Pope Victor II (c. 1018 – 28 July 1057), born Gebhard von Dollnstein-Hirschberg, was the head of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

and ruler of the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; ; ), officially the State of the Church, were a conglomeration of territories on the Italian peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope from 756 to 1870. They were among the major states of Italy from the 8th c ...

from 13 April 1055 until his death in 1057. Victor II was one of a series of German-born

pope The pope is the bishop of Rome and the Head of the Church#Catholic Church, visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. He is also known as the supreme pontiff, Roman pontiff, or sovereign pontiff. From the 8th century until 1870, the po ...

s who led the

Gregorian Reform The Gregorian Reforms were a series of reforms initiated by Pope Gregory VII and the circle he formed in the papal curia, c. 1050–1080, which dealt with the moral integrity and independence of the clergy. The reforms are considered to be na ...

Early life

Gebhard was a native of the

Kingdom of Germany The Kingdom of Germany or German Kingdom ( 'kingdom of the Germans', 'German kingdom', "kingdom of Germany", ) was the mostly Germanic language-speaking East Frankish kingdom, which was formed by the Treaty of Verdun in 843. The king was elec ...

in the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

. His place of birth is unknown. He was a son of the

Swabia Swabia ; , colloquially ''Schwabenland'' or ''Ländle''; archaic English also Suabia or Svebia is a cultural, historic and linguistic region in southwestern Germany. The name is ultimately derived from the medieval Duchy of Swabia, one of ...

n Count Hartwig of Calw and a kinsman of Emperor Henry III. Hartweg's brother, Gotebald, had been a canon of Eichstatt, then Provost of Speyer, Imperial Chancellor for Italy, and, from 1049 to 1063, Patriarch of Aquileia. At the suggestion of the emperor's uncle, Gebhard, Bishop of Ratisbon, the 24-year-old Gebhard was appointed Bishop of Eichstätt. In this position, he supported the emperor's interests and eventually became one of his closest advisors.Michael Ott, "Pope Victor II."
''The Catholic Encyclopedia'' Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company (1912); Retrieved 9 November 2017.

Papacy

After the death of

Pope Leo IX Pope Leo IX (, , 21 June 1002 – 19 April 1054), born Bruno von Egisheim-Dagsburg, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 February 1049 to his death in 1054. Leo IX is considered to be one of the most historica ...

, a delegation of Roman clergy and people, headed by Hildebrand, later

Pope Gregory VII Pope Gregory VII (; 1015 – 25 May 1085), born Hildebrand of Sovana (), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 April 1073 to his death in 1085. He is venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church. One of the great ...

, travelled to Mainz and asked the emperor to nominate Gebhard as successor. At a court Diet held at Ratisbon in March, 1055, Gebhard accepted the papacy, provided that the emperor restore to the Apostolic See all the possessions that had been taken from it. When the emperor agreed, Gebhard, taking the name Victor II, moved to

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, where, in St. Peter's Basilica on 13 April 1055, he was officially chosen pope by the clergy and hailed by the people; he was immediately enthroned by the cardinals. By 27 May 1055, Pope Victor was back in Florence, where he was present at the imperial court. On 4 June 1055, the feast of Pentecost, Victor met the emperor at

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

and held a council, attended by some 120 bishops, which reinforced

's condemnation of clerical marriage, simony, and the loss of the church's properties. He remained in Florence until November 1055. When Henry III returned to Germany, he assigned Pope Victor the powers of Imperial Vicar for Italy, and the task of containing the ambitions of Duke Godfrey of Lorraine, the husband of Beatrice of Tuscany. The pope held the title of ''dux et marchio''. Victor excommunicated both Count Ramon Berenguer I of Barcelona and Almodis de la Marche for adultery at the behest of Ermesinde of Carcassonne in 1055. In south Italy, one Teuto and his sons had attacked and were in possession of castles and property which belonged to the bishop of Teramo, who had been dispossessed. Pope Victor sent his count Gerardus to rectify the outrage, and then himself visited Teramo early in July 1056. He held a judicial assize at the castle of La Vitice in the diocese of Teramo, and oversaw the restoration of the bishop and the return of his property. Pope Victor, according to the notary who recorded the proceedings, was acting as ''Sedis Apostolicae praesul Urbis Romae gratia Dei, Italiae egregius universali p. p. regimine successus, Marcam Firmanam et Ducatum Spoletinum.'' Later in the summer 1056, the pope travelled to the imperial court again, ''pro causis papatus'', and intending to complain to the emperor because he was being badly treated by the Romans, ''per Romanos male tractatus''. He was with Henry III when he died at Bodfeld in the

Harz The Harz (), also called the Harz Mountains, is a highland area in northern Germany. It has the highest elevations for that region, and its rugged terrain extends across parts of Lower Saxony, Saxony-Anhalt, and Thuringia. The name ''Harz'' der ...

on 5 October 1056. As guardian of Henry III's infant son Henry IV and adviser of Empress Agnes, Henry IV's mother, Victor wielded enormous power, which he used to maintain peace throughout the empire and to strengthen the papacy against the aggressions of the barons. During the rivalry between Archbishop Anno II of Cologne and other senior clergymen and the empress, Victor backed Agnes and her supporters. Many of her close followers would be promoted, men like Bishop Henry II of Augsburg, who would later become Emperor Henry's nominal regent; several German princes were given high court and church offices. At the beginning of Lent 1057, Victor and his court began their journey to Rome. On 18 April 1057, Pope Victor held a general council in the Lateran Basilica. The diocese of the Marsi, which had been divided in two by Pope Benedict IX (Theophylact), was reunited into a single diocese. In the same council, the dispute concerning jurisdiction over a parish between the diocese of Siena and the diocese of Arezzo was heard for the first time. In May the pope began a trip to Tuscany. He spent eight days in Florence, in conference with Duke Godfrey. Godfrey's position had been greatly strengthened by the death of his enemy the Emperor Henry III the previous autumn, and the pope saw the advantages in a close relationship with the brother of his chancellor, Frederick of Lorraine. The suit between the bishops of Siena and Arezzo resumed during the papal visit, and the pope took the trouble to visit the area of dispute, and talk to parishioners and local aristocracy. He then held a synod at the palace of S. Donato near Arezzo, and issued a bull, assigning the disputed parish to the diocese of Arezzo. On 14 June 1057, Pope Victor appointed his chancellor, Frederick of Lorraine, to the position of cardinal-presbyter of San Crisogono. Cardinal Frederick took part in a synod at Arezzo on 23 July, and then was consecrated the thirty-sixth abbot of Montecassino by Pope Victor on 24 June 1057.

Death

Victor died at

Arezzo Arezzo ( , ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Italy and the capital of the Province of Arezzo, province of the same name located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about southeast of Florence at an elevation of Above mean sea level, above sea level. As of 2 ...

, on 28 July 1057. He had ruled for two years, three months, and 27 (or 28, or 13) days. The count of 13 days is approximately correct, if the beginning point is the date of Pope Victor's enthronement. The other numbers would imply his official choice by the Emperor Henry III on 31 March or 1 April 1055. His death marked an end to the close relationship shared between the

Salian dynasty The Salian dynasty or Salic dynasty () was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages. The dynasty provided four kings of Germany (1024–1125), all of whom went on to be crowned Holy Roman emperors (1027–1125). After the death of the last Ottonia ...

and the papacy. Victor's retinue wished to bring his remains to the cathedral at Eichstätt for burial. Before they reached the city, however, the remains were seized by some citizens of

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

and buried there in the Church of Santa Maria Rotonda, the burial place of

Theodoric the Great Theodoric (or Theoderic) the Great (454 – 30 August 526), also called Theodoric the Amal, was king of the Ostrogoths (475–526), and ruler of the independent Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy between 493 and 526, regent of the Visigoths (511–526 ...

. He was the last pope of German origin until Pope

Benedict XVI Pope BenedictXVI (born Joseph Alois Ratzinger; 16 April 1927 – 31 December 2022) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 19 April 2005 until resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, his resignation on 28 Februar ...

was elected 948 years later.

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