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The Fifth Council of the Lateran, held between 1512 and 1517, was the eighteenth
ecumenical council An ecumenical council, also called general council, is a meeting of bishops and other church authorities to consider and rule on questions of Christian doctrine, administration, discipline, and other matters in which those entitled to vote ar ...
of the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...
and was the last council before the
Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and i ...
and the
Council of Trent The Council of Trent ( la, Concilium Tridentinum), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation, it has been described a ...
. It was convoked by
Pope Julius II Pope Julius II ( la, Iulius II; it, Giulio II; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope or t ...
to restore peace between Catholic rulers and assert the authority of the
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 ...
.


Background

When elected pope in 1503,
Pope Julius II Pope Julius II ( la, Iulius II; it, Giulio II; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope or t ...
promised under oath to convoke a general council, but his promise was not fulfilled. The
Republic of Venice The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia ...
had encroached on papal rights in Venetian territories by independently filling vacant episcopal sees, subjecting clergy to secular tribunals and generally disregarding the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of Julius II in other ways. In 1509, Julius II joined the League of Cambrai, a coalition formed to restore lands that had been recently conquered by Venice to their original owners. Julius II censured Venice with an
interdict In Catholic canon law, an interdict () is an ecclesiastical censure, or ban that prohibits persons, certain active Church individuals or groups from participating in certain rites, or that the rites and services of the church are banished from ...
and deployed the armies 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 ...
, along with the combined forces of the League of Cambrai, to Venetian-occupied
Romagna Romagna ( rgn, Rumâgna) is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, North Italy. Traditionally, it is limited by the Apennines to the south-west, the Adriatic to th ...
. There, Venice suffered a complete defeat at the
Battle of Agnadello The Battle of Agnadello, also known as Vailà, was one of the most significant battles of the War of the League of Cambrai and one of the major battles of the Italian Wars. Background On 15 April 1509, a French army under the command of Louis ...
, on 14 May 1509. In 1510, Venice negotiated with Julius II, who withdrew from the League of Cambrai and removed the censure in exchange for terms that included Venice agreeing to return disputed towns in Romagna, to renounce claims to fill vacant benefices, to acknowledge jurisdiction of ecclesiastical tribunals over clergy and their immunity to secular tribunals including exemption from taxes, to revoke all unauthorised treaties made with towns in the Papal States, to abandon appeal to a future general council against the papal bans and to concede free navigation of the
Adriatic Sea The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to th ...
to Papal States subjects. The first stages of conflict between the Papal States and France began in 1510. King
Louis XII of France Louis XII (27 June 14621 January 1515), was King of France from 1498 to 1515 and King of Naples from 1501 to 1504. The son of Charles, Duke of Orléans, and Maria of Cleves, he succeeded his 2nd cousin once removed and brother in law at the time ...
demanded for the
Republic of Florence The Republic of Florence, officially the Florentine Republic ( it, Repubblica Fiorentina, , or ), was a medieval and early modern state that was centered on the Italian city of Florence in Tuscany. The republic originated in 1115, when the Fl ...
to declare definitively its allegiance. However, declaring allegiance to France would expose Florence to an immediate attack, and alienate its citizens, who dreaded a conflict with the head of the Church. Additionally, Florence was full of antagonistic parties and irreconcilable interests. To gain time, Florence sent
Niccolò Machiavelli Niccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli ( , , ; 3 May 1469 – 21 June 1527), occasionally rendered in English as Nicholas Machiavel ( , ; see below), was an Italian diplomat, author, philosopher and historian who lived during the Renaissance. ...
on a diplomatic mission to France in July 1510, where he found Louis XII eager for war and inclined towards the idea of a general council to depose Julius II. Julius II was a soldier, and his goal was to free the entire Italian Peninsula from subjection to foreign powers. However, only Venice and the
Old Swiss Confederacy The Old Swiss Confederacy or Swiss Confederacy ( Modern German: ; historically , after the Reformation also , "Confederation of the Swiss") was a loose confederation of independent small states (, German or In the charters of the 14th centur ...
were ready to field armies against the French. Julius II began hostilities by deposing and excommunicating his vassal, Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, who supported France. Louis XII retaliated in September 1510 by convoking a synod of French bishops at
Tours Tours ( , ) is one of the largest cities in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the prefecture of the department of Indre-et-Loire. The commune of Tours had 136,463 inhabitants as of 2018 while the population of the whole metro ...
, which judged that the pope had no right to make war upon a foreign prince and if the pope undertook such a war, the foreign prince had the right to invade the Papal States and to withdraw his subjects' obedience to the pope. The synod also threatened Julius II with a general council. Julius II ignored the French synod and again assumed personal command of the army in
Northern Italy Northern Italy ( it, Italia settentrionale, it, Nord Italia, label=none, it, Alta Italia, label=none or just it, Nord, label=none) is a geographical and cultural region in the northern part of Italy. It consists of eight administrative region ...
. In August 1510, at
Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different na ...
, he became dangerously ill but then recovered. In October, he negotiated an anti-French alliance. In the beginning, the alliance included only the Papal States, Venice and Spain, but in November, England joined and was soon followed by the emperor and by Switzerland. The Papal States marched against Mirandola, which was captured on 20 January 1511. On 23 May 1511, contingents of the French army captured Bologna from the papal troops and reinstated Annibale II Bentivoglio. Under the leadership of
Gaston of Foix, Duke of Nemours Gaston de Foix, duc de Nemours (10 December 1489 – 11 April 1512), nicknamed The Thunderbolt of Italy, was a famed French military commander of the Renaissance. Nephew of King Louis XII of France and general of his armies in Italy from 1511 ...
, the French were at first successful, but after his death, they yielded to the superior forces of the League. After being defeated in the Battle of Ravenna in 1512, they retreated beyond the Alps. Bologna again submitted to Julius II, and the cities of
Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, music, art, prosciutto (ham), cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 inhabitants, Parma is the second m ...
, Reggio and
Piacenza Piacenza (; egl, label= Piacentino, Piaṡëinsa ; ) is a city and in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy, and the capital of the eponymous province. As of 2022, Piacenza is the ninth largest city in the region by population, with over ...
became part of the Papal States.


' of Pisa

The reforms of the
Council of Constance The Council of Constance was a 15th-century ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church, held from 1414 to 1418 in the Bishopric of Constance in present-day Germany. The council ended the Western Schism by deposing or accepting the r ...
(1414–1418) and the Council of Basel-Ferrara-Florence (1431–1449) failed. At the Synods of Orleans and Tours, in 1510, the French decided to convoke a general council. In view of the Council of Constance decree ' and the delay of Julius II to convoke a general council as he had sworn in the
papal conclave A papal conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a bishop of Rome, also known as the pope. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church. ...
, the schismatic ' convened at
Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the ci ...
in 1511. Florence permitted the ' to use Pisa as the location; this estranged Julius II, and both Florence and Pisa were placed under an interdict. According to Marco Pellegrini, the Gallican ' "shows how some members of the
Sacred College The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are app ...
were ever open to schismatic solutions". According to Kraus, it was intended by French politicians to restrain Julius II, and to recognize by general council of the principles of the 1438
Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges The Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges, issued by King Charles VII of France, on 7 July 1438, required a General Church Council, with authority superior to that of the papacy, to be held every ten years, required election rather than appointment to ecc ...
, drawn from the articles of the Council of Constance and the Council of Basel-Ferrara-Florence. The schismatic ' at Pisa was attended by only a few prelates including Cardinals
Bernardino López de Carvajal Bernardino López de Carvajal (8 September 1456, in Plasencia, Extremadura – 16 December 1523, in Rome) was a Spanish Cardinal. He was a nephew of Cardinal Juan Carvajal, and advanced rapidly in the ecclesiastical career at Rome, whither he ...
, Guillaume Briçonnet, Francesco Borgia, Federico Sanseverino, and René de Prie. They were encouraged by
Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death. He was never crowned by the pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed himself E ...
, and Louis XII. According to Shahan, dissatisfaction with treatment by Julius II, as well as subserviency to the excommunicate Louis XII, led Carvajal to that rebellious attitude. The council was held first in the choir of the
San Michele in Borgo San Michele in Borgo is a Roman Catholic church in Pisa, region of Tuscany, Italy. History The church, together with monastery (which first belonged to the Benedictines, and, from the 12th century, the Camaldolese) was built in the late 10th to ...
and then in that of the
Cathedral of Pisa Pisa Cathedral ( it, Cattedrale Metropolitana Primaziale di Santa Maria Assunta; Duomo di Pisa) is a medieval Roman Catholic cathedral dedicated to the Assumption of the Virgin Mary, in the Piazza dei Miracoli in Pisa, Italy, the oldest of the ...
. Maximilian I, who had planned since 1507 to procure his own election to the papacy after Julius died, at first gave his protection to the schismatic ' at Pisa. Then, he withdrew it, and the German bishops also refused to have anything to do with the schismatic tendencies of the French. On 18 July 1511, Julius II summoned a general council, the Fifth Lateran Council, at Rome; it assembled there on 19 April 1512, with a very small attendance that had only Italian prelates. Julius deprived the four leading schismatic cardinals of their dignities, deposed them from their offices and excommunicated the ' participants. After the ' transferred from Pisa to Milan because of popular opposition, possibly elected Carvajal as
Antipope An antipope ( la, antipapa) is a person who makes a significant and substantial attempt to occupy the position of Bishop of Rome and leader of the Catholic Church in opposition to the legitimately elected pope. At times between the 3rd and mi ...
Martin VI. Soon afterward, in 1512, fearing the
Swiss mercenaries The Swiss mercenaries (german: Reisläufer) were a powerful infantry force constituted by professional soldiers originating from the cantons of the Old Swiss Confederacy. They were notable for their service in foreign armies, especially among t ...
invasion of the French occupied
Duchy of Milan The Duchy of Milan ( it, Ducato di Milano; lmo, Ducaa de Milan) was a state in northern Italy, created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, then the lord of Milan, and a member of the important Visconti family, which had been ruling the city sin ...
, the ' participants departed to
Asti Asti ( , , ; pms, Ast ) is a '' comune'' of 74,348 inhabitants (1-1-2021) located in the Piedmont region of northwestern Italy, about east of Turin in the plain of the Tanaro River. It is the capital of the province of Asti and it is deeme ...
and then
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of ...
, France, where they abandoned the ' later that year. The schismatic ' was a political step aimed at Julius II, who was involved in conflict with the Duchy of Ferrara and France. The whole matter was a futile attempt to revive 15th century conciliarism and to use it for political purposes.


Convocation of Lateran Council

Julius II was quick to oppose the ' and convoked a general council by a papal bull of 18 July 1511, which was to meet on 19 April 1512 in the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, in Rome. The bull not only was a canonical document but also was polemical in content. Julius refuted the allegation by the cardinals for their Pisa '. He declared that his promise before his election as pope was sincere; that since he became pope, he had always sought to call a general council; that to prepare the general council, he had endeavored to bring an end to quarrels between rulers; that subsequent wars had made calling the council inopportune. Julius then reproached the participants at Pisa for their lack of respect by calling a council without the pope, who was supposed to lead. He also said that the three months of preparation for Pisa was not enough. Finally, he declared that no one should attach any significance to the statements made at Pisa. A war of polemics was waged about the councils, pitting
Thomas Cajetan Thomas Cajetan (; 20 February 14699 August 1534), also known as Gaetanus, commonly Tommaso de Vio or Thomas de Vio, was an Italian philosopher, theologian, cardinal (from 1517 until his death) and the Master of the Order of Preachers 1508 to 151 ...
, the Dominican Master General, on the papal side against the conciliarist arguments of Jacques Almain, the spokesman of the
University of Paris , image_name = Coat of arms of the University of Paris.svg , image_size = 150px , caption = Coat of Arms , latin_name = Universitas magistrorum et scholarium Parisiensis , motto = ''Hic et ubique terrarum'' (Latin) , mottoeng = Here and a ...
. At the seventh session, in 1513, Carvajal and Sanseverino separated from their French colleagues and formally renounced the schism, and they were restored by Leo X to their offices. Alessandro Geraldini, the first Archbishop of Santo Domingo, attended the eleventh session, likely making him to first prelate from the
Western Hemisphere The Western Hemisphere is the half of the planet Earth that lies west of the prime meridian (which crosses Greenwich, London, United Kingdom) and east of the antimeridian. The other half is called the Eastern Hemisphere. Politically, the te ...
to attend an
Ecumenical Council An ecumenical council, also called general council, is a meeting of bishops and other church authorities to consider and rule on questions of Christian doctrine, administration, discipline, and other matters in which those entitled to vote ar ...
.


Location

The arrangements for the council were done by the papal master of ceremonies Paride de Grassi, who prepared by reaching out to several individuals who had knowledge of the proceeding and structures for previous councils, such as Constance and Florence. De Grassi constructed a main council chamber inside the
nave The nave () is the central part of a church, stretching from the (normally western) main entrance or rear wall, to the transepts, or in a church without transepts, to the chancel. When a church contains side aisles, as in a basilica-typ ...
of the
Lateran Basilica The Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in the Lateran ( it, Arcibasilica del Santissimo Salvatore e dei Santi Giovanni Battista ed Evangelista in Laterano), also known as the Papa ...
. This chamber was surrounded by a wall to protect the privacy of the proceedings. Rooms for eating and latrines were constructed within it, as the participants could not leave the premises during the council. A second smaller room was constructed in the ''aula concilii'' in the
Lateran Palace The Lateran Palace ( la, Palatium Lateranense), formally the Apostolic Palace of the Lateran ( la, Palatium Apostolicum Lateranense), is an ancient palace of the Roman Empire and later the main papal residence in southeast Rome. Located on St. ...
, and was designed for the purpose of having a smaller locations were the pope, cardinals, emperors, and other high-ranking members could enjoy more privacy. However, the ''aula concilii'' housed only one meeting and no formal sessions were conducted in it. The details of the room, measurements, structures, and facilities were reconstructed by scholar
Nelson Minnich Nelson Hubert Minnich (born 15 January 1942, in Cincinnati, Ohio) is an American historian and author who specializes in Catholic history. Life Minnich completed his BA in philosophy (in 1965) and MA in history (in 1969) at Boston College and ...
, who heavily relied on the diaries of Paride De Grassi himself.


Meetings and decision

France's victory over 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 ...
and the
Spanish Empire The Spanish Empire ( es, link=no, Imperio español), also known as the Hispanic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Hispánica) or the Catholic Monarchy ( es, link=no, Monarquía Católica) was a colonial empire governed by Spain and its prede ...
at the Battle of Ravenna (1512) hindered the opening of the council called by Julius II; it finally met on 3 May at the Archbasilica of St. John Lateran. The scholar
Egidio da Viterbo Giles Antonini, O.E.S.A., commonly referred to as Giles of Viterbo ( la, Ægidius Viterbensis, it, Egidio da Viterbo), was a 16th-century Italian Augustinian friar, bishop of Viterbo and cardinal, a reforming theologian, orator, humanist and ...
gave an inspiring opening address.''Oratio prima Synodi Lateranensis habita'', printed at Rome, 1513; it is printed in Harduin's collection of the Councils, Vol. IX, p.1576. Participants included fifteen cardinals, the Latin patriarchs of Alexandria and Antioch, ten archbishops, fifty-six bishops, some abbots and generals of religious orders, the ambassadors of
Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death. He was never crowned by the pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed himself E ...
and those of Venice and of Florence. After Julius II died, his successor,
Pope Leo X Pope Leo X ( it, Leone X; born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, 11 December 14751 December 1521) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1513 to his death in December 1521. Born into the prominent political an ...
, continued the council, and the last session was held on 16 March 1517. During the council, the ambassador of the Holy Roman Emperor announced that Maximilian had rejected the decisions made by the ' at Pisa, and a similar announcement was made by Louis XII's ambassador. Several decrees were published, including: *A rejection and condemnation of the ' of Pisa, quashing everything done by it. * A confirmation of the excommunications of cardinals by Julius II (1512). * ''Inter multiplices'', a Bull promulgated by Leo X on 4 May 1515, sanctioning the ': financial institutions under strict ecclesiastical supervision, which provided loans to the needy in the manner of
pawn shop A pawnbroker is an individual or business (pawnshop or pawn shop) that offers secured loans to people, with items of personal property used as collateral. The items having been ''pawned'' to the broker are themselves called ''pledges'' o ...
s and had attracted both support and opposition from within the church since their establishment in the previous century; * '' Apostolici Regiminis'', on the immortality of the soul, usually believed to have been directed against
Pietro Pomponazzi Pietro Pomponazzi (16 September 1462 – 18 May 1525) was an Italian philosopher. He is sometimes known by his Latin name, ''Petrus Pomponatius''. Biography Pietro Pomponazzi was born in Mantua and began his education there. He completed h ...
* One concerning the freedom of the Church and the dignity of bishops. * A requirement that a local bishop give permission before the printing of a new book. * Confirmation of the contemporaneous 1516 Concordat of Bologna between the
Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of R ...
and the Kingdom of France and abrogation of the 1438
Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges The Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges, issued by King Charles VII of France, on 7 July 1438, required a General Church Council, with authority superior to that of the papacy, to be held every ten years, required election rather than appointment to ecc ...
. * Advocation of war against the Turks to reclaim the Holy Land, to be funded by three years of tax levies. *Condemnation of all propositions contradicting "the truth of the enlightened Christian faith", restrictions on clergy teachings about the "nature of the rational soul" and regulation of university course sequences for clerics' studies in philosophy and poetry. A call to all philosophy teachers to complement any lesson that contradicts the Christian faith with "convincing arguments" from the Christian point of view. *Requirement for documented competence in preaching. Little was done to put the work of the council into practice. Whether or not the
Protestant Reformation The Reformation (alternatively named the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation) was a major movement within Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the Catholic Church and i ...
could have been avoided if the reforms had been implemented is a matter of debate.
Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...
's
95 theses The ''Ninety-five Theses'' or ''Disputation on the Power and Efficacy of Indulgences''-The title comes from the 1517 Basel pamphlet printing. The first printings of the ''Theses'' use an incipit rather than a title which summarizes the content ...
were published just seven months after the close of the council.


Notes


References


Sources

* * * * * * Introduction and translation taken from * * * * Minnich, Nelson H. (1974), "The Participants at the Fifth Lateran Council," ''Archivum Historiae Pontificiae'' 12 (1974), pp. 157–206. * * * * *


External links


Fifth Lateran Council
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lateran Council V Lateran V 5 Lateran 5 1512 establishments in Europe 1517 disestablishments in Europe 1510s in Italy History of Pisa Pope Julius II 1512 in Christianity 16th century in the Papal States