Pope Agapetus II (died 8 November 955) was the

bishop of Rome The pope is the bishop of Rome and the 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 pope was the sovereign or head of sta ...

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 10 May 946 to his death. A nominee of the

princeps ''Princeps'' (plural: ''Principes'') is a Latin word meaning "first in time or order; the first, foremost, chief, the most eminent, distinguished, or noble; the first person". As a title, ''Princeps'' originated in the Roman Republic wherein the ...

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, ...

, Alberic II of Spoleto, his pontificate occurred during the period known as the ''

Saeculum obscurum (, "the dark age/century"), also known as the Rule of the Harlots or the Pornocracy, was a period in the history of the papacy during the first two thirds of the 10th century, following the chaos after the death of Pope Formosus in 896, which ...

''.

Pontificate

He was elected

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 ...

on 10 May 946 after the death of Marinus II. The existence of an independent republic of Rome, ruled by Alberic II of Spoleto, meant that Agapetus was prevented from exercising any temporal or secular power in Rome and the

. The struggle between Berengar II and

Otto I Otto I (23 November 912 – 7 May 973), known as Otto the Great ( ) or Otto of Saxony ( ), was East Francia, East Frankish (Kingdom of Germany, German) king from 936 and Holy Roman Emperor from 962 until his death in 973. He was the eldest son o ...

for the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy (, ) was a unitary state that existed from 17 March 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 10 June 1946, when the monarchy wa ...

allowed Alberic to exercise complete control over Rome and Agapetus, meaning the pope was largely limited to managing internal church affairs. Even Agapetus’ invitation to Otto to intervene in Italian affairs in 951 was done at the instigation of Alberic, who was growing concerned at Berengar's growing power. However, when Otto's envoys, the bishops of

Mainz Mainz (; #Names and etymology, see below) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, and with around 223,000 inhabitants, it is List of cities in Germany by population, Germany's 35th-largest city. It lies in ...

and

Chur '' Chur (locally) or ; ; ; ; ; ; or ; , and . is the capital and largest List of towns in Switzerland, town of the Switzerland, Swiss Cantons of Switzerland, canton of the Grisons and lies in the Alpine Rhine, Grisonian Rhine Valley, where ...

, were sent to the pope to discuss Otto's reception in Rome and other more important questions, they were turned away by Alberic. Agapetus was forced to intervene in the dispute over the occupancy of the See of Reims. He ordered a

synod A synod () is a council of a Christian denomination, usually convened to decide an issue of doctrine, administration or application. The word '' synod'' comes from the Ancient Greek () ; the term is analogous with the Latin word . Originally, ...

to be held at

Ingelheim Ingelheim (), officially Ingelheim am Rhein (), is a town in the Mainz-Bingen Districts of Germany, district in the Rhineland-Palatinate state of Germany. The town sprawls along the Rhine's left bank. It has been Mainz-Bingen's district seat sin ...

in June 948 to resolve the rights of the rival claimants, Hugh of Vermandois and

Artald of Reims Artald of Reims (died October 1, 961) was twice Archbishop of Reims. He held the post first 931 to 940, when he was displaced by Hugh of Vermandois (bishop), Hugh of Vermandois. He was restored, with the help of Louis IV of France, in 946. Biograp ...

. He sent his legate Marinus of Bomarzo to act on his behalf, while Agapetus wrote to a number of bishops, asking them to be present at the council. Through his legate the pope indicated his support for King

Louis IV of France Louis IV (920/921 – 10 September 954), called ''d'Outremer'' or ''Transmarinus'' ("From overseas"), reigned as King of West Francia from 936 to 954. A member of the Carolingian dynasty, he was the only son of king Charles the Simple and his s ...

, and gave his support for reinstalling Artald as bishop of Reims. This council was followed up by another one at

Trier Trier ( , ; ), formerly and traditionally known in English as Trèves ( , ) and Triers (see also Names of Trier in different languages, names in other languages), is a city on the banks of the Moselle (river), Moselle in Germany. It lies in a v ...

, where Agapetus was again represented by Marinus of Bomarzo. In 949, Agapetus held a

in Rome, which confirmed the rulings of the two councils. It condemned the former bishop Hugh and it

excommunicated Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to deprive, suspend, or limit membership in a religious community or to restrict certain rights within it, in particular those of being in communion with other members of the con ...

his father, Count Herbert II of Vermandois, for his opposition to King Louis IV. After receiving requests from both Louis IV of France and Otto I of Germany, Agapetus granted privileges to monasteries and nunneries within their respective kingdoms. He also was sympathetic towards Otto's plans to restructure the bishoprics within Germany, which were eventually aborted due to pressure exerted by William of Mainz. Around 948, Agapetus, granted the Archbishop of Hamburg the right of consecrating bishops in Denmark and other northern European countries instead of the pope. The pope was also allegedly asked by a Danish king named

Frode Frode is a Norwegian and Danish masculine given name. It is also used as a surname. The name is a derivative of the Old Norse word Fróði meaning wise. It was very common in Denmark in the pre-World War II period and in Norway during the 1970s. ...

, now considered legendary, to send missionaries to his kingdom. Agapetus was also asked to intervene in a dispute between Herhold,

archbishop of Salzburg The Archdiocese of Salzburg (; ) is a Latin Church, Latin rite archdiocese of the Catholic Church centered in Salzburg, Austria. It is also the principal diocese of the ecclesiastical province of Salzburg. The archdiocese is one of two Austrian ...

and Gerard,

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy 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 and administration of di ...

of Lauriacum, who both claimed the title of metropolitan of all

Pannonia Pannonia (, ) was a Roman province, province of the Roman Empire bounded on the north and east by the Danube, on the west by Noricum and upper Roman Italy, Italy, and on the southward by Dalmatia (Roman province), Dalmatia and upper Moesia. It ...

. Agapetus dispatched a letter to the two claimants, in which he stated that the diocese of Lauriacum had been the metropolitan church of all Pannonia before the invasion of the

Huns The Huns were a nomadic people who lived in Central Asia, the Caucasus, and Eastern Europe between the 4th and 6th centuries AD. According to European tradition, they were first reported living east of the Volga River, in an area that was par ...

. However, following the ravages inflicted by them, the metropolitan had transferred his see to another city, and since that time Salzburg had been raised to an archbishopric. Consequently, both lawfully occupied their respective sees, and both were to retain their rank and diocese. Agapetus ruled that jurisdiction over western Pannonia would rest with Herhold, while the eastern part, along with the regions occupied by the Avars and the

Moravians Moravians ( or Colloquialism, colloquially , outdated ) are a West Slavs, West Slavic ethnic group from the Moravia region of the Czech Republic, who speak the Moravian dialects of Czech language, Czech or Czech language#Common Czech, Common ...

, would fall under Gerard. In Italy, Agapetus wrote to the dukes of Beneventum and

Capua Capua ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Caserta, in the region of Campania, southern Italy, located on the northeastern edge of the Campanian plain. History Ancient era The name of Capua comes from the Etruscan ''Capeva''. The ...

, demanding that monasteries be returned to the monks whom they had displaced. He also deposed the bishops of Termoli and Trivento who were accused of

simony Simony () is the act of selling church offices and roles or sacred things. It is named after Simon Magus, who is described in the Acts of the Apostles as having offered two disciples of Jesus payment in exchange for their empowering him to imp ...

. Hoping to rejuvenate the religious life of the clerics in Italy, Agapetus, with the blessing of Alberic, asked for the

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

of Gorze Abbey to send some of his monks down and join the monastic community attached to the church of Saint Paul Outside the Walls. Agapetus died on 8 November 955, and was succeeded by Alberic's son, Octavian, who took the papal name of John XII. He was buried in the Lateran basilica, behind the apse, and close to the tombs of Leo V and Paschal II. Agapetus was noted for his caution and for the sanctity with which he led his life.Gregorovius, pg. 321; Mann, pg. 225

References

* Gregorovius, Ferdinand, ''The History of Rome in the Middle Ages, Vol. III'' (1895) * Mann, Horace K., ''The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages, Vol. IV: The Popes in the Days of Feudal Anarchy, 891-999'' (1910)

Notes

External links

* *
Catholic Encyclopedia article on Agapetus II
{{DEFAULTSORT:Agapetus 02 Popes Italian popes 955 deaths Year of birth unknown 10th-century popes Burials at the Archbasilica of Saint John Lateran