Course:Carey HIST501/Project 3/Leo III

Research on the life of a medieval Pope from the list provided below and put together a 500-word mini biography of the historical figure assigned by the instructor (the list will be posted on the course website). For each mini biography, please include the following:

Year of birth and death

a Mosaic of Leo III

The date of Leo III's birth is unknown.

• He was born in Rome. He was the son of Atyuppius and Elisabeth.

Leo III died on June 12, 816.

• He was canonized in 1673.
• His feast day is on June 12.

He was the Pope of Rome from 795 - 816.

A short biographical sketch of the medieval Pope

About Leo III - Early Life and His Character

There is little written about the early years of Leo III's life. The barbaric name of his father coupled with the fact that nothing is stated in the Liber Pontificalis (the Book of Popes) of him having aristocratic connections, gives some indication that Leo may have been from plebeian (a general citizen) rather than from a privileged class. What we do know is that from a very early age, Leo had been trained and brought up working in the treasury department of the Lateran. His religious and theological training was most likely received in the treasury department of the Lateran. He was ordained priest in the church of S. Susanna on the Quirinal. After he became Pope, he ensured that this church was both enlarged and enriched.

According to the Book of Popes, Leo III was chaste, eloquent and of a persevering disposition. He was well versed and passionate about the sacred scriptures, the psalmody and holy living. He was known to be a great almsgiver and made it his habit to visit the sick, and exhorted them to redeem their souls through almsgiving. He was also known to distribute to the poor in secret and was beloved by all (though, his assassination attempt might speak contrary these statements found in the Book of Popes).

Historical Context for the start of The Carolingian Empire

As Byzantine power in Italy began to wane and Constantinople could no longer maintain a strong army in Italy. For the western part of the empire, the Lombards became an ever present threat. The popes were forced to find support outside of Constantinople and they found this support in the Franks. The Franks would become the main support of the papacy in the western part of the empire.

Pope Hadrian or Adrian I (the predecessor of Leo III) tried to maintain "independence in the growing estrangement between East and West by balancing the Byzantine emperor against Charlemagne." On account of the lack of support from Constantinople in order stave off the threat of the Lombards, Hadrian had to rely upon an alliance with the Franks. As a result, his policies as pope were more determined by his Frankish allegiance than his relations with the Byzantine emperors of Constantinople.

On December 26, 795, on the very day that Hardian was buried, Leo III was elected as pope. He was unanimously supported in his election, and even received endorsement from Charlemagne the king of the Franks. Unlike Hadrian who tried to balance the power between the Byzantine emperor and Charlemagne, Leo III immediately supported the rule of Charlemagne.

The Attack on Leo III

On April 25, 799, Leo III was attacked during the procession of the Greater Litany. The principal conspirator was Paschal who was the principal official of the papal administration. He was also the nephew of Hadrian. The other main conspirator was a man named Campulus who was a lieutenant and had been appointed as saccellarius (a paymaster) by Leo III himself. On the morning of April 25th, Leo III left the Lateran palace to join the people who were awaiting his arrival at the Church of S. Lorenzo. Paschal and Campulus were waiting for him there, interestingly they were not wearing the proper ecclesiastical vestments prescribed for the event. It's plausible that these vestments were too cumbersome and not suitable for men who were about to doll out savage violence upon Pope Leo III.

Paschal, Campulus as well as a band of armed men seized the Pope, threw him to the ground and attempted to cut out his eyes and tongue. After this viscious attack, the assassins withdrew to leave the Pope bleeding out on the street. In seeing that no one would come to the wounded Pope's aid, the assassins returned and dragged the Pontiff into the Church of St. Silvester where they again gashed his face, beat him and left him half dead before the altar of the church. Miraculously, Pope Leo III survived the attack, and he fled north to seek the protection of Charlemagne in Paderborn. The attacked on Leo III ended up garnering sympathy from majority of the cities of Rome.

The motives for the attack are unclear. Some have speculated that the men who attacked the Pope were ardent supporters of Hadrian. While the official statement from some of the chronicles of that time state that "The Romans (i.e. Paschal and his party) condemned or attacked the Pope through envy." Were these attacks due to Leo not being a member of the aristocracy, or were was it because he favored different factions of nobility that Hadrian did not, cannot be stated with certainty.

The Crowning of Charlemagne - Christmas Day, 800CE

Paschal and his conspirators were condemned to death under the charge of high treason. "However, despite the treatment he had received at their hands, Leo, in keeping with the character assigned to him by his biographer, actuated by his merciful disposition, begged that life and limb might be spared them. His request was granted, and the prisoners were sent into exile in France."

The Crowning of Charlemagne as Imperator Romanorum (Emperor of the Romans)

On Christmas Day, 800 CE in St. Peter's Basilica in Rome, Pope Leo III took a crown in his hands and placed it on Charlemagne's head and exclaimed: "May God grant life to the great and pacific emperor!" Three hundred and twenty-four years prior, the last emperor of the the West had been deposed. In crowning Charlemagne, Pope Leo III revived the ancient Roman Empire, but this time with the support and influence of the Church.

Major impact of the medieval Pope such as:

The Carolingian Renaissance

Under the rule of Charlemagne and Leo III, the West was strengthened in many ways.

• This era brought about revisions of Jerome's translation of the Bible. Theodulf was instrumental in carefully correcting the Vulgate text, and this era brought about a standardization of the Biblical Text.
• Schools were attached to monasteries and cathedrals.
• Latin was restored as a literary language.
• It was an era of increased manuscript production.
• During this era, there was an emphasis on preaching in the language of the people.
• Sunday was to be kept as a day of worship and rest.
• Tithes were to be collected as if they were a tax.

Enduring Impact of Leo III

• Leo III's act in crowning Charlemagne was probably not intended to divide the Western empire from the Eastern empire. But the crowning and declaration of Charlemagne as Imperator Romanorum created rivalry between the East and West that endured until the 13th century.
• In 809, Leo III affirmed the Filioque clause of the Nicene Creed. The doctrine that the Holy Spirit proceeds from both the Father and the Son. But since this clause had been rejected by the Eastern churches, in the interest of peace, Leo urged that the creed should not be chanted in the public liturgy.