Pope Marinus I (; died 15 May 884) was the

bishop of Rome A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

and ruler of the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

from 882 until his death. Controversially at the time, he was already a bishop when he became

pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

, and had served as papal legate to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya ( Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis ( ...

. He was also erroneously called Martin II (Martinus II) leading to the second pope named Martin to take the name Martin IV.

Ecclesiastical career

Born at

Gallese Gallese is an Italian ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Viterbo, from Viterbo. It was taken by Duke Thrasimund II of Spoleto in 737 or 738, at which time it was essential to communications between Rome and Ravenna and had a large ...

, Marinus was the son of a priest. He was ordained as a deacon by Pope Nicholas I. He first served as

bishop of Caere : Caere (also Caisra and Cisra) is the Latin name given by the Romans to one of the larger cities of southern Etruria, the modern Cerveteri, approximately 50–60 kilometres north-northwest of Rome. To the Etruscans it was known as Cisra, to ...

. On three separate occasions, he had been employed by the three popes who preceded him as

legate Legate may refer to: *Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class :*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period *A member of a legation *A representative, ...

, his mission in each case having reference to the controversy started by Patriarch Photios I of Constantinople. In 882, he was sent on behalf of

Pope John VIII Pope John VIII ( la, Ioannes VIII; died 16 December 882) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 14 December 872 to his death. He is often considered one of the ablest popes of the 9th century. John devoted much of his papacy ...

to Duke

Athanasius of Naples Athanasius (died 898) was the Bishop (as Athanasius II) and Duke of Naples from 878 to his death. He was the son of Gregory III and brother of Sergius II, whom he blinded and deposed in order to seize the throne while he was already bishop. In ...

to warn him not to trade with the Muslims of southern Italy. Marinus I was elected to succeed John VIII as

from around the end of December 882. This papal election was controversial because Marinus had already been consecrated as bishop of Caere; at the time, a bishop was expected never to

move Move may refer to: People * Daniil Move (born 1985), a Russian auto racing driver Brands and enterprises * Move (company), an online real estate company * Move (electronics store), a defunct Australian electronics retailer * Daihatsu Move Go ...

to another

see See or SEE may refer to: * Sight - seeing Arts, entertainment, and media * Music: ** ''See'' (album), studio album by rock band The Rascals *** "See", song by The Rascals, on the album ''See'' ** "See" (Tycho song), song by Tycho * Television * ...

. Among his first acts as pope were the restitution of Formosus as

cardinal bishop A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. C ...

of Portus and the anathematizing of Photius I. Due to his respect for Alfred the Great (r. 871–899), he freed the

Anglo-Saxons The Anglo-Saxons were a Cultural identity, cultural group who inhabited England in the Early Middle Ages. They traced their origins to settlers who came to Britain from mainland Europe in the 5th century. However, the ethnogenesis of the Anglo- ...

of the ''Schola Anglorum'' in Rome from tribute and taxation. He also is recorded to have sent a piece of the

True Cross The True Cross is the cross upon which Jesus was said to have been crucified, particularly as an object of religious veneration. There are no early accounts that the apostles or early Christians preserved the physical cross themselves, althoug ...

to Alfred as a gift. He died in May or June 884, his successor being Adrian III.

Name error

Because of the similarity of the names, Marinus I and

Marinus II Pope Marinus II (died May 946) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 30 October 942 to his death. He has also been mistakenly called Martinus III. He ruled during the ''Saeculum obscurum''. He was also erroneously called Mart ...

were, in some sources, mistakenly called Martinus II and Martinus III.

References

External links

Opera Omnia by Migne Patrologia Latina with analytical indexes
{{DEFAULTSORT:Marinus 1 Popes Italian popes Diplomats of the Holy See 884 deaths 9th-century archbishops Year of birth unknown 9th-century popes 830 births Burials at St. Peter's Basilica

Ecclesiastical career

Name error

References

Further reading

External links