THE DECLINE OF THE PAPACY 225
Boniface's vaulting ambition was Philip IV of France. Two
years before Boniface's election, Philip the Fair had imposed
tithes upon the Church in France to finance his war against
England, and in 1296 he proposed a similar tax. Boniface
pointed out that the Church could not be taxed without the
permission of the Holy See and demanded the withdrawal
of the edict, which he denounced as an abuse of the secular
power. Philip, however, took another step against the
Church. He forbade the exportation of gold or silver
without permission, and thus prevented Boniface from
receiving the contributions due to the Holy See from the
French ecclesiastics. Boniface protested again, but Philip
challenged the right of Rome to intervene in the affairs of
the kingdom. He could not admit that the priests should
be free from taxation imposed for the protection of France,
and he denied that the prohibition against the export of
money was aimed at the Pope. The quarrel lasted till
February, 1297, and ended with a decisive victory for Philip.
Boniface professed that he had been misunderstood, and
agreed that, if the clergy of France voluntarily consented
to pay a tax in exceptional circumstances, the king was
entitled to collect it without consulting the Holy See.
Boniface, however, asserted his authority by forcing Philip
and Edward I of England to conclude a peace on the terms
drafted by him, and before two years had passed his position
was strengthened by one of the most extraordinary events in
the history of the Church. The turn of the century had
always been marked by great religious fervour, but never
had Rome received such flocks of penitents as wended their
way from every quarter at the end of 1299. The Pope had
promised absolution to all who came to the Eternal City for
fifteen days and the pilgrims were numbered in hundreds of
thousands. They were expected to give generously to the
Church and they did not fail. The coffers of the Holy See
were replenished beyond calculation. Boniface is said to