Pope Leo VIII
| Pope Leo VIII | |
|---|---|
| Bishop of Rome | |
| |
| Church | Catholic Church |
| Papacy began | 6 December 963 (as antipope); 23 June 964 (as pope) |
| Papacy ended | 26 February 964 (as antipope); 1 March 965 (as pope) |
| Predecessor | Benedict V |
| Successor | John XIII |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Leo c. 915 Rome, Papal States |
| Died | 1 March 965 (aged c. 50) Rome, Papal States |
| Parents | John |
| Other popes named Leo | |
Pope Leo VIII (c. 915 – 1 March 965) was a Roman prelate who claimed the Holy See from 963 until 964 in opposition to John XII and Benedict V and again from 23 June 964 to his death. Today, he is considered by the Catholic Church to have been an antipope during the first period and the legitimate pope during the second. An appointee of Holy Roman Emperor Otto I, Leo VIII's pontificate occurred after the period known as the saeculum obscurum.
Early life
Born in Rome in the region around the Clivus Argentarius, Leo came from an illustrious noble family. He was the son of John, who held the office of protonotary.[1] Although a layperson, he was the protoscriniarius (or superintendent of the Roman public schools for scribes) in the papal court during the pontificate of John XII. In 963, he was included in a party that John sent to the newly crowned Holy Roman emperor, Otto I, who was besieging the deposed King Berengar II of Italy at the castle of St. Leo in Umbria. His instructions were to reassure the emperor that the pope was determined to correct the abuses of the papal court, as well as protest Otto's actions in demanding that cities in the Papal States take an oath of fidelity to the emperor instead of the pope.[2]
Struggle for papacy
By the time Otto entered Rome to depose Pope John XII, Leo had been appointed protonotary to the Apostolic See.[3] A synod convened by the emperor uncanonically deposed John XII (who had fled to Tibur). It proceeded to elect Leo VIII, who was the emperor's nominee, as pope on 4 December 963. Since Leo was still a layman,[4] he was ordained as ostiarius, lector, acolyte, subdeacon, deacon and priest in the space of a day by Sico, the cardinal-bishop of Ostia, who then proceeded to consecrate him as bishop on 6 December 963.[5] The deposed John, however, still had a large body of sympathisers within Rome; he offered large bribes to the Roman nobility if they would rise up and overthrow Otto and kill Leo, and so, in early January 964, the Roman people staged an uprising that was quickly put down by Otto's troops. Leo, hoping to reach out to the Roman nobility, persuaded Otto to release the hostages he had taken from the leading Roman families in exchange for their continued good behaviour.[6] However, once Otto left Rome around 12 January 964, the Romans again rebelled, and caused Leo to flee Rome and take refuge with Otto sometime in February 964.[7]
John XII returned, and in February convened a synod which in turn deposed Leo on 26 February 964, with John excommunicating Leo in the process.[8] Leo remained with Otto, and, with the death of John XII in May 964, the Romans elected Benedict V. Otto proceeded to besiege Rome, taking Leo with him, and when the Romans eventually surrendered to Otto, Leo was reinstalled in the Lateran Palace as Pope.
The former pope was brought before Leo with Benedict's clerical and lay supporters and clad in his pontifical robes. Benedict was asked how he dared to assume the chair of Saint Peter while Leo was still alive. Benedict responded, "If I have sinned, have mercy on me."[9] Having received a promise from the emperor that his life would be spared if he submitted, Benedict threw himself at Leo's feet and acknowledged his guilt.[10] Brought before a synod convened by Leo, Benedict's episcopal ordination was revoked, his pallium was torn from him, and his pastoral staff was broken over him by Leo. However, through the intercession of Otto, Benedict was allowed to retain the rank of deacon.[11] Then, after having the Roman nobility swear an oath over the Tomb of Saint Peter to obey and be faithful to Leo, Otto departed Rome in late June 964.[12]
Pontificate
Having been crowned by Otto, the remainder of Leo's pontificate was reasonably trouble-free. He issued numerous bulls, many of which detailed granting privileges to Otto and his successors. Some of the bulls were alleged to grant the Holy Roman emperors the right to choose their successors in the Kingdom of Italy and the right to nominate the pope, and all popes, archbishops, and bishops were to receive investiture from the emperor. In addition, Leo is also claimed to have relinquished to Otto all the territory of the Papal States that had been granted to the Apostolic See by Pepin the Short and Charlemagne. Although Leo certainly granted various concessions to his imperial patron, it is now believed that the "investiture" bulls associated with Leo were, if not completely fabricated during the Investiture Controversy, at the very least so tampered with that it is now largely impossible to reconstruct them in their original form.[13]
Leo VIII died on 1 March 965 and was succeeded by John XIII. The Liber Pontificalis described him as venerable, energetic, and honourable. He had some streets dedicated to him in and around the Clivus Argentarius, including the descensus Leonis Prothi.
Historiography
Although Leo was considered an antipope for many years, his current status is still confusing. The Annuario Pontificio makes the following point about the pontificate of Leo VIII:
At this point, as again in the mid-eleventh century, we come across elections in which problems of harmonizing historical criteria and those of theology and canon law make it impossible to decide clearly which side possessed the legitimacy whose factual existence guarantees the unbroken lawful succession of the Successors of Saint Peter. The uncertainty that in some cases results has made it advisable to abandon the assignation of successive numbers in the list of the Popes.[14]
Due to Leo's uncanonical original election, it is now accepted that, at least until the deposition of Benedict V, he was almost certainly an antipope. The deposition of John XII was almost certainly invalid, as John did not acquiesce, so the election of Benedict V almost certainly was canonical. However, if Benedict did consent to his deposition as Liutprand of Cremona (who chronicled the events of this period) wrote, and if, as seems certain, no further protest was made against Leo's position, it has been the consensus of historians that he may be regarded as a true pope from July 964 to his death in 965.[15] The fact that no one else attempted to claim the papacy during this time and that the next pope to assume the name Leo was consecrated Leo IX also seems to indicate that he is a true pope.
From the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia
Pope Leo VIII — Date of birth unknown; d. between 20 February and 13 April, 965. When the Emperor Otho I illegally brought about the deposition of the unworthy Pope John XII (Nov., 963), he equally illegally caused to be elected, to fill his place, a layman, "Leo, the venerable protonotary". Leo was a Roman and the son of one John. His family was well known in the Clivus Argentarii (now Via di Marforio, between the Corso and the Forum Romanum), and he himself gave his name to various streets in the neighbourhood of his home. Chosen pope on 4 December, he was consecrated Bishop of Rome on 6 December, all the lesser orders having, in violation of the canon law, been bestowed upon him in the meantime by Sico, Bishop of Ostia. A few weeks after Leo's consecration, the Romans made a vain effort to overthrow the authority of the emperor. They were severely punished for their attempt; but, through the intercession of Leo, Otho restored to them the hostages he had received from them. No sooner, however, did the emperor leave Rome, than the people rose and expelled his nominee (Feb., 964). John XII at once returned to the city, summoned a council, condemned Leo "one of the employees of our curia, who has broken his faith with us", and degraded those clerics who had been ordained by him. Soon after this John died (14 May, 964), and the Romans unwisely elected to succeed him the Cardinal-Deacon Benedict. Indignant at the expulsion of Leo, and the election of Benedict, Otho hurried to Rome, and was soon in possession of both it and the new pope. Leo returned with the emperor, and at once brought Benedict to trial. With the consent of all his would-be judges, Benedict was degraded to the rank of a deacon, Leo himself tearing the pallium from his shoulders (July, 964). If it be the fact, as is asserted by a contemporary, that Benedict acquiesced in his deposition, and if, as seems certain, no further protest was made against Leo's position, he may well be regarded as a true pope from July, 964, to his death in 965, about the month of March.
No extant records inform us of any deeds which Leo performed during the period when he may be safely regarded as a true pope. He is said, indeed, to have given Otho the right of nominating any one he chose to be pope or bishop, and to have restored to Otho all the lands which his predecessors had bestowed upon the papacy. It is generally allowed, however, that the documents which make these statements are imperial productions forged during the investiture quarrel.
Liber Pontificalis, ed. Duchesne, II (Paris, 1892), 250; Liutprand, Hist. Ottonis (Hanover, 1877), ix sqq.; Ann. Altahenses majores (Hanover, 1868), an., 963 sq.; Jaffé, Reg., I (Leipzig, 1888), 467 sqq. Cf. Fisher, The Medieval Empire, II (London, 1897), 113; Duchesne, The Beginnings of the Temporal Sovereignty of the Popes (London, 1908), 222 sqq.; Mann, The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages, IV, 260-81.
References
- Back to citation Mann, pgs. 255 & 280
- Back to citation Mann, pgs. 255–256
- Back to citation Mann, pgs. 260 & 280
- Back to citation Mann, pgs. 260–261
- Back to citation Gregorovius, pg. 348
- Back to citation Gregorovius, pg. 349
- Back to citation Mann, pg. 262
- Back to citation Gregorovius, pgs. 350–351
- Back to citation Gregorovius, pg. 354
- Back to citation Mann, pgs. 275-276
- Back to citation Mann, pg. 276
- Back to citation McBrien, pg. 159
- Back to citation Mann, pg. 281; Gregorovius, pg. 356
- Back to citation Annuario Pontificio, 2001
- Back to citation Mann, p. 280
Bibliography
- Gregorovius, Ferdinand, The History of Rome in the Middle Ages, Vol. III (1895)
- Mann, Horace K., The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages, Vol. IV: The Popes in the Days of Feudal Anarchy, 891–999 (1910)
- McBrien, Richard P. (2000), Lives of the Popes: The Pontiffs from St. Peter to Benedict XVI, HarperCollins