Pope Leo III

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Pope Saint Leo III (Unknown 12 June 816 AD) was Pope
from December 26, 795[1] to his death in 816.[2] Protected Pope Leo III
by Charlemagne from his enemies in Rome, he
subsequently strengthened Charlemagne's position by
crowning him Holy Roman Emperor and "Augustus of the
Romans".

Contents
1 Biography
1.1 Early life and pontifical selection
1.2 Pontificate
1.3 Coronation of Charlemagne
1.4 Significance
1.5 Death and burial
1.6 Canonization
2 See also
3 References
4 External links

Biography
Lateran Palace mosaic c. 799
Early life and pontifical selection Papacy 27 December 795
began
Leo was a Roman, the son of Atyuppius and Elizabeth. At Papacy 12 June 816
the time of his election he was Cardinal-Priest of Santa
ended
Susanna, and seemingly also vestiarius, or chief of the
pontifical treasury, or wardrobe. Predecessor Adrian I
Successor Stephen IV
He was elected on the very day his predecessor, Adrian I,
was buried (26 Dec., 795), and consecrated on the Created by Adrian I
following day. It is quite possible that this haste may have Cardinal
been due to a desire on the part of the Romans to Personal details
anticipate any interference of the Franks with their freedom
of election. With the letter informing Charlemagne that he Birth name Unknown
had been unanimously elected pope, Leo sent him the keys Born 750 AD
of the confession of St. Peter, and the standard of the city, Rome, Exarchate of Ravenna,
and requested an envoy. This he did to show that he Roman Empire
regarded the Frankish king as the protector of the Holy
Died 12 June 816
See.[2] Rome
Previous Cardinal-Priest of Santa Susanna
Pontificate
In return he received from Charlemagne letters of
In return he received from Charlemagne letters of post (???-795)
congratulation and a great part of the treasure which the Sainthood
king had captured from the Avars. The acquisition of this
wealth enabled Leo to be a great benefactor to the Feast day 12 June
churches and charitable institutions of Rome. While Venerated in Roman Catholic Church
Charlemagne's letter is respectful and even affectionate, it
Canonized 1673
also exhibits his concept of the coordination of the spiritual
byPope Clement X
and temporal powers, nor does he hesitate to remind the
pope of his grave spiritual obligations.[3] Charlemagne's Attributes Papal vestments
reply stated that it was his function to defend the Church, Papal tiara
and the function of the Pope to pray for the realm and for Other popes named Leo
the victory of his army.

Prompted by jealousy or ambition, or by feelings of hatred and revenge, a number of the relatives of Pope
Adrian I formed a plot to render Leo unfit to hold his sacred office. On the occasion of the procession of
the Greater Litanies (25 April, 799), when the pope was making his way towards the Flaminian Gate, he
was suddenly attacked by a body of armed men. He was dashed to the ground, and an effort was made to
root out his tongue and tear out his eyes which left him injured and unconscious. He was rescued by two
of the king's missus dominicus, who came with a considerable force. The Duke of Spoleto sheltered the
fugitive pope, who went later to Paderborn, where the king's camp then was.[3] He was received by the
Frankish king with the greatest honour at Paderborn.[2] This meeting forms the basis of the epic poem
Karolus Magnus et Leo Papa.

His enemies had accused Leo of adultery and perjury. Charlemagne ordered them to Paderborn, but no
decision could be made. He then had Leo escorted back to Rome. In November 800, Charlemagne himself
went to Rome, and on 1 December held a council there with representatives of both sides. Leo, on 23
December, took an oath of purgation concerning the charges brought against him, and his opponents
were exiled.[2]

Coronation of Charlemagne
Charlemagne's father, Pepin the Short, defended the papacy against the Lombards and issued the
Donation of Pepin, which granted the land around Rome to the pope as a fief. In 774 Pope Adrian I had
conferred on Charles's father the dignity of Patricius Romanus, which implied primarily the protection of
the Roman Church in all its rights and privileges; above all in its temporal authority which it had gradually
acquired (notably in the former Byzantine Duchy of Rome and the Exarchate of Ravenna) by just titles in
the course of the two preceding centuries.[3]

Two days after Leo's oath, on Christmas Day 800, he crowned Charlemagne as Roman emperor of the
Holy Roman Empire. According to Charlemagne's biographer, Einhard, (Vita Caroli 28) Charles had no
suspicion of what was about to happen, and if informed would not have accepted the imperial crown.[4]
On the other hand, there seems no reason to doubt that for some time previous the elevation of Charles
had been discussed, both at home and at Rome, especially in view of two facts: the scandalous condition
of the imperial government at Constantinople, and the acknowledged grandeur and solidity of the
Carolingian house.[3] The coronation offended Constantinople, which had seen itself still as the rightful
defender of Rome, but the Eastern Roman Empress Irene of Athens, like many of her predecessors since
Justinian, was too weak to offer protection to the city or its much reduced citizenry.

In 808, Leo committed Corsica to Charlemagne for safe-keeping because of Muslim raids, originating
In 808, Leo committed Corsica to Charlemagne for safe-keeping because of Muslim raids, originating
from Al-Andalus,[5] on the island.[6] Nonetheless, Corsica, along with Sardinia, would still go on to be
occupied by Muslim forces in 809 and 810.[7]

Significance
On Christmas Day in 800, Leo crowned Charlemagne Holy Roman Emperor at St Peter's Basilica in Rome.
Charlemagne gathered to his court the cream of available intellect, centered on the scholar Alcuin, whom
he brought from York in England. Monks and other copyists were set to transcribing ancient manuscripts,
both classical and Christian, for the preservation and extension of learning. Schools were established at
monasteries and cathedrals, the forerunners of the great universities. Myriad hymns and poems were
composed, along with commentaries on Holy Scripture, treatises on music, theological works, and
numerous chronicles of history. Advances were made in architecture (at Aachen and Ingelheim, for
instance), technology (such as the iron horseshoe and the padded harness for plowing with horses), and
agriculture (for example, the system of triple crop rotation).

Under his leadership there arose a cultural enrichment still known as the Carolingian Renaissance.
Although the political unity Charlemagne imposed on the greater part of that continent did not outlive
him, the cultural unity of Europe did.[8]

Leo helped restore King Eardwulf of Northumbria and settled various matters of dispute between the
Archbishops of York and Canterbury. He also reversed the decision of his predecessor Pope Adrian I in
regards to the granting of the pallium to Higbert, Bishop of Lichfield. He believed that the English
episcopate had been misrepresented before Adrian and that therefore his act was invalid. In 803, Lichfield
was a regular diocese again.

Leo forbade the addition of the filioque to the Nicene Creed, when asked to confirm the decision of a
Council of Aachen held in 809. Although he approved of the doctrine expressed by the filioque, he also
ordered that the Nicene Creed, without filioque, be displayed on silver tablets placed in Saint Peter's
Basilica, adding: "Haec Leo posui amore et cautela orthodoxae fidei" ("I, Leo, put these here for love and
protection of orthodox faith").[9]

The reasons for the coronation of Charlemagne, the involvement beforehand of the Frankish court, and
the relationship to the Eastern Roman Empire are all matters of debate among historians. An effective
administrator of the papal territories, Leo contributed to the beautification of Rome.

Death and burial

Leo III died in 816 after a reign of more than 20 years. He was originally buried in his own monument.
However, some years after his death, his remains were put into a tomb that contained the first four Popes
Leo. In the 18th century, the relics of Leo I were separated from the other Leos, and he was given his own
chapel.[10]

Canonization
Leo III wasn't officially canonized, but his name was included in the Roman Martyrology in 1673 under
Pope Clement X which acted as formal canonization. He is venerated as a Blessed in the Archdiocese of
Paderborn and his memorial is on 12 June.[11]
See also
List of Catholic saints
List of popes
Rags to riches

References
1. "Saint Leo III". Encyclopdia Britannica Online. Encyclopdia Britannica Inc., 2016. Web. 30 Mar. 2016 (http://w
ww.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Leo-III)
2. Mann, Horace. "Pope St. Leo III." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 9. New York: Robert Appleton Company,
1910. 5 January 2013 (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/09157b.htm)
3. Shahan, Thomas, and Ewan Macpherson. "Charlemagne." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 3. New York: Robert
Appleton Company, 1908. 5 Jan. 2013 (http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03610c.htm)
4. Einhard: The Life of Charlemagne, translated by Samuel Epes Turner, New York, Harper & Brothers,(1880) (htt
p://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/einhard.asp#Charlemagne)
5. Raymond Davis (1 Jan 1995). The Lives of the Ninth-century Popes (Liber Pontificalis): The Ancient Biographies of
Ten Popes from A.D. 817-891 (illustrated ed.). Liverpool University Press. p.93. ISBN9780853234791.
6. Thomas F. X. Noble (1 Jan 2011). The Republic of St. Peter: The Birth of the Papal State, 680-825. University of
Pennsylvania Press. p.173. ISBN9780812200911.
7. Henri Pirenne (7 Mar 2013). Mohammed and Charlemagne. Routledge. p.160. ISBN9781135030179.
8. Reardon, Patrick Henry, "Turning Point: The Crowning of Charlemagne", Christianity Today, January 1, 2006 (htt
p://www.christianitytoday.com/ch/2006/issue89/13.46.html?start=1)
9. "Agreed Statement of the North American Orthodox-Catholic Theological Consultation, 25 October 2003".
10. Reardon, Wendy (McFarland). The deaths of the Popes. Check date values in: |date= (help)
11. Dizesankalender fr das Erzbistum Paderborn (http://www.pastorale-informationen.de/661-Gottesdienst/824
-Liturgischer-Kalender.html)

External links
Translation of Einhard's Life of Charlemagne (c. 817830, Wikimedia Commons has
translated in 1880) (http://www.fordham.edu/halsall/basis/einh media related to Pope Leo
ard.html) III.
Works by or about Pope Leo III (https://worldcat.org/identities/l
ccn-n85-255316) in libraries (WorldCat catalog)
Opera Omnia by Migne Patrologia Latina with analytical indexes (http://www.documentacatholicao
mnia.eu/01_01_0795-0816-_Leo_III,_Sanctus.html)

Catholic Church titles

Precededby Pope Succeededby
Adrian I 795816 Stephen IV

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Pope_Leo_III&oldid=762631343"

Categories: 8th-century births 816 deaths Popes Italian popes Papal saints
8th-century Italian people 9th-century Italian people 8th-century archbishops
9th-century archbishops 9th-century Christian saints 8th-century popes 9th-century popes
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