  Pope  should  do  the  same.^ 

{if)  At  the       Two  years  later,  on  the  death  of  Innocent  VII., 

^Gregory     the  question  even  arose  whether  they  should  pro- 

'^^^'         ceed  to  a  new  election  at  all,  but  the    Italian  car- 

1406 

dinals  could  not  wholly  yield  to  the  claims  of  the 
other  party.  Besides,  Benedict  was  not  to  be 
trusted.^  Accordingly,  an  oath,  but  a  more  solemn 
one  than  before,  was  administered,  each  cardinal 
swearing  that,  in  case  he  should  be  elected,  he 
would  resign  so  soon  as  the  French  Pope  at  Avignon 
would  do  the  same  ;  each  one  moreover  pledging 
himself  to  use  the  power  of  the  Papacy  simply  for 


*  Theod.  a  Niem.  book  ii.  ch.  xxxiv.  :  '  Ante  electionem  ipse 
'  Innocentius  .  .  .  ac  ipsum  eligentes  praedicti  Cardinales  sponte 
'  jurarunt  et  voverunt,  quod  quicumque  ipsorum  eligeretur  in 
'  Papam,  ad  hoc,  quod  dicta  unio  fieret,  ejus  Papatui  pure  et 
*  sponte  cedere  deberet,  dum  tamen  dictus  Petrus  de  Luna  etiam 
'  suo  Papatui  sponte  cedere  vellet.' 

2  Neand.  ix.  95. 


ATTEMPTS   TO  HEAL   IT.  .^^ 

the  purpose  of  healing  the  Schism.     On  this  occasion     chap. 

the  choice  of  the  conclave  fell  upon  Cardinal  Angelo   ^ 

Coravio  of  Venice,  a  man  celebrated  for  his  habits  of 
devotion,  and  already  eighty  years  of  age.  He  took 
the  name  of  Gregory  XI I. ^  Yet  none  of  the  three 
Popes  who  had  taken  this  oath,  whether  French  or 
Italian,  appear  to  have  been  very  zealous  to  redeem 
their  promise.  Certainly  Gregory  XII.,  at  Rome, 
was  more  ready  to  resign  than  Benedict  XIII.  at 
Avignon.  Perhaps  he  would  even  have  resigned 
of  his  own  free-will,  had  it  not  been  for  the  influence 
of  his  relatives.^  But  so  it  was,  that,  like  the  rest, 
having  once  obtained  the  dignity,  he  clung  to  it, 
and  violated  his  pledges. 

And    now    the    prolongation    of  the   Schism    no  (4)  Share 
longer  involved  a  principle ;  it  .depended  simply  on  gory  xii. 
the  time  which  two  Popes  should  chose  for  the  pur-  ^dictxin. 
pose  of  fulfilling  their  promises.      The  share  which       a.d. 
the    two     Popes    contributed    towards    healing   the 
Schism  was,  however,  negative  rather  than  positive. 
It    consisted    more    in    forfeiting     their    positions 
by    their    vices     than     in    virtuously    surrendering 
them.      The    minds   of    men   had    become    familiar 
with    the    idea  that    ecclesiastically    a    council    was 
supreme  over  a  Pope  ;  they  had  also  become  familiar 
with  the  idea  that  a  reformation  of  the  Papacy  was 
necessary.      The    only   obstacle    which    prevented 
action,  was  a  kind  of  lingering  respect  for  the  cha- 
racter of  the  Popes.      But    Gregory  and  Benedict 
did  their  best  to  destroy  even  this  lingering  respect. 

1  His  life,  LABBf,  xv.  1081.  2  Neand.  ix.  97. 


III. 


.g.  THE  GREAT  SCHISM  OF  THE    WEST, 

PART  It  was  agreed  that  the  two  Popes  should  meet  at 

Savona/  and  there  should  join  in  a  common  abdi- 
cation. The  document,  overladen  with  provisos,  was 
signed  by  Gregory.  The  prospects  of  peace  seemed 
immanent.  Suddenly  Gregory  XII.  relented;  his 
relations  remonstrated  with  him  at  Rome  ;  he  felt 
legal  difficulties.  His  difficulties  were  laid  before 
the  jurists,  but  they  decided  against  him.  Foiled 
in  this  attempt,  he  went  slowly  to  Lucca,  when  a 
second  means  of  evasion  suggested  itself  to  him,  and, 
pretending  that  his  life  would  be  endangered  if  he 
went  to  Savona,  he  opened  fresh  negotiations  for  a 
new  place  of  meeting.  Benedict  kept  his  promise 
and  appeared  at  Savona.^ 

Gregory  now  gave  it  to  be  understood,  that  he 
had  no  longer  any  thoughts  of  abdicating.  But  this 
conduct  was  more  than  even  the  depraved  cardinals 

^  The  letter  of  Gregory  to  Benedict,  and  that  of  Benedict  to 
Gregory,  in  LabbS,  xv.  1082.  The  former  letter  has  the  following 
passage  :  '  Quare  exurgamus  ambo  in  unum  unionis  affectum,  con- 
'  curramus,  feramus  salutem  ecclesiae  jam  hoc  diuturno  morbo 
'  afflictae.  Ad  hoc  te  invitamus,  paratique  sumus  et  offerimus  nostro 
'  verissimo  juri  et  papatui  cedere  et  renimciare  :  et  efficaciter  facie- 
'  mus,  si  et  quando  tu  renunciaveris  ac  cesseris  praesenti  juri  et 

*  papatui  tuo,  vel  decesseris.'  The  latter  has  the  following  {ibid. 
p.  1085)  :  '  Tibi  praesentium  tenore  significamus,  quod,  ut  tarn 
'  peroptatum  unionis  negotium  celerius  consequi  valeat  et  securius 
'  executionem  demandatam,  parati  sumus  una  cum  collegio  venera- 
'  bilium  fratrum  nostrorum  sanctae  Romanae  ecclesiae  cardinalium 
'  in  loco  securo  et  decenti  ac  idoneo,  tecum,  et  cum  quocumque 
'  successore  tuo  decedentibus,  cum  praedictis,  qui  apud  partem  tuam 
'  pro  cardinalibus  se  gerunt,  vel  gerent,  personaliter  convenire  pro 

*  unione  ecclesiae  tractanda  et  favente  Domino  obtinenda.  .  .  .' 
Neand.  ix.  98. 

^  Theod.  a  Niem.  vol.  iii.  ch.  xiv.  pp.  17-19. 


ITS   CONSEQUENCES.  4^5 

of  that  day  could  endure.     The  last  frail  band  of    chap. 


XIV. 


moral  respect  was  broken.  From  the  Council  of 
Aquilaea/  convened  by  Gregory  for  the  purpose  of 
vindicating  his  own  title  and  the  title  of  his  pre- 
decessors, the  Italian  cardinals  escaped,  wishing  to 
act  with  more  freedom  in  another  place.  They 
repaired  to  Livorno,^  and  renounced  their  allegiance 
to  their  Pontiff.^  From  a  similar  synod,  which 
Benedict  held  in  his  native  country,  Aragon,  whither 
he  had  fled,  the  •  French  cardinals  withdrew,  and 
joined  the  Italians  at  Pisa  ;  *  and  there  the  cardinals  of 
both  parties  uniting,  put  forth  a  proclamation  for  a 
General  Council  to  be  held  in  that  city  in  March 
1409.^ 

Nothing  could  be  more  disastrous  for  the  Church  c.  Conse- 
than  this  long-continued  Schism  ;  nothing  could  be  ^//^^"^ 
more  detrimental  to  the  power  of  the  Papacy.  During  ■^'<''^^^^"^- 
their  residence  at  Avignon,  the  Popes  had  contracted  pression 
luxurious   habits  ;  those   habits   of  luxury  they  had  ^/„/^^/;, 
brought  with  them  to   Italy  on  their  return.     The 


'  Concil.  Aquil.  an.  1409,  LABBf,  xv.  1103. 
'  Neand.  ix.  104. 

3  The    declaration    ad    universes    Christianos   in   D'Achery, 
Spicileg.  i.  807  :  '  Eundem  Gregorium  velut  haereticum  et  nutri- 

*  torem  schismatis  antiquati  dereliquimus  sibi,  cum  juxta  canonicas 

*  sanctiones  peccatum  sit  ei  obedientiam  praestare,  die  xi  mensis 

*  Maii  proxime  praeteriti  omnem  quantum  in  nobis  fuit  obedien- 

*  tiam  juxta  juris  exigentiam  abstraximus,  ac  recessimus  ab  eodem, 

*  dispositi  ut  oportuit  et  oportet  ex  adverso  consurgere  et  murum 

*  nos  opponere  pro  domo  Israel.'     See  the  letter  in  Labb^,  xv. 
1296  in  Acta  Concil.  Pisan.  an.  1409. 

''  Neand.  ix.  104. 

5  See  the  documents,  Labb£,  xv.  1275  in  Acta  Concil.  Pisan. 
an.  1409,  and  ibid,  p.  1346. 


THE  GREAT  SCHISM  OF  THE    WEST. 


PART     Schism    had    increased    the    papal    expenditure   at 
III.  .    • 

'■ —  the  same  time  that  the  papal  resources  were  dimi- 
nished. The  two  rival  Popes  had  not  a  greater 
revenue  than  had  formerly  been  enjoyed  by  one ; 
and  if  in  nothing  else,  they  at  least  agreed  in  one 
thing,  their  zeal  in  oppressing  the  Church. 
(^)  The  points  in  the  oppression  of  the  Church  which 

the  laity,  most  affected  the  laity  were  the  sale  of  indulgences 
and  the  practice  of  simony  ;  the  former  affecting 
their  purse,  the  latter  their  respect.  Agents  were 
sent  out  by  Boniface  IX.  and  preachers  to  sell  in- 
dulgences to  all  who  gave  the  same  sum  that  a 
journey  to  Rome  would  have  cost.^  Pardons  were 
sold  without  any  penitence  being  required.  Simony 
too  was  openly  practised,  and  defended  without  any 
sense  of  shame.^  Hence  the  impression  gained 
ground  amongst  the  laity  that  in  the  Church  any- 
thing might  be  done  for  money.  Bitter  was  the 
retaliation  when  the  discovery  had  been  made  that 
the  whole  claim  of  the  Church  to  g^rant  induls^ences 
was  a  deception. 
ib)  Other  modes    of    oppression   to  which   Boniface 

Affecting 

the . 

Clergy. 

'  Neand.  ix.  69. 

2  Theod.  a  Niem.  vol.  ii.  ch.  ix.  :  '  Curiales  pro  majori  parte 
'  affirmabant  talia  licite  fieri,  cum  Papa  in  talibus,  ut  dicebant, 
'  peccare  non  posset.'  Ch.  xxxii.  :  'Vivente  eodem  [Bonifacio] 
'  quidam  integri  magistri  in  sacra  theologia  et  alii  in  scientiis  illu- 
'  minati  dolentes  ita  communiter  et  aperte  simoniam  committi  in 
'  Curia  ...  in  contrarium  arguendo,  et  conclusiones  in  quaternas 
'  et  codices  redigendo  determinarunt,  licet  sub  magno  timore,  quod 
'  Papa  vendendo  ecclesiastica  beneficia  ex  pacto  intercedenti 
*  simoniacus  esset,  quia  non  foret  constitutus,  ut  ilia  venderet,  sed 
'  ut  dignis  gratuito  dispensaret.' 


ITS  CONSEQUENCES. 


457 


resorted,  and  which  chiefly  affected  the  clerg-y  enor-     chap. 

.  XIV. 

moiis  though  they  were  in  themselves,  do  not  seem  '— 

to  have  been  the  cause  of  so  much  pubHc  scandal. 
Indeed,  many  of  the  abuses  were  not  abolished  at 
the  Reformation.  The  sale  of  presentations,  which 
the  French  Pontiff,  Clement  VII.,  was  obliged  to 
exercise,^  but  from  which  Urban  VI.  was  at  least 
comparatively  free,  does  not  seem  even  now  to  give 
offence  to  the  clergy,  whatever  it  may  give  to  the 
laity,  provided  It  is  exercised  by  private,  and  not 
by  public  patrons,  and  the  practice  of  paying  first 
fruits,  and  the  revenues  during  the  vacancy  of  the 
greater  ecclesiastical  offices,^ — a  practice  introduced 
by  Boniface  IX. — has  been,  at  least  in  England, 
continued  ;  the  crown  being  substituted  for  the  Pope. 
To  these  abuses  must  be  added  others  which  now 
crept  in,  the  sale  of  favours  in  expectancy,  or  gratiae 
exspectativae,  of  dispensations.  It  does  not,  however, 
appear  that  Clement's  claim  to  the  spoils  of  de- 
ceased prelates  was  anything  more  than  a  temporary 
expedient.^ 

^  See  the  authorities  quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  105,  p.  100. 
2  Auctor  in  Bulaei  Hist.    Univ.  Par.  iv.  914  :  'Circa  mockim 

*  exactionis  istarum  vacantiarum  est  advertendum,  quod  ante  tem- 
'  pora  schismatis  nulla  solutio  aut  obligatio  exigebatur,  sed  habita 
'  possessione  collectores  apostolici  levabant  in  multis  et  prolixis 
'  terminis  taxam  ;  ita  quod  vix  taxa  tribus,  decern  vel  duodecim 

*  annis  erat  levata,  et  communiter  remittebatur  pars,  et  aliquando 

*  totum  propter  paupertates  vel  alias  considerationes.' 

^  Chrofiica  Caroli  VI.  lib.  ii.  ch.  ii.  a.d.  138 i  :  '  Quotiens  ab 
'  hac  luce  Episcopos  Franciae  migrare  contingebat,  mox  ex  papali 
'  camera  collectores  et  subcollectores  procedebant,  qui  mobilia, 
' .  .  .  quae  ad  haeredes  aut  executores  testamentorum  dinosce- 
'  bantur  pertinere,  et  unde  aedificia  episcopatuum  potuissent  repa- 


458 


THE   GREAT  SCHISM  OF  THE    WEST 


PART         Of  greater  importance,  as  tending  to  overthrow  the 
foundations  of  the   Papacy,  was  the  way  in  which 


HI. 


posing' of  the  corruptions  hitherto  endured  and  passed  over 
7ions^'  ^^  silence  were  ventilated  and  reprobated.  The 
Church  was  openly  oppressed.  Clergy  and  laity  were 
called  upon  to  decide  between  two  rival  parties. 
A.D.  1401  Treatises  were  written,  such  as  that  attributed 
to  Clemangis,-^  '  De  Ruina  Ecclesiael  declaring 
'  that  this  frightful  pest  of  schism  has  been  intro- 
duced and  propagated  by  the  wickedness  of  the 
cardinals,^  and  has  been  permitted  as  a  divine  judg- 
ment that  the  rule  of  the  Church,  so  displeasing  to 
God,  so  odious  to  the  nations,  may  come  to  nought' 
Moreover,  to  many  minds,  the  overthrow  of  the 
Papacy  could  not  fail  to  suggest  itself.  The  Uni- 
versity of  Paris  declared  in  its  letter  to  Clement 
VII.  that  men  were  heard  openly  to  say,  that  it 
mattered  not  how  many  Popes  there  were  ;  there 
might  be  not  two  or  three  only,  but  as  many  as 
twelve ;  each  realm  might  have  its  own  ecclesiastical 
head  owing  no  allegiance  to  anyone  else.^  Ex- 
tremes meet.     The  transition  from  many  Popes  to 


'  rari,  nemine  contradicente  rapiebant ;  et  qui  praetextu  arreragio- 
'  rum  ex  decimis  et  servitiis  nondum  integre  persolutis  provenien- 

*  tium  tanta  damna  inferebant.  .  .  .' 

1  By  Neander,  ix.  76,  denied  by  Gieseler,  vol.  iv.  p.  100. 

2  De  Ruina  Ecdesiae,  ch.  xvi. 

3  BuLAEUS,  lib.  i.  p.  700,  quoted  in  Neand.  ix,  75  :  *Ut  ple- 

*  rumque  passim  et  publice  non  vereantur  dicere,  Nihil  omnino 
'  curandum  quot  Papae  sint,  et  non  solummodo  duo  aut  tres,  sed 
'  decem  aut  duodeciin,  imo  et  singulis  regnis  singulos  praefici 
'  posse,  nulla  sibi  invicem  potestatis  aut  jurisdictionis  auctoritate 

*  praelatos.' 


ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  a  eg 

no    Pope  at   all,    was   nearer  than    the  University     chap. 

...  XIV. 

anticipated.  


As  the  evils  of  the  Schism  became  more  pressing,  (3)  Eh- 
and  every  kind  of  remedy  for  the  scandals  of  the  ^-"J^Zcc/e- 
present  was  eagerly  canvassed,  many  an  anxious  eye  )\^if/Jl!:^^ 
was   cast   on    the   earlier   and    better   aQ^es    of  the  stinm- 
Church.      Hitherto,   what  reforms  had  taken  place 
had  been  promptly  made  conformably  to  what  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  day  seemed  most  expedient,  but 
the  notion  of  a  fixed  type  in  the  past,  as  the  standard 
for  present  reforms,  was  now  freely  expressed ;  and 
this    notion   was    one   to    which    all    the    reformers 
in  the  sixteenth  century  professedly  adhered.     The 
appeal  to  such  a  standard,   however,  involved  not 
only  the  exercise  of  private  judgment,  but  it  also  in- 
volved the  study  of  history ;  and  when,  soon  after- 
wards, greater  facilities  were  offered  for  that  study, 
many  were  thereby  led  to  convictions  unfavourable 
to  the  papal  pretensions.   The  study  of  the  earlier  ages 
of  the  Church  raised  up  the  greatest  opponents  to 
the  Papacy ;  and  in  the  sixteenth  century  the  watch- 
word of  the  reformers  was  the  desire  to  revive  the 
past.    So  thought  the  reformers  of  one  age.    Would 
reformers,  who  now  claim  to  follow  in  their  foot- 
steps, rest  satisfied  with  the  past  for  their  standard  ? 
Amongst  other  things  which  the  study  of  history 
brouo^ht  to  li2:ht,  were  the  instances  in  which  schisms  (4)  ^^^u- 

°  ^  lar  power 

had  been  quelled  by  the  interposition  of  the  emperors,  applied  to 
Some  wished  those  times  to  be  revived,  and  would  siastical 
have  been  glad  to  see  the  secular  power  again  inter-  "i^^^^^^' 
pose.     Theodoric  of  Niem,  the  Pope's  chamberlain, 
denies  that  the  secular  sword  belongs  to  the  Pope ; 


•  50  THE   GREAT  SCHISM  OF   THE    WEST. 

PART     he  declares  that  '  the  king  of  the  Romans  hath  the 

'- —  right  to    convene  the  prelates  to  put  an  end  to   a 

schism,'  and  quotes  in  support  of  his  assertion  the 
instance  of  Otto  I.  deposing  John  XII.^  In  the 
same  spirit  the  University  of  Paris  had  appealed  to 
the  French  king,  Charles,  urging  him  to  put  an  end 
to  the  Schism,  and  Charles  had  combined  with  Wen- 
ceslaus,  intending  to  depose  both  the  Popes.  No 
A.D.  1392  doubt,  too,  the  statute  of  Praemunire,''^  which  the 
parliament  of  Richard  II.  enacted  about  this  time, 
and  which  asserts  the  Independence  of  the  English 
crown  against  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  was  in  a  great 
measure  due  to  the  prevalence  of  the  same  feeling 
in  this  country.^  It  thus  becomes  easy  to  under- 
stand how,  when  England  and  Germany  broke  away 
from  the  Papacy  at  the  Reformation,  ecclesiastical 
matters  came  to  be  determined  by  kings  and  princes. 
Everywhere  national  Churches  grew  up  on  the  ruins 
of  the  imperial  Papacy. 

One  other  result  of  the  Schism  yet  deserves  to  be 
(5)        mentioned,  the  establishment  of  the  principle  that  a 

heal  to 
lO'al 
Councils. 


General     General    Council    is    above    the    Pope.^      Such   an 


*•  Theod.  a  Niem.  De  Schismate,  lib.  iii.  ch.  vii.  :  '  Fatue  et 
'  adulatorie  loquuntur  illi,  qui  dicunt,  quod  Papa  seu  Ecclesia 
'  duos  habet  gladios,  scil.  spiritualem  et  temporalem.  .  .  .  Sed  isti 
'  adulatores  seu  assentatores  per  talia  scripta  et  dicta  inducunt 
*  maximum  errorem  in  tota  Christianitate,  et  suscitant  quodam- 
'  modo  perpetuara  aemulationem  seu  discordiam  inter  Papam  et 
'  Imperatorem.' 

2  See  Appendix  II. 

3  See  the  letter  of  King  Henry  IV.  to  Gregory,  in  Acta  Concil. 
Pis.  an.  1409,  LABBfi,  xv.  1354.  See  also  the  authorities  quoted 
by  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  103,  p.  90. 

4  Mathaeus    de   Cracovia,   De    Squaioribus    Rom.    Curiae, 


ITS  CONSEQUENCES.  46  I 

opinion  would  have  found  no  favour  In  the  time  of    chap, 

XIV 

Gregory  VII.   or   Innocent  III.,  however  much   it    ^ 

might  have  been  sanctioned  by  antiquity.  But  cir- 
cumstances were  changed  since  then  ;  a  long  series 
of  events  had  weakened  the  papal  power  ;  and  for 
the  present  ills  there  seemed  to  be  no  other  remedy 
but  a  General  Council.  After  the  Council  of  Pisa 
had  been  summoned,  canonists  vied  with  each 
other  in  upholding  the  new  tenet/  and  it  ever  con- 
tinued afterwards  to  be  a  distinctive  feature  of 
the  Gallican  Church  that  a  General  Council  is 
superior  to  the  Pope. 

Thus  the  Popes  who,  in  consulting  their  private 
Interests,  prolonged  the  Schism,  contributed  most  of 
all  to  the  overthrow  of  the  power  of  their  successors. 
The  clergy  and  laity  were  shocked  at  the  abuses  which 
were  openly  tolerated.  A  desire  to  look  to  the 
past  for  a  standard  of  reform  was  fostered,  and 
thereby  private  judgment  was  appealed  to  against 
authority.  The  secular  power  was  invoked  to  heal 
evils  which  the  heads  of  Christendom,  engaged  in 
contention,  refused  to  remedy,  and  General  Councils 
were  invited  to  settle  what  was  seen  to  be  beyond 
the  capacities  of  the  Popes.  Already  during  their 
residence  at  Avignon  the  Popes  had  lost  their 
political  supremacy.  When,  in  the  year  1409,  the 
Council  of  Pisa  met,  their  ecclesiastical  supremacy 
was  doomed  likewise. 

ch.  xxii.  :  '  Si  ergo  contingat,  quod  Papa  sic  agat  circa  universalem 
'  Ecclesiam,  sicut  talis  Abbas,  .  .  .  sequitur  .  .  .  quod  possint  et 
'  debeant  procedere  contra  eum.' 

'  See  the  authorities  quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  107,  p.  120. 


APPENDIX   II. 

STATUTE   OF    1 6   RICHARD   II.    C.    5    (2),    A.D.    I392  :    COM- 
MONLY  KNOWN   AS   THE   STATUTE   OF   PRAEMUNIRE.' 

Praemunire  for  Purchasing  Bulls  from  Rome.     The  Crown 
of  England  subject  to  none. 


PART 
III. 


Item,  come  les  communes  du 
roialme  en  ce  present  parlement 
eient  monstrer  a  nostre  tresre- 
doute  seignur  le  roi  grevousement 
compleignantz  qu  paf  la  ou 
mesme  nostre  seignur  le  roi  & 
toutz  ses  liges  deirent  de  droit  & 
soloient  de  tout  temps  purseuer 
en  la  courte  mesme  nostre  sei- 
gneur le  roi  pur  recoverer  lour  pre- 
sentementz  as  esglises  prebendes 
&  autres  benefices  de  seinte 
esglise  as  gueux  ils  ount  droit  a 
presenter  la  conisance  de  plee  de 
quelle  presente  appertient  soule- 
ment  a  courte  mesme  nostre  sei- 
gnur le  roi  daunciene  droit  de  sa 
coronne  use  &  approve  en  temps 
de  touz  ses  progenitours  rois 
d'Engleterre  &  quant  juggement 
soit  rendu  en  mesme  sa  courte 
sur  tiel  plee  &  presente  les  erce- 
vesqvies  evesques  &  autres  per- 
sones  spiritueles  quount  institu- 
tion de  tiele  benefice  deinz  lour 
jurisdiction  sont  tenuz  &  ont  fait 


'  Item,  whereas  the  commons  of 
the  realm  in  this  present  parlia- 
ment have  shewed  to  our  re- 
doubted lord  the  king,  grievously- 
complaining,  that  whereas  the 
said  our  lord  the  king,  and  all  his 
liege  people,  ought  of  right,  and 
of  old  time  were  wont,  to  sue  in 
the  king's  courts,  to  recover  their 
presentments  to  churches,  pre- 
bends, and  other  benefices  of  holy 
church,  to  the  which  they  had 
fight  to  present,  the  cognizance 
of  plea  of  which  presentment  be- 
longeth  only  to  the  king's  court 
of  the  old  right  of  his  crown,  used 
and  approved  in  the  time  of  all 
his  progenitors,  kings  of  England; 
and  when  judgment  shall  be  given 
in  the  same  court  upon  such  a 
plea  and  presentment,  the  arch- 
bishops, bishops,  and  other 
spiritual  persons  which  have  in- 
stitution of  such  benefices  within 
their  jurisdiction,  be  bound,  and 
have    made    execution    of    such 


'  Taken  from  Stephen's  Ecclesiastical  Statutes,  vol.  i.  p.  89. 


STATUTE   OF  PRAEMUNIRE. 


46: 


execution  des  tieux  juggementz 
par  mandement  des  rois  des  tout 
le  temps  avant  dit  sanz  interrup- 
tion quare  autre  lay  persone  ne 
poet  tiele  execution  faire  & 
auxuit  sont  tenuz  de  droit  de 
faire  execution  de  plusours  autres 
mandementz  nostre  seignur  le  roi 
de  quele  droit  la  corone  d'Engle- 
terre  ad  este  peisiblement  seisy 
sibien  en  temps  nostre  dit  seignur 
le  roi  come  en  temps  de  touz  ses 
progenitours  tanqe  enca  mes  ore 
tarde  diverses  processes  sont  faitz 
par  le  seint  piere  le  Pape  &  cen- 
sures descomengementz  sur  cer- 
teins  evesques  d'Engleterre  pur 
ceo  qils  ount  fait  execution  des 
tieux  mandementz  en  overte  des- 
heritance  de  la  dite  corone  & 
destruction  du  regalie  nostre  dit 
seignur  le  roy  sa  ley  &  tout  son 
roialme  si  remedie  ne  soit  mys. 
Et  auxuit  dit  est  &  commune 
clamour  y  ad  qe  le  dit  seint  piere 
le  Pape  ad  ordeigne  &  purpose 
de  translater  aucuns  prelates  de 
mesme  le  roialme  ascuns  hors  du 
roialme  &  aucuns  de  un  eveschee 
a  autre  deinz  mesme  le  roialme 
saunz  assent  &  conisance  nostre 
seignur  le  roy  et  saunz  assent  du 
prelat  qi  ensy  serroit  ^translate 
queux  prelatz  sont  moult  profi- 
tables  &  necessaries  a  nostre  dit 
seignur  le  roi  &  tout  son  roialme 
par  queux  translations  sils  fusent 
sufertz  les  estatutz  du  roiaume 
serront  defaitz  &  anientez  &  ses 
sages  lieges  de  son  conseill  sanz 
son  assent  &  encountre  sa  vo- 
luntee  subtrez  &  esloignez  hors  de 
son  roiaume  &  lavoir  &  tresore  du 
roiaume  serroit  emporte  &  ensi 
mesme  le  roiaume  destitut  sibien 


judgments  by  the  king's  com- 
mandments of  all  the  time  afore- 
said without  interruption  (for 
another  lay  person  cannot  make 
such  execution),  and  also  be 
bound  of  right  to  make  execution 
of  many  other  of  the  king's  com- 
mandments, of  which  right  the 
crown  of  England  hath  been 
peaceably  seised,  as  well  in  the 
time  of  our  said  lord  the  king 
that  now  is,  as  in  the  time  of  all 
his  progenitors  until  this  day: 
but  now  of  late  divers  processes 
be  made  by  the  Bishop  of  Rome, 
and  censures  of  excommunication 
upon  certain  bishops  of  England, 
because  they  have  made  execu- 
tion of  such  commandments,  to 
the  open  disherison  of  the  said 
crown,  and  destruction  of  the 
regalty  of  our  said  lord  the  king, 
his  -law,  and  all  his  realm,  if 
remedy  be  not  provided.  And 
also  it  is  said,  and  a  common 
clamour  is  made,  that  the  said 
Bishop  of  Rome  hath  ordained 
and  purposed  to  translate  some 
prelates  of  the  same  realm,  some 
out  of  the  realm,  and  some  from 
one  bishoprick  into  another  with- 
in the  same  realm,  without  the 
king's  assent  and  knowledge,  and 
without  the  assent  of  the  prelates, 
which  so  shall  be  translated, 
which  prelates  be  much  profit- 
able and  necessary  to  our  said 
lord  the  king,  and  to  all  his 
realm;  by  which  translations  (if 
they  should  be  suffered)  the 
statutes  of  the  realm  should  be 
defeated  and  made  void  ;  and  his 
said  liege  sages  of  his  council, 
without  his  assent,  and  against 
his  will,  carried  away  and  gotten 


APP. 
11. 


The  Pope 
awarded 
processes 
and  sen- 
tences of 
excom- 
nuaiica- 
tion 
against 
bishops 
for  exe- 
cuting 

ments  of 

King's 

Court. 

The 
Pope's 
transla- 
tion of 
prelates^ 


464 


APPENDIX  IL 


PART 
III. 


The  free- 
dom of 
the 

Crown  of 
England. 


Promise 
of  Co  111- 
tnous  to 
assist 
kino-. 


de  counseill  come  davoir  a  final 
destruction  de  mesme  le  roialme 
&  ensy  la  corone  d'Engleterre 
qad  este  si  frank  de  tout  temps 
qele  nad  hien  null  terrien  sove- 
raigne  mes  immediate  subgit  a 
Dieu  en  toutes  choses  touchantz 
la  regalie  de  mesme  la  corone  & 
a  null  autre  serroit  submys  a 
Pape  &  les  leys  &  estatutz  du 
roialme  par  luy  defaitz  enientez 
a  sa  volente  en  perpetuele  de- 
struction de  la  soveraynte  nostre 
seignur  le  roy  sa  corone  &  sa 
regalie  &  tout  son  roialme  qe 
Dieu  defende. 


Et  disoient  outre  les  communes 
avantdites  qe  les  dites  choses 
ensi  attemptez  sount  overtement 
encountre  la  corone  nostre  sei- 
gnur le  roi  &  sa  regalie  use  &  ap- 
prove du  temps  du  toutz  ses  pro- 
genitours  par  quoy  ils  &  toutz  les 
lieges  communes  du  mesme  le 
roialme  veullant  estere  ovec  nostre 
dit  seignur  le  roi  &  sa  dite  corone 
&  sa  regalie  en  les  cases  avaunt- 
dites  &  en  touz  autres  cases  at- 
temptez encountre  luy  sa  corone 
&  sa  regalie  en  toutz  pointz  a 
vivre  &  murer.  Et  prierent  outre 
a  nostre  seignur  le  roi  &  luy 
requistrent  par  voy  de  justice  qil 
vorroit  examiner  toutz  les  sei- 
gnurs  en  parlement  sibien  spiri- 
tueles  come  temporeles  several- 
ment  &  toutz  les  estatz  du  parle- 
ment comcntlour  scmble  des  cases 
avauntditz  qe  sount  si  overtement 
encountre  la  corone  nostre  sei- 
gnur le  roy  &  en  derogation  de  sa 


out  of  his  realm,  and  the  substance 
and  treasure  of  the  realm  shall 
be  carried  away,  and  so  the  realm 
be  destitute  as  well  of  council 
as  of  substance,  to  the  final  de- 
struction of  the  same  realm  ;  and 
so  the  crown  of  England,  which 
hath  been  so  free  at  all  times, 
that  it  hath  been  in  no  earthly 
subjection,  but  immediately  sub- 
ject to  God  in  all  things  touching 
the  regalty  of  the  same  crown, 
and  to  none  other,  should  be  sub- 
mitted to  the  Pope,  and  the  laws 
and  statutes  of  the  realm  by  him 
defeated  and  avoided  at  his  will, 
in  perpetual  destruction  of  the 
sovereignty  of  the  king  our  lord, 
his  crown,  his  regalty,  and  of  all 
his  realm,  which  God  defend. 

'II.  And  moreover,  the  com- 
mons aforesaid  say,  that  the  said 
things  so  attempted  be  clearly 
against  the  king's  crown,  and  his 
regalty,  used  and  approved  of 
the  time  of  all  his  progenitors  ; 
wherefore  they  and  all  the  liege 
commons  of  the  same  realm  will 
stand  with  our  said  lord  the  king, 
and  his  said  crown,  and  his  re- 
galty in  the  cases  aforesaid,  and 
in  all  other  cases  attempted 
against  him,  his  crown,  and  his 
regalty  in  all  points,  to  live  and 
to  die.  And  moreover,  they  pray 
the  king,  and  him  require  by  way 
of  justice,  that  he  would  examine 
all  the  lords  in  the  parliament,  as 
well  spiritual  as  temporal,  seve- 
rally, and  all  the  states  of  the 
parliament,  how  they  think  of  the 
cases  aforesaid,  which  be  so 
openly  against  the  king's  crown, 
and  in  derogation  of  his  regalty, 
and   how  they  will  stand  in  the 


STATUTE   OF  PRAEMUNIRE. 


465 


regalie  &  coment  ils  voillent 
estere  en  mesmes  les  cases  ovesqe 
nostre  seigmir  le  roy  en  suste- 
nance des  droitz  de  ses  dites 
corone  &  regalie.  Sur  quoy  les 
seignurs  temporelx  ensi  demandez 
ount  respondu  checun  par  soy  qe 
mesmes  les  cases  avantdites  sont 
overtement  en  derogation  de  la 
corone  nostre  seignur  le  roy  &  de 
sa  regalie  come  notoirement  est 
&  ad  este  de  tout  temps  conuz  & 
qe  ils  veullent  estre  ovec  mesmes 
les  corone  &  regalie  en  inesmes 
cestes  cases  en  especial  &  en 
touz  autres  cases  qe  serront  at- 
temptez  encountre  mesmes  les 
corone  &  regalie  en  toutz  pointz 
ove  tout  lour  poair.  Et  outre  ce 
demandez  estoit  des  seignurs  es- 
pirituels  illeges  esteantz  &  des 
procuratours  des  autres  absentz 
de  lour  estre  avys  &  volente  en 
ceux  cases  queux  seignurs  cest- 
assavoir  ercevesques  evesques 
&  autres  prelatesesteantz  en  le 
dit  parlement  severalment  exam- 
inez  fesantz  protestations  qil  nest 
pas  lour  entention  de  dire  ne  af- 
firmer  qe  nostre  seint  piere  le 
Pape  ne  poet  excomenger  eves- 
ques ne  quil  poet  faire  transla- 
tions des  prelatz  solone  la  ley  de 
seinte  esglise  respoignent  & 
diount  qe  si  aucunes  executions 
des  processes  faitz  en  la  courte  du 
roi  come  devaunt  soient  faitz  par 
ascuny  «S:  censures  de  escomenge- 
mentz  soient  faitz  encountre  as- 
cun  evesque  d'Engleterre  ou  as- 
cun  autre  liege  du  roi  pur  ce  qils 
ount  fait  execution  des  tieux 
maundementz  &  qe  si  ascuns  exe- 
cutions des  tieux  translations 
soient    faitz   dascuns    prelatz   de 


same  cases  with  our  lord  the 
king,  in  upholding  the  rights  of 
the  said  crown  and  regalty. 
Whereupon  the  lords  temporal, 
so  demanded,  have  answered 
every  one  by  himself,  that  the 
cases  aforesaid  be  clearly  in  de- 
rogation of  the  king's  crown,  and 
of  his  regalty,  as  it  is  well  known, 
and  hath  been  of  a  long  time 
known,  and  that  they  will  be  with 
tlie  same  crown  and  regalty  in 
these  cases  specially,  and  in  all 
other  cases  which  shall  be  at- 
tempted against  the  same  crown 
and  regalty  in  all  points,  with  all 
their  power.  And  moreover  it 
was  demanded  of  the  lords 
spiritual  there  being,  and  the  pro- 
curators of  others  being  absent, 
their  advice  and  will  in  all  these 
cases  ;  which  lords,  that  is  to  say, 
the  archbishops,  bishops,  and 
other  prelates,  being  in  the  said 
parliament  severally  examined, 
making  protestations,  that  it  is 
not  in  their  mind  to  say  nor  af- 
firm that  the  Bishop  of  Rome 
may  not  excommunicate  bishops, 
nor  that  he  may  make  translation 
of  prelates  after  the  law  of  holy 
church,  answered  and  said,  that 
if  any  executions  of  processes 
made  in  the  king's  court  as  before 
be  made  by  any,  and  censures  of 
excommunications  to  be  made 
against  any  bishops  of  England, 
or  any  other  of  the  king's  liege 
people,  for  that  they  have  made 
execution  of  such  command- 
ments ;  and  that  if  any  execu- 
tions of  such  translations  be 
made  of  any  prelates  of  the  same 
realm,  which  prelates  be  very 
profitable  and   necessary  to   our 


APP. 
II. 


Promise 
of  the 
lords  tem- 
poral. 


The  pro- 
7nise  of 
the  lords 
spiritual. 


H  H 


466 


APPENDIX  II. 


PART 
III. 


The  pro- 
mise of 
thefirocu- 
rators  of 
the  lords 
spiritual. 


Praemu- 
nire _/tfr 
purchas- 
ing of 
bulls  or 
other  in- 
striiments 
front 
Rome,  or 
elsewhere. 


mesme  de  roialme  queux  seignurs 
sount  moult  profitables  &  neces- 
sairs  a  nostre  dit  seignur  le  roi  & 
a  son  roiaume  suisdit  ou  qe  les 
sages  lieges  de  son  counseil  saunz 
son   assent    &   encountre  sa  vo- 
lunte  soient  sustretz  &  esloignez 
hers    du   roialme    siqe    levoir   & 
tresor    du   roialme   purroit   estre 
destruit  qe  ce  en  encountre  le  roi 
&  sa  corone  sicome  est  contenuz 
en  la   petition   avant  nome.     Et 
semblablement  les  dites  procura- 
tours    chescun   par   soy   examine 
sur  le  ditz  matieres  ount  respondu 
&  dit  en  noun  &  pur  lours  sei- 
nurs  comes  les  ditz  evesques  ount 
dit    &    respondu    &   qe  les   ditz 
seignurs   espiritueles   veuUent    & 
devient  estere  ovesqe  le  roi  nostre 
seignur  en  ceux   cases  loialment 
en  sustenance  de  sa  corone  &  en 
toutz   autres    cases    tochantz    sa 
corone  &  regalie  come  ils  sount 
tenuz  par  lour  ligeance  sur  quoy 
nostre  dit  seignur  le  roi  del  assent 
avauntdit  &  a  la  priere  de  sa  dit 
communalte   ad   ordeigne   &   es- 
tablie   qe  si   ascun   purchace   ou 
pursue  ou  face  purchacer  ou  pur- 
suer  en  la  courte  de    Rome  ou 
aillours '  ascuns  tieux  translations 
processes    &   sentences  de  esco- 
mengementz    bulles    instrumentz 
ou    autre     chose     qeconque     qe 
touche  le   roi  nostre  seignur  en- 
countre  luy  sa  corone  &  regalie 
ou  son  roialme  come  devant  est 
dit  &  ceux  qe  les  porte  deinz  le 
roialme  ou  les  resceive   ou   face 
ent  notification  ou  autre  execution 
queconqe  deinz  mesme  le  roialme 
ou  dehors  soient  ils  lour  notairs 
procura*ours  meintenours  abbct- 
tours    fautours    &    counseillours 


said  lord  the  king,  and  to  his 
said  realm,  or  that  the  sage 
people  of  his  council,  without  his 
assent,  and  against  his  will,  be 
removed  and  carried  out  of  the 
realm,  so  that  the  substance  and 
treasure  of  the  realm  may  be  con- 
sumed, that  the  same  is  against 
the  king  and  his  crown,  as  it  is 
contained  in  the  petition  before 
named. 

And  likewise  the  same  procu- 
rators,  every   one   examined    by 
himself  upon    the    said   matters, 
have  answered  and    said  in  the 
name,  and  for  their  lords,  as  the 
said     bishops     have     said     and 
answered,  and  that  the  said  lords 
spiritual  will  and  ought  to  be  with 
the   king  in  these  cases,  in  law- 
fully  maintaining   of  his    crown, 
and  in   all  other  cases  touching 
his  crown  and  his  regalty,  as  they 
be     bound     by    their     ligeance ; 
whereupon  our  said  lord  the  king, 
by   the   assent   aforesaid,   and  at 
the  request  of  his  said  commons, 
hath    ordained    and    established, 
that  if  any  purchase  or  pursue,  or 
cause  to  be  purchased  or  pursued, 
in   the   court   of  Rome,  or  else- 
where, by  any  such  translations, 
processes   and   sentences   of  ex- 
communications,   bulls,      instru- 
ments, or  any  other  things  what- 
soever   which     touch    the    king, 
against  him,   his  crown,  and  his 
regalty,  or  his  realm,  as  is  afore- 
said, and  they  which  bring  with- 
in the  realm,  or  them  receive,  or 
make  thereof  notification,  or  any 
other  execution  whatsoever  with- 
in   the   same  realm,   or   without, 
that  they,  their  notaries,  procura- 
tors,  mainta' fiers,   abettors,   fau- 


STATUTE   OF  PRAEMUNIRE. 


467 


mys  hors  de  la  protection  nostre 
dit  seigiiur  le  roi  et  lours  terres  & 
tenementz  biens  &  chatieux  for- 
faitz  au  roy  nostre  seignur  &  qils 
soient  attachez  par  lour  corps  sils 
purront  estre  trouvez  &  amesnez 
devaunt  le  roy  &  son  conseil  pur 
y  respondre  es  cases  avauntditz 
ou  qe  processe  soit  fait  devers 
eux  par  premunire  facias  en 
manere  come  est  ordeigne  en 
autres  estatutz  des  provisours  & 
autres  qui  seueut  en  autry  courte 
en  derogation  de  la  regalie  nostre 
seignur  le  roy. 


tors,  and  counsellors  shall  be  pict 
out  of  the  king's  protection^  and 
their  lands  and  tenements,  goods 
and  chattels,  forfeit  to  our  lord 
the  king ;  and  that  they  be  at- 
tached by  their  bodies,  if  they 
may  be  found,  and  brought  before 
the  king  and  his  council,  there  to 
answer  to  the  cases  aforesaid,  or 
that  process  be  made  against 
them  by  praemunire  facias,  in 
manner  as  it  is  ordained  in  other 
statutes  of  provisors,  and  other 
which  do  sue  in  any  other  court 
in  derogation  of  the  regalty  of  our 
lord  the  king.' 


APP. 
II. 


li 


H  H    2 


468 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE    WEST 


CHAPTER    XV. 

THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 
(1409— 1449.) 


A  planta  pedis  usque  ad  vefticejn,  noti  est  in  eo  sanitas ;  zntlnus,  et  livor,  et  plaga 
tumens,  no7i  est  circiimligata,  nee  curata  medica77iine,  neqiiefota  oleo. — Is,  I.  6, 


PART 
III. 

A.   The 

Cojiftcil 
0/  Pisa, 

A.D.  1409, 

afid  the 
Papacy 
of  Ale X- 
aiider  V. 
a?!d  John 
XXIIL 


ON  the  25th  day  of  March  In  the  year  1409,  the 
General  Council,  which  had  been  so  long" 
anxiously  anticipated  as  the  only  remedy  for  the 
schism  of  the  Church,  was  opened  at  Pisa.^  It  met 
when  the  ecclesiastical  supremacy  of  the  Popes  was 
already  doomed  ;  it  was  the  first  of  a  series  of 
councils  which  carried  that  doom  into  execution. 
Well  might  the   rival   Pontiffs  tremble  before   such 


^  The  Acts  in  Labbe,  xv.  1123  seq. ;  Sessio  i.  1127  :  'In  con- 
'  cilio  .  .  .  processum  extitit  per  hunc  modum.  Primo,  fuerunt 
'  factae  processiones  solemnes,  et  postmodum  in  ecclesia  cathe- 
'  drali  dictae  civitatis  fuit  Missa  devotissime  .  .  .  celebrata,  et 
'  sermo  factus  .  .  .  Missa  vero  celebrata,  cantatae  fuerunt  anti- 
'  phonae,  et  certae  orationes  dictae  ;  et  postmodum  diaconus  alta 
'  voce  dixit  Orafe.  Tunc  flexis  genibus  et  inclinato  capite, 
'  omnes  oraverunt  submissa  voce  mitris  positis  :  deinde  diaconus 
'  et  subdiaconus  cantaverunt  alta  voce  litanias  et  omnes  responde- 
'  runt.'  Then  came  prayers  for  union,  and  then  was  sung  the 
Vem  Creator  Spiritus.  Afterwards  a  committee  appointed  bv  the 
council  repaired  to  the  doors  of  the  church,  and  asked  whether 
Benedict  and  Gregory  were  present  in  person  or  by  deputy,  and 
no  one  replying,  proctors  v»'ere  appointed  by  the  council. 


COUNCIL  OF  PISA.  .go 

a  tribunal.^     Well  might  they  attempt  to  forestall  its     chap, 

influence  by  holding  councils  themselves.     All  was    1— - 

in  vain.  This  time  Western  Christendom  was 
thoroughly  in  earnest,  and  before  the  imposing  list 
of  prelates  assembled  at  Pisa,  the  conciliabules  (as 
they  were  tauntingly  called)  of  Perpignan  and  Aqui- 
laea  sink  into  insisfnihcance. 

That  session  must  indeed  have  been  a  startling  (i)  Acts 
one,  in  which,  for  the  first  time,  after  the  unrivalled  council. 
pretensions  of  the  Popes  during  the  past  centuries, 
an  assemblage  of  prelates  sat  in  judgment  on   two 
contending^  Popes ;    and    the    Fiscal    advocate,  who  («)  Gre- 

j  r  ^■  1  u  goryXIL 

acted  as  secretary,  alter  readmg  a  lengthy  report  on  andBem- 
the  origin  and  progress  of  the  Schism,  proposed  that  deposed. 
the  two  Popes  should  be  deprived  of  their  pontifical 
dignity,  and  should  be  punished  and  chastised  by 
secular  judges  if  they  contravened  the  sentence  pro- 
nounced on  them  by  the  council.^  More  startling 
still  must  that  session  have  seemed,  held  on  June  5 
of  the  same  year,  in  which  the  Patriarch  of  Alexan- 
dria pronounced  the  definitive  sentence  of  deposition 

^  It  was  convened  by  the  cardinals.  See  the  letter  in  Labb^, 
XV.  1 1 23.  There  were  present  not  only  patriarchs,  archbishops, 
bishops,  abbots,  but  also  sacrae  theologiae  magistri  et  utriusque 
juris  doctores,  et  licentiati  nobiles  and  proctors  for  the  absent 
prelates. 

2  Sessio  iii.  March  30,  1409,  Labb^,  xv.  1129  :  '  Sancta  Synodus 
.  .  .  dominos  Petra  de  Luna,  Benedictum  XIII.  et  Angelum 
Corarium,  Gregorium  XII.  nuncupates,  de  papatu  contendentes, 
et  quantum  in  eis  est,  ecclesiam  Dei  notorie  in  schismate  tenentes 
.  .  .  reputat,  decernit  et  declarat  in  causa  schismatis  et  fidei 
contumaces,  ponitque  in  contumacia  et  defectu,  et  ordinat  in 
eorum  contumacia  debere  ad  ulteriora  procedi  et  procedendum 
fore.' 


470 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART  declaring  that  'the  Holy  Universal  Church,  as- 
'  sembled  by  the  Grace  of  God  in  the  Cathedral  of 
Pisa,  having  duly  heard  the  promoters  of  the  cause 
for  the  extirpation  of  the  Schism,  hereby  pronounces 
the  crimes  and  excesses  adduced  before  the  council 
against  Gregory  XII.  and  Benedict  XIII.  to  be 
true ;  .  .  .  and  that  although  by  the  canons  they  are 
actually  rejected  of  God,  nevertheless,  the  Church 
by  this  sentence  deposes,  rejects,  and  deprives  them, 
prohibiting  both  and  each  of  them  from  assuming 
any  longer  the  sovereign  pontificate,  and  for  further 
security  declaring  the  Papacy  to  be  vacant.'  ^  For 
the  sentence  there  delivered  was  not  only  a  sentence 
on  two  contending  Popes,  condemning  them  for 
their  vices  and  contumacy,  but  it  was  a  sentence  of 
condemnation  officially  uttered  on  the  ecclesiastical 
supremacy  of  the  Papacy. 
{b)  Elcc-        The  next  necessary  step,  without  which,  indeed, 

tion  of 

Aiexan-  the  deposition  of  the  two  Popes  would  have  been 
a  nullity,  was  the  election  of  a  new  Pope.  But  here 
some  difficulties  occurred.  It  was  necessary  to  take 
precautions  before  proceeding  to  a  new  election,  lest 
the  work  of  reform  should  be  frustrated.  Accord- 
ingly, before  that  step  was  taken,  the  cardinals 
pledged  themselves  that  whoever  should  be  elected 
Pope,  the  council  should  not  be  broken  up  until  a 
satisfactory  reformation  should  be  effected  in  the 
head  and  the  members  of  the  Church.^     They  forgot 

'  See  the  sentence  at  Sessio  xv.  June  5,  1409,  Labbe,  xv.  1137. 

"^  The  Cardinals  had  to  take  the  oath  at  Sessio  xvi.  June  10. 
It  runs,  Labb£,  xv.  1140  :  'Nos  omnes  et  singuU  .  .  .  cardinales 
'  .  .  .  promittimus  in  verbo  veritatis,  Deo,  ecclesiae  Romanae,  et 


COUNCIL  OF  PISA.  ah^ 

that,    in  the  absence  of  any  power  to   enforce   its     chap. 

XV 

observance,  this  pledge,  hke  so  many  taken   by  the  '- — 

cardinals  before  them,  was  probably  destined  to 
be  miserably  violated.  They  then  proceeded  to  the 
election,  and  Peter  de  Candia  was  unanimously 
chosen  on  June  26.^  He  took  the  name  of  Alex- 
ander Y.^  A.D. 

.  1409-1410 

The  new  Pope  at  once  announced  his  intention  of 

doing  as  he  had  promised,  and  took  the  business  of 

reform  in  hand.      But  Alexander  sought  to  appease, 

not  to  satisfy.      He  made  many  promises,  but  little 

came  of  them.      It  was  however  arranged  that  a  new 

council  should  be  held  in  three  years  time,  to  continue 

the  work  already  begun, ^     At  the  final  session  it  was 

ruled   that    '  whereas    the    Pope  hath  in  purpose  to 

reform   the  Church,  and   whereas  many  things  still 

remain  to  be  done,  which  can  not  be  attended  to, 

owing   to  the   premature   departure  of  the  prelates 

and  delegates,  therefore  the  transactions  respecting 

the  reformation  shall  be  suspended  until  the  meeting 

of  the  next  council;'*  and  on  August  7,  the  assembly 

of  Pisa  was  dissolved. 

*  sanctae  synodo  .  .  .  quod  si  quis  nostrum  in  summum  Roma- 
'  num  pontificem  eligatur,  praesens  concilium  continuabit,  nee 
'  dissolvet,  nee  dissolvi  permittet  .  .  .  usquequo  per  consilium 
'  ejusdem  concilii  sit  facta  debita,  rationabilis  et  sufficiens  refor- 
'  matio  universalis  ecclesiae  et  status  ejus  tam  in  capite  quam  in 

*  membris.' 

1  Sessio  xix.  Labbe,  xv.  1142.     See  a  more  detailed  account, 
ibid.  p.  1256. 

2  He  died  May  3,  1410.     His  life  in  Labbe,  xv.  1377. 
^  Sessio  XX.  ibid.  p.  1144,  and  xxii.  ibid.  1146. 

^  LABBfi,  XV.   1 148,  Sessio  xxiii.  :    'Cum  .  .  .  jani  multa   per 

*  Dei  gratiam  sint  expedita  per  ipsum  Dorainum  nostrum  Papam, 


472  THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 

PART         In   the    interval    between   the   election   of   Alex- 
ander  V.  and  the  assembling:  of  the  next   General 

(2)  After    ^  .,        ,     ^  ^      ,  ,  , 

events.  Louncil  at  Constance,  several  events  happened 
1410-1414  which  weakened  the  ecclesiastical  power  of  the 
of  Alex-  Pop^s.  The  Bull  of  Alexander,  issued  but  a  few 
ander.  months  after  his  accession,  by  which  the  four  orders 
of  friars  were  invested  with  the  uncontrolled  power 
of  hearing  confession  and  granting  absolution  in 
every  part  of  Christendom  without  requiring  the 
consent  of  the  parochial  clergy — a  Bull  intended,  no 
doubt,  to  attach  those  powerful  pleaders  to  the 
Pope's  party  ^ — had  incensed  the  secular  clergy 
against  the  Papacy,  and  increased  the  disorders 
already  prevailing.  At  the  same  time  the  language 
of  the  Bull  was  subversive  of  the  higfher  claims  of 
the  Popes,  since  it  rescinded  and  nullified  seven 
propositions  advanced  by  the  preceding  Popes. 
Of  one  proposition  it  even  averred  that  it  was 
propounded  by  John  XXL,  when  under  con- 
demnation for  heresy.^  A  Pope  who  could  condemn 
his  predecessors,  might  naturally  expect  the  same 
treatment  at  the  hands  of   his  successors.      If   one 

*  et  multa  alia  .  .  .  restent,  quae  propter  regressum  praelatorum 
'  et  ambasciatorum,  de  praesenti  expediri  non  possunt  :  propterea 
'  idem  dominus  noster,  sacro  requirente  et  approbante  concilio, 
'  dictam  reformationem  suspendit  et  continuat  usque  ad  proximum 
'  jam  indictum  concilium.' 

1  Theod.  a  Niem.  lib.  iii.  ch.  li.  :  '  Aliquos  etiam  fratres  mi- 
'  nores,  sibi  caros  et  sociales  publicis  officiis  et  lucrativis,  quae 
'  prius  consueverunt  regi  per  saeculares  personas  habiles  et  exper- 

*  tas,  in  eadem  sua  Curia  praefert,  et  miro  modo  conabatur  pleros- 
'  que  fratres  minores  cathedralibus  Ecclesiis  vacantibus  praeficere 

*  in  pastores.' 

2  MiLMAN,  book  xiii.  vol.  viii.  ch.  v.  p.  1 23  (small  edition). 


COUNCIL  OF  PISA.  473 

Pope  chareed  another  with  beino-  a  heretic,  what  was     chap. 

.       .                                ...         XV. 
there    to    prevent    ecclesiastics    from    following    his  ■ 

example  ? 

Still  no  such  treatment  fell  to   the  lot  of  Alex-  {b)  Elec- 

tion  of 

ander  V.  himself,  who  died  soon  afterwards,  and  it  John 

X  XII 

was    whispered   that  his   death    was    owing   to   the 


A.D. 


effects  of  poison.  His  death  might  have  afforded  1410-1415 
an  opportunity  for  dissipating  doubts  as  to  the  valid- 
ity of  the  proceedings  of  the  Council  of  Pisa ;  but 
that  opportunity  was  not  embraced.  The  deposed 
Pontiffs  were  treated  as  deposed  ;  and  the  acts  of  the 
council  received  a  further  independent  confirmation, 
when  twenty-four  cardinals  unanimously  concurred 
in  electing  a  successor  to  Alexander  in  the  person 
of  Balthasar  Cossa,  who  assumed  the  name  of 
John  XXII.^  There  could  be  no  pretence  that  this 
election  was  made  under  the  influence  of  fear,  or  of 
indirect  pressure  brought  to  bear  upon  the  cardinals 
by  the  council.  Of  their  own  free  will  the  cardinals 
met.  Of  their  own  free  will  they  elected  John  XXII. 
But  to  what  a  depth  of  degradation  they  must  have 
sunk,  when  they  could  elect  such  a  monster  as 
Balthasar  Cossa ! 

But  although  the  election  of  a  new  Pope  was  a        (r) 
confirmation  of  the  acts  of  the  Council  of  Pisa,  and  events  in 
thus  dealt  one  more  blow  at  the  ecclesiastical  inde-  ^^'^^y- 
pendence    of    the    Popes,    it   did    not    improve   the 
condition  of  suffering  Christendom.     The  deposed 
Popes,  Gregory  XII.  and  Benedict  XIII.,  refused 


1  John  XXII.  was  elected  May  1410,  and  was  deposed  by  the 
Council  of  Constance,  1415.     For  his  life,  see  Labbe,  xv.  1381. 


474 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART     to  recognise  the  tribunal  which  passed  sentence  on 

. '- them,   and   denied   the  vaHdity  of  their   deposition. 

Thus  the  evils  of  the  Schism  were  increased  instead 
of  diminished,  there  being  three  rival  Popes  now, 
instead  of  two  as  before.  Gregory  still  retained  on 
his  side  Naples,  and  several  of  the  smaller  Italian 
states,  besides  the  German  bishops  of  Trier,  Speyer, 
and  Worms,  whilst  to  the  cause  of  Benedict  XIII. 
Spain  and  Scotland  adhered.  To  make  matters 
worse,  the  secular  arm  was  invoked  in  Italy  by 
John  XXII.  A  crusade  was  preached  against 
Ladislaus  of  Naples,  the  protector  of  Gregory  XII.;  ^ 
the  projected  crusade  proved  abortive ;  Ladis- 
laus was  bribed  to  abandon  the  cause  of  Gregory, 
and  to  acknowledge  John.  The  position  of  John 
was  not  an  enviable  one,  nor  was  it  altogether 
secure.  Treacherous,  unscrupulous,  and  faithless  as 
he  might  be,  he  nevertheless  thought  it  best,  under 
the  circumstances,  not  to  imperil  his  own  title  to  the 
Papacy  by  disparaging  the  council  to  which  his 
predecessor  owed  his  See.  He  therefore  obeyed  the 
decree  enacted  at  Pisa,  and  at  the  expiration  of 
A.D.  1412  three  years,  he  convened  a  reformatory  council  at 
Rome.'-^  Nothing,  however,  was  done  by  the  coun- 
cil— itself  a  meagre  assembly,  attended  by  only  a 
few  Italian  prelates.  The  Church  was  still  unre- 
formed.  John  had  been  eluding  what  he  feared. 
He  had  been  in  vain  trying  by  private  benefits  to 
stave  off  the  demands  of  the   University  of  Paris, 


•   Raynald,  an.  141 1,  No.  5  ;  an.  141 2,  No.  2. 

2  The  Council  condemned  Wyclifle  and  Huss,  Labb^,  xv.  1380. 


COUNCIL  OF  CONSTANCE. 


475 


clamorous  for  Improvement.^      Suddenly  a  new  turn     chap. 

was  given  to  events  by  the  appearance  of  Ladislaus  r 

with  an  army  before  Rome.     John  was  compelled  to 

fly  into  northern   Italy,  and  threw  himself  into  the    a-^-  hu 

arms  of  the  Emperor  Sigismond. 

The  Pope  was  now  in  the  emperor's  hands.     A  B,  Coun- 

.     .  '11  •     cil of  Con- 

common  political  interest,  it  is  true,  united  them  in  stance. 

their  quarrel  with  King  Ladislaus.  Still  Sigismond,  J'*''*'^'*'^ 
having  been  invited  by  all  the  better  men  of  that  age  council 
to  effect  a  cure  for  the  prevalent  evils,  was  not  dis- 
posed to  let  the  opportunity  slip  for  healing  the 
Schism.  The  project  of  convening  a  reformatory 
council  was  proposed  to  John  XXII.  John  found  It 
impossible  to  elude  the  demand.  He  consented  reluc- 
tantly ;  the  only  point  about  which  he  entertained 
apprehensions,  being  the  place  at  which  the  council 
should  assemble.^  The  free  German  city  of  Constance 


'  See  Neand.  ix.  126. 

^  Leonardus  Aretinus  in    Muratori,  xix.    928  :   '  Unicum 

*  remedium  at   Imperatori  et   Pontifici  videbatur  generale  Con- 

*  cilium  advocari.  Sed  erant  circa  hoc  ipsum  constituenda  per- 
'  multa,  ceu  locus,  tempus,  modus.  Missi  sunt  igitur  his  de 
'  causis  ad  Sigismunduni  legati.  Horummissio  Legatorum  ruinae 
'  Pontificis  initium  fuit.  Qua  in  re  non  videtur  praetereundum 
'  mirabile  quiddam,  quod  tunc  accedit,  ut  omnia  coeHtus  gubernari 
'  cognoscamus.    Communicaverat  mecum  Pontifex  arcane  mentem 

*  et  cogitationem  suam.  /;/  loco,  inquit,  Concilii  rei  su)7ima  est,  nee 
'  ego  alicubi  esse  volo,  nbi  Imperator  plus  possit.     Legatis  igitur  istis 

*  qui  a  me  niittuntur,  mandata  amplissima,  potestatemque  maximam 

*  ad  honestatis  speciem  dabo,  quae  palam  ostentare  possint  atque  p7'o- 
*■  ferre :  secreto  aute?n  tnandatuni  restringam  ad  loca  certa.'  After- 
wards changing  his  mind,  he  gave  general  instructions  to  his 
ambassadors,  upon  which  they  acted.  But  when  the  Pope  heard 
that  the  city  of  Constance  had  been  decided  upon,  '  incredibile 


476  THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST 

PART     was  proposed  by  Sigismond,  and   accepted  by  the 

'■ —  legates  of  the  Pope  ;  and  John,  unable  to  withdraw 

with  honour  from  the  acts  of  his  plenipotentiaries, 
put  forth,  in  common  with  the  emperor,  a  proclama- 
tion for  a  council  to  meet  there  to  restore  unity  to 
the  Church,  and  to  carry  out  a  reformation  in  the 
head  and  in  the  members.^ 
(2)  Order  The  rules  which  were  drawn  up  in  the  earlier  ses- 
ceedijicrs,  sions  to  regulate  the  order  of  proceeding  in  the 
{a)Voting  council,  are  characteristic  of  the  then  state  of  opinions. 
tiojts.  They  show  in  the  clearest  manner,  how  strongly  the 
tide  was  setting  against  the  exorbitant  pretensions 
of  the  Popes  and  the  higher  clergy.  In  one  of 
these  sessions,  a  rule  was  agreed  to,  which,  at  the  same 
time  that  it  protected  the  council  from  the  undue 
influence  of  Italian  ecclesiastics,  proves  that  the  old 
Catholic  idea  of  the  Church,  as  a  society,  knowing  no 
distinction  of  nationalities,  of  Jew  or  of  Greek,  was 
passing  away  with  the  world-sovereignty  of  Rome, 
and  that  on  the  ruins  of  that  idea,  the  modern  notion 
of  national  churches  was  already  beginning  to  grow  up. 
Still,  under  the  circumstances,  that  rule  was  needed. 
It  was  to  the  effect  that  votes  should  be  taken  by 
nations  and  not  by  heads.  The  deputies  of  each 
nation  should  hold  their  separate  meetings  ;  the 
decision  of  the  majority  should  pass  as  the  judgment 
of  the  nation ;    and    whatever  was   decreed  by   the 

*  quantum  indoluit,  se  ipsum  et  fortunam  suam  detestatus,  quod 

*  tarn  leviter  a  cogitatione,  propositoque  illo  pristine  restringendo- 

*  rum  locorum  descivisset.' 

'  The  Bull  of  Convocation  in  Sessio  i.  Concil.  Constan.  Novem- 
ber 16,  1414,  Labbe,  xvi.  I".    The  letter  of  Sigismond, /<^/V/.  p.  793. 


COUNCIL   OF  CONSTANCE. 


477 


majority  of  the  nations,  of  which  there  were  at  first    chap. 

.  XV. 

four — the  Italian,   the  French,  the  German,  and  the • 

EngHsh — should  be  proclaimed  as  a  decree  of  the 
council.^  It  was  a  sign  of  the  corruptness  of  the 
times,  and  of  the  party  motives  at  work,  that  .such  a 
precaution  should  be  necessary.  But  most  necessary 
it  was  since  the  Pope,  to  make  doubly  sure  of  his 
influence  in  the  council,  had  freshly  appointed  fifty 
chamberlains,  all  possessing  votes, although  his  Italian 
supporters  already  predominated.  After  such  conduct, 
how  could  John,  or  the  other  members  of  the  council, 
who  on  their  own  showing  were  acting  in  a  spirit  of 
mutual  jealousy  and  national  rivalry,  attribute  their 
actions  to  the  influence  of  the  Holy  Ghost  ? 

Another  regulation  intended  to  check  the  power  {b)  Voting 

,  by  learn- 

of  the  Pope,  was  that  by  which,  a  place  was  allowed  hig. 
in  the  council  to  doctors  in  the  faculties  of  Theology 
and  of  Civil   and   Canon  Law.      For  since  to  them 

1  In  tertia  cedula,  apud  Labbe,  xvi.  43  :  '  Incidit  quaestio,  quo- 
modo  deciderentur  agenda  in  concilio,  et  fieret  scrutinium  voto-  - 
rum  ;  utrum  per  nationes  in  genere,  quarum  quatuor  erant 
Italiae,  Galliae,  Germaniae  et  Angliae  ;  vel  per  capita  singula. 
Et  licet  clarum  de  jure  videatur,  perscrutanda  sunt  vota  per 
capita  singula  ;  quia  tamen  plures  sunt  praelati  Italiae  pauperes, 
quam  fere  de  omnibus  nationibus,  praeterea  dominus  noster  fe- 
cerit  in  numero  excessive  praelatos  cubicularios  ultra  quinqua- 
ginta.  Dicitur  praeterea  quod  multos  voluit  sibi  obligare  jura- 
mentis  et  muneribus,  alios  minis  terruisse,  et  ita  scrutando  per 
capita  nihil  fieret,  nisi  quod  vellet  dominus  noster.  .  .  .'  P.  44  : 
Interim  nationes  Galliae,  Germaniae  et  Angliae,  et  ita  postea 
Italiae  per  se  ipsos  se  congregaverunt,  et  deciderunt  de  facto 
quaestionem.'  Cerretanus  in  Acta  Condi.  Const.  {Von  der 
Hardt,  book  iv.  ch.  ii.  p.  40)  says  :  '  Die  Jovis,  septima  Februarii, 
post  nonnuUas  disceptationes  decretum  est,  ut  in  Concilio  per 
nationes,  et  non  per  vota  procederetur.' 


478 


PART 
III. 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 

were  entrusted  the  offices  of  teaching  and  preaching, 
the  council  felt  that  their  opinion  ought  to  command 
more  weight  than  that  of  titular  bishops  and  abbots, 
who  neither  preached  nor  taught,  nor,  indeed,  had  any 
cure  of.  souls,  but  were  simply  nominees  of  the  Pope. 
A  definitive  vote  was  further  allowed  to  all  the  bene- 
ficed clergy,  and  not  to  the  bishops  only  ;  ^  inferior 
ecclesiastics,  who  preach  and  have  the  cure  of  souls, 
were  declared  to  have  a  better  right  to  join  in  the  dis- 
cussion of  purely  spiritual  matters  than  the  ignorant 
titular  prelates,  many  of  whom  the  Cardinal  of  St. 
Mark  denominated  mitred  asses?   These  ecclesiastics 


•  In  tertia  cedula  Concil.  Const.,  Labbe,  xvi.  40,  Peter  d'Ailly, 
Cardinalis  Camaracensis,  scripsit  cedulam,  observing  :  '  Sicut 
patet  in  Actibus  Apostolorum  at  in  historia  Eusebii,  .  .  .  quan- 
doque  congregabatur  in  conciliis  tota  communitas  Christianorum, 
quandoque  episcopi,  presbyteri,  diaconi,  quandoque  soli  episcopi 
sine  abbatibus,  quandoque  cum  episcopis  abbates.  .  .  .  Et  scien- 
dum est,  quod  quando  in  conciliis  generalibus  soli  episcopi  habe- 
bant  vocem  diffinitivam,  hoc  fuit,  quia  habebant  administratio- 
nem  populi,  et  erant  viri  sancti,  et  docti  et  electi  prae  ceteris  in 
ecclesia  Christiana.  .  .  .  Et  eadem  ratione  addi  deberent  priores, 
aut  majores  quarumcumque  congregationum,  plusquam  episcopi, 
vel  abbates  inutiles,  solum  titulares,  et  in  quibus  deficiunt  con- 
ditiones  supradictae,  et  qui  forte  in  hac  materia  sunt  suspecti.  .  .  . 
Item  eadem  ratione,  qua  supra,  non  sunt  excludendi  a  voce  diffi- 
nitiva  sacrae  Theologiae  doctores,  ac  Juris  canonici  et  civilis.  .  .  . 
quibus  datur  auctoritas  praedicandi  et  docendi  ubique  terrarum. 
.  .  .  Idem  dicitur  de  regibus  et  principibus,  aut  eorum  ambassia- 
toribus,  et  de  procuratoribus  absentium  praelatorum,  et  capitu- 
lorum.' 

"^  The  Cardinal  of  St.  Mark  observed,  in  tertia  cedula  Concil. 
Const.  Labb£,  xvi.  41  :  '  Tu,  quisquis  es,  qui  praetendis  solos  ma- 
'  jores  praelatos,  ut  his  verbis  utar,  episcopos  et  abbates  vocem  in 
*  generali  conciho,  et  ita  excludis  doctores,  archidiaconos,  rectores 
'  parochialium  ecclesiarum,  ceterosque  dignitates  habentes,  quibus 


COUNCIL   OF  CONSTANCE. 


479 


were  at  least  interested  In  the  reform  of  the  Church,     chap. 

XV 

Besides,  the  University  of  Paris — a  university  then  '. . 

aspiring  to  be  a  legislative  power  for  all  theological 
development — to  which  the  Doctors  of  Theology  and 
Law  chiefly  belonged,  had  interests  of  her  own 
which  she  wished  to  protect.  A  third  regulation 
which  the  council  made  was  likewise  aimed  at 
reducing  the  Pope's  power.  The  council  had 
enlisted  national  feeling  and  the  independent  spirit 
of  the  Parisian  doctors  against  the  Papacy;  it  now 
proceeded  to  enlist  the  support  of  the  laity,  already 
disgusted  with  ecclesiastical  abuses,  by  giving  to 
princes  and  their  envoys  a  right  to  vote.  The 
matters  before  the  council  closely  affected  the  rela- 
tions of  sovereigns  to  their  subjects.  Their  assis- 
tance was  required  to  execute  .its  decrees.  It  was, 
therefore,  justly  conceded  that  they  ought  to  have  a 
voice  in  the  proceedings. 

In  all  these  regulations  the  council  did  but  go  back  {c)  Votes 

.  1-  -I'll         given  to 

to  the  example  of  the  earliest  ages,  m  which  that  princes 
sharp  distinction  between  bishops  and  other  clergy,  "'/[[,oys. 
between  clergy  and  laity,  which  the  circumstances,  the 
superstition,  and  the  ignorance  of  the  Middle  Ages 
had  drawn,  was  as  yet  unknown.  Still  it  violated  the 
usual  custom.  For  in  the  lapse  of  centuries  it  had 
come  to  be  an  almost  universally  received  maxim 
that  none  but  bishops  should  take  part  In  eccleslasti- 


'  cura  imminet  animarum,  ordines  praeterea  ecclesiasticos,  sacer- 
'  dotes  et  diaconos,  die  ubi  illos  non  admittendos  legisti  1  Et  si 
'  legeris  conciliorum  antiquorum  actiones,  reperisti  sacerdotes  et 
'  diaconos  admissos.  .  .  .'     See  Neand.  ix.  140. 


48o 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE    WEST. 


PART     cal  assemblies.      It   had  been  otherwise  at  Nicaea  ; 

and  the  cardinal  priests  and  cardinal  deacons  of  the 

Roman  Church  were  themselves  an  exception  to  the 
rule.  The  change  to  the  older  use  was  undoubtedly  a 
right  one,  but  as  being  a  change  in  the  lately  re- 
ceived practice  of  the  Church,  it  needed  some  authori- 
tative sanction.  That  sanction,  however,  having  been 
given  by  the  council  itself,  the  Fathers  proceeded  at 
once  to  deal  with  the  weighty  business  before  them. 
{■^Efforts  Two  matters  in  particular  were  proposed  as  con- 
Schism.     stituting  the  business  for  which  the  council  had  been 

{a)  The     convened  ;  they  were  the  healing:  of  the  Schism  and 

Pope's  .    -^  ^ 

offer  to      the  reformation  of  the   Church.^     The  council  first 

*  addressed  itself  to  the  most  pressing  of  the  two,  the 
healing  of  the  Schism.  On  this  point,  two  alterna- 
tives seemed  open  for  election :  either  the  acts  of  the 
Council  of  Pisa  must  be  ratified,  in  which  case  John 
XXII.  would  be  the  only  legitimate  Pope,  but  the 
supporters  of  the  other  Popes  would  probably  refuse 
to  acknowledge  him  as  such  ;  or  if  the  Council  of 
Pisa  were  not  acknowledged,  John  XXII.  must  be 
induced  to  resign  as  well  as  the  other  two  Popes. 
The  question  was  argued  in  the  congregation  of 
December  7.  The  Italians  were  anxious  to  ratify 
the  acts  of  the  Council  of  Pisa,^but  the  opposite  alter- 


•  In  the  cedula  Cardinalis  S.  Marci,  Labb^,  xvi.  32:  'In 
'  Generali  Concilio  Constantiensi  duo  sunt  agenda  principaliter. 
'  Primum  de  pace  et  unione  perfecta  ecclesiae.  Secundum  de 
'  reformatione  status  ecclesiastic!.' 

"^  In  Schedula  Italorum,  Labb^ ,  xvi.  23  :  '  Primo  ad  submoven- 
'  dum  omne  dubium  .  .  .  declaretur  Concilium  Pisanum,  omnia- 
*  que  .  .  .  gesta  in  eo  .  .  .  fuisse  et  esse  rationabilia.    In  cedula 


COUNCIL   OF  CONSTANCE. 


481 


native  was  supported  by  Peter  D'Ailly,  Cardinal  of    chap 
Cambray.^    A  proposition  to  disallow  the  Council  of 


XV. 


Pisa  was  made  by  the  Cardinal  of  St.  Mark ;  ^  and   Feb.'  1415 
John  XXII.,  finding  himself  threatened  with  an  ex-     March, 
posure  of  all  his  enormities,^  promised  at  the  second 
session  to  abdicate  his  functions,  provided  the  two 
other  claimants  would  do  the  same.* 

It  was  one  thing  to  obtain  from  such  a  Pope  as  (p)  The 
John  XXII.  a  promise  to  resign  ;  it  was  another  to  /jtht 
obtain  the  fulfilment  of  that  promise.  For  John,  as 
he  himself  declared,  was  ready  to  make  professions 
before  the  council,  secretly  relying  on  a  belief  of  his 
own  that  a  Pope  could  not  be  deposed  for  any  crimes, 
however  bad  they  might  be,  but  only  for  heresy.^ 


'  Cardinalis   St.  Marci,  ibid.  p.  33  :    '  Turpe  est  et  periculosum 

*  Pisanum  Concilium  in  dubium  revocare.' 

^  Labbe,  xvi.  24.  See  also  his  language,  ibid.  pp.  26,  29  :  '  Licet 
'  Concilium  Pisanum  probabiliter  credatur  repraesentasse  univer- 

*  salem  Ecclesiam  .  .  .  tamen  .  .  .  non  est  necessario  conclu- 
'  dendum  quod  illuc  Concilium  errare  non  potuit.  .  .  .  Nam 
'  secundum  quosdam  magnos  Doctores,  generale  Concilium  potest 
'  errare,  non  solum  in  facto,  sed  etiam  in  jure,  et  quod  magis  est, 
'  in  fide.  Quia  sola  universalis  Ecclesia  hoc  habet  privilegium, 
'  quod  in  fide  errare  non  potest.' 

2  Labbe,  xvi.  t^t^  :  '  Patet  conclusio  ex  dictis  summi  Pastoris, 
'  (licentis  :  Bonus  pastor  animaf?t  suam  ponif  pro  ovibus  suis. 
'  Haec  autem  boni  pastoris  proprietas,  ut  animam  suam  ponat 
'  pro  ovibus  suis.  ...  si  autem  animam  .  .  .  multo  magis  acci- 
'  dentia  vitae,  honorem,  potestatem,  dominatum.' 

3  Theod.  a  Niem.  Be  Fit.  Jo.  XXII.  lib.  ii.  ch.  iii. 
■*  See  the  account  of  the  vow  in  Labb^,  xvi.  47. 

s  Theod.  a  Niem.  De  Vit.  Jo.  XXII.  lib.  ii.  ch.  iii.  :  '  Et  pro- 

*  posuit  tunc  in  mente  sua,  prout  et  ore  propalavit,  quod  ipsemet 
'  dictum  concilium  vellet  personahter  accedere,  et  quae  de  con- 
'  tentis  in  eisdem  articulis  perpetrasset,  coram  ipso   Concilio  in 

^11 


482 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART 
III. 


{c)    Vin- 
dication 
of  the 
powers 
of  the 
Council. 


On  March  2,  he  promised  to  resign ;  on  the  20th  he 
retreated,  or  rather  he  escaped  from  Constance  to 
Schaffhausen.^  Choosing  the  time  of  nightfall,  when 
the  whole  of  the  town  had  gone  forth  to  witness  a 
splendid  tournament  held  outside  the  gates  in  honour 
of  the  arrival  of  his  own  supporter,  Duke  Frederic 
of  Austria ;  disguised  as  a  rustic,  with  a  grey  cloak 
and  a  kerchief  wrapped  close  about  his  face  ;  and 
riding  on  a  wretched,  ill-accoutred  horse,  the  Pope 
stole  out  of  Constance.  A  ride  of  two  hours  brought 
him  to  the  Rhine,  where  a  boat  was  in  waiting. 
Hastily  .entering  it,  he  put  off  into  the  stream,  and 
soon  the  rapid  current  brought  him  to  Schaffhausen, 
the  castle  of  which  was  a  stronghold  of  the  Duke  of 
Austria. 

So  far  from  damping  the  ardour  of  the  reformers, 
the  flight  of  John  added  vigour  and  decision  to  their 
conduct.  It  was  clear  that  the  Pope  had  no  intention 
of  resigning.  The  Fathers  must  take  the  matter  into 
their  own  hands.  They  must  follow  the  example  of 
the  Fathers  of  Pisa,  and  assert  their  own  supreme 
power.  Above  all,  they  must  be  united  in  order  to 
frustrate  the  policy  of  a  Pope  whose  maxim  was  to 
rule  by  sowing  dissension.  Accordingly,  encouraged 
by  the  firmness  of  the  emperor,  who  was  present  at 
the  third  session  in  state,  and  urged  by  the  powerful 


'  publico  fateri,  fundans  se  in  hoc,  quod  Papa  propter  quodcum- 
'  que  delectum,  ut  dicebat,  nisi  propter  haeresim,  deponi  non 
'  posset.' 

^  Labb£,  xvi.  58  :  '  Die  Mercurii  vicesima  Martii,  dominus 
'  noster  praedictus  de  nocte  recessit,  aut  verius  fugit  de  civitate 
'  Constantiensi.' 


COUNCIL   OF  CONSTANCE.  483 

oratory  of  Gerson/  the  council  proceeded  to  entertain     chap. 

and  to  pass  decrees  asserting  its  own  dignity  and  L. 

power. ''^  Amongst  other  things,  it  was  declared  that  March  25, 
this  council,  lawfully  assembled  in  the  Holy  Spirit,  ^^^^ 
and  representing  the  Catholic  Church  Militant,  has 
received  its  authority  directly  from  Christ,  which  every 
one,  whatever  be  his  rank,  without  excepting  the  papal, 
is  bound  to  acknowledge  in  matters  relating  to  faith 
and  the  reformation  of  the  Church.  It  further  sets 
forth  that,  Pope  John  not  having  authority  to  remove 
the  Roman  Court  and  its  officials  from  Constance 
elsewhere,  all  that  has  been  done  by  him  in  dispar- 
agement of  -the  said  council  is  null  and  void.  It 
moreover  appointed  a  committee  of  three  delegates 
from  each  of  the  nations  to  give  licenses  to  those 
wishing  to  depart,  and  to  punish  those  going  away 
without  leave  ;  and  it  forbade  the  creation  of  any  new 
cardinals.^  Although  no  reference  was  distinctly 
made  to  the  Council  of  Pisa,   yet  such    declarations 


'  In  Labbe,  xvi.  13 12. 

^  See  those  decrees  as  passed  at  the  third  session,  March  25, 
1415,  in  Labbe,  xvi.  61. 

3  Sessio  iv.  March  30,  1415,  Labb^,  xvi.  67  :  'Quod  ipsa 
'  Synodus  in  Spiritu  Sancto  congregata  legitime,  generale  Con- 
'  ciUum  faciens,  ecclesiam  catholicam  mihtantem  repraesentans, 
'  potestatem  a  Christo  immediate  habet,  cui  quiUbet  cujuscumque 
'  status  vel  dignitatis,  etiam  si  papahs  existat,  obedire  tenetur  in 
'  his  quae  pertinent  ad  fidem  et  extirpationem  dicti  schismatis. 

'  Quod  sanctissimus  dominus  noster  Papa  Joannes  [XXII.]  Ro- 
'  manam  curiam,  et  officia  pubhca  iUius  vel  illorum  officiarios  .  .  . 
'  ad  alium  locum  non  mutet  .  .  .  Et  si  contrarium  fecisset  .  .  . 
'  id  totum  sit  irritum  et  inane. 

'  Quod  de  qualibet  natione  eligantur  tres,  qui  cognoscant  de 

I  I  2 


484 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART     were  tantamount  to  an  approval  of  its  proceedings. 

For  the  second  time  since  the  rise  of  the  papal  power, 

a  council  had  made   its  authority  felt  above  that  of 
the  Pope.     Soon  it  was  about  to  repeat  those  pro- 
ceedings, and  in  a  stronger  form  than  before. 
{d)  End        For  the  Council  of  Constance  was  resolutely  bent 
Schism,     on  accomplishing  the  object  for  which  it  had  been 

^■'^^-       convened.     The  process  therefore  immediately  com- 
1415-1417  ^  .  .         , 

(  )  jcyhn    menced  against  John  XXI I. ^    A  citation  was  issued 

deposed.     ^^^  ^^^  t^  appear  before  its  tribunal ;  ''^  and  Duke 

May  29,     Frederic  of  Austria,  who  had  carried  the  Pope  off  for 

14  I  ^ 

security,  was  compelled  to  deliver  him  into  the  hands 

of  the  Emperor  Sigismond,^  by  whom  he  was  kept  in 

close  confinement  at  Ratolfszell.   Because  of  the  heavy 

charges  brought  against  him,  he  was  first  suspended, 

on  May  14,  from  all  spiritual  offices.^  Seventy  articles 

were  then  exhibited  against  him,  sixteen  of  the  worst 

May  25,    of  which  wcre  dropped  for  the  sake  of  public  decency.^ 
1415 

*  causis  recedere  volentium,  et  poenis  recedentium  sine  licentia 

*  infligendis. 

'  Quod  pro  bono  unionis  non  creentur  novi  Cardinales.* 
'  Sessio  vi.  April  17,  1415.     Labbe,  xvi.  90. 
^  Sessio  vii.  May  2,  1415.     Ibid.  p.  iii, 

*  See  the  account.     Ibid.  p.  125. 

■   *  Sessio  X.  May  14,  141 5.     Ibid.  p.  144. 

*  Sessio  xi.  May  25,  1415.  LabbiS,  xvi.  178.  Among  the 
charges  were  simony  and  extortion.  The  fifth  article  charges  him 
with  being  '  pauperum  oppressor,  justitiae  persecutor,  iniquorum 
'  columna,  simoniacorum  statua,  carnis  cultor,  vitiorum  faex,  a  vir- 
'  tutibus  peregrinus,  consistoria  publica  fugiens,  ac  totus  somno  et 

*  aliis  carnalibus  deditus  desideriis,  vitae  et  moribus  Christi  totus 
'  contrarius,  infamiae  speculum,  et  omnium  malitiarum  profundus 
'  adinventor.'  The  sixteenth,  with  selling  the  same  benefice  to 
several  at  once.     The  twenty-seventh,  with  instigating  '  niulta  cri- 


COUNCIL    OF  CONSTANCE.  .g- 

And  four  days  later,  on  May  29,  the  final  sentence  of    chap. 
deposition^  was  pronounced  on  him — a  sentence,  the  ' 

justice  of  which  he  himself  acknowledged,  and  de-     M^y^29 
Glared  that  he  surrendered  the  papal  dignity  of  his 
own    free   will.^      On   July   4,    in    the   same   year,  (;S)  Cre- 
Gregory  XI  I. 's  voluntary  resignation  was  handed  in.^  ^iZirns^' 
Benedict    XIII,   alone  remained  obstinate.      Every     J"iy4, 
attempt  to  conciliate  him  failed  ;  he  refused  to  make  ,\  ^^J^^_ 
any  concessions.'*     Wearied  out  with  his  obduracy,  ^j'-fXllL 

■'      deposed 

his  supporters,  the  Kings  of  Aragon  and   Navarre,    juiy  26, 
1417 ' 

'  mina,  videlicet  sacrilegia,  adulteria,  homicidia,  spoliationes,  rapi- 
'  nas  et  furta  in  urbe  Romana.'  Other  articles,  ibid.  p.  192, 
asserted  '  quod  dominus  Joannes  Papa  cum  uxore  fratris  sui,  et 
'  cum  Sanctis  monialibus  incestum,  cum  virginibus  stuprum,  et  cum 
*  conjugatis  adulterium,  et  alia  incontinentiae  crimina.'  Ibid. 
p.  194  :  'Quin  immo  dixit  et  pertinaciter  credidit,  animam  homi- 
'  nis  cum  corpore  humano  mori  et  extingui  ad  instar  animalium 
'  brutorum.' 

'  Sessio  xii.  May  29,  1415,  Labb^,  xvi.  209.  The  sentence, 
ibid.  p.  212:  'Sacrosancta  generalis  Synodus  Constantiensis  in 
'  Spiritu  Sancto  legitime  congregata,  universalem  Ecclesiam  re- 
'  praesentans,  invocato  Christi  nomine  .  .  .  visis  articulis  in  hac 
'  causa  contra  dominum  Joannem  Papam  [XXII.]  formatis  .  .  . 
'  ac  probationibus  eorum  factis  .  .  .  per  hanc  sententiam  diffini- 
•'  tivam  .  .  .  pronunciat,  decernit  et  declarat  .  .  .  ipsum  domi- 
'  num  Joannem  simoniacum  notorium,  bonorumqueet  jurium  .  .  . 
'  ecclesiarum  .  .  .  dilapidatorem  notorium,  malumque  spiritua- 
'  hum  et  temporalium  ecclesiae  administratorem  .  .  .  fuisse  et 
'  esse ;  .  .  .  ipsumque  propter  praemissa  .  .  .  tanquam  indignum 
'  et  inutilem  et  damnosum  a  papatu  .  .  .  amovendum,  privandum-, 
*  et  deponendum  fore.  Et  cum  hoc  dicta  sancta  synodus  amovet, 
'  privat  et  deponet,'  etc. 

2  Labb^,  xvi.  215. 

"^  Sessio  xiv.  July  4,  14 15,  Labb^,  xvi.  221.     The  resignation, 
ibid.  p.  224,  bears  date  March  13. 

■*  A  requisition  was  addressed  to  him  by  the  council  at  its 
fourteenth  session,  ibid.  p.  239.    A  deputation  was  resolved  upon  at 


486 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART     withdrew  from  his  obedience  in  the  ensuing  year,^ 

'- —  and  a  few  months  later  joined  the  council  as  a  fifth 

July  26,     nation  ;^  and  at  length,  on  July  26,  in  the  year  141 7, 
^^^"^      following   the  example  set  at  Pisa,  the  assembled 
prelates  pronounced  on  him  the  sentence  of  deposi- 
tion.^     But  although  deposed,   Benedict  XIII.  had 
still  supporters  in  the  small  town  of  Peniscola.    There 
1424      he  died;  and  there,  after  his  death,  an  antipope  ruled, 
elected  by  the  cardinals  who  were  with  him.^     With 
this  one  exception,  all  other  countries  acknowledged 
the  Council  of  Constance.     One  of  the  objects  for 
which  the  council  had  been  convened  was  accom- 
plished.    The  great  Schism  was  at  an  end. 
(4)  Far  less  success  attended  the  efforts  of  the  council 

of  the  to  secure  the  other  object  for  which  it  had  been  con- 
inpro-  vened — the  reformation  of  the  Church.  It  is  true,  a 
diicing      committee  of  reform,  consisting  of  four  cardinals  and 

reforina-  ■  ^ 

tion. 


the  sixteenth,  ibid.  p.  266,  and  dispatched  at  the  seventeenth 
session,  July  15,  1415,  ibid.  p.  272.  At  the  twenty-third  session, 
November  5,  141 6,  a  commission  was  appointed  to  investigate 
the  charges  against  him,  ibid.  p.  487.  At  the  twenty-fourth  session, 
November  28,  141 6,  a  citation  was  issued  requiring  him  to  appear,  . 
ibid.  p.  497.  At  the  thirty-third  (May  12,  1417)  and  following 
sessions  the  process  was  carried  on,  ibid.  p.  654. 

^  At  the  twenty-first  session.  May  30,  1416.  See  the  Subtrac- 
tiones,  Labb^,  xvi.  460.  The  Subtractiones  were  approved  by  the 
council  at  the  thirtieth  session,  March  10,  1417,  ibid.  p.  566. 

2  At  the  twenty-second  session,  October  15,  1416.  Labbe, 
xvi.  470. 

^  At  the  thirty-seventh  session,  July  26,  141 7.     Ibid.  p.  680. 

'•  Benedict  XIII.  died  in  1424.  He  left  behind  him  four  car- 
dinals, three  of  whom  elected  a  Clement  VIII.,  the  fourth  a 
Benedict  XIV.  Clement  VIII.  was  obliged  to  abdicate  at  a 
council  in  Tortosa,  a.d.  1429.     See  LABBfi,  xvii.  143. 


COUNCIL   OF  CONSTANCE. 


487 


deputies  from  the  different  nations,  had  been   ap-     chap 
pointed   as  early  as  the  year   141 5,  to  prepare  the 


XV. 


T      •         •         1  11'  •  111    {ci)Owing 

necessary  prehminaries  ;  ^  and   this  committee  held  to  the  cor- 
deliberations,  and   drew  up   a  protocol.^     But  what  ^^f  il^"' 
could  be  expected  in  the  way  of  reformation,  when  ^"'^"^bcrs. 
the  greatest  abuses  were  being  daily  committed  by 
those  who  had  to  initiate  the  reform  ;  when  the  laxity 
of  morals    was  so  great,   that  the  presence  of  the 
council  attracted  fifteen  hundred  prostitutes   to  the 
city  ;^  when  simony  was  practised  during  the  very 
acts  of  reform  ;  when  many  who  came  to  the  council, 
came  only  to  depart  with  huge  rolls  of  petitions,  or 
with  recommendatory  letters  from  their  princes,  and 
when  one  of  the  first  objects  of  the  bishops  was  to 
maintain  their  rights  of  collation  and  patronage  ?  * 

The  rock,  however,  on  which  the  reforming  at-  {b)  Owing 
tempts  of  the  council  more  immediately  suffered  of?ic'i(j 
shipwreck,  was  the  election  of  a  new  Pope.  The 
Emperor  Sigismond  had  at  first  the  German,  the 
English,  and  the  French  nations  on  his  side,  when 
he  insisted  that  the  work  of  reform  must  precede  the 
election  of  a  new  Pope.  Of  a  different  opinion  were 
the  Italians  and  Spaniards,  never  perhaps  seriously 
wishinof  to  see  reform  inauofurated.^     These  did  their 

1  At  sessio  xiii.  June  15,  141 5.     Labbe,  xvi.  220. 

2  Published  in  Von  der  Hardt,  lib.  x.  p.  583,  and  Labbe, 
xvi.  1042  seq. 

^  See  perbrevis  descriptio  in  Labb^,  xvi.  1435  ■  '  Item  dicitur, 
*  quod  una  meretrix  lucrata  est  viii.  c.  florenos.  Item,  quidam  civis 
'  Constantiensis  vendidit  uxorem  suam  Cancellariis  Regiis  pro  v.  c. 
'  ducatis,  pro  quibus  pecuniis  emit  domum.' 

•*  Neand.  ix.  155. 

^  See  the  arguments  in  Disputatio  Constantiae.  Labbi?, 
xvi.  1270. 


Pope. 


488  THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 

PART     best  to  prevent  action,  by  dividing  their  opponents, 

'- —  and  pressed  for   a   speedy   election.     The    French 

nation  first  passed  over  to  the  side  of  the  ItaHans, 
and  joined  in  urging  the  election  of  a  new  Pope. 
Was  it  from  jealousy  of  England,  with  which  she  was 
then  at  war,  and  whose  pretensions  to  be  counted  as 
a  fourth  nation  she  had  warmly  disputed  ?  Next 
the  English  nation  followed  the  example  of  France, 
but  not  till  after  the  death  of  Robert  Hallam,  Bishop 
of  Salisbury,  a  prelate  most  zealous  for  reform,  who 
had  hitherto  sustained  among  his  countrymen  their 
flagging  zeal  for  improvement.  The  Germans  were 
now  left  alone  ;  ^  but  not  without  a  protest  would 
those  champions  of  the  reformation  give  way.  That 
protest^  dwelt  on    the  degradation  of  the  Church 

1  See  the  protestatio  trium  nationum,  viz.  Italy,  France,  and 
Spain  against  Germany.  Labbe,  xvi.  6gi,  at  Sessio  xxxviii.  July 
28,  1417. 

2  The  protestatio  nationis  Germaniae  was  handed  in  at  the 
same  session  of  the  council.  After  speaking  of  the  better  ages  of 
the  Church,  it  continues,  Labbe,  xvi.  696  :  '  Sed,  ut  dolentissime 

*  refertur  de  post  a  centum  quinquaginta  fere  annis  citra,  nonnuUi 

*  summi  pontifices,  eorumque  assessores,  cum  sua  curia  Romana, 
'  carnalitati  dediti,  inebriati  deliciis,  et  sic  ad  deteriora  prolapsi 
'  .  .  .  caelestia  deferentes,  et  .  .  .  ad  ea  quae  quaestus  et  lucri 
'  pecuniarum  venativa  fuerunt,  intendentes,  aliarum  ecclesiarum 

*  jura  .  .  .  invaserunt ;  nunc  generales,  nunc  speciales,  aut  aliis 
'  modis  excogitatas  reservationes  ecclesiarum  ...  in  eversionem 
'  electionum  .  .  .  faciendo  :  commendis  in  suppressionem  divini 
'  cultus  .  .  .  concedendo  :  collationes  omnium  beneficiorum  .  .  . 
'  per  nimiam  multiplicationem  gratiarum  exspectativarum  .  .  . 
'  sibi  et  suae  curiae  totaHter  usurpando  :  annates  .  .  .  inhumani- 
'  ter  extorquendo  :  spolia  mortuorum  .  .  .  auferendo  :  omnia  sibi 
'  judicia  in  quibuscumque  causis  .  .  .  indifferenter  att-rahendo  : 
'  lites  .  .  .  protrahendo  :  in  foroque  poenitentiali  .  .  .  abusiones 
'  manifeste  nefandas  committendo  :  indulgentias  inconsuetas  pro 


COUNCIL   OF  CONSTANCE. 


489 


during  the  last  hundred  and  fifty  years.     It  told  how    chap. 

XV 

the  Popes  had  been  devoted  to  the  fleshly  life  and  — 

immersed  in  worldly  pleasure  ;  how  all  laws  had 
been  spurned  by  papal  reservations  ;  how  heresy  and 
simony  had  spread  far  and  wide,  because  of  crying 
unreformed  abuses  ;  how  the  study  of  science  had 
declined,  churches  and  monasteries  had  fallen  to 
decay,  their  property  had  been  squandered  in 
riotous  living ;  how  high  place  was  given  to  the 
rich,  the  vicious,  the  ignorant,  in  utter  contempt  of 
the  devout  and  learned  ;  how  the  sale  of  indulgences 
had  fostered  the  anti-Christian  notion  that  the  par- 
don of  sins  could  be  sold  ;  how  the  hopes  of  Chris- 
tendom, raised  by  the  Council  of  Pisa,  had  been  dis- 
appointed. It  demanded  that  the  Pope  should  be  a 
pure  and  holy  man,  elected  by  pure  and  holy  men  ; 
and  it  ended  by  expressing  a  fear  lest  the  holiest  man, 


'  pecuniis  largiendo  :  clericos  vagos  et  profugos  indifferenter  pro 
'  pecunia  ad  sacros  ordines  admittendo  :  et  detnum  tantum  aurum 
'  congregando,  ut  quidam  ex  eis  suos  parentes,  fratres,  sorores,  et 

*  consanguineos  ditando,  etiam  usque  ad  fastigia  principatuum 
'  terrenorum  eos  contenderunt  exaltare.     Ex  quibus,  et  specialiter 

*  propter  non  continuationem  sacrorum  conciliorum  reformativorum 
'  .  .  .  avaritia  .  .  .  ambitio  .  .  .  haeresis  et  simonia,  et  pericu- 
'  losissima  schismata  .  .  .  fastusque  et  pompae  surrexerunt  et 
'  creverunt  in  clero.  Ita  ut  ex  his  studia  literatorum  et  literatos 
'  defecisse,  ecclesiarum,  monasteriorum  .  .  .  aedificia  .  .  .  cor- 
'  ruisse ;  .  .  .  solos  pecuniosos,  nummularios  .  ,  .  leves  et  vaga- 
'  bundos,  ignaros,  vitiosos  .  .  .  spretis  viris  .  .  .  literatis,  devotis 
'  et  Sanctis  .  .  .  promotes.  .  .  .  Idcirco  natio  praedicta  .  .  .  desi- 

*  derat  omnes  praedictas  deformitates  .  .  .  auferri  ac  tolli,  .  .  . 
'  adjiciens,  fore  salubrius  et  tolerabilius,  sacro  praesidente  concilio, 
'  Romanam  pro  certo  tempore  vacare  ecclesiam,  quam  quod  illo- 
'  tis  manibus  .  .  .  conipaginetur  ipsum  caput  .  .  .  et  spurcitia 
'  manuum  coinquinetur.' 


490 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART     sitting  In  the  midst  of  the  prevalHng  abuses,  should 

become  himself  defiled  by  contact  with  them.     But 

the  protest  fell  on  deaf  ears.  The  resolution  was 
formed  to  elect  a  new  Pope.  Still,  before  the  resolve 
was  carried  out,  one  decree  was  passed,  intended  to 
be  a  permanent  hindrance  to  the  Pope's  ever  again 
claiming  ecclesiastical  supremacy.  It  was  to  the 
effect  that  a  general  council  should  be  again  held  in 
five  years,  another  in  seven,  and  subsequently  a  simi- 
lar representation  of  the  Church  every  ten  years.^ 
c.  In   the   sermon  which   the    Bishop  of  Laon    ad- 

Martin      dressed    to   the  electors,  before  they  proceeded  to 
^  their  task,  the  requisite  qualifications  for  the  new  Pope 

1417-1431  were  set  forth  with  remarkable  plainness.^     He  must 
(i)  Cir-     j^g  prudent,  teachable,  temperate  in  all  things,  sober 


ciun 


itoti. 


stances       m  life,  distrustful  of  his  own  talents,  humble,  kind, 

attending       .  ,  .-,,,.  ,     .  ,        - 

his  dec-  pious,  just,  merciful,  well  mstructed  m  the  law  of 
God,  able  in  expounding  Scripture,  well  versed  in 
the  doctrines  of  religion.  He  must  be  selected  for 
his  purity  and  sanctity,  for  his  wisdom  and  love  of 
truth,  for  his  honesty  and  experience,  since  he  would 
be  called  to  be  the  head  of  the  faithful,  the  charioteer  of 
the  Church,  the  president  of  princes,  the  priest  of  the 
Most  High,  the  father  of  Pontiffs,  the  bulwark  of  the 
faith,  the  prince  of  the  apostles.  But  it  was  no  easy 
task  to  find  such  a  person.  Several  precautions  had 
to  be  first  taken  ;  the  electoral  body  itself  had  to  be 
reformed.  Differences  of  opinion  prevailed  as  to  what 
should  be  done ;  and  hence  many  difficulties  inter- 
vened.   By  the  intervention  of  the  venerable  Bishop 

'  Sessio  xxxix.  October  9,  141 7,  Labb^,  xvi.  700. 
'  See  the  sermon,  Labb^,  xvi.  1384. 


XV. 


PAPACY  OF  MARTIN   V.  ^oi 

of  Winchester,  uncle  to  the  king* of  England,  the  chap. 
points  were  settled,  after  much  dispute,  which  the 
future  Pope  should  be  bound  to  consider.  They 
referred  to  the  number,  the  quality,  and  the  nation  of 
the  cardinals  ;  to  reservations  by  the  Apostolical  See  ; 
to  first-fruits  ;  to  the  collation  to  benefices  in  expec- 
tancy ;  to  the  confirmation  of  ecclesiastical  elections  ; 
to  the  cases  properly  in  the  cognisance  of  the  Roman 
court ;  to  appeals  to  Rome  ;  to  the  duties  of  the 
Roman  Chancery ;  to  exemptions  granted  during  the 
Schism;  to  holdings  in  commendam  ;  to  profits  during 
a  vacancy ;  to  alienations  of  the  property  of  the 
Roman  Church  ;  to  the  Pope's  liability  to  be  deposed; 
to  simony  ;  to  dispensations  ;  to  provisions ;  to  indul- 
gences ;  to  tenths.  All  these  subjects  were  to  be 
referred  to  select  committees  for  consideration.^ 

Another  difficulty  was  connected  with  the  refor- 
mation of  the  electoral  college.  But  this  difficulty 
was  also  overcome  by  means  of  a  compromise ;  and 
it  was  agreed  that  six  from  each  nation,  together  with 
the  cardinals,  should  form  the  electing  body,  and  that 
two-thirds  of  their  votes  should  be  necessary  to  con- 
stitute   a    lawful     Pope.^     The    Germans    magnani- 

1  Sessio  xl.  October  30,  141 7,  Labbe,  xvi.  706  :  '  Sacrosancta ' 
*  generalis  Synodus  Constantiensis  in  Spiritu  sancto  legitime  con- 
'  gregata,  universalem  ecclesiam  repraesentans,  statuit  et  decernit, 
'  quod  futurus  Romanus  pontifex  per  Dei  gratiani  de  proximo 
'  assumendus,  cum  hoc  sancto  Concilio,  vel  deputatis  per  singulas 
'  nationes  debeat  reformare  ecclesiam  in  capita  et  in  membris,  et 
'  curiam  Romanam,  secundum  aequitatem  et  bonum  regimen 
'  ecclesiae,  antequam  hoc  concilium  dissolvatur  super  materiis  arti- 
'  culorum  .  .  .  quae  sequuntur.'  Then  follow  the  eighteen  points 
named  in  the  text. 

2  See  the  enactment  on  the  subject  at  Sessio  xl.  on  October  30, 


492 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART     mously  set  the  example  of  sacrificing  their  nationality 

—   for  the  good  of  the  Church.     They  prevailed  on  the 

English  to  do  so  also.     The  French  and  Spaniards 
were  refractory  at  first,  but  finally  all  united,  on  No- 
vember II,  in  electing  the  Italian,  Odo  de  Colonna. 
He  assumed  the  title,  of  Martin  V.^ 
(2)  Policy       No  sooner  was  Martin's  election  secure,  than  the 
tin  V.       policy  of  John  XXII.  seemed  to  revive  anew.     In- 
{a)  Con-    stead  of  promotlnpf  the  reformation  of  the  Church, 

cor  dais.  10  .  ^ 

Martin's  chief  object  seemed  to  be  to  get  rid  of 
the  council.  Nor  was  it  difficult  to  obtain  this 
end  if  advantage  were  taken  of  the  rivalry  and 
jealousy  existing  between  the  different  nations. 
Aware  of  that  rivalry,  the  Pope  dexterously  employed 
it  for  his  own  purposes.  Taking  each  nation  by  itself, 
he  concluded  a  series  of  agreements,  or  concordats, 
which  left  him  in  possession  of  greater  advantages 
than  the  Pope  before  possessed  by  right.^  France 
alone,  dissatisfied  with  the  failure  of  her  exertions 
during  the  Schism,  rejected  the  constitutions  offered 
by    Martin    V.,^    and,  in  consequence,  suffered  the 

141 7,  in  LabbE,  xvi.  707,  and  a  second  enactment  at  the  forty-first 
session,  November  8,  141 7,  ibid.  p.  711.  The  former  constitution 
of  Clement  VI.  on  the  same  subject  is  repeated,  ibid.  p.  710. 

•  The  election  in  Labbe,  xvi.  715. 

2  Approved  of  at  the  Sessio  forty-third,  March  21,  1418.  Labbe, 
xvi.  718.  The  concordat  with  England,  ibid.  p.  739,  quoted  in 
Appendix  III. 

^  Copia  Constitutionum  in  Concilio  generali  Constantiensi  fac- 
'  tarum,  quae  fuerunt  praesentatae  in  curia  Parlamenti  regii  Pari- 
'  siensis  .  .  .  an.  1418  die  x  mensis  Junii;  sed  non  acceptatae 
'  per  eandem  curiam.  LabbS,  xvi.  729.  They  are  '(i)  de  nu- 
'  mero  et  qualitate  dominorum  Cardinalium  ;  (2)  de  provisione 
'  ecclesiarum,  monasteriorum,  et  reservationibus  sedis  ApostoHcae, 


PAPACY  OF  MARTIN   V.  ,^. 

papal    exactions   for   several    years,     Gerniany   ac-     chap. 

XV 

cepted    the   concordat,^    but    soon    changed    it   for   L__ 


another  one. 

The  last  sessions  of  the  council  were  memorable  ^^)  ^'^J^- 
as  showing  how  unwilling   the  new    Pope   was    to  the  last 

,11  r  r^-i  r     1        sessions. 

acquiesce  m  the  loss  oi  power.  1  he  envoys  of  the 
Poles  and  Lithuanians  appealed  to  him  with  some 
grievance  in  their  controversy  with  John  of  Falken- 
berg,  and  failing  to  obtain  justice,  they  appealed 
from  the  Pontiff  to  the  next  general  council.^  But 
they  were  silenced  by  the  Pope  on  pain  of  excom- 
munication ;  and  Martin  V.  put  forth  a  constitution 
on  March  lo,  directly  contradicting  the  rule  laid 
down  by  the  assembled  Fathers,  and  forbidding  any 
one  to  dispute  the  decisions  of  a  Pope  in  matters  of 
faith,  or  to  appeal  from  himself  to  a  general  council.^ 
On  April  22,  the  council  wa's  dissolved.*  So  soon 
did    Martin   forget  that  to  a  reforming  council  he 

'  ac  collationibus  beneficiomm,  et  gratiis  exspectativis,  necnon  de 
'  confirmatione  electionum  ;  (3)  de  Annatis ;  (4)  de  causis  in  Ro- 
'  mana  curia  tractanda  vel  non  ;  {5)  de  commendis ;  (6)  de  In- 

*  dulgentiis ;  (7)  de  Dispensationibus.' 

^  LABBg,  xvi.  735.     Articles  1-5  refer  to  the  same  points  as  in 
the  constitutions  proffered  to  the  French  Church ;  (6)  de  Simonia 

*  in  foro  conscientiae  providetur  ut  sequitur;  {7)  de  non  vitandis 
'  excommunicatis,  antequam  per  judicem  fuerint  declarati  et  de- 
'  nunciati ;  (8)  de  Dispensationibus  ;  (9)  de  Provisione  Papae  et 

*  Cardinalium ;  (10)  de  Indulgentiis  ;  (11)  de  horum  concorda- 
'  torum,  Papae  Martini  V.  et  nationis  Germanicae,  valore.'  The 
last  article  decrees  that  the  concordat  shall  only  be  in  force  for 
five  years. 

2  The  Protestatio  in  Labb^,  xvi.  750. 

3  Neand.  ix.  172.     See  the  authorities  quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iv. 
sec.  131.  p.  306  (note). 

*  Sessio  xlv.  et  ultima,  April  22,  1418,  in  Labb^,  xvi.  745. 


494  ^'^^  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 

PART     owed  his  own   elevation  ;  nor  did   he  bethink  him 

that  if  the  Pope  would  not  work  with  the  reforming 

movement,  the  reforming  movement  might  dispense 

with  the  Pope  altogether. 

^•^-  In  the  interval  which  transpired  between  the  close 

1418-1431  ^  ^ 

(3)  Policy  of  the  Council  of  Constance  ^  and  the  opening  of  the 
Council  Council  of  Basle  few  events  of  importance  took 
place ;  but  an  observer  of  the  course  of  history  may- 
see  several  indications  of  a  coming  catastrophe.  It 
was  clear  that  the  new  Pope  would  not  submit  to 
lose  his  ecclesiastical  supremacy  without  making 
some  attempts  to  recover  it ;  and  if  open  measures 
were  dangerous,  dexterous  management  might  ac- 
complish much.  Hence  the  decisions  of  the  Council 
of  Constance  were  followed  to  the  letter ;  and  after 
the  destined  five  years  had  elapsed,  a  new  council 
1423  met  at  Pavia  in  the  year  1423.  Almost  immediately, 
owing  to  the  spread  of  the  pestilence,  called  the 
'423  Black  Death,  it  was  removed  to  Siena.'"^  But  with 
this  literal  fulfilment  of  the  decree  of  a  preceding 
council  Martin  was  satisfied,  and  the  Pope  not 
wishing  for  action,  nothing  was  done  by  the  council 
beyond  approving  the  condemnation  of  Huss,  ratify- 
ing the  acts  of  the  Council  of  Constance,  and  making 
overtures  to  the  Greek  Church.^  Indeed,  it  is  clear 
that  he  had  given  up  all  desire  to  promote  the  cause 
of  reformation,  if  he  ever  wished  it.  He  was  content 
to   curb   the  cardinals  so  far  as    not    to  be  held  in 

^  The  life  of  Martin  V.  in  Labbe,  xvii.  17. 

2  Decretum  de  translatione,  an.    1423,  Labb^,  xvii.  96.     He 
died  February  1431. 

3  Labbe,  xvii.  97  seq. 


COUNCIL   OF  BASLE. 


495 


restraint  by  them.^     The  old  complaints  of  extortion     chap. 

.                                                       .                                                XV. 
and  venality  broke  out  afresh.   Things  returned  once  

more  to  their  ancient  course ;  and  the  Romans,  who 
partook  of  the  gains  of  the  Roman  curia,  were  satis- 
fied that  thus  it  should  be.^ 

It  appeared,  moreover,  from  the  course  of  events 
at  Pavia  and  Siena,  that  a  general  council  was 
powerless  to  work,  if  it  were  dexterously  managed 
by  the  Pope.  Nothing  had  come  of  the  late  de- 
liberations ;  and  practically  the  work  of  Constance 
was  undone.  Why,  then,  should  the  Pope  hesitate 
to  gratify  the  wishes  of  Christendom  once  more 
by  the  imposing  spectacle  of  a  new  council,  thus 
showing  an  apparent  zeal  to  observe  to  the  letter  the 
decree  passed  at  Constance  and  re-enacted  at  Siena  ? 
So  may  have  thought  Pope  Martin  V.  when  he 
made  preparations  for  a  council  to  be  held  at  Basle, 
and  appointed  the  cardinal,  Juliano  Cesarini,  to  con- 
duct its  proceedings.^  So  thought  not  Eugenius  IV.,* 
who  succeeded  Martin  at  this  most  critical  moment. 

Before  the  mind  of  Eugenius  IV.  rose  a  vision  of  D.  Coun- 
the  free  proceedings  at  Constance.     He  dreaded  the  ''Basleand 


'  Raynald,  an.  1424,  No.  4.  In  1429  the  deputy  of  the  Ger- 
man Order  writes  to  his  Grandmaster  (in  Raumer's  Hist.  Tasch- 
enbuch  filr  1833,  p.  73)  :  '  Sie  [the  Cardinals]  diirfen  wider  den 
'  Pabst  nicht  reden,  ausser  was  er  gerne  hort  \  denn  der  Pabst 
'  hat  die  Cardinale  alle  so  unterdriickt,  dass  sie  vor  ihm  nicht 
'  anders  sprechen,  als  wie  er  es  gerne  will,  und  werden  vor  ihm 
'  redend  roth  und  bleich.' 

2  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  131,  p.  310. 

3  Labb^,  xvii.  225. 

■*  Eugenius  IV.  was  Pope  from  March  1431  to  February  1446. 
His  life  in  Labbe,  xvii.  195. 


496  THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 

PART     recurrence    of    such    scenes    in    the    city    of    Basle, 
III-         11.  •  .        . 
already  infected,  it  was  said,  with  the  Hussite  heresy.^ 

the  CVCJltS 

to  which     It  was  his  wish  to  dissolve  the  council  and  to  con- 

\'if^^^      vene  another  at  Bologna,  on  Italian  soil,  subject  to 

A.D.       Italian   influences.     But  already  many  free-minded 
1431-1449 
(i)  Preli-  ecclesiastics  had  met  at  Basle,  doctors  of  the  canon 

vmiaries    |^^    doctors  of  civil  law,  and  men  from  the  lower 

to  the 

Council,     ranks  of  the  clergy.     Even  Juliano,  the  presiding 
legate,  opposed  the  scheme  of  the  Pope,  and  wrote 
to  him  a  lengthy  remonstrance  ;  ^  and  the  zeal  for 
reformation  which  had  been  left  unsatisfied  at  Con- 
stance was  kindled  to  a  flame  by  the  Pope's  ill-timed 
attempt  at  suppression. 
{2)  Asscr-       The  new  council  opened  with  due  solemnity  on 
iudepcn-     December  7,  143 1  ;^  on  the   i8th  the   Pope  issued 
^?'^^        the    Bull    of  dissolution.^     Without   regarding   the 
decrees.      Bull,  and  imbued  with  the  same  spifit  of  ecclesias- 
tical   independence    which    had    marked    its    pre- 
decessors   at    Pisa   and    Constance,  the    council    in 
the  first  place  declined  to  remove  from  Basle.^      It 


1  The  letter  of  the  council  to  the  Bohemians  on  October  15, 
1431,  in  LABBfi,  xvii.  444,  and  Raynald,  1431,  No.  24,  alarmed 
Eugenius. 

2  The  letter  is  given  in  Raynald,  1431,  No.  22,  and  in  the 
Fasciculus  rer.  expetend.  et  fugiend.  ed.  London,  p.  54  seq.,  also 
in  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  132,  p.  314  (note). 

^  A  number  of  points  were  there  settled  as  to  the  object  of  the 
council,  the  order  of  proceedings,  the  attendance  at  the  council, 
and  its  officials.     Labb^,  xvii.  228  seq. 

^  The  Litera  revocationis  publicata  Romae,  December  18, 
1 43 1,  Labbe,  xvii.  733,  followed  in  the  beginning  of  February 
1432  by  the  Bulla  Revocationis,  ibid.  p.  730. 

^  The  letter  quod  patres  intendunt  manere  in  Basilea,  is  dated 
January  21,  1432.     Labbe,  xvii.  446. 


COUNCIL   OF  BASLE.  .gy 

then  proceeded  to  reassert  in  stronger  language  than     chap. 
its  predecessors  had  done  the  dignity  and  indepen-  ' 

dence  of  general  councils.^  In  the  next  place,  it 
besought  the  Pope  and  the  cardinals  with  all  re- 
verence and  earnestness  to  appear  within  the  space 
of  three  months,  threatening  to  proceed  against 
them  if  contumacious.^  Numerous  decrees  were 
passed,  asserting  for  it  a  supremacy  extending  even 
to  political  concerns.  To  it  belonged  the  power  of 
electing  a  sovereign  Pontiff,  in  case  of  a  vacancy  ; 
no  oaths  could  be  pleaded  against  its  commands  ; 
the  Pope  could  not  create  cardinals  whilst  it 
was  sitting ;  and  by  its  commission  the  govern- 
ment of  Avignon  and  Venaissin  was  actually  en- 
trusted to  the  Cardinal  of  St.  Eustachi.^  Foremost 
among  the  champions  of  constitutional  principles 
was  Nicholas  Krebs,  of  Cusa, .known  by  the  nick- 
name of  Cancer  Cusanus,  who,  in  a  work  entitled 
'  Concordantia  Catholical  expounded  the  more  liberal 
views  of  ecclesiastical  government  ;  and  whose 
writings  added  support  to  the  conduct  of  the 
Fathers. 

Thus  far  the  ecclesiastical  assembly  at  Basle  had  {b)  By 
asserted  its  prerogatives  in  words  ;  it  next  proceeded  peiimg 
to  assert  its  supremacy  in  act.      Eugenius  IV.  had  ^j^g^^fj'^^ 

nition. 

'  Sessio  ii.  February  15,  1432,  Labb^,  xvii.  235,  decreed,  'quod 
'  concilium  Basileense  est  legitime  inchoatum  ;  quod  concilium 
'  generale  est  super  papam  in  his  quae  fidei  et  schismatis  sunt  ; 
'  quod  inobedientes  concilio  puniantur  ;  quod  personae  concilii 
*  non  debeant  extra  concilium  trahi  ;  quod  hi  qui  tenentur  inter- 
'  esse  concilio  non  recedant  sine  licentia.' 

2  Sessio  iii.  April  29,  1432.     Labb^,  xvii.  240. 

^  Sessio  iv.  July  12,  1432.     Ibid.  p.  248. 

K   K 


4o8  ^-^^  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST 

PART     not   appeared    in    answer   to    its    citation.^  but  had 

.        issued  several    Bulls,  declaring  that  all  which  had 

been  done  without  his  consent  was  null  and  void.^ 

A.D.       pijg  protest  was  treated  with  contempt,  and  himself 

H33       and  seventeen    cardinals  were   proclaimed  in    con-   i 

tumacy.^     Had  Eugenius  adhered  to  his  first  design 

of  ignoring  the   council,   a  new  schism  might  have 

sundered  Germany  from   Italy ;  for  Sigismond  was 

pledged  to  stand  by  the  council.     But  Eugenius  was 

weak,  whereas  the  council  was  firm.     Eugenius  was 

pressed  by  a  sedition  at  Rome,  whereas  the  council 

would  listen  to  no  terms  of  compromise.     Forsaken 

by  a  large  part  of  his  cardinals,  and  reduced  by  the 

political  troubles  of  Italy,  the  Pope  yielded  on  all 

points ;    he    revoked    the    Bull    of  dissolution,  and 

Feb.  13,    declared  the  Council  of  Basle  a  lawful  general  council 

^^^^      from  its  commencement.* 


^  The  final  citation,  July  13,  1433.     See  note  *  below, 

2  The  first  beginning  Inscrniabilis  divin-ae  pi-ovidentiae^  bearing 
date  July  29,  1433  ;  the  second  beginning  In  arcajio,  bearing  date 
September  13,  1433  ;  the  third  beginning  Z>^?/x  ;wwV,  all  in  Labbe, 
xvii.  293,  were  repealed  in  the  Bull  of  Adherence  given  in  on 
February  13,  1434. 

^  At  Sessio  vi.  September  6,  1432,  the  promoters  of  the  council 
accuse  Eugenius  of  contumacy,  Labb^,  xvii.  254.  Sessio  vii. 
November  6,  1432,  lengthened  the  time  within  which  the  cardi- 
nals were  required  to  appear,  ibid.  p.  257.  At  Sessio  viii.  Decem- 
ber 18,  1432,  the  council  decreed  to  proceed  against  Eligehius, 
ibid.  p.  257.  At  Sessio  x.' February  19,  1433,  the  Pope  was  ac- 
cused of  contumacy,  ibid.  p.  264.  At  Sessio  xi.  April  27,  1433, 
he  was  called  upon  to  appear,  ibid.  p.  267.  He  was  again  cited 
at  the  twelfth  session,  July  13,  ibid.  p.  270,  and  proclaimed  in  con- 
tumacy at  the  thirteenth  session,  September  11,  1433,  ibid.  p.  278. 

■*  At  Sessio  xiv.  November  8,  1433,  the  council  prescribed  a 
forma  adhaesionis,  in  Labb^,  xvii.   287.     The  Pope's  adherence 


COUNCIL   OF  BASLE. 


499 


The  zeal  for  reform,  which   next  engrossed  the     chap. 
attention  of  the  Fathers  of  Basle,  is  evidence  of  the  '_ 


deep  moral  earnestness  of  the  western  nations — an  suresof' 
earnestness  which  will  under  no  circumstances  allow  ^'^M"^- 
itself  to  be  tampered  with,  and  which  was  even  then 
ready  to  sweep  away  the   Papacy  itself  should    it 
prove  a   hindrance    to    improvement.     That   event 
actually    happened    ninety    years    later,    when    the 
Popes,  having  found  themselves  unequal  to  the  task 
of  uprooting  abuses  from  the  Church,  lost  the  allegi- 
ance of  Germany.     Before,  however,  that  crisis  came, 
Germany   had    made   several    ineffectual    attempts. 
As  early  as  the  year  1433,  at  the  twelfth  session  of      a.d. 
the   council,   most  of  the    papal    reservations    were       I433  ' 
declared  to  be  abolished,  and  fees  for  confirmation 
to  prelacies  were  done  away  with.^      Regular  dio- 
cesan and  provincial  councils  were  prescribed,  and  it 
w^as  enacted  that  they  should  last  at  least   two   or 
three  days,  for  the  purpose  of  enforcing  ecclesiastical 

decrees,  for  examining  the  morals  of  priests,  and  for    Nov.  26 

1433 

was  given  in  at  Sessio  xvi.  February  13,  1434,  ibid.  p.  292.  The 
Bull  beginning,  '  Dudum  sacrum  statis  :  decernimus  et  declara- 
'  mus,  praefatura  generale  Concilium  Basileense  a  tempore  prae- 
'  dictae  inchoationis  suae  legitime  continuatum  fuisse  et  esse.  .  .  . 
'  Quinimmo  praefatam  dissolutionem  irritam  et  inanem  de  consilio 
'  et  assensu  simili  declarantes,  ipsum  sacrum  generale  concilium 
'  Basileense  pure  et  simpliciter  et  cum  effectu  ac  omni  devotione 
'  et  favore  prosequimur  .  .  .  Praeterea  .  .  .  quicquid  per  nos 
'  aut  nostro  nomine  in  praejudicium  aut  derogationem  praedicti 
'  sacri  concilii  Basileensis,  seu  contra  ejus  auctoritatem,  factum  et 
'  attentatum  seu  assertum  esse,  cassamus,  revocamus,  irritamus,  et 
'  annullamus.  .  .  .'  The  three  Bulls  are  then  quoted,  which  are 
repealed. 

1  Labbe,  xvii.  275. 

K  K  2 


500 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART     removing-  disorders.^    The  concubinage  of  the  clergy 

; was  forbidden  ;^  their  marriage  pressed  by  John  of 

Lubeck,  in  the  emperor  s  name,  not  allowed.^  The 
precipitate  employment  of  the  interdict,  frivolous  ap- 
peals,"*^  and  the  payments  of  annates  were  abolished  ;  ^ 
the  omission  and  hurried  saying  of  prayers,^  the  non- 
attendance  at  the  canonical  hours,'^  the  abbreviation 
of  the  creed  at  masses,  were  reprobated  and  forbid- 


^  Sessio  XV.  November  26,  1433.     Labbe,  xvii.  289. 
2  Sessio  XX.  January  22,  1435.     Ibid.  p.  314. 
2  See  MiLMAN,  vol.  viii.  book  xiii.  ch.  xii.  p.  357  (small  edition). 
*  At  Sessio  XX.  January  22,  1435. 
5  At  Sessio  xxi.  June  9,  1435,  LabbS,  xvii.  317. 
^  Labb^,  xvii.  318,  Can.  3  :  '  Statuit  igitur  sancta  synodus,  ut 
'  in  cunctis  cathedralibus  ac  coUegiatis   ecclesiis,   horis   debitis, 

*  signis  congrua  pulsatione  praemissis,  laudes  divinae  per  singulas 
'  horas  non  cursim  ac  festinanter,  sed  ostiatim  ac  tractim,  et  cum 

*  pausa  decenti,  praesertim  in  medio  cujuslibet  versiculi  psalmorum, 
'  debitam  faciendo  inter  solemne  ac  feriale  officium  differentiam, 
'  reverenter  ab  omnibus  persolvantur.     Horas  canonicas  dicturi, 

*  cum  tunica  talari  ac  superpelliceis  mundis  ultra  medias  tibias 
'  longis  vel  cappis,  juxta  temporum  ac  regionum  diversitatem, 
'  ecclesias  ingrediantur,  non  caputia,  sed  almucias  vel  birrata 
'  tenentes  in  capite.  Qui  cum  in  choro  fuerint,  gravitatem  ser- 
'  vent,  quam  et  locus  et  officium  exigunt  ;  non  insimul  aut  cum 
'  aliis  confabulantes  seu  colloquentes,  aut  literas  seu  scripturas 
'  alias  legentes.  Et  cum  psallendi  gratia  ibidem  conveniant, 
'  juncta  ac  clausa  labia  tenere  non  debent,  sed  omnes,  praesertim 

*  qui  majori  funguntur  honore,  in  psalmis,  hymnis  et  canticis  Deo 
'  alacriter  modulentur.  Cum  dicitur  Gloria  patri  omnes  consur- 
'  gant.  Cum  nominatur  gloriosum  illud  nomen  Jesus  .  .  .  omnes 
'  caput  inclinent.  Nemo  ibidem,  dum  horae  in  communi  publice 
'  cantantur,  legat  vel  dicat  privatim  officium,' 

^  Can.  4,  Labb£,  xvii.  319:  'Qui  in  matutinis  ante  finem 
'  psalmi,  Venite  exitltemus^  in  aliis  horis  ante  finem  primi  psalmi, 
'  in  missa  ante  ultimum  Kyrie  eleison,  usque  in  finem  divino  officio 
'  non  interfiierit  .  .  .  pro  ilia  hora  absens  censeatur.' 


COUNCIL   OF  BASLE. 


501 


den.^      Then    followed    res^ulatlons  relatino;  to  the     chap. 

XV 

election,  the  oaths  and  the  office  of  the  Pope ;  the   1_ 


number  and  quality  of  the  cardinals  ;  the  freedom  of  March'25, 
elections,  together  with  a  new  unconditional  prohibi-       ^^^ 
tion  of  papal  reservations.^    Soon  these  vigorous  mea- 
sures involved  the  council  in  a  struggle  with  the  Pope. 

The  supremacy  to  which  the   Council  of   Basle  (4)  C^^- 
aspired  was  so  far  unlike  the  supremacy  which  the  ivith  the 
Councils  of   Pisa   and    Constance   had    claimed   for  ,.  secret 
themselves,  that  the  two  latter  mi^ht  be  considered  antago- 

^  nisin. 

as  extraordinary  tribunals,  to  which  common  consent 
had  given  unusual  powers  in  a  great  emergency. 
No  such  pressing  emergency  could  be  pleaded  in 
behalf  of  the  Council  of  Basle.  Indeed  the  partisans 
of  the  Pope  might  urge  that  the  work  of  reform 
could  be  carried  on  quite  as  well  by  Eugenius  IV.  as 
by  the  Fathers  of  Basle.  And'  all  lovers  of  abuses, 
feeling  themselves  aggrieved  by  the  new  reforming 
decrees,  naturally  fell  back  to  swell  the  ranks  of  the 


^  Can.  5,  Labb^,  xvii.  319,  exhorts  all  beneficed  clergy  to  say- 
prayers,  '  non  in  gutture  vel  inter  dentes,  seu  deglutiendo  aut  syn- 
'  copando  dictiones.'  Can.  6  forbids  walking  about  during  the 
time  of  divine  service.  Can.  7  orders  a  board  to  be  put  up  with 
a  list  of  all  the  services.  Can.  8  is  directed  against  abuses  in 
saying  mass.  Can.  xi.  forbids  '  turpem  etiam  ilium  abusum  in 
'  quibusdam  frequentatum  ecclesiis,  quo  certis  anni  celebratilibus 
'  nonnulli  cum  mitra,  baculo  ac  vestibus  pontificalibus  more  epi- 
'  scoporum  benedicunt,  alii  ut  reges  ac  duces  induti,  quod  festum 
'  Fatuorum  vel  Innocentium  seu  Puerorum  in  quibusdam  regioni- 
'  bus  nuncupatur,  alii  larvales  et  theatrales  jocos,  alii  choreas  et 
'  tripudia  marium  ac  mulierum  facientes  homines  ad  spectacula  et 

*  cachinnationes  movent,  alii  commessationes  et  convivia  ibidem 

*  praeparant.' 

2  At  Sessio  xxiii.  March  25,  1436,  LabrIl,  xvii.  323. 


502 


THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 


PART     supporters  of  Eugeniiis.     Driven  from  Rome,  Euge- 
■ ^ —  nius  resided  at  Bologna  ;  and  although  in  his   dis- 
tress he  had  recognised  the  council,  still  the  council 
and  himself  were  really  antagonistic  to  each  other. 
Sooner  or  later  this  antagonism  must  appear.     It  at 
length  broke  out  when  the  Pope's  hands  were  suf- 
ficiently  strengthened   by   the   overtures   from   the 
Greek  Church  for  union.  ^ 
(/;)  Open        The   Pope  proposed  that  the  council  should  be 
removed  to  Italy,  in  order  to  facilitate  the  negotia- 
tions with  the  Greeks.      The  proposal  was  stoutly 
A.D.       resisted    in    a    stormy   session    at    Basle  ;^  and    the 
"437  '    assembled  prelates  placed  the  Pope  under  impeach- 
Oct.  I,     ment.^    The  Pope  thereupon  issued  a  bull  removing 
Jan.  24,    the  council  from  Basle  to  Ferrara  ;  *  and,  in  reply, 
the  synod  pronounced   upon  him   sentence  of  sus- 
pension.      Matters   had  come  to  an  open  rupture. 
At  Basle  the  council  without  a  head,  as  it  was  now 
called,  continued   to    hold    its    sessions.     Meantime 
another  assembly  was  being  held,  first  at  Ferrara  and 
afterwards  at  Florence,  under  the  presidency  of  Eu- 
genius  IV.^ 


1  These  overtures  occupied  the  twenty-fourth  and  tvventy-fifth 
sessions,  April  14,  1436,  and  May  7,  1437.  See  Labbe,  xvii. 
334  scq. 

2  As  early  as  May  5,  1435,  ^^  council  addressed  a  letter  to 
Eugenius,  denying  the  need  of  holding  a  council  at  Constantinople. 
Labbe,  xvii.  487.  On  May  11,  1436,  the  council  addressed 
another  letter  to  Eugenius  respecting  union  with  the  Greeks. 
Jbid.  p.  488. 

^  At  Sessio  xxvi.  July  31,  1437,  Labb^,  xvii.  350. 

^  The  Bull  dated  October  i,  1437,  is  in  Labb^,  xviii.  874. 

^  The   Bull  transferring   the  Council  of  Ferrara  to  Florence 


COUNCIL   OF  BASLE. 


503 


Hitherto  the  Council  of  Basle   had   commanded     chap. 

XV. 

the  sympathies  of  Europe,  nor  did  it  entirely  for- 


feit them  after  the  inauguration  of  the  rival  council 
at  Florence.  The  work  of  reform  was,  however, 
henceforth  neglected,  and  the  energies  of  the  synod 
were  exclusively  devoted  to  the  controversy  with 
the  Pope.^  From  that  controversy,  indeed,  Euge- 
nius  came  off  in  the  end  victorious  ;  but  his  victory 
was  due  quite  as  much  to  the  violent  measures  to 
which  the  Fathers  of  Basle  resorted,  as  to  the  linger- 
ing respect  still  paid  to  himself  as  Pope.  For  the 
respect  which  the  papal  name  inspired  was  not  yet 
gone  ;  it  required  another  seventy  years  of  the  most 
utter  corruption  at  Rome,  before  Germany  could 
finally  tear  herself  away  from  an  institution  which 
refused  to  surrender  when  It  had  already  become  an 
anachronism. 

The  divided  Interests  of  the  secular  princes  in-  {c)Siiccess 

11,  .  .  .  .  .         .         1      .  of  Coitn- 

volved  them  m  curious  mconsistencies  m  their  re-  di  of 
lations  to  the  council  and  the   Pope.      On  the  one  the  dec- 
hand,  they  were  desirous  to  secure  for  their  national  ^!f"^Ar 

•'  •  Fdix  V. 

churches  the  reforming  decrees  of  Basle  ;  on  the 
other,  they  were  anxious  to  prevent  a  schism  or  to 


bears  date  January  10,  1438,     It  is  to  be  found  in  Labb^,  xviii. 
1046. 

1  At  Sessio  xxvii.  September  26,  1437,  the  nomination  and 
creation  of  cardinals  by  Eugenius  IV.  was  avoided,  Labb^, 
xvii.  353.  In  Sessio  xxviii.  October  i,  Eugenius  was  declared 
contumacious,  ibid.  p.  359.  In  Sessio  xxix.  October  12,  1437, 
the  Pope's  Bull  transferring  the  council  was  cancelled,  ibid.  p.  T^(yT^. 
On  October  19,  1437,  the  synod  replied  to  the  Pope's  invective 
against  itself,  ibid.  p.  494.  At  Sessio  xxxi.  January  24,  1438,  a 
decree  was  passed  suspending  the  Pope,  ibid.  p.  376. 


ro4  THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE   WEST. 

PART     break  altogether  with  the  Pope.     With  some  modi- 

'. fications,   but   as    a   whole   intact,    the    reformatory 

decrees  of  Basle  were  adopted  for  the  French 
Church  by  Charles  VII.  in  the  celebrated  Pragmatic 
A.D.  Sanction  of  Bourges/  and  that,  although  Charles 
•^jj^l'  was  dissatisfied  with  the  decrees  of  Basle  against 
the  Pope.  By  so  doing  the  French  king  gave  his 
indirect  sanction  to  the  council,  whilst  he  openly  dis- 
owned the  Synod  of  Ferrara.  At  the  same  time  he 
professed  allegiance  to  the  Pope,  who  presided  over  it. 
March  25,  ]sjor  was  the  case  of  Germany  different,  where,  by  a 
deed  of  acceptance  drawn  up  at  Mainz  in  the  name 
of  the  emperor  and  the  Empire,  the  advantage  of  the 
decrees  of  Basle  was  secured  to  the  German  Church. 
Thereby  the  authority  of  the  council  was  acknow- 
March  17,  ledged  in  Germany.  Yet  only  a  year  before 
the  German  Church  had  been  declared  neutral  ; 
that  step  having  been  taken,  partly,  no  doubt, 
to  assert  its  independence,  and  partly  in  the 
hope  of  avoiding  a  schism.^  But  that  hope  was 
destined  to  be  blighted.  Carried  away  by  the  appro- 
bation which  their  decrees  had  met  with,  the  Fathers 
of  Basle,  after   a  few  more  decrees  on    discipline,^ 

^  See  the  thirty-eight  articles  in  Concil.  Bituricense,  July  7, 
1438,  Labbe,  xvii.  1366,  xviii.  1396. 

2  For  this  paragraph  see  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  132,  p.  ■^■^Ty,  and  the 
authorities  there  quoted. 

^  At  the  thirty-first  session,  January  24,  1438,  decrees  were 
passed  on  suits,  on  collation  to  benefices,  and  on  the  qualifications 
and  order  which  ecclesiastical  patrons  are  bound  to  consider  in 
their  presentees,  Labbe,  xvii.  370.  The  last-named  decree  binds 
the  collators  to  canonries  to  present  to  one  canonry  in  every 
three  a  Master  of  Arts  or  Bachelor  of  Theology  who  has  studied 
for  ten  years  at  some  privileged  university,  who  shall  be  compelled 


COUNCIL    OF  BASLE.  CQr 

left  the  business  of  reform  to  take  care  of  itself,  and     chap. 
renewed  their  attacks  on   Eugenius.      Many  of  the  ' 

better-minded  ecclesiastics  had  now  left  the  council, 
and  those  who  remained  were  more  zealous  than 
discreet.  Every  approach  to  concession  was  re- 
fused ;  sentence  of  suspension  was  first  pronounced 
on  the  Pope,^  then  sentence  of  deposition  ;^  and  soon 
afterwards  the  council  proceeded  to  elect  by  com- 
mission ^  a  Pope  or  antipope  in  the  place  of  Eugenius 
IV.  Amadeus,  Duke  of  Savoy,  was  chosen,  and 
took  the  name  of  Felix  V.* 

This  rash  proceeding,  which  after  the  difficulties  (^  S"<:- 

1  •        •  ''^^^  ^f 

of  one  schism  mtroduccd  another,  turned  the  tide  of  Euge- 

events.       The    storm     of    ecclesiastical     opposition 

which   had  come  down  on  the  tree  of  the  Papacy, 

had  beaten  too  violently,  and  stripped  it  of  too  much 

foliage  ;    it    now   whistled    harmlessly    through    the 

branches  ;   and  the  tree  began  to  put  out  into  new 

to  reside  and  to  lecture,  and  who  for  the  purpose  of  devoting  him- 
self to  study  shall  be  excused  attendance  at  divine  service.  The 
next  two  in  every  three,  whether  canonries  or  prebends,  are  to  be 
bestowed  upon  otherwise  suitable  graduates,  viz.,  upon  Masters  of 
Arts  or  Bachelors  in  Theology  who  have  studied  for  ten  years  at 
some  privileged  university^  or  upon  Doctors  or  Bachelors  of  Laws 
or  Medicine,  who  have  studied  seven  years  in  their  respective 
facidties.  All  pluralities  are  forbidden.  To  parish  churches  persons 
qualified  as  above  are  to  be  presented,  or  such  as  have  at  least 
for  three  years  studied  either  theology,  law,  or  arts  in  some  privi- 
leged university. 

'  At  Sessio  xxxi.  Januarj'  24,  1438,  Labbe,  xvii.  376. 

2  At  Sessio  xxxiv.  June  25,  1439,  '^^^^-  P-  39°- 

3  The   commission   consisting  of  the  cardinals  and  thirty-two 
others  was  appointed  October  30,  1439,  ^b^^-  P-  406. 

*  The  election  was  ratified  at  Sessio  xxxix.  November  17,  1439, 
Labbe,  xvii.  409. 


jo6  I^E  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OF  THE  WEST. 

PART     life.      It  would  have  been   easier   for   Eugenius  to 

'. recover  past  losses,   if  he  had  not  resolved  at  the 

same  time  to  attack  the  reformatory  decrees  of 
Basle.  As  It  was,  he  found  the  business  of  attacking 
these  more  difficult  than  he  anticipated. 

The  greatest  rebuff  which  the  council  experienced 
arose  from  the  defalcations  of  many  of  its  members, 
who  could  not  approve  of  the  renewal  of  a  schism. 
Felix  V.  was  recognised  in  a  few  countries  only;  and 
the  Synod  of  Basle  began  to  lose  in  weight  and  con- 
sequence. From  May  i6,  1442,^  when  it  held  its 
last  session,  until  it  was  removed  by  Felix  V.  to 
Lausanne  In  1448,  the  synod  existed  only  In  name. 

Hoping  to  use  a  weapon  against  the  council, 
which  the  Church,  during  the  great  Schism,  had  tried 
to  employ  against  the  Popes,  Eugenius  IV.  looked 
about  for  support  from  the  secular  power.  From 
France  he  could  gain  little  assistance.  There  Charles 
VII.  persisted  In  adhering  to  the  Pragmatic  Sanction 
of  Bourges,  thus  recognising  at  once  the  authority  of 
the  council  and  the  authority  of  the  Pope.  But  in 
Germany  he  was  more  successful.  Taking  advantage 
of  the  divided  state  of  the  country,  and  of  the  weak- 
«L.D.  1444  ness  of  the  new  emperor,  Frederic  III.,  he  tried, 
notwithstanding  the  declared  neutrality  of  the  Ger- 
man Church,  to  attach  the  Duke  of  Cleves  to  him- 
self by  exempting  all  the  churches  and  monasteries 
in  his  dominions  from  the  jurisdiction  of  the  Arch- 
bishop of  Cologne  and  the  Bishop  of  Munster,  and 
allowing  the  Duke  to  appoint   a    titular    bishop    in 

'  Larbi?,  xvii.  431. 


COUNCIL   OF  BASLE. 


507 


their  place.     This  act  was  at  the  same  time  intended     chap. 

.                                                             .                             .          XV. 
to  punish  these  prelates  for  supporting  the  council. 

But  when,  over-estimating  his  power,  he  ventured,  in 
the  following  year,  for  the  same  cause,  to  pronounce 
sentence  of  deposition  on  the  Archbishops  of  Trier 
and  Cologne — two  princes  of  the  Empire — the  elec- 
toral princes  met  in  indignation  at  Frankfurt,  and 
united  in  making  some  decisive  demands  upon  the 
Pope.^  He  was  required  to  allow  the  decrees  of 
Constance  and  Basle  respecting  the  powers  of  gene- 
ral councils  ;  to  name  one  of  five  German  cities  in 
which  a  new  general  council  should  meet  in  May  of 
the  following  year ;  to  issue  Bulls  embodying  the 
decrees  of  the  Synod  of  Basle,  and  to  abrogate  all 
novelties  introduced  during  the  period  of  neutrality. 

At  this  juncture  the  emperor  came  to  the  rescue  a.d. 
of  Eugenius.  Suspicious  of  the  alliance  of  the  1446 
princes,  he  contrived,  by  the  aid  of  his  cunning  secre- 
tary, Aeneas  Sylvius,  to  induce  the  electors  to  mo- 
derate their  demands  ;  ^  and  an  embassy  was  dis- 
patched to  Rome  to  tender  the  obedience  of  Ger- 
many, on  condition  that  these  moderated  demands 
were  granted.^  To  satisfy  the  Germans,  Eugenius 
yielded  to  his  better  disposed  cardinals,  and  issued 

*  The  acts  of  this  league  are  quoted  m  abstract  by  Gies.  vol.  iv. 
sec.  132,  p.  338. 

2  At  the  diet,  September  1446,  Aeneae  Sylvii  Hist.  Frederici 
III.  Imp.  says,  p.  125  :  '  Omnis  Caesaris  cura  in  earn  diaetam 
'  collata  erat.  Nam  sex  Electores  obligati  simul  adversus  Euge- 
'  nium  videbantur   Caesarem  spernere,   itaque  summum   Caesari 

*  studium  erat,  foedus  Electorum  solvere,  et  aliqueili  ad  se  trahere, 

*  ut  Eugenio  et  sibi  consuleret.' 

^  See  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  132,  p.  341. 


jo8  THE  INDEPENDENT  COUNCILS  OE  THE  WEST. 

PART     four  Bulls,  promising  to  convene  another  council,  to 

'. recognise  the  decrees  of  the  Council  of  Constance,  to 

re-instate  the  Archbishops  of  Trier  and  Cologne, 
and  to  ratify  the  decrees  of  Basle  passed  subse- 
quently to  his  transfer  of  the  Council  of  Ferrara,  but 
not  without  reserving  in  a  fifth  Bull  perfect  freedom 
A.D.       of  action    to    himself  and   his   successors.^     On  his 

Feb.  7, 

1447  death-bed  he  received  the  allegiance  of  the  German 
ambassadors,  and  the  neutrality  of  that  country  was 
at  an  end. 

The  curtain  falls  over  the  general  councils  of  the 
fifteenth  century  with  the  acknowledgment  of  Euge- 
nius  IV.  in  Germany.  Nevertheless,  the  Synods  of 
Pisa,  and  Constance,  and  Basle  had  not  been  held  in 
vain.  The  Pope's  authority  was,  it  is  true,  still  gene- 
rally acknowledged,  but  that  authority  was  no  longer 
what  it  had  been.  Bereft  of  political  supremacy,  bereft 
even  of  ecclesiastical  supremacy,  his  freedom  of 
action  controlled  by  the  decisions  of  a  council  anta- 
gonistic to  himself,  the  Bishop  of  Rome  had  gone 
back  to  the  position  once  held  by  his  predecessors — 
the  honourable  position  of  Patriarch  of  the  West. 
But  an  office  once  commanding  the  greatest  respect 
when  adorned  by  the  virtues  of  its  occupants,  no 
longer  satisfied  the  ambition  of  those  who  now  held 
it.  They  failed  to  see  that  the  day  of  their  dominion 
was  over,  and  that  Rome's  pretensions  to  power  in 
the  West  must  fall  before  the  rising  Germanic  spirit, 
as,  even  at  that  moment,  the  Eastern  metropolis  was 

'  The  substance  of  these  Bulls  is  given  by  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec. 
132,  P-  343- 


XV. 


COUNCIL    OF  BASLE.  rQg 

falling  before  the  Turks.  Still  greedy  for  power,  chap. 
they  lost  what  they  possessed.  Claiming  the  Papacy, 
they  lost  the  Patriarchate.  Pushing  their  pretensions 
too  high,  they  found  them  denied  altogether.  Yet 
the.  result  did  not  take  place  immediately,  nor  until 
by  their  vices  they  had  forfeited  their  moral  weight 
also.  When,  at  length,  the  flood-gates  of  reaction 
were  opened  in  the  sixteenth  century,  and  the  long 
pent-up  waters  of  indignation  gushed  forth,  they 
swept  away  not  only  the  exorbitant  claims  of  the 
Papacy,  but  also  its  jurisdiction  in  the  Patriarchate 
of  the  West.  They  deprived  the  Popes  not  only  of 
their  usurped  power,  but  also  of  what  was  justly 
theirs  ;  but,  by  so  doing,  caused  a  retrograde  senti- 
ment in  favour  of  the  Papacy,  which  has  been  gra- 
dually, but  steadily,  gaining  ground,  and  which  has 
led  in  modern  times  to  the  extensive  development  of 
U  Itramontanism. 


\ 


III. 


APPENDIX   III. 


THE  CONCORDAT  CONCLUDED  BETWEEN  POPE  MARTIN  V. 
AND  THE  ENGLISH  NATION  AT  THE  XLIII.  SESSION, 
MARCH  21,   1418,  OF  THE  COUNCIL  OF  CONSTANCE.' 

PART       Universis  et  singulis  Joannes  miscratioie  divina  episcopiis  Osiicjisis, 

S.  R.  E.  cardinalis  et  vicecanccUariiis,  sahitem  in  Domino 

Cum  iiague  nuper  inter  sanetissinium  in  Christo  patrem  et  dominum 
?iostrum,  dominitm  Alartitium  divina  Providentia  Papain  V.  et  ret'e- 
rendos  pat  res  .  .  .  venerabilem  nationeni  Anglicanam  in  gmerali 
Concilia  Constantiensi  repraesentantcs  .  .  .  nonnuUa  capitula  con- 
cordat a,  et  ab  ut7'aque  parte  sponte  siiscepta;  necnon  .  .  .  ad futuravi 
rei  certitudinem  .  .  .  primo  conscript  a  fuerunt ;  ac  demum  .  .  . 
kcta  et  publicata :  nos  igitur,  ad  vencrabilis  viri  Roberti  de  Nevilli, 
Canonici  ccclesiae  Eboraccnsis,  pai-ochiales  ecclesiae  dc  Spoffoord  Pec- 
toris, instantiam,  capitula  /mjusmodi,  sinit  pracferiur,  concordata 
d  sponte  siiscepta,  ex  Integra  .  .  .  fideliter  transci'ibi,  et  pi'aeseniibus 
annotari  fecimus,  quorum  tenor  sequitjir  in  hunc  modum  : 

I. — De  Numero  et  Natione  Cardinalium. 

In  primis  quod  numerus  cardinalium  S.  R.  E.  adeo  sit  modera- 
tus  quod  non  sit  gravis  ecclesiae,  nee  nimia  numerositate  vilescat. 
Qui  indifferenter  de  omnibus  regnis  et  provinciis  totius  Christiani- 
tatis,  et  cum  consensu  et  assensu  collegii  dominorum  cardinalium, 
vel  majoris  partis  eorum,  eligantur  et  assumantur. 

li. — 13e  Indulgentiis. 

Item,  quod  cum  occasione  diversarum  indulgentium,  ac  litte- 
rarum  facultatum  a  sede  Apostolica  concessarum,  ad  absolvendum 
quoscumque  visitantes,  sive  offerentes  in  certis  locis,  et  quaestu- 

•   Ex.   MS.  Cantabrigiensi  quoted  by  LABEf,  xvi.  p.  739, 


CONCORDAT   WITH  ENGLAND.  51I 

rarum  qiiamplurimarum,  quae  in  Anglia  plus  solito  nunc  abundant  :  app. 
nonnulli  peccandi  audaciam  frequenter  assumant,  ac  contemptis  m- 
suis  propriis  curatis,  et  ecclesiis  suis  parochialibus  dimissis,  ad 
ipsa  loca  spe  indulgentianmi  et  confessionum  accedunt,  decimas, 
oblationes,  et  debita  dictarum  ecclesiafum  parochialium  subtra- 
hunt,  seu  solvere  differunt  minus  juste  :  committatur  dioecesanis 
locorum  ad  inquirendum  super  qualitate  earum,  cum  potestate 
suspendendi  omnino  auctoritate  Apostolica  illas,  quas  invenerint 
scandalosas,  et  illas  denunciandi  Papae^  ut  illas  revocet,  etc. 

III. — De  AppROPRiATioNlBuS)  UnionibuS)  Incorporationieus, 

ECCLESIARUM,    ET    ViCARlATtJUM. 

Item,  de  cetero  nullae  fiant  appropriationes  ecclesianmi  paro- 
chialium motu  proprio  :  sed  committatur  episcopis  locorum  ad 
inquirendum  de  veritate  suggestionum.  Et  in  eventum,  quo  per 
debitam  et  juridicam  notionem  constare  poterit  quod  causae 
appropriationum  desint,  legitime  procedatur  ad  appropriationem, 
prout  fuerit  juris  illarum  ordinariorum.  Quae  jam  sunt  fortitae 
effectum,  nulla  fiat,  si  ex  revocatione  sequi  possit  scandalum. 
Alias  vero  committatur,  quod  inquirant  etc.  .  .  .  Et  quas  invene- 
rint fieri  merito  non  debuisse,  vocatis'  tunc  ad  hoc  vocandis,  cas- 
sent  etc.  .  .  . 

Item,  omnes  uniones,  incorporationes,  approbationes,  et  conso- 
lidationes  vicariatuum  perpetuarum  in  ecclesiis  parochialibus,  ex 
quibuscumque  causis  factae  a  tempore  schismatis,  indistincte  revo- 
centur  ;  et  vicarii  perpetui  in  iisdem  per  ordinarios  locorum  hac 
vice  ordinentur  et  instituantur.  Ac  in  singulis  ecclesiis  parochiali- 
bus sit  unus  vicarius  perpetuus,  qui  curae  insistat  animarum,  bene 
et  competenter  dotatus,  pro  hospitalitate  ibidem  tenenda,  et  omni- 
bus debitis  supportandis  :  litteris  Apostolicis  et  ordinariorum  com- 
positionibus,  statutis,  et  consuetudinibus,  ac  aliis  in  contrarium 
factis,  non  obstantibus  quibuscumque. 

IV. — De  Ornatu  Pontificali  Inferioribus  Praelatis 

NON    CONCEDENDO. 

Item,  omnia  privilegia,  citra  obitum  felicis  recordationis  Gre- 
gorii  Papae  XL  concessa  praelatis  inferioribus,  de  utendo  Pontifi- 
cahbus,  scilicet  mitris,  sandaHis,  et  hujusmodi  ad  dignitatem  Pon- 
tificalem  pertinentibus,  revocentur.  Quae  vero  ante  obitum  ipsius 
Gregorii  concessa  flierint,  in  suo  robore  permaneant  et  effectu. 


512 


APPENDIX  III. 


PA.RT  ,,       _      _ 

III.  V. — De  Dispensationibus. 


Item,  licet  pluralitas  beneficiorum  canonibus  exosa  exsistat,  aut 
super  ea  dispensationes  jure  hoc  dictante  fieri  non  debeant,  nisi 
personis  nobilibus  et  viris  eximiae  liberalitatis  :  nunc  tamen  in 
curiis  dominorum  tam  spiritualium  quam  temporalium  tales  dispen- 
sationes irrepserunt :  praemissa,  seu  eis  consimilia  de  cetero  non 
fiant,  sed  in  praemissis  servetur  concilium  generale.  Illae  tamen 
quae  sunt  sortitae  effectum,  in  suo  robore  permaneant  :  nisi  forte 
aliquae  fuerint  et  sint  scandalosae.  De  quibus  fieri  mandamus 
concessionem  locorum  ordinariis  :  et  ordinarii  certificent,  et  revo- 
centur  scandalosae. 

Item,  quia  modernis  temporibus  plus  solito  cum  diversis  per- 
sonis, inft-a  regnum  et  dominia  praedicta,  beneficia  curata  obtinen- 
tibus,  per  sedem  Apostolicam  contra  jura  communia  dispensatum 
exsistit,  ut  per  tres,  quatuor,  quinque,  sex,  et  septem  annos  vel 
ultra,  aut  in  perpetuum  beneficiati  praedicti  ipsa  beneficia  possi- 
dere  et  occupare  valeant,  sic  ut  ad  ordines  debitos  interim  ordi- 
nari  minime  teneantur,  in  grave  scandalum  ecclesiae,  etc.  Omnes 
dispensationes  hujusmodi  indistincte  revocentur.  Et  beneficiati 
hujusmodi  ordinationi  juris  communis  in  hac  parte  omnino  sub- 
dantur.  Si  tamen  beneficiati  praedicti  sint  alias  habiles  ad  hujus- 
modi ordines  suscipiendos. 

Item,  quia  propter  dispensationes  Sedis  Apostolicae,  nonnuUis 
personis  infi-a  regnum  et  dominia  praedicta,  super  non  residentia, 
necnon  archidiaconis  ad  visitandum  per  procuratores,  factas,  non 
solum  animarum  cura  negligitur,  sed  etiam  potestas  episcopalis 
per  impetrantes  dispensationes  hujusmodi  contemnitur  :  nullae 
dispensationes  deinceps  fiant  absque  causa  rationabih  et  legitima, 
in  litteris  dispensationum  hujusmodi  exprimenda.  Concessae 
autem  absque  causa  rationabili  sive  legitima,  revocentur  :  de  qui- 
bus fiat  commissio  ordinariis. 

Item,  omnes  litterae  facultatum  concessae  religiosis  quibuscum- 
que,  infi-a  regnum  et  dominia  praedicta,  de  obtinendo  beneficia 
ecclesiastica,  curata  vel  non  curata,  quae  non  sunt  sortitae  effec- 
tum, indistincte  revocentur.  Abstineatur  de  cetero  ab  hujusmodi 
litteris  facultatum  concedendis. 

VI. — De  Angus  ad  Officia  Romanae  Curiae  assumendis. 

Item,  quod  aliqui  etiam  de  natione  Anglicana,  dumniodo  tamen 
sint  idonei,  ad  singula  officia  curiae  Romanae  assumantur  una 
cum  aliis  de  ceteris  nationibus  indifferenter,  etc. 


CONCORDAT    WITH  ENGLAND. 


513: 


Item,  quod  super  omnibus  et  singulis  praemissis  dominus  noster       APP. 
summus  Pontifex  mandet  et  fieri  faciat  praedictae  nationi  Angli-        ^^I- 
canae  unam,  vel  plures,  ac  tot  quot  fuerint  requisitae,  litteras  suas 
bullatas,  in  bona  forma  et  gratis  de  mandato,  ad  perpetuam  rei 
memoriam. 

Haec  itaque  universitati  vestrae  tenore  praesentium  firmiter 
attestantes,  easdem  nostras  litteras  praesentes,  in  horum  fidem  et 
testimonium^  praefato  Roberto  Nevilli  concessimus,  nostri  sigilli 
munimine  roboratas.  Datum  Gebennis,  in  domo  habitationis 
nostrae,  sub  anno  a  Nativitate  Domini  mccccxviii  indictione  xi 
die  vero  xxi  mensis  Julii,  pontificantis  domini  nostrae  Papae  anno 
primo. 


L  L 


514 


LAST*  YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 


CHAPTER  XVI. 

LAST  YEARS  OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 
(1445— 1515.) 


Ecce  relinqnetur  vobis  domus  V€st>'a  dcserta. — LUC.  XIII.  35^ 


PART 
III. 


A.  Ad- 
ministra- 
tion  of 
Aeneas 
Sylvius, 


THE  old  mediaeval  Papacy  holding  a  position  of 
acknowledged  supremacy  as  the  head  of 
Western  Christendom  to  which  homage  was  univer- 
sally paid,  was  now  fast  passing  away,  and  making 
room  for  the  modern  Papacy,  an  institution  histori- 
cally, indeed,  connected  with  its  predecessor,  but  yet 
of  a  very  different  character,  being  a  headship  of 
only  one  portion  of  Christendom,  and  depending  for 
its  authority  on  a  voluntary  recognition  of  its  claims. 
Yet  before  it  had  become  a  thing  of  the  past,  it  was 
once  more  lighted  up  by  a  bright  gleam  flashing 
across  its  heaven,  and  sheading  on  it  a  ray  of  glory, 
bright  but  passing,  and  contrasting  strangely  with  the 
utter  darkness  which  set  in  immediately  afterwards. 
That  bright  gleam  was  none  other  than  the  adminis- 
tration of  Aeneas  Sylvius* 

Already  distinguished  at  Basle  for  his  aptitude 
for  business,  the  champion  of  the  council  against 
Eugenius  IV.,  the  secretary  of  the  antipope,  then 
of  the  emperor  ;  anon  at  the  feet  of  Eugenius  suing 
for  pardon,   afterwards    appointed  secretary  to  his 


ADMINISTRATION  OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS. 


515 


successor,  Nicolas  V.;  cautious,  enterprising,  ambiti-     chap. 

ous,  for  a  long  time  the  secret  dictator  of  a  policy, 

at  length  himself  wearing  the  tiara  ;  Aeneas  Sylvius 
passed  through  a  career  in  many  respects  not  unlike 
that  of  Gregory  VII.,  but  as  different  in  its  moral 
grandeur  as  was  the  age  in  which  he  lived  from  the 
Hildebrandian  era  of  reform.  Perhaps,  too,  under 
his  predecessors,  Nicolas  V.  and  Calixtus  III., 
Aeneas  Sylvius  hardly  occupied  so  prominent  a  place 
as  Hildebrand  had  held  under  Nicolas  II.  and  Alex-  (i)  Nko- 
ancler  11.      F'or    Nicolas   V.^  was   for  his  time   un-       ^  ' 

A.D. 

doubtedly  an   able   man,   and   his   aspirations   were   '447-1455 
high.     Anxious    though   he   was   to  put  an   end  to  of  Basle 
the  council  of  Basle  and  to  recover  the  lost  power  of 
the  Papacy,  he  combined  with  his   zeal  a   Christian 
discretion,  and   knew  how  to  win  the  support  of  the 
secular  power  as  well  as  how  to  conciliate  the  clergy. 
In  his  pontificate,  the  first  step  towards  undoing  the  («)  Con- 
work  of  Basle  was  taken  under  the  auspices  of  Aeneas,  of  As- 
It  consisted  in  negotiating  an  agreement,  known  as  '^l\^f"''' 
the  Concordat  of  Aschaffenburg,  between  the  Pope    Feb.  17, 
and  the  emperor,  Frederic  III.     By  the  terms  of  that 
concordat,'^  itself  the  work  of  Aeneas,  who,  since  his 
repentance,  was  as  much  opposed  to  the  interests  of 
Germany  as  he  had  formerly  been  in  their  favour  at 
Basle,  the  articles  of  the  agreement  concluded  with 
the  Germans  at   Constance,  so   disadvantageous   to 
their  interests,  were  revived.     The  Pope  retained  his 
annates,  or  rather  a  sort  of  tax  as  an  equivalent  in 

1  Nicolas  V.  succeeded  Eugenius  IV.  as  Pope  in  March  1447, 
and  died  March  1455.     His  Hfe,  Labbe,  xix.  45. 

2  See  its  history  in  Koch,  Sanctio  Pragm.  p.  36. 

L  L  2 


1448 


5i6 


LAST  YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 


PART 
III. 


/jS)  Disso- 
hition  of 
Council 
of  Basle. 


A.D.  1449 


their  place,  and,  Instead  of  the  alternate  right  of  pre- 
sentation to  the  smaller  benefices,  he  received  the 
right  of  collation  during  every  alternate  month  in  the 
year.  Episcopal  elections  were  freely  restored  to  the 
chapters,  except  In  cases  of  translation,  or  In  case  a 
person  canonically  unfit  were  presented  for  confir- 
mation, in  which  case  the  Pope  still  continued  to 
nominate.  Thus  by  the  weakness  of  Frederic  III., 
and  the  defection  of  Aeneas  Sylvius,  the  compact 
accepted  at  Mainz  ^  was  overthrown,  and  a  severe 
blow  was  dealt  at  the  authority  of  the  Council  of  Basle 
In  Germany. 

It  had  required  some  dexterous  management  on 
the  part  of  Nicolas  V.  and  Aeneas  Sylvius,  to  nego- 
tiate the  Concordat  of  Aschaffenburg.  The  more 
powerful  German  nobles  needed  to  be  conciliated  by 
concessions,^  the  less  powerful  by  the  Influence  of 
fear.  By  displaying  the  same  dexterity  and  by  the 
exercise  of  forbearance,  Aeneas  succeeded  next  in 
bringing  the  Council  of  Basle  to  a  close,  and  in  gain- 
ing the  resignation  of  the  antlpope,  Felix  V.  The 
Fathers  of  that  synod,  by  three  imperial  mandates 
banished  to  Lausanne,^  appeared  to  submit  to  the 
friendly  urgency  of  the  Kings  of  England  and  of 
France.  Felix  V.  resigned  his  office,  and  the  council 
was  dissolved ;  yet  not  without  honour  and  more 
substantial  rewards.  The  cardlnalate  next  in  honour 
to  the  Pope  was  conferred  on  Felix  ;  three  of  his  car- 


'   Labbe,  xviii.  1400,  an.  1441. 

^  See  the  authorities  quoted  in  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  133,  p.  346. 
3  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  133,  p.  347.     Two  decrees  of  the  synod, 
an.  1449,  in  Labb6,  xix.  60. 


ADMINISTRATION  OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS. 


5^7 


dinals  were  allowed  to  retain  their  dignity ;  all  the    chap. 

papal    censures   against  him   and  his    adherents    at  L_ 

Basle  were  annulled  ;  ^  the  promotions  and  appoint- 
ments of  the  synods  were  confirmed.^  Success  had 
crowned  the  efforts  of  Aeneas,  but  this  success 
was  the  triumph  of  policy,  the  ignoring  of  principle. 

Having    carried    out    his    first    scheme,    Aeneas  (i)  Last 

fPi/iiicil 

meditated  higher  things.  The  past  glories  of  the  of  Holy 
Holy  Empire  rose  before  him.  Why  should  not  ^"'-P"^- 
the  Pope  and  the  emperor  as  of  old  be  once  more 
the  temporal  and  spiritual  heads  of  Christendom, 
the  temporal  head  being  as  aforetime  subject  to  the 
spiritual  head  ?  The  weak  emperor,  Frederic  HI.,  was 
only  too  ready  to  join  in  the  project.  Jealous  of  the 
power  of  the  electoral  princes,  and  weakened  him- 
self by  the  loss  of  his  feudal  privileges,  this  emperor 
hailed  with  delight  the  prospect  of  once  more  re- 
gaining his  ascendency  by  the  help  of  the  Pope. 
The  coronation  at  Rome  had  not  lost  the  spell  of  its 
influence,  although  it  had  been  for  some  time  in 
abeyance,  and  the  support  of  Nicolas  might  do 
much  towards  strengthening  the  emperor's  hands. 
Frederic  HI.  fell  into  the  snare  laid  for  him  by 
Aeneas,  and  abased  himself  before  the  court  of 
Rome.  His  marriage  with  his  Portuguese  bride 
was  celebrated  with  great  pomp  by  Nicolas  himself 
on  March  iS,  1452,  and  afterwards  his  coronation 
with  still  greater  magnificence.     For  the  last  time      a.d. 

March  i8, 
1452 

1  See  the  letter  of  Nicolas  V.,  Labbe,  xix.  49. 

2  See  the  avisamenta,  Labb£,  xviii.  52,  and  the  letters  of  Felix 
V.  ibid.  p.  69.  The  Bull  of  Nicholas  V.  is  dated  May  19,  1449, 
ibid.  p.  73. 


5i8 


PAPT 
III. 


(2)   Crti- 
sades 
agaijist 
the  Turks. 
A.D.  1453 


LAST    YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 

in  the  Middle  Ages,  and  indeed  in  history,  Pope  and 
emperor  met  for  a  solemn  ceremony  in  the  eternal 
city — the  emperor  to  be  crowned  King  of  the  Romans, 
the  Pope  to  receive  the  final  act  of  majesty  from  the 
Roman  king.  For  the  last  time  the  dome  of  St. 
Peter's  resounded  with  shouts  of  triumph,  welcoming 
the  Emperor  of  the  West.  For  the  last  time  the 
Holy  Empire  was  seen  to  revive.  It  was  as  it  were 
the  final  gasp  for  life  of  a  dying  institution.  In  the 
next  year  the  news  of  the  capture  of  Constantinople 
and  the  fall  of  the  Eastern  Empire  sounded  across 
Europe,  foretelling  the  approaching  end  of  its  Western 
rival. 

Few  persons  can  now  realise  to  themselves  the 
shock  felt  throughout  the  West,  when  the  news  was 
brought  by  Greek  refugees  to  Europe,  that  Con- 
stantinople had  fallen  before  the  arms  of  Mahomet  II. 
The  great  bulk  of  men  were  simply  appalled  at  an 
event  which  had  come  upon  them  so  suddenly  and 
unexpectedly.  They  were  horrified  that  the  Cres- 
cent should  wave  where  once  the  Cross  had  stood. 
They  were  in  a  sense  stunned.  But  they  were  at 
first  far  from  appreciating  the  full  extent  of  the 
danger  which  threatened  themselves.  It  was  in 
truth  a  danger  similar  to  that  which  had  been  seve- 
ral times  impending  during  the  Middle  Ages — the 
danger  of  a  return  to  barbarism  through  the  con- 
quest of  some  wild  Oriental  horde.  It  was  not  this 
time  a  danger  arising  from  Magyars,  such  as  those 
who  had  been  defeated  at  Merseburg  and  Lechfeld;^ 

'   In  the  battle  of  Merseburg,  an.  933,  the  Magyars  were  defeated 
by  Henry  I. ;  in  the  battle  on  the  Lechfeld,  955,  by  Otto  I, 


ADMINISTRATION  OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS.  cig 

nor  was  it  a  danger  caused  by  Mongols,  like  those    chap. 

who  remained  on  the  plain  of  Liegnitz.^     It  was  a !_ 

danger  coming  from  other  races — from  the  followers 
of  the  false  prophet — who  had  once  before  entered 
Europe  from  the  south,^  and  been  repelled  by  the 
arms  of  Charles  Martel,  and  who  now  assailed  it 
from  the  east ;  threatening  to  make  it  a  dependency 
of  an  Oriental  tyrant,  threatening  to  substitute  the 
religion  of  Mahomet  for  the  religion  of  Christ. 

Probably  no  two  persons  were  more  keenly  alive  ^^)  <^^«- 

.  .  ''  sade 

to  the  impending  danger,  than  were  Pope  Nicolas  V.  preached 
and  Aeneas   Sylvius,   now  Bishop  of  Siena.     The  fas  vf' 
death  of  Nicolas,  it  was  said,  was  hastened  by  the 
sad  news.      Henceforth  it  became  the  one  great  aim 
in  life  of  the  Bishop  of  Siena  to  stir  up  a  crusade 
against  the  Turks.     Already  within  a  few  months 
after   the   capture   of   Constantinople,    Nicolas    had       a.d. 
issued  a  summons  to  the  princes  of  Christendom,       1453 
adjuring  them  by  their  baptismal  profession,  and  the 
oath  taken  at  their  coronation,  to  come  forward  with 
their  goods  and  their  persons  for  the  defence  of  the 
Christian    faith,    and    granting    a    tithe    of    Church 
revenue   for   the    support   of    the    crusade.^       The 

1  The  Mongols  were  defeated  in  the  battle  of  Liegnitz,  1241. 

2  The  followers  of  the  prophet,  under  Musa,  obtained  3,  footing 
in  Spain,  an.  711,  by  the  battle  of  Xerez  de  la  Frontera,  From 
Spain  they  penetrated  into  France,  but  were  defeated  by  Charles 
Martel  at  Tours  an.  732. 

^  The  Bull,  dated  September  30,  1453,  in  Raynald,  an.  1453, 
No.  g,  runs  :  '  Inprimis  universes  Christianos  .  .  .  hortamur,  re- 
*  quirimus  et  mandamus  in  vim  professionis  factae  in  sacri  suscep- 
'  tione  baptismatis,  ac  in  vim  juramenti  praestiti,  cum  dignitatum 
'  suarum  infulas  susceperunt,  ut  ad  defensionem  Christianae  reli 


520 


LAST   YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 


.PART 
III. 


{b)   Cru- 
sade 

preached 
by  Calix- 
tiis  IIL 

A.D.   1455 


summons  fell  on  deaf  ears.  Germany  was  not  yet 
alive  to  the  extent  of  the  danger  which  threatened. 
It  seemed  to  be  a  revival  of  the  old  methods  of 
raising  money,  which  had  been  abolished  by  the 
Reforming  Councils  ;  and  the  people,  embittered 
against  the  Pope  and  the  emperor  alike,  saw  no 
other  agency  at  work  but  avarice  in  these  calls  to 
warfare.^ 

No  greater  success  attended  the  efforts  of  Ca- 
lixtus  III."  to  stir  up  a  crusade.  In  Germany  the 
only  result  effected  was  that  the  zeal  to  win  back 
the  lost  freedom  of  the  Church  awoke  anew. 
Neither  there  nor  elsewhere,  with  the  single  excep- 
tion of  Aragon  and  Portugal,  was  any  response 
made  to  the  summons.  The  King  of  Aragon,  In- 
deed, took  the  cross,  but  carried  on  a  war  with  the 
Genoese  with  the  crusadine  force  ;  and  the  Kinof  of 
Portugal  promised  to  march  against  the  Turks,  but 
in  the  end  did  nothing  at  all.^  In  France  Charles  VII., 
at  the  same  time  that  he  allowed  a  tenth  to  be  con- 
tributed towards  the  expenses,*  forbade  the  public 
preaching  of  the  crusade,  lest  his  unprotected  king- 


'  gionis  et  fidei,  cum  bonis  et  personis  suis  pro  sua  possibilitate 
'  verisimiliter  et  indesinenter  assistant,  aeterna  praemia  recepturi 
'  ab  illo,  cujus  causam  egere,  et  in  praesenti  vita  pariter  et  in 
'  futura.' 

1  See  GiES.  and  tlie  autiiorities  there  quoted,  vol.   iv.  sec.    133, 
P-  349- 

2  Calixtus  III.  succeeded  Nicolas  V.  as  Pope,  April  1455,  and 
died  August  1458.     His  life  in  Labbe,  xi.x.  157. 

3  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  133,  p.  353. 

4  The  letter  of  tlie  Pope    thanhing    him    for  his    permission. 
Labbe,  xix.  160. 


ADMINISTRATION  OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS. 


521 


dom   should    fall   a  prey   to   the   English  ;  and   the     chap. 

funds    collected    were    insufficient  for  any   decisive '- — 

enterprise. 

At  leno-th,  in  the  year   1458,  Aeneas  Sylvius  had  {c)Efforts 

.  .  .  .  of  Pius 

reached  the  height  of  his  ambition,  and  ascended  the  //.  /oge^ 

papal  chair  under  the  name  of  Pius  11.^   His  first  busi-  crusade. 

ness  was  to  issue  a  lengthy  Bull,  retracting  all  he  had       a.d. 

1458— 1404 
done  at  Basle  against  the  authority  of  Eugenius  IV.; 

his  next  was  to  redouble  his  efforts  ^  to  unite  Chris- 
tendom against  the  steadily  progressing  encroach- 
ments of  the  Turks.  Following  the  example  of  the 
older  Popes,  whose  institution  of  military  orders  had 
proved  so  successful  in  the  first  ages  of  the  crusades, 
he  proceeded  to  found  new  ecclesiastical  orders  of 
knighthood,  the  Order  of  Hospitallers  of  St.  Mary 
of  Bethlehem,^  and  the  society  bearing  the  name  of 
Jesus,  for  fighting  against  the  infidels.*  A  general  1459 
assemblage  of  Christian  nobles  was  convened  at 
Mantua  ^  to  vie  with  those  of  Piacenza  and  Clermont. 


1  Pius  II.  became  Pope  in  August  1458,  and  died  August  1464. 
His  life  in  Labb^,  xix.  191. 

2  The  Bull  of  Retractationum  in  Labbe,  xix.  195. 

^  The  Ordo  hospitalis  b.  Mariae  Bethlemitanae  was  founded 
January  18,  1459.     See  Raynald,  an.  1459,  No.  2. 

*  Societas  sub  vocabulo  Jesu  nuncupata  ad  Dei  honorem  et 
infidelium  oppugnationem  instituta,  October  13,  1459,  Raynald, 
1459,  No.  83.  This  order  must  not  be  confounded  with  the 
order  of  Jesuits  founded  by  Ignatius  Loyola,  1540. 

*  See  the  account  of  the  assembly,  an.  1459,  Labbe,  xix.  203. 
The  Pope  says  in  his  address,  ibid.  p.  208  :  '  Vos  autem,  magn- 
'  animi  et  generosi  proceres,  qui  adestis,  ne  claudite,  precamur, 
'  aures,  ne  divertite  mentem  ;  aperite  Deo  interiora  vestra  qui 
'  mox  volentibus  vobis  in  animas  vestras  illabetur,  et  vos  sibi 
'  templuni  atque  habitaculum  faciet.     Audite  nos  sua  vice  loquen- 


{d)  Effort 
to  convert 
the 


C22  LAST   YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 

PART  Cardinal  Bessarion  was  dispatched  to  Germany, 
'  there  to  emulate  St.  Bernard's  preaching.  Yet  all 
was  in  vain.  The  political  fabric  of  Europe  was 
breaking  up ;  the  different  parts  had  not  yet  settled 
down  into  consolidated  nations.  Hence  political 
complications  frustrated  every  attempt  at  united 
action. 

But  still  Pius  II.  was  not  to  be  daunted.  If 
Europe  would  not  defend  herself  against  the  foe, 
Sultan.  niio"ht  not  the  foe  be  won  over  to  the  Christian 
faith  ?  It  seemed  a  forlorn  enterprise  ;  still  it  might 
be  possible.  Indeed,  was  it  not  the  only  means  left 
for  the  preservation  of  the  West  ?  A  letter  was 
dispatched  to  the  sultan,  Mahomet  II.,  courteous, 
conciliatory,  almost  flattering.^  Nothing  it  said  was 
wanting  to  make  Mahomet  the  mightiest  sovereign 
the  world  had  ever  seen,  nothing  but  a  little  water  for 
his  baptism  and  belief  in  the  Gospel :  before  Mahomet 
the  Christian  emperor,  the  world  would  bow  down. 
Did  a  dream  of  an  empire  of  the  world,  uniting  both 
East  and  West  once  more  under  a  Turkish  monarch, 
flit  across  the  brain  of  the  Pontiff? 

If  it  did,  it  was  soon  dissipated.  But  the  far- 
seeing  earnestness  of  a  man  who,  alive  to  the  perils 
of  the  situation,  had  made  it  his  great  object  in  life 
to  oppose  the  Turks,  and  whom  the  sense  of  a  great 
danger    had    recalled  from   the   weakness,  the   self- 

'  tes.     Verba  nostra,  verba  Dei  sunt,  qui  filii  sui  Jesu  Christi, 
'  quamvis  indigni,  vices  gerimus.     Ipse  nos  fari  jubet ;  ipse  in  ore 
'  nostro  verba  posuit ;  ipse  nos  bellum  suadere  in  Turcos  imperat.' 
The  princes  who  were  present,  however,  took  a  different  view. 
'   In  Raynald,  1261,  No.  44. 


ADMINISTRATION  OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS. 


523 


seekinq-,  the  treachery  of  earher  Hfe  to  a  real  state  of    chap. 

*  .  XVI 

heroism,    could   not    die.      If   others    would    not  go L. 

forth,  Pius  II.  would.  Accordingly,  the  Pope  him- 
self, the  cardinals,  the  bishops  prepared  for  a  crusade  ; 
whilst,  heedless  of  his  touching  summons,^  knights, 
counts,  barons,  and  dukes  remained  listlessly  at  home. 
None  gathered  at  his  biddmg  but  a  worthless  rabble. 
Already  sickening,  he  travelled  from  Rome  to 
Ancona.  There  he  found  a  mass  of  discontented 
soldiers,  many  of  whom,  when  the  Venetian  ships  were 
behind  their  time,  and  they  found  the  Pope  would 
supply  indulgences  but  not  provisions,  persisted 
in  returning  home.  Disappointment  preyed  on  his 
failing  health,  and,  like  his  predecessor  Gregory  VII.,  a.d. 
Pius  died   before   he  could  embark,  away  from  his       1464 


^  Issued  October  22,  1463,  in  Raynald,  1463,  No.  29:  '  Et 

*  quis  erit  Christianorum  tam  feri,  tam  lapidei,  tam  ferrei  pectoris, 

*  qui  audiens,  Romanum  Pontificem  b.  Petri  successorem,  Domini 

*  nostri  Jesu  Christi  vicarium,  aetemae  vitae  clavigerum,  patrem 
'  ac  magistrum  universorum  fidelium  cum  sacro  senatu  Cardina- 
'  Hum  Clerique  multitudine  in  bellum  pergere  pro  tuenda  religione, 
'  libens  domi  remaneat?     Et  quae  poterit  excusatio  quenquam 

*  juvare  :  senex,  debilis,  aegrotus,  in  expeditionem  pergit,  et  tu 
'  juvenis  sano  ac  robusto  corpore  domi  delitesces  %  Summus 
'  Sacerdos,  Cardinales,  Episcopi  praelium  petunt ;  et  tu  Miles,  tu 

*  Baro,  tu  Comes,  tu  Marchio,  tu  Dux,  tu  Rex,  tu  ImjDerator,  in 
'  aedibus  propriis  otiaberis  ?  Siccine  perverti  hominum  officia 
'  pateris  ut  quae  sunt  Regum  Sacerdotes  agant,  quae  Nobilitati 
'  conveniunt,  subire  Clerum  oporteat?  ...  In  tanto  Christianae 
'  religionis  discrimine,  quantum  a  Turcis  impraesentiarum  cernitur 
'  imminere,  nulli  dubium  esse  debet,  quin  Christiani  omnes,  tam 
'  Reges  et  Principes,  quam  alii  potentatus  et  privati  homines  ad 
'  defensionem  catholicae  fidei  et  sanctae  legis  evangelicae  juxta 
'  possibilitatem  suam  cum  bonis  et  corporibus  suis  de  necessitate 

*  salutis  viriliter  assurgere  et  indesinenter  assistere  teneantur.' 


1-24  LAST   YEARS  OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 

♦ 

[PART^    cathedral    city.      Like    Gregory    VII.    he    died    en- 

'. deavouring  to  carry  out  a  great  project,  to  which  he 

had    devoted    his    hfe,    not    indeed  with    the    same 

purity   of  purpose   which   had  characterised    Hilde- 

brand's  earlier  career,  but  with  more  humility,  as  his 

dying  words  addressed  to  the  cardinal  who  attended 

him  attest  :   '  My  Son,  pray  for  me.'  ^ 

(3)  Ell-  But   not   only   in   his  death  does  Aeneas  Sylvius 

']Tad-"^    resemble    Gregory    VII.      He    resembles     him    far 

7'ancethe   niore   in   his  life  and  in  his   desire  to  advance  the 

papal 

power.  power  of  his  see  to  the  highest  possible  pitch. 
There  is  much,  too,  in  the  weakness  of  the  Emperor 
Frederic  III.  which  resembles  the  weakness  of 
Henry  IV.  The  circumstances  in  which  they  lived 
have  other  points  of  resemblance.  The  idea  of  the 
Holy  Empire  with  its  double  headship  was  being 
advanced  in  the  Hildebrandian  era  ;  the  same  idea 
was  being  anew  advanced  under  the  rule  of  Aeneas 
Sylvius.  In  the  Hildebrandian  era,  however,  the 
two  heads,  as  supreme  powers,  came  into  collision  ; 
under  Aeneas  Sylvius  both  were  so  much  weakened 
that  they  looked  to  one  another  for  support. 
{a)  Ufider  Even  before  his  own  tenure  of  ofiice,  Aeneas 
///.  Sylvius    had   been    trying    to    make  actual    the  ex- 

travagant pretensions  of  his  predecessor:.  Breaches 
of  the  Concordat  of  Aschaffenburg  had  been  com- 
mitted frequently  by  Calixtus  II.,  and  had  been 
tacitly  endured  by  Frederic  III,^  When  complaints 
on   account  of  these  breaches  v/axed   loud,    Aersas 


^  Compare  the  death  of  Hildebrand,  Chap.  VII.  p.  212. 
^  See  the  authorities  in  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  133,  p.  351. 


ADMINISTRATION  OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS. 


525 


Sylvius,  at  the  time  a  cardinal,  dictated  a  letter,  which     chap. 

XVI. 

was  dispatched  to  the  emperor  in  the  name  of  Calix-   1_ 


tus,^  declaring  that  the  Apostolical  See   is  desirous 

of  adhering  to  the  terms  of  the  concordat,  although 

it  is  absolutely  free,  and  can  be  bound  by  no  ties  of 

contract.      But  at  the  same  time,   the  cardinal  knew 

how  to  attain  his  object  by  a  milder  policy.      The 

chief  malcontents  were  won  over  by  letters  ; '•^  and  to 

serve  the  same  object,  a  treatise  was  written  by  him 

on  the  position,  the  rites,  customs,  and  the  condition 

of  Germany.^ 

Bolder  steps  were  taken  by  Aeneas,  when  he  ruled  {b)  By 

himself  at  Rome  under  the  name  of  Pius  II.     The  Pius  ll. 

heretical  tenets  of  his  former  life  were  unreservedly       ^•^-  , 

-^    1458-1464 

and  absolutely  condemned,'*  and  it  was  declared  at 
Mantua,^  that  whoever  should  hereafter  appeal  from 

*  August  31,  1457,  in  Raynald,  1457,  No.  40:  '  Sed  aiunt 
'  plerique,  concordata,  de  quibus  mentionem  supra  fecimus,  per 
'  nos  minime  observari,  afifirmantes,  electiones  Episcoporum  alio- 
'  rumque  Praelatorum  nos  parvi  pendere,  ac  prorsus  abjicere  : 
'  quod  pari  modo  neque  vere,  neque  juste  nobis  objicitur.     Neque 

*  enim  electiones  Praelatorum  in  Germania  factas  quovis  pacto 
'  contemnimus,  neque  ex  concordatis  oranes  passim  electiones 
'  contirmare  tenemur,  sed  illas  tantummodo,  quae  canonicae  expe- 
'  riuntur.  .  .  .  Super  reservationibus  autera  caeterisque  beneficio- 
'  rum  provisionibus,  de  quibus  similiter  accepimus  querelas  coram 

*  tua  serenitate  fuisse  propositas,  non  sumus  memores,  aliquid  a 
'  nobis  esse  concessum  contra  concordata  praedicta.  .  .  .  Quin- 
'  immo  quamvis  Uberrima  sit  Apostolicae  sedis  auctoritas,  nullisque 
'  debeat  pactionum  vinculis  coerceri ;  ex  mera  tamen  liberalitate 
'  nostra,  ex  zelo  quem  gerimus  ad  pacem,  ex  caritate  qua  te  tuam- 
'  que  nationem  prosequimur,  concordatis  ipsis  locum  esse  volumus.' 

2  See  the  authorities  in  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  133,  p.  354. 

^  Descriptio  de  ritu,  situ,  moribus  et  conditione  Germaniae. 

*  Retractationes,  April  26,  1463,  in  LabbiS,  xix.  195. 

'  Bull  of  January  23,  1460,  quoted  by  Gies.  vol,  iv.  sec.  133, 


526 


LAST   YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 


PART     the   Pope   to   a   general   council  should  be    excom- 
III  .  . 
'. municated  ipso  facto,  and  not  otherwise  restored  but 

'  '  ^      by  the  Pontiff  himself.      The  Archduke  of  Austria, 

Sigismond,  was  visited  with   the  ban  and  interdict 

1461      for  his  violence  towards  Cardinal  Nicholas  of  Cusa  ; 

Diether,  Archbishop  of  Mainz,  was   deposed  in  an 

1467      arbitrary    manner;     Charles    YII.     of    France    was 

reproached  for  his  audacious  Pragmatic  Sanction.^ 

But  all  these  assertions  of  power  were  unavailing. 
They  could  not  procure  for  Pius  II.  any  real  autho- 
rity, or  recover  for  the  Papacy  the  place  which  it  had 
lost.  On  the  contrary,  the  despotic  rule  of  Pius  II. 
only  awakened  discontent  in  Germany,  where  the 
liberal-minded  Aeneas  Sylvius  was  not  yet  forgotten. 
The  archduke  appealed  to  a  general  council.^  Diether 
received  privileges  more  valuable  than  those  he  lost, 
resigning  the  duties  but  retaining  a  great  part  of  the 
revenues  of  his  see,  Charles  VII.  appealed  to  a 
general  council;  his  successor,  Louis  XL,  when  he 
found  that  he  could  get  no  support  from  the  Pope 
for  the  claims  of  Anjou  to  Naples,  left  the  Sanction 

p.  360  :  '  Volentes  igitur  hoc  pestiferum  virus  a  Christi  ecclesia 

*  procul  pellere  .  .  .  hnjusmodi  provocationis  introductiones  dam- 

*  namus,  et  tanquam  erroneas  ac  detestabiles  reprobamus,  cas- 
'  santes,  et  penitus  annuUantes,  si  quae  hactenus  taliter  interpositae 
'  reperiantur  .  .  ,  praecipientes  deinceps,  ut  nemo  audeat  ,  .  . 
'  ab  ordinationibus,  sententiis  sive  mandatis  quibuscumque  nostris 
'  ac  successorum  nostrorum  talem  appellation  em  interponere.  .   .   . 

*  Si  quis  autem  contrafecerit  a  die  publicationis  praesentium  in 
'  Cancellaria  Apostolica  post  duos  menses,  cujuscumque  status, 
'  gradus,  ordinis  vel  conditionis  fuerit  .  .  .  ipso  facto  sententiam 
'  execrationis  incurrat.' 

^  See  the  documents  in  Labbe,  xix.  230  scq. 

"^  See  the  authorities  quoted  by  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  133,  p.  2>^t^. 


SUCCESSORS  OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS.  ^2  7 

unrepealed;  and  the  star  of  Pius   II.  set   over  the     chap. 

XVT 

bhghted   remains    of  early  hopes.     The  mediaeval  ' 

Papacy  had  outlived  its  day  :  the  world  was  hastening 
on  to  a  new  phase  of  existence  ;  not  even  the  talents 
of  Pius  II.  could  avert  decay,  though  they  might 
arrest  it  for  the  moment. 

That  decay  went  on  rapidly  under  the  adminis-  b.  The 
tration  of  the  Popes  who  succeeded  Aeneas,  whose  T/^ffS^^ 

r  '  oj  Aeneas 

reigns  were  marked  principally  by  two  character-  ^v^'^i'^s, 
istics — the  deepest  moral  corruption,  which  alienated 
the  lingering  respect  of  Germany ;  and  a  petty 
intermeddling  in  politics,  which  reduced  the  Papacy 
from  its  mediaeval  position  as  a  sovereign  power  to 
its  modern  position  as  an  Italian  principality.  The 
former  of  these  characteristics  beo^an  at  once  on  the 
accession  of  Paul  11.;^  it  reached  its  climax  under 
Alexander  VI.  The  other  feature  shows  itself  also 
under  the  next  succeeding  Popes,  but  was  most  openly 
displayed  in  the  pontificate  of  the  warlike  Julius  II. 

The  first  days  of  the  rule  of  Paul  II.  were  distin-  {\)  Morai 
guished  by  a  violent  repudiation  of  the  conditions  of  tioZ 
his  election.^     He  had  sworn  not  only  to  inaugurate  ^^j  ^'^^^ 
many  other  reforms,  but  also  to  continue  the  expe-       a.d. 
dition  against  the  Turks  ;  to  correct  the  morals  of    "^  '^  ^ 
the  court ;  to  convene  a  general  council  within  three 
years  ;    not   to    increase   the    number   of   cardinals 
beyond  twenty-four ;  to  choose  out  worthy  men  for 
the  office,  and  only  to  elevate  one  of  his  own  family; 


'   Paul  II.  succeeded  Pius  II.  August  1464,  and  died  July  147 1. 
His  life  in  Labbe,  xix.  174. 

^  See  the  Capitulation  in  Raynald,  1458,  No.  5. 


528 


PART 
III. 


(d)  Sixtus 
IV. 

A.D. 
I471-I484 


(a)  Treat- 
ment of 
Flore7ice. 
1478 


0^) 

Ferrara. 


1482 


(y)  Venice. 
1483 


LAST   YEARS   OF  THE  MEDIAEVAL   PAPACY. 

not  to  depose  abbots  and  bishops  at  the  request  of 
princes,  and  to  allow  the  cardinals  to  meet  twice  a 
year  to  see  that  these  conditions  were  carried  into 
effect.  But  his  promises  were  violated.  His  flat- 
terers represented  to  him  that  the  vicar  of  Christ 
could  not  be  bound  by  earthly  conditions  ;  and 
partly  by  threats,  and  partly  by  persuasions,  the 
cardinals  were  brought  to  sign  new  rules,  declaring 
the  former  ones  void. 

The  one  object  of  his  successor,  Sixtus  IV.,^  was 
to  raise  his  family  from  their  low  estate  to  the 
highest  rank.  To  attain  this  object  he  sacrificed 
everything — honour,  justice,  principle,  ecclesiastical 
censures,  morality.  Lending  himself  to  the  designs 
of  his  nephew,  Jerome  Riario,  he  upheld  the  con- 
spiracy of  the  Pazzi  against  the  Medici  in  Florence. 
When  this  conspiracy  had  failed,  he  visited  Florence 
with  spiritual  weapons,  and  called  in  upon  her  the 
arms  of  Naples.  Ferrara  next  attracted  the  cove- 
tousness  of  his  nephew  :  and  forthwith  Sixtus  was 
allied  with  Venice  to  overturn  the  dominion  of  the 
House  of  Este  there.  Then  his  nephew  changed 
sides ;  the  offer  of  a  pension  for  three  years  of 
40,000  aurel  was  more  than  his  avarice  could  resist ; 
and  now  Sixtus  excommunicated  Venice.  But  when 
Venice  was  so  successful  that  her  enemies  were 
obliged  so  make  peace  notwithstanding  her  excom- 
munication, chagrin  at  the  failure  of  his  plans 
hastened  his  end,  and  he  died  on  August  12,  1484. 


'  Sixtus  IV.  was  Pope  from  August  9,  147 1  to  August  12,  1484. 
His  life  in  Labb^,  xix.  371. 


SUCCESSOT^S   OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS.  ^29 

The  moral  corruption  of  the  Papacy  seems  now     chap, 

XVI 

to  mcrease  with  each  succeeding  Pontiff.      In  fact, 1- 

the  possession  of  the  See  was  regarded  simply  as  an  ^2^^  vni. 
instrument  of  aorcrrandlsement  for  the  family  of  the  ^^.d. 
fortunate  occupant.  In  this  spirit,  Innocent  VIII. ^ 
— a  misnomer  commemorated  in  the  epigram  of  the 
day^ — in  defiance  of  the  conditions  of  his  election, 
employed  his  place  as  a  lever  to  exalt  and  enrich  his 
seven  illegitimate  children.  On  the  fourth  day  after 
his  election,  there  was  a  scramble  for  office.  In  the 
same  spirit  Innocent  allowed  himself  to  be  bribed  by 
an  annual  payment  from  the  Turkish  sultan  to  detain 
In  prison  Dschem,  the  sultan's  brother  and  rival, 
although  the  latter  was  burning  to  head  an  army 
against  Bajazet,  and  might  have  secured  many  suc- 
cesses to  the  Christian  cause. 

But  nothing  can  compare  with  the  career  of  the 
Infamous  Alexander  VI.,^  the  most  depraved  of  all 
the  Popes,  unitino-  In  himself  at  once  the  vices  of 
Innocent  VIII.,  and  the  unscrupulous  famuy  am-  anderVl. 
bition  of  Sixtus  IV.  His  election  was  secured  by  ^492-1503 
bribery,  and  his  administration  of  office  was  In  keep- 
ing with  this  beginning.  Any  and  everything  was 
permitted  if  it  were  only  paid  for.  It  became  pro- 
verbial that  for  money  anything  might  be  had — the 


'   Innocent  VIII.  was  Pope  from  August  20,  1484,  to  July  25, 
1492.     See  Labbe,  xix.  403. 
2         '  Octo  Nocens  pueros  genuit,  totidemque  puellas  ; 

'  Hunc  merito  poterit  Roma  vocare  patrem.' 
'  Alexander  VI.  was  Pope  from  August  ii,  1492,  to  August  18, 
1503.     See  LabbS,  xix.  523. 

M  M 


r^O  LAST    YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 

PART     keys,  altars,  Christ  himself.^     Everything  was  made 

'. subservient  to  the  promotion  of  his  five  illegitimate 

children.  His  daughter,  Lucretia,  was  separated 
from  her  former  husband,  the  widower  being  in- 
demnified with  money  for  the  loss  of  his  wife ;  she 
was  anew  married  to  Alexander,  Lord  of  Pezaro  ; 
when  deserted  by  the  Lord  of  Pezaro,  she  was  next 
given  to  a  natural  son  of  Alfonso  of  Aragon,  and  on 
his  death  to  Alfonso  of  Este,  Lord  of  Ferrara.  On 
his  younger  son  was  conferred  a  dukedom  in  Sicily ; 
on  his  elder  a  dukedom  in  Spain.  His  favourite 
son,  Caesar  Borgia,  was  advanced  to  the  cardinalate 
before  he  had  attained  to  years  of  discretion.  In 
return  for  large  gifts  bestowed  on  his  children,  the 
Pope  espoused  the  cause  of  Ferdinand  of  Naples 
against  France,  threatening  the  French  king  with 
excommunication,  and  invoking  the  aid  of  the  Turks 
against  him.  When,  however,  Charles  V H  I.  appeared 
in  Rome,  he  immediately  went  over  to  his  side,  and 
poisoned  his  prisoner,  Dschem,  lest  he  should  lose 
the  price  offered  for  his  head.  And  when  the  new 
King  of  Naples  refused  to  satisfy  the  extravagant 
demands  of  Caesar  Borgia,  proposals  were  made  to 
Lewis  XH.,  King  of  France,  to  overwhelm  Naples. 
No  means  were  left  untried  which  could  contribute 
towards  his  favourite  project,  that  of  creating  for 
A.D.  1498  Caesar  an  independent  princiiDality.  He  was  re- 
leased   from    his    ecclesiastical    profession  ;   he   was 

•  The  epigram  : 

'  Vendit  Alexander  claves,  altaria,  Christum  : 
'  Jure  quidem  vendit  :  emerat  ipse  prius.' 


SC/CCESSOJiS   OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS. 


531 


made  general  captain  and  gonfalonier  of  the  Roman     chap. 

•  XVI 

Church;   he  was  raised  by  the  French  king,  Louis  '— 

XII.,  to  the  dukedom  of  Valentinois,  to  secure  which  ^'^.os 
Alexander  had  sanctioned  the  divorce  of  Louis  from 
his  wife  ;  he  was  supported  by  a  French  army  in 
vanquishing  the  powerful  vassals  of  the  Roman  See, 
Naples  being  in  return  handed  over  to  the  tender 
mercies  of  Spain  and  France.  But  the  newly- 
created  state  of  Caesar  Borgia  was  short-lived  ;  a 
principality  founded  on  injustice  could  not  last.  No 
sooner  was  Alexander  VI.  dead,  than  his  kino-dom 
fell  to  pieces,  some  portions  submitting  to  their 
banished  lords,  some  to  the  Pope,  some  falling  a 
prey  to  the  conquering  arms  of  Venice. 

Meantime  the  luxury,   avarice,  and  vices  of  the  (^)  '^ices 
papal  court  knew  no  bounds.     Benefices  and  ecclesi-  Cojcrt. 
astical   dignities   were  sold  by  public   auction  ;  pro- 
motion, marriage,  divorce,  all  might  be  secured  for 
money.     A  contemporary  writer  ^  describes  how  the 

^  The  letter  was  addressed,  in  1502,  to  Sylvius  de  Labellis, 
given  by  Burgh ardus  in  Eccard.  ii.  p.  2144  :  '  Haec  tibi  in  pub- 
licis  principum  conventibus  enarranda  .  .  .  frustra  queri  Christi- 
anam  religionem  de  Mahometo  antique  ejus  hoste  .  .  .  cum  iste 
novus  Mahometus  omni  criminum  foeditati  ilium  longe  super- 
averit  :  .  .  .  venisse  tempora,  quibus  jam  Antichristus  .  .  .  ap- 
pareat.  .  .  .  Jam  beneficia  et  dignitates  ecclesiasticas  .  .  .  pub- 
lica  venditione  dissipari,  et  illis  solummodo  cedere,  qui  aperta 
emptione  plus  pecuniarum  quam  caeteri  largiuntur.  .  .  .  Omnia 
jam  apud  Pontificem  esse  venalia,  dignitates,  honores,  matrimo- 
niorum  copulas,  eorundem  solutiones,  divortia  et  repvidia  uxorum. 
.  .  .  Nihil  esse  jam  scelerum  aut  flagitiorum,  quod  non  Romae 
publice  et  in  Pontificis  domo  committatur  :  superatos  esse  Scythas 
latrociniis,  Poenos  perfidia,  immanitate  et  saevitia  Nerones  et 
Caios  :  nam  caedes,  rapinas,  stupra  et  incestus  referre,  innumeri 
et  infiniti  prope  operis  fore.  .  .  .  Longum  esset  prosequi  .  .  . 

M  IM    2 


532 


PART 
III. 


LAST   YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL   PAPACY. 

Scythian  love  of  plunder,  the  Carthaginian  absence 
of  faith,  the  cruelty  of  a  Nero  and  Caligula  were 
surpassed  at  Rome ;  how  murder,  robbery,  lust,  and 
incest  were  things  of  every  day  occurrence  ;  how  the 
Palace  of  St.  Peter  was  thronged  by  prostitutes  and 
pimps ;  how  brothels  everywhere  abounded  ;  how  at 
a  banquet  given  in  the  Lateran  palace  on  the  Festival 
of  All  Hallows,  fifty  of  the  most  notorious  courtesans 
were  invited  to  take  part ;  how  the  Pontiff  and  his 
sons  amused  themselves  by  watching  the  loves  of 
animals  ;  how  indulgences  were  sold  and  the  right 
of  spoils,  ostensibly  in  the  prospect  of  a  war  with  the 
Turks,  but  really  as  a  means  of  gain  ;  and  how  the 
ancient  lords  of  Latlum  were  either  murdered  or 
ousted  from  their  possessions  in  order  that  on  their 
ruin  the  Pope's  illegitimate  offspring,  when  they  had 


*  qui  vel  interfecti,  vel  vulnerati,  vel  vivi  in  Tiberim  dejecti,  aut 
'  veneno  consumpti  sunt :  .  .  .  Nemo  in  urbe  est  etiam  privatae 
'  fortunae,  qui  sibi  et  suis  jam  non  timeat.  Quis  horrenda  libi- 
'  dinum  monstra  enarrare  non  formidet,  quae  aperte  jam  in  illius 

*  domo  et  spreta  Dei  atque  hominum  reverentia  committuntur ; 

*  quot  stupra,  quot  incestus,  quot  filiorum  et  filiarum  sordes,  quot 
'  per  Petri  palatium  meretricum,  quot  lenonum  greges  atque  con- 
'  cursus,  prostibula  atque  lupanaria.  Feria  Novembris  solennibus 
'  omnium  Sanctorum  caerimoniis  dedicata  quinquaginta  meretrices 
'  urbanae  ad  convivium  in  palatium  vocatae  foedissimum  et  detes- 
'  tabilissimum  spectaculum  praebuere  :  et  ut  ad  irritandum  exem- 

*  pla  non  deessent,  actitata  est  sequentibus  diebus  in  publicum 
'  spectaculum  equa,  quae  spectante  cum  filiis  Pontifice  intromissos 
'  admissarios  nimio  Veneris  ardore  concitatos  in  furorem  et  rabiem 
'  converteret.  .  .  .  Pulsos  esse  sedibus  veteres  incolas,  maximam 
'  urbis  nobilitatem  proscriptione  atque  exilio  obligatam,  antiquos 
'  Latii  dominos  suis  fortunis  et  possessionibus  privatos,  ut  ex 
'  eorum  cladibus  Pontificis  eidem  filii  et  nepotes,  ex  incestuoso 
'  partu  adhuc  in  cunis  vagientes,  ad  regna  et  opes  promoverentur.' 


S[/CC£SSO/iS   OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS.  r^i 

hardly  been  born,  might  be  raised  to  place  and  wealth,     chap. 
The  picture  is  not  overdrawn.    That  conduct  brought  L_ 


its  own  retribution.  Alexander  fell  a  victim  to  the 
poison  which  he  had  prepared  for  a  rich  cardinal,  in 
order  to  make  himself  master  of  his  wealth. 

One  other  epoch  in  the  history  of  the  Papacy  can  (/)  The 
alone  compare  with  this  in  point  of  moral  corrup-  thf^ 
tion, — the  epoch  which  set  in  after  the  extinction  of  ^^-^^^->'- 
the  Carolingians  and  which  terminated  with  the  888-1046 
appearance  of  Henry  III.  in  Italy.  Both  epochs 
resemble  one  another  in  the  position  which  they 
occupy  in  history.  One  came  at  the  close  of  the 
age  of  growth  ;  the  other  at  the  close  of  the  age  of 
decline.  Both  epochs  were  forerunners  of  a  change. 
Both  stimulated  re-action.  With  the  last  of  the 
Carolingians  ended  the  age  of  voluntary  contract 
between  the  Popes  and  the  Western  emperors. 
From  the  night  of  corruption  which  followed 
emerged  the  Hildebrandian  era,  usherinof  in  the  aofe 
of  the  Pope's  compulsory  sovereignty.  That  sove- 
reignty had  since  then  reached  its  zenith  and  de- 
clined. Now  the  night  of  moral  corruption  had 
again  set  in.  When  the  day  of  the  Reformation 
supervened,  it  found  no  longer  the  old  mediaeval 
Papacy  existing  and  universally  acknowledged,  for 
the  moral  weight  which  formed  its  last  prop  was  gone; 
but  it  found  the  modern  Papacy  exercising  a  divided 
sway  over  a  part  of  Europe,  still  high  in  its  preten- 
sions, but  those  pretensions  a  shadow,  since  they 
were  recognised  by  none  but  its  voluntary  adherents. 

The   other  feature   which    characterises    the  Me-  (2)  Poii- 

diaeval  Papacy  in  the  last  years  of  its  decline  was  its  grada- 
tion. 


c^4  LAST   YEARS  OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 

PART     political   degradation — a  degradation  consisting  not 
'       merely  in  the  loss  of  political  influence,  but  in  an  inter- 


meddling in  politics  as  a  territorial  princedom,  on  an 

equality    with    other    petty    principalities.      Already 

(.?)  Paul    Paul  II.,  as  Pope,  had  found  it  necessary  to  carry  on 

Aicxan-     an  inccssant  negotiation  with   Ferdinand    King    of 

der  VL      Naples,  who  desired  a  release  from  his  feudal  tribute. 

A.D.  -     ,    .  .  .        . 

1464-1503  In  the  latter  years   of  his   reign  negotiations   gave 
^"^^^      place  to  open  warfare.    Innocent  VIII.  was  involved 
1492      in  similar  disputes.      He  carried  on   two  wars  with 
Ferdinand  King  of  Naples,  and  brought  forward  the 
Duke  of  Lorraine  as  pretender  to  his  crown.     The 
attempts  of  Sixtus  IV.  and  Alexander  VI.    to  pro- 
cure principalities  for  their  families  had  not  placed 
the  See  of  Rome  in  a  better  position.      It  appeared 
simply  one  among  many  smaller  states  seeking  for 
increase  of  territory.      It  forfeited  its  old  position  as 
a  supreme  sovereign    power.      Its  counterpart,  the 
Empire,  had  shared  the  same  fate.     In  short,  Europe 
was  no  longer  united  either  civilly  or  religiously. 
{l^jiilms       Its  political  degradation  was,  however,  completed 
AD       ^y   Pops  Julius   II.,  who  succeeded  after  the  one 
1503-1513  month's  rule  of  Pius  111.^  to  the  chair  of  St.  Peter, 
teinpts  to    and  distinguished  himself  as  much  by  his  warlike 
/^^^.  propensities  as  his  predecessors  had  done  by  their 

viagna.  luxury  and  vices.  It  was  the  intention  of  Julius  II. 
to  recover  all  that  had  belonged  to  the  See  in  the 
time  of  Innocent  III.,   to  reduce  the  whole  of  the 

^  Pius  III.  was  elected  September  22,  1503.  He  died  October 
18  of  the  same  year.  Labbe,  xix.  535.  Julius  II.  succeeded  him, 
October  31,  1503,  and  died  February  21,  15 13.  His  life,  ibid. 
P-  535- 


SUCCESSOA'S   OF  AENEAS   SYLVIUS.  r3r 

Romagna  again   to  the  papal    dominion,    including     chap. 

Ravenna  and  Cervia  although  these  had  been  pos-   L_ 

sessed  by  the  Venetians  ^  for  more  than  a  century. 
The  results  of  his  intentions  were  a  long  series  of 
complications,  at  the  end  of  which  the  Pope  appeared 
to  have  quenched  the  hostile  spirit  awakened  at 
Constance  and  Basle,  but  had  really  only  suppressed 
its  display  by  entering  into  treaties  with  different 
princes.^  By  lending  his  sanction  to  the  principle  of 
national  Churches,  Julius  II.  signed  the  death- 
warrant  of  his  own  sovereign  power. 

In  carrying  out  his  projects,  Julius  II.  soon  met  (/3)  Hos- 
with  opposition  from  the  powerful  state  of  Venice.    vcfiJ. 
Perugia  and  Bologna  he  had  succeeded  in  wresting      a.d. 
from  their  lords ;  but  Venice  refused  to  surrender 
her  conquests  so  readily.     Accordingly,  the  league 
of  Cambray  was  concluded  against  her  by  the  Pope, 
the  emperor,  the  King  of  France,  and  the  King  of    j^^^  ^^^ 
Aragon.      In    this    league   both    the  Pope  and  the       '5°^ 
emperor  appear  as  national  sovereigns  on  a    level 
with    other    kings.     The   four   contracting    parties 
pledge    themselves    not   to    desist   from    war    until 


'  BoMBUS,  Hist.  Venet.  lib.  vii.  p.  273  :  Julius  threatened  the 
Venetians  with  the  severest  penalties  '  nisi  die  praestituta  non 
'  Faventiam  modo  atque  Ariminum,  sed  Ravennam  quoque  Cer- 
'  viamque  sibi  tradiderint  :  quae  quidem  oppida  centum  ferme 
'  annos  in  reipublicae  imperio  fuerant,  neque  ullus  ea  Pontifex 
'  Maximus  in  dubium  revocaverat,  quin  jure  a  republica  posside- 
'  rentur.' 

2  Thus  the  League  of  Cambray  was  concluded  December  10, 
1508,  between  the  Pope,  the  emperor,  the  Kings  of  France  and 
Aragon  against  Venice.  Raynald,  1509,  No.  4.  In  October 
151 1  Julius  concluded  a  close  aUiance  with  Venice  and  Spain. 


LAST   YEARS   OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 


PART 
III. 


July  lo, 
1510 


Aug.  9, 
1510 


Ravenna,  Cervia,  Faventia,  and  Rimini  had  been 
-  recovered  for  the  Pope  ;  until  Verona,  Padua,  and 
several  other  cities  beside  the  Patriarchate  of  Aqui- 
leia  had  been  restored  to  the  emperor;  until  the 
King  of  France  had  obtained  Brescia,  Bergomo, 
and  the  ancient  holdings  of  the  dukedom  of  Milan ; 
and  the  King  of  Aragon  had  secured  possession  of 
Brundisi,  Otranto,  and  other  parts  of  the  kingdom 
of  Naples  which  the  Venetians  had  also  appro- 
priated. 

Soon  Julius  11.  relented.  In  his  anxiety  to  gain 
power  for  himself  in  Italy,  he  found  that  he  was 
inviting  a  foreign  foe  into  the  country.  Alarmed  by 
the  success  attending  the  French  arms,  his  forgive- 
ness was  readily  accorded  to  Venice  ;  ^  and  he  next 
entered  into  a  treaty  with  Venice  to  oppose  the 
French  and  their  ally,  Alfonso,  Duke  of  Ferrara. 
In  acting  thus  he  appeared,  not  in  the  dignified 
position  of  an  arbiter,  but  in  that  of  a  local  prince, 
intent  upon  personal  aggrandisement.  And  this 
view  was  actually  taken  of  the  case  by  Louis  XII. 
of  France  and  the  emperor.  When  Julius  invested 
Ferdinand  the  Catholic  with  the  sole  dominion  of 
Naples,  declaring  that  the  French  king  had  forfeited 
his  claim  to  that  principality,  Louis  XII.,  following 
o  the  example  of  Philip  the  Fair,  convened  a  national 
council  at  Tours,  at  which  it  was  decided  that  the  king 
might  invade  the  states  of  the  Church,  and  renounce 
allegiance  to  a  Pope  who  acted  unjustly.^    When  the 


'  February  20,  15 10. 

2  The  Council  of  Tours  was  held  September  15 10,  and  replied 


I5I3 


S[/CCESSOJiS   OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS.  t-,y 

Pope  issued  a  sentence  of  condemnation  against  the    chap. 

Duke  of  Ferrara,  even  Germany  presented  a  long   L_ 

list  of  gravamina,  and  threatened  to  follow  the  ex- 
ample of  France,  and  to  enact  a  Pragmatic  Sanction. 
But  nothing  could  bend  the  obdurate  Julius  II.,  set 
on  establishing  the  territorial  sovereignty  of  the  Pope 
in  Italy.  When,  therefore,  the  King  of  France  and 
the  emperor  summoned  a  general  council  at  Pisa,^  a.d. 
Julius  II.  retorted  by  convoking  a  Lateran  Council  at  ^Jj.j'j  ^,^^ 
Rome,^  which  continued  to  sit  for  several  years,  and 
by  concluding  a  closer  alliance  than  before  with 
Venice  and  Spain. 

The  success  which  now  attended  the  cause  of  if)  Leo  x. 
Julius  II.  only  display,  in  a  still  clearer  light,  the 
decline  of  the  Pope's  international  power.  For 
successful  Julius  undoubtedly  was.  By  the  arms 
of  the  Swiss  the  French  were  driven  from  Italy  ; 
the  emperor  declared  himself  on  the  side  of  the 
Pope ;  ^   the  Pragmatic    Sanction  was  condemned,^ 

to  the  questions  proposed  to  it  as  follows,  Labbe,  xix.  557.  The 
first  question  :  '  An  liceat  Papae  bellum  inferre  Principibus  tem- 
'  poralibus,  in  terris  quae  non  sunt  de  patrimonio  Ecclesiae  ? '  it 
replied  :  '  Conclusum  fuit  unanimiter  per  concilium,  Papam  nee 
'  posse,  nee  debere.'  To  the  second  question  :  'An  liceat  Prin- 
'  cipi  defendenti  se,  suaque,  non  solum  propulsare  armis  ejusmodi 

*  injuriam,  sed  etiam  invadere  tenas  ecclesiae  possessas  a  papa 

*  notorio  hoste  suo  ? '  it  replied  :  '  Principem  hoc  posse.'    To  the 
third  question  :  'An  ob  tale  odium   notorium  et  aggressionem 
'  injustam,  liceat  tali  principi  se  subtrahere  ab  obedientia  hujus 
'  modi  pontificis  .  .  .  ? '  it  gave  an  affirmative  answer. 

'  Concil.  Pisan.  September  151 1,  Labbe,  xix.  562. 

2  The  Acts,  ibid.  p.  666. 

3  See  the  Mandatum    Maximiliani,   September    i,    15 12,  ibid. 

P-  732- 

^  At  Sessio  iv.  the  Monitorium  contra  Pragmaticam,  ibid.  p.  750. 


c-^S  LAST    YEARS   OF   THE   MEDIAEVAL   PAPACY. 

PART     and  the  whole  realm  of  France  was  placed  under  ex- 

' communication.    To  serve  his  own  ends,  Louis  XII. 

even  went  so  far  as  to  give  in  his  adherence  to  the 
Lateran  Council,  and  to  abrogate  the  Pragmatic  Sanc- 
tion.^ But  it  was  only  an  act  of  temporary  policy 
done  at  the  accession  of  a  new  Pope  by  a  weak  king, 
and  intended  to  produce  a  better  feeling  between 
two  courts,  neither  of  which  any  longer  regarded  the 
other  except  as  in  the  light  of  an  equal.     Two  years 

A.D.  1515  later  Francis  I.  came  to  the  throne  ;  and  entered 
Italy  with  irresistible  force.  Leo  X.,  more  prudent 
than  his  predecessor,  Julius,  concluded  a  treaty  of 

Oct.  13,  peace  with  him  without  delay  ;  and  the  Pope  and  the 
king,  meeting  as  two  equal  sovereigns,  drew  up  a 
concordat,  by  which  they  shared  between  them  the 
ancient  liberties  of  the  Galilean  Church.^    The  rising 


'  Mandatum  Regis  Francorum   in  Labbe,   xix.   832,  October 

1513- 

2  Promulgated  by  Leo  X.  in  15 16  at  Sessio  xi.  in  the  Bull: 
Primitiva  ilia  ecclesia,  Labb£,  xix.  948.  The  following  are  the 
chief  points  in  the  concordat,  ibid.  p.  950,  d  :  '  Quod  cathedra- 
'  libus  et  metropolitanis  ecclesiis  in  regno  ...  ad  electionem  seu 
'  postulationem  futuri  praelati  procedere  non  possint  :  sed  illarum 
'  occurrente  hujusmodi  vacatione,  rex  Franciae  pro  tempore  exist- 
'  ens  unum  gravem  Magistrum  seu  Licentiatum  in  theologia,  aut 
'  in  utroque,  seu  in  altero  jurium  doctorem,  ...  in  universitate 
'  famosa  .  .  .  et  in  vigesimo  septimo  suae  aetatis  anno  ad  minus 
'  constitutum  .  .  .  infra  sex  menses  a  die  vacationis  ecclesiarum 
'  earumdem  computandos,  nobis  et  successoribus  nostris  Romanis 
'  pontificibus,  .  .  .  sedi  praedictae  nominare  .  .  .  Ibid.  p.  952,  b: 
'■  Volumus  quoque  et  ordinamus  quod  in  regno  praedicto  .  .  .  de 
'  cetero  non  dentur  aliquae  gratiae  exspectativae,  ac  speciales 
'  vel  generales  reservationes  ad  vacatura  beneficia.  Statuiraus 
'  insuper,  quod  ordinarus  collator  in  unaquaque  cath^edrali  .  .  . 
'  canonicatum  ac   praebendam  theologialem  inibi  consistentem, 


SlO)l. 


SUCCESSORS   OF  AENEAS  SYLVIUS.  e  ^g 

freedom  of  the  laity  was  thereby  crushed  ;  the  Pope     chap. 

XVI 

recovered  most  of  his  ancient  power.      Nevertheless,  '— 

at  that  very  moment  the  Pope  was  little  more  than 
a  dependent  Italian  sovereign.  The  privileges  which 
he  gained  at  Bologna  were  not  obtained  by  the 
moral  compulsion  which  the  Papacy  had  exercised 
in  the  days  of  its  greatness,  but  by  the  voluntary 
grant  of  the  French  king,  Francis  I.  The  grant  was 
an  act  of  policy,  intended  to  serve  the  private  ends 
of  a  monarch  who  was  prepared  to  make  con- 
cessions to  the  venerable  but  powerless  grandeur  of 
the  Papacy,  in  return  for  gaining  a  greater  power 
himself 

Thus  was  the  work  of   Gregory  VII.,  of  Inno-  Conclu- 
cent  III.,  and  of  Boniface   VIII.  undone;  and  the 
See   of  Rome    deprived    of  the  place  it  once  had 


'  conferre  teneatur  uni  Magistro  .  .  .  seu  Baccalaureo  formato  in 
'  Theologia.'  The  decree  of  the  Council  of  Basle  is  here  repeated 
(see  Chap.  xv.  p.  504,  note  ')  :  '  Praefatique  ordinarii  .  .  .  ultra  dic- 
'  tarn  praebendam  theologalem  .  .  .  tertiam  partem  omnium  dig- 
'  nitatum  .  .  .  viris  literatis,  graduatis  et  per  universitates  nomi- 
'  natis  hoc  modo,  videlicet  primo  mense  post  praesentium  accep- 
'  tationem  .  .  .  graduatis  hujusmodi,  qui  literas  suorum  graduum 
'  cum  tempore  studii  debite  insinuaverint,  conferre  teneantur. 
'  Beneficia  vero  quae  in  duobus  sequentibus  mensibus  vacare  con- 
'  tigerit  .  .  .  personis  idoneis  libere  conferre  .  .  .  possint'  Jbid. 
p.  955,  c  :  '  Statuimus  quoque,  quod  parochiales  ecclesiae  in  civi- 
'  tatibus  aut  villis  muratis  existentes  non  nisi  personis  modo  prae- 
*  misso  qualificatis  .  .  .  conferantur.'  Ibid,  e  :  '  Statuimus  quo- 
'  que  et  ordinamus,  quod  quihbet  Romanus  Pontifex  semel  dum- 
'  taxat  sui  pontificatus  literas  in  forma  mandati  .  .  .  dare  possit. 
'  .  .  .'  Other  articles  refer  to  appellations,  to  the  peaceable  pos- 
session of  benefices,  to  the  concubinage  of  the  clergy,  to  those 
excommunicate,  to  the  use  of  the  interdict,  to  the  forms  of  resign- 
ing benefices,  to  the  duration  of  the  concordat. 


LAST   YEARS  OF   THE  MEDIAEVAL  PAPACY. 

held.  The  poHtical  supremacy  of  the  Popes,  after 
growing  from  the  time  of  Gregory  I.  to  that  of 
Innocent  III.,  had  been  swept  away  during  their 
residence  at  Avignon.  Their  ecclesiastical  supre- 
macy was  on  the  decline,  and,  since  the  Great  Schism 
and  the  independent  Councils  of  Constance  and 
Basle,  had  only  been  upheld  by  extraneous  support. 
Their  moral  influence  too  was  gone,  the  court  having 
become  a  scandal  to  Christendom.  Once  more  they 
were  reduced  to  the  position  of  patriarchs  of  the 
West ;  but  not  for  long.  The  vices  of  Rome  were 
too  enormous  ;  the  abuses  to  which  she  leant  her 
countenance  were  too  crying.  Already,  whilst  Leo  X. 
and  Francis  I.  were  partitioning  between  themselves 
the  liberties  of  the  Galilean  Church,  the  day  of  up- 
heaval was  at  hand.  Disgusted  with  her  political 
intrigues,  repulsed  by  her  presumptuous  intolerance, 
and  smarting  under  the  oppression  of  her  avarice 
and  extortions,  the  Teutonic  nations  emancipated 
themselves  from  the  fetters  which  she  had  forged  ; 
and  their  indignation,  when  it  did  burst  forth,  was 
long  and  loud.  Vitiated  and  corrupted,  Rome  lost 
her  old  place  as  head  of  the  Western  Patriarchate ; 
many  of  her  adherents  renouncing  henceforth  her 
connection  altogether.  In  acting  thus,  they  no  doubt 
consulted  their  own  interests,  perhaps  yielding  to 
Inevitable  circumstances  ;  but  certainly  they  com- 
mitted an  act  full  of  sad  consequences  for  Europe. 
The  Papacy  thenceforth  became  simply  an  Italian 
power,  to  which  those  nations  only  who  so  willed 
gave  in  their  allegiance.  On  the  other  hand,  the 
denial  of  its  claims  led  to  a  re-action  in  its  favour,  and 


SUCCESSORS    OF  AENEAS   SYLVIUS. 


541 


a  wild  enthusiasm  in   its    supporters,  unable  to  dis-    chap 

tinguish  between  the  present  and  the  past.      From  

them  it  has  caught  the  note  of  exultation,  and,  con- 
tinually excluding  the  greater  and  more  independent 
minds,  the  modern  Papacy  has  advanced  its  claims 
in  proportion  as  its  power  diminished,  and  sought,  by 
keeping  those  whom  it  still  possesses  in  the  most 
abject  state  of  spiritual  slavery,  to  prevent  further 
defection  from  its   ranks.      But   all   to  no  purpose. 
Like  the  Empire,  it  has  survived  for  centuries  after 
its  real   work  was   over ;  like   the   Empire,  its   final 
doom    appears   to    be    impending    in    some   sudden 
revolution,  which  will  obliterate  it  for  ever.      Mean- 
time it  lives  like  the  venerable  trunk  of  a  decaying 
oak,  braving  the  storm  for  centuries  ;  its  life  spared, 
not  from  its  own  intrinsic  strength,  defying  the  teeth 
of  time,  but  from  a  respect  (v/liich  who  would  not 
feel  ?)  for  its  hoary   antiquity,  and  all  the  hallowed 
associations  which  gather  about  its  name.     For  to 
the  Papacy  in  its  earlier  days  Europe  owed  and  still 
owes  a  debt,  which  should  never  be  forgotten  nor 
ignored  under  the  smart  of  subsequent  extravagances. 
To  Rome  she  owes  the  zeal  which  once  visited  this 
continent  when  covered  with  forests  and  marshes,  the 
abode  of  bison  and  elk,  tenanted  by  ignorant  barba- 
rians, worshipping  Odin  and  Thor,  and  Frigga  and 
Tiu.    To  Rome  she  owes  the  elements  of  civilisation, 
and   the   curbing  of  the   fiercer   spirits  which  once 
reigned  supreme,  the  diffusion  of  a  gentler  spirit  over 
her  life,  and  her  training  for  future  greatness. 


542 


THE  n  REARING   UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EM  FIFE. 


CHAPTER    XVII. 

THE  BREAKING    UF   OF  THE  HOLY  EM  FIRE. 
(1303—1515-) 


Et  £1-1171  f  signa  in  sole,  et  lima,  d  sicllis,  ct  hi  tcrris  pressitra  gcntmvi  prae 
coufnsio7ie  sonihis  maris  et  fatchnim. — Luc.  XXI.  25. 


PART  ''  1  ^HE   two  centuries  which    intervened  between 

X     the  death  of  Boniface  VIII.  and  the  election 

sition  of  Leo  X.  wcre  critical  centuries  for  the  ties  which 

^cimfcir  connected  the  Church  and  the  State.     At  the  death 

andstatc.  of  Boniface  VIII.,  the  idea  of  the  Holy  Empire  or 

national  the  Imperial  Catholic  Church  still  existed,  partially 

^^Jfjl^'^  realised  ;  at   the  election  of  Leo  X.  all  reality  had 

Fope  and  passed  away  ;  and  thenceforth  it  only  exercised  suffi- 

Enipcror. 

cient  strength  to  produce  among  the  divided  nations 
of  Europe  national  churches,  imitating  the  example 
of  the  great  Imperial  Church  of  the  Middle  Ages. 
Those  two  centuries  were  therefore  a  period  of 
transition.  When  they  began,  the  emperor  was  the 
only  great  sovereign  of  Europe  ;  when  they  closed, 
he  had  been  reduced  to  the  rank  of  a  German  king. 
When  they  began,  the  Pope  was  the  supreme  eccle- 
siastical sovereign  of  the  West ;  when  they  ended, 
the  Pope  had  come  down  to  the  level  of  an  Italian 
bishop,  obliged  to  rely  on  foreigners  for  the  security 
of  his  own  domains,  and  to  make  concessions  to  his 


TRANSITION  PERIOD.  r.^ 

adherents,  in  order  to  be  sure  of  their  allegiance.    The     chap. 
age  in  which  the  Pope  and  emperor  were  sovereigns  ' 

of  the  West,  was  fast  passing  into  the  age  in  which 
they  were  only  national  sovereigns.  The  old  order 
was  passing  away  to  give  rise  to  a  new  order  of 
things.  Well,  therefore,  may  this  epoch  be  described 
as  the  epoch  of  the  international  position  of  the 
Papacy  and  the  Empire ;  both  having  ceased  to 
be  supreme  sovereigns  of  Christendom,  neither 
having  as  yet  become  simply  national  powers,  but 
each  exercising  over  other  sovereigns  an  influence 
resting  on  prestige  rather  than  on  the  power  of 
compulsion. 

For   whilst   the    belief  in   the    Empire   and   the  («)  Sense 

-n  1  ,  •      ^        •  in  wJiich 

Papacy  was  by  no  means  extmct,  circumstances  theirposi- 
were  separating  the  inhabitants  of  Europe  into  dis-  ^47tV^^^ 
tinct  nations,  and  calling  into  -being  national  churches  national. 
to  correspond  with  these  nations.  Growing  up  in 
proportion  as  the  Empire  and  the  Papacy  declined ; 
rising  even  to  power  by  wresting  their  prerogatives ; 
these  nations  henceforth  claimed  sovereign  powers  for 
themselves,  whilst  they  continued  for  some  centuries 
to  look  up  with  feelings  of  reverence  to  the  emperor 
and  the  Pope,  and  even  allowed  their  conciliatory 
intervention  in  cases  which  could  not  be  otherwise 
settled.  In  short,  the  emperor  and  the  Pope  were 
recognised  as  international  powers  ;  their  further 
claims  were  disallowed.  Unfortunately,  they  could 
not  rest  satisfied  with  this  position.  As  their  power 
diminished,  their  pretensions  increased,  and  the  Pon- 
tiff, who  was  himself  the  most  abject  minion  of  a 
French   king,  claimed  the   right  to   dispose   of   the 


544 


THE  BREAKING    UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART 
III. 


(p)  Policy 
an  c-vi- 
dence  of 
their 
position. 


Roman  Empire/  just  as  the  most  contemptible  of  all 
the  emperors  ^^  lent  himself  to  the  project  of  deposing 
two  rival  Popes. 

The  loss  of  absolute  supremacy  on  the  part  of 
both  the  Pope  and  the  emperor  may  be  best  seen 
by  looking  at  the  instrument  which  both  now  began 
to  employ,  and  which  is  a  clear  sign  of  an  equal 
dealing  with  an  equal,  if  not  of  an  inferior  dealing 
with  a  superior.  Policy  was  their  watchword.  By 
policy  they  now  endeavoured  to  secure  what  formerly 
they  had  obtained  by  an  exercise  of  power.  From 
the  time  of  Henry  VII.,  policy  was  the  leading  cha- 
racteristic of  the  Empire,  as  it  was  of  the  Papacy 
from  the  time  of  Clement  V.  The  concessions  of 
Benedict  XI.  were  made  under  the  influence  of 
policy,  quite  as  much  as  were  those  of  Charles  IV.^ 
to  obtain  the  electoral  votes,  or  those  of  Frederic  III. 
to  obtain  the  papal  coronation.*  The  whole  history 
of  the  Popes  since  their  residence  at  Avignon  has 
been  seen  to  be  involved  in  considerations  of  policy, 
of  which  Pius  II.  is  a  striking  illustration.  Julius  II. 
distinguished  himself  for  his  unscrupulous  diplomacy. 


'  Clement  V.  in  his  Bull,  dated  March  21,  1314,  Raynald, 
ad  an.  1314,  No.  2  (quoted  by  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  98,  p.  18)  :  '  Nos, 
'  ad  quos  Romani  vacantis  Imperii  regnum  pertinere  dignoscitur, 
'  attendentes,  quam  avide  Italiae  partes,  praesertim  quae  ad  Im- 
'  perium  ipsum  pertinent,  rectorem  exigant,  .  .  .  tu  de  fratrum 
'  nostrorum  consilio  in  partibus  ipsis  .  .  .  vicarium  in  tempora- 
'  libus  usque  ad  sedis  apostolicae  beneplacitum  constituimus 
*  generalem,'  etc. 

2  Wenceslaus.     See  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  106,  p.  iii. 

^  See  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec.  100,  p.  62. 

*  Ibid.  sec.  133,  p.  348. 


TRANSITION  PERIOD.  c^r 

And  the  emperors,  bound  to  respect  the  immunities     chap. 

of  their  electors,  and  thwarted  in  every  attempt  to   -1 L_ 

recover  their  lost  rights  or  lands,  could  only  by  fol- 
lowing a  similar  course,  and  trusting  to  policy,  either 
obtain  the  dignity  at  all,  or  indemnify  themselves 
when  elected  for  the  difficulties  of  election. 

Whilst  the    Popes  and   the   emperors   were  thus 
placed  in  the  same  situation,  the  latter,  crippled  by  ^  ip  _ 
the    conditions  imposed  at    their   election,  and    not  of  both  as 

i'lter- 

quite  so  unscrupulous  as  their  ecclesiastical  rivals,  national 
withdrew  from  this  strange  position,  and  confined 
themselves  exclusively  to  the  government  of  Ger- 
many. Not  so  the  Popes,  who  still  aspired  to  uni- 
versal sovereignty.  But  whilst  this  position  gave  to 
the  Popes  a  better  opportunity  of  acting  as  inter- 
national judges,  the  condition  of  the  Papacy  gave 
them  all  the  less  chance  of  success.  At  one  time 
they  were  denizens  in  a  foreign  country  ;  then  the 
Papacy  was  distracted  by  a  schism ;  again  it  was  at 
war  with  councils  called  to  heal  the  schism,  and  then 
sunk  in  indifference  and  vice ;  until  men  turned 
away  from  the  Popes  with  disgust,  as  they  turned 
away  from  the  emperors  with  pity.  They  found  the 
tribunals,  which  should  have  been  international  in 
secular  and  religious  matters,  either  unable  or  un- 
willing to  busy  themselves  with  disputes  between 
the  rising  nations  of  Europe,  and  hence  they  were 
thrown  back  on  themselves.  Political  disputes  had 
to  be  fought  out  on  the  battle  field,  and  religious 
disputes  in  the  field  of  books  ;  each  nation,  mean- 
time, settled  for  itself  its  constitution  and  religious 
creed. 

N  N 


r  .5  ^^^  BREAKING    UP   OF  THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART         The  consolidation  of  distinct  nations,  and  the  rise 
^"'       of  national   Churches,  went  hand  in  hand  together ; 


^offmtTon-  ari<i  although  both  these  processes  were  not  com- 
^and^  pleted  until  the  end  of  the  fifteenth  century,  still,  in 
iional  the  two  preceding  centuries,  they  were  going  on, 
and  nearing  completion.  Out  of  the  ruins  of  the 
Holy  Empire  the  political  distinctions  of  Modern 
Europe  have  grown.  Out  of  those  same  ruins 
national  Churches  have  been  developed,  and  were 
being  developed,  long  before  the  actual  crisis  came. 
Already,  during  the  residence  of  the  Popes  at 
Avignon,  France  appears  as  a  distinct  nation,  giving 
a  bias  to  the  papal  policy.  England,  too,  had  sepa- 
rated herself  from  connection  with  her  continental 
cousins  under  Edward  I.^  In  the  time  of  Huss,  the 
University  of  Prague  was  divided  into  four  nations, 
the  Bohemian,  the  Bavarian,  the  Saxon,  and  the 
Polish.  The  Great  Schism  brings  before  us  Scotland 
and  England,  Germany  and  Denmark,  Poland,  Spain, 
Naples  and  France,  as  separate  peoples ;  and  the 
ecclesiastical,  as  well  as  the  political  separation  of 
these  race-groups,  was  displayed  and  sanctioned  at 
the  Council  of  Constance  by  the  method  of  voting 
there  adopted.  Still  it  would  be  a  mistake  to  con- 
sider either  nations  or  national  Churches  as  having, 
in  those  two  centuries,  anything  like  their  modern 
distinctness.  They  were  nearer  to  the  time  when 
there  was  no  distinction  in  the  great  ecclesiastical 

1  The  best  criterion  of  nationality  is  language  ;  and  the  earliest 
book  in  the  modern  English  language  is  The  Vision  of  JViiiiam 
concerning  Piers  the  Flow?nan,  written  by  William  Langland  about 
1377- 


TRANSITION   PERIOD.  caJ 

lociety  of  Jew  or  Greek,  barbarian  or  Scythian,  and     chap. 

vhen   local  jealousies  had  not  as  yet  widened  into  _J 1_ 

lational  exclusiveness.  The  Papacy  still  acted  as  a 
)ond  of  union  uniting  all  in  one  fold  ;  the  Empire 
itill  shed  the  softening  rays  of  its  influence  over  all. 

The  two  events,  which  put  an  end  to  this  state  of       (3) 
ransition,  and  ushered  in  the  modern  world,  were  uplf"^^ 
he  capture  of  Constantinople  and  the  Renaissance,  ^^f^^f. 
3oth  happened  almost  at  the  close  of  the  fifteenth  iintity 

and  the 

:entury.      Their  effect  was  hardly  felt  till  the  begin-  Roman 
ling  of   the   next  century.       But   their   importance  b"^ 
:annot  be  over-estimated.     The  capture  of  Constan-  (^)  ^'^P- 

iure  of 

inople,  little  as  it  may  seem  to  be  connected  with  Constan- 
he  West,  was,  nevertheless,  most  significant,  as 
narking  the  end  of  the  Roman  Empire.  That 
Empire  had  continued  to  live  on,  long  after  its 
government  had  been  removed  to  Constantinople  ; 
iphoiding  on  new  ground  the  pretensions  of  the  old 
vorld  ;  encircled  with  a  halo  of  former  glory,  which 
vas  reflected  in  its  Western  counterpart,  and  which 
n  a  great  measure  secured  to  the  Western  Empire 
I  new  life  when  transplanted  to  German  soil.  The 
"all  of  Constantinople  showed  that  the  end  of  that 
Empire  was  come  ;  it  showed  that  the  Latin  spirit 
)f  centralised  organisation  was  setting  in  the  East ; 
t  was  the  harbinger  of  its  setting  in  the  West.  It 
)roke  the  spell,  which  the  name  of  Roman  Empire 
lad  for  centuries  wielded  in  German}^  Supposed  to 
De  everlasting,  to  be  coextensive  with  the  world,  to 
lave  the  especial  support  of  God,  one  part  of  that 
Empire  had  nevertheless  come  to  an  end  in  the 
East     Might  not  the  same  happen  to  the  other  part 


KaS  ^^^  BREAKING    UP    OF   THE   HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART  In  the  West,  where  undeniable  marks  of  dedine 
'  could  be  already  discernible  ?  Few  may  have  been 
so  far-seeinof  as  to  sug-o^est  an  event  which  did  not 
take  place  until  the  year  1806.  Yet,  even  the 
Western  Empire  was  now  no  longer  what  it  had 
been. 
(b)  Revi-  Connected  with  the  fall  of  Constantinople,  and,  in 
letters.  a  great  measure,  helped  on  thereby  (thanks  to  the 
Greek  refugees  who  fled  to  Europe  before  the  victo- 
rious arms'  of  the  Turks),  was  the  revival  of  Greek 
learning.  Not  that  in  itself  that  learning  or  that 
culture  was  better  than  what  Germany  already 
possessed.  For  was  not  the  mythology  of  the  north- 
ern nations  quite  as  elaborate  as  that  of  Greece, 
breathing  too  far  nobler  ideas,  and  far  grander 
lessons  of  morality  ?  The  German  who  had  his 
Niebelungen  Lied  could  dispense  v/ith  Homer. 
The  races  who  could  rear  the  fantastic  and  graceful 
piles  of  a  Gothic  cathedral  could  gain  nothing  from 
the  architecture  of  Greece.  The  monuments  of  eru- 
dition left  by  the  great  schoolmen  show  capacities 
and  powers  quite  on  a  par  with  those  of  Aristotle 
and  Plato.  Nevertheless,  the  revival  of  the  ancient 
learning  was  important.  And  it  was  chiefly  import- 
ant for  this  reason,  because  it  introduced  the  Euro- 
pean nations  to  a  wholly  new  phase  of  thought. 
Possessed  themselves  of  the  greatest  capacities,  as 
the  works  of  the  schoolmen  prove,  they  were  yet  in 
a  state  of  thraldom  to  Latin  forms  of  thouoht. 
Their  capacities  were  employed  In  elaborating  the 
ideas,  which  had  descended  to  them  from  Rome,  not 
in    the  free   development  of  the  Ideas   which   they 


PARALLELISM  BETWEEN  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


549 


carried  in  embryo   in  themselves.     Such   had  been    chap. 

the  effect  of  training,  and  of  the  yoke  imposed  on  ^ 

them  by  Rome,  that  the  current  topics  of  thought 
seemed  to  them  not  to  be  the  ideas  beloneine  to  one 
race  only,  but  to  be  the  only  ideas  possible  ;  in  short, 
to  be  ideas  possessing  a  real  existence ;  not  to  be 
mere  creations  of  their  minds,  but  to  be  absolute 
realities.  Great,  then,  must  have  been  the  effect  on 
their  feelings,  when  they  were  brought  face  to  face 
with  new  ideas,  many  of  which  contradicted  all  that 
they  had  looked  upon  as  real,  and  which,  as  being 
real,  they  had  invested  with  the  sanction  of  religion. 
Staggering  under  the  surprise  of  the  discovery,  they 
were  at  first  plunged  in  a  state  of  uncertainty  and 
doubt,  but  in  the  end  they  recovered  from  this  state 
of  mental  indisposition,  to  find  that  notions  which 
they  had  formerly  believed  to,  be  real  were  only 
Latin  modes  of  thought,  just  as  the  new  introduced 
notions  were  only  notions  peculiar  to  the  region 
of  Greek  thought.  The  long-slumbering,  long-sup- 
pressed self-consciousness  of  the  Teutonic  mind 
awoke.  The  sway  of  Latin  Christianity  in  the 
West  was  at  an  end.  A  new  spirit  began  to  reform 
the  Church. 

Nothing  more  clearly  illustrates  the  nature  of  the  B.  Paml- 
Holy  Empire,  or   the   Imperial  Church,  which  con-  the  iiis- 
tinued   to   exist,  even  in  decline  until  the  sixteenth  ^I'-^f-, 
century,  than  the  parallelism  which  may  be  observed  '■'^"''^ 

•'    ^  •'  Papacy. 

in  the  history  of  its  two  heads.      Yet  such  a  parallel-  (i)  Both 
ism  might   well   be  expected,  when   it   is   borne  ^"^  from  a 
mind  that  the  double  headships  sprane  from  one  and  '^^".""^"' 
the  same  source.      For  was'  not  the   Imperial  head- 


550 


THE  BREAKING   UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART     ship  a  Roman  institution,  an  attempt  to  make  the 

'- —   Roman  Empire  Hve  over  again,  transplanted  to  the 

forests  of  Germany  ?  Was  it  not  based  on  the  claim 
of  Rome  to  be  mistress  of  the  world  ?  And  did 
not  the  papal  headship  rest  on  the  same  ground, 
being  likewise  a  Roman  institution,  and  the  ecclesi- 
astical counterpart  to  the  other  ?  Both  headships 
were,  therefore,  of  foreign  origin  ;  both  were  institu- 
tions which  had  come  from  the  South,  and,  in  com- 
ing, had  brought  with  them  innumerable  benefits — 
Christian  civilisation,  political  order,  regular  govern- 
ment. Both  had  risen  to  power,  each  by  the  help 
of  the  other,  and  having  risen  had  struggled  for  the 
supremacy.  And  yet,  after  all,  supremacy  had  per- 
manently fallen  to  the  lot  of  neither,  although  for  a 
time  it  had  fallen  to  the  one  to  which  it  was  most  due, 
the  Papacy.  .For  without  the  Papacy  there  would 
have  been  no  Western  Empire.  Without  the  Papacy 
there  would  have  been  neither  civilisation  nor  Chris- 
tianity. To  a  certain  extent,  therefore,  the  haughty 
language  of  Innocent  III.  was  true,  that  the  Empire 
had  been  taken  away  from  the  Greeks  and  given  to 
the  Germans,  in  the  person  of  Charles,  by  the  favour 
of  the  Popes.^  Not  that  anything  new  had  been 
given  to  him,  but  the  allegiance  of  the  West ;  still 
the  instrument  through  which  that  allegiance  had 
been  given  was  the  Papacy. 

•  Innocent  III.  Ep.  xviii.  in  Regest.  super  negot.  imp.  :  'Verum 
'  ad  apostolicam  sedem  jampridem  fuerat  recurrendum,  ad  quam 
'  negotium  istud  principaliter  et  finaliter  dinosciuir  pertinere ; 
'  lorincipaliter,  quia  ipsa  transtulit  imperium  ab  oriente  in  occiden- 
'  tem  ;  finaliter,  quia  ipsa  concedit  coronam  imperii.' 


PARALLELISM  BETWEEN  CHURCH  AND  STATE.  rci 

The  parallelism  between   the   Pope  and  the  em-     chap. 

peror  is  fully  recognised  by  Dante,  who  was  himself  JL _ 

the  first  to  attack  the  exorbitant  claims  of  Boniface  ^l}usnife- 
VIII.      In  his  treatise   '  De   Monarchia '   the  rela-  <^fs»ifed 

by  Dante. 

tions  of  the  Imperial  and  Papal  power  are  care- 
fully examined,  and  the  passages  to  which  the  advo- 
cate of  papal  supremacy  appeals  are  otherwise  ex- 
plained.^ Both  the  sun  and  the  moon,  the  favourite 
symbols  of  the  Double  Headship,  existed,  he  argues, 
before  man's  creation,  and  cannot  therefore  serve  as  ^ 
types  of  the  governing  powers  of  human  society. 
But  if  they  are  used  as  types,  he  asks,  why  should 
not  the  temporal  power  be  aided  by  the  spiritual,  as 
well  as  bestow  aid  upon  it,  since  the  moon  receives 
neither  her  being  nor  her  light  from  the  sun,  but  only 
so  much  as  makes  her  more  effective.  Nor  can 
the  two  swords,  the  power  of  binding  and  loosing, 
given  to  St.  Peter,  be  used  with  any  more  justice  as 
arguments  for  the  Pope's  supremacy,  since,  when 
rightly  explained,  they  do  not  bear  this  meaning. 
In  short,  the  whole  idea  is  one  which  must  not  be 
pressed.  There  is  a  parallelism  between  the  Church 
and  the  Empire,  but  it  is  more  of  a  parallelism  than 
a  fusion  of  the  two  into  one. 

In  tracing  some   instances  of  the  parallelism  be-  (3)  /«- 
tween  the  Empire  and  the   Papacy,  it  may,  perhaps,  parallel- 
be  as  well  first  to  draw  attention  to  what  in  itself  ^^"^' 

{a)  Num- 

seems  an  unimportant  thing;  the  fact,  viz.,  that  both  ber of 
the  Pope  and  the  emperor  were  not  one  but  a  multi- 
plicity of  crowns  —  the  Pope,   the  triple  tiara,  the 

'  See  Bryce's  Holy  Jioman  Empire,  xv.  294. 


-r2  THE  BREAKING    UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART     emperor  three  crowns,  to  which  a  fourth  was  subse- 
quently added  by  Conrad  II.      In  itself,  the  use  of 


several  crowns  may  seem  a  small  thing,  but  in  the 
Middle  Ages,  when  a  great  importance  was  attached 
to  symbols  and  symbolical  acts,  it  was  otherwise. 
Then  the  wearing  a  double  or  treble  crown  was  an 
assertion  of  a  higher  dignity  for  the  wearer.  Thus 
the  three  crowns  of  the  emperor,  which,  according  to 
the  old  writers,  were  of  silver,  iron,  and  gold,  denote 
his  authority  over  Germany,  Italy,  and  the  Empire. 
They  were  conferred  at  Aachen,  Monza,  and  Rome 
respectively.^  All  three  were  in  use  at  the  beginning 
of  the  Hildebrandian  era.  But  with  the  papal  tiara  it 
was  otherwise.  Until  the  time  of  Boniface  VIII.,  the 
Pope  wore  one  crown  only;  Boniface  VIII.  added 
a  second  ;  and  Urban  V.,  some  sixty  years  later,  added 
a  third.^  In  the  time  of  their  greatest  power,  thr 
Popes  had  not  required  these  symbols  of  ascendency 
which  in  their  case,  too,  had  no  historical  associations; 
but  with  their  declining  power,  the  corresponding 
symbols  of  pretension  were  likewise  assumed  that 
they  might  not  seem  below  the  emperor. 
{b)Cotcm-  About  the  decline  of  their  power  a  parallelism  may 
decline.  ^Iso  be  observed.  The  long  interregnum  in  Germany, 
which  terminated  with  the  election  of  Rudolph 
of  Hapsburg,  marks  the  fall  at  once  of  the  papal 
power   in   Germany    and  of  the  imperial  power   in 

1  A  fourth  crown,  that  of  Burgundy,  was  only  taken  by  four 
emperors.  On  the  use  of  the  others  see  a  short  sketch  in  Bryce's 
Holy  Roman  Empire,  appenchx,  p.  445. 

2  See  the  article  Tiara  in  Pucin's  Glossary  of  Ecclesiastical 
Decoratioju 


PARALLELISM  BETWEEN  CHURCH  AND  STATE.  c  c -> 

Italy.      Gregory    X.   compelled    the    recognition  of    chap. 
Rudolph.     The  further  pretensions  of  the  Popes  to  -^ 1_ 


the  Vicariate  of  the  Empire,  stated  by  Clement  V. 
in  the  most  offensive  terms, ^  the  Germans  never  ad- 
mitted. Already  under  the  Pontificate  of  Boniface 
VIII.  signs  of  decline  appeared  in  the  papal  heaven, 
and  with  his  death  and  the  residence  of  the  Popes  at 
Avignon,  that  decline  grew  apace.  But  not  less  a.d.  1303 
marked  were  the  signs  of  decline  in  the  Empire 
from  the  time  of  Rudolph  of  Hapsburg,  who  owed  the 
security  of  his  throne  to  the  influence  of  the  Pope." 
After  the  death  of  Henry  VII.,  the  decline  was 
marked  and  rapid.  If  the  political  supremacy  of 
the  Popes  was  at  an  end  after  the  death  of  Boniface 
VIII.,  the  power  of  the  emperors  beyond  Germany,  1313 
even  their  supremacy  in  Germany,  was  at  an  end 
after  that  of  Henry  VII,  The  same  circumstances 
had  caused  the  contemporary  growth  of  the  Empire 
and  the  Papacy ;  the  change  of  those  circumstances 
now  caused  them  to  decline  together. 

Nor  was  it  wholly  accidental  that,  in  the  history  {c) Double 
of  the  Papacy  and  the  Empire,  events  should  have  '' ^'^^'^''^■^• 
occurred,  so  nearly  resembling  one  another,  as  the 
double  elections  to  the  Empire  and  the  double  elec- 
tions to  the  Papacy.  No  sooner  had  Frederic  II. 
by  two  Pragmatic  Sanctions,  in  a.d.  1220  and  1232, 
confirmed  the  customary  rights  usurped  by  the 
bishops  and  nobles,  and  recognised  their  legal 
sovereignty  in  their  own  towns  and  districts,  except 


^  See  note  ^,  p.  420. 

2  Bryce's  Holy  Roman  Empire,  xiii.  236. 


r^4  ^^^  BREAKING   UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART     when  the  emperor  was  present,  than  Germany  was 
' distracted  by  the  double  election  of  Richard  of  Eng- 
land, and  Alfonso   of   Castile.     Thus    division   fol- 
lowed   on    the   loss   of  political    supremacy    in  the 
Empire,  and  might  probably  have  continued  long, 
but  for  the  intervention  of  one  at  that  time  greater 
than  the  emperors.     Frederic  of  Austria  claimed  the 
imperial    crown    in    opposition    to     the     Emperor 
Lewis  IV. ;  Gunther  of  Schwartzburg  was  the  rival 
of  Charles    IV.  ;  even    Sigismund    had   a   rival    in 
Jobst  of  Moravia.     The  same  lot  befell  the  Papacy ; 
the  Great  Schism  of  the  West  followed  as  soon  as 
the  Popes  had  forfeited  their  political  supremacy  by 
their  residence  at  Avignon  ;..  it  continued  for  thirty- 
nine  years ;  nor  was  the  division  ended  but  by  the 
intervention  of  a  power  which  aspired  to  be  greater 
than  the  Papacy  itself. 
{d)  Rise         This    new    power,    which    rose    to    control    the 
toa-acy.      Popes,  came  from  none  other  quarter  than  the  hier- 
archy itself,  from  the  higher  spiritual  nobility  or  the 
College  of  Cardinals,  and  the  ecclesiastical  commons 
assembled  in  a  General  Council.     The  two  bear  a 
close  resemblance  to  the  powers  which  reduced  the 
Empire  to  the  higher  nobility  and  the  representatives 
of  those  lower   in   rank.      Both  were  assertions  of 
liberty  by  the  people  against  sovereigns  claiming  to 
be  despotic.     Both  were  indications  of  the  growth 
of  the  Teutonic  spirit  against  the  absolute  thraldom 
of  Rome.     At  an  earlier  time — in  the  twelfth  century 
• — the   emperor    himself,  in  his  struggles   with   the 
Pope,  had  appeared  as  the  representative  of  German 
freedom  ;  now,  in  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  cen- 


PARALLELISM  BETWEEN  CHURCH  AND   STATE.  555 

turies,  the  same  spirit  of  freedom  had  passed  from     chap. 

^  ^  XVII. 


the  emperor  to  the  magnates  both  of  the  Empire 
and  the  Church,  When  the  sixteenth  century  ar- 
rived, it  had  reached  the  great  mass  of  the  people, 
and  when  it  had  spread  amongst  them,  it  gave 
rise  to  a  thoroughly  national  movement,  the  result 
of  which  was  the  Reformation. 

In   the    Empire,  the  greatest  change  was   intro- 
duced in  the  two  centuries  following  the  thirteenth, 
by  the  growing  power  of  the  great  electoral  princes.  ^ 
The  Empire  was,  in  fact,  being  accommodated  to  ^ors  and 
the  German  notions  of  limited  monarchy.      But  when  ^f(^f^_ 


dinals. ' 


1  Leo  VIII.  had  conferred  upon  Otto  I.,  an.  963,  the  privilege 
of  appointing  his  own  successors  in  the  empire,  see  Chap.  V. 
Gregory  V.,  an.  996,  appears  to  have  transferred  this  privilege 
from  the  emperor  to  the  princes  of  Germany,  including  under 
princes  all  the  bishops,  dukes,  and  counts  of  the  empire.  The 
letter  of  Gregory  VII.  lib.  iv.  Ep.  ,iii.  an.  1076,  Labe^,  xii.  381, 
inviting  a  new  election,  is  addressed  '  Omnibus  dilectis  in  Christo 
*  fratribus,  et  coepiscopis,  ducibus,  comitibus,  universis  quoque 
'  fidem  Christianam  defendentibus,  in  regno  videlicet  Teutonico 
'  habitantibus.'  These  princes  appear  to  have  continued  to  enjoy 
the  right  of  election  (the  privilege  belonging  to  all  the  ecclesiasti- 
cal and  lay  feudatories  of  the  empire)  until  the  time  of  Innocent 
III.  an.  1 198  ;  and  Frederic  II.  was  actually  elected  by  this  body 
in  1 2 18.  The  Council  of  Lyons,  however,  under  Innocent  IV. 
June  1245,  which  deposed  Frederic  II.,  has  a  passage  naming 
seven  electors,  viz.  : 

.  .        J  Dux  Austriae. 

\  Dux  Bavariae. 

J  Dux  Saxonum, 

\  Dux  Brabantiae  qui  et  Lovaniae. 

r  Archiepiscopus  Coloniensis  ~j 
Praelati  <  Archiepiscopus  Mogiuitinus  >   Principales. 

L  Salzburgensis  J 

It  continues  :  '  Isti  ducentur  in  insulam  quandam  Rheni,  et  dimit- 
'  tentur  soli  in  ea,  et  amovebuntur  omnes  naviculae,  et  ibi  tracta- 


556 


THE  BREAKING    UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART     it   had   been    thus   accommodated,   It   resembled   Its 
'- —  ancient  type  in  nothing  else  but  in  name,  and  in  the 


dignity  of  an  empty  precedence  which  that  name 
secured  to  its  possessor.  It  was  the  German  em- 
peror, Frederic  II.,  who  first  deprived  it  of  its 
A.D.  I220  sovereignty,  by  his  two  Pragmatic  Sanctions,  and 
soon    the   great    nobles   of  the   Empire,   the  seven 

12^5  electors,  as  they  are  first  emphatically  called  in  a  Bull 
of  Pope  Innocent  IV.,  became  almost  independent 
sovereigns,  encroaching  on  Its  privileges  till  hardly 
anything  was  left.  By  the  Golden  Bull  of  the  Emperor 
Charles  IV.,  the  rights  and  privileges  of  these  seven 
electors  were  fully  settled,  and  themselves  elevated 

1356  to  be  a  supreme  tribunal  in  the  Empire.  To  the 
Archbishop  of  Mainz  was  given  the  presidency  of 
the  electoral  college.  Next  after  him  came  the  two 
Archbishops  of  Trier  and  Cologne.     The  first  place 


'  bunt  de  electione  imperatoris.  Nee  adveniat  aliquis  ad  eos, 
*  donee  sint  eoneordes.  Huie  negotio  praeerit  arehiepiseopus 
'  Coloniensis,  seeundus  Moguntinus,  tertius  Salzburgiensis.'  The 
Electoral  College  of  Seve/i,  therefore,  may  be  said  to  date  from 
the  Council  of  Lyons. 

A  change  was  made  in  its  constituent  parts  either  by  Innocent 
IV.,  after  the  Council  of  Lyons,  or  by  Alexander  IV.  before  the 
year  1 256.  Martinus  Polonus,  living  under  Innocent  IV.,  gives  the 
following  lines  : 

Moguntinensis,  Trevirensis,  Coloniensis, 

Quilibet  imperii  sit  Caneellarius  horum. 

Est  Palatinus  dapifer,  Dux  [Saxoniae]  portitor  ensis, 

Marchio  \Brandcnburgensis\  praepositus   camerae,    pineerna 

Bohemus, 
Hi  statuunt  Dominum  cunetis  per  saecula  summum. 

See  the  discussion  in  Labbe,  xi.  1022,  ad  an.  996,  and  Thomas 
Aquinas,  De  Reg.  Princip.  hb.  iii.  ch.  xix. 


PARALLELISM  BETWEEN  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


557 


amone  the  secular  electors  was  allotted  to  the  KInof     chap. 

XVII 

of  Bohemia  ;  the  second  to  the  Palsgrave ;  the  two  _' '- 

others  to  Saxony  and  Brandenburg.  And,  moreover, 
a  recognised  official  position  was  assigned  to  each  of 
the  seven.  The  three  prelates  were  arch-chancellors 
of  Germany,  Gaul,  and  Italy  respectively  ;  Bohemia, 
cupbearer  ;  the  Palsgrave,  seneschal ;  Saxony,  mar- 
shal ;  and  Brandenburg,  chamberlain.  Thus  was  the 
tribunal  permanendy  established,  to  which  belonged 
the  election  to  the  Empire,  but  which,  by  imposing 
terms,  and  making  conditions  at  every  election, 
really  set  Itself  up  as  an  authority  above  that  of  the 
emperor. 

The  rise  and  growth  of  constitutional  principles 
in  the  Church  were  analogous.  The  College  of  Car- 
dinals, first  established  by  Nicolas  II.,  anew  con- 
firmed by  Alexander  III,,  and  raised  to  greater 
importance  by  Gregory  X.,  acquired  a  controlling 
power  on  the  Papacy  after  the  death  of  Boniface  VIII. 
That  power  arose  not  merely  from  the  fact  that  the 
Popes  feeling  their  political  influence  declining  were 
obliged  to  fortify  their  position  by  consulting  those 
to  whom  they  owed  their  elevation  ;  nor  yet  because 
to  the  cardinals  much  of  the  continually  increasing 
business  of  the  Roman  Court  was  entrusted  :  but 
far  more  from  the  circumstance  that  many  Popes 
secured  their  election,  as  did  Clement  V.,  by  pledg- 
inof  themselves  to  a  certain  line  of  conduct.  Thus 
power  in  a  great  measure  passed  from  their  own 
hands  into  the  hands  of  the  body  which  required  the 
pledge.  During  the  Schism  it  became  the  practice 
for  the  cardinals  of  both  parties  to  impose  stringent 


558 


THE  BREAKING    UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


TART     conditions  on  the  whole  college  before  proceeding 

'. to  an  election,  and  the  Popes  did  not  gain  by  not 

observing  those  conditions.  The  Council  of  Pisa 
was  even  convened  by  the  cardinals  without  con- 
sulting the  Pope  ;  and  in  the  corrupt  clays  of  the 
Italian  Popes  the  conditions  which  were  imposed  by 
the  college,  but  too  often  violated  by  the  Pontiff, 
extended  to  the  minutest  points  of  ecclesiastical  ad- 
ministration. If  the  emperor  was  reduced  to  the 
mere  presidency  of  the  Electoral  College,  the  Pope 
fared  little  better  with  the  College  of  Cardinals. 
(p)  Diets  If  the  College  of  Cardinals  in  the  Church  corre- 
Toufuils  spond  with  the  Electoral  College  of  the  Empire, 
not  less  do  the  General  Councils  held  in  the  fifteenth 
century  correspond  with  the  Imperial  Diet,  or 
rather  with  the  Public  Peace  and  Imperial  Chambers. 
Established  as  these  Chambers  were,  in  1495,.  to 
discharge  the  duties  of  preserving  peace,  and  admi- 
nistering justice,  which  the  diet  from  its  technical 
composition — including  electors,  princes,  and  cities, 
but  not  the  lower  nobility  and  knights — was  then 
less  able  to  perform,  they  acted  as  a  wholesome 
controlling  power  on  the  emperor,  and  were  a  coun- 
terpart to  the  General  Councils  which  controlled  the 
Pope.  If  General  Councils  exercised  a  greater  in- 
fluence over  the  Church  than  the  diet  and  chambers 
did  over  the  Empire  (the  Council  of  Constance  com- 
bining by  its  representatives  to  elect  Pope  Martin  V.), 
it  must  be  remembered  that  learning  advanced  more 
quickly  in  the  Church  than  in  the  State.  When  the 
representative  system  was  coming  into  vogue,  the 
Empire    was    already    breaking   up.      Besides,    the 


MUTUAL   INFLUENCE    OF   CHURCH  AND   STATE}.  rcrg 

whole  theory  of  the  Empire  as  a  Roman  institution     chap. 

was  at  variance  with  popular  government.     In  fact, '^ 

the  subsequent  development  of  parliamentary  go- 
vernment in  Europe  after  the  virtual  overthrow  of 
the  Empire,  is  a  clear  proof  that  the  desire  for 
representation  was  then  working  in  the  State  as  well 
as  in  the  Church.  It  took  more  time  to  make  itself 
felt  in  politics  than  in  religion,  its  native  field ;  but 
having  once  made  itself  felt,  it  has  absorbed  all  other 
interests. 

In  these  instances  of  parallelism  between  the  Pa-        c. 
pacy  and  the  Empire,  more,  perhaps,  than  in  any-  i,ifi,l[^,ice 
thing    else,    does    the    influence    become    apparent  ^SJf  J"^^ 
which  each  exercised  on  the  other.     In  most  of  the  (i)  influ- 
Western  nations,  the  practice  of  electing  a  successor  ^church, 
to  the  throne — the  election  beino-,  however,  limited  ('0  ^"' 

^  making 

to  the  members  of  one  family — had  given  place  to  Empire 

•  ,  clcctitjc 

hereditary  succession.  This  was  the  case  in  Eng- 
land and  Scotland,  in  France,  Aragon,  and  Castile. 
In  the  Empire  alone  the  practice  of  election  sur- 
vived ;  and  there  a  free  election,  without  any  restric- 
tion as  to  family,  finally  prevailed.  No  precedent  can 
be  cited  for  this  mode  of  appointing  a  sovereign  from 
the  history  of  ancient  Rome  ;  nor  was  a  perfectly  free 
election  a  Teutonic  practice.  The  failure  of  male 
heirs  in  three  successive  dynasties  may  have  had 
something  to  do  with  it ;  but  more  probably  the  real 
cause  of  it  must  be  sought  in  the  influence  of  the 
Church,  in  the  idea  of  the  Holy  Empire,  and  in  the 
attempt  to  make  the  lay  head  of  the  Imperial  Church 
in  all  respects  a  counterpart  to  the  ecclesiastical 
head  of  the  same  society.     For  the  emperor  was  not 


c5o  '^^^  BREAKING    UP   OF    THE  HOLY  EMPHiE. 

PART  merely  a  national  king — or,  as  in  other  nations,  the 
'  dignity  would  probably  have  become  hereditary — 
but  he  occupied  a  place  quite  by  himself  above  all 
other  kings.  No  practices,  therefore,  of  ordinary 
kings  could  apply  to  him.  The  only  potentate  who 
at  all  resembled  him  was  the  Pope. 
{b)  Re-  If  the    course   adopted    in    appointments   to    the 

iative  Papacy  was  the  precedent  followed  in  making  the 
sys  cfii.  Enipjj-e  elective,  in  like  manner  the  representative 
system  was  taken  from  the  ecclesiastical  assemblies 
of  the  Church  and  introduced  into  political  relations. 
In  Germany  the  electoral  princes  had  formed  an 
Electoral  League  (Churverein)  as  early  as  the  year 
1338,  the  existence  of  which  was  recognised  by  the 
Golden  Bull  of  Charles  IV.  in  1356.  In  France, 
the  States  General  had  been  first  convened  by  Philip 
the  Fair  in  1 302  to  oppose  the  pretensions  of 
Boniface  VIII.  ;  they  soon  transformed  themselves 
into  a  standing  corporation.  In  England  the  repre- 
sentative system  obtained  in  parliament  from  the 
year  1265.  In  all  these  cases  the  practice  of  repre- 
sentation was  most  likely  borrowed  from  the  practice 
of  the  ecclesiastical  assemblies.  In  the  case  of  Ger- 
many and  France,  it  is  noteworthy  that  this  system 
was  first  called  into  exercise  to  oppose  the  extra- 
vagant pretensions  of  the  Popes.  As  the  Papacy 
lost  its  hold  on  the  West,  it  perpetuated  its  insti- 
tutions, and  statesmen  used  what  the  Church  had 
taught. 

Another  effect  of  the  influence  of  the  Church  on 
society,  may  be  found  in  the  peculiar  sanctity  sup- 
posed to  attach  to  the  person  of  a  king.     Since  the 


MUTUAL  INFLUENCE  OF  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


561 


age  of  the  False  Decretals  the  Pope  and  the  clergy     chap. 
had    been    invested    with    a    peculiar    sanctity.     A 


similar  sanctity  was  now  supposed  to  attach  to  the  sanctity 
persons   of  kino;s   and   to   princes   who    had    been  cit(i<:f'-^ng 

^  .        ,  .         ^'^  fiion- 

crowned   by  ecclesiastical   authority.      Whilst  with  orch's 

1         ,  ,  .  ,  .  person. 

one  hand  society  was  sweeping  away  the  prerogatives 
of  the  Pope  and  the  clergy,  with  the  other  hand  it 
was  investing  political  chiefs  and  princes  with  the 
same  prerogatives.  The  old  Herzog  of  the  Ger- 
manic nations  was  a  leader  in  war,  belonging  to  a 
privileged  family,  who,  in  consequence,  was  said 
to  be  descended  from  the  god  of  war ;  but  he  was 
after  all  one  of  the  warriors.  Now  there  grew  up 
both  in  England,  in  France,  and  in  Germany, 
around  the  person  of  the  prince  a  kind  of  religious 
halo,  which  appears  more  prominently  at  the  time  df 
the  Reformation.  Without  some  such  aid  it  would 
have  been  impossible  to  substitute  Henry  VIII.  for 
the  Pope,  as  head  of  the  Church,  nor  would  the 
divine  right  of  kings  have  come  into  vogue.  Still 
less  would  a  monarch  like  Charles  I.  have  been  in- 
vested with  the  epithet  '  most  sacred.'  How  hard 
it  seems  for  those  trained  up  in  the  school  of  Greece 
and  Rome  to  refrain  from  attributing  divine  attri- 
butes to  persons  and  things  ! 

In  many  ways,  likewise,  the  Empire  re-acted  on 
the  Papacy.  In  the  first  place,  it  fixed  the  limits  and 
boundaries  of  its  jurisdiction.  Wherever  the  erri- 
peror  was  acknowledged,  there  the  Pope  was  ac- 
knowledged also.  Nations  which  showed  a  waver- 
ing  obedience  to  the  Empire,  showed  the  same  to 
the   Papacy  ;  over  those  which,  like  the  Normans, 

o  o  . 


c62  "THE  BREAKING    UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART     were  hostile  to  the  emperor,  the  Popes  could  only 

' assert  authority,  either  by  policy  or  by  concessions. 

The  chief  ground,  however,  on  which  the  role  of  the 
Papacy  was  played,  was  the  same  that  had  formerly 
been  included  in  the  kingdom  of  Charles — Germany, 
Southern  Denmark,  France,  Lorraine,  Burgundy, 
and  Northern  Italy.  Hungary,  since  the  days  of 
Otto  I.,  was  more  than  hesitating  to  the  Empire. 
It  had  been  claimed  as  a  fief  by  Gregory  VII. 
England  the  Popes  demanded  on  the  same  grounds, 
since  its  cession  by  John  to  Innocent  III.;  and 
Naples,  since  the  Emperor  Henry  VI.  had  married 
the  heiress  of  the  Norman  dynasty,  thus  acquiring 
all  her  rights  by  marriage.  In  proportion  as  the 
ties  connecting  these  kingdoms  with  the  Empire 
were  relaxed,  their  submission  to  the  Pope  was  cor- 
respondingly diminished.  After  the  Interregnum, 
Denmark  was  free  from  the  Empire;  its  connection 
with  the  Papacy  was  comparatively  slight.  France, 
independent  of  the  Empire  since  the  time  of  Otto 
the  Great,  but  galled  by  the  memories  of  its  for- 
mer dependence,  was  ever  antagonistic  to  the  Popes 
until  they  withdrew  from  Rome  and  established 
themselves  at  Avignon  as  her  dependants.  With 
their  return  to  Rome,  she  again  showed  her  in- 
dependence, both  beginning  and  supporting  the 
Great  Schism,  and  when  the  Schism  was  at  an 
end,  refusing  any  but  a  limited  obedience  on  what 
were  called  Gallican  principles.  In  England  the 
Popes  had  to  conciliate  the  early  Norman  kings  by 
concessions,  or  those  kings  would  have  opposed  the 
Pope,  as  William  Rufus  and  Henry  II.  actually  did, 


MUTUAL  INFLUENCE   OF  CHURCH  AND  STATE. 


563 


because  of  their  hostility  to   the   Empire ;  still   the     chap. 

Popes  were  successful  in  gaining  the  submission  of  — 1. 

Henry  II.  When  Richard  I.  acknowledged  the 
emperor  as  his  lord/  the  submission  of  John  to  the 
Pope  soon  followed.  When  Edward  I.  declared  this 
realm  free  from  all  imperial  sovereignty,^  his  suc- 
cessors only  allowed  a  qualified  allegiance  to  Rome 
by  passing  the  statute  of  Provisors  and  Praemunire.^ 
For  the  Empire  re-acted  on  the  Papacy ;  and  the 
decline  of  the  one  produced  the  decline  of  the 
other. 

Worse   consequences    than  decline  in  power  fol-   „.  ^^ 

■■■  ^  Stmony 

lowed   from    the    influence    of  the    Empire  on  the  andpro" 

uisioHs^ 

Papacy.  After  the  death  of  Frederic  II.,  and  the 
troubles  which  followed  two  rival  claimants  disput- 
ing the  Crown,  the  pecuniary  resources  of  Germany 
were  crippled.  Crown  lands  had  been  alienated  and 
usurped ;  the  regalia  had  fared  no  better ;  tolls, 
customs,  mines,  right  of  coining,  and  so  forth,  were 
either  seized  or  granted  away.  The  imperial  trea- 
sury, which  became  poorer  after  each  election,  had 
come  to  depend  on  a  traffic  in  honours  and  exemp- 
tions.    The  Popes  were  not  slow  to  learn  the  same 


*  HovEDEN  says  :  '  Consilio  matris  suae  deposuit  se  de  regno 

*  Angliae  et  tradidit  illud  Imperatori,  sicut  universorum  domino.' 

■*  See  also  the  Rotiili  Parliamentorum  temp.  Eduardi,  part  iii. 
p.  290  :  '  Que  le  dit  Roi  Johann  ne  nul  autre  purra  mettre  lui  ne 
'  son  Roialme  ne  son  Poeple  en  tiele  subjection  saunz  assent  de  eux, 

*  et  comme  piert  par  pluseurs  evidences,  qe  si  ce  feust  fait,  ce  feust 

*  fait  saunz  leur  assent,  et  encontre  son  sernient  en  sa  coronation.' 

2  Edward  II.  according  to  Selden,  Titles  of  Honour,  part  i. 
ch.  ii.,  declared  :  '  Regnum  Angliae  ab  omni  subjectione  imperial! 

*  esse  liberrimum.' 

002 


5^4 


THE  BREAKING   UP  OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART     lesson.     An    inglorious   traffic   in   benefices   set    in 

. '. when  their  revenues  had  been  reduced  by  absence 

from  Italy  at  Avignon,  and  a  reduced  income  was 
required  to  support  two  rival  Popes,  Ecclesiastical 
honours  and  ecclesiastical  exemptions  were  sold. 
The  Roman  Court,  more  venal  than  any  other, 
astonished  the  world  by  her  simony.  Moreover, 
the  Popes  contrived  to  do,  what  their  less  fortunate 
rivals,  the  emperors,  were  too  weak  to  attempt,  but 
tvhat  was  practised  by  the  kings  of  England  and 
France,  and  frequently  gave  rise  to  many  com- 
plaints. They  imitated  the  prerogative  of  purvey- 
ance, though  in  a  somewhat  different  form,  and, 
instead  of  seizing  the  necessaries  of  life,  carriages, 
horses,  and  the  like,  for  the  king's  service,  they  seized 
the  presentation  to  benefices  and  ecclesiastical  offices 
before  they  were  vacant,  for  the  benefit  of  their  own 
nominees.^  The  luxury  of  secular  princes  was  sur- 
passed by  the  luxury  of  the  Popes ;  instead  of  leading 
to  virtue,  they  followed  to  vice. 
{e)  If  the  Empire  became  elective,  owing  to  the  influ- 

rics,  ence  of  the  Church,  it  is  not  less  true  that  bishoprics 

ceased  to  be  elective,  owing  to  the  influence  of  the 
state.  Bishoprics  had  been  combined  with  feudal 
baronies.  If  ordinary  baronies  were  conferred  by 
the  sovereign,  why  should  ecclesiastical  ones  alone 
be  exempted  ?  So  had  thought  among  others  the 
emperor  and  the  kings  of  England  ;  but  the  Popes 
had  vindicated  the  independence  of  the  Church,  and 
the  dispute  about  investitures  arid  jurisdiction   had 

^  See  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  103,  p.  83. 


-MUTUAL   INFLUENCE   OF  CHURCH  AND   STATE.  565 

been  settled  by  a  compromise.      That  compromise,     chap. 

however,  had  been  effected  when   the  idea  of  the  _J 1_ 

Holy  Empire  was  supreme,  and  when  both  the  secu- 
lar and  ecclesiastical  powers  concurred  in  substan- 
tially overthrowing  the  elective  principle  by  preserv- 
ing the  decision  of  disputed  elections  for  the  emperor. 
The  right  was  soon  transferred  to  the  Pope.  John 
XXI.  reserved  to  himself  all  the  bishoprics  in 
Christendom.  Benedict  XII.  assumed  the  privi- 
lege of  disposing  of  all  benefices  vacant  by  cession, 
deprivation,  or  translation.  Clement  VI.  continued  ' 
the  same  practice,  and  it  subsequently  became  a  per- 
manent rule  of  the  Roman  Chancery.  In  the  subse- 
quent disputes  which  arose  between  the  Pope  and 
the  kings  of  Europe  there  was  little  opportunity  of 
reverting  to  the  old  elective  principle.  The  import- 
ance of  the  lay  element  may  be  seen  in  the  fact 
that  votes  were  allowed  to  it  at  Constance  and 
Basle.  Obtaining,  in  most  cases,  the  upper  hand,  it 
followed,  in  ecclesiastical  matters,  the  policy  most 
conducive  to  its  own  interests ;  and  the  Popes  gene- 
rally contrived  to  secure  a  portion  of  the  privileges 
which  they  once  enjoyed  in  return  for  lending  their 
sanction  to  the  encroachments  of  princes.  Thus  the 
Popes  and  the  temporal  sovereigns  divided  between 
themselves  the  spoils  of  the  Church. 

Moreover,  the  habit  of  raising  money  by  taxation,  (/)  Tax- 
which  was  the  custom  in  civil  relations,  also  passed  thedergy. 
into  the  service  of  the  Papacy.      The  clergy  had  been 
obliged  to  contribute  for  the  purpose  of  carrying  on 
the   crusades  before  the  time  of  Innocent  III.,  still 
Innocent  III.  was  the  first    Pope  who   ventured  to 


^66  "^HE  BREAKING    UP   OF  THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 

PART     levy  such   a  tax  on   his  own  authority,  requiring  it 
'       to  be  paid  to  his  own  collectors.     His  example  was 


followed  by  Gregory  IX.,  who  taxed  the  English 
Church  to  carry  on  his  crusade  against  the  emperor 
Frederic  II.,  and  by  Innocent  IV.  In  France  a 
tithe  of  the  benefices  had  been  granted  by  the  Popes 
to  St.  Louis  for  each  of  his  crusades,  and  In  the  year 
1274.  Gregory  X.  imposed  a  tax  on  all  the  Latin 
Church,  also  for  the  purpose  of  a  holy  war. 

Taxation  of  the  clergy,  however,  for  the  benefit 
of  the  Pope  was  a  practice  which  grew  up  during 
the  residence  of  the  Popes  at  Avignon.  John 
XXI.  was  the  first  who  established  the  payment  of 
annates,  or  one  year's  value  of  every  living  on  the 
admission  of  a  new  incumbent,  estimated  according 
to  a  fixed  rate  in  the  books  of  the  Roman  Chancery. 
These  exactions  were  an  imitation  of  the  world,  and 
were  encouraged  by  the  kings  of  France,  who  parti- 
cipated in  the  plunder.  Charles  the  Fair  permitted 
John  XXL  to  raise  a  tithe  of  ecclesiastical  revenues, 
and  in  return  Clement  VI.  granted  two-tenths  to 
Philip  of  Valois  for  the  expenses  of  the  war.  Even 
the  ransom  of  John  w^as  provided  by  a  tax  levied 
on  the  clergy.  But  these  exactions  were  not  allowed 
to  pass  without  opposition ;  and  England,  at  that 
time  enea^ed  in  a  war  with  France,  refused  to  allow 
herself  to  be  taxed,  or  her  benefices  to  be  occupied 
by  foreigners  for  the  enrichment  of  the  enemy. 
When  remonstrances  had  proved  unavailing,  the 
A.D.  Statute  of  Provlsors  was  past,  setting  forth  the  en- 
croachments of  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  '  in  granting 
benefices  to  aliens  which  did  never  dwell  in  England, 


»35o. 


MUTUAL  INFLUENCE  OF  CHURCH  AND   STATE.  rg- 

and  to  cardinals  which  might  not  dwell  here,  whereby,     chap. 

in  a  short  time,  there  would  scarcely  be  any  benefice  L_ 

not  in  the  hands  of  aliens  and  denizens,  and  goods 
without  number  would  be  carried  out  of  the  realm  to 
the  great  damage  of  the  people  ;  in  reserving  arch- 
bishoprics, bishoprics,  abbeys,  and  priories  to  himself, 
granting  the  same  to  aliens  and  denizens,  and  taking 
of  all  such  benefices  the  first-fruits  and  many  other 
profits  ; '  in  consequence  of  which  grievances  it  enacts 
that  the  election  of  dignities  shall  be  free,  that 
patrons  shall  enjoy  their  rights,  and  that,  in  case  of 
the  Pope's  transgressing  this  statute,  the  king  shall 
have  the  right  of  presentation.  The  Popes  had 
united  with  the  temporal  sovereigns  to  reserve  bene- 
fices and  to  tax  the  clergy,  but  their  avarice  called 
forth  the  opposition  of  the  laity. ^ 

Not  without  a  feeling  of  sadness  can  all  these 
indications  of  the  breaking  up  of  the  Holy  Empire 
in  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  centuries  be  witnessed  ; 
for  that  Empire  was  the  grandest  attempt  ever  made 
to  realise  a  great  and  elevating  idea.  For  a  time,  at 
least,  Europe  was  united  politically  and  ecclesiasti- 
cally ;  all  differences  of  race  and  origin  were  merged 
in  membership  in  one  common  society — a  society, 
indeed,  which  might  almost  seem  to  come  up  to 
St.  Paul's  ideal,  making  no  distinction  between  bar- 
barian, Scythian,  bond  or  free,  German  and  Spa- 
niard, Italian  and  Pole ;  even  French  and  English 
looked  up  to  one  august  political  sovereign  as  the 
representative  of  old  Rome,  and  considered  him  their 

'  See  the  Statute  of  Provisors,  Appendix  IV. 


■568 


THE  BREAKING    UP   OF   THE  HOLY  EMPIRE. 


PART  emperor,  and  looked  up  also  to  one  holy  ecclesiastical 
^^^'  sovereign,  and  considered  him  their  Pope.  From 
Bavaria  to  Italy,  from  Bohemia  to  France,  the  em- 
peror might  ride  ;  he  might  survey  the  whole  of 
Europe,  from  the  Baltic  to  the  Pyrenees,  from  the 
German  Ocean  to  the  Danube,  and  the  blue  waters 
of  the  Mediterranean.  Everywhere  his  dignity  was 
acknowledged ;  everywhere,  too,  the  dignity  of  the 
Pope  was  acknowledged.  It  w^as  sad,  therefore,  to 
see  so  grand  an  institution  decline ;  sadder  still  to 
see  it  give  place  to  the  petty  rivalries  and  quarrels 
of  sovereigns,  whose  dignity  fades  into  nothing  in 
comparison  with  the  venerable  grandeur  of  the  em- 
peror. But  the  saddest  spectacle  of  all  is  it  to  see 
the  sun  of  the  Holy  Empire  setting  in  one  glow  of 
red  in  the  alliance  struck  between  Frederic  III.  and 
Nicolas  V.  After  the  death  of  Nicolas  V.,  the  Holy 
Empire  itself  may  be  considered  to  be  at  an  end. 
Yet  its  destitute  trunk  lingered  on  for  three  centuries 
with  just  strength  sufficient  to  produce  in  all  the 
nations  which  sprung  out  of  it  imitations  of  the 
parent  stock. 


AGE   OF  DECLINE. 


569 


CHAPTER    XVIII. 

CHURCH  AND  STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM. 
(1303—1515.) 


Regnum  metim  non  est  de  hoc  mitndo. — John  XVIII.  36. 


WHILST  the  great  ecclesiastical  and  political     chap. 
society  of  the  Holy  Empire  was  gradually  J L 

breaking  up  during  the  fourteenth  and  fifteenth  cen-  f-f^f/'I'j 
turies,  another  process  of  gradual  construction  was  P^^pacy. 
simultaneously  going  on,  which  resulted  in  the  Refor- 
mation. The  idea  of  the  Holy  Empire  had  been 
that  the  Church  and  the  Empire  were  identical, 
Church  and  State  being  only  two  aspects  of  one 
society ;  the  theory  of  the  Reformation  was  that 
Church  and  State  were  distinct  bodies,  but  united  for 
mutual  help,  their  co-extensiveness  being  simply  an 
accident.  As  the  former  theory  was  declining  the 
latter  was  growing.  As  the  former  brings  before  us 
Church  and  State  in  union,  so  the  latter  brings 
before  us  Church  and  State  in  antagonism.  As  the 
influence  of  the  idea  of  the  Holy  Empire  may  be 
traced  in  the  parallelism  of  Church  and  State  and 
the  lingering  mutual  influence  exercised  by  one  on 
the  other,  so  the  preparation  for  the  religious  theories 
of  the  Reformation  may  be  traced  in  the  growing 
antagonism   of  Church  and  State.     The  old  union 


cjTQ  CHURCH  AND  STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM. 

PART     of  the  two  marks  the  remains  of  the  Latin  system  ; 

. '- their  antagonism,   itself  a  new  thing,  points  to  the 

rise  of  a  new  power,  the  Teutonic  spirit.  It  showed 
that  the  dominion  of  Rome  was  past ;  that  a  new 
dominion  was  about  to  succeed.  It  showed,  too,  that 
henceforth  the  influence  of  Rome  was  gone,  and  that 
the  Church  of  Rome  could  only  take  her  place  as 
one  among  many  other  Churches ;  as  co-ordinate  not 
as  supreme,  however  much  her  antiquity  and  her 
position  as  the  Mother  Church  might  entitle  her  to 
the  place  of  honour. 
(i)  oppo-  Nothing  can  serve  as  a  better  gauge  of  the  asser- 
states-  tion  of  the  Teutonic  spirit  than  the  growth  of  Par- 
enera .  Jjamentary  Government  The  representative  part 
of  Parliamentary  Government  may  indeed  have  been 
borrowed  from  the  Church ;  but  to  limit  the  des- 
potic power  of  a  sovereign  by  the  expressed  wishes 
of  the  people  is  a  Teutonic  and  not  a  Latin  institu- 
tion. It  is  a  matter  of  comparative  indifference 
how  the  wishes  of  the  people  are  ascertained,  pro- 
vided the  fact  of  the  limitation  is  well  established. 
Moreover,  the  rise  of  Parliamentary  Government 
implied  the  rise  of  national  feeling,  and  hence,  also,  it 
involved  a  breaking  away  from  the  Empire,  from 
the  emperor  as  the  political  head,  and  from  the 
Pope  as  the  spiritual  head,  of  society.  Thus  the 
first  occasion  on  which  the  States  General  were  con- 
vened in  France  was  to  protest  against  the  pretensions 
of  Pope  Boniface -VI II,,  the  very  Pope  under  whom 
signs  of  decline  first  appeared  on  the  papal  heaven.-^ 

'  See  Chap.  IX.  p.  276. 


OPPOSITION  TO    THE  PAPACY. 


571 


Nor  was   it  altogether  an  accident  that  in  England     chap. 

the  grant  of  the  Great  Charter  was  secured  within  J L 

two  years  after  King  John,  by  granting  his  kingdom 
in  fee  to  Innocent  III.,  had  incorporated  his  realm 
in  the  papal  empire,^  waiving  his  claim  to  be  l 
national  sovereign.  It  seemed  that  the  Pope  had 
no  sooner  compelled  an  acknowledgment  of  the 
Holy  Empire  from  the  turbulent  Normans, — those 
inveterate  enemies  of  Germany,  whom  he  had  only 
attached  to  his  cause  by  concessions — than  the  spirit 
of  English  nationality  began  to  awake.  For  was  not 
the  scene  at  Runnymede  an  assertion  of  nationality 
against  a  foreigner,^  when  on  the  one  side  stood 
John,  the  sworn  vassal  of  Innocent  III.,  together  with 
eight  bishops  and  the  papal  envoy,  on  the  other 
Fitz  Walter  and  the  great  majority  of  the  barons 
who  presented  the  Charter  ?  And  was  it  altogether 
accidental  that  as  the  power  and  importance  of  Par- 
liament increased  in  England  after  the  fourteenth 
century,  the  power  and  influence  of  the  Popes  de- 
clined in  proportion  ?  The  Parliaments  of  Edward 
1 11.^    and  Richard   II.*  supported  Wycliffe  against 


'  See  Chap.  IX.  p.  253.     ^  See  Lingard,  vol.  ii.  ch.  v.  p.  173. 
3  In   1366  the  Parhament  rephed  :    *  Et  outre  ce,  les   Dues, 

*  Countes,  Barons,  Grantz  et  Communes  accorderent  et  garanterent 
'  qu  en  cas  qe  le  Pape  se  aftorceroit  ou  rien  attempteroit  par 

*  proces  ou  en  autre  manere  de  fait,  de  constreindre  le  Roi  ou  ses 

*  subgitz  de  parfaire  ce  qu  est  dit  qu'il  voet  clamer  cette  partie, 
'  qu'ils  resistront  et  contreesterront  ove  toute  leur  peussance.' 
Rot.  Pari.  temp.  Ed.  III.,  p.  290. 

*  King  Richard,  at  the  request  of  his  Parliament,  October  10, 
1389,  forbade  the  bishops  to  levy  the  imposition  which  the  Pope 
r^uired  of  the  clergy  without  the  consent  of  the  king  and  parlia- 


572  CHURCH  AND  STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM.  ' 

PART     the  Pope;  that  of  Henry  IV.  proposed  that,  instead 

^ —   of  a  fifteenth  being  raised  from  the  laity  for  the 

years  in  which  Henry  did  not  summon  a  ParHament, 
the  burden  should  be  laid  on  the  Church.  Even  in 
the  Empire  itself  the  States  General  at  Frankfurt 
were  roused  to  declare  that  the  papal  sentence  by 
which  Benedict  XH.  thought  to  carry  out  against 
the  Emperor  Lewis  IV.  the  extravagant  assertions 
of  the  Bull  of  Clement  V.  was  void/  and  to  resist  the 
pretensions  of  the  Papacy  the  first  electoral  league 
was  concluded  at  Rense.^ 
{2)  oppo-       The  opposition  of  the  laity,  of  which  the  rise  of 

sitioii  of  ^.  ,  ,     ,  - 

the  spi-  parliamentary  government  may  be  regarded  as  a  nt 
ri  ua  es.  exponent,  was  further  fostered  by  an  instrument 
which  Rome  herself  had  sanctioned  for  the  purpose 
of  consolidating  her  own  power.  The  creation  of 
the  great  Mendicant  Orders  in  the  Church  bears  a 
close  resemblance  to  the  creation  of  standing  armies 
in  civil  society  ;  and  just  as  standing  armies  gradually 
superseded  the  feudal  system  of  military  service,  so 
the  growth  of  these  Orders  tended  to  throw  into  the 
background  the  ranks  of  ordinary  clergy.  With 
every  standing  army  there  is  more  or  less  of  risk 
that  it  may  refuse  to  obey  its  general,  and  side  with 
the  enemy ;  and  although  this  danger  is  not  likely  to 
happen  except  in  some  great  crisis,  still  it  is  a  danger 
which  may  occur  at  any  time,  and  which  actually  did 

ment.  See  Rymer  ad  an.  In  1353  the  Statute  of  Provisors  was 
renewed  against  all  who  should  introduce  Bulls  from  Rome.  In 
1392  the  Statute  of  Praemunire  passed. 

^  See  Chap.  XIII.  p.  428,  and  Chap.  XIV.  p.  451. 

2  See  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  100,  p.  54. 


OPPOSITION  TO   THE  PAPACY.  cy^ 

happen  in  the  case  of  the  Papacy.     The  Mendicants    chap. 

were  raised  up  to  be  the  spiritual  standing  army  of  — '^ 

the  Pope.^  But  a  part  of  the  Franciscans,  embittered 
by  the  attempts  of  successive  Popes  to  suppress  the 
Hteral  observance  of  their  rule,  had  separated  them- 
selves from  the  rest  of  their  Order.  Against  these 
Franciscans — spirituales  as  they  called  themselves — 
John  XXI.  invoked  the  aid  of  the  Inquisition;'^  and  a.d.  1317 
many  of  them  choosing  rather  to  be  thrust  from  the 
Church  than  to  depart  from  the  literal  fulfilment  of 
their  founder's  wishes,  under  the  name  Fratricelli, 
swelled  the  motley  ranks  of  heretical  Beghards,  dif- 
fusing the  spirit  of  opposition  to  the  Papacy,  and 
opposing  it  as  strongly  as  they  had  formerly  been  its 
champions.  The  opposition  of  the  more  moderate 
Franciscans  increased  when  John  XXI.  characterised  ■"^'^ 
as  heresy  the  teaching  that  Christ  and  his  Apostles 
owned  no  common  property.^  With  Michael  of 
Cesena,  General  of  the  Order,  at  their  head,  a  great 
portion  of  the  Minorites  forthwith  betook  themselves 
to  the  Emperor  Lewis  IV.  By  them  the  charge  of 
heresy  was  preferred  against  John  XXL,  which  so  1328 
greatly  weakened  him  in  his  struggle  with  the  em- 
peror, and  from  their  number  the  antipope  Nicolas 
V.  was  taken,  whom  Lewis  established  at  Rome  in 
the  year  1328.  These  disputes  between  the  stricter 
Franciscans,  or  Observants,  and  those  who  gave  a 
laxer  interpretation  to  the  Rule,  continued  for  the 

1  See  Chap.  XV.  p.  472. 
^  See  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  113,  p.  148. 

3  The  Bull  of  November  12,  1322   (quoted  in  Gies.  vol.   iv. 
sec.  113,  p.  151). 


y.  CHURCH  AND   STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM. 

PART  next  three-quarters  of  a  century,  until  the  Council  of 
' Constance  recognised  the  stricter  party,  and  sanc- 
tioned their  existence  under  the  name  of  the  Order 
of  Brethren  of  the  Rigid  Observance.^  The  Obser- 
vants had  long  been  leading  the  van  of  popular  oppo- 
sition to  the  Papacy,  and  were  therefore  encouraged 
by  the  council,  itself  imbued  with  a  kindred  spirit  of 
opposition. 

The  attacks  which  the  Papacy  encountered  at  the 
hands  of  the  Empire  have  been  already  noticed  in 
the  preceding  chapters  ;  nor  were  these  attacks  made 
without  a  cause.  For  although,  like  the  Papacy,  the 
Empire  rested  on  a  foreign  source,  yet  the  Empire 
had  been  gradually  moulded  into  conformity  with  the 
German  spirit,  whereas  the  Papacy  always  continued 
to  represent  Roman  imperialism.  When  the  Empire 
had  lost  most  of  its  distinctively  Roman  features, 
when  it  was  little  more  than  an  elective  dignity  des- 
titute of  any  greater  power  than  the  princes  of  the 
Empire  possessed,  in  short,  when  it  had  become 
nothing  but  a  German  kingdom  with  the  prestige  of 
a  venerable  name,  it  still  continued  to  found  its 
claims  to  power  on  its  descent  from  Rome.  Herein 
lay  its  weakness.  As  a  German  kingdom,  it  might 
easily  have  headed  the  opposition  of  Germany  to  the 
Latin  dominions  of  the  Pope,  and  have  been  the 
representative  of  the  Teutonic  spirit  in  conflict  with 
the  Latin  spirit,  but  then  it  would  have  ceased  to 
claim  this  position  as  being  the  descendant  of  the 
Latin    Empire.       In    opposing   the    Papacy,    whilst 

*  Sessio  xix.  September  23,  141 5,  in  Labb^,  xvi.  297. 


OPPOSITION  TO   THE  PAPACY.  trye 

resting  its  own  claims  on  its  descent  from  Augustus,     chap. 

it  acted  inconsistently,  and  followed  a  suicidal  policy.   L 

There  may  be  a  glow  of  lustre  about  the  coronation 
of  Frederic  III.  in  the  year  1452,  but  it  is  the  last 
ray  of  the  setting  sun  lighting  up  the  heaven  before 
darkness  sets  in.  The  Empire  refused  to  renounce 
its  connection  with  Latinism  ;  it  refused  to  become  a 
Teutonic  power;  it  wedded  itself  to  the  Papacy  once 
more  when  its  old  claims  were  as  obsolete  as  those 
of  its  rival  were  extravagant.  The  Union  was  an 
anachronism,  and  by  it  the  German  spirit  which  now 
surged  against  the  Papacy,  was  directed  against  the 
Empire  also. 

Viewed  in  this  light,  one  and  the  same  cause  is  seen  (4)  Oppo- 

,.  ,  r.    ■,  .  .  f.    ,  siiio7i  of 

to  he  at  the  root  01  the  opposition  01  the  emperors  to  ecdesias-, 
the  Papacy,  and  of  the  opposition  on  the  part  of  the 
clergy  which  manifested  itself  at  the  councils  of  Pisa, 
Constance,  and  Basle.  The  Popes,  whose  claims  had 
grown  more  and  more  extravagant,  stood  there  as 
the  representatives  of  the  Latin  spirit,  of  the  univer- 
sal Empire  of  Rome.  The  influence  of  the  Latin 
system  over  Europe  had  long  been  great;  it  had  once 
been  identifled  with  civilisation  and  with  Christianity; 
it  had  trained  the  Western  nations  as  it  were  in  their 
infancy  and  youth.  The  voice  which  came  from  the 
Fathers  of  Constance  and  Basle,  and  which  Galilean 
writers  re-echoed,  was,  however,  the  voice  of  manhood 
— of  a  manhood  no  longer  needing  the  leading-strings 
of  the  old  Latin  system,  but  able  to  hold  its  own,  and 
to  bring  the  institutions  of  Europe  into  harmony  with 
the  German  spirit.  It  was  the  voice  of  manhood 
eager  for  the  battle.     Pisa,    Constance,   and   Basle 


ties. 


c-75  CHURCH  AND  STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM. 

PART     were  the  preliminary  skirmishes  of  the  real  fight  which 

'       was  fought  by  Luther  at  Wurtemberg  and  Leipsic. 

The  Sees  which  sent  the  foremost  prelates  to  those 

councils  produced  also  the  greatest  champions  of  the 

Reformation. 

B.  Oppo-        The   growing   antagonism   of  Church  and   State 

^ifuHier-  "^^^  ^^^  confined  to  opposition  to  the  Papacy  alone. 

archy.        jj-  appeared  also  in  an  opposition  to  the  hierarchy, 

(i)  Origi-  ,  .  .  .         ,       ,  .        , 

nating  Strangely  enough,  this  opposition  had  been,  in  the 
p'ope.  ^^  fi^st  place,  caused  by  the  Pope  himself,  and  developed 
by  the  institutions  of  papal  legates  and  the  mendi- 
cant orders.  In  sending  forth  delegates  to  enforce 
his  reformatory  measures,  Gregory  VI 1.  had  dealt  a 
blow  at  the  authority  of  the  secular  clergy,  by  call- 
ing on  the  laity  to  despise  the  non-conforming  clergy.-^ 
That  blow  had  been  followed  up  by  another  dealt 
by  Innocent  III.  in  establishing  mendicant  orders, 
who,  enjoying  valuable  privileges,  spread  over 
Europe^  the  willing  minions  of  the  Popes,  some- 
times reforming  abuses,  at  other  times  addicted  to 
vice,  supported  by  the  papal  authority,  and  every- 
where stirring  up  the  laity  against  the  parochial 
clergy.  The  Bull  of  Alexander  V.  in  1409,  which 
conferred  unlimited  privileges  on  the  Mendicants, 
was  the  absolute  annihilation  of  the  prerogatives 
and  pretensions  of  the  regular  hierarchy.^  It  com- 
pleted the  estrangement  between  the  Regulars 
and  Seculars.  Henceforth  each  party  sought  to 
strengthen  its  position  by  an  appeal  to  the  laity ;  the 
Regulars  incited  the  laity  against  the  Seculars,  the 

'  See  Chap.  Vll.  p.  199.  2  ggg  Chap.  XV.  p.  472. 


OPPOSITION    TO    THE   HIERARCHY.  c^i 

Seculars  attacked  the  Regulars  ;  and  the  result  chap. 
which  might  have  been  expected  followed  ;  the  hos-  "^^  ^^^' 
tility  of  the  laity  was  aroused  against  both. 

In  the  struggle  which  was  thus  stirred  up  between  (2)  Regu. 
the  two  branches  of  the  clergy,  the   University  ap-  ^slZ/ars 
pears    as    the   great  champion    of  the  parochial  or 
secular  clergy.     The  Mendicants,  who  had  gained  a 
footing  in  the  University  of  Paris  in  the  middle  of 
the  thirteenth  century,  but  not  till  after  the  memorable 
opposition  lasting  thirty  years, ^  were  required  in  the 
fifteenth  century  to  submit  to  its  authority  as  a  condi- 
tion of  their  being  allowed  to  teach  at  all.     All  their 
attempts  to  make  themselves  independent  were  re- 
pelled.     The  Dominican,  John  Sarrazin,^  was  obliged   ^.d.  1429 
to  withdraw  the  statements  that  all  orders,  of  juris- 
diction are  derived  from  the  Pope,  that  such  orders 
are  not  of  Divine  right,  and  that  the  Pope's  authority 
gives  validity  to  the  decrees  of  Councils  ;  the  Augus- 
tinian,  Nicolas  Quadrigarius,  had  to  recant  the  opi-       1442 
nion,   that  only  the  power  of  the  Pope  is  derived 
immediately  from  Christ ;  the  Franciscan,  John  An-      1483 
geli,  the  assertion,  that  the  Pope  might  if  he  pleased 
introduce  a  new  code  of  right,  or  deprive  an  eccle- 
siastic of  half  the  value  of  his  benefice.      In  opposition 
to  the  pretensions  of  the  Mendicants,  a  theory  grew 
up  in  France,  and  was  there  stoutly  upheld,  that  the 
parochial  clergy  derive  their  spiritual  authority  not 
from  the   bishops,  but  as    the   bishops    themselves. 


'  See  GiES.  vol.  v.  sec.  141,  p.  35. 

^  D'Argenti^^,  Callectio  jiidiciorum  de  novis  crrorihus,  book  i. 
ch.  ii.  p.  227  ;  in  GiES.  vol.  v.  sec.  136,  p.  434. 

P   P 


578 


CHURCH  AND  STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM. 


PART     through  the  institution  of  Christ.     Gerson,  the  Chan 

^ cellor  of  the  University  of  Paris,  who  distinguished 

himself  in  his  endeavours  to  heal  the  Schism/  and 
was  the  leader  of  the  Gallican  party  at  Pisa  and  Con- 
stance, asserts,  that  according  to  Christ's  institution 
there  are  two  orders  of  parochial  clergy,  the  lesser 
and  the  greater,  to  both  of  which  belono^s  the  riorht  to 
preach,  to  hear  confessions,  to  administer  the  sacra- 
ments, and  to  bury  the  dead  ;  that  the  condition  of  the 
parochial  clergy  corresponds  to  that  of  the  seventy- 
two  disciples  in  the  Gospel ;  that  they  were  prefigured 
by  the  Levites  in  the  old  dispensation,  and  were  ac- 
cordingly instituted  by  Christ  and  his  Apostles  ;  and 
that  they  are  quite  as  essential  a  part  of  the  hier- 
archy as  are  the  prelates  in  episcopal  orders.  Out  of 
France,  this  theory  was  not  even  sanctioned  by  all  the 
liberal  canonists ;  but  In  France  It  was  supported  by 
the  University,  and  the  support  of  the  University 
gained  for  it  the  support  of  Parliament.^  Thus,  In 
France  at  least,  the  Seculars  were  in  some  measure 
protected  against  the  encroachments  of  the  Mendi- 
cants. In  England  the  University  of  Oxford,  always 
closely  connected  with  that  of  Paris,  was  Involved 
in  a  similar  strusfgrle  with  the  beo-oringr  Friars,  and 
the  hostility  which  the  latter  displayed  towards  the 
parochial  clergy  was  the  occasion  which  first  aroused 
Wycliffe  boldly  to  denounce  the  corruptions  of  the 
Mendicants. 
C.  Gene-        The    Qfrowlncr    antagonism    between    Church  and 

rac  oppO' 

'  See  Gerson,  De potest,  ccd.  consid.  xi.  0pp.  ii.  p.  243. 
"^  See  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  108,  p.  128. 


GENERAL   OPPOSITION.  ryg 

State  appears  moreover  in  the  curtailment  of  eccle-     chap. 
siastical  jurisdiction,  and  the  restrictions  imposed  on   J L 


the    acquisition  of  property  by  the  Church.      Since  %^(/il 
the   time   of  the   Emperor   Henry   V.   ecclesiastical  ^^^'"''^^'■^ 
jurischction   had   advanced   with  rapid   strides,  until  tailmcnt 
the  Papacy  of  Boniface  VIII.      It  seemed  at  one  time  siastical 
to  threaten  all  secular  jurisdictions  with  extinction.  J'^f'^^^'-'^- 

-'  _  twn. 

The  number  of  persons  entitled  to  the  privileges 
or  benefit  of  clergy  was  increased  by  the  indiscrimi- 
nate use  of  the  tonsure,  which  was  extended  to 
orphans  and  widows,  to  strangers  and  the  poor,  to 
pilgrims  and  lepers  ;  and  the  whole  body  of  Crusaders 
enjoyed  the  same  privileges.  Moreover,  cases  belong- 
inof  to  the  coonisance  of  the  ecclesiastical  courts 
were  increased  by  breaches  of  contract  being  brought 
before  spiritual  tribunals,  and  questions  involving 
perjury,  adultery,  sacrilege,  usury,  incest,  being  re- 
ferred to  them.  Besides  this,  extension  of  juris- 
diction, the  clergy  secured  to  themselves  absolute 
immunity  from  the  criminal  justice  of  the  state,  a 
privilege  which  they  always  claimed,  but  which  was 
m.ore  or  less  admitted  according  to  the  strength  or 
the  weakness  of  the  secular  authorities. 

From  the  beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century,  (a)  In  the 
however,  these  privileges  began  to  be  curtailed  by  P  ■ 
the  laity.  The  jealousies  between  the  ecclesiastical 
and  secular  tribunals  beoan  more  and  more  to  result 
in  favour  of  the  latter.  The  Emperor  Louis  IV. 
prohibited  the  bringing  of  civil  causes  before  ec- 
clesiastical courts  as  early  as  the  year  1318.^     The 

■'   In    GuDENi   Sylloge  dipl.   p.    487  (quoted   by   Gies.  vol.   iv. 
sec.  108,  p.  122). 

p  p   2 


ego  CHURCH  AND  STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM. 

TART     prohibition  was  repeated  in  the  privileges  of  Frank- 

'       furt.     The  Golden  Bull  of  Charles  IV. — -an  emperor 

1329  otherwise   most  subservient  to  the    Popes — enacts, 
1356  .  ,       .  r  ' 

that  in  default  of  justice,^  causes  should  be  brought 
before  the  imperial  court,  from  which  no  appeal  shall 
lie  to  any  other  tribunal.  During  the  Schism  and 
the  weak  rule  of  the  Emperor  Wenceslaus,  the  de- 
cisions of  the  temporal  courts  against  the  higher 
clergy  could  only  be  enforced  by  violent  measures  ;  ^ 
but  concessions  were  also  made  to  the  nobles  to 
secure  their  support.  Among  other  instances  of  the 
kind,  Boniface  IX.  granted  the  jus  primarum  precum 
to  the  Duke  of  Austria,  in  1399.^ 
{b\  In  In  Switzerland,  the  law  called  the  Pfaffenbrief  was 

land  and  enacted  in  1370,  prohibiting  the  employment  of  the 
Irance.  ^^^^  -^^  ^^^^  ^|-  debt  and  other  secular  matters,  and 
forbidding  clergymen  to  repair  to  foreign  courts 
whether  ecclesiastical  or  temporal.  In  France, 
where  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction  had  reached  its 
greatest  extension,  the  kings,  finding  it  a  useful  in- 
strument to  strengthen  their  own  weakness,  were 
disposed  to  favour  it.  By  the  barons,  on  the  other 
hand,  it  was  constantly  assailed,  and  from  the  time 
of  Charles  V.   it   was   kept   within   bounds    by    the 

'  Cap.  xi.  :  '  In  defectu  vero  justitiae  praedictis  omnibus  ad 
'  imperialem  duntaxat  Curiam  et  tribunal,  seu  judicis  immediate 
'  in  imperiali  Curia  pro  tempore  praesidentis  audientiam,  et  etiam 
'  eo  casu  non  ad  quemvis  alium  judicem  sive  ordinarium  sive 
'  etiam  delegatum,  his  quibus  denegata  fuerit  justitia,  liceat  appel- 
'  lare.' 

2  See  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  108,  p.  123. 

^  See  the  documents  in  Kurz,  Oestenrkh  unter  Htrzog  Albrecht 
IV.,  part  i.  p.  185. 


GENERAL    OPPOSITION. 


58r 


Parliament  to  such  an  extent,  that  points  which  in     chap. 
that  age  were  universally  held  to  be  ecclesiastical  — 1 


were  drawn  under  the  cognisance  of  the  Parliament.^ 
France,  in  short,  no  less  than  Germany  and  Switzer- 
land, showed  an  increasing  tendency  to  impose  limi- 
tations on  ecclesiastical  jurisdiction. 

Nor  was  England  an  exception  to  the  rule.    There,  C^}  ^''    , 

,  England. 

since  the  memorable  attempt  to  gain  the  assent  of 
Thomas  a  Becket  to  the  Constitutions  of  Clarendon, 
and  the  no  less  memorable  humiliation  of  Henry 
II.,  ecclesiastical  power  had  enormously  increased. 
With  the  reign  of  Henry  HI.  the  tide  turned. 
Even  an  archbishop  acknowledged,  under  Edward  I., 
the  right  of  the  Court  of  King's  Bench  to  issue  pro- 
hibitions; and  the  Statute  Circumspecte  agatis,  passed  a.d.  1284 
in  the  thirteenth  year  of  the  reign  of  that  prince,  was 
so  interpreted  by  the  judges  as  to  refer  questions  re- 
specting rights  of  advowson  and  temporal  contracts 
to  the  secular  jurisdiction,  these  not  being  distinctly 
enumerated  among    the    privileges   of   the   Church. 


^  Parliament  maintained  its  right  to  take  cognisance  'de  omni- 
'  bus  causis  ecclesiasticis  possessoriis.'  Preuves,  ch.  xxvi.  No.  i. 
When  the  Archbishop  of  Bourges,  in  1369,  had  passed  some 
decrees  at  a  diocesan  synod  removing  the  clergy  from  secular 
jurisdiction,  the  Duke  of  Berry  came  forward  as  the  king's  lieu- 
tenant and  published  a  decree  :  '  Quod  dictus  Rev.  Pater  post- 
'  modum  sufficienter  informatus  et  certioratus,  dictas  suas  consti- 
'  tutiones  et  statuta  dictae  jurisdictioni  temporali  et  dictae  Bituri- 
'  censis  patriae  usibus  et  consuetudinibus  existere  contrarias  .  .  . 
'  in  nostri  praesentia  sponte  revocaverit  et  totaliter  adnuUaverit,  et 
'  insuper  nobis  promiserit  dictam  adnullationem  et  revocationem 
'  in  sua  proxima  futura  Bituricensi  Synodo  in  personis  dictorum 
'  Curatorum  dictae  suae  dioeceseos  tieri,  facere,  publicare,'  etc. 
Accordingly  he  is  released  from  all  punishment  and  displeasure. 


582 


GHURCH  AND  STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM. 


PART     How  changed  were  the  times   since  the  Bishop  of 

^ Winchester  had  ventured  to  assert  that  the  election 

■  "'^^    to  the  throne  lay  with  the  Bishops  !     The  laity  were 

rising  against  the  foreign  jurisdiction  of  the  clergy. 

German  nations  were  throwino-  off  the  fetters  of  the 

Roman  law,  substituting  in  its  place  a  law  of  their 

own  creation.      The  Teutonic   spirit   was    asserting 

itself  against  the  Latin  spirit. 

(2)  Pro-         The  restriction  of  donations  of  land  to  the  Church, 

of  "ifts  in  which  Succeeded  about    the  twelfth  century  to  the 

^'1°'-'         lavish    crrants    of   the    five    precedino-    centuries,    is 

main.  fc>  1  cs  ' 

another  instance  illustrating  the  same  change  of  po- 
sition. The  Emperor  Albert  had  granted  to  Ulm  in 
1300,  to  Augsburg  in  1306,  the  privilege  that  all 
fresh  acquisition  of  property  by  the  Church  should 
be  alienated  again  in  a  year  and  a  day.  Heilbronn, 
Ratisbon,  Cologne,  and  Brunswick,  following  the 
example  of  these  cities,  either  passed  similar  laws  on 
their  own  authority,  or  obtained  them  in  the  form  of 
privileges  from  the  emperor.^  In  other  cities — in 
Llibeck,  Vienna,  Wismar,  and  Ribnitz — neither 
houses  nor  plots  of  land  were  allowed  to  be  be- 
queathed to  the  clergy  ;  and  although  Charles  IV. 
endeavoured  by  an  ordinance  of  the  year  1377  to 
annul  all  these  statutes  and  privileges,  they  still  con- 
tinued to  be  observed — a  striking  testimony  to  the 
declining  power  of  the  Church. 

1 158  The  enactment   of   Frederic    Barbarossa  that  no 

fief  should  be  transferred  to  the  Church  without  the 

1279       permission  of  the  superior  lord,  that  of  Edward  I., 

'  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  108,  p.  123. 


GENERAL  OPPOSITION. 


58; 


commonly  known  as  the  Statute  of  Mortmain,  the  chap. 
Constitutions  of  St.  Louis  in  France,  the  Code  of  ^^^^^- 
Castile,  and  all  the  statutes  of  a  similar  kind  in  other 
countries,  intended,  as  they  no  doubt  were  in  the  first 
place,  to  protect  the  superior  lords  from  losing  reliefs 
upon  succession  and  dues  upon  alienation,  would 
nevertheless  hardly  have  been  passed,  if  the  respect 
for  Rome  and  her  institutions  had  been  as  oreat  then 
as  in  the  ninth  century.  Since  that  century,  however, 
the  feudal  system  had  grown  to  completeness ;  and 
whilst  there  was  in  it  much  which  was  borrowed  from 
Rome,  there  w^as  also  in  it  much  that  was  peculiar  to 
the  Western  nations.  From  the  latter  had  come 
the  practice  of  paying  heriots  and  fines  ;  and  the  fact 
that  heriots  and  fines  were  retained  when  other  parts 
of  the  feudal  system  gave  way,  is  evidence  of  the 
victory  of  the  indigenous  over  the  foreign  elements. 
If  Teutonism  was  ever  really  tp  overcome  Latinism, 
it  was  before  all  things  necessary  that  all  land  should 
not  pass  into  the  hands  of  the  Church  and  be  held 
under  her  tenures.  Self-interest  may  have  been  the 
ruling  motive  of  those  who  passed  the  Statutes  of 
Mortmain  ;  still  the  passing  of  such  statutes  in  the 
face  of  Latin  opposition,  is  of  itself  an  evidence  of 
the  growing  power  of  the  Teutonic  spirit,  and  the 
nobles  generally  succeeded  in  making  them  observed 
when  they  had  once  been  passed. 

Thus  everywhere  symptoms  began  to  manifest 
themselves  of  a  coming  crisis.  The  Holy  Empire 
was  breaking  up  in  Europe.  The  Eastern  Empire 
had  fallen  in  Asia,  histitutions  reaching  back  to 
the  dawn  of  civilisation  among  the  Western  nations 


584. 


CHURCH  AND  STATE  IN  ANTAGONISM. 


PART     were   being  assailed.      The   old  order  was  passing 

'. away  ;   a  new  order  was  arising.     A  new  world  was 

being  discovered  in  the  West  beyond  the  ocean, 
hitherto  supposed  to  be  the  limit  of  all  things.  New 
ideas  were  being  diffused  throughout  Europe  by  the 
Greeks  escaped  from  the  Turks  in  the  East.  New 
nations  were  coming  into  the  foreground,  not  pos- 
sessing the  vague  and  undefined  character  of  the 
tribes  of  the  Empire,  but  clearly  marked  off  from 
each  other,  and  actuated  by  no  friendly  feelings 
towards  each  other.  New  languages  were  being 
formed  and  employed  for  literary  purposes.  The 
Latin  tongue,  the  language  of  the  Empire,  was 
giving  place  to  English,  German,  French,  Italian, 
and  Bohemian,  as  the  languages  of  the  people ; 
men  soon  demanded  to  have  them  as  the  languages 
of  the  Church.  The  dominion  of  Latinism  was  at 
an  end,  as  the  disuse  of  Latin,  as  the  spoken  lan- 
guage of  cultivated  Europe,  indicated  ;  and  even  a 
slight  knowledge  of  that  tongue  was  soon  to  be  a 
thing  for  the  favoured  few.  The  gaze  of  the  world 
was  turned  away  from  the  past ;  it  was  directed 
to  the  future.  Who  can  look  back  on  the  four- 
teenth and  fifteenth  centuries  without  sharing  the 
newly  awakened  enthusiasm  of  the  Teutonic  races 
for  their  own  future  ?  but  who  can  look  back  with- 
out also  feeling  a  pang  of  sympathy  with  the  declin- 
ing greatness  of  the  Mediaeval  Empire  } 


AGE   OF  DECLINE. 


58: 


CHAPTER   XIX. 

NATIONAL  REACTIONS  AGAINST   THE  LATIN 
SYSTEMS. 


Ilia  a  litem  quae  sursiini  est  Jerusalem,  libera  est ;  quae  est  mater 
nostra.— G.w^.  iv.  26. 


W 


ITH    the   antag-onism  between  Church  and     chap. 

XIX. 

State    already    showing    itself   in    so    many    '— 


ways,  some  great  results  could  not  fail  to  appear, 
even  before  the  crisis  of  the  final  separation  arrived. 
For  after  the  Latin  spirit  had  for  centuries  reigned 
supreme  in  the  West,  the  independent  assertion  of 
the  Teutonic  spirit,  in  any  form  and  shape,  was  of 
itself  a  novelty  ;  and,  as  being  such,  provoked  opposi- 
tion and  hatred.  Even  before  the  united  forces 
on  either  side  were  marshalled  one  against  the  other, 
as  they  were  at  the  Reformation,  many  skirmishes 
took  place  on  the  outposts  ;  and  if,  in  some  of  the 
earlier  encounters,  the  newly  awakened  spirit,  hither- 
to unaccustomed  to  contend  against  Rome,  suc- 
cumbed, still  these  partial  and  preliminary  defeats,  far 
from  beinof  Indications  of  the  Issue  of  the  coming- 
fight,  only  served  to  enkindle  fresh  zeal.  After 
all,  the  day  of  Latin  Christianity  was  over ;  its 
champions  were  chiefly  mercenaries. 

That  spirit  of  national  Independence  which  had  A.  In 
already  shown  signs  of  existence  in  the  time  of  King     "^  ^^^' 


586 


REACTIONS  AGAINST   THE   LATIN  SYSTEMS. 


III. 


PART  John,  by  securing  the  Great  Charter — at  once  a 
protest  against  the  treatment  of  England  as  a  mere 
dependance  of  Normandy,  and  its  reduction  to 
a  fief  of  the  Holy  See  —  had  not  been  crushed 
during  the  early  years  of  the  reign  of  Henry  HI. 
During  the  latter  years  of  that  prince,  the  smoul- 
dering zeal  burst  into  a  flame  against  the  tyranny 
of  a  Norman  king  and  his  barons  ;  and  that  with 
such  success  that  thenceforth  Parliamentary  Govern- 
ment was  an  established  thing  in  the  body  politic. 
Soon  it  was  destined  to  burst  forth  again  against  the 
tyranny  of  a  foreign  ecclesiastic.  The  residence  of 
the  Popes  at  Avignon  had  exposed  the  way  in  which 
ecclesiastical  pretensions  were  made  subservient  to 
political  ends,  and,  by  exposing  them,  had  led,  in 
England,  to  a  suspension  of  the  payment  of  the 
annual  tribute  to  Rome.-*^  It  had  been  followed  by 
the  enactment  of  the  Statute  of  Provisors  against 
the  encroachments  of  the  Popes,-    A  greater  reaction 

1  In  1332.  The  payment  was  applied  for  by  Urban  V.  in 
1365.     See  Rymer,  Mo.  13, 

2  See  a  list  of  the  steps  taken  by  the  English  in  Gies.  vol.  iv. 
sec.  103,  p.  90.  The  Statute  of  Provisors  passed  in  1353  enacted 
that  -whoever  should  bring  any  cause  which  belonged  to  the  king's 
jurisdiction  before  a  foreign  tribunal,  or  appeal  from  the  former  to 
the  latter,  should  be  summoned  to  answer  the  charge  :  '  Et  sils  ne 
'  riegnent  mie  au  dit  jour  en  propre  persone  de  estere  a  la  lei, 
'  soient  ils,  lour  procuratours,  attournez,  executours,  notairs  et 
'  meintenours,  de  eel  jour  enavant  mis  hors  de  la  protection  le 
'  Roi,  et  lour  terres,  biens  et  chateux  forfaitz  au  Roi,  et  soient  lour 
'  corps,  ou  qils  soient  trovez,  pris  et  emprisonez  ct  reintz  a  la 
'  volunte  le  Roi,  et  sur  ce  soit  brief  fait  de  les  prendre  par  lour 
'  corps,  et  de  seisir  lour  terres,  biens  et  possessions  en  la  main  le 
'  Roi,  et  si  retourne,  soit  qils  ne  sont  mie  trovez,  soient  mis  en 
'  exigend  et  utlnghez.'     See  Appendix  IV. 


REACTION  IN  ENGLAND. 


587 


was  yet  to  ensue,  calling  forth  the  national  spirit  yet     chap, 

more  strongly,  leading  to  the  passing  of  new  statutes,   11- 

and   preparing  the  way   for  the  popular  movement 
completed  in  the  sixteenth  century. 

In  the  University  of  Oxford,  then  as  since  the 
cradle  of  so  many  political  and  religious  changes, 
the  reforming  movement  began  ;  and  the  individual 
who  is  named  as  leading  the  movement  was  John 
of  Wycliffe,  a  native  of  Yorkshire,  distinguished  no 
less  by  his  practical  and  political  turn  of  mind  than 
by  his  adherence  to,  and  championship  of,  realism 
in  philosophy.  Private  motives  may  have  made 
him  already  ill-disposed  to  the  Papacy,  his  appeal 
to  Rome  to  be  restored  to  the  headship  of  Canter- 
bury Hall,  from  which  the  archbishop  had  deposed 
him,  having  been  indefinitely  protracted  ;  ^  and  to 
these  private  motives  now  came  his  patriotic  feeling, 
when  Pope  Urban  V.  dema;ided  the  quit-rent,  the 
payment  of  which  had  been  introduced  by  King  John, 
but  had  been  suspended  since  the  outbreak  of  the 
war  with  France."^  The  payment  indeed  of  that 
quit-rent  was  more  than  an  ordinary  admission  of 
the  Pope's  ecclesiastical  supremacy.  It  involved 
also  the  recognition  of  England  as  a  part  of  the 
Holy  Empire,  as  a  fief  of  the  Papacy.  No  wonder 
therefore  that,  as  the  feeling  of  nationality  rose,  the 


'  The  editor  of  Fasciadi  Zizanioni/ii,  the  late  Canon  Shirley, 
rejects  the  current  account  that  the  reformer  is  the  same  person  as 
the  warden  of  Canterbury  Hall.  See  the  volume  in  the  Master  of 
the  Rolls'  series,  p.  528. 

2  This  was  in  1365.  See  Rymer  ad  an.  and  Gies.  vol.  iv.  sec. 
125,  p.  243. 


588 


REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  lATIN  SYSTEMS. 


PART 
III. 


impost  became  more  and  more  distasteful.  Hence, 
just  as  in  France  the  States  General  refused  to 
accede  to  the  demands  of  Boniface  VIII.,  so  the 
English  Parliament  bid  defiance  to  the  demands  of 
Urban  V.  It  may  seem  a  strange  coincidence,  but 
still  it  is  one  worth  remarking.  A  dispute  respect- 
ing'a  question  of  money  ushered  in  the  first  mea- 
sures of  the  political  reformation  in  England,  under 
Wycliffe.  A  money  bill  in  the  House  of  Convocation 
completed  the  political  Reformation  of  the  Church 
under  Henry  VIII.,  substituting  the  king  as  supreme 
governor  of  the  Church  in  place  of  the  Pope. 

It  is  a  point  often  too  much  overlooked  that  the 
Reformation  was  in  England  originally  a  political 
movement.  Unlike  the  earliest  reformers  in  Bohe- 
mia, Militz  of  Kremsia  and  Conrad  of  Waldhau- 
sen  ;  unlike  the  Beguins,  Beghards,  and  Waldenses 
in  Central  and  Southern  Europe,  Wycliffe  began  his 
work  as  the  supporter  of  the  sovereign  and  people 
against  the  Pope.  Cranmer's  case,  under  Henry 
VIII.,  was  nearly  analogous.  With  Wycliffe  poli- 
tics came  first,  moral  and  doctrinal  changres  followed 
afterwards  ;  and  the  course  which  Wycliffe  struck 
out  has  been  followed  by  those  who  came  after  him. 
Do  not  the  pages  of  the  English  Reformation  ever 
show  morality  and  doctrine  subordinated  to  political 
considerations  ?  Little  could  Pojoe  Urban  V.  have 
imagined  when,  in  the  year  1365,  he  demanded  the 
customary  quit-rent  of  a  thousand  marks,  which  had 
been  unpaid  since  the  breaking  out  of  the  war  with 
France,  and  when  the  English  Parliament  refused 
to  pay  it,  that  he  was   raising  a  controversy  which 


REACTION  IN  ENGLAND. 


589 


would  not  end  with  his  life,  nor  indeed  until  England     chap. 

had  shaken  off  the  papal  yoke  altogether,  and  driven    -^ L_ 

back  the  wave  of  Roman  dominion.  Still  less  could 
he  have  divined  that  he  was  splitting  the  country 
into  rival  factions,  whose  disunion  would  survive 
the  Reformation,  and  would  not  end  even  then,  but 
would  continue  to  distract  the  world,  as  it  does 
now.  The  gauntlet  was,  however,  thrown  down. 
Both  parties  prepared  themselves  for  the  contest. 
On  the  side  of  Urban  V.  were  the  Mendicants  and 
the  Italian  ecclesiastics.  On  the  side  of  the  nation 
were  the  Parliament,  the   University,  and  Wycliffe. 

The  struo-^le  between    Encjland  and    the    Pope,  i^)  ^^^y- 
which  commenced  under   Urban  V. — the  very  Pope  attacks 

the 

who,  to  signify  his  unbounded  supremacy,  first  adopted  papacy. 
the  triple  tiara — continued  to  distract  the  country 
under  his  successor  in  office.  An  effort  was,  it  is  true, 
made  to  check  the  oppressive  acts  of  the  Roman 
court,  by  negotiations  with  Pope  Gregory  XL,  and  an 
embassy,  consisting  of  seven  persons,  was  dispatched 
to  Bruges  to  confer  with  the  papal  nuncios ;  but 
the  effort  proved  abortive.  Wycliffe  was  one  of  the  a.d.  1374 
ambassadors.  The  embassy  accomplished  but  little, 
owinof  to  the  self-seekingf  of  some  of  the  English 
prelates.  Nevertheless  it  led  to  one  result.  Wycliffe 
returned,  imbued  with  the  firm  conviction,  to  which 
a  more  intimate  knowledge  of  the  Roman  Chancery, 
its  corruptions  and  intrigues,  had  brought  him,  that 
the  Papacy  had  not  its  origin  in  Divine  right ;  that  the 
Church  stands  in  no  need  of  a  visible  head.  He  even 
went  so  far  as  to  call  the  Pope  '  antichrist,' '  the  proud 
wordly  priest  of  Rome/  '  the  most  cursed  of  clippers 


in. 


ego  REACTIONS  AGAINST   THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 

PART  and  purse-kervers.'  ^  Disgusted  with  the  cupidity 
and  assumptions  of  the  Roman  prelates,  his  disgust 
spread  from  discipHne  to  doctrine.  The  teaching 
of  the  Roman  Church  was  now  assailed,  and  before 
two  years  had  elapsed,  he  had  denounced  the  Men- 
dicants as  the  chief  promoters  of  superstition,  the 
bishops  as  satraps  sunk  in  w^orldliness,  the  bene- 
ficed clergy  as  dancers,  hunters,  hawkers,  or  wild 
players  of  summer  gambols ;  and  whilst  he  had 
gained  the  support  of  a  great  body  of  laity,  among 
others,  of  the  Duke  of  Lancaster,  he  had  also  raised 
up  many  fierce  enemies,  and  drawn  down  the  papal 
condemnation  of  nineteen  propositions  declared  to 
be  heretical.^      In  fact,  what  else  could  the  Pope  do 


'  Lewis,  Life  of  Wycliffe,  p.  32  seq. 

2  Among  them  are  the  following,  quoted  by  Gies.  sec.  125, 
from  Walsingham,  p.  201  :  '  i.  Totum  genus  hominum  concur- 
rentium  citra  Christum  non  habet  potestatem  simpliciter  ordi- 
nandi, ut  Petrus  et  omne  genus  suum  dominetur  politice  imper- 
petuum  super  mundum.  6.  Si  Deus  est,  domini  temporales 
possunt  legitime  ac  meritorie  auferre  bona  fortunae  ab  Ecclesia 
delinquente.  7.  Numquid  Ecclesia  est  in  tali  statu  vel  non,  non 
est  meum  discutere,  sed  dominorum  temporalium  examinare,  et 
posito  casu  confidenter  agere,  et  in  poena  damnationis  aeternae 
ejus  temporalia  auferre.  8.  Scimus,  quod  non  est  possibile, 
quod  Vicarius  Christi  pure  ex  bullis  suis,  vel  ex  illis  cum  volun- 
tate  et  consensu  suo  et  sui  Collegii  quenquam  habilitet  vel  inha- 
bilitet.  9.  Non  est  possibile  hominem  excommunicari,  nisi  prius 
et  principaliter  excommunicaretur  a  seipso.  13.  Discipuli  Christi 
non  habent  potestatem  coacte  exigere  temporalia  per  censuras. 
16.  Hoc  debet  catholice  credi  :  quilibet  sacerdos  rite  ordinatus 
habet  potestatem  sufiicienter  sacramenta  quaelibet  conferendi,  et 
per  consequens  quemlibet  contritum  a  peccato  quolibet  absol- 
vendi.  19.  Ecclesiasticus  imo  et  Romanus  Pontifex  potest  legi- 
time a  subditis  et  laicis  corripi  et  etiam  accusari.' 


REACTION  IN  ENGLAND.  rnj 

but  condemn   a  theologian  who  attacked  the  Papacy     chap. 

with   such   naked   propositions   as   that  '  no  pohtical   ^^_ 

and  temporal  power  has  been  bestowed  in  perpe- 
tuity on  the  Pope  and  the  prelates ; '  that  '  those 
who  persevere  in  righteousness  have  not  only  the 
right  to  possess,  but  to  enjoy  all  earthly  things  ; '  that 
'  when  the  Church  falls  into  corruption,  secular  lords 
have  the  right  to  deprive  her  of  the  temporal  goods 
which  she  abuses  ; '  that  '  every  prelate  and  also  the 
Pope,  when  he  is  wrong,  may  be  accused,  judged, 
and  imprisoned  by  his  subjects,  even  laymen  ; '  that 
'only  a  just  excommunication,  in  accordance  with 
the  law  of  Christ,  and  none  at  variance  with 
that  law,  is  binding;'  that  '  not  even  God  Himself 
can  bestow  on  any  man  an  unconditional  power 
to  bind  and  loose ;  '  that  '  Christ  gave  the  Apostles 
no  power  to  excommunicate  on  account  of  secular 
things  ; '  and  that  '  every  priest  regularly  ordained 
has  power  to  administer  all  the  sacraments  ?'  Un- 
doubtedly these  propositions  struck  at  the  root  of 
the  whole  Mediaeval  Church.  Do  they  not  even, 
if  consistently  carried  out,  strike  at  the  root  of  any 
kind  of  ecclesiastical  society  ?  Are  they  not  sub- 
versive of  all  reenlar  sfovernment  .^ 

If    further    proof    were    needed    to    show    that  {c)  iVy- 
Wycliffe's    earlier    endeavours    aimed   at    reforming  '^aibeahto 
the    hierarchical   system    rather    than    the   teaching  ^'f^^'^'^i 

'■  •         =5    but  sj(b- 

of   the   Church,   his   conduct  may   be    appealed    to,  ^"^t^  to 
when  he  was  summoned  to  answer  at  Lambeth  for  Church. 
the    nineteen    articles    condemned    by    the     Pope.^ 

'  See  the  three  Bulls  of  Pope  Gregory  XI.  in  1377,  R.wvald, 


C02  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE   LATIN  SYSTEMS. 

PART     Pressing    through    the     dense     crowd     which    had 
gathered  about  the  doors  of  the  court  at  Lambeth, 


^ne  '/--ys  expressing  their  sympathy  with  one  who  was  re- 
garded as  the  champion  of  independence,  Wych'ffe 
presented  himself  before  the  Archbishop  of  Can- 
terbury, WilHam  Courtney,  gave  an  explanation  of 
the  propositions  laid  to  his  charge,  and  submitted 
himself  to  correction  by  the  Church  in  all  cases  of 
detected  error,  protesting  against  the  imputation  of 
being  obstinately  bent  on  defending  anything  er- 
roneous.^ Still  believing  that  the  Church  had  reason 
on  her  side,  to  reason  he  appealed,  in  requiring  his 
errors  to  be  refuted  ;  and  thus,  like  many  later  refor- 
mers, little  aware  of  the  suicidal  policy  he  was  pur- 
suinof,  he  invoked  an  instrument  most  dangerous 
in  the  hands  of  the  unlearned  ;  failing  to  perceive 
that  while  one  man's  reason  might  approve  of  his 
conduct,  another  man's  reason  would  approve  of  the 
conduct  of  his  judges. 
(2)  The  The   breaking   out  of  the  Great  Schism  gave  a 

move-        fresh   impulse   to    Wycliffe's    zeal  for  reforms ;    and 
vientde-     henceforth    his  attacks   on    doctrine    were    quite  as 

7'Otcd  to  T- 

general      severe  as  they  had  been  on  discipline.      His  society 

refo7-»is. 

A.D.       of  '  Poor  Priests,'  who  went  about  barefooted  in  long 
id)  Poor    ^obes  of  russet  colour,  aspiring  to  follow  the  Apostolic 
Priests.      Church  literally,  and  refusing  to  take  benefices  lest 
they  should  be  thereby  withdrawn  from  better  em- 
ployments, had  by  this  time  been  established,  and  it 
had    met  with   considerable  favour.      Gregory   XL, 

torn.  vii.  No.  4,  p.  294,  and  in  documents  in  Suppl.  torn.  iii.  to 
Laeb^,  p.  646  scq. 
^  Neand.  ix.  201. 


REACTION  IN  ENGLAND. 


593 


who  had  condemned  the  nineteen  propositions,  was     chap. 

XIX 

dead  ;  and  the  sight  of  two  rival  Popes,  one  of  whom  L_ 

must  be  antichrist  if  the  other  were  the  Vicar  of 
Christ,  exposed  to  the  Enghsh  Reformer,  as  they  did 
to  others,  the  hollow  ungrounded  pretensions  of  the 
Papacy.  A  summons  was  addressed  to  the  secular 
powers  calling  on  them  to  avail  themselves  of  this 
favourable  time  for  the  Reformation  of  the  Church. 
The  Poor  Priests  went  out  to  expose  the  pretences 
of  the  begging  friars  ;  the  Bible  was  translated,  '  the  ip)  Trans- 
gospel  being  by  him  laid  more  open  to  the  laity  and  Bible. 
to  women  who  could  read,  than  it  had  formerly  been 
to  the  most  learned  of  the  clergy ; '  but  in  this  way, 
too,  according  to  the  view  entertained  by  the  better 
class  of  clergy,  '  the  gospel  pearl  was  cast  abroad 
and  trodden  under  feet  of  swine.'  ^  No  sooner,  how- 
ever, did  Wycliffe  leave  the  matter  of  a  reformation 
in  discipline  and  ecclesiastical  organisation,  and  allow 
himself  to  make  innovations  in  doctrine,  than  the 
tide  turned  ao^ainst  him.  E  no-land  would  not  substi- 
tute  a  new  Pope  in  the  person  of  Wycliffe  for  the 
old  one  it  had  lost  in  Gregory  XL  ;  the  appeal  to 
private  judgment  was  as  yet  a  tantalising  fallacy  for 
those  who  had  not  sufficient  theological  education  to 
enable  them  to  make  the  appeal  with  advantage  ; 
nor  was  the  time  yet  come  in  which  a  European 
council  could  be  held,  to  deliberate  upon  reformation 
of  doctrine.  Wycliffe's  influence  began  to  decline 
almost  as  rapidly  as  it  had  risen. 

1  See  Knighton,  Chronica  de  eventibus  Angliae  in  Hist.-Angl.     - 
Scrip.  Aid.,  torn.  ii.  London  1652. 

QQ 


cgi  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEM 

PART         The  value  which  has  in  modern  times  been  at- 

'       tributed  to  WycHffe's  denial  of  the  doctrine  of  tran- 

substaiitl-  substantiation  in  a  religious  point  of  view  appears 

atwn         |-Q  i^g  areatlv  exaoforerated.     For  it  was  as  a  philoso- 

demed.  &  y  e5&  ^  r 

pher  rather  than  as  a  theologian  that  he  denied  the 
change  of  one  substance  into  another.  The  English 
type  of  mind  has  a  natural  affinity  for  materialism  in 
philosophy,  just  as  the  German  type  of  mind  has  a 
natural  affinity  for  Idealism.  The  same  controversy 
which  in  later  times  has  stamped  the  English  philo- 
sophy as  materialistic,  and  the  German  as  ideal- 
istic, already  divided  the  two  nations  in  the  four- 
teenth century.  England,  together  with  Bohemia, 
supported  Realism  ;  the  Germans  upheld  Nominal- 
ism and  Conceptualism.  To  Wycliffe,  as  a  staunch 
Realist  (and  in  his  earlier  years  he  had  written 
a  treatise  '  On  the  Reality  of  Conceptions  '),  and  to 
other  Realists  like  himself,  it  seemed  absurd  to 
separate  substance  from  its  accidents.^  No  such 
difficulty  would,  however,  have  been  felt  by  a  Nomi- 
nalist. The  latter  might  have  asserted  that  substance 
is  merely  a  name  given  to  an  idea,  which  has  no 
existence  except  in  the  mind  of  the  thinker,  whereas 
accidents  or  properties  are  things  actually  perceived 
by  the  senses;  and  an.  Idealist  would  have  no  dif- 
ficulty in  separating  a  pure  idea  from  the  sense-im- 
pressions which  encrust  and  externalise  it.  But  a 
Realist  cannot  distinguish  between  a  thought  and  a 
thing,  since  to  his  mind  there  is  between  them  only 
a  difference  of  degree.     As  Wycliffe  could  not  allow 


'  See  Neand.  ix.  206. 


REACTION  IN  ENGLAND.  rge 

that   there   can  be  any   idea  which  has  not  a   real     chap. 

XIX 

independent  existence,    he    might   easily   ask    '  how  ' 

the  subject-matter  could  be  altered  in  the  Eucharist 
without  the  qualities  being  changed  as  well,  or  how 
the  substance  could  be  chanofed  without  a  sensible 
change  in  the  properties.'  Other  Realists  bridged 
over  the  difficulty — a  difficulty  which  Conceptualists 
or  Nominalists  did  not  feel — by  calling  the  sensible 
properties  of  the  bread  and  wine  accidents  ;  Wycliffe, 
whose  subtler  philosophic  training  led  him  to  see  the 
shallowness  of  this  explanation,  refused  to  do  so,  and, 
on  the  contrary,  denied  the  change  of  substance.  But 
this  denial  was  the  triumph  of  philosophy ;  it  turned 
on  a  point  quite  beyond  the  comprehension  of  the 
uneducated.  It  must  have  been  approved  by  the 
many  from  a  taste  for  incipient  rationalism  to  save  a 
philosophic  system.  It  was  a  theory  which  sacrificed 
a  current  religious  belief  It  was  the  putting  forward 
of  reason  against  authority  ;  and  thus  Wycliffe  was 
the  forerunner  of  rationalistic  opposition  against  the 
Church.  To  the  cotemporaries  of  Wycliffe,  the 
denial  of  transubstantiation  commended  itself  just  as 
little  as  rationalism  now  does  to  those  who  are  most 
sincere  in  their  opposition  to  the  Papacy.  It  made 
Wycliffe's  position  henceforth  a  suspected  one.  An- 
other event  soon  happened  which  rendered  his  posi- 
tion still  more  critical. 

About  the  year  1381,  there  broke  out  among  a.d.  1381 
the  labouring  classes  an  insurrection  headed  by  relthm'' 
John  Balle,  chaplain  to  the  archbishop,  and  Wat 
Tyler,  its  object  being  to  kill  the  rich,  and  tcixchin. 
to    re-divide  all  property.      Aimed    directly  at    the 

<3  Q  2 


attributed 
to  his 


*596 


REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEM. 


PART     higher  orders,  as  appears  from  the  well-known  text 
'. upon  which  its  adherents  preached — 


When  Adam  dalfe  and  Eve  span, 
Who  was  then  a  gentleman  ? 

this  insurrection  may  have  been  caused  by  the  dislike 
still  felt  amon^  the  Saxon  peasants  for  their  Norman 
conquerors — a  dislike  which  the  licentiousness  and 
oppression  of  Edward  III.'s  reign  had  intensified, 
and  which  had  been  brought  to  a  head  on  the 
occasion  of  the  preaching  of  the  Poor  Priests.  Cer- 
tain it  is  that  Wycliffe  and  his  Poor  Pri-ests  were  not 
directly  the  cause  of  it,  although  there  was,  no 
doubt,  much  of  a  levelling  character  in  their  teaching. 
Their  tenet,  too,  that  the  right  to  enjoy  property 
depends  upon  grace,  v/as  politically  most  dangerous. 
Nevertheless,  to  the  enemies  of  Wycliffe  the  insur- 
rection came  most  opportunely ;  it  was  set  down  as 
the  result  of  his  teaching,  and  the  new  Archbishop 
{e)  of  Canterbury,  William  Courtney,  whose  predecessor, 
doal-ines  Simon  Sudbury,  had  been  murdered  in  the  insur- 
con-  rection,  proceeded  vioforouslv  ag^ainst  him.    Censured 

by  the  University,  Wycliffe  appealed  to  Parliament.^ 
He  prayed  that  all  persons  should  be  left  free  to 
adopt  without  molestation  the  law  of  Christ  alone ; 
that  all  who  had  unreasonably  condemned  the  whole 
counsel  given  by  Christ,  should  be  corrected  on 
account  of  so  gross  an  error  ;  that  tithes  and  obla- 
tions should  be  given  and  devoted  to  the  end  which 
God's  law  had  determined ;  and  that  Christ's  doc- 

*  Lewis'  Life^  p.  84. 


REACTION  IN  ENGLAND. 


597 


trine  of  the  Holy  Supper  should  be  publicly  taught     chap. 
in  churches.  ~ — 1- 


But  this  appeal  appears  to  have  been  of  little  use.  a.d.  1382 
On  May  1 7,  a  council  was  convened  at  London  ^  by 
Archbishop  Courtney,  which,  owing  to  its  proceedings 
being  interrupted  by  an  earthquake,  Wycliffe  deri- 
sively called  the  Earthquake  Council.  A  number 
of   Wycliffe's    propositions   referring    to  the   Lord's 

'  See  the  Acts,  Labbe,  xv.  951.  The  council  condemned  ten 
conclusiones  haereticae  and  fourteen  conclusiones  erroneae. 
Among  the  former  are  these  :  '(i)  quod  substantia  panis  mate- 
'  riahs  et  vini  maneat  post  consecrationem  in  sacramento  altaris  ; 
'  (2)  quod  accidentia  non  maneant  sine  subjecto  post  consecra- 
'  tionem  ui  eodem  sacramento ;  (3)  quod  Christus  non  sit  in 
'  sacramento  altaris  identice,  vere,  et  reahter  in  propria  praesentia 
'  corporaH  ;  (4)  quod,  si  episcopus  vel  sacerdos  existat  in  peccato 
'  mortali  non  ordinat,  conticit,  nee  baptizat ;  (5)  quod  si  homo 
'  fuerit  debite  contritus,  omnis  confessio  exterior  est  sibi  superflua 
'  et  inutihs  ;  (6)  pertinaciter  asserere  non  esse  fundatum  in  evan- 
'  geHo,  quod  Christus  missam  ordinaverit ;  (7)  quod  Deus  debet 
'  obedire  diabolo  ;  (8)  quod  si  Papa  sit  praestigiator  et  malus 
'  homo,  ac  per  consequens  membnmi  diaboh,  non  habet  potes- 
'  tatem  supra  fideles  Christi  ab  ahquo  sibi  datam,  nisi  forte  a 
'  Caesare  ;  (9)  quod  post  Urbanum  VI.  non  est  aUquis  recipien- 
'  dus  in  Papam  .  .  .  ;  (10)  asserere,  quod  est  contra  scri])turam, 
'  quod  viri  ecclesiastici  habeant  possessiones  temporales.'  Among 
the  latter  are  these:  '(i)  quod  nullus  praelatus  debet  aliquem 
'  excommunicare,  nisi  prius  ipsum  sciat  esse  excommunicatum  a 
'  Deo  ;  (5)  asserere,  quod  liceat  alictii,  etiam  diacono  vel  presby- 
'  tero,  praedicare  verbum  Dei  absque  auctoritate  sedis  Apostolicae 
*  vel  episcopi  catholici  ;  (6)  asserere,  quod  nuUus  est  dominus 
'  civilis,  nullus  est  episcopus,  nullus  est  praelatus,  dum  est  in  pec- 
'  cato  mortali ;  (8)  quod  decimae  sint  purae  eleemosynae,  et  quod 
'  parochiani  possint  propter  peccata  suorum  curatorum  eos  deti- 
'  nere,  et  ad  libitum  aliis  conferre ;  (9)  quod  speciales  orationes 
'  applicatae  uni  personae  .  .  .  non  plus  prosunt  .  .  .  quam  gene- 
'  rales  orationes  ;  (13)  quod  fratres  teneantur  per  laborem  manuum 
'  et  non  per  mendicationem,  victum  suum  acquirere.' 


598 


PART 
III. 


(3)    The 

national 

viove- 

inent 

after 

Wycliffe. 

A.D. 

Dec.  30, 
1384 
{a) 
Statutes 
under 
Richard 
11. 


REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEM. 

Supper,  to  the  limits  of  the  ecclesiastical  and  the 
civil  power,  to  the  duties  of  a  clergyman,  to  the 
secularisation  of  the  Church,  and  to  the  papal  dignity, 
were  here  condemned;  and  King  Richard  II.  was 
induced  by  the  archbishop  to  issue  a  command, 
ordering  all  persons  who  taught  Wycliffe's  doctrines 
to  be  placed  under  arrest,  and  to  address  letters 
patent  to  the  Chancellor  of  the  University,  by  virtue 
of  which  Wycliffe  was  expelled  from  its  precincts, 
and  retired  to  Lutterworth. 

The  two  last  years  of  Wycliffe's  life  were  spent  in 
retirement  at  Lutterworth,  where  he  died  in  peace  on 
Sylvester  Eve  in  the  year  1384.  Yet,  after  his  death, 
and  during  the  whole  reign  of  Richard  II,,  the  opposi- 
tion to  the  Papacy,  which  he  had  headed,  continued  to 
go  on.  In  1389  the  bishops  were  forbidden  to  levy 
the  imposition  required  by  the  Pope  from  the  clergy 
without  the  consent  of  the  King  and  Parliament ; 
and  in  1392  the  Statute  of  Praemunire  was  passed, 
renewing  the  enactments  of  the  statute  of  1353 
aofainst  all  men  who  endeavoured  to  obtain  at  the 
Roman  Court  translations,  processes,  or  sentences  of 
excommunication,  and  asserting  the  freedom  of  the 
crown  of  England  from  submission  to  the  Pope  and 
its  immediate  dependence  on  God  only,^  Indeed, 
this  statute  was  greatly  needed  at  the  time,  since  the 
French  king  and  the  Emperor  were  both  intriguing 
to  put  an  end  to  the  Schism,  and  each  hoped  to 
raise  up  a  minion  Pope  to  serve  his  own  private 
ends.     Thus,  in   England   first  the  antagonism  be- 


*  See  Appendix  II.  p,  462. 


REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA.  c^gg 

tween  Church  and  State  was  developed  to  an  open     cuAr. 
rupture.     At  its  root  lay,  no   doubt,  the   growth  of  __JJ_ 
national  feeling  and  the  assertion  of  Teutonic  free- 
dom ;  but  it  was  occasioned  by  the  political  degra- 
dation   of   the    Popes   at  Avignon,  and  a  fear   lest 
France   might    use    the    Pope  as   an  instrument  of 
political  dominion.     After  first  appearing  openly  in  {^)  The 
England,  it  was  there   soon  afterwards  suppressed  maitin 
under  the  reigns  of  Henry  IV.  and  succeeding  sove-  "i,'ij^,,'.^%t; 
reiQ;-ns,  until  that  of  Henry  VH.  ;  not  because  the  ^onse  of 

.  .   .  .  Lane  as- 

Teutonic  spirit   of  independence    was    under  those  ter. 

sovereigns  less  active  in  England  than  before,  but 

because    the    House   of   Lancaster   was  obliged  to 

conciliate  the  hierarchy  with  the  view  of  obtaining 

its    support   for  the  throne  which  it    had    usurped. 

When  at  length,  after  eighty-seven  years  of  domestic 

trouble,  the    rival    claims    of  the    Houses    of  York      a.d. 

1399-1486 

and  Lancaster  were  adjusted  by  the  marriage  of 
Henry  VH.  with  the  heiress  of  York,  then  the 
antagonism  between  the  Latin  and  the  German 
spirit  again  manifested  itself,  this  time  resulting 
in  an  absolute  and  final  rupture  with  the  Pope. 
No  very  long  time  elapsed  before  this  event 
came  about ;  the  circumstances  of  the  reign  of 
Henry  VHI.  supplied  the  occasion. 

Nor  was    the   antagonism   between   Church  and  B.  PoHH. 

1-1        1        T-iTiTr  1  1  ^^^  refo7'- 

State,  which    the   Wyclimte  movement  brought  to  viation  in 
lieht,  confined  to  Ens^land.      In  Bohemia  it  was  also  ,  ^'^""'^' 
active,  and  produced  in  that  country  a  similar  political  7nove- 
reformatlon.       To  this   reformation    neither    Milltz  national 
of  Kremsia  nor  Conrad  of  Waldhausen — the  earliest  JJJ^^' 
Bohemian  reformers — properly  contributed.     Their  1 391-1408 


6oo  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEM. 

PART     efforts  were  directed  more  towards  reformingf  morals 
III.  .  . 
'—    and  doctrine  than  towards  throwing  off  the  yoke  of 

i,J  ^^"'^  the  Latin  system.  It  is  otherwise  with  Mathias  of 
janow.  janow,  sometime  a  prebend  of  Prague,^  whose  trea- 
tise De  regulis  veteris  et  novi  Testamenti  has  come 
down  to  us.  It  is  otherwise  with  John  Huss  and 
Jerome  of  Prague.  Busied  not  only  with  moral  re- 
forms, but  with  a  reformation  of  the  corrupt  Latin 
system,  Mathias  of  Janow  speaks  of  the  organism 
of  the  Church  as  one  in  which  all  the  members  should 
be  connected  according  to  their  several  ranks,  and 
co-operate  together  like  the  head  and  members  in  the 
human  body,^  He  then  goes  on  to  complain  how  the 
Popes  had  haughtily  exalted  themselves  above  the 
bishops  and  taken  all  power  into  their  hands ;  how, 
closely  allying  themselves  with  kings  and  princes, 
they  had  exalted  themselves  above  those  who  jointly 
with  them  ought  to  preside  over  the  governance  of 
the  Church.  Like  Wycliffe,  he  insists  on  the  import- 
ance attaching  to  parish  priests  ;  like  Wycliffe,  he 
died  in  peace  in  the  year  1399;  and,  like  Wycliffe, 
his  teaching  re-acted  on  his  successors,  and  raised  up 
a  train  of  similar  reformers  in  Bohemia,  at  the  head 
of  whom  must  be  placed  the  known  name  of  John 
Huss. 
{i>)  The  It  has  been  so  much  the  practice  to  connect  the 

vient  name  of  Huss  with  the  reformation  of  doctrine  In  the 
^"Tohn  Church,  that  his  position  as  a  reformer,  principally 
Huss.        attacking  the  Latin  system  and  the  political  side  of 


'  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  124,  p.  236. 
2  See  Neand.  ix.  263. 


REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA.  6oi 

the  Papacy,  has  been  much  lost  sio'ht  of.    And  yet  it  chap, 

.  XIX 

must  not  be  overlooked  that,  so  far  from  supporting 


the  ordinary  tenets  of  reformers,  Huss  ever  protested  Hussa"^ 
that  he  was  a  dutiful  son  of  the  Church,  and  professed  ^^^"f^^^- 

'^  man. 

himself  ready  to  submit  to  the  Council  and  the  Pope, 
if  they  would  only  convince  him  of  error  ;  that  one  a.d, 
of  his  last  letters,  written  in  anticipation  of  his  death, 
was  subscribed,  'Written  in  chains  on  the  Vigil  of 
St.  John,  who,  because  he  rebuked  wickedness,  was 
beheaded  in  prison.  May  he  pray  for  us  to  the  Lord 
Jesus  ; '  and  that  he  requested  permission  before  his 
death  to  confess  himself,  and  received  absolution 
from  the  doctor  of  theology  whom  the  commissioners 
sent  to  him,  declaring  that  his  confessor  spoke  to 
him  kindly  and  piously. 

In  its  early  days  the  movement,  at  the  head  of  (,3)  ihe 
which   Huss  stood,  was  decidedly  a  national  move-  ^Inmt  sicb- 
ment.     It  continued  to  be  national  up  to  the  time  ^f^-^"^^"/ 

^  the  Holy 

when  he  had  been  consigned  to  the  flames,  and  even  Empire. 
long  afterwards,  until  it  was  finally  crushed  together 
with  Bohemian  nationality.  It  aimed  at  asserting 
for  Bohemia  a  distinct  national  existence,  apart  and 
distinct  from  the  rest  of  the  Empire.  Therefore  it 
was  a  fitting  coincidence  that  on  the  day  on  which 
Huss  appeared  before  the  council  to  receive  his 
doom,  the  Emperor  Sigismund  should  be  seated 
upon  his  throne,  surrounded  by  princes  and  with  the 
insignia  of  the  Empire  before  him.  For  Huss  was 
immolated  not  so  much  for  his  zeal  in  the  reforma- 
tion of  morals — that  was  an  object  which  lay  as  near 
to  the  heart  of  the  council  as  to  his  own — but  because 
his  teaching  was  subversive  of  the   Holy  Empire. 


5o2  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEM. 

PART  He  attacked  the  hierarchical  pretensions  of  the  Pope, 
— — '. —  he  also  assailed  the  integrity  of  the  Empire  ;  and  the 
regret  which  Huss  expressed,  in  the  prospect  of  death, 
that  he  had  not  succeeded  in  bringing  together  his 
beloved  Bohemian  nation  under  a  common  Chris- 
tian and  national  interest,  was  in  fact  a  regret  that  he 
had  not  been  able  to  dismember  the  Empire.  Once, 
it  is  said,  on  the  day  of  his  last  sufferings,  his  eye 
caught  the  eye  of  the  emperor ;  and  as  the  champion 
of  Bohemian  nationality,  standing  before  Sigismund, 
pale,  emaciated,  and  wan,  reminded  him  of  the  tar- 
nished honour  of  the  Empire  in  violating  the  safe  con- 
duct which  he  had  given,  the  latter  blushed,  ashamed 
to  have  belied  his  word  of  honour.  Perhaps,  how- 
ever, even  the  noble  Sigismund,  who  showed  himself 
at  Constance  sincerely  anxious  to  promote  the  work 
of  reform,  may  have  thought  himself  justified  in  for- 
feiting the  honour  of  the  Empire  towards  one  whose 
teaching  seemed  subversive  of  all  government, 
and  who  was  represented  as  having  taught  that, 
whenever  a  Pope  or  king  lay  under  a  mortal  sin,  he 
was  incapable  of  acting  either  as  Pope  or  sovereign. 
{y)  Ques-  In  the  University  of  Prague,  the  earliest  Ger- 
Nonunal-  "^an  university,  founded  by  Charles  IV.  in  the  four- 
^ReaUsm  ^eentli  century,  and  consisting,  according  to  the 
constitution  at  the  beginning  of  the  fifteenth  cen- 
tury, of  four  nations,  the  Bohemian  nation  stood  by 
itself ;  the  other  three  nations — the  Bavarian,  the 
Saxon,  and  the  Polish — being  always  united  in  a 
common  interest.  In  the  time  of  the  Emperor  Charles 
IV,,  many  Germans  had  obtained  important  posts 
within  the  university,  and  the  national  feeling  of  the 


REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA.  603 

Bohemians  had  been  aroused  In  consequence.     The    chap, 

XIX 

chief  leaders  of  the  national  party  in  Bohemia  ___^^ 
were  Peter  of  Znaim,  Stanislaus  of  Znaim,  Paletz, 
Jerome  of  Prague,  and  Huss  ;  and  the  efforts  of  the 
latter  in  cultivating  the  Bohemian  language  and  ortho- 
graphy have  called  forth  in  modern  times  the  praise  of 
those  most  competent  to  judge  on  such  asubject.  The 
rivalry  between  the  three  German  nations  and  the 
Bohemian  nation  was  carried  into  the  arena  of  phi- 
losophy, and  divided  them  further  on  the  question  of 
Nominalism  and  Realism ;  the  Bohemians  being 
staunch  supporters  of  Realism,  the  Germans  equally  . 
staunch  upholders  of  Nominalism.  Naturally,  there- 
fore, the  attention  of  the  Bohemians  was  directed  to 
the  writings  of  Wycliffe,  who,  like  themselves,  was  a 
strong  supporter  of  Realism ;  and  hence,  independently 
of  questions  relating  to  doctrine  and  morals,  Bohemia 
was  prejudiced  in  favour  of  Wycliffe.  The  battle 
ground  on  which  Wycliffe  attacked  Nominalism  was 
the  doctrine  of  transubstantiation,  and  the  arguments 
used  against  that  doctrine  by  Wycliffe,  though  to  a 
Nominalist  or  Idealist  they  might  seem  wholly  irrele- 
vant, were  to  a  Realist  perfectly  convincing.  For  what 
to  him  was  substance  but  a  general  notion  formed  by 
the  mind,  possessing  no  reality  except  that  derived 
from  attributes  or  accidents  ?  Well,  then,  might  Huss 
and  his  brother  Realists  seek  to  entrench  their  posi- 
tion against  the  Nominalistic  Germans  by  studying 
the  writings  of  Wycliffe  ;  and  it  was  acknowledged  by 
Huss  that  they  had  been  read  at  Prague  since  the 
year  1381,  and  by  himself  since  the  year  1391. 

The  contest  for  and  against  Wycliffe,  constantly 


5o4  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEM. 

PART     Stimulated  by  the  connection  between  Oxford  and 

'. Prague,  had  for  some  time  been  waged  in  secret, 

when,  in  the  year  1403,  an  open  and  violent  struggle 

between  the  Bohemian  and  the  German  parties  broke 

A.D.       out.     On   May  28,  forty-five  propositions^  ascribed 

May  28, 


1403 


^  These  forty-five  propositions  as  condemned  by  the  Council  of 
Constance  in  1415,  Labb^,  xvi.  846,  are  as  follows  :  '  i.  Sub- 
stantia panis  materialis,  et  similiter  substantia  vini  manent  in 
Sacramento  altaris.  2.  Accidentia  panis  non  manent  sine  sub- 
jecto  in  sacramento  altaris.  3.  Christus  non  est  in  eodem  sacra- 
ment© identice  et  realiter  in  propria  praesentia  corporali.  4.  Si 
episcopus  vel  sacerdos  existat  in  peccato  mortali,  non  ordinat, 
non  conficit,  non  consecrat,  non  baptizat.  5.  Non  est  funda- 
mentum  in  evangelio,  quod  Christus  Missam  ordinaverit.  6.  Deus 
debet  obedire  diabolo.  7.  Nisi  homo  fuerit  debite  contritus, 
omnis  confessio  exterior  est  sibi  superflua  et  inutilis.  8.  Si  Papa 
sit  praescitus  et  maluSj  et  per  consequens  membrum  diaboli,  non 
habet  potestatem  super  fideles  ab  aliquo  sibi  datam,  nisi  forte  a 
Caesare.  9.  Post  Urbanum  VI.  non  est  alius  recipiendus  in 
Papam,  sed  invendum  est  more  Graecorum  sub  legibus  propriis. 
10.  Contra  sacram  scripturam  est,  quod  viri  ecclesiastic!  habeant 
possessiones.  11.  Nullus  praelatus  debet  aliquem  excommuni- 
care,  nisi  prius  sciat  ipsum  excommunicatum  a  Deo,  et  qui  ex- 
communicat,  sit  haereticus  ex  hoc,  vel  excommunicatus.  12.  Ex- 
communicans  clerum,  quia  appellet  et  regem  et  consilium  regium, 
eo  ipso  est  traditor  regis.  13.  Illi,  qui  dimittunt  praedicare,  sive 
verbum  Dei  audire,  propter  excommunicationem  praelati,  sunt 
excommunicati,  et  in  die  judicii  traditores  Christi  habebuntur. 
14.  Omnes  de  ordine  mendicantium  sunt  haeretici,  et  dantes  eis 
eleemosynam  sunt  excommunicati.  15.  Nullus  est  dominus  civi- 
lis,  nullus  est  praelatus,  nullus  est  episcopus,  dum  est  in  peccato 
mortali.  16.  Domini  temporales  possunt  ad  arbitrium  suum 
auferre  bona  temporalia  et  possessiones  ab  ecclesiasticis  habi- 
tuaUter  delinquentibus.  17.  Populares  possunt  ad  suum  arbi- 
trium dominos  delinquentes  corrigere.  18.  Decimae  sunt  purae 
eleemosynae  ...  19.  Speciales  orationes  uni  personae  appli- 
catae  .  .  .  non  plus  prosunt  quam  generales,  ceteris  paribus. 
20.    Conferens   eleemosynam  fratribus,  est  excommunicatus  eo 


REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA. 


60s 


to  Wycliffe  were  laid  before  the  university  for  ex-     chap. 

XIX 

amination   at   the  request  of  the  Archbishop   and    L 

Chapter  of  Prague.   They  were  condemned  by  a  large 
majority  of  the  three  German  nations   notwithstand- 


facto.  21.  Si  quis  ingreditur  religionem  privatam  qualemcunque 
.  .  .  redditur  ineptior  et  inhabilior  ad  observationem  manda- 
torum  Dei.  22.  Sancti  instituentes  religiones  praefatas,  sic  insti- 
tuendo  peccaverunt.  23.  Religiosi  viventes  in  religionibus  pri- 
vatis  non  sunt  de  religione  Christiana.  24.  Fratres  tenentur 
per  labores  manuum  victum  acquirere,  non  per  mendicitatem. 
25.  Omnes  sunt  simoniaci,  qui  obligant  se  orare  pro  aliis,  eis  in 
temporibus  subvenientibus.  26.  Oratio  praesciti  nihil  valet. 
27.  Omnia  de  necessitate  absoluta  eveniunt.  28.  Confirmatio 
juvenum,  clericorum  ordinatio,  locorum  consecratio,  reservantur 
Papae  et  Episcopis  propter  cupiditatem  lucri  temporalis  et  bono- 
rum.  29.  Universalia  studia,  collegia,  graduationes  et  magis- 
teria  in  eisdem,  sunt  vana  gentilitate  introducta,  et  tantum  pro- 
sunt  ecclesiae  sicut  diabolus.  30.  Excommunicatio  Papae  vel 
alterius  praelati  non  est  curanda  ;  quia  est  censura  Antichristi. 
31.  Peccant  fundantes  claustra,  et  ingredientes  sunt  viri  diabo- 
lic!. 32.  Ditare  clerum  est  contra  regulam  Christi.  t,t,.  Silvester 
Papa  et  Constantinus  Iinperator  erraverunt  ecclesiam  dotando. 
34.  Licet  alicui  diacono  vel  presbytero  praedicare  verbum  Dei 
absque  apostolicae  sedis  vel  episcopi  auctoritate.  35.  Ingre- 
dientes ordinem  aut  aliquam  religionem,  eo  ipso  sunt  inhabiles 
ad  observandum  divina  praecepta,  et  per  consequens  perveniendi 
ad  regnum  coelorum,  nisi  apostataverint  ab  eisdem.  36.  Papa 
cum  omnibus  clericis  suis  possessiones  habentibus  sunt  haeretici, 
et  quod  possessiones  habent,  et  omnes  consentientes  eis  domini 
saeculares  et  ceteri  laici.  37.  Ecclesia  Romana  est  synagoga 
Satanae,  nee  Papa  est  immediatus  et  proximus  Vicarius  Christi 
et  Apostolorum.  38.  Decretales  epistolae  sunt  apocryphae  et 
seductivae  a  fide  Christi,  et  clerici  sunt  stulti  qui  eas  student. 
39.  Imperator  et  seculares  seducti  sunt  a  diabolo,  ut  ecclesiam 
dotarent  bonis  temporalibus.  40.  Electio  Papae  a  Cardinahbus 
est  per  diabolum  introducta.  41.  Non  est  de  necessitate  salutis 
credere  Romanam  ecclesiam  esse  summam  inter  alias  ecclesias. 
42.  Fatuum  est  credere  indulgentiis.  43.  Augustinus,  Benedictus, 
Bernhardus,  damnati  nisi  poenituerint  de  hoc,  quod  habuerunt 


5o6  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEM. 

PART     ing  all    that   the   Bohemians  could   do  to  save  the 

'. champion  of  Realism.     Three  years  later,  at  the  re- 

A.D.  1406  quest  of  Pope  Innocent  VII.,  Zbynek,  the  then  Arch- 
bishop of  Prague,  published  an  ordinance  threatening 
ecclesiastical  penalties  against  all  who  presumed  to 
teach  the  doctrines  of  Wycliffe  ;  yet  this  was  done 
without  disturbinof  the  orood  understandinof  then 
existing  between  himself  and  Huss.  Huss  was  even 
selected  by  the  archbishop  in  the  following  year  to 
deliver  the  exhortatory  discourse  before  the  clergy 

1407  assembled  at  a  diocesan  synod  ;  his  ability  as  a 
preacher  having  secured  to  him  the  appointment  to 
the  Bethlehem  Chapel  in  Prague  as  early  as  1401. 
The  measures  taken  by  the  archbishop  to  suppress 
the  views  of  Wycliffe  were  apparently  successful,  and, 
at  a  diocesan  synod  held  in  the  next  year,  Zbynek 

July,  1408  declared   that  it  was  found  upon  investigation   that 

no  Wycliffite  heresy  then  existed  in  Bohemia. 
(2)  The  Hitherto    the   agitation    in     Bohemia    had   been 

vicnt         purely  national   in  its  character.     Soon,  owing  to  an 
archicai.    Gvcut  apparently  of  no  great  moment,  it  assumed  a 

1408  very  different  character.  The  difference  between 
supported  the  Germans  and  Bohemians  at  Prague  had  been 
ceslau"'  enhanced  by  the  Schism,  the  Bohemians  upholding 
1408-14U  Gregory  XII.,  the  Germans  adhering  to  the  party 
Germans  which  Supported  the  Council  of  Pisa.  The  Bohe- 
drtvcn       mians,    moreover,    felt    that    a  national  affront  had 

from 

J'raguc.     been  offered  them,  in  that   their  king,  Wenceslaus, 


'  possessiones,  et  instituerunt  et  intraverunt  religiones.  Et  sic  a 
'  Papa,  usque  ad  summumreligiosum  onines  sunt  haeretici.  44.  .  .  . 
'  45.  Omnes  religiones  indifferentes  introductae  sunt  a  diabolo.' 


REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA. 


607 


XIX. 

A.D.  1400 


had  been  deposed  from  the  imperial  dignity  by  the  chap. 
German  electors  ;  and  Wenceslaus  took  his  revenge 
by  changing  the  constitution  of  the  University  of 
Prague.  Instead  of  three  out  of  four  votes,  which 
the  German  nations  had  formerly  possessed,  they, 
together  with  all  other  foreigners,  obtained  only  one 
vote.  The  remaining  three  votes  were  assigned  to 
the  Bohemians.  It  was  a  sweeping  change  which 
was  thus  made  in  the  constitution  of  the  university, 
and,  as  might  have  been  expected,  led  to  sweeping 
results.  All  the  German  students,  some  30,000,  it  is 
said,  in  number,  emigrated  to  Leipsic  in  a  body,  and 
the  entire  victory  of  the  Bohemian  party  was  signa- 
lised by  the  election  of  John-Huss  to  be  rector  of 
the  university.^  But  this  step  soon  brought  to  light 
the  hidden  seeds  of  discord  in  a  party  which  had 
hitherto  been  united  by  opposition  to  a  common  foe. 
The  writings  of  Wycliffe,  which  had  been  first 
studied  with  the  view  of  gaining  from  them  argu- 
ments to  support  the  cause  of  Realism,  had  not  been 
without  influence  in  other  ways,  nor  failed  to  impreg- 
nate many  minds  with  his  anti-hierarchical  views. 
Bohemia  might  be  as  anxious  as  England  to  assert 
its  nationality  against  the  Holy  Empire,  but  whilst 
some  considered  the  political  aspect  of  nationality 
only,  and  wished  to  be  independent  of  the  German 
Empire,  others  wished  also  to  see  the  papal  power 
restrained  within  narrower  limits.  These  two  parties 
now  came  into  collision.     At  the  head  of  the  one 

1  See  Neand.  ix.  344. 


6o8 


REACTIONS  AGAINST   THE  LATIN  SYSTEM. 


PART 
III. 

('^)  Huss 
in  anta- 
gonism 
with  the 
clergy. 


A.D. 

March  9, 
1410 


Stood   Huss;    at  the  head  of  the  other  Paletz  and 
Znalm.^ 

And  yet  before  the  rupture  was  open,  and  Paletz 
and  Znaim  had  finally  parted  company  with  Huss, 
a  time  intervened  during  which  Huss  came  forward 
as  a  castigator  of  the  abuses  of  the  hierarchy,  and 
a  supporter  of  the  Council  of  Pisa  ;  and  standing 
there  in  opposition  to  his  former  friend,  the  Arch- 
bishop Zbynek,  he  found  himself  involved  in  a 
controversy  with  the  clergy.  The  cause  of  the 
council  was  supported  by  Huss  in  sermons  ;  the  cor- 
ruptions of  the  clergy  were  denounced.  Those 
clergy  who  had  listened  with  pleasure  when  Huss 
fearlessly  attacked  the  reigning  vices  among  other 
classes  of  men,  refused  any  longer  to  tolerate  him 
when  he  attacked  their  own.  Complaints  were 
entered  against  him  before  the  archbishop ;  the 
complaints  grew  louder  as  the  breach  between  the 
adherents  of  Gregory  XH.  and  those  of  the  cardinals 
grew  wider.  To  the  citation  which  Huss  received 
to  give  an  account  of  himself  before  the  archbishop's 
inquisitor,  he  replied  by  addressing  to  Rome  a  com- 
plaint against  the  archbishop.  Zbynek  repaired  to 
Rome  to  defend  his  own  character,  and  having  no 
longer  to  resist  the  council,  he  tendered  his  submis- 
sion to  Alexander  V.  as  rightful  Pope,  and  retaliated 
on  Huss  by  procuring  a  severe  Bull  directed  against 
all  who  should  defend  the  heresies  of  Wycliffe,  and 
prohibiting  all  preaching  in  private  churches.^  The 
Bull  was  received  with  great  indignation  in  Bohemia. 


^  See  Neand.  ix.  345. 


2  Ibid.  p.  353. 


I 


■    REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA.  609 

The  injunction  to  deliver  up  the  writings  of  WycIIffe     chap. 

was,  Indeed,  obeyed  by  Huss  and  his  friends  ;  but  1^ 

when  the  archbishop  caused  200  volumes  to  be  burnt    J^^y  '^' 
^  1410 

without  the  slightest  regard  to  personal  property, 
the  step  was  a  signal  for  a  general  disturbance  in 
Prague.  The  archbishop  was  exposed  to  contempt 
and  ridicule  ;  ribald  and  satirical  songs,  of  which  he 
was  the  subject,  were  openly  sung  in  the  streets  of 
Prague ;  even  blood  was  spilt ;  and  Zbynek  was 
fain  to  send  to  John  XXII.,  who  had  meantime 
succeeded  Alexander  V,,  a  report  of  all  that  had 
transpired  In  Bohemia. 

Even  then  matters  would  probably  have  gone  (>)  Sup- 
hard  with  Huss  had  It  not  been  for  the  support  of  King 
King  Wenceslaus.  When  Huss  had  first  sided  with  i^^/^^''^^' 
the  Council  of  Pisa,  Wenceslaus,  who  had  never  been 
a  friend  of  the  hierarchy,  supported  him.  When  the 
Bull  of  Alexander  V.  against  the  teaching  of  WycIIffe 
was  promulgated,  Wenceslaus  looked  on  Zbynek 
with  suspicion,  as  an  enemy  to  his  realm.  When 
Zbynek,  carrying  out  that  Bull,  had  collected  a  number 
of  the  writings  of  WycIIffe,  Wenceslaus  forbade  him 
to  burn  them  without  his  consent.  The  archbishop's 
disobedience  made  him  all  the  more  anxious  to  sup- 
port Huss.  When  Huss  met  the  Bull  by  appealing 
'a  pontlfice  male  Informato  ad  melius  informandum,'  ^ 
and  when  he  renewed  his  appeal  on  the  accession  of 
John  XXII.,  Wenceslaus  again  stood  his  friend. 
When  Cardinal  Otto  of  Colonna,  to  whom  Huss's 
appeal  and   Zbynek's  report  had  been  referred,  had 

'  See  Neand.  ix.  354. 
R  R 


5io  REACTIONS  AGAINST   THE   LATIN  SYSTEMS. 

PART     confirmed  the    sentence   of  Z  by  nek    on    Huss   and 
'       cited  him  to  appear  before  the  Pope  at  Bologna,  it 


was  Wenceslaus  who  begged  the  Pope  to  impose 
silence  on  the  enemies  of  Huss,  since  he  declared  it 
to  be  his  will  '  that  Bethlehem  Chapel,  which  for  the 
glory  of  God  and  the  saving  good  of  the  people 
he  had  endowed  with  many  franchises,  should  stand  ; 
and  that  Master  Huss  should  be  established  over  the 
chapel,  and  preach  the  word  of  God  in  peace.'  By 
the  intercession  of  Wenceslaus  the  case  of  Huss  was 
taken  out  of  the  hands  of  Cardinal  Colonna,  after 
A.D.  sentence  of  excommunication  had  been  already  pro- 
^  nounced  on  him  for  contumacy,  and  was  referred  to 
a  new  commission ;  and  when  the  new  commission 
had  confirmed  the  previous  sentence  with  additional 
severity,  Huss  being  declared  a  heresiarch,  and  an 
interdict  laid  on  the  place  where  he  resided,  Wen- 
ceslaus, by  persecuting  the  clergy  who  observed  the 
interdict,  by  confiscating  their  goods  and  obliging 
them  to  flee,  compelled  the  archbishop  to  submit  to 
July,  141 1  the  decision  of  an  impartial  committee.  A  compro- 
mise was  agreed  upon  ;  the  archbishop  should  report 
to  the  Pope  that  no  heresies  existed  in  Bohemia  ; 
and  obtain  the  Pope's  consent  to  remove  the  inter- 
dict if  any  person  lay  under  it  in  Bohemia ;  and,  in 
return,  King  Wenceslaus  should  restore  the  salaries 
withholden  from  the  clergy,  and  release  such  as  were 
under  arrest. 
{b)  Riip-  Had  the  compromise  been  adhered  to,  it  would 
^theB^ohe-  ^ave  been  well  for  Huss.  Zbynek,  however,  re- 
w/^7«  fused  to  fulfil  his  part  in  it,  on  the  ground  that  King 
Wenceslaus  had  not  discharged  what  he  had  pledged 


REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA.  gj  I 

himself  to  do,  and  the  death  of  Zbynek  happening    chap. 
at  this  moment,  changed  the  whole  aspect  of  affairs. 


The  real  occasion  which  brought  to  light  the  pre-  (a)  Indul- 
vailing  differences,  and  caused  a  rupture  within  the  f;/^^ 
Bohemian  party,  was  the  papal  Bull  offering  indul-  Crusade 
gences  to  all  who  would  take  part  in  a  crusade  ^^^^  ^'^P- 
against  Naples.  By  this  weapon  John  XXII. 
thought  to  overcome  his  enemy,  Ladislaus  of  Naples. 
Whilst,  however,  Stanislaus  of  Znaim  and  Paletz 
acquiesced  in  such  an  instrument  being  employed, 
declaring  that  the  Pope  is  the  safest  refuge  for  all 
the  faithful,  Huss  lifted  up  his  voice  against  the 
abuse  of  ecclesiastical  censures,  and  maintained  that 
it  was  not  permissible  for  a  Pope  to  fight  for  worldly 
dominions ;  that,  following  the  example  of  Christ,  he 
ought  to  pray  for  his  enemies  ;  and  that  to  bestow 
pardon  for  money  was  true  simony.  From  this 
time  forth  the  Bohemian  national  party  split  Into 
two  factions.  At  the  Council  of  Constance  the 
bitterest  enemies  of  Huss  were  those  who  had  once 
been  his  greatest  friends  and  associates  In  contro- 
versy with  the  Germans.  '  The  sale  of  indulgences 
and  the  lifting  up  of  the  standard  of  the  cross  against 
Christians  first  cut  me  off  from  my  old  friends,'  said 
Huss.  There  is  a  solemn  earnestness  about  the  way 
In  which  he  took  leave  of  his  old  friend  and  teacher, 
Paletz,  when  he  met  him  for  the  last  time  as  a  friend, 
showing  the  Intensity  of  his  convictions,  '  Paletz  Is 
my  friend,  truth  Is  my  friend,  and  both  being  my 
friends,  It  Is  my  duty  to  give  the  preference  to  truth.' 
Paletz  never  forgave  him  these  words.  When  Huss 
was  afterwards  sick    In  prison,   Paletz  visited  him, 

R  R    2 


6l2 


REACTIONS  AGAINST   THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 


PART 
III. 


(•■)    The 
oflliiss' 

iifc. 

A.D. 

July  lo 


Feb.  6, 
1413 


Nov.  28, 
1414 

Dec.  6, 


March  24, 
1415 


but  only  as  an  accuser.  No  suffering's  of  his  old 
friend  and  pupil  could  move  him  to  mercy.  He 
never  spoke  to  him  but  in  the  harshest  language. 
Said  Huss  to  him  :  *  Sad  greeting  do  you  give  me, 
and  sadly  do  you  sin  against  your  own  soul.'  But 
the  stern  man  never  relented  until  the  burnt  ashes 
of  Huss  were  cast  into  the  Rhine,  there  to  be  washed 
away  into  the  sea,  so  that  no  portion  of  him  might 
remain  to  pollute  the  earth.  How  different  was  the 
tone  of  Huss,  who,  in  prospect  of  execution,  desired 
to  have  as  his  confessor  his  enemy  Paletz  I 

From  the  breaking  up  of  the  Bohemian  party 
until  his  death,  the  career  of  Huss  is  full  of  tragic 
incidents.  .There  was  the  first  act  of  violence,  when 
three  young  friends  of  his  were  executed  for  op- 
posing the  publication  of  the  papal  Bull ;  the  adverse 
decision  of  the  doctors,  with  Paletz  at  their  head, 
condemning  the  forty-five  articles  attributed  to 
Wycliffe,  and  inviting  the  king  to  give  force  to  their 
decision  ;  there  was  the  ban  on  Huss  ;  the  interdict 
on  Prague  ;  the  futile  attempt  to  heal  the  breach  by 
a  synod  convened  at  Bohmisch-Brod,  but  held  at 
Prao'ue  ;  the  determination  of  Huss  to  defend  him- 
self  from  the  charge  of  heresy  before  the  council ;  the 
emperor's  promise  of  a  safe-conduct;  the  journey 
through  Germany  ;  the  imprisonment  at  Constance  ; 
the  confinement  within  the  narrow  dungeon  of  the 
Dominican  monastery,  filled  with  pestiferous  effluvia 
from  a  neighbouring  sink;  the  sickness  in  prison  ;  the 
futile  attempts  to  gain  a  public  trial ;  the  still  worse 
confinement  in  the  Castle  of  Gottleben,  where  the 
victim  was  chained  by  day  and  by  night,  shut    off 


REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA.  gl-, 

from  friends,  and  suffering  from  headache,  haemor-  CHAr. 
rhage  and  coHc  ;  the  relentless  rancour  of  his  former  __^^_ 
friends.  But  these  sadder  traits  were  also  relieved 
by  bright  acts  of  kindness.  There  was  the  kindness 
of  the  Lord  of  Austie,  who  sheltered  him  when  ban- 
ished from  Prague  in  his  Castle  of  Kozi-hradek  ;  a 
similar  kindness  shown  him  by  Henry  of  Lazan,  who 
entertained  him  in  his  stronghold  of  Cracowec ; 
there  was  the  hearty  leave-taking  of  the  Polish  tailor,  a.d.  1413 
'  God  be  with  thee ;  for  hardly  think  I  wilt  thou  get 
back  again  unharmed,  dearest  Master  John,  and 
most  steadfast  in  the  truth.  Not  the  Kine  of  Hun- 
gary,  but  the  King  of  Heaven,  reward  thee  for  the 
good  and  true  instruction  I  have  received  of  thee ! ' 
There  was  the  kindness  he  received  on  his  journey 
at  Pernau  and  Nuremburg  ;  and,  above  all,  there 
was  the  steadfast  persevering  fidelity  of  the  noble 
knight,  John  of  Chlum,  who  attended  him  from 
Prague,  who  was  taken  prisoner  with  him  at  Con- 
stance, who  personally  overwhelmed  the  Pope  with 
reproaches  for  daring  to  violate  the  imperial  honour  ;  Oct.  n, 
who  complained  to  the  emperor  of  this  breach  of 
faith  ;  who  posted  up  a  certificate,  protesting  against 
the  insult  offered  by  the  Pope  to  the  Empire  ;  who  Dec  24 
left  no  stone  unturned  to  procure  for  his  friend  the 
much  wished-for  public  trial  ;  who  spoke  out  in  his 
defence  at  his  second  audience  before  the  council  ; 
who  seized  the  hand  of  Huss  as  he  was  being  led 
back  to  prison,  worn  down  and  exhausted,  after  his 
third  audience,  warmly  pressing  it,  so  that  Huss  said 
of  him,  '  O  what  joy  did  I  feel  from  the  pressure  of 
my  Lord  John's  hand,  which  he  was  not  ashamed  to 


1414 


1414 


6i4 


REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 


PART 
III. 


1415 


(y)  Burn- 
ing of 
Huss. 


give  me,  a  wretched  outcast  heretic  in  chains ; '  and 
whose  truly  noble  character  may  gathered  from  the 
words  he  addressed  to  Huss  the  day  before  his  exe- 
cution :  *  I  am  an  unlettered  man,  and  know  not 
how  to  advise  you,  who  are  a  learned  man.  Yet  I 
beseech  you,  If  you  are  conscious  of  any  error,  do 
not  shrink  from  altering  your  opinion  ;  but  if  not,  I 
will  not  lead  you.  to  do  aught  contrary  to  your  con- 
science ;  I  much  rather  advise  you  to  suffer  any 
punishment  than  to  deny  the  truth  of  which  you  are 
well  assured.' 

The  concluding  act  of  this  tragedy  took  place 
on  July  6,  141 5.  Clad  In  the  priestly  vestments, 
Huss  stood  before  the  seven  bishops  selected  for  the 
purpose.  One  after  another,  these  vestments  were 
removed  with  solemn  Imprecations.  A  cap  painted 
with    devils  was   placed  on  his  head.     Said   Huss  : 

*  My  Lord  Jesus  Christ  wore  on  my  account  a  crown 
of  thorns,  why  should  not  I  be  willing  for  his  sake 
to  wear  this  easier  though  shameful  badge  ? '  His 
soul  was  delivered  over  to  the  devil  by  the  bishops  ; 

*  But  I,'  said  Huss,  *  commend  Into  thy  hands  my  soul, 
O  Lord  Jesus.'  Consigned  to  the  executioners  of 
justice,  he  was  placed  upon  the  faggots,  bound  fast 
to  the  stake,  and  chained  to  It  by  the  neck.  The 
fire  was  kindled,  and  soon  the  flames,  driven  towards 
him  by  the  wind,  stifled  his  voice  ;  Huss  still  singing, 
'Jesus,  Son  of  the  living  God,  have  mercy  upon  me.' 

Thus  fell  Huss,  sacrificed  by  the  Emperor  Slgls- 
mund  for  his  championship  of  the  national  cause  of 
Bohemia,  sacrificed  by  the  Pope  for  castigating  the 
anti-Christian  conduct  of  the  Vicar  of  Christ,  sacri- 


REACTION   IN  BOHEMIA. 


615 


ficed  by  the  Reforming  Council  and  his  countrymen     chap, 

XTX 

for  advocating-  the   doctrines  of  WycHffe — poHtical  ^__ll_ 
doctrines  which  seemed  to  strike  at  the  root  of  every 
civil  institution — philosophical  views  which  were  op- 
posed to  the  growing  nominalism  of  the  day.     The 
council  justified   the  breach   of  the  emperor's  safe- 
conduct  by  decreeing  that  no  faith  should  be  kept 
with  a  heretic*     Far  from  quenching  the  national  iS)Move- 
movement    in    Bohemia,    the    death    of  Huss  only  again 
served   to   infuse  into  it  new  life,  and   to  unite  all  "aider'^the 
parties   there  against  the  Pope,  the  emperor,   and  ^"^^^('^'^-^ 
the  council.      Not  many  days  before  the  execution  (a)  Causes 
of   Huss,    the   Council   of  Constance  had  passed  a  ^^^^f 

'  ^  exaspera- 

decree  agfainst  the  administration  of  the  cup  to  the  Honofthe 

,    .  .  .  .  1     .       Bohemi- 

laity,  a  practice  which  had  been  introduced  m  ans. 
Bohemia,  by  James  of  Misa,  as  being  necessary  to  ""41 5^' 
salvation,  and  which  had  met  with  general  approval, 
even  Huss  havine  eiven  the  advice  to  'endeavour 
to  bring  it  about,  if  it  can  be  done,  that  the  admi- 
nistration of  the  cup  may  be  granted  by  a  Bull  to 
those  who  require  it  from  motives  of  devotion.'    The 

^  Sessio  xviii.  Labb^,  xvi.  291  r  '  Sacrosancta  Synodus  etc.  .  .  : 
'  Quia  nonnulli  nimis  intelligentes  .  .  .  sacro  .  .  .  concilio  linguis 
'  maledictis  detrahunt,  publice  et  occulte  dicentes  vel  innuentes, 

*  quod  salvus  conductus  per  invictissimum  principem  .  .  .  quon- 

*  dam  Joanni  Huss  heresiarchae  daranatae  memoriae  datus,  fuit 
'  contra  justitiam  aut  honestatem  indebite  violatus  ;  cum  tamen 
'  dictus  Joannes  Huss  fidem  orthodoxam  pertinaciter  oppugnans, 
'  se  ab  omni  conductu  et  privilegio  reddiderit  alienum ;  nee  aliqua 
'  sibi  fides  aut  promissio  de  jure  naturali,  divino,  vel  humano, 
'  fuerit  in  praejudicium  catholicae  fidei  observanda ;  idcirco  dicta 
'  sancta  synodus  praesentium  tenore  declarat,  dictum  invictissimum 
'  principem  .  .  .  non  obstante  memorato  salvo  conductu,  ex  juris 
'  debito  fecisse  quod  licuit.  .  .  . ' 


5i6  REACTIONS  AGAINST   THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 

PART     condemnation  of  this  practice,  coupled  with  the  de- 

, L_    nunciation  of  its  supporters  as  heretics,  anew  brought 

the  Bohemians  into  opposition  to  the  council. 
Nor  was  the  execution  of  Huss,  which  followed, 
calculated  to  diminish  their  resentment,  since  the 
violation  of  the  safe-conduct  to  so  distinguished  a 
man  was  regarded  as  a  national  insult.  Moreover, 
the  exasperation  of  the  Bohemians  was  further  In- 
creased by  the  execution  of  Jerome  of  Prague,  a 
Bohemian  knight  and  friend  of  Huss,  who  at  first 
recanted,  but  afterwards  suffered  death,  enduring 
the  torments  of  the  fire  with  more  tranquillity  than 
Socrates  displayed  in  drinking  the  hemlock  draught. 
At  length  the  utter  contempt  which  the  council  showed 
for  Bohemia,  as  a  place  Infested  with  heresy,  coupled 
with  a  decision  of  the  University  of  Prague  in  favour 
of  the  communion  in  both  kinds,  brought  matters 
Sept.  5,  to  a  crisis.  A  league  was  concluded  for  six  yfears 
by  the  Bohemian  and  Moravian  nobles  for  protecting 
the  purity  of  doctrine. 
ip)  Defen-       Then   came  the  violent   measures  of  the  council 

sive  wars 

of  the  against  Bohemia,  the  mission  of  the  papal  legates 
to  suppress  the  heretics,  as  they  were  called  ;  the 
rising  of  the  Hussites  in  self-defence  under  Nicolas 
of  Hussinecz  and  John  Zlska;  their  gathering  and 
establishment  on  Mount  Tabor  ;  their  march  upon 
Prague,  and  bloody  vengeance  on  the  New  City  ; 
the  death  of  King  Wenceslaus  and  the  complete 
anarchy  which  followed,  the  people  refusing  to  sub- 
mit to  the  hated  SIgismund.  The  anarchy  was 
increased  by  the  division  of  the  Hussites  into  two 
parties,  the   more  moderate  party  of  Callxtines  or 


BoJioni 
a  US. 


REACTION  IN  BOHEMIA. 


617 


Utraquists,  adhering  to  the  four  articles,   and  the    chap. 

XIX 

new  extreme  party  of  the   Taborites,  recruited  by '— 

the  accession  of  Beghards  or  Picards,  and  espousing  ^'^'  ^  ' 
all  their  heretical  tenets.  For  a  time  the  two 
parties  coalesced  in  a  common  opposition  to  Sigis- 
mund.  The  Calixtines  Sigismund  might  have  in- 
duced to  receive  him  as  their  king  had  he  made  a 
few  slight  concessions.  Not  so  the  Taborites,  who 
since  the  death  of  Wenceslaus  had  begun  to  pull 
down  churches  and  monasteries,  and  to  ill-treat 
priests  and  monks.  As  it  was,  by  causing  a  crusade 
to  be  preached  against  all  indiscriminately,  he  only 
united  both  against  himself  The  spirit  of  Bohe- 
mian nationality  was  strong,  'and  it  retaliated  with 
terrible  vengeance  on  those  who  undertook  the 
three  crusades  which  the  emperor  had  succeeded  in 
raising. 

Finding  that  violence  was  unavailing,  the  Council       if) 

Internal 

of  Basle  resorted  to  negotiations  with  the  Hussites,  divisions 
They  ended  in  a  compact  being  concluded  at  Prague  Bohe- 
between  the  council  and  the  Calixtines,  by  which  *^^^^^- 

•1  ,   .  T       .         .  A.D.  1431 

the  four  articles,   subject  to  some  hmitations,  were    j^^^  ^o, 
conceded,   and   by   which   also  one   party  of  Bohe-       '^33 
mians  was  detached  from  the  other.      The  arms  of 
the   Taborites  were  now  turned  against  the  Calix- 
tines, and  the  result  was  their  own  entire  defeat  at 
Bohmisch-Brod.     After  the  compact  had  been  again    May  30, 
solemnly  ratified   at   Iglau,   the  Calixtines   acknow-       ^^^^ 
ledged  Sigismund  as  their  king  on  the  guarantee  of      1436 
certain  conditions. 

The  subsequent  history  of  these  parties  is  soon  told.^  {d)  The 

observ- 

^  A  sketch  of  it  in  Gies.  vol.  v.  sec.  151,  p.  123.  ance  oj 


5i8  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 

PART     Siglsmund    forgot    his    concessions,    and    restored 
the  ancient  ecclesiastical  institutions    as  far  as  pos- 


pact  en-  sible.  Having  been  once  deceived,  the  Calixtines 
■^ff'^rr'    were  too  wary  to  be  taken  in  again.     On  Sigismund's 

tines.         death  they  resisted   the  Catholic  emperor,  Albert ; 

Dec!  1437  01^   his   death  they  insisted   on  having   a  Calixtine 

Oct.  1439  regent.  On  the  decease  of  the  zealous  Catholic,  La- 
dislaus,  the  Calixtine,  George  of  Podiebrad,  was 
elected  king,  but  his  conciliatory  measures,  which 
might  have  restored  peace  to  the  country,  foundered 
on  the  cherished  project  of  the  Calixtines,  that  the 
Catholics  must  be  driven  from  the  country,  and  the 
no  less  cherished  project  of  Pius  II.,  that  the  Papacy 
1462  must  be  upheld  in  all  its  former  pretensions.  The 
compact  concluded  at  Prague  was  declared  invalid  : 

Dec.  1465  George  was  excommunicated  and  dethroned  ;  a  fresh 
crusade  was  preached  against  himself  and  his  party, 
and  the  kingdom  of  Bohemia  was  granted  as  a  gift 
to  Matthias,  King  of  Hungary,  who  even  gained  pos- 
session of  Silesia,  Moravia,  and  Lusatia.  Never- 
theless, the  German  Universities  denounced  the 
1471  crusade.  In  Bohemia  George  Podiebrad  main- 
tained his  rights  till  his  death,  and  his  successor 
Wladislaus,  a  Polish  prince,  himself  a  Catholic,  found 
the  Calixtines  so  strong  that  the  compact  remained 
1516       in  full  force  till  his  death. 

c.  Gain-  Meantime  a  similar  movement  had  been  eoinof  on 
in  France.  This  movement  was  so  far  unlike  the 
movements  in   EnQ^land   and  Bohemia,  that  it  was 

(i)  Be-  ..,-*,  ,        ^' 

ginning     not  precipitated    by  the  over-zeal    of  controversy, 

Yoitfsix.  h'-*t  progressed  gradually  with  few  violent  outbreaks. 

1270      The  foundation  of  Gallicanism  may  be  traced  back 


ca7i  move- 
ment in 
France. 


REACTION  IN  FRANCE. 


619 


to  the   Pragmatic   Sanction  of  St.    Louis,   an   edict    chap. 

XIX 

which   was  either  enacted  with  the   Pope's  conces-  ^ '. 

sion  at  the  time  when  Clement  IV.  was  absolutely 
dependent  for  protection  on  Charles  of  Anjou,  or 
which  passed  unobserved  in  the  vacancy  before  the 
election  of  Gregory  X.  Alexander  IV.  had  made 
concessions  to  St.  Louis  some  ten  years  earlier ;  ^  ^-^^  '^^° 
the  king's  judge  should  not  incur  excommunication 
for  arresting  priests  guilty  of  capital  offences.  The 
Pragmatic  Sanction  now  passed  by  St.  Louis  laid 
down  a  few  simple  laws  to  ensure  the  tranquil  and 
wholesome  state  of  the  Church  :  ^  prelates,  patrons, 
and  ordinary  collators  were  to  enjoy  their  right  to 
present  to  benefices  ;  freedom  of  election  was  to  be 
allowed    to  the   cathedral  and  other  churches  ;  the 

^  See  the  thirty-two  stabiHmenta  made  by  St.  Louis,  in  Concil. 
Biterr.  Labb^,  xiv.  194,  an.  1255. 

2  Passed  in  1269.  See  Gies.  vol.  iii.  sec.  62,  p.  187.  The 
Pragmatic  Sanction  consists  of  the  following  five  chapters,  Labbe, 
xiv.  445,  an.  1268  :  '  i.  Ut  ecclesiarum  regni  nostri  praelati, 
patron i  et  beneficiorum  collatores  ordinarii,  jus  suuni  plenarie 
habeant,  et  unicuique  sua  jurisdictio  servetur.  2.  Item  ecclesiae 
cathedrales,-  et  aliae  regni  nostri,  liberas  electiones,  et  earum 
effectum  integraliter  habeant.  3.  Item  simoniae  crimen  pesii- 
ferum  ecclesiam  labefactans,  a  regno  nostro  penitus  eliminandum 
volumus  et  jubemus.  4.  Item  promotiones,  collationes,  provi- 
siones,  et  dispositiones  praelaturarum,  dignitatum,  et  aliorum  quo- 
rumcunque  beneficiorum  et  officiorum  ecclesiasticorum  regni 
nostri,  secundum  dispositionem,  ordinationem,  et  determinatio- 
nem  juris  communis,  sacrorum  conciliorum  ecclesiae  Dei,  atque 
institutorum  antiquorum  sanctorum  patrum,  fieri  volumus  et 
ordinamus.  5.  Item  libertates,  franchisias,  praerogativas,  jura  ac 
privilegia,  per  inclitae  recordationis  Francorum  reges  praedeces- 
sores  nostros,  et  successive  per  nos,  ecclesiis,  monasteriis,  atque 
locis  piis,  religiosis  necnon  personis  ecclesiasticis  regni  nostri 
concessas,  et  concessa,  innovamus,  laudamus,  approbamus.' 


620  REACTIONS  AGAINST   THE    LATIN  SYSTEMS. 

PART     pestilential   crime   of  simony  was   to  be  banished ; 

'- promotions,    collations,    provisions   and   dispositions 

of  prelacies,  dignities  and  benefices  were  to  proceed 
conformably  to  the  Common  Law,  the  Sacred  Coun- 
cils of  the  Church,  and  the  ancient  institutions  of 
the  Holy  Fathers  |  no  manner  of  exactions  or  assess- 
ments might  be  raised  without  the  king's  consent 
and  the  consent  of  the  national  Church ;  to  all 
churches  and  monasteries  their  immunities,  preroga- 
tives, and  privileges  were  secured.  But  in  the  hands 
of  the  great  lawyers  of  the  University  of  Paris,  and 
by  the  memorable  decree  of  the  Appeal  because 
of  Abuses,  these  laws  were  developed  into  a  charter 
of  independence  of  the  Galilean  Church. 

The  struggle  between  Philip  the  Fair  and  Boni- 
face VIII.,  involving  as  it  did  the  observance  of  the 

.D.  1300  Pragmatic  Sanction  of  Louis  IX.,  bears  in  many 
respects  a  resemblance  to  the  national  movement  in 
England  under  Richard  II. ;  in  others  it  is  more  like 
the  struggle  between  Henry  1 1,  and  Thomas  a  Becket. 
Had  it  taken  place  a  century  and  a  half  earlier,  there 
is  little  doubt  that  it  would  have  ended,  as  did  that 
under  Henry  II.,  in  the  submission  of  the  king;  had 
it  taken  place  ninety  years  later,  it  would  have  been 
deprived  of  its  more  tragical  effects  by  encountering 
an  antagonist  less  powerful  than  Boniface  VIII. 
For,  whatever  It  may  seem  to  be  at  first  sight,  it  was 
not  a  mere  controversy  between  a  headstrong  king 
and  a  headstrong  Pope  ;  it  was  a  national  reaction 
against  the  extreme  powers  claimed  by  the  Papacy, 
and  it  was  a  national  reaction  in  that  it  came  from 
the  people  as  well  as  the  king.     The  States  General 


REACTION  IN  FRANCE.  62  I 

declared  that  they  would  not  receive  the  redress  of    chap. 

XIX 

ecclesiastical  grievances  from    the    Pope,    but   only  1^ — 

from  their  Lord  the  King ;  the  Ordnance  of  Refor- 
mation was  promulgated  by  the  king,  and  charges 
were  preferred  against  the  Pope  before  the  States.'- 
Had  it  not  been  for  the  death  of  Boniface  and  the 
concessions  of  his  successor,  France  might  at  the 
beginning  of  the  fourteenth  century  have  done  more 
than  Wycliffe  or  more  than  Huss  proposed  to  do  at 
its  close — have  renounced  entirely  her  allegiance  to 
the  Pope.  The  residence  of  the  Popes  at  Avignon, 
however,  entirely  changed  the  attitude  of  that  country. 
Henceforth  the  interests  of  France  were  sacrificed  to 
the  interests  of  her  sovereigns;  The  Pope  was  sup- 
ported by  the  king,  the  king  by  the  Pope  ;  both 
united  to  keep  down  the  national  reaction  against' 
the  Papacy ;  both  pledged  themselves  to  support 
each  other,  and  at  length  shared  between  them 
the  liberties  of  the  Galilean  Church.^ 

Yet    this  result   was   not  attained   until  the   the-  iS)  Asser- 
ories  on  which  those  liberties  were  founded  had  for  GaiUcau 
a  brief  time  had  their  day,  and  by  asserting  them-  during 
selves  at  the   most   critical  period  in  the  history  of  ^^;„-^,,^ 
the  Papacy — the    time   of  the  Great  Schism^had 
inflicted    on    that    institution    a    severe    blow,    from 
which  it  could  never  afterwards  recover.     The  chief 
instruments   in  promulgating  these   principles  were 
the  cardinal,    Peter  d'Ailly,  Gerson,  Chancellor   of 
the   University  of  Paris,    and  his  pupil,  Nicolas  of 


'  GiES.  vol.  iii.  sec.  59,  p.  149. 
2  J  bid.  iv.  sec.  136,  p.  436. 


REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 


PART 
III. 


Clemanges.  Unlike  Paletz,  who  defined  the  Church 
to  be  the  body  of  cardinals  under  the  Pope  as 
their  head,  the  Galilean  divines  nurtured  in  the  Uni- 
versity of  Paris,  starting  with  the  two  notions  of 
the  Church  and  the  Pope,  placed  the  conception 
of  the  one  universal  Church  in  the  foreground,  the 
government  of  a  single  head  being  altogether  sub- 
ordinate. The  ecclesiastical  supremacy  of  the  Popes 
was  thus  overturned,  the  authority  of  individual 
bishops  restored.  Teaching  that  from  Christ,  as  the 
Head  and  Bridegroom  of  the  Church,  the  mystical 
body  has  its  origin,  and  that  where  two  or  three  are 
gathered  together  in  the  name  of  Christ,  there  He  is 
in  the  midst  of  them  ;  Gerson,^  at  the  same  time, 
declares  that  the  hierarchy,  in  all  its  gradations,  is 
necessary  for  all  time  as  the  organism  prescribed  by 
Christ  for  the  diffusion  of  his  spirit,  but  that  the 
collective  Church,  as  it  has  power  to  make  a  Pope, 
has  also  the  power  to  pass  judgment  on  a  Pope,  and 
to  depose  him.  He  holds,  moreover,  that  the  Pope 
when  made  is  bound  to  observe  the  law  of  Christ. 
How  therefore,  he  asks,  can  the  Pope  be  the  servant 
of  the  servants  of  God  upon  earth,  when  he  is  more 
ready  to  please  princes,  kings,  and  tyrants  than  God 
and  his  saints  ?  How  can  the  Pope  possess  the 
power  to  bind  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  when  he  can 
only  announce  the  sentence  ratified  in  heaven  ?  Dis- 
posed to  allow  a  certain  degree  of  freedom  in  the 
Church,  Gerson,  at  the  same  time,  retreated  behind 


^  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.   136,   p.  419  ;   Gerson,  De  Potest.  Ecd. 
Cons  id,  xi.  0pp.  ii.  243. 


REACTION  IN  FRANCE. 


623 


the  system   of  the  theologians  of  Paris,  and   there-     chap. 

XIX 

fore  opposed  both  Wydiffe  and  Hiiss.     A  General  ' 

Council  he  held  to  be  an  assemblage  of  all  orders 
of  the  Church  convened  by  lawful  authority,  and 
excluding  no  person,  whoever  he  may  be,  that  de- 
mands to  be  heard  ;  and  although  he  admitted  with 
limitations  that  a  General  Council  cannot  annul  the 
Pope's  plenitude  of  power,  still  he  held  that  it  might 
modify  the  use  of  that  power  by  determinate  laws. 

In  the  same  spirit  Nicolas  of  Clemanges,^  when  (<^)  ^i<-'0' 
endeavouring  to  heal  the  Schism,  and  speaking  in  manges. 
the  name  of  the  university,  declared  that  a  General 
Council  derives  its  authority  from  the  words  of  Christ, 
Where  two  or  three  are  gathered  in  my  name, 
there  I  am  in  the  midst  of  them ;  and  expressed  the 
wish  that  some  limitations  might  be  imposed  on  the 
power  of  the  Popes,  since  limitation  would  best 
promote  the  Interests  of  the  Papacy,  Not  other  was 
the  lanp-uag^e  used  by  the  cardinal,  Peter  or  Pierre  (0  Pierre 
d'AIlly,^  the  friend  and  teacher  of  Gerson,  in  his  ser- 
mon before  the  Council  of  Constance.  His  text  was, 
'  There  shall  be  signs  In  the  sun,  and  In  the  moon,  and 
In  the  stars.'  The  sun  was  the  spiritual  power,  the 
Pope  ;  the  moon  the  temporal,  the  emperor  ;  the  stars, 
the  cardinals,  prelates,  and  doctors  In  the  firmament 
of  the  council.  But  the  sun,  for  the  fulness  of  his 
power,  must  fulfil  certain  conditions  :  '  If  the  supreme 
pastor  shall    have   risen  by  bad  means,    by    unjust 


'  See  Neand,  ix.  88,  and  Nic.  de  Clemangis,  0pp.  ed.  Lydius, 
Epp.  pp.  6-10. 

2  Conf.  also  his  cedida  in  Concil.  Const,  an.  14 15,  Labbe, 
xvi.  38. 


624  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 

TA  RT  and  reprobate  ambition  ;  if  he  shall  have  led  a  scan- 

IIL 

'- —  dalous  and   dishonest  life  ;    if  he   shall   have  ruled 


negligently  and  tyrannically,  he  is  but  the  phantom 

of  the   sun.'     It  seems  stranore  that  such  lano-uaee 

should  be  approved   in   a  cardinal,  when  Huss  was 

derided  for  saying  :  '  If  he  who  is  called  the  Vicar  of 

Christ  copies  his  life,  he  is  his  vicar;  but  if  he  takes 

the  opposite  course,  he  is  a  messenger  of  antichrist 

and  a  vicar  of  Judas  Iscariot' 

(4)  Gaili-       The   principles    which    the  theologians  of  Paris, 

tics  se-       taking  advantage  of  the  Schism,  asserted  were  the 

aired  at     pnnciples    on    which    the    independent    councils    of 

j^.D.  1438    Pisa,    Constance,    and    Basle    proceeded;   principles 

{a)  Con-    alwavs  distasteful   to  the  Popes,  and  ao^ainst  which 

tents  of  '  1       '  & 

the  Frag-  they  secured  the  decisions  of  the  Council  of  Florence 

viatic 

Sanction,  and  the  fifth  Lateran  Council.  By  the  Pragmatic 
Sanction  of  Bourges  those  principles  were  embodied 
in  the  laws  of  France,  Charles  VII.  had  refused  to 
conclude  a  concordat  with  Martin  V.  Was  it  that 
he  feared  to  offend  a  party  so  powerful  as  the  Galli- 
can  then  was,  by  recognising  even  partially  the 
claims  of  the  Papacy  ?  Or  was  it  that  he  thought 
he  could  obtain  more  from  the  university  than  he 
1438  could  from  the  Pope  ?  When  the  Council  of  Basle 
had  passed  its  reformatory  decrees,  the  Gallican 
hierarchy  was  assembled  in  a  national  synod  at 
Bourges.^  The  king  proposed,  the  clergy  eagerly 
adopted  the  decrees  of  the  council.  These  decrees 
declared  that  the  Pope  was  subject  to  a  General 
Council,  and  such  a  council  the  Pope  was  bound  to 

'  See  Concil.  Bitur.  an.  1438,  in  vol.  Supp.  v.  to  Labbe,  p  60. 


REACTION  IN  FRANCE. 


625 


hold  every  ten  years ;   the   Pope   had  no  power  to     chap. 
nominate  to  the  great  ecclesiastical   benefices  ;    the  1_1_ 


can 
divines. 


riirht  of  election  should  devolve  on  those  to  whom  it 
belonged  ;  the  Court  of  Rome  had  no  right  to  collate 
to  inferior  benefices.  Grants  to  benefices  in  expecta- 
tion were  abolished  absolutely  ;  appeals  to  Rome  were 
limited  to  grave  cases ;  the  number  of  cardinals  was 
restricted  to  twenty-four  ;  annates  and  first-fruits  were 
declared  to  be  a  simoniacal  payment ;  the  interdict 
was  no  longer  to  confound  in  one  sweeping  condem- 
nation the  innocent  and  the  guilty.  By  the  Galilean  ib)  State- 
divines,  the  Pope  was  now  recognised  subject  to  the  GaiUcmi 
liberties  of  the  Galilean  Church — a  proviso  which  L^q^iu. 
was  declared  to  imply  two  things,  that  the  Pope 
has  no  dominion  over  the  temporalities  of  kings  ; 
and  that  the  Pope's  power  is  limited  by  the  decrees 
of  General  Councils.  These  two  things  were  sub- 
sequently  expanded  in  the  five  propositions,  that 
the  Church  can  in  no  way  exercise  jurisdiction  over 
kings  or  their  unbaptized  subjects  ;  that  in  temporal 
matters  individuals  are  subject  only  to  their  sove- 
reigns ;  that  the  Church  cannot  release  subjects  from 
allegiance  to  their  sovereigns ;  that  the  Church 
cannot  dispose  of  its  revenues  contrary  to  the  statutes 
of  the  realm  ;  and  that  the  Church  cannot  deal  with 
unbaptized  persons  at  all  against  the  will  of  their 
sovereiofns.^ 
V.  The  Pragmatic  Sanction  of  Bourges  was  after  all  if)  His- 

■       1  r   /^i       1        -VT-TT     toryofthe 

only  a   temporary   act  on  the  part  of  Charles  Vll.  Sanction 
Notwithstanding   the  apparent    zeal  of  the   French  I'^p^ai. 

'  See  AsSEMAN,  De  Ecclesiis. 
S  S  ■ 


526  REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 

PART     kings    in    upholding  the   liberties    of  the    Gallican 
L_  Church,  they  were  always  only  too  ready  to  sacrifice 


those  liberties,  if  by  so  doing  they  could  increase 
their  own  power.    The  Church,  it  is  true,  they  would 
not  have  dependent  on  the  Pope.     Still  rather  than 
not     have    it    dependent    upon    themselves,    they 
would  sacrifice  it  in  part  to  the  Pope.      Hence  from 
the  time  of  their  first  being  asserted,  until  they  were 
finally   sacrificed  by  Francis   I.,  the  French    kings 
always   played   fast  and    loose    with    the   Gallican 
(rr)  Futile  liberties.      During  the  lifetime  of  Charles  VII.,  who 
of  Pius      knew  what  to  expect  from  a  Pope  holding  the  high 
Mafitua.    V^V^  notions  of  Innocent  IV.  and  Boniface  VIII., 
A.D.  1460   the  attempts  of  Pius  II.  to  procure  the  repeal  of  the 
Pragmatic  Sanction  were  in  vain.      But  with  his  suc- 
(8)  Par-    cessor,  Louis   XL,  Pius  could  do  more  ;  for  in  the 
cess  with    hope  that  the  Pope  would  support  the  claims  of  the 
TTi    '  houseofAnjou  to  the  throne  of  Naples,  Louis  repealed 
the  Sanction.    Finding,  however,  that  the  wished-for 
support  was  not  forthcoming,  the  French  king  did  not 
trouble  himself  to  compel  his  reluctant  parliament  to 
adopt  the  repeal.     Hence  the  position  of  France  was 
undecided.^     When  the   French,    agreeably  to  the 
terms  of  the  League  of  Cambray,  appeared  in  Italy 
to  help  the   Pope,  and   had  been  driven   thence  by 
the  Swiss  (the  faithless  Julius  II.  having  formed  an 
alliance  with  their  enemies),  a  Lateran  Council,  con- 
vened  by  the   Pope  to  execute  his  vengeance,   de- 
nounced  the  Pragmatic    Sanction,    and    placed   the 
whole  realm  of  France  under  the  interdict.^      But 


'  GiES.  vol.  iv.  sec.  133,  p.  372. 

^  Concil.  Later,  v.  an.  15 12,  sessio  iv.  Labb^,  xix.  750, 


REACTION  IX  FRANCE.  627 

the  Pragmatic  Sanction  still  survived,  neither  quite     chap. 

XIX 

enforced  nor  quite  repealed,  until  the  young  king, 


Francis  L,  reappeared  in  Italy  with  irresistible  force,  of  the 
At  once  Leo  X.  saw  that  opposition  was  hopeless,  ^^"■'^^^°^''- 
and  believing  that  everything  could  be  gained  by  a   Dec.  15 15 
timely  surrender,  concluded  with  him  a  final  Concor- 
dat which  lasted  for  almost  three  centuries.^     Instead 


'  See  the  preparatory  steps  in  Concil.  Lateran.  v.  an.  15 15, 
sessio  X.  LABB]fi,  xix.  913.  The  articles  of  the  Concordat  were 
ratified  at  sessio  xi.  an.  15 16,  in  Laebe,  xix.  947.  Among  them 
the  following  :  '  Quod  cathedralibus  et  metropolitanis  ecclesiis  in 
regno  .  .  .  illarum  capitula  et  canonici  ad  electionem  sen  postu- 
lationem  inibi  futuri  praelati  procedere  non  possint ;  sed  illarum 
occurrentehujusmodi  vacatione,  rex  Franciae  pro  tempore  existens 
unum  gravem  magistrum  seu  licentiatum  in  theologia  ...  in 
universitate  famosa,  et  rigore  exaniinis,  et  in  vigesimo  septimo 
suae  aetatis  anno  ad  minus  constitutum  et  alias  idoneum  infra 
sex  menses  .  .  .  nobis  et  successoribus  nostris  Romanis  pontifi- 
cibus  .  .  .  sedi  praedictae  nominare  .  .  .  et  si  contingeret, 
praefatum  regem,  personam  taliter  non  qualificatam  ad  dictas 
ecclesias  sic  vacantes  nominare  .  .  .  teneatur  idem  rex  infra  tres 
alios  menses  .  .  .  aliiam  supra  dicto  modo  qualificatum  nomi- 
nare. .  ,  .  Consanguineis  tamen  praefati  regis  ac  personis  subli- 
mibus  .  .  .  sub  prohibitione  praemissa  minime  comprehensis, 
sed  de  eorum  personis  .  .  .  dictis  ecclesiis  .  .  .  libere  provideri 
possit.'  Ibid.  p.  952  :  '  Volumus  quoque  et  ordinamus,  quod  in 
regno  .  .  .  de  caetero  non  dentur  aliquae  gratiae  exspectativae. 
.  .  .  Statuimus  insuper,  quod  ordinarius  collator  in  unaquaque 
cathedrali  .  .  .  canonicatum  et  praebendam  inibi  consistentem 
conferre  teneatur  "uni  magistro  seu  licentiato  .  .  .  qui  per  decen- 
nium  in  universitate  studii  generalis  privilegiata  studuerit,  ac 
onus  residentiae,  lecturae  et  praedicationis  actu  subire  voluerit ; 
.  .  .  Ibid.  p.  954  :  '  Statuimus  quoque  et  ordinamus,  quod  col- 
latores  ordinarii  et  patroni  ecclesiastici  praefati  inter  graduates, 
qui  literas  gradus  cum  tempore  studii  et  attestatione  nobilitatis 
debite  insinaTerint  .  .  .  gratificare  possint  ilium  ex  eis,  quern 
voluerint.  .  .  .  Statuimus  quoque  quod  parochiales  ecclesiae  in 
civitatibus  aut  villis  muratis  existentes,  non  nisi  personis  modo 

s  s  2 


628 


REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 


PART 
III. 


Conchi- 
sion. 
Value  of 
Ultra- 
inontan- 
isui,  and 
national 
Churches. 


of  capitular  election,  the  king  was  to  nominate,  ■ 
the  Pope  to  collate  to  episcopal  sees.  Annates  were 
restored  to  the  Pope,  who  also  received  a  small  sti- 
pulated patronage  in  place  of  his  indefinite  preroga- 
tive of  reserving  benefices.  Whilst  the  Parliament 
of  Paris  yielded  only  to  force  in  allowing  the  con- 
cordat to  be  unregistered,  and  the  University  stopped 
little  short  of  sedition,  the  king  and  the  Pope  had 
each  got  what  they  desired.  To  the  king  fell  the 
real  power  and  the  essential  patronage  of  the  Church  ; 
by  the  Pope  the  recognition  of  his  authority  has  been 
secured. 

Never  should  it  be  forgotten  in  tracing  the  national 
efforts  for  independence  between  the  thirteenth  and 
sixteenth  centuries,  that  it  was  from  the  Universities 
of  that  age — from  Oxford,  from  Prague,  from  Paris 
— that  the  reactions  against  the  Latin  system  pro- 
ceeded which  finally  terminated  in  the  Reformation. 
In  the  Universities  then,  as  now,  the  spirit  of  re- 
action attained  to  maturity  earlier  than  elsewhere,  and 
from  them  as  centres,  it  diffused  itself  over  Europe, 


*  praemisso  qualificatis,  aut  saltern  qui  per  tres  annos  in  theologia 
'  stLiduerint  .  .   .  conferantur.'  .  .  .  Ibid.  p.  956  :   '  Statuimus  quo- 

*  que,  quod  in  provisionibus  quas  personis  quibusois  de  beneficiis 
'  vacantibus  .  .  .  per  nos  et  successores  nostros  .  .  .  fieri  conti- 
'  gerit,  illorum  verus  annuus  .  .  .  valor  secundum  communem 
'  aestimationem  exprimi  debeat.  .  .  .  Statuimus  quoque  .  .  .  quod 
'  in  regno  .  .  .  omnes  et  singulae  causae,  exceptis  majoribus  in 
'  jure  expresse  denominatis,  apud  illos  judices  in  partibus,  qui 
'  .  .  .  cognitionem  habent,  terminari  et  finiri  debeant.'  Ibid. 
p.  957  :  '.  .  .  Insuper  ordinamus  quod  quicumque  clericus  .  .  . 
'  publicus  concubinarius  a  perceptione  fructuum  omnium  bene- 
'  ficiorum  suorum  trium  mensium  spatio  sit  ipso  facto  suspensus.' 


CONCLUSION. 


629 


like    the    sound    of   a    passing  bell,  foretelling  the     chap. 

coming  end  of  Mediaeval  Christendom.      The  deep  1— 

moral  earnestness  of  the  Teutonic  nations  no  less 
than  their  intense  individualism  begin  henceforth  to 
-be  factors  in  the  history  of  religious  truth,  and  to 
attract  by  their  freshness  and  life  no  less  than  by  the 
fact  that  they  speak  directly  to  the  heart  of  the 
modern  world.  For  if  the  Romans  and  the  Romance 
nations  loved  system,  the  Teutonic  nations  have  ever 
attached  greater  importance  to  the  principle  of  per- 
sonal responsibility.  The  struggle  to  assert  this  prin- 
ciple appeared  at  first  a  struggle  to  establish  national 
Clinches,  these  being  the  representatives  of  national 
independence.  Wycliffe,  Huss,  and  the  Galilean 
doctors  succumbed  in  the  attempt,  but  at  the  Refor- 
mation victory  declared  itself  on  the  side  for  which 
they  had  fought.  National  Churches  were  every- 
where established  ;  the  Papacy  itself  was  reduced  to 
the  rank  of  a  national  institution,  and  became  hence- 
forth ultramontane. 

And  yet  all  these  new  ecclesiastical  institutions 
growing  up  as  they  did  on  the  ruins  of  the  old  Me- 
diaeval Papacy,  were  only  stepping-stones  in  one 
direction,  imperfect  attempts  to  assert  the  personal 
responsibility  of  each  individual  to  God — a  view 
which,  to  the  Teutonic  mind,  seems  as  indispensable 
and  as  important  as  an  ecclesiastical  system  seemed 
to  the  Latin  mind,  for  the  purpose  of  mediating 
between  God  and  man.  In  the  Latin  system  was 
expressed  the  Latin  character,  its  love  of  central- 
isation, its  love  of  law,  its  sinking  of  individuals  in 
the    commonwealth.      The    new    ecclesiastical   insti- 


630 


REACTIONS  AGAINST  THE  LATIN  SYSTEMS. 


PART     tutions  which  came  into  being  at  the  Reformation, 
'- —  expressed  (as  well  as  that  age  could  do  it)  the  Teu- 


tonic character,  its  love  of  freedom,  its  idea  of  direct 
dependence  on  God,  its  intense  individualism.  The 
Latin  system  still  exists,  although  no  longer  com- 
manding the  allegiance  of  the  world,  but  confined  to 
the  Romance  nations  or  those  characters  in  the  old 
and  new  world  which  have  an  affinity  for  the  Ro- 
mance nations,  and  on  whom  the  spell  of  antiquity 
still  is  strongf.  Other  national  Churches  and  new 
phases  of  belief  have  grown  up  and  flourish  beside 
it,  and,  as  being  more  congenial,  are  more  popular 
among  the  nations  of  Teutonic  origin  and  those 
under  the  influence  of  Teutonic  ideas.  But  what, 
after  all,  are  the  Papacy  or  those  Churches  which 
dispute  its  claims  more  than  national  institutions  ? 
Each  may  aspire  to  be  the  only  true,  but  each  is 
far  from  being  the  one  only  Catholic  Chitrch.  If 
Christendom  is  ever  again  to  be  united,  so  as  to 
convince  the  world  of  the  Divine  mission  of  its 
Founder,  such  a  union  must  neither  be  expected  from 
the  Latin  system,  with  all  its  grandeur  and  attrac- 
tiveness for  lovers  of  the  past  and  lovers  of  culture, 
nor  yet  from  any  particular  form  of  Teutonic  indi- 
vidualism and  self-assertion,  however  flattering  these 
forms  may  appear  to  human  reason.  Only  a  higher 
and  more  solid  form  of  Catholicity  can  join  in 
one  fold  the  Celt  and  the  Teuton,  the  Greek  and 
the  Scythian,  the  Jew  and  the  savage  who  shall  yet 
be  reclaimed  from  some  country  far  remote — a  Catho- 
licity, in  fact,  which  can  look  beyond  its  own  narrow 
horizon  and    sink  national  peculiarities,  and  which 


CONCLUSION. 


631 


can  cultivate  more  deeply  that  one  grace  without     chap. 

which    the    tongue    of   men    and    angels  will   profit  ll_ 

nothing.  The  prodigal  waste  of  mental  and  moral 
forces  in  the  Middle  Ages,  for  ends  wholly  incom- 
mensurate— for  they  had  been  no  sooner  attained 
than  they  were  as  soon  lost — will  not  have  happened 
in  vain,  if  over  their  grave  a  voice  is  heard,  reminding 
modern  society  of  the  great  end  for  which  Christ 
came  into  the  world,  and  comparing  with  it  the 
objects  on  which  Christendom  is  from  time  to  time 
wasting  her  energies.  For  what,  after  all,  are  national 
Churches  but  things  of  the  day,  passing  forms  in  the 
development  of  Christianity  ?  What  are  their  ex- 
clusive pretensions  to  infallibility  but  tinkling  brass 
and  a  sounding  cymbal  ? 


APPENDIX    IV. 


STAT.   25  EDWARDI  III.  ST.  VI.,  COMMONLY  CALLED 
STATUTE  OF  PROVISORS,  A.D.  i3so.> 

PART      TT  WHEREAS,  late   in    the   parliament   of  good   memory   of 

'  V  V        Edward  King  of  England,  grandfather  to  our  lord  the 

king  that  now  is,  the  35th  year  of  his  reign,  holden  at  Carlisle, 

the  petition  heard,  put  before  the  said  grandfather  and  his  council 

in   his    said  parliament  by  the   commonality  of  the   said  realm, 

containing,  that  whereas  the  holy  church  of  England  was  founded 

in  the  estate  of  prelacy,  within  the  realm  of  England,  by  the  said 

grandfather  and  his  progenitors,  and  the  earls,  barons,  and  other 

nobles  of  the  said  realm,  and  their  ancestors,  to  inform  them  and 

the  people  of  the  law  of  God,  and  to  make  hospitalities,  alms,  and 

other  works   of  charity,   in   the  places  where   the  churches  were 

founded,    for   the    souls    of    the    founders,    their   heirs,    and    all 

Christians  ;  and  certain  possessions,  as  well  in  fees,  lands,  rents, 

as  in  advowsons,  which  do  extend  to  a  great  value,  were  assigned 

by  the  said  founders  to  the  prelates  and  other  people  of  the  holy 

church  of  the  said  realm,  to  sustain  the  same  charge,  and  especially 

of  the  possessions  which  were  assigned  to  archbishops,  bishops, 

abbots,  priors,  religions,  and  all  other  people  of  holy  church,  by 

the  kings  of  the  said  realm,  earls,  barons,  and  other  great  men  of 

his  realm  ;    the  same  kings,  earls,  barons,  and  other  nobles,  as 

lords  and  avowees,  have  had  and  ought  to  have  the  custody  of 

such  voidances,  and  the  presentments  and  the  collations  of  the 

benefices  being  of  such  prelacies. 

The  Pope        11.   And  the  said  kings  in  times  past  were  wont  to  have   the 

bestowed     gj-g^test  part  of  their  council,  for  the  safeguard  of  the  realm  when 
spiritual     ° 

'  From  Stephen's  Ecclesiastical  Statutes,  vol.  i.  p.  58. 


STATUTES  OF  PROr/SORS. 


63, 


laud. 
TJie  i/i- 


they  had  need,  of  such  prelates  and  clerks  so  advanced;    the       AI'P. 

Bishop  of  Rome,  accroching  to  him  the  seigniories  of  such  posses-  • 

sions  and  benefices,  doth  give  and  grant  the  same  benefices  to   Ih'iugs 

aliens,  which  did  never  dwell  in  England,  and  to  cardinals,  which   ^'j!^" 

.  .  aliens  not 

might  not  dwell  here,  and  to  other  as  well  aliens  as  denizens,  as  dii'dlimr 

if  he  had  been  patron  or  advowee  of  the  said  dignities  and  bene-   in  Kyg- 
fices,  as  he  was  not  of  right  by  the  law  of  England ;  whereby  if 
they  should  be  suffered,   there  should  scarcely  be  any  benefice  ^ 

within  a  short  time  in  the  said  realm,  but  that  it  should  be  in  the  niences 
hands  of  aliens  and  denizens  by  virtue  of  such  provisions,  against  ensuing 
the  good  will  and  disposition  of  the  founders  of  the  same  bene- 
fices ;   and   so  the   elections   of  archbishops,   bishops,  and  other 
religions  should  fail,  and  the  alms,  hospitalities,  and  other  works 
of  charity,  which  should  be  done  in  the  said  places,  should   be 
withdrawn,  the  said  grandfather,   and  other  lay  patrons,  in   the 
time  of  such  voidances,  should  lose  their  presentments,  the  said 
council  should  perish,  and  goods  without  number  should  be  carried 
out  of  the  realm,  in  adnullation  of  the  estate  of  the  holy  church  of 
England,  and  disherison   of  the  said  grandfather,  and  the  earls, 
barons,  and  other  nobles  of  the  said  realm,  and  in  offence  and 
destruction  of  the  laws  and  rights  of  his  realm,  and  to  the  great 
damage  of  his  people,  and  in  subversion  of  all  the  estate  of  his 
said  realm,  and  against  the  good  disposition  and  will  of  the  first 
founders.     By  the  assent  of  the  earls,  barons,  and  other  nobles, 
and  of  all  the  said  commonality,  at  their  instances  and  requests, 
the  damage  and  grievances  afore  considered,  in  the  said  full  par- 
liament it  was  ordained,  provided,  established,  agreed,  adjudged, 
and  considered,  that  the  said  oppressions,  grievances,  and  damages, 
in  the  same  realm,  from  henceforth  should  not  be  suffered  in  any 
manner.     And  now  it  is  showed  to  our  lord  the  king  in  this  pre- 
sent parliament  holden  at  Westminster,  at  the  utas  of  the  Puri- 
fication of  our  Lady,  the  five  and  twentieth  year  of  his  reign  of 
England,  and  of  France  the  twelfth,  by  the  grievous  complaints  of 
all  the  commons  of  his  realm,  that  the  grievances  and  mischiefs 
aforesaid  do  daily  abound,  to  the  greater  damage  and  destruction 
of  all  his  realm  of  England,  more  than  ever  were  before,  viz.  that 
now  or  late  the  Bishop  of  Rome,  by  procurement  of  clerks  and    The  Pope 
otherwise,  hath  reserved,  and  doth  daily  reser\'e  to  his  collation,  ^/^'J. 
generally   and    especially,    as   well    archbishopricks,    bishopricks,   of  the 
abbeys,  and  priories,  as  all  other  dignities  and  other  benefices  of  Church, 
England,  which  be  of  the  advowry  of  people  of  holy  church,  and   ^'^^  ^^j 
give  the  same  as  well  to  aliens  as  to  denizens,  and  taketh  of  all 


634 


APPENDIX  IV. 


PART 
III. 

the  first- 
fruits  to 
himself. 


The 
causes 
and  rea- 
sons of 
making 
this 
statute. 


Elections 
of  the 
dignities 
of  the 
Church 
shall  be 
free,  as 
they  were 
founded. 

Patrons 
and  foun- 
ders of  the 
dignities 
of  the 
Church, 
and  their 
heirs, 
shall  Jiai'e 


such  benefices  the  first-fruits,  and  many  other  profits,  and  a  great 
part  of  the  treasure  of  the  said  reahri  is  carried  away  and  dispended 
out  of  the  realm,  by  the  purchasers  of  such  benefices  and  graces 
aforesaid ;  and  also  by  such  privy  reservations  many  clerks  ad- 
vanced in  this  realm  by  their  true  patrons,  which  have  peaceably 
holden  their  advancements  by  long  time,  be  suddenly  put  out; 
whereupon  the  said  commons  have  prayed  our  said  lord  the  king, 
that  sith  the  right  of  the  crown  of  England,  and  the  law  of  the  said 
realm  is  such,  that  upon  the  mischiefs  and  damages  which  happen 
to  his  realm,  he  ought,  and  is  bound  by  his  oath,  with  the  accord 
of  his  people  in  his  parliament,  thereof  to  make  remedy  and  law, 
and  in  removing  the  mischiefs  and  damages  which  thereof  ensue, 
that  it  may  please  him  thereupon  to  ordain  remedy. 

III.  Our  lord  the  king,  seeing  the  mischiefs  and  damages 
before  mentioned,  and  having  regard  to  the  said  statute  made  in 
the  time  of  his  said  grandfather,  and  to  the  causes  contained  in  the 
same,  which  statute  holdeth  always  his  force,  and  was  never  de- 
feated, nor  adnulled  in  any  point,  and  by  so  much  as  he  is  bounden 
by  his  oath  to  cause  the  same  to  be  kept  as  the  law  of  his  realm, 
through  that  by  sufferance  and  negligence  it  hath  been  sithence 
attempted  to  the  contrary  ;  and  also  having  regard  to  the  grievous 
complaints  made  to  him  by  his  people  in  divers  his  parliaments 
holden  heretofore,  willing  to  ordain  remedy  for  the  great  damages 
and  mischiefs  which  have  happened,  and  daily  do  happen  to  the 
church  of  England  by  the  said  cause ;  by  the  assent  of  all  the 
great  men  and  of  all  the  commonality  of  the  said  realm,  to  the 
honour  of  God,  and  profit  of  the  said  church  of  England,  and  of 
all  his  realm,  hath  ordered  and  established,  that  the  free  election 
of  archbishops,  bishops,  and  all  other  dignities  and  benefices 
elective  in  England,  shall  hold  from  henceforth  in  the  manner  as 
they  were  granted  by  the  king's  progenitors,  and  the  ancestors  of 
other  lords,  founders  of  the  said  dignities  and  other  benefices. 
And  that  all  prelates  and  other  people  of  holy  church,  which  have 
advowson  of  any  benefices  of  the  king's  gift,  or  of  any  of  his  pro- 
genitors, or  of  other  lords  and  donors,  to  do  divine  services,  and 
other  charges  thereof  ordained,  shall  have  their  collations  and 
presentments  freely  to  the  same,  in  the  manner  as  they  were 
enfeoffed  by  their  donors.  And  in  case  that  reservation,  collation, 
or  provision  be  made  by  the  court  of  Rome,  of  any  archbishoprick, 
bishoprick,  dignity,  or  other  benefice,  in  disturbance  of  the  free 
elections,  collations,  or  presentations  aforenamed,  that  at  the  same 
time  of  the  voidance,  that  such  reservations,  collations,  and  pro- 


STATUTES   OF  PRO  VISORS. 


635 


visions  ought  to  take  efifect,  our  lord  the  king  and  his  heirs  shall       app. 

have  and  enjoy  for  the  same  time  the  collations  to  the  arch-         IV. 

bishopricks  and  other  dignities  elective,  which  be  of  his  advovvry,   ^/^^  colla- 

such  as  his  progenitors  had  before  that  free  election  was  granted,   tion  or 

since  that  the  election  was  first  granted  by  the  king's  progenitors  P'^^'^'j  '^" 

upon  a  certain  form  and  condition,  as  to  demand  licence  of  the  them 

king  to  chuse,  and  after  the  election  to  have  his  royal  assent,  and  being 

not  in  other  manner;  which  conditions  not  kept,  the  thing  ought 

by  reason  to  resort  to  his  first  nature. 

IV.  And   if  any  such  reservation,   provision,   or   collation   be    Where 

made  of  any  house  of  religion  of  the  king's  advowry,  in  disturbance     ^'^  hf// 

of  free  election,  our  sovereign  lord  the  king,  and  his  heirs,  shall  provision 

have  for  that  time  the  collation  to  give  this  dignity  to  a  convenient  ^0  a  dio- 

person.     And  in  case  that  collation,  reservation,  or  provision  be  "t'^^-' ,  '^ 

made   by  the  court  of  Rome,  of  any  church,  prebend  or  other  ^/^^  ^/^p- 

benefices,  which  be  of  the  advowry  of  people  of  holy  church,   shall 

whereof  the  king  is  advowee  paramount  immediate,  that  at  the  P"-^^"  • 

same  time  of  the  voidance,  at  which  time  the  collation,  reservation, 

or  provision  ought  to  take  efi"ect  as  afore  is  said,  the  king  and  his 

heirs  thereof  shall  have  the  presentment  or  collation  for  that  time. 

And  so  from  time  to  time,  whensoever  such  people  of  holy  church 

shall  be  disturbed  of  their  presentments  or  collations,  by  such 

reservations,  collations,  or  provisions  as  afore  is  said ;   saving  to 

them  the  right  of  their  advowsons  and  their  presentments,  when 

no  collation  or  provision  of  the  court  of  Rome  is  thereof  made, 

where  that  the  said  people  of  holy  church  shall  or  will  to  the  same 

benefices  present  or  make  collation ;   and  that  their  presentees 

may  enjoy  the  effect  of  their  collations  or  presentments.     And  in 

the  same  manner  every  other  lord,  of  what  condition  that  he  be, 

shall  have  the  collations  or  presentments  to  the  houses  of  religion 

which  be  of  his  advowry,  and  other  benefices  of  holy  church  which 

be  pertaining  to  the  same  houses.     And  if  such  advowees  do  not    The  pett- 

present  to  such  benefices  within  the  half-year  after  such  voidances,   cilU'^s  of 

nor  the  bishop  of  the  place  do  not  give  the  same  by  lapse  of  time  ^,^/,/^  ^„ 

within  a  month  after  half  a  year,  that  then   the  king  shall  have  provi- 

thereof  the  presentments  and  collations,  as  he  hath  of  other  of  his  •s'^^'^-^" 

own  advowry.    And  in  case  that  the  presentees  of  the  king,  or  the   j;io„ig  ^^ 

presentees  of  other  patrons  of  holy  church,  or  of  their  advowees,   disturb 

or  they  to  whom  the  king,  or  such  patrons  or  advowees  aforesaid,   ^"'^l'-  P>'<^- 
.         ,         ^  .    .  ,     .  ,,     .  se/it/iienis 

have  given  benefices  pertammg  to  their  presentments  or  collations,   ^^  ^/^^. 

be  disturbed  by  such  provisors,  so  that  they  may  not  have  posses-   iions  as 

sion  of  such  benefices  by  virtue  of  the  presentments  or  collations  ^^^'"^ 


6-6  APPENDIX  IV. 

PART      '^o  them  made,  or  that  they  which  be  in  possession  of  such  bene- 
III.        fices,  be  impeached  upon  their  said  possessions  by  such  provisors; 
ouo-Jit  to     ^'^^^^  ^^^^  ^^^^  provisors,  their  procurators,  executors,  and  notaries, 
make.  shall  be  attached  by  their  body,  and  brought  in  to  answer ;  and  if 

they  be  convict,  they  shall  abide  in  prison  without  being  let  to 
mainprise  or  bail,  or  otherwise  delivered,  till  that  they  have  made 
fine  and  ransom  to  the  king  at  his  will,  and  gree  to  the  party  that 
shall  feel  himself  grieved.  And  nevertheless,  before  they  shall  be 
delivered,  they  shall  make  full  renunciation,  and  find  sufficient 
surety  that  they  shall  not  attempt  such  things  in  time  to  come, 
nor  sue  any  process  by  them,  nor  by  other,  against  any  man  in 
the  court  of  Rome,  nor  in  any  part  elsewhere,  for  any  such  im- 
prisonments or  renunciations,  nor  any  other  thing  depending  of 
them. 

V.  And  in  case  that  such  provisors,  procurators,  executors,  or 
notaries  be  not  found,  that  the  exigent  shall  run  against  them  by 
due  process,  and  that  writs  shall  go  forth  to  take  their  bodies  in 
what  parts  they  be  found,  as  well  at  the  king's  suit  as  at  the  suit 
of  the  party,  and  that  in  the  meantime  the  king  shall  have  the 
profits  of  such  benefices  so  occupied  by  such  provisors,  except 
abbeys,  priories,  and  other  houses,  which  have  colleges  or  con- 
vents, and  in  such  houses  the  colleges  or  convents  shall  have  the 
profits  ;  saving  always  to  our  lord  the  king,  and  to  all  other  lords, 
their  old  right.  And  this  statute  shall  have  place  as  Avell  of  reser- 
vations, collations,  and  provisions  made  and  granted  in  times  past 
against  all  them  which  have  not  yet  obtained  corporal  possession 
of  the  benefices  granted  to  them  by  the  same  reservations,  colla- 
tions, and  provisions,  as  against  all  other  in  time  to  come.  And 
this  statute  oweth  to  hold  place  and  to  begin  at  the  said  iitas. 


STAT.  27  EDWARD!  III.  ST.  I.  C.  i.,  COMMONLY  CALLED 
STATUTE  OF  PROVISORS,  A.D.  1353.' 

First,  because  it  is  showed  to  our  lord  the  king,  by  the  grievous 
and  clamorous  complaints  of  the  great  men  and  commons  afore- 
said, how  that  divers  of  the  people  be,  and  have  been,  drawn  out 
of  the  realm  to  answer  of  things,  whereof  the  cognizance  pertaineth 
to  the  king's  court ;  and  also  that  the  judgments  given  in  the 

'  From  Stephen's  Ecclesiastical  Statutes,  vol.  i.  p.  64. 


STATUTES   OF  PRO  VISORS. 


637 


same  court  be  impeached  in  another  court,  in  prejudice  and  dis-  app. 
herison  of  our  lord  the  king,  and  of  his  crown,  and  of  all  the  IV. 
people  of  his  said  realm,  and  to  the  undoing  and  destruction  of 
the  common  law  of  the  same  realm  at  all  times  used.  Whereupon, 
good  deliberation  had  with  the  great  men  and  other  of  his  said 
council,  it  is  assented,  and  accorded  by  our  lord  the  king,  and  the 
great  men  and  commons  aforesaid,  that  all  the  people  of  the  king's 
ligeance,  of  what  condition  that  they  be,  which  shall  draw  any  out 
of  the  realm  in  plea  whereof  the  cognizance  pertaineth  to  the 
king's  court,  or  of  things  whereof  judgments  be  given  in  the  king's 
court,  or  which  do  sue  in  any  other  court,  to  defeat  or  impeach 
the  judgments  given  in  the  king's  court,  shall  have  a  day,  con- 
taining the  space  of  two  months ;  by  warning  to  be  made  to  them 
in  the  place  where  the  possessions  be  which  be  in  debate,  or 
othenvise  where  they  have  lands  or  other  possessions,  by  the  . 
sheriffs  or  other  the  king's  ministers,  to  appear  before  the  king 
and  his  council,  or  in  his  Chancery,  or  before  the  king's  justices 
in  his  places  of  the  one  Bench  or  the  other,  or  before  other  the 
king's  justices  which  to  the  same  shall  be  deputed,  to  answer  in 
their  proper  person  to  the  king,  of  the  contempt  done  in  this 
behalf  And  if  they  come  not  at  the  said  day  in  their  proper 
persons  to  be  at  the  law,  they,  their  procurators,  attorneys,  exe- 
cutors, notaries,  and  maintainors  shall  from  that  day  forth  be  put 
out  of  the  king's  protection,  and  their  lands,  goods,  and  chattels 
forfeit  to  the  king,  and  their  bodies,  wheresoever  they  may  be 
found,  shall  be  taken  and  imprisoned,  and  ransomed  at  the  king's 
will :  and  upon  the  same  a  writ  shall  be  made  to  take  them  by 
their  bodies,  and  to  seize  their  lands,  goods,  and  possessions  into 
the  king's  hands ;  and  if  it  be  returned,  that  they  be  not  found, 
they  shall  be  put  in  exigent,  and  outlawed. 

II.   Provided  always,  that  at  what  time  they  come  before  they  Appear- 
be  outlawed,  and  will  yield  them  to  the  king's  prison  to  be  justified  ""J,^'^/^^'^^ 
by  the  law,  and  to  receive  that  which  the  court  shall  award  in  this   after  two 
behalf,  that  they  shall  be  thereto  received ;  the  forfeiture  of  the   months 
lands,  goods,  and  chattels  abiding  in  their  force,  if  they  do  not  "'l'''.^^ ^V^ 

.,.,  .,  .  -         ..  ■'  /us  flUt- 

yield  them  withm  the  said  two  months  as  afore  is  said.  lawry, 

luit  not 
his  lands 
or  iToods. 


INDEX. 


AAC 

AACHEN,    Council   of,     an.    802, 
80;  an.   816,  81,    86;  an.    862, 

98,   basilica  at,    134  ;    coronation  of 

Frederic  II.   at,  256  ;  coronation  at, 

552 
Aaron,  the  Pope  compared  with,  231 
Abel,  the  Pope  compared  with,  231 
Abelard,  School  of,  226 
Abraham's    example    appealed    to   by 

Natalis,  27 ;  appealed  to  by  French 

bishops,    149 ;    the  Pope   compared 

with,  231 
Acre,    fall  of,   326  ;   siege  of,   in  third 

Cnisade,  332 
Adalbert,  Duke  of  Tuscany,  117,  1I9 
Adalbert,  son  of  Berengar  II.,  121, 122 ; 

oppresses  Italians,  1:23 
Adalhaid,  a  monk,  86 
Adalheid,  widow  of  Lothar,  122 
Adelwald,  King  of  the  Lombards,  32 
Adhemar,  Bishop  of  Puy,  a  Crusader, 

322 
Adoptianists,  condemned  at  Frankfurt, 

Aegean  Islands,  insurrection  in,  48 
Aegidius   Albornoz   reconquers    estates 
of  Church,  434 ;  wrests  Bologna  from 
Visconti,  434 
Aella,  King  of  Deira,  25 
Aeneas   Sylvius,    secretary  to   the  Em- 
peror,   507;  administration  of,  514; 
career  resembles  that  of  Gregory  VII. 
515,     523,    524  ;    imdoes     wOrk    of 
Basle,  515  ;  defection  of,  from  Basle, 
516;  dexterous  policy  of,  516;   suc- 
cess of,  517;  alive  to  the  danger  of 
the  Turks,  519;  elected  Pope,  521; 
Writes  a  treatise  on  Germany,  525 
Aetius,  Governor-general  of  Gaul,  16 
Africa,  Western,  a  vicariate  of  Italy,  12  ; 
included  in   Italian   patriarchate,    15 
oppressed    by    Mohammedans,    39 ; 


ALE 

submits  to  Rome,  39,  40,  44 ;  scheme 
to    attack    Saracens   in   north,    30S  ; 
invaded  by  St,  Louis,  342  ;  Crusade 
to,  342 
African  Bishops,  letter  of,  to  Theodore, 

39 
AGAPETUS  II.  an.  946-955,  121 
AGATHO,      an.      678-682,      obtains 

abatement  of  fees,  39 
Ailly,  Peter  de,  a  GaUican,  481,  621  ; 

teachiilg  of,  623 
Alani  in  Spain,  Arians,  16 
Albanum,     a     suffragan    bishopric     of 

Rome,  II 
Alberic,  Marquis,  120 
Alberic    the  Younger,   12I  ;    supreme, 

123,  129 
Albert  I.  sends  ambassadors  to  Boni- 
face VIIL,   286  ;  restricts  grants  in 
mortmain,  592 
Albert  II.  resisted  in  Bohemia,  618 
Albigenses,  cnisade  against,  316 
Alboin,  King  of  the  Lombards,  50 
Alcuin,  the  adviser  of  Chatles,  177 
ALEXANDER    II.,  an.    1061-1072  ; 
elected,  216  ;    laws  on  clerical   celi- 
bacy, 198  ;  laws  against  simony,  203  ; 
heals  schism  in  Church  of  Milan,  203  ; 
struggles  of  parties  begin  under,  213, 
215  ;  sends  a  consecrated  banner  to 
William  the  Conqueror,    217;   finds 
a  rival  in  Honorius  II.,  219;  is  ac- 
knowledged at  Mantua,  220;  Wibert's 
oath  of  fidelity  to,  295  ;  Hildebrand's 
positicm  under,  515 
ALEXANDER  III.,  an.    1159-1181, 
2I3  ;  elecfion  of,  234  ;  restricts  elec- 
tions in  College  of  Cardinals,    214, 
2I5,  238,  301,   557;  shows  spirit  of 
Gregory  VII.,   235  ;  takes  refuge  in 
France,     235,     386 ;     supported    by 
monks,  235  ;  humbles  Frederic  Bar- 


640 


INDEX. 


barossa,  237 ;  concludes  treaty  of 
Venice,  242  ;  resides  little  in  Rome, 
243,  379  ;  requires  qualifications  in 
a  Pope,  247  ;  receives  Becket's  letter, 
376  ;  and  surrender  of  archbishopric, 
378  ;  excommunicates  Becket's  mur- 
derers, 382  ;  assumes  a  tone  of  com- 
mand in  asking  for  benefices,  383 

ALEXANDER  IV.,  an.  1254-1261, 
264  ;  defied  by  Manfred,  266  ;  pre- 
vents election  of  Conrad  IV.,  267  ; 
invited  to  decide  election  in  Ger- 
many, 267  ;  confirms  his  pi'ede- 
cessor's  grant,  392 ;  makes  conces- 
sions to  St.  Louis,  619 

ALEXANDER  V.,  an.  1409-1410; 
election  of,  471,  472  ;  death  of,  473  ; 
Bull  in  favour  of  mendicants,  576  ; 
receives  submission  of  Zbynek,  608 

ALEXANDER  VI.,  an.  1492-1503  ; 
election  of,  527  ;  infamous  career  of, 
529  ;  death  of,  by  poison,  531,  533  ; 
attempts  to  create  a  principality  for 
his  family,  534 

Alexander,  Lord  of  Pezaro,  divorced 
from  Lucretia,  530 

Alexandria,  an  old  centre,  2  ;  rivalry 
of,  and  vVntioch,  2  ;  patriarch  of,  12  ; 
Eulogius,  29  ;  Theophilus,  91  ;  pa- 
triarch of,  at  Pisa,  469 

Alexius,  treacherous  to  Crusaders,  322, 
323,  334  ;  gains  possession  of  Nice, 

325 

Alexius  III.,  son  of  Isaac,  337;  put  to 
death,  338 

Alfonso  iX.  of  Leon  succumbs  to  In- 
nocent III.,  250 

Alfonso  of  Castile  claims  empire,  268, 
554  ;  renounces  claim,  268 

Alfonso  of  Aragon,  530 

Alfonso  of  Este,  510,  536 

Alienordis,  wifeof  Louis  VII.  of  France, 

327 

Alps,  crossed  by  the  Church,  2  ;  crossed 
by  Lombards,  50 ;  appeal  of  Gregory 
III.  beyond,  54;  crossed  by  Pepin, 
64,  66  ;  by  Charles,  67  ;  by  Pope 
Leo  III.,  72  ;  by  ambassadors  of 
Paschal  I.,  83;  by  Otto  III.,  131  ; 
by  Henry  III.,  139  ;  by  Henry  IV., 
209  ;  by  Emperor  Lothar,  225  ;  by 
El  ederic  Barbarossa,  232  ;  consu  s 
banished  across,  128;  Otto  III. 
borne  back  across,  134;  Henry  VII. 's 
efforts  beyond,  419 

Amadeus,  Duke  of  Savov,  elected  Pope, 

505 
Amalekites,  Turks  compared  with,  320 
Anialfi,  place  of  exile  of  Urban  II.,  220 


APU 

Amatus,  bishop  of,  296 

Aiiacletiis  II.,  rival   Pope   to   Innocent 

II.,  224;  death  of,  225 
Anagni,  capture  of  Boniface  VIII.  at, 
277;  tragedy  at,   41 1;  cardinals  re- 
pair to,  441 
ANASTASIUS  II.,  an.  496-498,  de- 
cretals of,  89 
Aiiastasius,  rival  of  Benedict  III.,  97 
Ancona,  part  of  estates  of  Church,  57; 

death  of  Pius  II.  at,  523 
Andrewf's,  St.,  Becket  at  monastery  of, 

378    . 
Andronicus,  elevation  of,  334 
Angeli,  John,  a  Franciscan,  577 
Angelo  Coravio  elected  Pope,  453 
Angelo,  St.,  castle  of,  taken   by  Cres- 
centius,     130;    his    body    hung    on 
battlements    of,    131  ;    Gregory  VII. 
besieged  in,   218;  Anacletus  II.  be- 
sieged in,  225 
Angevin,  Henry  II.,  an.  368 
Angles,  24,  25 

Aniane,  residence  of  Benedict,  82 
Anjou,    Charles    of,    266 ;     cruelty    to 
Conradin,  266;  war  of,  against  Man- 
fred,   316  ;    claims   of  Naples,   526  ; 
Clement  IV.  dependent  on,  619 
Annates,  payment  of,  introduced,  566 
Anno  of  Cologne,   guardian  of  Henry 

IV.,  219 
Ansegis,    Bishop    of  Sens,    nominated 

Apostolic  Vicar,  109,  389 
Anselm,  on  the  side  of  the  Pope,  219  ; 
struggle  of,  and  Henry  L,  221,  359  ; 
beginning  of,  360  ;  recognises  Urban 
L,  360;  his  patience  exhausted,  362; 
meets  Henry  at  Bee,  362 
Anspert,  Bishop  of  Milan,  no 
Antioch,  an  old  centre,  2  ;  rivalry   of, 
and  Alexandria,  2  ;  patriarch  of,  12  ; 
besieged    by    Crusaders,    323  ;    long 
delay  at,   324  ;  gained  by  Boemund, 
325  ;     fall    of   principality    of,    326  ; 
burial  of  Frederic  Barbarossa  at,  333  ; 
loss  of,  342 
Apiarius,  appeal  of,  to  Rome,  15 
Apocrisiarii,  institution  of,  31 
Apostolic  Canons,  89  ;  See,  consent  of, 
required  by  Valentinian  III.,  17;  a 
never-failing  source  of  comfort,   39  ; 
authority  of,  40;  Church  democratic, 
142  ;    Arnold's    attempt    to    revive. 
Church,  226 
Apostolical  Churches,  respect  for,  14 
Appeal  because  of  abuses  in  France,  620 
Apulia,   a  suburban  province,    12  ;   re- 
conquered     by     Henry    VI.,     244; 
Crusaders  embark  from,  336 


INDEX. 


641 


AQU 

Aquileia,  submission  of,  to  Rome,  41  ; 
patriarchs  of,  withdraw  to  Grado,  41 ; 
present  at  Sutri,  139  ;  oath  of  the  pa- 
triarcli  of,  295  ;  Council  of,  an.  1 409, 
455,  469  ;  patriarchate  of,  coveted  by 
Emperor,  536 

Aquitaine,  bishops  from,  at  P'rankfort, 
71  ;  Dulie  of,  leads  a  crusade,  326 

Arabia  in  the  hands  of  the  Turks,  329 

Arabs  molest  St.  Louis,  342 

Aragon,  Peter  II.  of,  grants  his  king- 
dom to  the  Pope,  253  ;  Innocent  IV. 
seeks  a  reception  in,  263  ;  scandalised 
with  Philip's  conduct,  415;  Synod 
held  at,  455  ;  Kings  of,  desert  Bene- 
dict XIII. ,  485,;  crusade  successful 
in,  520;  Alfonso  of,  530  ;  King  of, 
concludes  league  of  Cambray,  535  ; 
hereditary  succession  in,  559 

Aragonese  rulers  of  Sicily,  437 

Archiepiscopal  sujierintendence  of 
Roman  territory,  1 1 

Ardoin,  Margrave  of  lorea,  contests 
kingdom  of  Italy  with  Henry  II.,  136 
^  Ariald,  a  preacher  of  repentance  at 
Milan,  203 

Arianism  in  Spain,  28 

Arians  in  Spain,  16 

Aristotle  and  the  Schoolmen,  548 

Aries,  dissension  of  Archbishops  of,  16; 
Archbishop  of,  present  at  Sutri,  139  ; 
Council  of,  an.  813,  164,  168  ;  king- 
dom of,  conferred  on  Boso,  1 70 ; 
Council  of,  an.  549,  176  ;  protest  of 
cardinals  before  Archbishop  of,  441 

Arnold  of  Brescia  opposes  the  Pope, 
199 ;  condemned  and  driven  from 
Italy,  226 ;  decline  of  power  of,, 
230  ;  party  overthrown  by  the  help 
of  Frederic  Barbarossa,  232 

Arnulf's  visits  to  Italy,  115,  n6 ; 
instals  bishops,  157 

Arras,  bishopric  of,  i8r 

Aschaffenburg,  Concordat  of,  515  ; 
negotiated,  516;  breaches  of,  524 

Asia,  tide  of  faith  rolled  back  on,  311  ; 
reached  by  crusadersj  323 ;  fall  of 
Eastern  Empire  in,  5S3 

Assise  of  Jerusalem,  325 

Asti,  Bishop  of,  deposed  by  Henry  II., 

157 
Astolf,  Lombard  king,  threatens  Rome, 
63  ;  defeated  at  Pavia,  64  ;  besieges 
Rome,    64 ;    accedes  to  Pepin's  de- 
mands, 66 
Asturica,  Bishop  of,  27 
Asylum,  privilege  of,  177 
Attigny-sur-Aisne,  Diet  of,  86 
Augsburg,  fixed  as  the  place  of  meeting 


BAS 

between  Henry  IV.  and  Hildebrand, 
208  ;  privilege  of,  582 

Augustine  despatched  to  England,  25  ; 
epistles  of  Gregory  to,  26  ;  mission 
of,  144 

Augustine,  Bishop  of  Hippo,  40 

Augustiniaa,  Nicolas,  577 

Augustus,  the  Pope  the  representative 
of,  284  ;  Emperor  do.,  575 

Austie,  Lord  of,  kind  to  liuss.  613 

Austrasian  France,  abeyance  of  synods 
in,  167 

Austria,  Frederic  of,  424,  554  ;  Frederic 
of,  482;  Sigismond,  Duke  of,  526 

Autcar,  Bishop  of  Mainz,  89  ;  supposed 
author  of  False  Decretals,  92 

Aventine,  residence  of  Otto  III.,  133 

Avignon,  residence  of  Popes  at,  564, 
566  ;  entails  loss  of  political  supre- 
macy, 6,  40,  409,  414,  461,  540, 
553'  599  )  Clement  V.  removes  to, 
410;  high  claims  of  Popes  at,  418  ; 
Popes  reside  at,  421,  544,  562,  621  ; 
policy  of  Popes  at,  423  ;  effects  of, 
on  Rome,  431  ;  supplies  cut  off  from, 
436  ;  residence  at  a  period  of  cap- 
tivity, 438,  439,  554 ;  French  Pope 
imprisoned  at,  45 1  ;  French  Pope  at, 
452  ;  lu.xury  of  Popes  at,  455  ;  go- 
vernment of,  entrusted  to  a  cardinal, 
497 


BABENBERGERS,  feuds  of,  114 
Babylon,  262;  conflict  with,  344 

Babylonish  Captivity,  Papal  residence 
at  Avignon  so  called,  409 

Bajazet,  the  Turkish  sultan,  529 

Baldwin,  brother  to  Godfrey  of  Bou- 
logne, 322  ;  founds  principality  of- 
Edessa,  323,  325 

Baldwin  of  Flanders,  a  crusader,  335  ; 
Emperor  of  Constantinople,  339 

Balle,  John,  heads  an  insurrection  in 
England,  595 

Balthasar  Cossa  elected  Pope,  473 

Bamberg,  Suidger,  Bishop  of,  139 

Bari,  Archbishop  of,  441 

Barnabas,  founder  of  Church  of  Milan, 

14,  17 
Barthelemy  of  Bari  elected  Pope,  441 
Basle,  anti-pope  appointed  at,  216; 
Council  of,  214,  494,  575  ;  convened 
by  Martin  V.,  495  ;  assembles,  496  ; 
asserts  its  prerogatives,  497  ;  aspires 
to  supremacy,  501,  535,  624;  objects 
to  a  removal  to  Italy,  502  ;  Council 
without  a  head,  562  ;  commands 
sympathies  of  Europe,  503  ;  reform - 


T  T 


642 


INDEX. 


BAV 

ing  decrees  of,  503 ;  adopted  in 
France,  504 ;  in  Germany,  504 ; 
Council  attacks  Eugenius,  505  ;  loses 
weight,  506  ;  removes  to  Lausanne, 
506;  decrees  of,  allowed  by  Eugenius, 
507  ;  results  of,  508 ;  Aeneas  Sylvius 

.  at,  514  ;  Nicolas  V.  desires  to  con- 
clude, 515  ;  blow  given  to  authority 
of,  516  ;  importance  of  lay-element 
^t)  563 ;  negotiates  with  Hussites, 
617 

Bavaria,  John,  Duke  of,  254  ;  Frederic 
of,  266  ;  Duke  of,  a  Crusader,  326  ; 
Lewis  of,  424 

Bavarian  nation  in  University  of  Prague, 

546 

Bee,  interview  of  Ansehn  and  Henry  L 
at,  362 

Becket,  elevated  to  see  of  Canterbury, 
370  ;  on  the  side  of  the  Pope,  219  ; 
champion  of  P2nglish  party,  368  ; 
dispute  with  Henry  XL,  215,  304, 
347,  581,  620;  writes  to  Alexander 
HI.,  376;  promises  to  observe  Con- 
stitutions, 374  ;  dignity  of,  378  ;  in 
exile  in  France,  378  ;  reconcUed  to 
Henry  H.  at  Freteville,  379  ;  return 
to  Canterbury,  380 ;  murder  of,  38 1 ; 
shrine  of,  355,  382 

Bedford,  Philip  de  Brois,  Canon  of, 
370 

Beghards,  573;  join  Taborites,  617 

Belisar  overthrows  Os'trogothic  kingdom 
in  Italy,  52 

Benedetti,  elected  Pope,  270 

Benedict  of  Aniane,  an  ascetic,  82 

Benedict  Levita,  supposed  author  of 
False  Decretals,  92 

BENEDICT  II.,  an.  684-685,  secures 
privileges,  39 

BENEDICT  HI.,  an.  855-858,  97 

BENEDICT  IV.,  an.  900-903,  117 

BENEDICT  v.,  an.  963-964,  126; 
deposed  and  sent  into  exile,  127 

BENEDICT  VI.,  an.  972-974,  mur- 
dered, 128 

BENEDICT  VII.,  an.  974-9S3, 
nephew  of  Alberic,  128;  protected 
by  Otto  II.,  128 

BENEDICT  VIII.,  an.  1012  1024, 
136 

BENEDICT  IX.,  an.  1033-1046,  137  ; 
a  boy  with  the  vices  of  a  man, 
137;  sells  the  see,  138;  abdicates, 
139,  270 ;  last  Pope  m  the  right  of 
the  Papacy,  140 

BENEDICT  X.,  an.  1058-1059, 
191  ;  deposed  by  Hildebrand,  192, 
270 


BOE 

BENEDICT  XL,  an.  1303-1305,  suc- 
ceeds Boniface  VIII. ,  410  ;  retracts 
his  predecessor's  policy,  410 ;  con- 
cessions of,  412,  544 
BENEDICT  XII.,  an.  1334-1342, 
421  ;  a  severe  reformer,  423  ;  at- 
tempted reconciliation  of  Lewis  IV. 
to,  428  ;  deception  of,  430  ;  sentence 
of,  declared  invalid,  45 1  ;  disposes  of 
vacant  benefices,  565  ;  pretensions 
of,  572 

Benedict  XIII.,  an.  1 394-1409,  elec- 
tion of,  449  ;  replies  to  University  of 
Paris,  450 ;  states-general  refuse  al- 
legiance to,  45 1  ;  refuses  to  be  bound 
by  promises,  452  ;  unwilling  to  re- 
sign, 453 ;  condemned  at  Pisa, 
470 ;  refuses  to  acknowledge  Council, 
473  ;  supported  by  Spain  and  Scot- 
land, 474  ;  obstinacy  of,  485 

Benevento,  dukedom  of,  established  by 
Lombards,  51  ;  Duke  of,  invades 
Campania,  51  ;  breaks  away  from 
Pavia,  67 ;  dukedom  granted  by 
Charles  to  Grimoald,  69  ;  battle  of, 
266 

Bennet,  altar  of,  at  Canterbury,  381 

Berengar  I.,  pedigree  of,  112;  of 
Friuli,  115;  success  of,  117,  118; 
repairs  to  Rome,  118;  loses  power, 
119 

Berengar  IL,  Margrave  of  Ivrea,  121  ; 
oppresses  Italians,  123 ;  complains 
of  simony,  202 

Bergomo  promi.-ed  to  King  of  France, 
536. 

Berkshire,  property  of  the  Church  in, 

350 
Berkhampstead,  Becket  warden  of,  377 
Bernarbo  Visconti,  436 
Bernard,  nephew  of  Lewis  the   Pious, 

86 
Bernard,  St.,  a  supporter  of  the  Pope, 
219;    supports    Innocent    II. ,    224; 
invites    Lothar    to    cross    the    Alps, 
225  ;   preaches  at  Vezelay,  229,  327  ; 
his     language     to     Eugenius,     230 ; 
preaches    in    Germany,     328,    522  ; 
appearance  of  a  second,  334 
Bernarius,  a  monk,  86 
Bertha,  mother  of  Emperor  Charles,  80 
Bertha,  wife  of  Adalbert,  119 
Bessarion,   Cardinal,  preaches    in  Ger- 
many, 522 
Bethlehem  chapel  in  Prague,  606,  610 
Bethlem,  reached  by  Crusaders,  324 
Blois,  Stephen  of,  322  ;    Louis  of,  335 
Blondel  attacks  False  Decretals,  92 
Boemund,  Norman  ally  of  Urban   IL, 


INDEX, 


643 


BOH 

314;    treacherous,    322;    Prince  of 
Toronto  obtains  Antioch,  325 

Bohemia,  King  of,  takes  the  cross,  328  ; 
plan  of,  in  electoral  college,  557  > 
supports  Realism,  594 ;  national 
party  in,  599,  603,  614,  607  ;  in- 
dignant at  Bull  of  Alexander  V., 
608  ;  declared,  610  ;  granted  to 
Mathias  of  Hungary,  618 

Bohemian  nation  in  University  of 
Prague,  546,  602  ;  reformers,  588  ; 
party  led  by  Huss,  601,  602  ;  party 
powerful,  617  ;  rivalry  of,  and  tier- 
man  nation,  603,  604,  606  ;  divided, 
611 

Bohemians  support  Gregory  XII.,  606; 
exasperated,  616 

Bohmisch-Brod,  synod  convened  at, 
612  ;  defeat  of  Taborites  at,  617 

Bologna,  civilians  of,  define  imperial 
prerogatives,  234 ;  M'rested  from 
Bernarbo  Visconti,  434 ;  Consul  at, 
496 ;  Eugenius  resides  at,  502 ; 
wrested  by  Julius  II.,  535  ;  the  Pope 
at,  610 

Boniface,  the  apostle  of  Germany,  42, 
144  ;  establishes  new  Sees,  43  ;  oath 
to  the  Pope,  42,  45,  93,  141,  294; 
appointed  legate  by  Zachary,  59  ; 
crowns  Pepin,  62,  389  ;  reforms 
Frankish  Church,  60 ;  archbishop  of 
Mainz,  62  ;  complains  of  irregular 
appointments,  160  ;  of  Church  pro- 
perty being  plundered,  161  ;  of  lay- 
interference  in  synods,  167  ;  con- 
sequences of  oath,  365 

BONIFACE  VII.,  an.  974,  ejected  by 
the  people,  129  ;  returns  from  exile, 
129 

BONIFACE  VIII.,  an.  1294-1303, 
time  of,  183;  Papacy  of,  269,  579; 
lavish  grant  of  indulgences,  272  ; 
struggle  with  Philip  the  Fair,  272, 
393,  620 ;  second  struggle  with 
Phihp,  274;  dignified  conduct  of,  at 
Anagni,  277  ;  fall  of,  278  ;  death, 
542,  557  ;  idea  of  the  Holy  Empire, 
285,  626 ;  signs  of  decline  under, 
409;  charged  with  heresy,  413; 
memory  vindicated  at  Vienne,  416  ; 
ends  heyday  of  Papacy,  419,  553  ; 
appeals  from,  426 ;  claims  of,  denied, 
55 1)  570;  work  of,  undone,  539; 
assumes  a  second  crown,  552 

BONIFACE  IX.,  an.  1 389-1 404  ; 
saves  a  kingdom,  445  ;  founds  Boni- 
facian  plantation,  447 ;  outwits  Wen- 
ceslaus,  450 ;  sends  out  agents  of 
indulgences,  456  ;  claims  revenues  of 


CAL 

bishoprics  during  a  vacancy,  457 ; 
grants  privileges  to  Duke  of  Austria, 
580 

Bonifacian  plantation  founded  by  Boni- 
face IX.,  447 

Bordeaux,  Bishop  of,  elected  Pope,  412 

Borgia,  Caesar,  530,  531 

Boso,  elected  King  of  Provence,  1 10, 
1 70 ;   obtains  dukedom  of  Tuscany, 

121 

Bosporus,  crossed   by   crusaders,   322, 

323.  337 

Boulogne,  Godfrey  of,  211,  309,  322 

Bourges,  Pragmatic  Sanction  of,  504, 
506,  624 

Brandenburg,  place  of,  in  electoral  Col- 
lege, 557 

Brescia,  election  of  anti-Pope  Clement 
at,  220;  Arnold  of,  199,  226;  pro- 
mised to  King  of  France,  536 

Brigbote,  151 

Britain,  a  vicariate  of  Gaul,  13  ;  mission 
of  Augustine  to,  23  ;  bishops  of,  at 
Frankfurt,  71 

Brito,  Richard,  one  of  the  murderers  of 
Becket,  380 

Buoc,  Ranulph  and  Robert  de,  380 

Brois,  Philip  de,  370 

Bruges,  embassy  meets  papal  nuncios 
at,  589 

Brundisi  promised  to  Aragon,  536 

Brunhild,  Queen  of  France,  28 

Brano,  a  kinsman  of  Otto  III.,  ap- 
pointed Pope,  131 

Brunswick  secures  privileges,  582 

Bruttii,  a  suburban  province,  12 

Bulgaria,  crusaders  perish  in,  321 

Bure,  Henry  II.  at,  379 

Burgimdy,  Councils  in,  181  ;  Duke  of, 
leads  a  crusade,  326  ;  included  in 
kingdom  of  Charles,  562 

Burhbote,  151 

Bythinia,  terror  of  Ortok  reaches,  318 

Byzantine  despot,  35  ;  troops  combine 
with  Venice  against  I^ombards,  52  ; 
dream  of  transferring  crown  to  West, 

75 
Byzantium,  claims  of,  66 


CAEN,  synod  of,  an.  1042,  182 
Caesar    Borgia,    career  of,    530, 

531 
Caesars,  city  of  the,  132 
Calabria,  a  suburban  province,  12 
Calchuth,  synod  of,  170 
Caligula,  cruelty  of,  surpassed,  532 
Calixtines,  or   Utraquists,  in  Bohemia, 
T  2 


644 


INDEX 


CAL 


CHK 


6i6  ;  separate  from  Taborites.  617;    j 
refuse  to  be  dupes,  618 

CALIXTUS  II.,  an.  1119-1124,  con- 
cludes Concordat  of  Worms,  215, 
223,  365 

Cahxtus  III.,  an.  1 168,  anti-Pope,  235  ; 
deserted  by  Frederic  Baibarossa, 
236  ;  master  in  Rome,  222  ;  breaks 
Concordat    of  Aschaffenburg,     524, 

525 
CALIXTUS     TIL,     an.      1455-1458, 

515  ;  efforts  of,  to  stir  up  a  crusade, 

520 
Calliopas,  Italian  exarch,  35 
Calvary,  Godfrey's  standard  erected  on, 

324 

Camarina,  dependants  of,  116 

Cambray,  bishopric  of,  181  ;  Robert, 
Bishop  of,  441  ;  league  of,  concluded, 
535.  626 

Campania,  a  suburban  province,  12 ; 
invaded  by  Lombards,  5 1 

Candia,  Peter  de,  elected  Pope,  471 

Canossa,  humiliation  of  Henry  IV.  at, 
88,  209,  211,  212,  246 

Canterbury,  Stephen  Langton,  Arch- 
bishop of,  250  ;  Becket,  Archbishop, 
304,  370 ;  revisited  by  Becket,  380 ; 
Archbishop  of,  submits  to  taxation  of 
the  clergy,  392  ;  Wycliffe  appears 
before,  592  ;  archbishops  of,  596 

Canterbury  Hall,  Wycliffe  appointed 
to,  587 

Canute,  King  of  Denmark,  144 

Capua,  captured  by  Henry  VI.,  245 

Caracalla,  Emperor,  91 

Cardinals,  College  of,  founded,  192 ; 
history  of,  557  ;  corresponds  with 
electoral  College,  558 

Carloman,  son  of  Charles  Martel,  in- 
vites Boniface  to  interpose,  60,  159; 
his  fatherless  children  betrayed  by 
Hadrian,  68 

Carloman,  son  of  Charles  the  Bald,  re- 
bellious, 105 

Carolingian  Empire  goes  to  pieces,  1 13 ; 
liberality  of  C.  Emperors,  149,  348  ; 
bestow  bishoprics  in  usufruct,  161  ; 
hold  empire  for  88  years,  287  ;  ex- 
tinction of,  533 

Carthage,  capital  of  Western  Africa,  13; 
F'rench  army  sets  down  before,  343 

Carthaginian,  absence  of  faith,  532 

Castile  claims  Portugal,  239;  claims 
supremacy,  253 ;  Alfonso  of,  26S ; 
reduced  by  the  Papacy,  293  ;  re- 
stricts gifts  in  mortmain,  351  ;  Kings 
of,  yield  to  Urban's  demands,  363  ; 
follows    example    of  France,    451  ; 


hereditary  succession  in,  559  ;  Code 

of,  5  S3 
Celidonius,  reinstated  by  Leo,  16 
Celtic    inhabitants    of    England,     24 ; 

races  of  Wales,  24 
Cencius,  governor  of  the  city  of  Rome, 

207;  carries  off  Gregory  VII.,  218 
Cervia,  Julius  II.  attempts  to  recover, 

535>  536 
Cesena,   ceded  to  Rome,   66 ;   Michael- 

of>  573 

Chalons,  Council  of,  813,  16S  ;  con- 
ference of  Henry  V.  and  Pope  at,  364 

Champagne,  Count  of,  335 

Charles  of  Anjou  receives  crown  of 
Sicily,  266  ;  followers  of,  moved  to- 
tears,  267;  his  crusade  against  Man- 
fred, 292  ;  coerces  Clement  IV.,  619 

Charles  of  Durazzi,  443 ;  receives 
Naples,  445 

Charles  of  Valois,  aspirations  to  the 
empire  of,  414 

Charles  Martel,  in  Germany,  144 ; 
victory  of,  at  Tours,  54 ;  repels 
Saracens,  519  ;  death  of,  55  ;  his 
son  Pepin,  56  ;  appeal  of  Gregory 
III.  to,  54,  56,  146  ;  vigorous  ad- 
ministration of,  60 ;  plunders  eccle- 
siastical property,  60,  161 

Charles  I.,  85  ;  son  of  Pepin  the  Short, 
King  of  Franks,  67  ;  makes  a  dona- 
tion to  Popes,  6g,  70 ;  summons 
C'>uncil    of    Frankfurt,     71  ;     visits 

"  Rome,  73  ;  is  crowned  Emperor  by 
Leo  III.,  74,  550 ;  importance  of 
the  coronation  of,  78,  93,  124;  his 
capitularies,  79  ;  his  legislation,  81, 
86 ;  Rome  on  the  death  of,  85  ; 
relations  of,  112,  1 15;  tomb  of, 
visited  by  Otto  III.,  134;  capitulary 
of,  in  favour  of  tithes,  150  ;  division 
of  tithes,  151 ;  forbids  clergy  to  go 
to  viar,  152  ;  grants  privileges  to 
Osnabriick,  152  ;  requires  churches 
to  keep  advocates,  153  ;  forbids  lay- 
men to  judge  ecclesiastics,  153  ;  re- 
quires oath  of  allegiance  from  bishops, 
157;  restores  free  elections,  160; 
construes  ecclesiastical  and  civil 
legislation,  168  ;  advised  by  Alcuin, 
177  ;  capitulary  of,  on  asylums,  178  ; 
rivalry  of  Popes  and  anti-Popes  dates 
from,  213  ;  ability  of,  founds  empire, 
287;  capitularies  of,  agninst  deserters, 
293  ;  establishes  ecclesiastical  courts,  ■ 
369  ;  kingdom  of,  562 

Charles  II.,  the  Bald,  uncle  of 
Lothar,  105;  pedigree  of,  112, 
donation    of,     132  ;     receives    from 


INDEX. 


645 


CHA 

HadriaT:   IT.    tiie   privilege  of  nomi- 
nating the  Pope,   216;  censures  on 
vassals  of,  293 
Charles    III.,   the   Fat,  pedigree  of, 

112  ;   death  of,  1 1 3,  1 15 
Charles    IV.,    Emperor,    431,    434 ; 
concessions  to  procure  recognition  of, 
433,  544 ;  has  a  rival  in  Gunther  of 
Schwartzburg,    544  ;  golden  bull  of, 
556,   560,    580 ;    attempts    to    annul 
privileges,    582  ;    founds    University 
of  Prague,  602 
Charles  I.  of  England,  561 
Charles  IV.  of  France,  421 
Charles  V.  of  France,  5S0 
Charles   VI.   of  France   combines  with 
the  Emperor,  450,  460  ;  appealed  to, 
by  University  of  I'aris,  460 
Charles   VII.   of  France  adopts  Prag- 
matic   Sanction    of    Bourges,    504 ; 
adheres    to    it,     506,    626  ;    forbids 
public  preaching  of  a  Crusade,  520  ; 
reproached   by    Pius    II.,    526  ;    ap- 
•    peals    to    a   General    Council,    526  ; 

refuses  Martin  V.'s  Concordat,  624 
Charles  VII.  of  France  in  Rome,  530 
Charter,  the  Great,  granted  at   Runny- 
.    mede,  253,  351,  397,  571,  586 
Chartres,  Stephen,  Count  of,  322,  327; 

Louis  of,  335  ;   Ivo  of,  366 
Chapters,  the  three,  41 
Chersonesus,  Martin  I.  banished  to,  36 
Childeric  III.  deposed,  62,  2S3 
Chlum,  John  of,  kindness  to  Huss,  613 
Chorepiscopi,  institution  of,  172 
Christendom    not    permanently  united, 

307 
Christian  populace,  143 
Christianity,  change  of  ground   of,    i  ; 

confounded     with     civilisation,      5  ; 

uprooted     in     England,     23  ;       first 

adherents   of,    47  ;  first   introduction 

of,    141  ;     the    note  of,    1S4;    Latin 

sv\'ay  of,  over,  549 
CHRISTOPHER,  an.  903-904,  117 
Chrodegang,  rule  of,  82 
Churverein  in  Germany,  560 
Circumspecte  agatis.  Statute  of,  581 
Cistercians,  Henry  II.  threatens  to  ex- 

pel,  378 
Clairvaux,  Bernard,  Abbot  of,  327 
Clarendon,   Constitutions  of,  372,    375, 

581  ;    framers    of,    excommunicated, 

379 
1  emangis,  Nicolas  de,  448,  621  ;  book 

De  Ruina  Ecclesiae,  449,  458 
CLEMEN  ,  Bishop  of  Rome,  90 
CLEMENT  II.,  an.  1046-1048,    139; 

his  accession  the  dawn  of  a  new  day, 


COL 

140,  1S7  ;  Papacy  of,  196  ;  time  of, 
282  ;   appomted  by  Henry  III.,    216 

Clement  III.,  anti-Pope,  21 1,  361  ;  rival 
Pope  to  Gregory  VII,  220 ;  driven 
from  Rome,  221 

CLEMENT  III.,  an.  1188-1191 

CLEiMENT  IV.,  an.  1265-1268,  264; 
cruelty  of,  267  ;  claims  presentation 
to  all  benefices,  387 ;  excommuni- 
cates Joannes  Seneca,  393 ;  abso- 
lutely dependent  on  Charles  of  Anjou, 
619 

CLEMENT  v.,  an.  1305-1314,  elec- 
tion of,  412,  440 ;  removes  to  Avig- 
non, 611,  613;  condemns  the 
Templars,  416;  severity  towards 
Venice,  418;  supports  Henry  VII., 
419  ;  asserts  feudal  sovereignty  over 
Sicily,  420;  Bull  of,  424;  Bvdl 
denied,  429  ;  refers  enquiry  to  a 
general  council,  426  ;  policy  of, 
544  ;  claims  feudal  sovereignty  over 
empire,  553  ;  pledged  to  a  line  of 
conduct,  557 

CLEMENT  VI.,  an.  1342-1352,421  ; 
_worldly  minded,  423  ;  turns  facts 
adroitly,  430  ;  aware  of  threatening 
danger,  432 ;  concessions  in  Ger- 
many, 433  ;  disposes  of  vacant  bene- 
fices, 565 ;  grants  tenths  to  Philip 
of  Valois,  566 

Clement  I'll,  an.  1 378-1 394  ;  election 
of,  441,  442  ;  supported  by  Naples, 
445  ;  not  generally  recognised,  446  ; 
receives  letter  of  University  of 
Paris,  449,  458  ;  sells  presentations, 

457 

Clericis  Laicos,  the  Bull,  272,  41 1 

Clermont,  synod  of,  221,  521  ;  decides 
first  crusade,  313,  320,  324 

Clotair,  Kmg  of  France,  28 

Clovis,  time  of,  63  ;  converted  by 
Remigius,  I43;  warriors  of,  bap- 
tized, 144  ;  Council  of  Orleans,  in 
time  of,  154 

Clugnv,  abbot  of,  209 

COELESTINE  I.,  an.  423-432,  ap- 
pealed to  bv  Agiarius,  15 

COELESTINE  III.,  an.  1 191 -i  198, 
243;  crowns  Henry  VI.,  244; 
death  of,  245 

COELESTINE  V.,  an.  1294,  deposed 
by  Boniface  VIII.,  270 

Coelian  hill,    the    retreat    of    Gregory 

I.,  9 
Colman,   champion  of  the   Scots,    25, 

146 
Cologne,  position  of,  in  electoral  col. 
j        lege,    556;    secures  privileges,   582"; 


646 


INDEX. 


COL 

Archbishop  of,  20,  506  ;  Gunther  of, 
99  ;    Armo  of,  819  ;  Archbisliop  of, 
supports    Richard  of  Cornwall,  268  ; 
deposed  by  Eugenius  IV.,  507  ;   re- 
instated, 508 
Colonna,    family  of,    suffer  from    ven- 
geance   of    Boniface    VIII.,     270; 
crusade  against,  271,   278,  292,  316; 
rule  in  Rome,  431  ;   Otto  of,  609 
Columban,  complaints  of,  167 
Compiegne,  Lewjs  deposed  at,  87 
Concordat,  Martin  VI. 's,  with  England, 

510 

Conrad  of  Montferrat,  331 

Conrad  of  Waldhausen,  Bohemian 
reformer,  588,  599 

Conrad,  rival  emperor,  302 

Conrad  II.  deposes  bishops,  157 ; 
takes  a  fourth  crown,  552 

Conrad  III.  elected  emperor,  227 ; 
unable  to  contend  with  disadvantages, 
228  ;  takes  the  cross,  328 ;  loses 
army  on  the  banks  of  the  Maeander, 

329 

Conrad  IV.  of  Hohenstaufen,  264  ; 
son  of  Frederic  II.,  265,  341  ;  death 
of,  265 

Conradin  of  Hoh-Cnstaufen,  265  ;  fall 
of,  266 ;  tejj  j.ears  after  death  of, 
269 

Constance,  Otto,  Bjshop  of,  201  ;  treaty 
of,  concluded  by  Frederic  I.,  23.8; 
effects  of,  242,  243  ;  Council  of, 
follows  example  of  Boniface  VIII., 
270,  575  ;  convened,  472,  475  ; 
escape  of  John  XXII.  from,  482  ; 
resoluteness  of,  484,  624 ;  generally 
acknowledged,  486  ;  close  of  Council 
of,  494 ;  zeal  for  Reformation  at, 
496;  claims  supremacy,  50 !>  553  > 
decrees  imposed  on  Eugenius  IV., 
507,  508  ;  results  of,  508  ;  recognises 
Observants,  574;  Galilean  party  at, 
578;  enemies  of  Huss  at,  611  ; 
imprisons  Huss,  612;  decree  against 
the  use  of  the  cup,  615 

Constans,  type  of,  35 

Constantia,  heiress  of  Sicily,  marries 
Henry  VI.,  243,  244  ;  death   of,  245 

Constantine,  Bishop  of  Milan,  32 

Constantine's  gift  to  Sylvester  I., 
II,  58,  94;  Otto  III.'s  dream  of 
being  a  second  Constantine,  132, 
183;  duration  of,  132;  conversion 
of,  143  ;  diadem  of  Boniface  VIII. 
worn  by,  628 

CONS'IWNTINE,  Emperor,  grants  privi- 
leges to  Ravenna,  40 

CONSTANTINE,  an.  708-714,  38,  67 


DAM 

Constantinople,     an     old     centre,     2 ; 

rivalry  of,    and   Rome,   2  ;    removal 

of  court  to,  10;  patriarch  of,  12,  29  ; 

election  of  Popes  confinned  at,    31  ; 

Martin    I.    at,   36 ;    insurrection    of, 

48  ;     Italians     appeal     to,     against 

Narses,   50 ;  hold   of,  on   Italy,    52  ; 

legates    of  Nicolas  I.    corrupted   at, 

29  ;  crusade  directed   against,    337  ; 

success    of  crusaders    against,    259 ; 

capture    of,    called  a   crasade,   316  ; 

taken    by    the    Franks,     317,    345  ; 

reached    by    crusaders,     32 1 ,     323 ; 

Franks  settled  at,   334  ;    believed  to 

be  eternal,  337;  two  sieges  of,  337; 

338  ;   Latin  empire  founded  at,  338 ; 

fall  of,  before  the  Turks,  518,  548  ; 

importance  of,  547 
Constitutions  of  Clarendon,   372,   375, 

581 
Constitutions  of  St.  Louis,    583.     See 

Establishments 
Coifi,  the  Northumbrian  priest,  168 
Cornwall,  Celtic  races  of,  24  ;   Richard 

Duke  of,  267 
Coravio,  Angelo,  of  Venice,  453 
Corsica,  a  suburban  province,  12 
Corvaro,  Peter  of,  428 
Courtnay,    William  of.   Archbishop  of 

Canterbury,  576,  592 
Courts,  Christian,  introduced  into  Eng- 
land, 304,  369 
Cracowec,   Huss  granted  a  shelter  at, 

713 
Cranmer's     position     resembles     Wy- 

cliffe's,  588 
Cremona,  Bishop  of,  deposed,  1 57 
Crescentius,    consul,     129  ;    party    of, 

1 30 ;  beheaded  with    his  associates, 

131  ;  his  son  John,  136 
Crusade,    idea     of,     originated,    292  ; 

causes  of,  308 
Cunibert,    Bishop  of  Turin,  allows  his 

clergy  to  marry,  207 
Cusa,  Nicolas  of,  exposes  False  Decre- 
tals, 92  ;  expounds  liberal  views,  497  ; 

violence  of  Diether  towards,  526 
Customs  of  the  realm,  371 
Cutlibert,  letter  of  Boniface  to,  60 
Cypras,  St.  Louis  embarks  for,  342 
Czechs  encroacli  on  empire,  287 


DALMATIA,    natives    of,    attack 
Raymond,    323 ;    cities    of,   at- 
tacked by  crusaders,  336 
Damiaui,  Peter,  Bishop  of  Ostia,  at  the 
head    of  an    earnest    party,    1 89 ;    a 
supporter  of  the  Pope,  219 


INDEX. 


647 


DAM 


ENG 


Damietta  captured  by  crusaders,  340  ; 
taken  by  St.  Louis,  342 

Dandolo,  Henry,  Doge  of  Venice,  335  ; 
proposed  as  Latin  emperor,  338 

Dante  recognises  parallelism  of  papacy 
and  empire,  551 

David,  Christians,  the  family  of,  327 

Decretals,  False,  or  pseudo-Isidorian, 
89  ;  tone  of,  30  ;  influence  of,  95 ; 
194,  389  ;  strengthen  Nicolas  L,  97, 
needed  in  unsettled  times,  147  ; 
readily  accepted,  173;  age  of,  561 

Deira,  province  of,  24 

Denmark,  converted  to  Christianity,  144; 
Isemberga  of,  249 ;  obtains  justice 
from  Innocent  IIL,  254  ;  nomina- 
tion to  bishoprics  in,  3S8  ;  a  distinct 
nation,  546  ;  included  in  kuigdom  of 
Charles,  562  ;  free  from   the  empire, 

Desiderius,     the    Lombard,     threatens 

Rome,  67  ;  enmity  of  Hadrian  and, 

68 
Devonshire,  property  of  Church  in,  350 
Dictatus  of  Gregory  VH.,  2S3 
Diet,  imperial,  588 

Diether  of  Mainz  deposed,    526  ;     re- 
stored, 526 
Dionysius    exiguus,    his    collection    of 

Decretals,  89 
Dominican,      Benedict    XL     a,     411  ; 

John   Sarrazuia,  577  ;    monastery   at 

Constance,  612 
Dominius,    the    title    omitted   by    the 

Popes,  97 
Donation  of  Constantine,  origm  of  the 

legend,  58,   70  ;  denounced,  132 
Dorylaeum,  successful  battle  of,  323 
Douzi,  synod  of,  108 
Dschem,    brother    of    Turkish    sultan, 

detained  in  prison  by  Innocent  VIIL, 

529  ;  poisoned,  530 
Dunstan,  code  of,  353 
Durazzi,  Charles  of,  443,  445 


EARTHQUAKE,  council  of  Lon- 
don, 597 
Easter,  observance  of,  settled  by  Nicene 

Council,  91 
Eastern  Empire  recovers  Italy,  1 1  ; 
rival  of  Gregory  L,  20  ;  Emperor, 
21  ;  dependence  of  Rome  on,  34  ; 
37)  38;  powerlessness  of,  53  ;  Rome 
indepe  dent  of,  56 

—  Monks,  ecstasies  of,  47 

—  Church  obedient  to  Innocent  IIL, 
258  ;  estranged  from  western  b)' 
Crusades,  316 


Eastern    Christians,    help    resolved    on 

for,  at  Piacenza,  319 
Ebroin  in  France,  60 
Edessa,    principality    of,     founded    by 

Baldwin,     323,    325  ;     fall    of,    326, 

Edmund,  Sicily  presented  to,  by  the 
Pope,  265,  392  ;  England  exhausted 
in  supporting,  265 

Edward  I.'s  dispute  with  Philip  the 
Fair,  273  ;  restricts  grants  in  mort- 
main, 351,  582;  England  under, 
separate  from  Continent,  546  ;  de- 
clares England  free  from  the  Pope, 
563  ;  decline  of  clerical  power  under, 
581 

Edward  III.  applied  to  for  tribute 
by  Urban  V.,  435  ;  parliament  of, 
supports  Wycliffe,  571";  oppression 
of  England  in  reign  of,  596 

Edwin,  King  of  Northumberland,  con- 
verted, 144  ;  witaa  of,  forsakes  idol- 
atry, 168 

Egypt  wrested  by  Turks' from  Fatimites, 
329  ;  Turks  to  be  attacked  in,  335, 
340 

Egyptian  galleys  harass  St.  Louis,  342 

Elagabalus,  Emperor,  91 

Eleazar,  a  type  to  Gregory  VIL,  282 

Electoral  league  in  Germany,  560 

Elipand  an  Adoptianist,  71 

Emadeddin  Zengi,  takes  Edessa,    327 

Embrum,  Bishop  of,  28 

Emmaus  reached  by  crusaders,  324 

Emperor  of  the  West,  Charles, crowned, 
74  ;  importance  attached  to,  290 

Empire,  Holy,  object  of  atti action,  3  ; 
upheld  by  the  good,  4  ;  a  combina- 
tion of  religion  and  politics,  5 ; 
Gregory  L,  attitude  of,  towards,  20  ; 
overthrow  of  Wes'ern,  21  ;  relations 
of  Grego-y  I.  to,  30;  approach  of,  183 

—  basis  of,  5 

—  foundation  of,  5.    .S't'^HoLY  Empirk 
I^ngland,  Gregory  I.'s   mission   to,  20; 

natives  of,  23  ;  peculiar  dependence 
on  Rome,  25,  44 ;  art  introduced 
into,  from  Rome,  25 ;  payment  of 
tithes  in,  150;  patronage  estalilished 
in,  165  ;  Christianity  introduced, 
1 68  ;  conquest  of,  by  William,  Duke 
of  Normandy,  217;  struggle  of  in- 
vcitilures  in,  221  ;  recognises  Alex- 
ander IIL,  235;  power  of  Innocent  V 
in.  in,  247  ;  grant  of,  to  the  Popes, 
251,  293  ;  Innocent  IV.  seeks  a  re- 
ception in,  263  ;  kings  of,  liberal  to 
the  Church,  348  ;  rural  churches  in, 
351  ;    struggle     for   jurisdiction    in, 


648 


INDEX. 


ENG 

367,  368  ;  objections  in,  to  non- 
resident clergy,  384 ;  dislike  to 
Italians  in,  385  ;  oppressed  by  the 
Popes,  393  ;  pays  tribute  after  King 
John,  435  ;  concordat  with,  510  ; 
separated  from  Continent  under 
Edward  I.,  546;  hereditary  succes- 
sion in,  559 
English  people,  veneration  of,  for 
Rome,  25  ;  Church  connected  with 
Rome,  26  ;  and  Norman  rivalries  in 
England,  363  ;  wars  with  France, 
435 ;  nation  at  Council  of  Con- 
stance,   477  ;     supports    Sigismund, 

4«7  ■ 

Epaon,  Council  of,   an.  517,  175 
Ephesus,    legend  of  seven  sleepers  of, 

239 
Episcopal  charge  of  Rome,  1 1 
Erfurt,  synod  of,  an.  1074,  200 
Essex  finally  converted,  144 
Establishments  of  St.  Louis,  351 
Este,  conspiracy  to  overthrow  house  of, 

528  ;   Alfonso  of,  530 
Ethelbald,  King  of  Mercia,  161 
Ethelbert,  conversion  of,  143  ;  subjects 
of,  baptized,  145  ;  witan  .of,  accepts 
Christianity,  168 
EUGENIUS  I.,  an.  655-657,  37 
EUGENIUS   II.,    an.    824-827,  83; 

election  of,  after  a  contest,  85,  97 
EUGENIiUS  III.,  an.  1145-1153; 
brought  back  from  exile  by  Roger, 
218,  229;  popular  sympathy  with, 
219;  yields  to  superior  force,  227; 
victory  of,  230 
EUGENIUS  IV.,  an.  1431-1447, 
493;  attempts  to  defer  council,  495; 
cited  by  Council  of  Basle,  497  ;  and 
the  work  of  reform,  501  ;  resides  at 
Bologna,  402  ;  presides  over  Council 
of  Plorence,  502  ;  attacked  by 
Council  of  Basle,  505  ;  looks  about 
for  secure  support,  506  ;  yields  to  the 
Cardinals,  507  ;  acknowledged  in 
Germany,  508 ;  Aeneas  Silvius  at 
the  feet  of,  514 
Eulogius,  patriarch  of  Alexandria,  29 
Europe,  Church  established  in  Central, 
2,  3 ;  spread  of  Eatin  system  in, 
511 ;  reaches  man's  estate,  6; 
Western,  included  in  Roman  patriar- 
chate, 13,  18:  political  fabric  of, 
13;  nations  of,  won  for  Christ,  17, 
143  ;  susceptible  state  of,  19  ;  up- 
heaval of,  by  barbarians,  22  ;  part  of 
the  Roman  Empire,  22  ;  ignorant 
and  rude,  23  ;  sovereigns  of,  resist 
claims  of  Innocent  III.,    249;  obe- 


dient to  Innocent  III.,  258;  break- 
ing up  of  society  in,  287  ;  Christians 
of,  novices  in  Christianity,  311  ; 
tales  reach,  of  desolation  of  Jerusa- 
lem, 330  ;  political  unity  of  Europe 
broken  up  by  the  schisms,  664 ; 
political  fabric  of,  breaking  up,  522, 
534  ;  rising  nations  of,  545 

European  history,  fifty  years  of,  4 ; 
heroic  ages  of,  310 

Eustace,  brother  to  G  odfrey  of  Boulogne, 
322 

Eustachi,  Cardinal  of  St.,  497 

Entychius,  last  exarch  of  Ravenna,  52; 
takes  refuge  in  Naples,  52 

Ewell,  humiliation  of  John  at,  251 

Eye,  Becket  warden  of,  377 

Ezekiel,  Gregory's  exposition  of,  32 


FALKENBERG,  John  of,  493 
Fano  ce<led  to  Rome,  66 

Farfa,  monastery  of,  83 

Fatimite  Caliphs,  rule  of,  318  ;  Egypt 
wrested  from,  329 

Faventia  to  be  recovered  for  the  Pope, 
5.36 

Felix,  archbishop  of  Ravenna,  41 

Felix,  an  adoptianist,  71 

Felix  v.,  anti-Pope,  505;  recognised  in 
few  places,  506;  resignation  of,    516 

Ferdinand  of  Naples,  cause  of,  espoused 
by  Pope,  530  ;  negotiations  with,  534 

Ferni,  scene  of  interview  between 
Lintprand  and  Zachary,  57 

Ferrara,  possession  of,  disputed  by 
Venice,  418;  Council  of  Basle 
transferrecl  to,  502,  508 ;  Council 
of,  repudiated  by  France,  504  ; 
coveted  by  Jerome  Riario,  528; 
Alfonso,  Lord  of,  530  ;  ally  of  the 
French,  536  ;   condemned,  537 

Ferredi,  Cardinals  repair  to,  441 

Fitz-Peter,  the  king's  justiciary,  370 

Fitzurse,  Reginald,  murderer  of  Becket, 
3S0,  381 

Fitz-Walton,  leader  of  the  barons  at 
Runnymede,  571 

Flanders,  Robert;  Count  of,  a  crusader, 
322  ;   Baldwin,  Count  of,  335,  338 

Flarcheim,  Henry  IV.  defeated  at,  211 

Fleury,  kings  of,  366 

Florence,  disputes  at,  caused  by  simony, 
203  ;  in  alliance  with  cities  of  ecclesi- 
astical states,  437  ;  Council  of,  502  ; 
a  rival  to  that  of  Basle,  503  ;  con- 
spiracy of  Piazzi  in,  528 ;  decisions 
of,  624 

Fontenay,  Lothar  defeated  at,  88'     ' 


INDEX. 


649 


FOR 

Formosus,    Pope,    an.    891-896,    116; 

election  of,  J 17 
France,  included  in  Italian  patriarchate, 
15  ;  dissensions   of   bishops   in,    16  ; 
attached  to  Rome  through  Germany, 
20 ;    letters  of  Gregory   I.    to  sove- 
reigns of,  28  ;  rescued  from  Saracens, 
54  ;  pastoral  of  bishops  of,    respect- 
ing tithes,  149  ;  tlie   refuge  of  Inno- 
cent II.,  224;  recognises  Alexander 
IV.,   235  ;    power  of  Innocent  III. 
in,     247  ;      laid    under   interdict  by 
Innocent  III.,   249  ;  refuses  to  sup- 
port Gregory    IX.,    263  ;     Innocent 
IV.  seeks   a  reception  in,  263  ;    the 
crusading  rabble  from,  321  ;    church 
of,  pillaged   by   Popes,  386  ;  a  tithe 
paid  to   the   Pope  in,  393  ;   English 
wars  with,  435,    436  ;    rejects  Con- 
cordat offered  by  Martin   V.,    492  ; 
gives    little    help   to    Eugenius    IV., 
506  ;    a  distinct  nation  in  the    four- 
teenth century,  546  ;  hereditary   suc- 
cession  in,    559;    included  in    king- 
dom  of  Charles,  562  ;    independent 
of  the  Empire,  562  ;  supports   Galil- 
ean   views,     578;    outbreak   of  war 
with,  587 
Francis  I.  of  France,  enters  Italy,  538  ; 
sacrifices  liberties  of  Gallican  Church, 
540,  626 
Franciscan,  John  Angeli,  a,  577 
Franciscans  rebel  against  Pope,  573 
Franconian  Emperor,  Henry  V.,  222 
Frankfurt,  Council  of,  an,  794,  71,  164 
Frankfurt,  city  of,  supports  Richard  of 
Cornwall,   268  ;  estates  assemble   at, 
428,    451;    indignation    of  electoral 
princes  at,    507  ;   States-General   at, 
572  ;  privileges  of,  580 
Frankish  bishops,  28  ;  realm,  ruler  of, 
54 ;     Church    disordered,     60 ;     re- 
formed by    Boniface,   60,    62 ;    king 
attacks  Lombards,    67  ;    forerunner 
of  Otto   III.,    134;    empire,    estates 
of  Church    in,    151  ;    kings    resume 
church    property,    161  ;    princedoms 
in  the  East,  325 
Franks,  at  first  independent  of  Rome, 
28 ;     their    position,    54 ;     interven- 
tion of,    in    Italy,     58  ;    attachment 
of,   to  reigning  house,    61  ;   lawless, 
68 ;    allegiance    of   Rome    to,     84  ; 
overawed  by  religious  services,   95  ; 
protection     of,     against    Lombards, 
124;   baptism  of  3,000,    143;   King 
of,    deposed,    283  ;    rise    to    power 
■    in  Europe,    287  ;  power  of,   dreaded 
by  Eastern    emperors,    316;     settle- 


TRE 

ment  of,  in  the  East,  325  ;  fight  in 
the  Crusades,  326  ;  rivalry  of 
Franks  and  Germans,  329  ;  depar- 
ture of,  for  Europe,  329  ;  hatred  of, 
for  Greeks,  333,  338 
Fratricelli,  573 
Frederic  of  Bavaria,  executed  at  Naples, 

266 
Frederic  of  Austria,   rival  of  Lewis  of 

Bavaria,  424,  554 
Fredei  ic  of  Austria,  482,  484 
Frederic  III.,  King  of  Trinacria,  437 
Frederick     I.,     345;    dispute    with 
Hadrian     IV.,    215  ;    greatness    of, 
231  ;  yields  to  Pope  to  obtain  coro- 
nation,    233  ;     second    march    into 
Italy,      233 ;     follows    example     of 
Henry  III.,  235  ;  power  crippled  by 
Lombard  cities,    235  ;    drives    Alex- 
ander   III.    from    Rome,    235  ;     de- 
feated at   Legnano,  236 ;    concludes 
treaty  of  Venice,  236  ;  humbled  by 
Pope,    237,    41 1  ;    legend    of,    240 ; 
name   Holy   Empire  appears  under, 
2S1  ;  supports  anti-Pope,  301  ;   takes 
the   cross,     328  ;    a   crusader,    331  ; 
.    death  of,  by  drowning,  332  ;  restricts 

gifts  in  mortmain,  350,  582 
Frederick  II.  left  under  the  charge 
of  Innocent  III.;  245,  246,  254; 
crowned  emperor  at  Aachen,  257  ; 
storms  under,  258  ;  attempts  to  re- 
store power  in  Sicily,  259  ;  struggle 
with  Gregory  IX.,  259;  concludes 
treaty  of  St.  Germains,  260  ;  excom- 
municated, 260;  attempts  to  recover 
Lombardy,  261 ;  power  of,  unbroken, 
263  ;  excommunicated  anew,  264  ; 
death  of,  264,  563  ;  persecuted  by 
Innocent  HI.,  316  ;  a  child  at  the 
time  of  the  Crusades,  335  ;  crusade 
of,  340;  marries  heiressot  Jerusalem, 
341  ;  disclaims  imperial  influence  in 
episcopal  elections,  367,  3S8  ;  as- 
serts imperial  rights  in  Italy,  419; 
legend  of,  433  ;  two  Pragmatic  Sanc- 
tions of,  553,  556  ;  crusade  of  Gregory 
IX.  against,  596 
Frederic  HI.,  Emperor,  weakne^s 
of,  506,516,517,  524;  Concordat 
of  Aschaffenburg  concluded  by,  515  ; 
concessions  of,  544 ;  coronation  of,  5  75 
French  Church,  29  ;  prelates  assail 
Gregory  IV.,  87  ;  dispute  decretals, 
91  ;  nation,  95  ;  metropolitans,  125  ; 
letter  of  Gregory  VI 1.  to  French 
bishops,  204 ;  party  in  power  at 
Avignon,  443  ;  hopes  of  French 
cardinals,  defeated,  445  ;  attempts  of, 


650 


INDEX. 


to    heal    schism,     451  ;     nation    at 
Council  of  Constance,  477  ;  supports 
Sigisniond,  487  ;  joins  Italians,  488 
Freteville,  reconciliation  of    Henry  II. 

and  Becket  at,  379 
Friedberg,    supports  Richard    of  Corn- 
wall, 268 
Frigga,  worship  of,  541 
Friuli,  Berengar,  Duke  of,  115 
Fulk  of  Neuilly  preaches  a  crusade,  334 
Fyrd,  151 


C^  ALEAZZO,  Visconti,  436 
J     Galeria,   Count  of,   appoints  an 
anti-Pope,  216 
Gallic  Church,  28  ;  praefecture,  44 
Galilean  Church,  theory  of,  461  ;   liber- 
ties   of,     621,     625  ;     sacrificed    by 
Francis   I.,   538,  626;  principles   in 
France,  562  ;  writers,  575  ;  party  at 
Pisa  and  Constance,  578 
Gallicanism,  foundation  of,  6l8 
Gap,  Bishop  of,  28 

Gaul,  praefecture  of,  13  ;  governor  of, 
16;  bishops  of,  dependent  on  Rome, 
17,  27,  44  ;  Gregory  I.'s  interposition 
in,  28  ;  fresh  dependence  of  Church 
on     Rome,    61  ;     bishops    from,    at 
Frankfurt,    71  ;    strength  of  Church 
in,   87  ;    Roman    senators  await   the 
approach  of  the,  277 
GELASIUS  II.,  an.  1118,  1119,  222 
General  Council,  the  sixth,  56 ;  superior 
to    the    Pope,    460;    view    held    by 
Galileans  of,  623 
Genoa,  Urban  VI.  escapes  to,  443 
Genoese  settled  at  Constantinople,  334; 
King  of  Aragon  carries  on  war  with, 
520 
Gentiles  tread  down  Jerusalem,  320 
George  of  Podiebrad  receives  Bohemia, 

618 
Gerard   de   Saxo,  father  of  mistress  of 

Benedict  IX.,  138 
Gerbert,  tutor  to  Otto  III.,  132 
Gerhard,  Bishop  of  Salzburg,  rebuked 

by  Gregory  VII.,  201 
Gerhard,  Bishop  of  Arras,  181 
German  Church,  thraldom  of,  decided, 
42,  45  ;  nation,  95  ;  dominion  cast 
off  by  Italy,  135;  Popes,  139,  188; 
princes  elect  rival  emperor,  211  ; 
struggles  of,  and  Italian  parties,  215  ; 
nobles  take  the  cross,  328  ;  nation 
emancipated  from  thraldom  of  Pa- 
pacy, 430 ;  Church,  547  ;  notions  of 
limited  monarchy,  555  ;  rivalry  of, 
and  Bohemian  nation,  603 


GOD 

Germanic  nations  receive  Christianity, 
3  ;  fascinated  by  Papacy,  140,  141, 
146  ;  military  services  amongst,  54  ; 
slavery  common  amongst,  1 74  ;  rise 
of  spirit,  508 

Germano,  treaty  of  St.,  concluded  by 
Frederic  II.,  260,  267 

Germans  desire  to  weaken  royal  power, 
219  ;  enthusiasm  of,  for  Frederic, 
239;  at  Council  of  Constance,  477; 
support  Sigismond,  487 ;  empire 
given  to,  550 ;  support  Council  of 
Pisa,  606  ;  protest  of,  at  Constance, 
4S8  ;  magnanimous  at  Constance,  491 

Germanus,  Patriarch  of  Constantinople, 
48 

Germany  attached  to  Rome  through 
England,  20,  42,  44 ;  bishops  from, 
at  Frankfurt,  71  ;  association  with, 
hated  by  Italians,  135  ;  conversion 
of,  144;  party  of  Welfs  in,  227; 
power  of  Innocent  III.  in,  247,  257; 
resists  Gregory  IX,,  263  ;  rival  king 
in,  264 ;  imperial  families  of,  267 ; 
attempts  of  Pope  to  make  a  fief  of, 
293  ;  St.  Bernard's  preaching  in, 
328  ;  struggle  for  investitures  in,  363  ; 
imperial  nomination  of  bishops  in, 
388  ;  tithe  paid  to  the  Pope  in,  393  ; 
pretensions  of  Popes  to  power,  423  ; 
resists  political  pretensions  of  Popes, 
430  ;  accepts  Concordat  of  Martin  V., 
493  ;  allegiance  of  lost,  499  ;  breaks 
away  from  Papacy,  503  ;  not  alive 
to  the  greatness  of  danger  from 
Turks,  520;  a  distinct  nation,  546; 
learning  of,  548  ;  Roman  empire  in 
forests  of,  550;  Emperor's  authority 
in,  552  ;  interregnum  in,  552  ;  in- 
cluded in  kingdom  of  Charles,  562 

Ceroid,  Bishop  of  Menz,  160 

Gerson,  Chancellor  of  University  of 
Paris,  448  ;  oratory  of,  483  ;  Galli- 
canism of,  578,  621  ;  teaching  of,  622 

Gewillieb,  Bishop  of  Menz,  160 

Ghibelline,  Boniface  VII I.'s  travesty  of, 
271  ;  historians'  account  of  death  of 
Boniface,  277;  support  Lewis  IV.,  425 

Giles,  St.,  Raimond  of,  322 

Godescal  leads  crusading  rabljle  from 
Germany,  321 

Godfi'ey  of  Boulogne  slays  Rudolph  of 
Suabia,  2H  ;  greatness  of,  309,  322; 
army  of,  attacked  by  Hungarians, 
323  ;  left  alone  in  command,  323  ; 
takes  up  a  position  on  Calvary,  324 ; 
takes  Jerusalem,  324  ;  first  King  of 
Jerusalem,  325  ;  sequel  to  conquest, 
327.  345 


INDEX. 


651 


GOT 

Gothic  cathedral,  548 

Goths,  Rome  pillaged  by,  II  ;  not  so 
bad  as  Lombards,  50 

Gottleben,  Huss  confined  in  castle  of, 
612 

Gratiae  expectativae,  457 

Grado,  refuge  of  patriarchs  of  Aquileia, 
41 

Gravamina  presented  by  Lewis  IX.  to 
Innocent,  386 

Greece,  insurrections  in,  48  ;  architec- 
ture of,  548 ;  crusades  correspond 
to  heroic  ages  of,  310 

Greeks,  21  ;  Church,  overtures  to,  494, 
502  ;  refugees  in  Europe,  548 ; 
bishops,  29  ;  heroes  of  history,  310  ; 
emperors  treat  crusaders  with  trea- 
chery, 316 ;  fire,  342 

Greeks,  empire  taken  from,  by  Charles, 
550  ;  escape  from  Turks,  584  ;  dis- 
putes of  and  Romans,  2  ;  become 
known  to  the  Franks  as  treacherous, 
317  ;    regard   Franks  as  barbarians, 

334 

GREGORY  I.  the  Great,  an.  590-604, 
begins  power  of  Rome,  i  ;  called  to 
power,  9,  II  ;  Papacy  before,  14; 
advances  prestige  of  See  of  Rome, 
18  ;  powerful  administration  of,  19  ; 
ecclesiastical  administration,  21  ; 
loyalty  of,  22  ;  mission  of,  to  Eng- 
land, 24  ;  relation  of,  to  individual 
bishops,  26  ;  intervention  in  Dal- 
matia,  26 ;  in  Spain,  27  ;  in  Gaul, 
28  ;  relations  to  other  patriarchs,  29 ; 
political  relations  of,  31  ;  towards 
the  Empire,  30  ;  towards  the  Lom- 
bards, 31,51;  internal  administration, 
32  ;  denounces  episcopus  universalis, 
38  ;  growth  of  Rome  after,  77  ; 
views  of,  93  ;  time  of,  104,  1 10, 
146 ;  rule  as  to  division  of  tithes, 
150  ;  applies  to  Frankish  princes, 
167  ;  remits  slaves,  175  ;  growth 
of  political  power  from  time  of, 
540 

GREGORY  II.,  an.  715-731,  summons 
Boniface  to  Rome,  42,  45  ;  a  subject 
of  the  Empire,  46  ;  opposes  Leo  the 
Isaurian,  48  ;  letter  of,  to  the  Em- 
peror, 48,  146  ;  appeal  of,  to  Charles 
Martel,  54  ;  time  of,  90  ;  Boniface's 
oath  to,  294 

GREGORY  IIL,  an.  731-741,  20,  53  ; 
gaze  of,  directed  across  the  Alps,  54; 
conflict  with   Lombards,    54 ;    death 

of,  55 
GREGORY  IV.,  Pope,  an.   827-844, 
84 ;  unites  opposing  interests  at  Rome, 


GRE 

86  ;  opposed  by  French  prelates,  87, 
107 

GREGORY  v.,  an.  996-999;  appointed 
by  Otto  III.,  216  ;  bestows  imperial 
crown  on  Otto  III.,  131  ;  diiven 
from  Rome,  131  ;  death  of,  132 

Grei^orv,  rival  to  Benedict  VIII.,  136 

GREGORY  VI.,  an.  1045,  1046,  pur- 
chases the  See,  138,  270;  occupies 
Santa  Maria  Maggiore,  138;  con- 
victed of  simony,  139  ;  deposed,  189; 
title  recognised  by  Gregory  VII., 
194 

GREGORY  VIL,  an.  1072-1085,  an.\- 
ious  to  make  the  Pope  independent 
of  the  Emperor,  190  ;  takes  a  bolder 
line,  191  ;  assumes  the  title,  194;  stirs 
laity  up  against  clergy,  199,  226, 
276;  employs  councils,  200;  struggle 
with  Philip  of  France,  204  ;  struggle 
with  Henry  IV.,  205  ;  cringing  to 
William  the  Conqueror,  205  ;  letter 
to  Henry  IV.,  207;  protects  Roland 
of  Parma,  207  ;  severity  to  Henry 
IV.  at  Canossa,  209 ;  death  of,  in 
exile,  212  ;  at  Salerno,  220;  besieged 

■  in  the  castle  of  St.  Angelo,  218; 
carried  off  by  Cencius,  218;  time 
of,  461  ;  the  beginning  of  struggles 
between  Popes  and  anti-Popes,  219, 
419  ;  his  spirit  shown  by  Alexander 
III.,  235  ;  hisjdea  of  the  Papal  mo- 
narchy, ^6,  337  ;  compared  with 
Boniface  VIII.,  278;  idea  of  the 
Holy  Empire,  282  ;  letter  to  William 
the  Conqueror,  282  ;  the  Dictatus 
of,  283 ;  considers  himself  Vicar  of 
St.  Peter,  284  ;  confirms  Norman 
conquests  in  Italy,  292  ;  oath  of  the 
Patriarch  of  Aquileia  to,  295  ;  oath 
required  of  all  metropoliians,  296  ; 
projects  a  crusade,  307  ;  objects  to 
investitures,  356 ;  decree  against, 
357  j  appoints  apostolic  legates,  389; 
career  resembles  that  of  Aeneas  Syl- 
vius, 515,  523,  524;  work  of,  undone, 
539  ;  claims  Hungary  as  a  fief,  562  ; 
deals  a  blow  at  clerical  authority, 
576 

GREGORY  VIII.,  an.  11S7,  1188, 
preaches  a  crusade,  330 

Gregory  VIII.,  anti-Pope  to  Gelasius 
II.,  222,  301 

GREGORY  IX.,  an.  1227-1241,  power 
of  Popes  recovers  under,  259  ;  second 
struggle  with  Frederic  II.,  261  ;  sets 
up  a  rival  emperor,  263  ;  death  of, 
263 ;  accuses  English  bishops  of 
destroying    his    Bulls,    385  ;    claims 


65: 


INDEX. 


GRE 

presentation  to  benefices,  387  ;  taxes 
Enclish  Church,  566 

GREGORY  X.,  an.  1271-1276, 
threatens  the  electors,  268;  compels 
recognition  of  Rudolph,  553  ;  makes 
an  alteration  in  College  of  Cardinals, 
557;  imposes  a  tenth  on  all  Latin 
Church,  566;  vacancy  before,  619 

GREGORY  XI.,  an.  1 370-1 378,  last 
Pope  at  Avignon,  436  ;  returns  to 
Rome,  437,  438  ;  powerless  in  Italy, 
438  ;  death  of,  440,  592  ;  negotiates 
with  England,  589 

GREGORY  XII.,  an.  1 406-1 409  ; 
elected,  453  ;  unwilling  to  resign, 
453  ;  evasions  of,    454  ;    condemned 

•  at  Pisa,  470 ;  refuses  the  Council, 
473  ;  supported  by  Naples,  474 ; 
voluntary  resignation  of,  485  ;  sup- 
ported by  Bohemians,  606 ;  breach 
between,  and  the  Council,  608 

Grimoald,  King  of  the  Lombards,  32  ; 
receives  a  grant  of  the  dukedom  of 
Benevento,  69 

Guido  of  Spoleto  struggles  for  imperial 
dignity,  115;  supporters  of,  116; 
crowned  by  Stephen  V.,  1 16;  suc- 
ceeded by  1-ambert,  121 

Guiscard,  Robert,  confirmed  by  Nico- 
las II.  in  his  conquests,  217  ;  rescues 
Gregory  VII.,  218 

Gunther,  Archbishop  of  Cologne,  99  ; 
deposed  by  Nicolas  I.,  loi,  102 

Gunther  of  Schwarzburg,  rival  of 
Charles  IV.,  554 

Guntram,  King  of  Gaul,  28 


HADRIAN  I.,  an.  772-795,  67; 
enmity  to  Desiderius,  68,  69 

HADRIAN  II.,  an.  867-872,  104; 
letter  to  Charles  the  Bald,  106  ; 
grants  to,  187  ;  less  powerful  than 
Nicolas  I.,  108;  grants  to  Charles 
the  Bald  the  privilege  of  nominating 
the  Pope,  216 

HADRIAN   III.,   an.    884,   885,    113 

HADRIAN  IV.,  an.  1154-1159,  232; 
dispute  with  Frederic  I.,  215,  232, 
234  ;  confirms  the  conquests  of  the 
Norman  William,  218,  230,  292  ; 
completes  victory  over  Arnold's  party, 
230 ;  offensive  letter  to  Frederic 
Barbarossa,  233  ;  death  of,  234  ; 
letter  to  Bishop  of  Paris,  383 

Hainault,  Baldwin  of,  339 

Hallam,  Robert,  Bishop  of  Salisbury, 
488 


Hamburg,  Bishop  of,  125 


Hapsburg,  Rudolph  of,  elected,  268, 
552 

Harald  Krag,  King  of  Denmark,  144 

Harald  Biaatand,  King  of  Denmark, 
144 

Hauteville,  Tancred  of,  309 

Hawkwood  and  his  freebooters,  437 

Hebrews,  Epistle  to,  misquoted,  91 

Heilbroun  secures  privileges,  582 

Henry  the  Lion,  leader  of  Welfs,  236 

Henry  Raspe,  the  priests'  king,  267, 
302  . 

Henry  of  Hessia,  head  of  moderate 
party,  447 

Henry  I.  of  England,  his  struggle  with 
Anselm,  221,  359 ;  accession  of, 
360  ;  position  critical,  361 

Henry  II.  of  England,  his  dispute  with 
Becket,  215,  304,  341,  368,  581, 
630  ;  takes  the  cross,  331  ;  a  Nor- 
man king,  368  ;  his  demands  on 
bishops  at  Westminster,  371  ;  threa- 
tens to  expel  Cistertians,  378  ;  re- 
conciled to  Becket,  379  ;  pedigree 
of,  396  ;  conciliates  Normans,  563  ' 

Henry  III.  of  England,  alteration  of, 
things  under,  581,  5S6 

Henry  IV.  of  England,  parliament  of 
attacks  clergy,  572 

Henry  VII.  of  England,  599 

Henry  VIII.  of  England,  561  ;  refor- 
mation under,  588,  599 

Henry  I.,  Emperor,  115 

Henry  II.,  cause  of,  espoused  by 
north  of  Italy,  136;  deposes  Bishop 
of  Asti,  157 

Henry  III.  crosses  tie  Alps  and  de- 
poses rival  Popes  at  Sutri,  139,  187, 
533  >  appoints  Clement  II.,  139, 
216;  example  followed  by  Frederic 
Barbarossa,  235  ;   changes  after,  443 

Henry  IV.,  humiliation  of,  at  Canossa, 
209,  246  ;  foretold,  88  ;  privy-coun- 
cillors of,  excommunicated,  204  ; 
character  of,  205  ;  struggle  with 
Gregory  VII.,  220,  222;  deposed 
by  Gregory  VII.,  208;  death  of,' 
212;  anarchy  under,  227;  the  victim 
of  internal  dissensions,  250  ;  supports 
anti-Pope,  305  ;  struggle  with  Pas- 
chal   II.,    363 ;    weakness    of,    524, 

599 

Henry  V.,  struggle  with  the  Pope, 
222,  364 ;  concludes  Concordat  of 
Worms,  215,  222  ;  anarchy  under, 
227  ;  supports  anti-Pope,  301 ;  rebels 
against  his  father,  363  ;  deposed  by 
Calixtus  II.,  365  ;  time  of,  579 

Henry   VI.,    Emperor,   243;    marries 


INDEX: 


65J> 


Constantia,  243,  562 ;  crowned  by 
Coele>tine  III.,  244;  death  at 
Messina,  245 

Henry  VII.,  election  of,  hastened  by 
Clement  V.,  415;  ends  .  heyday  of 
empire,  419,  443,  553  ;  revives 
spirit  of  Hohenstaufen,  419 ;  em- 
broiled with  Robert,  King  of  Naples, 
420  ;  dies  at  Siena,  420,  424  ;  policy 
of,  544 

Heraclius  grants  privileges  to  Ra- 
venna, 40 

Herulian  king,  Odoacer,  11 

Herzog  of  Germanic  nations,  561 

Hesse,  Boniface  in,  42 

Hessia,  Henry  of,  447 

Hezekiah,  Leo  III.  a  second,  49 

Hilary  deprives  Celidonius,  16 

Ilildebrand,  time  of,  183  ;  position  of, 
515  ;  a  Roman  subdeacon,  188.  See 
Gregory  VII. 

Hildebrandian  era,  190,  212,  270,  282, 
515.  524-  533.  552;  effects  of  re- 
forms, 228,  348  ;  party,  364 

Himerius,  a  Spanish  bishop,  27 

Hincmar,  Bishop  of  Rheims,  102  ; 
supports  Charles  the  Bald  against 
Hadrian  II.,  106,  107  ;  succumbs 
to  Nicolas  I.,  107  ;  attacks  False 
Decretals,  108  ;  success  not  lasting, 
109  ;  humiliated  by  John  VIII., 
no,  389 

Hincmar,  Bishop  of  Laon,  deposed  by 
Hincmar  of  Rheims,  107 

Hohenstaufen,  family  of,  227 ;  over- 
throw of,  the  aim  of  the  Popes,  264, 
265  ;  fall  of,  266,  301  ;  last  scion  of, 
267  ;  pedigree  of,  279  ;  spirit  of,  re- 
vived in  Henry,  419  ;  time  of,  425 

Holland,  William  Count  of,  264,  267, 
302 

Holy  Empire,  3,  31  ;  collapse  of,  213, 
568,  583  ;  idea  of,  in  the  Middle  Ages, 
2S0  ;  growth  of  idea,  282  ;  upheld 
by  great  Popes,  289  ;  greatness  of, 
409;  last  revival  of,  518;  idea  of 
existing,  542  ;  origin  of  national 
churches,  546  ;  nature  of,  illustrated, 

549,  559 
Holy  Lance,  discovery  of,  at  Antioch, 

323 
Homer  not  required    by  the  German, 

548 
Honioousion,  doctrine  of,  305 
Honoratus,  Archdeacon  of  Salona,  26 
Honorhis   II.,    anti-Pope,    2i6,    301  ; 

rival    to    Alexander    II.,    219 ;    for- 
.  saken,  220 
HONORIUS    HI.,    an.     121.6-J227, 


258 ;  comparative  depression  of 
Papacy  under,  259  ;  claims  presen- 
tation to  benefices,  3S7 

Hospitallers,  pro]-)erty  of,  restored  by 
Frederic  II.,  260 

Hospitallers  of  St.  Mary  of  Bethlehem 
founded  by  Pius  II.,  521 

Hugh,  Chancellor  of  P'rance,  383 

Hugh  of  Provence,  120,   I2i 

Hugh  of  Vermandois,  a  crusader,  322  ; 
imprisoned  at  Constantinople,  323  ; 
goes  on  a  second  crusade,  327 

Hugo  of  Fleury,  366 

Hungarians  attack  Godfrey's  army,  323 

Hungary,  power  of  Innocent  III.  in, 
247  ;  nomination  to  bishoprics  rests 
with  sovereign,  388  ;  vacillating  on 
empire,  562  ;  King  of,  613  ;  Mathias 
of,  receives  a  grant  of  Bohemia,  618 

Huss,  John,  Bohemian  reformer,  600 ; 
condemnation  of,  194  ;  time  of,  546; 
a  Churchman,  601  ;  heads  Bohemian 
party,  601,  603  ;  a  supporter  of 
Reahsm,  603  ;  on  good  terms  with 
Archbishop  of  Prague,  606 ;  rector 
of  University,  607  ;  estranged  from: 
,  Paletz  and  Znaim,  608  ;  supported 
by  Wenceslaus,  609,  610 ;  takes 
leave  of  Paletz,  6n  ;  tragedy  of, 
612  ;  imprisoned  at  Constance,  612  ; 
death  of,  614 

Hussinecz,  Nicolas  of,  leads  Hussites, 
616 

Hussite  heresy  at  Basle,  496 

Hussites,  rising  of,  616  ;  divided  into 
two  parties,  616 


ICELAND,    influence    of    Innocent 
III.    in,    254;    Christianity  intro- 
duced into,  by  violence,  311 
Iconium     reached    by    Frederic    Bar- 

barossa,  322 
Iconoclasm  of  Leo  the  Isaurian,  46,  47 
Iconoclastic  Controversy,  outbreak  of, 

50,  51 
Iglau,  compact  ratified  at,  617 
Ignatius,   Patriarch  of  Constantinople, 

97 

Illyria,  Western,  a  vicariate  of  Italy,  12  ; 
submission  of,  to  Rome,  44 

Indulgences,  preaching  of,  in  Bohemia. 
See  fUBlLEE 

INNOCENT  II.,  an.  1130-1143, 
224  ;  supported  by  St.  Bernard,  224;. 
takes  refuge  in  France,  224 ;  sup- 
ported by  Emperor  Lothar,  225  ;  at 
Lateran  Council,  298 

INNOCENT  IIL,  an.  1198-1215,  left 


654 


INDEX. 


INN 

guardian  of  Frederic  II.,  245,  246; 
his  position,  246  ;  his  idea  of  papal 
theocracy,  247  ;  victory  over  John, 
253 ;  crowns  Peter  II.  of  Aragon, 
254  ;  triumph  of,  in  Germany,  257  ; 
death  of,  258  ;  Eapacy  at  highest 
pitch  of  power,  259,  409  ;  decline  of 
Papacy  after,  264 ;  compared  with 
Boniface  VIII.,  269,  278  ;  principles 
of,  275,  298,  337,  626  ;  his  idea  of 
the  Holy  Empire,  284 ;  stirs  up 
Philip  Augustus  against  King  John, 
251,  292  ;  persecutes  Frederic  II., 
316  ;  preaches  a  crusade,  335  ;  ex- 
communicated false  crusaders,  336  ; 
does  not  dispute  feudal  obligations  of 
bishops,  367  ;  claim  to  present  to 
benefices,  383,  387 ;  appoints  Pan- 
dulph  legate,  390  ;  independence  of, 
410  ;  time  of,  461  ;  possessions  of  See 
in  time  of,  534 ;  work  of,  undone,  539  ; 
view  of  the  translation  of  empire, 
550  ;  time  of,  565  ;  levies  tenths, 
566 ;  establishes  mendicant  orders, 
576 

INNOCENT  IV.,  an.  1243-1254,  suc- 
cessor of  Gregory  IX.,  263,  264; 
last  years  of,  264  ;  death  of,  265  ; 
interferes  in  imperial  elections,  267  ; 
grievances  of  France  presented  to, 
386 ;  independence  of,  410 ;  first 
mention  of  electors,  556 ;  taxes 
churches,  566 

INNOCENT     VI.,    an.     1352-1362, 

434 

INNOCENT  VII.,  an.  1404-1406, 
452  ;  request  to  Zbynek,  606 

INNOCENT  VIII.,  an.  1484-1492, 
raises  his  family,  529  ;  vices  of,  529  ; 
involved  in  disputes,  534 

Investitures,  straggle  as  to,  303,  355 

Ireland,  success  of  King  John  in,  251  ; 
granted  to  the  Pope  in  fee,  252,  253 

Irene,  Empress,  75 

Isaac  Angelus  conspires  with  Moslems, 
334  ;  deposed,  337  ;  restored,  337  ; 
dies,  338 

Isauria,  birthplace  of  Leo  III.,  46 

Isemberga  of  Denmark  divorced  by 
Philip  Augustus  of  France,  249 

Isidore  of  Seville,  his  collection  of  de- 
cretals, 89 

Istrian  bishops  out  of  communion  with 
Rome,  41 

Italian,  praefecture,  22,  42  ;  party- 
strife  in,  115  ;  ecclesiastics  in  Eng- 
land obliged  to  flee,  384  ;  exorbitant 
demands  of,  430  ;  nation,  95  ;  bankers 
lend    money   to   the   English,   393 ; 


JER 

Cardinals  anxious  to  make  no  sacri- 
fices, 412;  disputes  of  Italian  and 
French  Cardinals,  440 ;  Cardinals 
attempt  to  heal  schism,  452  ;  States 
.support  Gregory  XII.,  474;  nation 
at  Council  of  Constance,  477 

Italians  propose  to  elect  a  rival  emperor, 
49  ;  alarmed  at  the  loss  of  power  of 
electing  Pope,  1S8 ;  rival,  contend 
for  empire,  287  ;  enriched  in  England, 
386  ;  at  Constance,  487 

Italy,  Ostrogothic  kingdom  in,  1 1  ; 
upper,  in  Roman  patriarchate,  12  ; 
lower,  a  vicariate,  12;  northern,  17; 
revolutions  of,  41  ;  submission  of,  to 
Rome,  42  ;  bitter  against  iconoclasm, 
48;  bishops  from,  at  Frankfurt,  71  ; 
influence  of  Arnold's  teaching  in,  226  ; 
imperial  rights  in,  asserted  by  Frederic 
Barbarossa,  232  ;  by  Otto  IV.,  256  ; 
emperor's  supremacy  in,  titular,  238  ; 
power  of  Innocent  III.  in,  247,  254; 
supports  Urban  VI.,  445  ;  emperor's 
authority  in,  552  ;  northern,  included 
in  kingdom  of  Charles,  562 

Ivo  of  Chartres,  a  moderate  man,  366 

Ivrea,  Ardoin  Margrave  of,  136 


JANDUN,  John  of,  426 
Janow,  Mathias  of,  600 
Jebusites,  Turks  compared  with,  320 
Jeffrey    of  Villehardouin,    a    crusader, 

335 
Jerome's  version  of  Scripture,  91 
Jerome  of  Prague,  600,  603  ;  executed, 

616 
Jerome  Riario,  ambition  of,  528 
Jerusalem,  an  old  centre,  2  ;  Patriarch 
of,  12;  project  to  recover,  221,  292; 
fall  of,  243,  391  ;  wrested  from  the 
Turks,  307  ;  complaints  of  desolated, 
307  ;  summons  to  rescue,  310  ;  con- 
quered by  the  Turks,  318,  329; 
trodden  down  of  the  Gentiles,  320  ; 
Crusaders  set  out  for,  324  ;  taken  by 
Crusaders,  325  ;  vassal  kingdoms  of, 
325  ;  fall  of  kingdom  of,  326  ;  sequel 
to  conquest  of,  327;  reached  by 
Conrad  and  Lewis,  329  ;  desolation 
of,  330  ;  Richard's  retreat  in  sight 
of,  332  ;  remains  of  Frederic  Bar- 
barossa conveyed  to,  333 ;  reached 
by  Philip  Augustus,  335  ;  not  wrested 
from  Turks,  339  ;  heiress  of,  341  ; 
coronation  of  Frederic  II.  at,  341  ; 
in  conflict  with  Babylon,  344  ;  king- 
dom of,  326,  345 


INDEX. 


655 


JES 

Jesus,  society  of,  for  fighting  against  the 
Infidels,  521 

Jew,  21 

Jewish  law,  391 

Jews  persecuted  by  Leo  the  Isaurian, 
47  ;  prejudice  against,  224 ;  perse- 
cuted by  crusaders,  321 

Joanna,  Queen  of  Naples,  acknowledges 
Clement  VII.,  444  ;  adopts  Lewis  of 
Anjou,  445 

Jobst  of  Moravia,  rival  of  Sigismund,  554 

John,  Duke  of  Bavaria,  accepts  a  crown 
from  Innocent  III.,  254 

John,  St.,  death  of  Apostle,  239 

John,  Archbishop  of  Ravenna,  41,  I02 

John,  St.,  Lateran,  cathedral  church  of 
Rome,  1 1 

John  the  Faster,  Patriarch  of  Constan- 
tinople, 29 

John  the  patrician,  son  of  Crescentius, 
136 

John  of  Jandun,  426 

John,  King  of  England,  165  ;  defies 
the  interdict  of  Innocent  III.,  246  ; 
his  struggle  with  Innocent  III.,  250; 
yields  the  point  in  dispute,  251  ;  his 
oath  of  fealty,  251,  390;  pedigree 
of,  396  ;  conduct  of,  435  ;  cedes 
England  to  Innocent  III.,  563  ;  sub- 
mits to  the  Pope,  563,  571 ;  grants 
Great  Charter,  586 

JOHN  III.,  an.  559-573,  Frankish 
bishops  restored  by,  28 

JOHN  VI.,  an.  701-705,  51  ;  sup- 
ported by  Ravenna,  38 

JOHN  VIII.,  an.  872-SS2,  109  ;  ap- 
points an  Apostolic  Vicar  in  France, 
no,  389  ;  death  of,  1 13 

JOHN  IX.,  an.  898-900,  117 

JOHN  X.,  an.  914-928,  118;  Theo- 
dora his  paramour,  119,  129 

JOHN  XII.,  an.  955-963,  121, 
139  ;  son  of  Alberic,  123  ;  swears 
faithfulness  to  Emperor,  123  ; 
judged,  125;  deposed,  126,  460; 
his  letter,  125  ;  return  of,  127 

JOHN  XIII.,  an.  965-972,  127; 
received  with  joy  by  Otto's  support, 
127;  decease  of,  128;  crowns  Otto 
II.,  129 

JOHN  XIV.,  an.  983,  elected  by  in- 
fluence of  Otto  II.,  129;  starved  to 
death  by  Boniface  VII.,  129 

JOHN  XV.,  an.  985-996,  driven  from 
Rome,  130 

JOHN  XVI.,  an.  997,  129,  an  anti- 
Pope 

JOHN  XVII.,  an.  1003,  135  ;  an  un- 
distinguished Pope 


LAN 

JOHN  XVIII.,  an.  1003-1009,  an  un- 
distinguished Pope,  135 

JOHN  XIX.,  an.  1024-1033,  a  layman 
before  his  election,  136;  brother  to 
Benedict  VIII.,  137 

JOHN  XXL,  an.  1316-1334,  421  ; 
accused  of  heresy,  422,  427,  472 ; 
humiliation  of,  423  ;  seizes  oppor- 
tunity, 424  ;  death  of,  428  ;  reserves 
all  bishoprics,  565  ;  introduces  pay- 
ment of  annates,  566  ;  employs  in- 
quisition against  Franciscans,  573 

JOHN  XXII.,  an.  1410-1418,  election 
of,  473  ;  invokes  secular  arm,  474  ; 
takes  refuge  with  Sigismund,  475  ; 
unable  to  stave  off  the  demand  for  a 
Council,  an.  1475  ;  the  only  legitimate 
Pope,  480  ;  promises  to  resign,  481  ; 
escapes  to  Schaffhausen,  482  ;  pro- 
cess against,  484  ;  policy  of,  492  ; 
receives  account  from  Zbynek,  609  ; 
hostility  to  Ladislaus  of  Naples, 
611 

Joshua,  a  type  for  Gregory  VIL,  282 

Jubilee,  year  of,  271,  278,  355  ;  of 
1350,  432  _ 

Juliano  Cesarini  at  Basle,  495  ;  opposed 
to  scheme  of  Eugenius  IV.,  496 

JuliusIL,  an.  1503-15 13,  warlike  Pope, 
534  ;  intrigues  in  Italy,  536;  alliance 
with  Spain  and  Venice,  537  ;  diplo- 
macy of,  544  ;  faithlessness  of,  626 

Justinian  II.,  Emperor,  38 


KENT,  won  by  Augustine,  25,  144  ; 
men   of,    apostatise,    144  ;  pro- 
perty of  Church  in,  350 
Knighthood,  religious  character  of,  291 
Kozi-hradek,   Huss  protected  in  castle 

of,  613 
Krebs,  Nicolas  of  Cusa,  497 
Kremsia,  Militz  of,  588,  599 
Kyffhauser,  legend  of,  239 


LADISLAUS,   son  of  Charles   of 
Durazzi,    receives    kingdom    of 

Naples,     445  ;      crusade      preached 

against,  474  ;  appears  before  Rome, 

475  ;  of  Naples,  enemy  of  the  Pope, 

611 
Ladislaus  of  Bohemia,  618 
Lambeth,  Wycliffe  at,  591,  592 
Lambert,  son  of  Guido,  Emperor,  116; 

his  title  recognised,  117;  brother  of 

Guido,  121 
Lancaster,  Duke  of,  supports  Wycliffe, 

590  ;  weakness  of  house  of,  599 


65^ 


INDEX. 


LAN 

Langton,  Simon,  elected  Archbishop 
of  York,  387 

Langton,  Stephen,  nominated  by  Inno- 
cent III.  to  archbishopric  of  Canter- 
bury, 250;  admitted  by  Jolin,  251 

Laodicea  reached  by  crusaders,  324 ; 
by  Frederic  Barbarossa,  332 

Laon,  Hincmar  of,  sermon  of  Bishop 
of,  490 

Lateran  Cliurch,  11,  35  ;  occupied  by 
Benedict  IX.,  138;  Gregory  VII. 
conveyed  to,  218  ;  Lolliar  crowned 
in,  225  ;  Council  at,  an.  1059, 
198;  an.  1 1 12,  364;  first  Council 
of,  an.  1 1 23,  367;  second  do.,  an. 
1 1 39,  225,  228,  296;  third  Coun- 
cil of,  an.  1 1 79,  238;  fourth  do., 
an.  1215,  257,  258;  fifth  do.  an. 
1512,  537,  626 

Latin  system  overspreading  Europe,  5  ; 

•  despotic  spirit,    6  ;  love    of  central- 

■  isation,     1 73  ;     Christianity    spreads 

among  Teutonic  races,    215  ;    sway 

of,    549 ;    compared  with  Teutonic, 

628-630 ;     system,     575;      kingdom 

.established  at   Constantinople,    317, 

345  ;    princes,    329  ;    blood    to    be 

avenged,  337  ;   clergy  required  to  pay 

tithe,  390  ;    forms  of  thought,   548  ; 

disuse  of  language,  584 

Latinism,  connection  of,  and  empire, 
575  ;  overcome  by  Teutonism,  5S3 

Laurence,  Church  of,  72 

Laurence,  a  Roman  deacon  deposed  by 
Gregory  I.,  26 

Laurentius,  Archbishop  of  Canterbury, 
146 

Lausanne,  Council  of  Basle  removed 
to,  506,  516 

Lazan,  Henry  of,  shelters  Huss,  613 

Leander,  Bishop  of  Seville,  receives  the 
pallium  from  Gregory  I.,  27 

Lechfeld,  Magyars  defeated  at,  518 

Legates,  apostolic,  389 

Legnano,  defeat  of  Frederic  I.  at,  236 

Leicester,  Earl  of,  at  Northampton, 
378 

Leipsic,  Luther  at,  576  ;  German 
students  migrate  from  Prague  to, 
607 

Leo  III.,  the  Emperor,  the  Isaurian, 
46  •  condemned  by  the  clergy,  48  ; 
Gregory's  hope  for  conversion  of,  50  ; 
supported  by  Council  of  Frankfurt, 
72 

LEO  I.,  an.  440-461  ;  reinstates  Ce- 
lidonuis,  16  ;  Spanish  Church  yields 
•to,  27  ;  a  great  Pope,  t,^^  ;  views  of, 
93-  145 


LEW 

LEO  II.,  an.  682,  683,  procures  sub- 
mission of  Ravenna,  41 

LEO  III.,  an.  795-816,  72;  crosses 
the  Alps,  73  ;  clears  his  character, 
73 ;  crowais  Charles,  74 ;  growth  of 
the  See  under,  77  ;  acknowledges 
Charles  as   Lord,  82  ;  insecurity  of, 

85 

LEO  IV.,  an.  847-855,  consecrated  as 
soon  as  elected,  96 ;  dependent  on 
Franks,  96 

LEO  VII.,  an.  936-939,  121 

LEO  VIII.,  an.  963,  126  ;  gi-ants 
to  Otto  I.  the  privilege  of  nominating 
the  Pope,  127,  216 

LEO  IX.,  an.  1049-1055,  a  friend 
of  Hildebrand,  189  ;  Hildebrand 
appears  before,  190;  travels  to 
Rome,  191  ;  sanctions  Norman  con- 
quests in  Italy,  193,  217,  292;  re- 
vives law  of  celibacy,  197;  his  jour- 
neys to  France,  Hungary,  and 
Germany,  198  ;  revives  laws  against - 
simony,  202 ;  time  of,  244  ;  appoints 
apostolic  legates,  389 

LEO  X.,  an.  1 513-1522,  ends  the  Mid- 
dle Ages,  I  ;  divides  with  Francis  I. 
liberties  of  Galilean  Church,  538,  540, 
627  ;  election  of,  542  ;  covenant  with 
France,  627 

Leodegar  in  France,  60 

Leon  claims  Portugal,  239  ;  King  of,  - 
reduced  by  Innocent  III.,  250;  Kings 
of,  liberal  to  the  Church,  348 

Letter  of  Peace  of  Henry  of  Hessia, 

447 
Levites  pay  tithe,  391  ;  prefigure  clergy, 

478 
Lewis,  son   of  Lothar,  King  of  Italy, 

95  ;  visits  Italy,  96 
Lewis  the  German  instals  ecclesiastics, 

157 

Lewis  I.,  the  Pious,  85  ;  legislation  of, 
81,  86  ;  Church's  debt  to,  82  ; 
crowned  at  Rheims,  83 ;  succumbs  to 
Papacy,  86 ;  disputes  of,  and  sons, 
87;  deposition  of,  87  ;  continues  to- 
re;gn  in  weakness,  88;  empire  broken 
up  on  death  of,  95  ;  pedigree  of, 
112;  allows  manses  to  the  Church, 
152;  confers  bishoprics  on  soldiers, 
161 

Lewis    II.,     Emperor,    97;    marches 
upon    Rome,    loi  ;    appealed  to  by  • 
Archbishop  of  Ravenna,   102  ;  pedi- 
gree of,  112 

Lewis  III.  of  Provence,  Emperor, 
117 

Lewis  IV.,  of  Bavaria,  Emperor,  423  ; 


INDEX. 


657 


LIB 

Fredei'ic  of  Austria  rival  of,  424,  554  ; 
asserts  his  independence  of  the  Pope, 
425;  appeals  to  General  Council, 425  ; 
sets  up  an  anti-Pope,  427  ;  oblige.1 
to  flee  to  Italy,  428  ;  supported 
by  public  opinion,  429 ;  rashness 
of,  430 ;  dies  excommunicate,  43 1  ; 
attacked  by  Benedict  XII.,  572  ;  sup- 
ported by  Minorites,  573  ;  his  anti- 
ecclesiastical  legislation,  579 

Libanus,  reached  by  Crusaders,  324 

Liegnitz,  Mongols  defeated  at,  519 

Liguria,  cities  on  coast  of,  21 

Limoges,  Council  of,  an.  103 1,  181 

Limoisin,  Pope  from  province  of,  de- 
sired, 440 

Lithuanians  at  Constance,  493 

Liutprand,  King  of  Lombards,  takes 
Ravenna,  52 ;  visited  by  Zachary, 
57  ;  restores  estates  to  Rome,  57,  58 

Livorno,  Cardinals  at,  455 

Llewellyn,  in  Wales,  defeated  by  King 
John,  251 

Lombard  cities,  their  dispute  with 
Frederic  Barbarossa,  235  ;  gain  in- 
dependence, 23S  ;  league  defied  by 
Henry  VI.,  245  ;  supported  by  Gre- 
gory IX.,  261 

Lombards  invade  Italy,  li,  21,  50; 
press  Milan,  17;  political  relations 
of  Gregory  I.,  20,  31  ;  besiege  Rome, 
32,  33,  51  ;  reconciled  to  Milan,  32; 
embrace  Nicene  faith,  32  ;  establish 
dukedoms  of  Benevento  and  Spoleto, 
51;  hated  by  Italians,  50,  52;  be- 
siege Ravenna,  51  ;  increase  in 
power,  53;  invade  territory  of  Rome, 
55'  56  5  successes  of,  59  ;  threaten 
Rome,  63,  64  ;  weakened  by  dis- 
union, 67 ;  aggressors,  67  ;  lawless, 
68  ;  defeated  by  Charles,  69  ;  pro- 
tection of  Franks  sought  against, 
124,  146 

Lombardy,  kingdom  of,  established, 
51,  64;  bishops  of,  assailed  by 
John  VIII.,  no;  Frederic  II.  at- 
tempts to  recover,  259,  261  ;  mag- 
nates of,  exalt  the  Emperor,  294 ; 
cities  of,  friendly  to  tienry  VII., 
419 

London,  See  of,  purchased  by  Wini, 
159;  Council  of,  an.  1107,  362; 
an.  1382,  597 

Lorraine,  crusading  rabble  from,  321  ; 
Duke  of,  claims  crown  of  Naples, 
534 ;  included  in  kingdom  of  Charles, 
562 

Lothar  II.,  King  of  Lorraine,  98  ;  ad- 
mitted to    communion   by  Hadrian, 


LYO 

105  ;  death  of,  105  ;  pedigree  of,  112; 
struggle  with  Nicolas  I.,  loo,  249 

Lothar,  son  of  Hugh  of  Provence,  121, 
122 

Lothar  L,  Emperor,  85  ;  crowned  at 
Rome,  83 ;  second  visit  to  Rome, 
83  ;  sanctions  appointment  of  Gre- 
gory IV.,  84,  86;  his  presence  at 
Rome  required,  85  ;  defeated  at 
Fontenay,  88 ;  Sergius  II.  elected 
without  his  consent,  95  ;  pedigree  of, 
112 

Lothar  II.,  Emperor,  223,  228 ; 
acknowledges  Innocent  II.,  225  ; 
crowned  in  Lateran  Church,  225  ; 
Emperor  by  election,  227 ;  holds 
Pope's  stirrup,  233 

Louis  of  Anjou,  relations  of,  to  Charles 
of  Durazzi,  445 

Louis,  Count  of  Blois,  335 

Louis  VII.  of  France  returns  from  Pales- 
tine, 229  ;  takes  the  Cross  at  Vezelay, 
327,  328 ;  loses  his  army,  329  ;  in- 
vades Normandy,  379 ;  affords  refuge 

■     to  Alexander  III.,  386 

Louis  IX.  of  France,  a  Crusader,  341, 
542,  344>  345  ;  death  of,  343  ;  gra- 
vamina of,  386 ;  receives  grant  from 
Pope,  566;  Constitutions  of,  583,  619 

Louis  XI.  of  France  repeals  the  Sanc- 
tion, 526,  626 

Louis  XII.  of  France,  proposals  made 
to,  530,  531 ;  convenes  a  Council 
against  the  Pope,  536;  gives  in  ad- 
herence to  fifth  Lateran  Council,  538 

Lubeck,  Jolin  of,  proposes  marriage  of 
the  clergy,  500 ;  privileges  secured 
for,  582 

Lucania,  a  suburban  province,  12 

Lucca,  Gregory  XII.  goes  to,  454 

LUCIUS  II.,  an.  I144-1145,  dies  in 
storming  the  capital,  227 

Lucretia,    daughter  of  Alexander  VI., 

530 
Ludolf,  son  of  Otto  I.,  delivers  Italians, 

123 
Lull,   Archbishop,    149  ;    confirmed  by 

Pepin,  160 
Luna,  Peter  de,  449 
Lusatia,  gained  by  Mathias  of  Hungary, 

618 
Luther,  time  of,  199 ;  at  Wurtemberg, 

576 
Lutterworth,  Wycliffc  in  retirement  at, 

598 
Luxemburg,  Henry  of,  415 
Lydda,  reached  by  Crusaders,  324 
Lyons,  Council  of,  an.  1245,  264,  425; 

complaints  of  English   ambassatlors 


U   U 


658 


INDEX. 


MAE 


at,  385 ;  Archbishop  of,  entertains 
Ansehn,  360;  Anselm  returns  to, 
361  ;  Clement  V.  crowned  at,  413 


MAEANDER,  Conrad's  army  falls 
on  banks  of,  329 
Magdeburg,  Centuriators  expose  False 

Deci-etals,  92 
Magyars  encroach  on  the  Empire,  287, 

518 
Mahomet,  an  impostor,  262  ;  arms   of, 

519 

Mahomet  II.  captures  Constantinople, 
518 

Mahommedan  invasion,  terror  of,  118 

Mahommedans  oppress  Africa,  40  ; 
scheme  to  recover  Jerusalem  from, 
292,  307  ;  disturb  Christians  at  Jeru- 
salem, 318 

Mainz,  Archbishop  of,  20 ;  Autcar, 
Bishop  of,  89  ;  Boniface,  Archbishop 
of,  62  ;  Gewillieb,  Bishop  of,  160  ; 
Decretals  appear  at,  89,  92,  94,  147; 
Riculf,  Bishop  of,  90;  Sigfrid, 
Bishop  of,  200  ;  acceptance  of  Basle 
by  compact  at,  504  ;  compact  of,  un- 
done, 516;  Diether  of,  526;  Arch- 
bishop of,  president  of  elections,  556  ; 
Council  of,  an.  8 13,  16S  ;  an.  1074, 
200 

Manfred,  half  brother  to  Conrad,  265  ; 
defends  Sicily,  265  ;  attacked  by 
Charles  of  Anjou,  266,  316;  falls  at 
Beneverto,  266,  292 

!Mantua,  Synod  of,  an.  1064,  220  ;  an. 
1459,  521,  525 

Manuel,  treachery  of,  329,  334 ;  en- 
courages Franks,  334 

Margaret  of  Maultasch,  430 

Maria  Maggiore,  Chuixh  of,  held  by 
Gregory  VI.,  138  ;  Gregory  VII. 
borne  in  triumph  to,  218 

Mark's,  St.,  scene  in  Church  of,  237  ; 
cardinal  of,  at  Constance,  478,  481 

Marozia,  a  courtesan,  1 19,  120 

Marseilles,  metropolitans  of,  16  ;  Cni- 
saders  embark  from,  336  ;  Gregory 
XL  embarks  at,  437 

Marsilius  of  Padua,  426 

MARTIN  I.,  an.  649-655,  opposed 
Monothelites,  34  ;  sufferings  of,  35, 
36  ;  death  of,  37 

MARTIN  II.,  an.  882-884,  "3 

MARTIN  III.  an.  942-946,  121 

MARTIN  v.,  an.  1417-1431,  election 
of,  492 ;  contradicts  the  Council,  493  ; 
convenes  Council  of  Basle,  495 ; 
Concordat  with  England,  510  ;  elected 


by    CouncU     of     Constarce,      558; 
Charles  VII.  of  France  refuses  Con- 
cordat, 624 
Mathew,   of  Montmorency,  a  crusader, 

335 

Mathew  of  Paris,  account  of  conspi- 
racy against  Roman  legates,  384 

Mathias  of  Janow,  a  Bohemian  re- 
former, 600  ;  Mathias  of  Hungary 
receives  a  grant  of  Bohemia,  618 

Matilda,  Countess  at  Canossa,  209  ;  her 
lands  in  Henry  IV. 's  hands,  211  ; 
her  allodial  lands,  228;  in  Frederic's 
hands,  243,  245 

Matiscon,  Council  of,  an.  585,  149 

Maultasch,  Margaret  of,  430 

Maurice,  fall  of  Emperor,  31  ;  jealous 
of  Gregory,  32 

Medard,  Church  of  St.,  87 

Medici,  Pazzi  conspire  against,  528 

Mediaeval  Church,  system  of,  141  ;  dif- 
ferent from  primitive,  142  ;  creed  of, 
309 ;  Wycliffe's  propositions  subver- 
sive of,  591 

Mediterranean,  shores  of,  field  of  an- 
cient history,  i,  9 

MELCHIADES,  an.  311-314,  Bishop 
of  Rome,  90 

Melchisedec,  the  Pope  compared  M'ith, 

231 

Melita,  Bishop  of,  26 

Melun,  William  of,  surnamed  the  Car- 
penter, 324 

Mendicants  attack  the  Papacy,  572  ; 
firmly  established,  576;  in  University 
of  Paris,  577  ;  pretensions  of,  de- 
nied in  France,  577  ;  encroachments 
of,  in  France,  578 ;  support  Urban  V., 
589  ;  Peter  the  Hermit  the  first,  319 

Menelaus,  call  of,  obeyed  by  Greeks, 
310 

Mercia,  Ethelbald,  King  of,  161 

Meroveus,  royal  house  of,  63 

Merovingian  king  deposed,  62  ;  liber- 
ality of  kings,  149  ;  judicial  power 
of  clergy  rare  under,  .152  ;  yield  juris- 
dict'on  to  bishops,  153;  supplanted 
by  fresh  dynasty,  287 

Merseburg,  Magyars  defeated  at,  518 

Messina,  death  of  Henry  VI.  at,  245 

Metz,  bishopric  of  Chrodegang,  82 ; 
Council  of,  an.  863,  98 

Michael  III.,  the  Drunkard,  Eastern 
Emperor,  98 

Michael  of  Cesena,  secession  of,  and 
Franciscans,  573 

Middle  Ages,  beginning  of,  i  ;  inter- 
mediate ages,  2  ;  attractions  in,  3  ; 
early  part   of,    4  ;    hierarchical  cen- 


INDEX. 


659 


MID 

tralisation  in,  4;  See  of  Rome  in, 
5  ;  apostles  of,  address  tliemselves  to 
the  great,  142  ;  greatest  Pope  in, 
2^5  ;  Churcii  liberal  to  poor  in, 
353  ;  superstition  of,  479  ;  imperial 
Church  of,  542 ;  importance  of 
symbols  in,  552 
Middlesex,    property    of    Church    in, 

Milan  Church  founded  by  St.  Barnabas, 
14,  17;  included  in  Italian  patriar- 
chate, 1 5  ;  reconciled  to  Rome,  1 7  ; 
Constantine,  Bishop  of,  32  ;  recon- 
ciled to  Rome  in  time  of  Gregory  I., 
110  ;  Anspert,  Bishop  of,  iio  ;  Arch- 
bishops of,  125  ;  Church  of,  notorious 
for  simony,  202  ;  at  the  head  of  the 
Lombard  cities  in  the  struggles  with 
Frederic  Barbarossa,  235  ;  Arch- 
bishops submit  to  Rome,  296 ; 
Archbishop  of,  accompanies  Crusa- 
ders, 327  ;  Bernarbo  Visconti,  nder 
of,  434 ;  dukedom  of,  promised  to 
France,  536 

Militz,  of  Kremsia,  a  Bohemian  re- 
former, 5^8,  599 

Minorites,  573 

Misa,  James  of,  advocates  use  of  the 
cup,  615 

Missi,  courts  of,  153 

Modena  ceded  to  Urban  V.,  435 

Mongols  ravage  Germany,  263  ;  danger 
caused  by,  519 

Monothelite  troubles,  40 

Monothelites  opposed  by  Martin  I., 
34,  37  ;   supported  by  Emperors,  41 

Monothelitism,  38 

Montaille,  Synod  of,  an.  879,  no 

Monte  Casino,  the  residence  of  Victor 
III.,  220 

Montferrat,  Conrad  of,  defends  Tyre, 
331  ;    proposed    as  Latin    Emperor, 

338 

Montfort,  Simon  de,  335 

Montmorency,  Mathew  de,  335 

Moravia  gained  by  Mathias  of  Hungary, 
618 

Moravian  nobles  conclude  a  league,  616 

Mortmain,  Statute  of,  583 

Morville,  Hugh  de,  murderer  of  Becket, 
3S0 

Mosaic  Code,  81 

Moses,  words  attributed  to,  91  ;  the 
Pope  compared  with,  231  ;  called 
an  impostor,  262  ;  Urban  II.  com- 
pares himself  with,  320 

Moslems,  Eastern  emperors  conspire 
with,  334 ;  Crusaders  attacked  by, 
340 

U  U 


NIC 

Mourzoufle,  a  cunning  courtier,  seizes 
Constantinople,  338  ;  deposed,  33S 

Monza,  coronation  at,  552 

Miihldorf,  battle  of,  424 

Munster,  Bishop  of,  deprived  of  juris- 
diction, 506 


NAPLES,     duchy     of,     21  ;     the 
refuge  of  Eutychius,    52  ;   cap- 
tured by  Henry  VI.,  245  ;  execution 
of  Conradin  at,  266  ;  nomination  to 
bishoprics  rests  with  sovereigns,  388  ; 
Robert,  King  of,   420  ;  kingdom  of, 
adheres    to     Clement    VII.,     445  ; 
granted  by  Urban  VI.  to  Charles  of 
Durazzi,    445  ;    adheres    to   Gregory 
XII.,      474  ;      Ladislaus    of,      474  ; 
claims  of  Anjou  to,  526,  626  ;  arms 
of,    invited  against    Florence,    528  ; 
Ferdinand  of,  530,  534;  handed  over 
to  France  and  Spain,  531  ;  promised 
to    Aragon,  536  ;   a  distinct   nation, 
546  ;    falls    to    Henry    VI.,     562  ; 
crusade  against,  611 
Narbonne,  metropolitans  of,  16 
Na'rni,    part  of  estate  of  Church,   57  ; 
severed  from    dukedom  of  Spoleto, 
66 
Narses  invites  Lombards  into  Italy,  50  ; 
overthrows  Ostrogothic  kingdom,  52 
Natalis,  Bishop  of  Salona,  26,  27 
Navarre,     Kings   of,    desejt    Benedict 

XIII.,  485 
Naxos,  Martin  I.  at,  35 
Neapolitan,  Urban  VI.  a,  441 
Nepi,  Duke  of,  elevates  Constantine,  67 
Nero,  cruelty  of,  surpassed,  532 
Neuilly,  Fulk  of,  334 
Nicaea,    Council  of,    power  of  Rome 
rising  since,    10  ;   settles  observance 
of  Easter,  91  ;  procedure  at,  480 
Nice,  terror  of  Ortok  reaches  to,  318  ; 
defeat  of  Crusaders  at,  322  ;  besieged 
by    Crusaders,      323  ;     gained     by 
Alexius,  325 
Nicene   faith,    Reckared  won  for,  27  ; 

embraced  by  Lombards,  32 
Second   Nicene   Council   rescinded   at 

Frankfurt,  71 
Nicolas  de  Clemanges,    a   disciple   of 

Gerson,  448,  621  ;  teaching  of,  623 
Nicolas  of  Hussinecz,  leader  of  Huss- 
ites, 616 
Nicolas  of  Cusa  exposes  false  decretals, 

92,  526 
NICOLAS  L,  an.  S5S-867,  20;  time 
of,  95  ;  chosen  by  favour  of  Emperor, 
97  ;  superior  to  favour,  99  ;  retreats 


66o 


INDEX. 


NIC 

to  St.  Peter's  Church,  99 ;  defends 
Thictberga,  100  ;  triumphs  over 
Bishop  of  Ravenna,  102  ;  over 
Bishop  Hincmar,  102  ;  leaves  a  mark 
on  the  Papacy,  104;  intervention 
with  Lothar,  100,  249 

NICOLAS  II.,  an.  1059-1060,  192; 
displaces  Benedict  X.,  270  ;  enforces 
clerical  celibacy,  198  ;  means  em- 
ployed by,  199  ;  enactments  against 
simony,  202  ;  founds  College  of 
Cardinals,  214,  557 ;  attacks  Em- 
peror's authority,  216;  first  vacancy 
after  decree  of,  2 1 6  ;  decree  power- 
less, taken  by  itself,  217  ;  confirms 
Robert  Guiscard  in  Italy,  217,  292  ; 
decree  of,  apparently  a  dead  letter, 
220,  222,  224  ;  decree  leads  to  dis- 
puted election,  301  ;  position  of 
Hildebrand  under,  515 

NICOLAS  III.,  an.  1277-1280,  gains 
release  from  imperial  sovereignty,  269 

Nicolas  v.,  anti-Pope,  427  ;  a  Fran- 
ciscan, 573 

NICOLAS  v.,  an.  1447-1455,  515  ; 
position  of  Aeneas  Sylvius  under, 
515  ;  dexterous  management  of,  516  ; 
crowns  Emperor,  517;  alive  to  the 
danger  threatening  Europe,  519  ; 
preaches  crusade  against  Turks,  519; 
Papacy  ends  Holy  Empire,  568 

Niebelungen  Lied,  belonging  to  Ger- 
mans, 548 

Niem,  Theodoric  of,  459 

Nile,  Franks  land  at  mouth  of,  340 

Noah,  the  Pope  compared  with,  231 

Nogaret,    William    de,    takes    Anagni, 

Nominalism,  question  of,  in  England, 
594  ;  in  Bohemia,  603 

Norman  Conquest  of  England,  26  ; 
protection  of  Popes,  220  ;  and  English 
rivalry  in  England,  368,  596  ;  heiress 
marries  Henry  VI.,  562;  Kings  of 
England  won  by  concessions,  562 

Normandy  invaded  by  Louis,  King  of 
France,  379  ;  England  a  dependance 
of,  586 

Normans  hardly  known  in  8th  century, 
53  ;  siege  of  the  duchy  of  Spoleto, 
53  ;  support  Hildebrand,  193  ;  their 
settlement  in  Italy  sanctioned  by 
Leo  IX.,  193,  217  ;  plunder  Rome, 
211;  support  the  Popes,  217,  246, 
359  ;  fidelity  of,  to  Popes,  218,  229; 
encroach  on  the  empire,    287,   561, 

571 
Northampton,   Becket   before    Council 
of;  376,  377 ;  passes  there,  378 


OTT 

Northumbria,  King  of,  25  ;  converted, 

144 
Norway,    power  of   Innocent  III.   in, 

247 
Nuremberg,  kind  reception  offered  to 

Huss  at,  613 


OBOTRITES     encroach     on     the 
empire,  287 
Observants,  or  strict  Franciscans,  573  ; 

recognised  at  Constance,  574 
Octavian,  son  of  Alberic,  Pope,  121 
Octavian,  cardinal  priest  elected,  234 
Odin,  worship  of,  541 
Odo  de  Colonna  elected  Pope,  492 
Olof,  King  of  Sweden,  converted,  144 
Omar,  mosque  of,  at  Jerusalem,  329  J 

Oppenheim  supports  Richard  of  Corn-     'I 

wall,  268 
Ordeal  of  the  Sacrament,  270 
Oriental  Christians  appeal  to  Gregory 

VII.  for  help,  307 
Orleans,  Council  of,  an.  51 1,  154;  an. 

549,  179  ;  an.  1016,  181 
Orsini,  family  of,  at  Rome,  431 
Ortok,    Prince   of  Turkmans,    governs 

Jerusalem,  318 
Osimo,  part  of  estates  of  Church,  57 
Osnabruck   receives   exemptions    from 

Charles,  152 
Ostia,  a  suffragan  bishopric  of  Rome,       I 

1 1  ;  bishopric  of  Damiani,  1 89 

Ostrogothic    kingdom    in    Italy,     11  ; 

practice  of  confirming  elections,  39  ; 

overthrown  by  Belisar  and  Narres,  52 

Oswald,  King  of  Northumberland,  144 

Oswy,  King  of  Northumbria,  25,  144 ; 

decided  in  favour  of  Rome,  146 
Otranto  promised  to  Aragon,  536 
Otto  of  Colonna  examines  Huss's  ap- 
peal, 609 
Olto,  Bishop  of  Constance,  reproved  by 

Hildebrand,  207 
Otto  I.,  131  ;  the  great  Saxon 
monarch,  122,  287  ;  crowned  at 
Rome,  123  ;  importance  of  corona- 
tion, 124  ;  his  third  appearance  in 
Rome,  127,  128;  death  of,  128; 
uses  prelates  as  a  check  on  nobles, 
156;  instals  bishops,  157  ;  raises  Pa- 
pacy, 187  ;  receives  from  Leo  VIII. 
the  privilege  of  nominating  the  Pope, 
127,  216;  changes  after,  443;  de- 
poses John  XII.,  460  ;  time  of,  562 
Otto  II.  reigns  ten  years,  129  ;  death 

of,  129 
Otto  III.,  minority  of,    129  ;  crosses 
the  Alps,  130  ;  appoints  Gregory  V., 


INDEX. 


661 


OTT 

131,  2i6  ;  coronation  of,  131  ;  issues 
a  decree  for  tlie  election  of  Gerbert, 
132  ;  resides  on  Aventine,  133  ; 
greatness  of,  135  ;  sad  death  of,  134 ; 
raises  Papacy,  187;  appoints  Syl- 
vester II.,  132,  134,  216 

Otto  IV.  of  Saxony  aspires  to  the 
empire,  246,  254;  Innocent  III.'s 
view  of  claims  of,  255  ;  takes  an  oath 
of  allegiance  to  Pope,  255  ;  de- 
prived of  empire  by  the  Pope,  256  ; 
disclaims  imperial  influence  in  elec- 
tions, 367,  388 

Oxford,  University  of,  attacks  Mendi- 
cants, 578;  national  movement  begins 
in,  587  ;  connection  with  Prague,  604 


PADUA,  Marsilius of,  426 ;  coveted 
by  Emperor,  536 
Paderbom,  visited  by  Pope  Leo  III.,  73 
Palestine,   Frederic   II.    persecuted  in, 

260  ;  overrun    by    the   Turks,    307  ; 

change  in  political  relations  of,  31S  ; 

last  hold  of  Christians  on,  326  ;  great 

Crusades  to,  333 
Palermo,   Henry  VI.   excomimunicated 

at,  245 
Paletz,    603,    608,    611;    definition    of 

Church,  622 
Palsgrave,  place  of,  in  electoral  college, 

557     , 

Pamphylian  hills,  Cnisaders  lost  in,  329 

Pandulph,  legate  of  Innocent  III.,  251, 
253,  390 

Papacy,  new  dignity  of,  rise  of,  13  ;  an 
Italian  power,  540 

Paris,  Councils  of,  an.  557,  159  ;  an. 
615,  159  ;  an.  1074,  200  ;  Theobald, 
Bishop  of,  383  ;  University  of,  active 
in  healing  schism,  448,  458,  460  ; 
Council  of,  an.  1394,  450  ;  an.  1398, 
451  ;  demands  of  University  staved 
off  by  John  XXII.,  474  ;  interests  of, 
479  ;  Mendicants  in,  577  ;  University 
expands  Galilean  principles,  620 

Parishes,  division  of,  in  England,  352 

Parisian  doctors,  479 

Parma,  Roland  of,  207 

PASCHAL  I.,  an.  807-824,  sends  an 
embassy  to  Lewis,  83  ;  hasty  election 
of,  85 

PASCHAL  II.,  an.  1099-1118,  221; 
dead,  222  ;  active  in  the  struggle  as 
to  investitures,  358  ;  letter  to  Anselm, 
362  ;  denounces  lay  investiture,  363; 
weakness  of,  in  struggle  with  Henry 
V-,  365  ;  legates  of,  preside  at 
Poictiers,  390 


PET 

Paschal  TIL,  anti-Pope,  235,  301 

Patriarchal  oversight  of  the  suburban 
provinces,  12 

Patriarchate,  Western,  established,  9  ; 
of  Rome,  extension  of,  13  ;  position 
of  Rome  at  the  head  of,  508,  509 

Patronage,  idea  of,  introduced  from 
Rome,  162  ;  merits  and  demerits  of 
system  of,  164 

Paul,  St.,  martyrdom  of  at  Rome,  10 

PAUL  I.,  an.  757-768,  67 

PAUL  II.,  an.  1464-1471,  repudiates 
conditions  of  his  election,  527  ;  nego- 
tiations with   Ferdinand  of  Naples, 

534 
Pavia,   defeat  of  Astolf  at,   64  ;  Lom- 
bards besieged  in,  66  ;  Spoleto  sepa- 
rated   from    kingdom    of,   67  ;    Otto 
crowned   at,    123;    Council    of,   an. 
1 1 60,  235  ;  an.  1423,  494,  495 
Pazzi,  conspiracy  of,  in  Florence,  528 
Peace,  public,  chamber  in  the  empire, 

558 
Pelagius  the  Papal  legate,  340 
Peniscola  adheres  to  Benedict,  452,  4S6 
Pentapolis  overrun  by  Lombards,   52  ; 

•ceded  by  Charles  to  the  Pope,  69 
Pepin  of  Heristhal,  60 
Pepin  the  Short,  son  of  Charles  Martel, 
56,  144,    159,   160;  his   negotiations 
with  Zachary,  56  ;  invites  Boniface's 
intervention,    60  ;    anointed  king  at 
Soissons,  61,  73,  283,  389  ;  appealed 
to   by   Stephen  II.,  64;  crosses   the 
Alps,   66  ;    is   made   patrician,    66 ; 
donations  of,   66,    70,  1 1 8  ;  satisfied 
by  Charles,  69  ;  letter  of  Archbishop 
Lull,  149  ;  grants  immunity  to  Triers, 
152;    confirms    Abbot    Lull,     160; 
combines  ecclesiastical  and  civil  legis- 
lation, 168 
Pernau,  Huss's  reception  at,  613 
Perpignan,  Council  of,  469 
Perugia  wrested  by  Julius  II.,  535 
Pesaro  ceded  to  Rome,  66 
Peter,  St.,  martyrdom  of,  at  Rome,  lO  ; 
doubtful,    146 ;    the   Pope   the   suc- 
cessor   of,    21,    247  ;    keys   of,    25  ; 
poverty  of  Church  of,  36  ;  Boniface's 
oaths    at    tomb    of,     42 ;    keys    of 
sepulchre,    55,    66 ;    letter   of,    65  ; 
Roman  Church  the  seat  of,  86 ;  the 
Pope  the  successor  of,  93,  146,  148, 
551  ;  vicar  of,  284  ;  Church  of,  270, 
272,  518 
Peter,  brother  of  John  X.,  128 
Peter  d'Ailly,  Cardinal  of  Cambray,  481 
Peter  II.  of  Aragon  grants  his  kingdom 
to  the  Pope,  253 


662 


INDEX. 


PET 

Peter   the    Hermit,    334 ;    leads     first 
Crusade,    316;  preaches,    319,  324; 
deserts  the  cause,  323  ;  St.   Bernard 
a  second,  327 
Peter  of  Corvaro,  anti-Pope,  428 
Peter  de  Luna,  elected  Pope,  449 
Peter  de  Candia  elected  Pope,  471 
Peter  of  Znaim,  603  ;  See  Znaim. 
Pezaro,  Lord  of,   divorced  from  Lucre- 

tia,  530 
Pfaffenbrief  in  Switzerland,  580 
Philadelphia,  Frederic  L  at,  332 
Philip  I.  of  France  disputes  with  Gre- 
gory VII.,  203;  excommunicated  by 
Paschal  II.,  390 
Philip  II.    Augustus  of  France  takes 
back  his  wife  at  Innocent  III.'s  bid- 
ding, 246,  249  ;  invited  by  Innocent 
to  invade  England,  251,  292  ;  takes 
the   Cross,    331  ;  character  of,   332; 
goes  to  Jerusalem,  335 
Philip  IV.,   the   Fair,    of  France,   dis- 
pute with  Boniface  VIII.,  272,  560, 
620  ;  attacked  in  bull  Clericis  Laicos, 
273  ;    his  dispute  with    Edward    I., 

273  ;  accepts  the  Pope's  arbitration, 

274  ;  fresh  struggle  with  the  Pope, 
274;  replies  to  the  Pope,  275,  301  ; 
resoluteness  of,  277  ;  has  a  handle  in 
his  dispute  with  Boniface  VIII.,  393  ; 
power  of,  411  ;  Clement  V.  pledged 
to  support,  413  ;  plan  of,  to  bestow 
the  empire  on  his  brother,  414  ;  ad- 
herents of,  charge  Boniface  with  he- 
resy, 415  ;  threatens  John  XXI.  with 
the  faggot,  422  ;  consults  divines  as 
to  the  Pope,  426  ;  his  example  fol- 
lowed by  Louis  XII.,  536;  assem- 
bles States-General,  560 

Philip  V.  of  Fiance,  421 

Philip  VI.  of  France,  421 

Philip  de  Brois,  370 

Philip  of  Valois,  566 

Philip  of  Swabia  aspires  to  the  empire, 

246,   254  ;  charges  of  Innocent  III. 

against,  255 
Philippicus  Bardanes,  Emperor,  39 
Philistines,  Turks  compared  with,  327 
Phocas,  Emperor,  31 
Photius,    Patriarch   of   Constantinople, 

97  ;  deposition  of,  98 
Piacenza,  visit  of  Henry  III.  to,  139  ; 

Bishop  of,   deposed,   157  ;   Synod  of, 

220,  319,  521 
Picards  join  Taborites  in  Bohemia,  617 
Pisa,    cardinals  meet  at,  455  ;  Council 

of,   summoned,  461,  468  ;  convened 

by  cardinals,    55S  ;  follows   example 

of  Boniface  VIII.,    270;  dissolved, 


PRA 

471  ;  after-events,  472  ;  validity  of, 
doubted,  473,  480  ;  example  of  fathers 
of,  482,  486  ;  indistinct  reference  to 
Council  of,  483  ;  raises  hopes  of 
Christendom,  489  ;  independence  at, 
496,  624 ;  claim  to  supremacy,  501  ; 
results  of  Synod  of,  508,  575  ;  Gal- 
lican  party  at,  578 ;  supported  by 
Germans,  606  ;  supported  by  Huss, 
609 

Pisa,  2nd  Council  of,  summoned  by 
Emperor,  537 

Pisans  settled  at  Constantinople,  334 

PIUS  I.,  an.  156-165,  91 

PIUS  II.,  1458-1464,  conduct  of,  521  ; 
undauntedness  of,  522  ;  undertakes  a 
Crusade,  523 ;  death  of,  524 ;  ad- 
vances Papal  power,  525,  618  ; 
powerlessness  of,  526;  policy  of, 
544 ;  attempts  repeal  of  Pragmatic 
Sanction,  626 

PIUS  III.,  an.  1503,  534 

Plato  and  the  Schoolmen,  548 

Podiebrad,  George  of,  618 

Poitiers,  victory  of,  Charles  Martel  at, 
54;   Synod  of,  an.  iioo,  390 

Poland,  King  of,  takes  the  Cross,  328 ; 
a  distinct  nation,  546 

Poles  at  Council  of  Constance,  493 

Polish  nation  in  University  of  Prague, 
546 

Pontigny,  Becket  in  exile  at,  378,  379 

Pont-Isere,  Abbot  of,  200 

Portugal  claimed  by  Castile  and  Leon, 
239  ;  preaching  of  Crusade  successful 
in,  520 

Portuguese  bride  of  Frederic  HI.,  517 

Portus,  a  suffragan  bishopric  of  Rome, 
II  ;  Bishop  of,  207 

Praemunire,  Statute  of,  460,  462,  563, 

Praeneste,  a  suffragan  bishopric  of 
Rome,  II 

Pragmatic  Sanction  of  Bourges,  504, 
624  ;  adhered  to  by  Charles  VII., 
506,  526;  condemned  by  Julius  II., 
537  ;  of  Frederic  II.,  553,  556;  of 
St.  Louis,  6x9,  620;  of  Bourges 
repealed,  626,  628 

Prague,  University  of,  in  time  of  Huss, 
546,  602 ;  connection  with  O.xford, 
604  ;  chapter  of,  condemns  Wycliffe's 
propositions,  605  ;  Zbynek,  Arch- 
bishop of,  606  ;  constitution  of  uni- 
versity changed  by  Wenceslaus,  607  ; 
disturbances  in,  609  ;  interdict  on, 
612;  synod  of,  612;  University  of, 
in  favour  of  the  cup,  6l6;  Hussites 
march  upon,  616 


INDEX. 


663 


Prat,  Cardinal  du,  procures  election  of 
Clement  V.,  412;  his  lielp  employed 
by  Clement  against  Philip,  415 

Property,  religious  sanction  attached 
to,  292 ;  of  the  Church,  348,  349 

Provence,  kingdom  of,  conferred  on 
Boso,  1 10  ;  Crusaders  from,  gather 
about  Charles  of  Anjou,  266 

Provisors,  Statute  of,  563,  566,  586 

Pseudo-Isidorian  Decretals  :  See  De- 
cretals 

Ptolemais  captured,  326 

Puy,  Adhemar,  Bishop  of,  a  Crusader, 
322 


QUADRIGARIUS,      Nicolas, 
obliged  to  recant,  577 

Quuiisext   Council,    38  ;    adherence   of 
Constantine  to,  doubtful,  39 


RAMLA  reached  by  Crusaders,  324 
Ranulph  de  Broc,  380 

Ratherius,  complaints  of,  197 

Ratisbon,  privileges  of,  583 

Ratolfszell,  John  XXII.  confined  at, 
484  _ 

Ravenna,  included  in  Italian  patri- 
archate, 15,  17;  rebellion  at,  38,  51 ; 
pretensions  of  Archbishops,  40 ;  de- 
prived of  independence,  41 ;  captured 
by  Lombards,  51 ;  retaken  by  Venice, 
52  ;  seized  by  Lombards,  63  ;  ceded 
to  Rome,  66  ;  John,  Bislrop  of,  102  ; 
archbishopric  of,  bestowed  on  Theo- 
dora's paramour,  1 20 ;  Archbishop  of, 
125;  reached  by  Otto  III.,  130; 
Wibert,  Archbishop  of,  swears  fidelity 
to  Pope,  295 

Ravenna,  exarchate  of,  21  ;  feeble,  59; 
overthrow  of,  52  ;  Juhus  II.  attempts 
to  recover,  535,  536  ;  Lxarchs  of, 
disliked,  48 

Raymond  of  Toulouse,  309,  322  ;  his 
army  attacked  by  natives,  323  ;  on 
Mont  Cenis,  324 

Raynald  the  historian,  418 

Realism,  question  of,  and  Nominalism 
in  England,  594  ;  in  Bohemia,  603 

Reckared,  Visigothic  king  in  Spain, 
27  ;  successors  of,  169 

Reformation,  appearance  of,  I  ;  how 
caused,  6,  430,  569,  585  ;  nature  of 
in  England,  588 

Regulars  and  seculars,  576,  577 

Remigius  converts  Clovis,  143 

Renaissance,  importance  of,  547 


ROM 

Rense,  electoral  princes  withdraw  to, 

429,  572 
Responsales,  institution  of,  31 
Rheims,    coronation  of  Lewis  at,   83  ; 
Ilincmar,  Bishop  of,  103;  Council  of, 
an.  813,  168  ;  an.  1 119,  365 
Rhine,  John  XXII.  reaches,  482 
Rhone,  St.  Louis  marches  down,  342 
Riario,  ambition  of,  528 
Ribnitz  secures  privileges,  582 
Riculf,  Bisliop  of  Mainz,  90  ;  supposed 

autlior  of  False  Decretals,  92 
Richard  I.,  King  of  England,  a  Crusa- 
der, 332,  335  ;  acknowledges  lordship 
of  the  Emperor,  563 
Richard  II.,  King  of  England,  enacts 
statute  of  praemunire,   460  ;    Parlia- 
ment    of,     supports,     571  ;     orders 
against  Wycliffe,  598  ;  opposition  to 
Papacy  under,  598,  620 
Richard,     Duke     of     Cornwall,     rival 
Emperor,    267,    554;    supported  by 
cities,  268  ;  death  of,  268 
Rienzi,   career  of,   at  Rome,  431  ;  ap- 
pearance of,  432 
Rimini  ceded  to  Rome,  66 ;  to  be  re- 
covered for  the  PojDes,  536 
Robert,    Bishop   of  Cambray,    elected 

Pope,  441 
Robert  de  Broc,  380 
Robert,  King  of  Naples,  420 
Robert,    King   of  France,    obliged    to 

take  back  his  wife,  249 
Robert,  brother  of  King  of  Frairce,  re- 
ceives an  offer  of  the  empire,  263 
Robert,  son  of  William  the  Conqueror, 

322  ;  returns  to  Europe,  323 
Robert,  Count  of  Flanders,  a  Crusader, 
322,  323  ;  share  in  siege  of  Jerusalem, 

324,  329 

Roger,  King  of  Sicily,  brings  back 
Eugenius  III.  from  exile,  218;  sup- 
ports Anacletus  II.,  224;  appointed 
Apostolic  Vicar  by  Urban  II.,  390 

Roland,  Chancellor  of  the  Apostolic 
See,  234 

Roland  of  Parma,  the  bearer  of  Henry's 
letter  to  the  Pope,  207 

Romagna,  Julius  II.  attempts  to  re- 
cover, 535 

Roman,  meeting  of,  and  Teuton,  2  ; 
inheritor  of  civilisation,  3  ;  system,  3  ; 
empire,  13  ;  purity  of  Church,  i8  ; 
uses  established  in  England,  25 ; 
clergy,  31  ;  canon  on  celibacy,  38; 
civilisation  introduced  into  Germany, 
44  ;  insurrection  on  the  death  of 
Charles,  85  ;  Church,  scandals  of, 
125,    132  ;    republic    re-established, 


664 


INDEX. 


ROM 

129  ;  established,  226  ;  organisation 
of  Church  passes  to  Western  nations, 

141  ;  Christianity,  141;   Imperialism, 

142  ;  overthrow  of  Roman  Empire, 
547 ;  Church,  the  mother  of  Churches, 
132 

Romans,  disputes  of,  and  Greeks,  2 
Romandiola  ceded  to  Urban  V.,  435 
Rome,  an  old  centre,  2 ;  rivalry  of, 
and  Constantinople,  2  ;  ruling  centre, 
9  ;  an  abiding  institution,  10  ;  uni- 
versal sovereignty  of,  22  ;  network 
of  institutions  of,  23  ;  rupture  of,  and 
England,  26 ;  appeal  to  Rome  of 
Frankish  bishops,  28  ;  an  indepen- 
dent dukedom,  56,  58,  69  ;  besieged 
by  Astolf,  64  ;  precarious  allegiance 
of,  to  Empire,  85  ;  Otto  I.  crowned 
at,  123  ;  a  republic,  136  ;  capital  of 
the  world,  132,  287  ;  on  the  side  of 
rights,  174;  plundered  by  Normans, 
211;  return  of  Boniface  VIII.  to, 
277  ;  deplorable  state  of,  431  ;  Urban 
V.  returns  to,  436  ;  Gregory  XI. 
returns  to,  437,  440  ;  Ladislaus 
appears  with  an  army  before,  475  ; 
vices  of,  540 ;  duchy  of,  21  ;  old 
city  of,  10 
Rome,  Synod  of,  an.  649,  34 ;  an.  863, 
98  ;  an.  863,  99  ;  an.  963,  125  ;  an. 
1074,  198;  an.  1047,  202;  an.  1075, 
204 
Roncalia,  Diet  on  fields  of,  234 
Roihad,  Bishop  of  Soissons,  deposed  by 

Hincmar,  103,  104 
Rothenbergers,  feuds  of,  1 14 
Rouen,  Synod  of,  an.  1074,  200 
Rudolph  of  Suabia,  rival  Emperor,  211, 

302 
Rudolph  of  Hapsburg,  Emperor,  268, 
552  ;  Nicholas  III.   gains  mdepend- 
ence  from,  269 
Ruina  Ecclesiae,    Clemangis'  work  on, 

449>  458 
Runnymede,  the  great   Charter  granted 

at,  253,  571 
Rural  Chapters,  172 
Russia,  conversion  of,  144,  145 

SABINA,    a  suffragan  bishopric  of 
Rome,  1 1  ;  bishopric  of  Sylves- 
ter III.,  138 
Sabine  territory,  estates  of  Church  in, 

Sagittarius,  Bishop  of  Gap,  28 
Saiset  de   Pamiers,  Papal  legate,  arro- 
gant conduct  of,  274  ;  sent   away   by 
Philip,  276 


SCO 

Saladin  captures  Jerusalem,   325,   327  ; 
Christians  the  objects  of  his  clemency, 
330  ;  his   treaty  with   Richard,  332  ; 
monument  of  his  success,  390 
Salarian  gate  of  Rome,  64 
Salerno,  liumlUation  and  death  of  Gre- 
gory VII.  at,  211,  220;  Henry  VI. 's 
Queen  captured  at,  244;   Urban  VI. 
besieged  at,  445 
Salisbury,  Robert   tiallam.  Bishop    of, 

48S 
Salona,  Bishop  of,  26 
Salonius,  Bishop  of  Embrun,  28 
Saltwood,  murderers  of  Becket  assemble 

at,  380 
Salzburg,  Gerhard,  Bishop  of,  201 
Samnium,  a  suburban  province,  12 
Samuel,  the  Pope  compared  with,  231 
Saracens,  Empire  twice  rescued  from, 
by  Leo  III.,  47  ;  harass  Rome,  53  ; 
defeated  by  Charles  Martel,   54  ;   at 
the  gates  of  Rome,  96 ;  invade  Spain, 
1 70  ;  territory  i^ecovered  from,    239  ; 
support    Manfred,    266  ;    project    of 
Victor  III.  to  attack,  308  ;  intolerant 
of  proselytes,  31 1  ;  wars  with,  315  ; 
intrigues   of   Greek   Emperors   with, 
316;  abandon   Damietta,    342;  lan- 
guage of  John  XXI.  as  to,  427 
Sardica,  canons  of,  103,  174 
Sardinia,  a  suburban  province,  12 
Sarrazin,  John,  obliged  to  recant,  577 
Savona,  settled  as  place  of  meeting  for 

rival  Popes,  454 
Savoy,  Duke  of,  elected  Pope,  505 
Saxon  forefathers  of  the   English,   23  ; 
invade  England,  24  ;  Church  in  Eng- 
land, 26  ;  Princes  assemble  at  Tribur, 
209  ;  nobles    take    the    Cross,    328  ; 
liberality  of  Saxon   Emperors,  34S  ; 
nation  in  University  of  Prague,  546 
Saxony,  house  of,  elevates  Popes,  1 15, 
130;  liberality  of,   149;  Otto,  Duke 
of,  246  ;  place  of,  in  electoral  college, 

557 

Schaffhausen,  escape  of  John  XXII. 
to,  482 

Schism,  great,  of  West,  6,  439,  546, 
562  ;  cause  of  bloodshed  in  Italy, 
445  ;  attempts  to  heal,  447  ;  conse- 
quences of,  455  ;  ensues,  554 ;  state 
of  things  during,  580 ;  effect  of,  on 
Wycliffe,  592 

Schoolmen,  the,  548 

Schwartzburg,  Gunther  of,  rival  of 
Charles  IV.,  554 

Sclavonia,  natives  of,  attack  Raymond, 

323 
Scotland,     William,     King    of,     251  ; 


INDEX, 


665 


SCO 


STE 


adheres  to  Benedict  XIIT.,  474  ;  a 
distinct  nation,  546;  hereditary  suc- 
cession in,  559 
Scots,  Colman,  champion  of,  25,  146 
Scythian,  21,  547,  567;  love  of  phmder 

outdone  at  Rome,  532 
Seculars  and  Regulars,  576,  577 
See  of  Rome,  power  of,    i  ;  privileges 

of,  90 
Selesius,  Frederic  Barbarossa,  drowned 

ii^.  332 

Seljuk,  house  of,  enthroned  at  Jerusa- 
lem, 318 

Semeca,  Joannes,  calls  papal  imposition 
in  question,  393 

Sens,  Ansegis,  Bishop  of,  109,  389 ; 
Becket  in  exile  at,  378 

SERGIUS  I.,  an.  687-701,  38;  heals 
the  schism  of  Istria,  41 

SERGIUS  II.,  an.  844-847,  elected 
without  the  Emperor's  consent,  95 

SERGIUS  III.,  an.  904-911,  117, 
secures  the  see  by  the  help  of  Adal- 
bert, 1 19 

SERGIUS  IV.,  an.  1009-1012,  an  un- 
distinguished Pope,  135 

Servus  servorum,  Gregory  I.'s  title,  33 

Seville,  Archbishops  of,  receive  the  pal- 
lium, 28  ;  bishopric  of  Isidore,  89 

Sicily,  a  suburban  province,  1 2  ;  Roger, 
King  of,  called  a  usurper  by  S.  Ber- 
nard, 224 ;  Constantia,  heiress  of, 
243  ;  pedigree  of  Kings,  244  ;  ruled 
by  Innocent  III.,  254;  rebellion  in, 
against  Frederic  II.,  264  ;  defended 
by  Manfred,  265  ;  reduced  to  be  a 
fief  of  the  Papacy,  293  ;  crown  of, 
presented  to  Prince  Edmund,  265, 
392  ;  feudal  sovereignty  over,  asserted 
by  Clement  V.,  420;  Aragonese 
rulers  of,  437;  dukedom  of,  conferred 
on  Alexander  VI. 's  son,  530 

Siena,  death  of  Henry  VII.  at,  420  ; 
Council  of,  an.  1424,  494,  495  ; 
Aeneas  Sylvius,  Bishop  of,  519 

Sigebert,  King  of  Essex,  converted,  144 

Sigebert,  Prankish  King,  controls  pro- 
vincial synods,  166 

Sigfrid,  Bishop  of,  200 

Sigismond,  Archduke  of  Austria,  526 

Sigismund,  John  XXII.  in  the  hands 
of,  475  ;  proposes  Council  of  Con- 
stance, 476  ;  Pope  delivered  up  to, 
484  ;  support  given  to,  at  Constance, 
487  ;  pledged  to  the  Council,  498  ; 
Jobstof  Moravia  his  rival,  554  ;  hears 
Huss,  601,  602  ;  sacrifices  Huss, 
614;  impolicy  of,  617;  fiiithlessness 
of,  618 


Silesia  gained  by  Mathias  of  Hungary, 
61S 

Silva  Candida,  a  suffragan  bishopric  of 
Rome,  II 

Simon  de  Montfort,  a  Crusader,  335 

SIMPLICIUS,  an.  467-483,  inter- 
poses in  Spain,  27 

Sion,    Ragmond's   position  on  Mount, 

324 
Sipontum,  Bishop  of,  26 
SIRICIUS,    an.    385-398,    introduces 

Decretals,  14,  89  ;  authoritative  letter 

to  Himerius,  27  ;  forbids  marriage  of 

the  clergy,  195 
Sirmium,    capital   of   Western    Illyria, 

13 

SIXTUS  IV.,  1471-1484,  object  of, 
to  raise  his  family,  528,  529  ;  alliance 
with  Venice,  528  ;  attempts  to  create 
principality,  534 

Sodomites,  words  of,  in  Genesis,  91 

Soissons,  Pepin  anointed  at,  61,  62, 
73,  144,  389  ;  Church  of  St.  Medard, 
at,  87  ;  synod  of  861,  103  ;  bishop 
of,  announces  election  of  Latin  Em- 
peror, 338 

Spain,  a  vicariate  of  Gaul,  13  ;  in- 
cluded in  Italian  patriarchate,  15,  27, 
44;  oppressed  byArians,  16;  inter- 
vention of  Gregory  I.  in,  27  ;  Visi- 
gothic  dominion  in,  28,  169  ;  kings 
of,  convene  councils,  170;  scandalised 
at  the  conduct  of  Philip,  415  ;  sup- 
ports Benedict  XIII.,  474  ;  dukedom 
in,  conferred  on  son  of  Alexander  VI., 
530;  alliance  with  Juhus  II.,  537; 
a  distinct  nation,  546 

Spaniards  at  Constance,  487 

Spanish  Church  yields  to  Rome,  27, 
28  ;  older  communities,  27 

Speier,  Henry  IV.  sets  out  from,  209  ; 
bishop  of,  supports  Gregory  XII., 
474 

Spirituales  among  the  Franciscans,  573 

Spoleto,  dukedom  of,  established  by 
Lombards,  51  ;  seized  by  Normans, 
53  ;  Narni  severed  from,  66  ;  dukes 
of,  separate  from  Lombardy,  67  ; 
Guido,  Duke  of,  115 

Stanislaus  of  Znaim,  603,  619 

States  General  assembled  by  Philip 
the  Fair,  276,  560  ;  against  Boni- 
face VIII.,  278,  450,  588,  620  ;  re- 
nounce allegiance  to  Benedict  XIII. 
in  France,  570;  in  Germany,  451 

Stephania,  wiles  of  the  beautiful,  134 

Stephen,  the  first  martyr,  quoted  as  an 
example,  320 

Stephen,  Count  of  Chartrcs,  a  Crusader, 


666 


INDEX. 


STE 

322  ;  deserts  the  cause,  323  ;  goes 
on  another  Crusade,  327 

Stephen,  the  Pope's  legate,  391,  392 

STEPHEN  II.,  an.  752-757,  treaty 
with  Lombards,  63  ;  appeals  to  Con- 
stantinople in  vain,  64  ;  letters  of,  to 
Pepin,  65,  146  ;  support  rendered  by 
Popes  to  Europeans,  419 

STEPHEN  HI.,  an.  768-772,  Pope, 
67 

STEPHEN  IV.,  an.  816-817,  tenders 
excuses  to  Louis,  82  ;  crowns  him, 
83  ;  tumults  at  election  of,  85 

STEPHEN  v.,  an.  885-891,  113 

STEPHEN  VIIL,  an.  939-943.  121 

STEPHEN  IX.,  an.  1057-1058,  191 

Streaneshalch,  synod  of,  146 

Suabia,  Rudolph  of,  211  ;  Philip  of, 
246 

Suabian  Princes  assemble  at  Tribur, 
208 

Suburbicarise  provincise,  12 

Sudbury,  Simon,  Archbishop  of  Canter- 
bury, 596 

Suevi,  Arians  in  Spain,  16 

Suidger,  Bishop  of  Bamberg,  elected 
Pope,  139 

Sutri,"  towns  of,  estate  of  Church,  57  ; 
synod  of,  1046,  139,  187,  192 

Sweden  converted,  144,  145  ;  by  violent 
means,  311  ;  nomination  to  bishojjrics 
rests  with  sovereign,  388 

Swero,  apostate  priest  in  Iceland,  254 

Swiss  drive  the  French  from  Italy, 
537,  626 

Switzerland  opposes  Papacy,  580 

SYLVESTER  I.,  an.  314-336,  en- 
dowed by  Constantine  II.,  58  ;  time 
of,  90  ;  Otto  III.'s  dream  of  a 
second  S,  132,  133 

SYLVESTER  II.,  an.  999-1003,  ap- 
pointed by  Otto  III.,  132,  134,  216; 
greatness  of,  135  ;  schemes  of,  307 

SYLVESTER  III.,  an.  1044-1046, 
appointed  in  place  of  Benedict  IX., 
137,  270  ;  witladrawsto  Sabina,  138; 
his  cause  espoused  by  Gerard  de 
Saxo,  138  ;  condemned  as  a  usurper, 

139 
Syria  gained  by  Turks,  329 


TABOR,  Hussites  gather  on  Mount, 
616 
Taborites  in  Bohemia,  617 
Tagliacozzo,  battle  of,   266 
Tancred,    the    Norman    Prince,    244  ; 

died,  244 
Tancred,  the  Crusader,    322;  chivalry 


TIU 

of,  323  ;  shares  in  siege  of  Jerusalem, 

324 
Tancred  of  Hauteville,  309 
Tarento,  Boemund,  Prince  of,  325 
Templars,   church   of,    at   Ewell,    251  ; 
property  of,  restored  by  Frederic  II., 
260  ;  suppressed  by  Clement  V.,  416 
Teuton  meets  Roman,  2  ;  rugged,  3 
Teutonic  nations  attain  to  manhood,  4  ; 
spirit,  evidences  of,  554;  growth  of, 
570  ;  representatives  of,  574  ;  asserts 
itself,  582 ;  spirit,  freedom-loving,  6  ; 
independent  vigour  of,  23  ;  fascinated 
by  Rome,    94  ;   Roman   ideas  intro- 
duced among,  1 70  ;  laity  throws   off 
allegiance  to  the   Pope,    199  ;  races 
receive  Latin  Chiistianity,  215  ;  self- 
consciousness  of  the  mind,  549 
Theobald,  Bishop  of  Paris,  is  addressed 

by  Hadrian  IV.,  383 
Theodebert,  King  of  France,  28 
Theodelinda,  Queen  of  the  Lombards, 

32  ;  converted  to  Catholicism,  51 
Theodora,  the  elder,  a  courtesan,  119, 

129 
Theodora,    the   younger,    a   courtesan, 

119,  129 
THEODORE,  Bishop  of  Rome,  642- 

649,  39 
Theodore,  letters  of  Martin  I.  to,  36 
Theodoric  of  Niem,  the  Pope's   cham- 
berlain, 459 
Theophilus,  Bishop  of  Alexandria,  91 
Theophylact,   the   Exarch  of  Ravenna, 

38  ;  son    of  Theophylact    at    Rome, 

118 
Thibaut,     Count     of     Chainpagne,     a 

Crusader,  335 
Thierry,  King  of  France,  28 
Thietberga,  divorced  by  Lothar  II.,  98  ; 

restored  and  protected  by  Nicolas  I., 

100 
Thietgaud,    Archbishop  of  Triers,  99  ; 

deposed  by  Nicolas,  101 
Thomas  Aquinas's  view  of  the  Papacy, 

299 
Thomas  a  Becket     See  Becket. 
Thor,  worship  of,  541 
Thrace,  Crusaders  escape  to  mountains 

of,  321 
Thuringia,  labours  of  Boniface  in,  41 
Tiara,  triple,  of  Popes,  551 
Tiber,   99,  127  ;   Henry  VII.   crowned 

on  banks  of,  419 
Tiberias,    kingdom   of,    founded,   325  ; 

fall  of,  326,  329 
Tithes,    payment    of,    approved  of   by 

bishops  in  France,  149 
Tin,  worship  of,  541 


INDEX. 


667 


TOL 

Toledo,  Council  of,  an.  694,  169  ;  an. 
633,  179  ;  archbishops  of,  reduced  to 
Rome 

Tours,  Council  of,  an.  813,  168  ;  assem- 
bly at,  536  ;  victory  of  Charles 
Martel  at,  54 

Toulouse,  Raymond  of,  309,  322  ; 
Becket  before  walls  of,  377 

Tracy,  William,  murderer  of  Becket, 
380 

Transubstantiation  denied  by  Wycliffe, 

594 

Treasure,  theory  of,  of  merits,  432 

Treuga  Dei,  183 

Trevia  Dei,  183 

Tribur,  meeting  of  Saxon  and  Suabian 
princes  at,  208 

Triers,  Archbishop  of,  20  ;  Thietgaud, 
99  ;  receives  privileges  from  Pepin, 
152  ;  bishop  of,  supports  Gregory 
XII.,  474  ;  deposed  by  Eugenius  IV., 
507  ;  reinstated,  508  ;  position  of,  in 
electoral  college,  556 

Trinacria,  Frederick  III.,  King  of,  437 

Trinoda  necessitas  in  England,  151 

Tripoli,  kingdom  of,  founded,  325  ; 
fall  of,  326,  329 

Troy,  second  siege  of,  310 

Troyes,  Stephen  of,  322 

Truce  of  God,  institution  of,  180,  196; 
confirmed  at  Clermont,  343 

Tunis,  King  of,  supposed  favourable  to 
Christianity,  343 

Turibius,  Bishop  of  Asturica,  27 

Turin,  Cunibert,  Bishop  of,  201 

Turkmans  receive  government  of  Jeru- 
salem, 318  ;  impede  progress  of 
Frederic  Barbarossa,  332 

Turks,  332  ;  honour  of,  in  Europe,  53 ; 
Jerusalem  wrested  from,  307  ;  over- 
run Palestine,  307  ;  parallelism  of, 
and  Dardanians,  310  ;  conquer  Je- 
rusalem, 318  ;  Christians  combine 
against,  326  ;  efforts  of,  to  recover 
Palestine,  329 ;  attacked  in  Egypt, 
335  ;  take  Constantinople,  337, 
509  ;  friendly  to  Frederic  II.,  341  ; 
Crusades  preached  against,  519,  521, 
527,     530  j      Greeks     escape    from, 

584 
Turrecremata  exposes   false   decretals, 

92 
Tuscan    Duke    Adalbert,    1 1 7  ;    party 

elevated,  128  ;  reigns  supreme,  129  ; 

triumphant,  135 
Tuscany,    a    suburban    province,     12  ; 

dukes  of,  116  ;  Sergius  III.  exiled  in, 

117 
Tusculum,    a    suffragan    bishopric    of 


Rome,  1 1  ;  counts  of,  leaders  of 
Tuscan  party,  136  ;  loo  strong  for 
the  people,  138  ;  surrendered  to  the 
Pope,  244 

Type  of  Constans,  35,  37 

Tyre  defended  by  Conrad  of  Mont- 
ferrat,  331  ;  remains  of  Frederic 
Barbarossa  conveyed  to,  333 


ULM,  privilege  of,  582 
Ultramontanism,  causes  of,  509 
Umbria,  a  suburban  province,  12 
Unam  Sanctam,   the  Bull,   275  ;  burnt 

by  Philip,  276  ;  contents  of,  286 
Unigenitus,  the  Bull,  432 
Universalis   Papa,    29,   56 ;  episcopus, 

37 

URBAN  II.,  an.  1088-1099,  in  exile, 
218  ;  at  Amalfi,  220,  358  ;  re-esta- 
blished at  Rome  by  Crusaders,  219  ; 
summons  synod  at  Piacenza,  221  ; 
arms  Europe  for  a  crusade,  30S  ; 
speech  at  Council  of  Clermont,  313, 
320  ;  scheme  of,  and  Boemund,  314  ; 
won  by  Peter  the  Hermit,  319;  re- 
news decree  against  investitures,  357  ; 
death  of,  360  ;  decree  of,  accepted 
by  kings  of  Castile,  363  ;  appoints 
Roger  legate,  390 

URBAN   III.,  an.  1185-1187,  243 

URBAN  IV.,  an.  1261-1264,  264; 
grants  crown  of  Sicily  to  Charles  of 
Anjou,  266 

URBAN  v.,  an.  1362-1370,  434  ;  ex- 
communicates Visconti,  434  ;  capi- 
tulates, 435  ;  applies  to  Edward  III. 
for  tribute,  435,  587,  588  ;  returns 
to  Rome,  436  ;  takes  a  third  crown, 
552  ;  defied  by  Parliament,  588  ; 
stniggle  with  England,  589 

URBAN  VI.,  an.'  1378-1389,  election 
of,  441  ;  previously  known  as  an 
ascetic,  442  ;  supported  by  Italy, 
445  ;  grants  Naples  to  Charles  of 
Durazzi,  445  ;  besieged  at  Salerno, 
445  ;  death  of,  445  ;  free  from  simony, 

457 
Utraquists  in  Bohemia,  617 
Utrecht,  Willibrord,  bishop  of,  160 


VALENTINE,  Pope,  an.  827,  84 
Valentinian  I II.,  West  Emperor,  16 
Valentinois,  Dukedom  of,  conferred  on 

Ccesar  Borgia,  531 
Valeria,  a  suburban  province,  12 
Valois,  Charles  of,  414;  Philip  of,  566 


668 


INDEX. 


VAN 

Vandals,  Rome  pillaged  by,  ii  ;  in- 
vade Africa,  l6,  40  ;  Arians,  16 

Vatican  occupied  by  Sylvester  III.,  138 

Venaissin,  government  of,  entrusted  to 
a  cardinal,  497 

Venetians  settled  at  Constantinople,^ 
334  ;  appealed  to  by  Crusaders,  335  ; 
afford  help,  336  ;  hope  for  a  new 
field  of  commerce,  337  ;  outlawed 
by  Clement  v.,  418;  ships  at  An- 
cona,  523 ;  possess  Romagna  and 
Cervia,  535 

Venice,  against  the  Lombards,  52  ; 
treaty  of,  concluded  by  Frederic  Bar- 
barossa,  236,  242,  267  ;  Crusaders 
apply  to,  for  help,  335  ;  scheme  of, 
33 ;  disputes  the  Pope's  claim  to 
Ferrara,  418  ;  submission  of,  419  ; 
Angelo  Coravio  of,  453  ;  allied  with 
Sixtus  IV.,  528;  recovers  lost  terri- 
tory, 531  ;  opposes  Julius  II.,  535  ; 
supported  by  Julius  II.,  536;  alU- 
ance  of  Julius  II.  with,  537 

Vercelli,  Bishop  of,  deposed,  157 

Verdun,  treaty  of,  88  ;  time  of  False 
Decretals,  92 

Vermandois,  Hugh  of,  322,  327 

Verona  coveted  by  Emperor,  536 

Veronese  League  expands,  235 

Vezelay,  enthusiasm  of  Crusaders  at, 
229  ;  preaching  of  St.  Bernard 
at,  327 

Vicar  of  God,  Innocent  III.  considers 
himself,    284  ;    Boniface  VIII.  also, 
286,  296 ;   of  Christ  deposed,  427 
Vicariiis  iirbis,  jurisdiction  of,    12,  21 

VICTOR  I.,  an.  192-202,  Bishop  of 
Rome,  91 

VICTOR  IL,  an.  1055-1057,  191 ; 
appoints  apostolic  legates,  389 

VICTOR  HI.,    an.  1086-1087,   220  ; 
projects  a  crusade,   308  ;    renews  de- 
cree against  investitures,  357;    lives 
in  exile,  358 
Victor  IV.,  anti-pope,  234,  301 

Vienne,  metropolitans  of,  16;  secures 
privileges,  5S2 

Vienne,  Council  of,  appealed  to  by 
Clement  V.,  416  ;  suppresses  Tem- 
plars, 417 

VIGILIU'S,  an.  540-555,  condemns 
the  Three  Chapters,  41 

Villehardouin,  Jeffrey  of,  335 

Vincennes,  assembly  of  theologians 
at,  421 

Visconti,  Bernarbo,  raler  of  Milan,  434; 
excommunicated  by  Urban  V.,  434  ; 
agreement  with,  435  ;  alliance  with 
cities  in  ecclesiastical  Slates,  437 


WIN 


Visigothic  King  Reckared,   27  ;    domi- 
nion in  Spain,  28,  169 
VITALIAN,  an.  657-672,  37 
Vladimir  of  Russia  converted,  144,  145 


WALA,   counsellor  of  Louis,   83  ; 
a  monk,  86 
Waldenses,  588 
Waldhausen,  Conrad  of,  a  reformer  in 

Bohemia,  588,  599 
Waldrada,  mistress  of  Lothar  II.,  98 
Wales,   Celtic  races  of,    24;  successes 

of  King  John  in,  25 1 
Walter  the  Penniless   leads  first  Cru- 
sade, 316,  321 
War,    religious  character  attached   to, 

291 
Wat  Tyler  leads  insurrection,  595 
Welfs,     party    of,    in    Germany,    227 ; 
pedigree  of,    228  ;     Henry  the   Lion 
their  leader,  236 
Wenceslaus,  Emperor,  scheme  of,  450, 
460  ;  weak  rule  of,   580  ;    deposition 
of,    an    insult     to    Bohemia,     606 ; 
changes  constitution  of  University  of 
Prague,  607  ;    supports  Huss,    609, 
610  ;   death  of,  616 
Wessler    supports    Richard   of    Corn- 
wall, 268 
Western  Christendom,  13,  14 
Western  Empire,  fall  of,  li,  21 
Westminster,    Henry  II. 's  demand  on 

bishops  at,  371 
Whitby,  synod  of,    an.    664,    25,    141, 

146 
Wibert,  Archbishop  of  Ravenna,  295 
Wilfrid,  champion  of  Roman  uses,  25 
William,  Norman  King  of  Sicily,  suc- 
cessor to  Roger,  218,  230 
William  of  Scotland  subdued  by  John, 

251 
William,  Count  of  Holland,  264,  267 
William  of  Melun  a  crusader,  324 
William,    Duke    of  Normandy,     182  ; 
maintains  his  supremacy  over  Church 
of  England,  201,  358;  treatment  of, 
by  Hildebrand,  205  ;  receives  a  con- 
secrated banner  from  Alexander  II., 
217  ;  letter  of  Gregory  VII.  to,  282  ; 
introduces  courts  Christian,  304;  lime 
of,     350;    conquers    England,    359; 
pedigi-ee  of,  396 
William  II.,  of  England,  supreme  over 
the  Church,  359  ;  death  of,  360 ;  pe- 
digree of,  396;  conciliates  Normans, 

563 
Willibrord,  Bishop  of  Utrecht,  159 
Winchester,  synod  of,   an.  1076,  201 ; 


INDEX. 


669 


WIN 

Bishop  of,  settles  disputed  points  at 
Constance,   491  ;    Bishop  of,    claims 
election  to  the  crown,  5S2 
Wini  purchases  see  of  London,  159 
Wismar  secures  privileges,  582 
Wadislaus,  a  Polish  prince,  618 
Worcester,  property  of  Church  in,  350 
Worms,  Council  of,  an.  1076, 206 ;  Con- 
cordat of,  on  investitures,  215  ;  con- 
cluded,  222,    366  ;  implies    spiritual 
feudalism,    228  ;  Bishop  of,  supports 
Gregory  XII.,  474 
Wurtemburg,  Luther  at,  576 
Wycliffe,  supported  by  Parliament,  57^  J 
denounces  Mendicants,  578;  a  native 
of  Yorkshire,  587  ;  begins  dispute  on 
a  money    matter,    588  ;  against   the 
Pope,  589  ;  translates  the  Bible,  593  ; 
decline    of    influence,     593 ;    denies 
transubstantiation,    594  ;  appeals    to 
Parliament,  596 ;  dies  at  Lutterv^orth, 
598  ;  resemblance  of  Huss  to,  600 ; 
a  supporter  of   Realism,   594,   603  ; 
writings  in  Bohemia,  603  ;  heretical 
propositions    of,    605  ;    writings   of, 
burnt  in  Bohemia,   609 ;    denounced 
by  Alexander  V. ,  609  ;  doctrines  of, 
advocated  by  Huss,  615 
Wycliffite  heresy  in  Bohemia,  606 


zos 

YORK,  Simon  Langton,  Archbishop 
of,  387  ;  heiress  of  house  of,  mar- 
ries into  house  of  Lancaster,  599 
Yorkshire,  birthplace  of  Wycliffe,  587 


ZACHARIAS,  an.  742-752,  20,  70  ; 
negotiations  with  Pepin,  56  ;  in- 
dependent election  of,  56 ;  visits 
Lombards,  57 ;  appoints  Boniface 
his  legate,  59  ;  sanctions  anointing 
of  Pepin,  61,  73  ;  his  conduct  ap- 
appealed  to  by  Gregory  VII.,  283 
Zara  attacked  by  crusaders,  336,  337 
Zbynek,   Archbishop  of   Prague,    606, 

608  ;  tenders  submission  to  Alexan- 
der V.,  608;  letter  to  John  XXII., 

609  ;  pronounces  sentence  on   Huss, 

610  ;  death  of,  61 1 
Zeno,  Bishop  of  Seville,  27 
ZEPIIYRINUS,  an.  202-219,  91 
ZinzinuHS,  rival  Pope,  an.  824,  86 
Ziska,  John,  at  the  head  of  Hussites, 

616 
Znaim,  Peter  of,  603,  608 
ZOSIMUS,  an.  417-418,  appealed  to 

by   Apiarius,     15  ;    interposition   in 

France,  16 


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