Benedict IX: The Youngest Pope In History And The Turmoil That Followed
The Catholic Church is in mourning following the death of Pope Francis. As is customary, with the death of a pope, the process of selecting a new leader for the Church is already underway. The election of a pope is always a momentous occasion in the history of the Catholic Church, but in the case of Pope Benedict IX, it was one of the most extraordinary.
Elected as pope at a remarkably young age, Benedict IX became the youngest pope in history - a record that still stands today.
Rise Of A Boy Pope
Benedict IX, born Theophylactus of Tusculum, became pope at an unusually young age, possibly as young as 11, though most accounts suggest he was closer to 20. His exact age when elected in 1032 is still debated.
The Catholic Encyclopedia, a reference from the early 20th century, suggests he was around 20. Philosopher Bertrand Russell, in 'A History of Western Philosophy', mentioned he might have been just 12. A contemporary monk, Rodulfus Glaber, also claimed Benedict IX was 12 when he became pope, a view supported by historian F Donald Logan in 'A History of the Church in the Middle Ages'.
Tumultuous Reign
Benedict IX's reign as pope was marked by scandal, violence and power struggles. He served three times as pope-first from 1032 to 1044, then briefly in 1045, and again from 1047 to 1048.
He is perhaps most famous for selling the papacy before reclaiming it twice.
His rule was filled with violence and debauchery, leading to an uprising in Rome. By early 1045, Benedict was forced to flee, and Bishop John of Sabina was elected pope in his place. Benedict's brothers orchestrated his return and expelled the new pope.
In 1045, Benedict IX sold the papacy to his godfather, Giovanni Graziano, who took the name Pope Gregory VI. His papacy was short-lived.
By 1046, three men - Benedict, Sylvester III, and Gregory VI - were all claiming to be pope. Emperor Henry III intervened by convening the Council of Sutri, which deposed all three claimants. Benedict was removed and Gregory was forced to resign.
After the death of Pope Clement II in 1047, Benedict returned to Rome, trying once more to reclaim the papacy. In 1048, he was expelled by Boniface of Tuscany and never returned to Rome.
The Catholic Encyclopedia, which typically offers a more sympathetic view, does not hold back in its criticism of Benedict IX, calling him "a disgrace to the Chair of Peter."
Benedict IX spent his final years in seclusion, possibly at a monastery, and died around 1055 or 1056.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Indian Express
2 days ago
- Indian Express
From revolution to wars: The history of Harvard, America's oldest university
It's a challenging time for America's oldest university, as it stands embroiled in a legal battle with President Donald Trump's government. And yet, Harvard has been holding its own; a reflection of the values that have marked its long and prestigious history, one that was marked by resilience and rebellion. 'The debut of Harvard College,' according to Bainbridge Bunting in Harvard: An Architectural History (1985), 'was not auspicious.' Established in October 1636, Harvard had neither the finances nor the faculty needed to operate a university. But what it did have was the vision of a group of cultivators and artisans who fled the tyranny of British occupants in Old England and moved to a region in the northeastern United States called New England. This group, according to Bunting, 'had the advantage of the best education available in England in the seventeenth century.' Comprising the alumni of both Oxford and Cambridge universities, they hoped to give their sons a comparable education. The absence of an institution of repute in New England led to the genesis of Harvard, the oldest of America's Ivy League schools. 'Yale, Princeton, Harvard, Brown are all plugged in the northeast, in New England. Harvard has played a major role in building this geographical cluster,' says Mohit Sinha, an alumnus of Harvard, in an interview with An eight-acre house comprising a one-acre cow yard was quickly purchased to build the College. By 1637, Harvard had its first Master, Cambridge alumnus Nathaniel Eaton. Interestingly, the university was not always called Harvard. 'When it was set up, it was called New College. It was renamed Harvard College after its biggest benefactor, John Harvard,' remarks Sinha. Harvard, on his deathbed, gave to the university his library and estate. Eaton, however, was quickly dismissed on charges of brutality and physical abuse. The arrival of Cambridge graduate Henry Dunster as the president in 1640 offered a glimmer of hope. 'The youngest in the long line of Harvard presidents, he proved to be one of the greatest,' writes alumnus and author Samuel Eliot Morison in Three Centuries of Harvard (1636-1936). His effort was particularly concentrated on completing the college buildings. By the 1650s, Harvard had about 60 students enrolled. Boys had come from Bermuda, Virginia, New Amsterdam, and even England, where Harvard degrees were now accepted by Oxford and Cambridge as equivalent to their own. A dispute with the administration, unfortunately, led Dunster to resign in 1654. 'Harvard University grew out of the Liberal Arts college as Dunster left it,' remarks Morison. Academic and student life in the seventeenth-century Harvard was guided by the Catholic Church. A college pamphlet from 1643 states the vision of the College: 'To advance learning and perpetuate it to Posterity; dreading to leave an illiterate ministry to the churches.' In other words, a learned clergy was what Harvard was expected to supply. An average day for a Harvard student began and ended with prayer, which included the recitation of a chapter of Scripture by the President. Saturdays were dedicated to preparations for the Sabbath, which included worship and meditation. Students, according to Morison, were reminded that the focus of their academic pursuit was the greater knowledge of God. It was thus no surprise that Harvard, at the time, was known as the 'School of Prophets,' and its men as the 'Sons of Prophets.' The 1700s were a period of prosperity for Harvard. The decade began with the Presidency of John Leverett. His first concern was to refurbish the dilapidated college buildings. Tables, chairs, feather beds, and looking glasses were supplied in abundance. While no major changes were made to the curriculum, the number of student enrollments increased. French was also introduced as a subject. Interestingly, the French tutor was the only staff member without a Harvard degree. Expulsion was a particularly dreadful process. After assembling the entire college in the hall, the President would announce the crime and sentence. The butler would then strike off the name of the offenders from the bulletin board, which contained the names of all members of the College. However, the culprit could publicly confess their misdeeds and be forgiven as per the Christian principle. Another notable aspect was that until 1749, classes at Harvard were placed in order of the presumed social rank of parents. However, as classes grew bigger, the process turned complex. In 1769, the decision was made that arrangements would now be alphabetical. Leverett's leadership helped Harvard grow from a weak institution to one of considerable repute. According to Morison, it was Leverett who founded the liberal tradition of Harvard University. Discussion on the Harvard of the eighteenth century cannot be without the university's response to the American Revolution (1775-1783). Experts and accounts claim that Harvard men played a significant part in carrying through the Revolution. Plato's dialogues and Aristotle's virtues guided their actions of the time. Morison mentions several public speaking clubs, including the Speaking Club, the Mercurian Club, and the Clintonian Club, were established as secret societies in the College. Yet, the American Revolutionary War placed the College under difficult circumstances. Students fell in numbers, supplies fell short, and wartime inflation exacerbated the ongoing financial crisis. The dominant feeling at Harvard during the Civil War (1861-1865) was for the Union, which advocated conciliation as well as the abolition of slavery. 'Harvard very clearly fought for the Union. A lot of constitutional lawmaking, post the Civil War, was done by Harvard scholars, both ex-students as well as faculty,' says Sinha. Harvard, thus, has had a central role in establishing the legal framework of the country. 'And there's always been dissent.' However, college went on as usual, and attendance was normal. President Abraham Lincoln kept his son at Harvard at the time, until his graduation in 1864. This was also the century when Harvard expanded significantly. The Medical School, set up in 1782, introduced entrance examinations, and laboratories for Physiology and Microscopic Anatomy were created. The summer of 1900 also witnessed Harvard open its doors for women. Harvard president Charles William Eliot mentioned the move to make the university gender-inclusive. However, he was cautious to say that Harvard would avoid 'the difficulties involved in common residence of hundreds of young men and women of immature character and marriageable age.' 'There was the Radcliffe College, which was a girls' college that was associated with Harvard, but it was a separate identity,' explains Sinha. It was only in the 1970s that the college was drafted into Harvard University. The 389-year-old journey of Harvard has several lessons to offer. 'What Harvard is doing today in terms of pushing back is not its first,' says Sinha. From the American War of Independence through the Civil War, we see Harvard's resilience in the face of conflict. This, the 'Harvard man,' Sinha, asserts, will be another successful litigation case against the Trump administration. Nikita writes for the Research Section of focusing on the intersections between colonial history and contemporary issues, especially in gender, culture, and sport. For suggestions, feedback, or an insider's guide to exploring Calcutta, feel free to reach out to her at ... Read More
India.com
4 days ago
- India.com
This country has no hospital, no child is born since..., the country is...
This country has no hospital, no child is born since..., the country is... No hospital in a country? Is it even real? But there is a country which has no hospitals, but not for the reasons you might think. The country we are talking about is the Vatican City, the epicenter of Christianity and the world's smallest country. This country came into existence in the year 1929. The home of the Roman Catholic Church, and the proverbial Mecca of Catholicism, Vatican City does not have a single hospital within its national boundaries, and more surprisingly, no child has reportedly been born in this tiny city state for almost 96 years. This country is the main home of the Roman Catholic Church and is considered as the smallest country in the world. When someone falls ill in this country, people here go to Rome for treatment. Shockingly, not a single child has been born in the last 96 years due to the lack of a maternity ward. According to reports, the Vatican City, which was officially carved out as an independent sovereign nation February 11, 1929, has not had a single childbirth since the country was formed. Why Vatican City has no hospitals? The Vatican City is the home of the Pope, as well as other major religious leaders and priests of the Roman Catholic Church, and while multiple requests for building a hospital in the city state were raised since its formation, they were all turned down. Luckily though, Vatican City lies in middle of Rome, the capital city of Italy, and whenever there is a situation where someone needs hospital care, they are taken to the Italian capital.
Time of India
25-05-2025
- Time of India
Udupi diocese hands over house to family
Udupi: The Udupi Diocese inaugurated a comprehensive initiative aimed at providing housing for underprivileged families lacking their own homes. This ambitious project is a key component of the diocese's preparations for the upcoming General Jubilee Year 2025, a significant milestone for the Catholic Church. The first tangible outcome of this initiative was witnessed on Sunday with the formal handover of a newly constructed house, christened 'Ark of Hope', to the family of Vinod and Angeline Pinto, within the jurisdiction of the Thottam St Anne's Church. The Pinto family, burdened by persistent financial constraints, was residing in rented accommodation. Their plight resonated deeply within the parish community, prompting a concerted effort involving the parish council, generous donors, and the Michael D'Souza Charity Trust to realise their dream. Through this collaborative endeavour, a fully furnished house, estimated at Rs 13 lakh, was constructed. The realisation of this project was further facilitated by the donation of five cents of land by Thomas and Valeriana Noronha. The construction process was expedited, and the house was completed in a five-month timeframe. Rev Denis D'Sa, parish priest of Thottam Church, presided over the handover ceremony, blessing the new home and formally entrusting it to the Pinto family. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Buy Brass Idols - Handmade Brass Statues for Home & Gifting Luxeartisanship Buy Now Undo "A home is more than just bricks and mortar; it is a foundation for stability, security, and a sense of belonging," Rev D'Sa said. Looking ahead, the Udupi Diocese has ambitious plans to replicate the success of the 'Ark of Hope' project across its 52 churches, aiming to construct a house for one homeless family in each parish as part of the Jubilee Year 2025 celebrations. The diocese hopes that this initiative will inspire other organisations and individuals to join hands in building a more equitable and compassionate society for all.
