August 31, 2025 • 19 mins
When Charlemagne died in 814, Pope Leo III's great triumph in creating the papal-imperial alliance began to reveal unexpected costs. His successors discovered that the power to crown emperors came with corresponding vulnerability to imperial control. This episode examines how Leo's achievement created new dangers for future popes, as the alliance meant to protect papal independence instead created dependencies that would corrupt and constrain papal authority for generations.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:03):
Caalarogu shark Media. On January twenty eighth, eight hundred fourteen,
the Great Charlemagne died at his palace in Arkan, after
forty six years as King of the Franks and fourteen
years as Holy Roman Emperor. The news of his death
spread quickly across Europe, carried by messengers to distant corners
(00:27):
of an empire that stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to
the Danube River, from the North Sea to central Italy.
In Rome, Pope Leo the Third received the news with
profound concern. The emperor, who had protected him from assassination,
restored him to power, and received the imperial crown from
his hands, was gone. In his place. Sat Louis the Pious,
(00:50):
Charlemagne's sole surviving son, a devoutly religious but politically inexperienced
ruler who faced the enormous challenge of governing an empire
built by his legendary father. This is White Smoke, Episode
twenty six The price of power. For Leo, Charlemagne's death
(01:13):
represented both opportunity and danger. The Papal Imperial Coronation of
eight hundred had established the principle that emperors derived their
authority from papal blessing. Yet this same precedent had created
expectations of imperial protection and involvement in papal affairs that
could prove as threatening as they were beneficial. Today, we
(01:34):
explore how Leo's great triumph in making Charlemagne emperor created
unexpected vulnerabilities for his successors, and how the price of
papal power became apparent. When the protective Alliance faced its
first great test. Lewis the Pious inherited more than his
father's crown in eight hundred fourteen. He inherited the complex
(01:56):
relationship between imperial authority and papal independence that Leo the
Third had forged through crisis, an opportunity. Unlike Charlemagne, who
had developed his understanding of papal relations through decades of
practical experience, Louis faced immediate pressure to define his approach
to the Church and its temporal authority. The new emperor
(02:17):
possessed deep religious convictions that shaped his vision of Christian empire.
Where his father had been primarily a warrior king who
used religious sanction to legitimize military conquest, Louis conceived of
himself as a Christian ruler responsible for the spiritual as
well as temporal welfare of his subjects. This theological approach
to imperial authority would fundamentally alter the delicate balance Leo
(02:41):
had established. Louis the Pious brought a different conception of
imperial authority to his relationship with the papacy, explains Dr
Thomas Noble, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of
Notre Dame. His understanding of Christian Empire was more systematized
and ideological than his father's practical approach. This created both
(03:03):
opportunities and constraints for papal independence that Leo had not anticipated.
Louis's first major decision regarding papal relations revealed these new dynamics.
Rather than simply inheriting the papal alliance as his father
had practiced it, Louis insisted on formalizing and defining the
relationship through written agreements that specified mutual obligations and limitations.
(03:27):
This legalistic approach reflected his training in Frankish law and
his desire to create systematic governance structures throughout his empire.
The emperor's approach created immediate anxiety in Rome. Leo had
grown accustomed to dealing with Charlemagne through personal relationships and
mutual understanding developed over fifteen years of collaboration. The demand
(03:48):
for formal, written agreements suggested either distrust of previous arrangements
or a desire to restrict papal autonomy within more clearly
defined boundaries. Leo's response demonstratsd both his diplomatic skill and
his recognition of changed circumstances. Rather than resist Lewis's approach,
he chose to engage actively in defining the new relationship,
(04:10):
hoping to secure papal interests while accommodating imperial concerns. This
strategic flexibility would prove essential as the reality of imperial
control became increasingly apparent. The crisis that tested these new
arrangements emerged almost immediately after Charlemagne's death. In June eight
(04:30):
hundred sixteen. Leo the Third died after twenty one years
as pope, leaving the Roman Church to navigate the succession
without his experienced leadership. The College of Cardinals quickly elected
Stephen Fo, a member of the noble Roman family that
had produced multiple popes. Stephen's election revealed the first major
(04:50):
problem with the imperial alliance Leo had created. The new
pope was chosen and consecrated without any consultation with Emperor Louis,
following traditional Roman proce procedures that predated Frankish involvement in
papal affairs. This independence, which would have seemed natural under
earlier circumstances, now appeared to violate the expectations of imperial
(05:10):
partnership that Leo's precedents had established. Stephen the Fourth's immediate
election and consecration without imperial approval created a constitutional crisis,
notes Dr Rosamond McKitterick, Professor Emeritur of Medieval History at
Cambridge University. The precedents Leo had established suggested that papal
(05:31):
authority derived from imperial sanction, yet the practical requirements of
church governance demanded immediate action. When the papal office became vacant,
Stephen recognized the dangerous position his independent election had created.
Among his first acts as pope was to require all
Romans to swear an oath of loyalty to Emperor Louis,
explicitly acknowledging imperial suzerainty over the city. He then dispatched
(05:56):
envoys to Louis explaining the circumstances of his election and
requesting imperial approval for his assumption of papal authority. These
actions represented a dramatic departure from the independence Leo had
maintained despite his alliance with Charlemagne. Where Leo had positioned
himself as Charlemagne's partner in creating imperial authority, Stephen appeared
(06:18):
to acknowledge himself as louis subordinate in receiving papal authority.
The shift revealed how quickly the balance of power had
changed with Charlemagne's death. Louis's response established patterns that would
characterize imperial papal relations for the next century. Rather than
simply approving Stephen's election, the Emperor insisted on a personal
(06:39):
meeting to discuss the terms of their relationship and to
formalize agreements about future papal imperial cooperation. He invited Stephen
to travel north to his court, the first such journey
by a reigning pope since Leo's desperate flight in seven
ninety nine. Stephen's journey to Raimes in eight hundred sixteen
represent both papal submission to imperial authority and an opportunity
(07:03):
to secure advantageous terms for future relations. Unlike Leo's earlier flight,
which had been motivated by desperate circumstances, Stephen travelled as
a recognized papal authority, seeking to establish formal diplomatic relations
with the new emperor. The meeting at Rhymes produced ceremonies
and agreements that would define papal imperial relations for generations.
(07:27):
In a carefully orchestrated public event, Stephen crowned and anointed
Louis as Holy Roman Emperor, using a crown he claimed
had belonged to Constantine the Great. This act reinforced the
papal prerogative to bestow imperial dignity while acknowledging Louis's right
to receive imperial recognition. Stephen's coronation of Louis the Pious
(07:48):
established crucial precedents for future papal imperial relations, explains Dr.
Alessandro Barbero, professor of medieval history at the University of
Eastern Piedmont. By crowning Louis with Constantine's supposed crown, Stephen
positioned papal authority as the legitimate heir to Roman imperial tradition,
while acknowledging the practical reality of Frankish political power. More significantly,
(08:13):
Stephen and Lewis negotiated the Pactum Ludovicianum, a formal written
agreement that defined the relationship between papal and imperial authority.
This document represented the first systematic attempt to codify the
arrangements Leo had created through personal diplomacy and crisis management.
The Pactum established several crucial principles that would influence medieval
(08:36):
political development. It confirmed papal sovereignty over the papal states
while acknowledging imperial protection of papal territories. It guaranteed freedom
of papal elections while requiring papal notification of imperial authorities.
It recognized papal judicial independence while preserving imperial rights of
appeal in specified cases. The formal agreements negotiated at Rhymes
(09:04):
contained inherent contradictions that would create ongoing tensions between papal
independence and imperial authority. The guarantee of free papal elections,
for example, conflicted with the requirement of imperial notification and approval.
The recognition of papal sovereignty conflicted with the acknowledgment of
imperial protection and intervention rights Stephen's death in January eight
(09:27):
hundred seventeen, shortly after returning from Rhymes, prevented him from
implementing these agreements or testing their practical implications. His successor,
Pascal I, inherited both the privileges and constraints that Pactum
had established, facing immediate challenges that revealed the document's limitations.
Pascal's election demonstrated the continuing problems with papal imperial relations.
(09:53):
Like Stephen, he was chosen and consecrated immediately after his
predecessor's death, without waiting for imperial approval. However, unlike Stephen,
Pascal came from a wealthy Roman family with strong connections
to the traditional aristocracy that had opposed Leo's Frankish alliance.
The new Pope's background created suspicions about his loyalty to
(10:14):
the imperial alliance. His immediate election without consultation suggested possible
opposition to imperial involvement in papal affairs. His family connections
raised questions about whether he would maintain the policy Stephen
had negotiated or seek to restore papal independence from Frankish control.
Pascal the First's election represented a potential challenge to the
(10:37):
Imperial Alliance Leo had created, observes Dr Julia Smith, professor
of Medieval History at the University of Oxford. His aristocratic
background and independent election suggested possible resistance to the constraints
that pact and ludavisianam had placed on papal authority. Pascal's
early actions revealed both his recognition of imperial power and
(10:58):
his desire to maintain papal dignity within the constraints it imposed.
He immediately sent envoys to Lewis explaining his election and
requesting imperial confirmation, following the precedent Stephen had established. However,
he also began implementing policies that suggested greater independence than
Stephen had exercised. The crisis that tested these arrangements emerged
(11:22):
from the fundamental contradiction between papal sovereignty and imperial protection
that the Pactum had failed to resolve. In eight hundred
twenty three, Pascal crowned Lewis's son Lothair as co Emperor
and King of Italy, demonstrating papal loyalty to the Imperial Alliance. However,
he also granted Lothair a court in Rome, and allowed
(11:43):
him to issue judgments that contradicted papal decisions. This arrangement
created competing authorities within the papal states themselves. Pascal exercised
sovereignty as recognized ruler of papal territories, while Lothair exercised
impeerisial jurisdiction as protector of those same territories. The conflict
(12:04):
between these overlapping authorities would soon produce violence that revealed
the true price of Papal imperial alliance. The explosion came
when papal officials and imperial representatives disagreed over jurisdiction in
a case involving corruption charges against papal administrators. Lothair's court
declared papal officials guilty and demanded their punishment, while Pascal's
(12:28):
court declared them innocent and refused to impose penalties. The
dispute escalated when imperial supporters threatened to appeal directly to Lewis,
effectively bypassing papal authority in papal territories. Pascal's response demonstrated
how thoroughly the Imperial alliance had compromised papal independence. Rather
(12:50):
than assert his sovereignty over his own territories. He ordered
the arrest of the imperial supporters who had threatened the appeal. However,
instead of public trial and fortimal punishment, papal household officials
seized the accused men, blinded them, and executed them in secret.
The executions ordered during Pascal's reign revealed the extent to
(13:11):
which Imperial Alliance had undermined traditional papal authority, explains doctor Noble.
Instead of exercising open judicial authority over his own territories,
Pascal resorted to secret violence that suggested both weakness and guilt.
The Imperial Alliance had not strengthened papal power, but had
instead corrupted it. The executions created a scandal that threatened
(13:36):
to destroy the Papal Imperial Alliance entirely. Louis demanded an
investigation into the deaths, asserting imperial authority to judge papal
conduct within papal territories. Pascal was forced to take an
oath of innocence before a synod of bishops, effectively submitting
to imperial judicial oversight in his own realm. The investigation
(13:57):
revealed the impossible position the Imperial Alliance had created for
papal authority. Pascal could not openly punish imperial supporters without
appearing to rebel against the alliance that provided papal security.
Yet he could not allow imperial jurisdiction within papal territories
without surrendering the sovereignty that justified papal temporal authority. The
(14:19):
Secret executions represented a desperate attempt to resolve this contradiction
through violence, but they only exposed the fundamental weakness of
papal position within the imperial system. Rather than strengthening papal authority,
the alliance had created dependencies that corrupted papal governance and
compromised papal dignity. When Pascal died in eight hundred twenty four,
(14:42):
the Roman clergy refused him burial in Saint Peter's Basilica,
the traditional resting place of popes. They cited his harsh
treatment of Roman citizens, but the real issue was his
failure to maintain papal authority while accommodating imperial demands. His
reign had demonstrated that the p price of imperial protection
might be papal independence itself. The problems Pascal faced would
(15:07):
only intensify under his successors. Louis the Pious's approach to
imperial authority became increasingly systematic and controlling as his reign progressed.
The Ordinartio Imperi of eight hundred seventeen, which established formal
succession arrangements for the Empire, treated the papal states as
component parts of imperial territory rather than independent allied territory.
(15:31):
Future papal elections would require not just imperial notification but
imperial approval. Papal policies would need imperial endorsement, Papal territories
would be subject to imperial taxation and military service. The
alliance Leo had created to secure papal independence had evolved
into a system of imperial control that threatened to reduce
(15:53):
the papacy to a department of imperial administration. The evolution
of papal inns imperial relations under Louis the Pious revealed
the inherent contradictions in Leo's alliance strategy. Observes Professor McKitterick,
what had begun as a partnership between equals gradually became
a relationship between superior and subordinate as imperial authority systematized
(16:17):
its control over all aspects of governance within imperial territories.
Yet the imperial system that constrained papal authority also provided
protection and resources that enabled papal activities impossible under purely
independent circumstances. Pascal's extensive building projects in Rome, including the
reconstruction of major basilicas and the creation of magnificent mosaics,
(16:41):
were funded through imperial subsidies and donations that exceeded anything
available from purely Roman sources. The papal missionary activities that
continued expanding Christianity throughout Northern Europe depended on imperial military
protection and administrative support. The papal rolling da coronating emperors
and legitimizing imperial authority, provided influence over European political development
(17:06):
that transcended the boundaries of papal territories. The imperial alliance
had not simply constrained papal authority. It had transformed the
nature of papal power itself. Where earlier popes had exercised
primarily spiritual authority over Christian communities, the imperial popes exercised
political authority over territorial states and influenced the governance of
(17:29):
entire civilizations. This transformation came with costs that would become
increasingly apparent as imperial control titened and papal independence diminished.
The price of power, as Leo's successors discovered, was the
constant threat of losing the independence that made papal authority
meaningful in the first place. By the middle of the
(17:52):
ninth century, the Papal imperial alliance would face even greater
challenges as the Carolingian Empire itself began to fragm meant
under the pressure of civil wars and external invasions. The
popes who had tied their fate to imperial protection would
discover that imperial weakness could be as dangerous as imperial strength.
(18:12):
The precedents Leo the Third had established through crisis and
opportunity would continue to shape European political development for centuries
to come. Yet his successors would learn that the power
to make emperors came with the corresponding vulnerability to imperial control,
and that the price of protection might ultimately be the
independence it was meant to preserve. The crown and cross
(18:36):
that had come together so dramatically on Christmas Day eight
hundred would remain intertwined, but the relationship would prove far
more complex and problematic than Leo could have anticipated when
he placed that golden crown on Charlemagne's head and changed
the course of European history. White Smoke is a production
of Calaroga Shark media, portions of which were made with
(18:59):
the help of a I narration MHM
Caalarogu shark Media. On January twenty eighth, eight hundred fourteen,
the Great Charlemagne died at his palace in Arkan, after
forty six years as King of the Franks and fourteen
years as Holy Roman Emperor. The news of his death
spread quickly across Europe, carried by messengers to distant corners
(00:27):
of an empire that stretched from the Atlantic Ocean to
the Danube River, from the North Sea to central Italy.
In Rome, Pope Leo the Third received the news with
profound concern. The emperor, who had protected him from assassination,
restored him to power, and received the imperial crown from
his hands, was gone. In his place. Sat Louis the Pious,
(00:50):
Charlemagne's sole surviving son, a devoutly religious but politically inexperienced
ruler who faced the enormous challenge of governing an empire
built by his legendary father. This is White Smoke, Episode
twenty six The price of power. For Leo, Charlemagne's death
(01:13):
represented both opportunity and danger. The Papal Imperial Coronation of
eight hundred had established the principle that emperors derived their
authority from papal blessing. Yet this same precedent had created
expectations of imperial protection and involvement in papal affairs that
could prove as threatening as they were beneficial. Today, we
(01:34):
explore how Leo's great triumph in making Charlemagne emperor created
unexpected vulnerabilities for his successors, and how the price of
papal power became apparent. When the protective Alliance faced its
first great test. Lewis the Pious inherited more than his
father's crown in eight hundred fourteen. He inherited the complex
(01:56):
relationship between imperial authority and papal independence that Leo the
Third had forged through crisis, an opportunity. Unlike Charlemagne, who
had developed his understanding of papal relations through decades of
practical experience, Louis faced immediate pressure to define his approach
to the Church and its temporal authority. The new emperor
(02:17):
possessed deep religious convictions that shaped his vision of Christian empire.
Where his father had been primarily a warrior king who
used religious sanction to legitimize military conquest, Louis conceived of
himself as a Christian ruler responsible for the spiritual as
well as temporal welfare of his subjects. This theological approach
to imperial authority would fundamentally alter the delicate balance Leo
(02:41):
had established. Louis the Pious brought a different conception of
imperial authority to his relationship with the papacy, explains Dr
Thomas Noble, Professor Emeritus of History at the University of
Notre Dame. His understanding of Christian Empire was more systematized
and ideological than his father's practical approach. This created both
(03:03):
opportunities and constraints for papal independence that Leo had not anticipated.
Louis's first major decision regarding papal relations revealed these new dynamics.
Rather than simply inheriting the papal alliance as his father
had practiced it, Louis insisted on formalizing and defining the
relationship through written agreements that specified mutual obligations and limitations.
(03:27):
This legalistic approach reflected his training in Frankish law and
his desire to create systematic governance structures throughout his empire.
The emperor's approach created immediate anxiety in Rome. Leo had
grown accustomed to dealing with Charlemagne through personal relationships and
mutual understanding developed over fifteen years of collaboration. The demand
(03:48):
for formal, written agreements suggested either distrust of previous arrangements
or a desire to restrict papal autonomy within more clearly
defined boundaries. Leo's response demonstratsd both his diplomatic skill and
his recognition of changed circumstances. Rather than resist Lewis's approach,
he chose to engage actively in defining the new relationship,
(04:10):
hoping to secure papal interests while accommodating imperial concerns. This
strategic flexibility would prove essential as the reality of imperial
control became increasingly apparent. The crisis that tested these new
arrangements emerged almost immediately after Charlemagne's death. In June eight
(04:30):
hundred sixteen. Leo the Third died after twenty one years
as pope, leaving the Roman Church to navigate the succession
without his experienced leadership. The College of Cardinals quickly elected
Stephen Fo, a member of the noble Roman family that
had produced multiple popes. Stephen's election revealed the first major
(04:50):
problem with the imperial alliance Leo had created. The new
pope was chosen and consecrated without any consultation with Emperor Louis,
following traditional Roman proce procedures that predated Frankish involvement in
papal affairs. This independence, which would have seemed natural under
earlier circumstances, now appeared to violate the expectations of imperial
(05:10):
partnership that Leo's precedents had established. Stephen the Fourth's immediate
election and consecration without imperial approval created a constitutional crisis,
notes Dr Rosamond McKitterick, Professor Emeritur of Medieval History at
Cambridge University. The precedents Leo had established suggested that papal
(05:31):
authority derived from imperial sanction, yet the practical requirements of
church governance demanded immediate action. When the papal office became vacant,
Stephen recognized the dangerous position his independent election had created.
Among his first acts as pope was to require all
Romans to swear an oath of loyalty to Emperor Louis,
explicitly acknowledging imperial suzerainty over the city. He then dispatched
(05:56):
envoys to Louis explaining the circumstances of his election and
requesting imperial approval for his assumption of papal authority. These
actions represented a dramatic departure from the independence Leo had
maintained despite his alliance with Charlemagne. Where Leo had positioned
himself as Charlemagne's partner in creating imperial authority, Stephen appeared
(06:18):
to acknowledge himself as louis subordinate in receiving papal authority.
The shift revealed how quickly the balance of power had
changed with Charlemagne's death. Louis's response established patterns that would
characterize imperial papal relations for the next century. Rather than
simply approving Stephen's election, the Emperor insisted on a personal
(06:39):
meeting to discuss the terms of their relationship and to
formalize agreements about future papal imperial cooperation. He invited Stephen
to travel north to his court, the first such journey
by a reigning pope since Leo's desperate flight in seven
ninety nine. Stephen's journey to Raimes in eight hundred sixteen
represent both papal submission to imperial authority and an opportunity
(07:03):
to secure advantageous terms for future relations. Unlike Leo's earlier flight,
which had been motivated by desperate circumstances, Stephen travelled as
a recognized papal authority, seeking to establish formal diplomatic relations
with the new emperor. The meeting at Rhymes produced ceremonies
and agreements that would define papal imperial relations for generations.
(07:27):
In a carefully orchestrated public event, Stephen crowned and anointed
Louis as Holy Roman Emperor, using a crown he claimed
had belonged to Constantine the Great. This act reinforced the
papal prerogative to bestow imperial dignity while acknowledging Louis's right
to receive imperial recognition. Stephen's coronation of Louis the Pious
(07:48):
established crucial precedents for future papal imperial relations, explains Dr.
Alessandro Barbero, professor of medieval history at the University of
Eastern Piedmont. By crowning Louis with Constantine's supposed crown, Stephen
positioned papal authority as the legitimate heir to Roman imperial tradition,
while acknowledging the practical reality of Frankish political power. More significantly,
(08:13):
Stephen and Lewis negotiated the Pactum Ludovicianum, a formal written
agreement that defined the relationship between papal and imperial authority.
This document represented the first systematic attempt to codify the
arrangements Leo had created through personal diplomacy and crisis management.
The Pactum established several crucial principles that would influence medieval
(08:36):
political development. It confirmed papal sovereignty over the papal states
while acknowledging imperial protection of papal territories. It guaranteed freedom
of papal elections while requiring papal notification of imperial authorities.
It recognized papal judicial independence while preserving imperial rights of
appeal in specified cases. The formal agreements negotiated at Rhymes
(09:04):
contained inherent contradictions that would create ongoing tensions between papal
independence and imperial authority. The guarantee of free papal elections,
for example, conflicted with the requirement of imperial notification and approval.
The recognition of papal sovereignty conflicted with the acknowledgment of
imperial protection and intervention rights Stephen's death in January eight
(09:27):
hundred seventeen, shortly after returning from Rhymes, prevented him from
implementing these agreements or testing their practical implications. His successor,
Pascal I, inherited both the privileges and constraints that Pactum
had established, facing immediate challenges that revealed the document's limitations.
Pascal's election demonstrated the continuing problems with papal imperial relations.
(09:53):
Like Stephen, he was chosen and consecrated immediately after his
predecessor's death, without waiting for imperial approval. However, unlike Stephen,
Pascal came from a wealthy Roman family with strong connections
to the traditional aristocracy that had opposed Leo's Frankish alliance.
The new Pope's background created suspicions about his loyalty to
(10:14):
the imperial alliance. His immediate election without consultation suggested possible
opposition to imperial involvement in papal affairs. His family connections
raised questions about whether he would maintain the policy Stephen
had negotiated or seek to restore papal independence from Frankish control.
Pascal the First's election represented a potential challenge to the
(10:37):
Imperial Alliance Leo had created, observes Dr Julia Smith, professor
of Medieval History at the University of Oxford. His aristocratic
background and independent election suggested possible resistance to the constraints
that pact and ludavisianam had placed on papal authority. Pascal's
early actions revealed both his recognition of imperial power and
(10:58):
his desire to maintain papal dignity within the constraints it imposed.
He immediately sent envoys to Lewis explaining his election and
requesting imperial confirmation, following the precedent Stephen had established. However,
he also began implementing policies that suggested greater independence than
Stephen had exercised. The crisis that tested these arrangements emerged
(11:22):
from the fundamental contradiction between papal sovereignty and imperial protection
that the Pactum had failed to resolve. In eight hundred
twenty three, Pascal crowned Lewis's son Lothair as co Emperor
and King of Italy, demonstrating papal loyalty to the Imperial Alliance. However,
he also granted Lothair a court in Rome, and allowed
(11:43):
him to issue judgments that contradicted papal decisions. This arrangement
created competing authorities within the papal states themselves. Pascal exercised
sovereignty as recognized ruler of papal territories, while Lothair exercised
impeerisial jurisdiction as protector of those same territories. The conflict
(12:04):
between these overlapping authorities would soon produce violence that revealed
the true price of Papal imperial alliance. The explosion came
when papal officials and imperial representatives disagreed over jurisdiction in
a case involving corruption charges against papal administrators. Lothair's court
declared papal officials guilty and demanded their punishment, while Pascal's
(12:28):
court declared them innocent and refused to impose penalties. The
dispute escalated when imperial supporters threatened to appeal directly to Lewis,
effectively bypassing papal authority in papal territories. Pascal's response demonstrated
how thoroughly the Imperial alliance had compromised papal independence. Rather
(12:50):
than assert his sovereignty over his own territories. He ordered
the arrest of the imperial supporters who had threatened the appeal. However,
instead of public trial and fortimal punishment, papal household officials
seized the accused men, blinded them, and executed them in secret.
The executions ordered during Pascal's reign revealed the extent to
(13:11):
which Imperial Alliance had undermined traditional papal authority, explains doctor Noble.
Instead of exercising open judicial authority over his own territories,
Pascal resorted to secret violence that suggested both weakness and guilt.
The Imperial Alliance had not strengthened papal power, but had
instead corrupted it. The executions created a scandal that threatened
(13:36):
to destroy the Papal Imperial Alliance entirely. Louis demanded an
investigation into the deaths, asserting imperial authority to judge papal
conduct within papal territories. Pascal was forced to take an
oath of innocence before a synod of bishops, effectively submitting
to imperial judicial oversight in his own realm. The investigation
(13:57):
revealed the impossible position the Imperial Alliance had created for
papal authority. Pascal could not openly punish imperial supporters without
appearing to rebel against the alliance that provided papal security.
Yet he could not allow imperial jurisdiction within papal territories
without surrendering the sovereignty that justified papal temporal authority. The
(14:19):
Secret executions represented a desperate attempt to resolve this contradiction
through violence, but they only exposed the fundamental weakness of
papal position within the imperial system. Rather than strengthening papal authority,
the alliance had created dependencies that corrupted papal governance and
compromised papal dignity. When Pascal died in eight hundred twenty four,
(14:42):
the Roman clergy refused him burial in Saint Peter's Basilica,
the traditional resting place of popes. They cited his harsh
treatment of Roman citizens, but the real issue was his
failure to maintain papal authority while accommodating imperial demands. His
reign had demonstrated that the p price of imperial protection
might be papal independence itself. The problems Pascal faced would
(15:07):
only intensify under his successors. Louis the Pious's approach to
imperial authority became increasingly systematic and controlling as his reign progressed.
The Ordinartio Imperi of eight hundred seventeen, which established formal
succession arrangements for the Empire, treated the papal states as
component parts of imperial territory rather than independent allied territory.
(15:31):
Future papal elections would require not just imperial notification but
imperial approval. Papal policies would need imperial endorsement, Papal territories
would be subject to imperial taxation and military service. The
alliance Leo had created to secure papal independence had evolved
into a system of imperial control that threatened to reduce
(15:53):
the papacy to a department of imperial administration. The evolution
of papal inns imperial relations under Louis the Pious revealed
the inherent contradictions in Leo's alliance strategy. Observes Professor McKitterick,
what had begun as a partnership between equals gradually became
a relationship between superior and subordinate as imperial authority systematized
(16:17):
its control over all aspects of governance within imperial territories.
Yet the imperial system that constrained papal authority also provided
protection and resources that enabled papal activities impossible under purely
independent circumstances. Pascal's extensive building projects in Rome, including the
reconstruction of major basilicas and the creation of magnificent mosaics,
(16:41):
were funded through imperial subsidies and donations that exceeded anything
available from purely Roman sources. The papal missionary activities that
continued expanding Christianity throughout Northern Europe depended on imperial military
protection and administrative support. The papal rolling da coronating emperors
and legitimizing imperial authority, provided influence over European political development
(17:06):
that transcended the boundaries of papal territories. The imperial alliance
had not simply constrained papal authority. It had transformed the
nature of papal power itself. Where earlier popes had exercised
primarily spiritual authority over Christian communities, the imperial popes exercised
political authority over territorial states and influenced the governance of
(17:29):
entire civilizations. This transformation came with costs that would become
increasingly apparent as imperial control titened and papal independence diminished.
The price of power, as Leo's successors discovered, was the
constant threat of losing the independence that made papal authority
meaningful in the first place. By the middle of the
(17:52):
ninth century, the Papal imperial alliance would face even greater
challenges as the Carolingian Empire itself began to fragm meant
under the pressure of civil wars and external invasions. The
popes who had tied their fate to imperial protection would
discover that imperial weakness could be as dangerous as imperial strength.
(18:12):
The precedents Leo the Third had established through crisis and
opportunity would continue to shape European political development for centuries
to come. Yet his successors would learn that the power
to make emperors came with the corresponding vulnerability to imperial control,
and that the price of protection might ultimately be the
independence it was meant to preserve. The crown and cross
(18:36):
that had come together so dramatically on Christmas Day eight
hundred would remain intertwined, but the relationship would prove far
more complex and problematic than Leo could have anticipated when
he placed that golden crown on Charlemagne's head and changed
the course of European history. White Smoke is a production
of Calaroga Shark media, portions of which were made with
(18:59):
the help of a I narration MHM
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