Pope John XI
Encyclopedia
Pope John XI was a Pope
from March 931 (at the age of 20) to December 935.
(Antapodosis, ii. c. 48) and the "Liber Pontificalis
," he was the natural son of Pope Sergius III
(904–911), ("Johannes, natione Romanus ex patre Sergio papa," "Liber Pont." ed. Duchesne
, II, 243). Ferdinand Gregorovius
, Ernst Dümmler
, Thomas Greenwood (Cathedra Petri: A Political History of the great Latin Patriarchate), Philip Schaff
, and Rudolf Baxmann agree with Liutprand that Pope Sergius III
fathered Pope John XI by Marozia
. If that is true, John XI would be the only known illegitimate son of a Pope to have become Pope himself. (Silverius
was the legitimate son of Pope Hormisdas
). On the other hand, Horace Kinder Mann, Reginald L. Poole, Peter Llewelyn (Rome in the Dark Ages), Karl Josef von Hefele
, August Friedrich Gfrörer, Ludovico Antonio Muratori
, and Francis Patrick Kenrick maintain that Pope John XI was sired by Alberic I of Spoleto
, Count of Tusculum
.
At the overthrow
of Marozia around 932, John XI reportedly became subject to the control of Alberic II, his younger brother. The only control left to the Pope was the exercise of his purely spiritual duties. All other jurisdiction was exercised through Alberic II. This was not only the case in secular, but also in ecclesiastical affairs.
It was at the insistence of Alberic II that the pallium
was given to Theophylactus, Patriarch of Constantinople
(935), and also to Artold, Archbishop of Reims
(933). It was John XI who sat in the Chair of Peter during what some traditional Catholic sources consider its deepest humiliation, but it was also he who granted many privileges to the Congregation of Cluny
, which was later on a powerful agent of Church reform.
Pope
The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, a position that makes him the leader of the worldwide Catholic Church . In the Catholic Church, the Pope is regarded as the successor of Saint Peter, the Apostle...
from March 931 (at the age of 20) to December 935.
Parentage
The parentage of John XI is still a matter of dispute. According to Liutprand of CremonaLiutprand of Cremona
Liutprand, also Liudprand, Liuprand, Lioutio, Liucius, Liuzo, and Lioutsios was a Lombard historian and author, and Bishop of Cremona....
(Antapodosis, ii. c. 48) and the "Liber Pontificalis
Liber Pontificalis
The Liber Pontificalis is a book of biographies of popes from Saint Peter until the 15th century. The original publication of the Liber Pontificalis stopped with Pope Adrian II or Pope Stephen V , but it was later supplemented in a different style until Pope Eugene IV and then Pope Pius II...
," he was the natural son of Pope Sergius III
Pope Sergius III
Pope Sergius III was a pope of the Roman Catholic Church from 29 January 904 to 14 April 911. Because Sergius III was possibly the only pope known to have ordered the murder of another pope and the only pope to have fathered an illegitimate son who later became pope , his reign has been described...
(904–911), ("Johannes, natione Romanus ex patre Sergio papa," "Liber Pont." ed. Duchesne
Duchesne
-People:*André Duchesne , French historian*André Duchesne , Canadian musician*Antoine Nicolas Duchesne French botanist and strawberry breeder*Ernest Duchesne , French physician...
, II, 243). Ferdinand Gregorovius
Ferdinand Gregorovius
Ferdinand Gregorovius was a German historian who specialized in the medieval history of Rome. He is best known for Wanderjahre in Italien, his account of the walks he took through Italy in the 1850s, and the monumental Die Geschichte der Stadt Rom im Mittelalter , a classic for Medieval and early...
, Ernst Dümmler
Ernst Dümmler
Ernst Ludwig Dümmler was a German historian.The son of Ferdinand Dümmler , a Berlin bookseller, Ernst Ludwig was born in Berlin...
, Thomas Greenwood (Cathedra Petri: A Political History of the great Latin Patriarchate), Philip Schaff
Philip Schaff
Philip Schaff , was a Swiss-born, German-educated Protestant theologian and a historian of the Christian church, who, after his education, lived and taught in the United States.-Biography:...
, and Rudolf Baxmann agree with Liutprand that Pope Sergius III
Pope Sergius III
Pope Sergius III was a pope of the Roman Catholic Church from 29 January 904 to 14 April 911. Because Sergius III was possibly the only pope known to have ordered the murder of another pope and the only pope to have fathered an illegitimate son who later became pope , his reign has been described...
fathered Pope John XI by Marozia
Marozia
Marozia, born Maria and also known as Mariuccia or Mariozza , was a Roman noblewoman who was the alleged mistress of Pope Sergius III and was given the unprecedented titles senatrix and patricia of Rome by Pope John X.Edward Gibbon wrote of her that the "influence of two sister prostitutes,...
. If that is true, John XI would be the only known illegitimate son of a Pope to have become Pope himself. (Silverius
Pope Silverius
Pope Saint Silverius was Pope from June 8, 536 until March 537. According to the "New Catholic Encyclopedia" , the dates of Pope Silverius' pontificate are in doubt: "June 1 or 8, 536, to c. November 11, 537; d. Palmaria, probably December 2, 537."...
was the legitimate son of Pope Hormisdas
Pope Hormisdas
Pope Saint Hormisdas was Pope from July 20, 514 to 523. His papacy was dominated by the Acacian schism, started in 484 by Acacius of Constantinople's efforts to placate the Monophysites...
). On the other hand, Horace Kinder Mann, Reginald L. Poole, Peter Llewelyn (Rome in the Dark Ages), Karl Josef von Hefele
Karl Josef von Hefele
Karl Josef von Hefele was a German theologian. He was born at Unterkochen in Württemberg, and was educated at Tübingen where in 1839 he became professor-ordinary of Church history and patristics in the Roman Catholic faculty of theology.From 1842 to 1845 he sat in the National Assembly of...
, August Friedrich Gfrörer, Ludovico Antonio Muratori
Ludovico Antonio Muratori
Ludovico Antonio Muratori was an Italian historian, notable as a leading scholar of his age, and for his discovery of the Muratorian fragment, the earliest known list of New Testament books....
, and Francis Patrick Kenrick maintain that Pope John XI was sired by Alberic I of Spoleto
Alberic I of Spoleto
Alberic I was the Lombard duke of Spoleto from between 896 and 900 until 920, 922, or thereabouts. He first appears as a page to Guy III of Spoleto at the Battle on the Trebbia in 889 He may have later been the count of Fermo or margrave of Camerino, but whatever the case, he succeeded to Spoleto...
, Count of Tusculum
Tusculum
Tusculum is a ruined Roman city in the Alban Hills, in the Latium region of Italy.-Location:Tusculum is one of the largest Roman cities in Alban Hills. The ruins of Tusculum are located on Tuscolo hill—more specifically on the northern edge of the outer crater ring of the Alban volcano...
.
Pontificate
His mother was the Roman ruler at the time, resulting in his appointment to the Papacy. Marozia was thus allegedly able to exert complete control over the Pope.At the overthrow
Overthrow
Overthrow may refer to:* Overthrow, a change in government, often achieved by force or through a coup.**The 5th October Overthrow, or Bulldozer Revolution, the events of 2000 that led to the downfall of Slobodan Milošević in the former Yugoslavia....
of Marozia around 932, John XI reportedly became subject to the control of Alberic II, his younger brother. The only control left to the Pope was the exercise of his purely spiritual duties. All other jurisdiction was exercised through Alberic II. This was not only the case in secular, but also in ecclesiastical affairs.
It was at the insistence of Alberic II that the pallium
Pallium
The pallium is an ecclesiastical vestment in the Roman Catholic Church, originally peculiar to the Pope, but for many centuries bestowed by him on metropolitans and primates as a symbol of the jurisdiction delegated to them by the Holy See. In that context it has always remained unambiguously...
was given to Theophylactus, Patriarch of Constantinople
Patriarch of Constantinople
The Ecumenical Patriarch is the Archbishop of Constantinople – New Rome – ranking as primus inter pares in the Eastern Orthodox communion, which is seen by followers as the One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church....
(935), and also to Artold, Archbishop of Reims
Archbishop of Reims
The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Reims is an archdiocese of the Latin Rite of the Roman Catholic Church in France. Erected as a diocese around 250 by St. Sixtus, the diocese was elevated to an archdiocese around 750...
(933). It was John XI who sat in the Chair of Peter during what some traditional Catholic sources consider its deepest humiliation, but it was also he who granted many privileges to the Congregation of Cluny
Cluny
Cluny or Clungy is a commune in the Saône-et-Loire department in the region of Bourgogne in eastern France. It is 20 km northwest of Mâcon.The town grew up around the Benedictine Cluny Abbey, founded by Duke William I of Aquitaine in 910...
, which was later on a powerful agent of Church reform.