CHAPTER XVIII
PREPARATIONS FOR THE HILDEBRANDINE REFORMATION
Outline: I.—Decline of the Papacy after Nicholas I. (858-867). II.—Reform efforts before the time of Hildebrand. III.—The youth and education of Hildebrand. IV.—The Hildebrandine Popes. V.—Sources.
Nicholas I., through the Pseudo-Isidorian Decretals, had raised the Church above the state, made the Pope supreme in the Church, and inaugurated needed reforms.[418:1] From Nicholas I. to Hildebrand (867-1049), for about two centuries, the Popes as a rule were men of very ordinary ability and education. Many of them gained the papal office by crime, or force, or bribery, and used it for corrupt purposes. Most of the fifty Popes and six anti-Popes of this period were Italians. The chair of St. Peter was far more political and worldly than spiritual. The latter part of the ninth century Rome saw twelve Popes elected in twenty-three years. Hadrian II. (867-872), an ex-married man with a family, connected with many a domestic scandal,[418:2] succeeded Nicholas I., and defended the papal pretensions with ability and dignity. Then followed John VIII. (872-882), an active,
passionate, shrewd prelate, who was killed by a relative covetous of the papal throne with its wealth and influence. Stephen VI. (896-897) in revenge caused the body of Formosus, his predecessor, to be exhumed, clad in pontifical robes, seated on the pontifical throne, tried by a synod, deposed as a usurper, the fingers with which the pontifical blessing was given cut off, and thrown into the Tiber. He, himself, was cast into prison and there strangled to death (897).
During the tenth century the Papacy was a reflection of the chaotic, anarchistic condition of the state, the demoralisation and depravity of society, and the ignorance, superstition, and crime of the day.[419:1] The head of the Church had lost all dignity and independence, and the office had become a prey to greed, force, and intrigue. Most of the Popes ended their careers in deposition, prison, or murder. The Marquises of Tuscany and the Counts of Tusculum ruled the city of Rome and dictated the election of Popes for more than half a century. Three bold, beautiful, wealthy Roman women,—Theodora and her two daughters—Marozia and Theodora—filled the chair of St. Peter with their lovers and their bastards.[419:2] This period has been given the significant name of pornocracy. John X. (914-928), the first warrior-Pope, lead an army against the Saracens and defeated them. He was imprisoned and murdered by the wicked Marozia (928). John XII. (955-963) was governor of Rome and frequently appeared dressed as a soldier.[419:3] The Papacy was openly bought and sold for money.
Benedict VIII. and John XIX. were both indebted for their elevation to acknowledged bribery, and the latter was only a layman when elected but in one day passed through all the requisite clerical degrees and thus qualified for the high office. The most conspicuous case was that of Gregory VI. who paid one thousand pounds in silver for the empty honour.[420:1] The office of the Papacy practically became hereditary. Laymen as well as churchmen were elected. Benedict IX. (1033-1045) ascended the papal throne at the age of ten and thought of marrying in order to transmit his infamous rule.[420:2]
The higher clergy in this period of disorder were for the most part secular princes. They ruled large tracts of land, possessed and exercised royal prerogatives, and were granted immunities and privileges such as market rights, coinage, tolls, feudal judicature, etc. Furthermore they assumed secular titles and offices. The leading statesmen of the day were chosen from the clergy. Louis the Infant made the Abbot of Corvey a count (900), and gave the Bishop of Tours the same title (902). Henry I. made the Bishop of Tule also the Duke of Tule (928).[420:3] Otto I. gave his own brother, the Archbishop of Köln, the duchy of Lorraine and made him Count of Brandenburg and Magdeburg. Otto III. and Henry III. also made many such grants to churchmen. These higher clergy were married in many cases, or lived with mistresses, and had families.
After the time of Otto I. they began to counteract the power of the nobles, hence they were made more and more dependent upon kings, who claimed the right to appoint them, who invested them with their power, and to whom they swore allegiance. They appeared at the court of the king like nobles, and in the event of war led their troops in person to the battlefield. Depositions for alleged disloyalty were very common. As the bishops became more involved in secular affairs they naturally neglected their spiritual duties. Simony crept in as a consequence and was shamefully practised. Often the worst fitted instead of the best prepared persons were given the coveted sinecures. It was but natural that the moral example set by the Pope should reveal itself in the lives of the clergy.
Greedy hands were raised against the monasteries, and their rich lands were frequently given as fiefs to laymen.[421:1] The abbots began to strive for worldly reputation and power. Hence the old discipline was neglected, and disorders and excesses of all kinds prevailed among the monks and nuns.[421:2] The common priests and monks were probably better as a rule than either Popes or bishops, still in too many cases they were prone to follow the example set by their superiors. The laity were undoubtedly on a lower moral and intellectual plane than the priesthood.[421:3] Consequently few complaints were made by them against the sins and crimes of Popes, bishops, abbots, and priests. The denunciation of flagrant abuses and the cry for reform, as far as there was any, came from the better clergy. Of the eighty councils held in France during the eleventh