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Since the crowning of Charlemagne as the Holy Roman Emperor, the Papacy has had some sort of influence over Europe. The Pope claimed divine authority over all, and threatened those who would disobey with Excommunication. To those that were loyal, the blessing of the Pope was useful when in conflict with other rulers. However, it had not always been successful in obtaining absolute control. Its claim of universal jurisdiction caused many disagreements, and no matter how much power it would gain, there was always some struggle to keep it. It has been in numerous conflicts with various rulers, including the Holy Roman Emperor at times, and even its followers. These conflicts would fuel the not only the rise, but also the decline of the Papal Monarchy.

One of the first problems that the Papacy faced was maintaining dominance over the State Church of the Roman Empire. This was because of many issues had risen between Constantinople and Rome, two powerful centers of ecclesiastical authority. The Eastern Church did not agree on some of the practices of the Western Church, who was not willing to compromise. The Byzantine emperor Leo III had forbade the veneration of icons between 726 and 730, causing the Iconoclastic Controversy. The two churches were pitted against each other until the Second Council of Nicaea officially ended Iconoclasm over fifty years later. Another issue was that the Western Church had inserted the filioque into the Nicene Creed in 1014 without getting consent from the Eastern Churches. The West claimed that they had Papal Supremacy, but the East did not support their claim. They themselves believed that the Byzantine emperor had sovereignty both politically and religiously. The incident that would finally push them over the edge was when Patriarch Michael I

2 attacked some of the liturgical practices of the West, most importantly, the use of unleavened bread. Pope Leo IX's response would lead to both sides excommunicating each other in 1054, resulting in the Great Schism.

When Charlemagne was crowned Emperor of the Romans on December 25, 800, Pope Leo III had intended for it to give him both protection and power over the king, with the reasoning that if the pope can make rulers, he can certainly dispose of them. This of course was not the case, and many rulers have forced their influence over the pope. In the case of Otto I, after he was crowned emperor in 962, the church became over time more and more under royal control. Despite the fact that Otto had helped rid him of Berengar II, Pope John XII decided to join the resistance against Otto, but only to be deposed and replaced with Leo VIII. Although John XII would return, his successor, Benedict V, would be exiled by Otto and Leo would once again become Pope. Otto decreed that future popes would have to swear allegiance to the emperor, otherwise he could not take office. This requirement would last until the reforms of Pope Leo IX.

After the Cluny reform movement, Gregory VII, a respected reformist, became pope in 1073. At the time lay investiture was common, but to similar reformist, it was the greatest act of simony. In order to free the Papacy from the emperor, He issued In Nomine Domini, stating secular rulers could not take part in the selecting of popes. Gregory VII also declared in Dictatus Papae that only the Pope could appoint bishops, and also that the pope alone had the power to depose an emperor. Henry IV, emperor at the time, responded by announcing independence from Gregory, beginning the Investiture Controversy. This caused Gregory to excommunicate Henry, and with the

3 territorial princes in full support of him, Henry had no choice but to reconcile with the pope. Once arrived, he presented himself at the gate of the castle, barefoot and clad only in wretched woolen garments, beseeching us with tears to grant him absolution and forgiveness. This he continued for three days, until all those about us were moved to compassion at his plight and interceded for him with tears and prayers.(Gregory VII, 'Go to Canossa!' Henry's Penance (January 28, 1077), 243). With the former king literally begging at the feet of the pope, the Papacy had reached its height in power. However, Henry had no intention of remaining under the pope's influence. He regained his forces, and although excommunicated again, Henry was successful in removing Gregory and installing the anti-pope Clement III. The crisis was later resolved by Henry's son, Henry V, with the Concordat of Worms in 1122.

The beginning of the decline of the Papacy from height of its power can be attributed to Pope Boniface IIV. When England and France were at war during the time Boniface was elected pope, they taxed the clergy heavily with the reasoning of preparing for a Crusade. Boniface saw this as an attack on clerical rights, so he issued the Clericis laicos in 1296, forbidding taxation of the clergy without the pope's approval. This did not come without consequence from the kings of England and France, but King Phillip IV the Fair was a force to be reckoned with. He cut off the flow of money from France to to Rome, and the Pope had no choice but to come to terms with Phillip in order to get back the revenues the papacy needed. But the rivalry between the two men continued. After a conflict over the fate of the bishop Bernard Saisset, Phillip launched a strong anti-papal campaign. The Pope issued in his defense the Unam Sanctum (1302), in which Boniface declared that there are two swords, one spiritual and one temporal, and that the church wields the

4 spiritual sword and the kings and knights wield the temporal sword, but only under the authority of the church (Boniface VIII, Unam Sanctum (1302), 273). When Philip protested, he had him excommunicated. With the help of their Italian allies, the French moved against Boniface, and in August of 1303 he was severely beaten and almost executed. After dying the following month, and his successor, Benedict XI, dying in exile nine months later, Clement V was under French control.

When Clement V refused to move to Rome after being elected pope in 1309, The Avignon Papacy, or the Babylonian Captivity, began and a pope would not reside in Rome again until 1377. According to Perry M. Rogers, This period of self imposed exile from the spiritual seat of the papal power in Rome irreparably damaged the church. (Rogers,The Babylonian Captivity and the conciliar Movement, 277). This statement is strengthened by Petrarch, who lived in Avignon during this time. Instead of holy solitude, we find a criminal host and crowds of the most infamous satellites;(Petrarch, On the Abuses of Avignon, 277). The new seat of the Papacy was a corrupt one, and its residents took full advantage of the situation. It was not until Gregory XI moved his court to Rome.

When Gregory XI passed away in 1378, a new pope was elected to reside in Rome, Urban IV. However, French cardinals were not pleased with this choice and in response elected their own pope, Clement VII, who would reside back in Avignon. Both popes had excommunicated each other, and each had support from various European states. This began the Great Schism, or Western Schism, and would place the church in a stalemate. In order to rectify the situation, a council was formed by church scholars. At the Council of Pisa in 1409, both popes were deposed, and a third,

5 Alexander V, was elected. But the other two anti-popes did not step down, which ultimately made matters worse. Finally in 1417, the Council of Constance resolved the issue and one head of the church was established. The Conciliar Movement was never as successful again, and conciliar domination was later condemned.

After the Papacy regained supreme control over ecclesiastical matters, it was still heavily criticized for being corrupt and abusive of its powers. One of the prime examples of this was the sale of indulgences -remissions of the obligation to perform a work of satisfaction for a sin. Originally given to crusaders who might die before penance, over time these indulgences became available to anyone who could pay for them. Under Pope Leo X, in order to raise money to rebuild St. Peter's, granted indulgences that promised forgiveness of all outstanding sins upon the completion of certain acts. Many people opposed the idea of this, but none as much as Martin Luther. He believed that salvation could not be achieved through indulgences, or a person's merit for that matter, but through faith and God's mercy alone (Luther, Salvation thorough Faith Alone, 318-319). He saw that the Church was in the wrong, and demanded reform. Ulrich Zwingli in Switzerland, and John Calvin in Geneva would also begin their own reform movements, thus increasing the opposition to the papacy.

Not all reform movements were the cause of spiritual motives, as was the case of the separation of the Church of England from Rome. Henry VIII, king of England, wanted to have his marriage with Catherine of Argon annulled, but Pope Clement VII refused to do so. In retaliation, Henry separated from the Roman Catholic church in 1534 and with the Act of Supremacy declared

6 himself the head of the Church of England. He took over any land that once belong to the church and the revenue it generated. Anyone who failed to recognize him as the head of the church would be charged with treason. England would later be restored to a Catholic state under Queen Mary I in 1554, but her successor Elizabeth I would return it back to Protestantism in 1559 with the Second Act of Supremacy. The Papacy lost ecclesiastical jurisdiction throughout Europe with the reform movements, and would not recover the political power it once wielded . This loss of power is accredited to the countless conflicts that it had with The Holy Roman Emperor, various rulers, itself, and its followers. The last Holy Roman Emperor was Charles V, and as no other was crowned after him, the Holy Roman Empire had fallen.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
From Chapter 9 Gregory VII, 'Go to Canossa!' Henry's Penance (January 28, 1077), 243 From Chapter 10 Boniface VIII, Unam Sanctum (1302), 273 Rogers,The Babylonian Captivity and the conciliar Movement, 277 Petrarch, On the Abuses of Avignon, 277 From Chapter 12 Luther, Salvation thorough Faith Alone, 318-319