Pope Gregory V ( la, Gregorius V; c. 972 – 18 February 999), born Bruno of Carinthia, was the

bishop of Rome A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

and ruler 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 ...

from 3 May 996 to his death. A member of the

Salian dynasty The Salian dynasty or Salic dynasty (german: Salier) was a dynasty in the High Middle Ages. The dynasty provided four kings of Germany (1024–1125), all of whom went on to be crowned Holy Roman emperors (1027–1125). After the death of the la ...

, he was made

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 ...

by his cousin,

Emperor Otto III Otto III (June/July 980 – 23 January 1002) was Holy Roman Emperor from 996 until his death in 1002. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto III was the only son of the Emperor Otto II and his wife Theophanu. Otto III was crowned as King of G ...

Family

Gregory was a son of

Otto I, Duke of Carinthia Otto I (c. 950 – 4 November 1004), called Otto of Worms, a member of the Salian dynasty, was Duke of Carinthia from 978 to 985 and again from 1002 until his death. Biography Otto was the only son of Conrad the Red, Duke of Lotharingia, and Liu ...

, a member of the

who was a grandson of Holy Roman Emperor Otto I. Gregory V succeeded John XV as

when only twenty-four years of age. He was the chaplain of his cousin,

Otto III Otto III (June/July 980 – 23 January 1002) was Holy Roman Emperor from 996 until his death in 1002. A member of the Ottonian dynasty, Otto III was the only son of the Emperor Otto II and his wife Theophanu. Otto III was crowned as King of ...

, who presented him as candidate. Gregory V is often counted as the first German pope (or the second if

Boniface II Pope Boniface II ( la, Bonifatius II; died 17 October 532) was the first Germanic bishop of Rome. He ruled the Holy See from 22 September 530 until his death on 17 October 532. Boniface's father's name was Sigibuld. He was probably born in Ro ...

, an

Ostrogoth The Ostrogoths ( la, Ostrogothi, Austrogothi) were a Roman-era Germanic people. In the 5th century, they followed the Visigoths in creating one of the two great Gothic kingdoms within the Roman Empire, based upon the large Gothic populations who ...

, is counted).

Policies

Politically, Gregory V acted consistently as the Emperor's representative in Rome and granted many exceptional privileges to monasteries within the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a Polity, political entity in Western Europe, Western, Central Europe, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its Dissolution of the Holy Roman Empire, dissolution i ...

. One of his first acts was to crown

emperor on 21 May 996. Together, they held a synod a few days after the coronation in which

Arnulf, Archbishop of Reims Arnulf (also Arnulph or Arnoul) was the illegitimate son of King Lothair of France who became archbishop of Reims. Arnulf belonged to the Carolingian dynasty, the rule of which in France ended when Arnulf's half-brother, Louis V, died childles ...

, was ordered to be restored to his

See of Reims The Archdiocese of Reims (traditionally spelt "Rheims" in English) ( la, Archidiœcesis Remensis; French: ''Archidiocèse de Reims'') is a Latin Church ecclesiastic territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in France. Erected as a diocese ar ...

, and

Gerbert of Aurillac Pope Sylvester II ( – 12 May 1003), originally known as Gerbert of Aurillac, was a French-born scholar and teacher who served as the bishop of Rome and ruled the Papal States from 999 to his death. He endorsed and promoted study of Arab and Gr ...

, was condemned as an intruder. King

Robert II of France Robert II (c. 972 – 20 July 1031), called the Pious (french: link=no, le Pieux) or the Wise (french: link=no, le Sage), was King of the Franks from 996 to 1031, the second from the Capetian dynasty. Crowned Junior King in 987, he assisted his ...

, who had been insisting on his right to appoint bishops, was ultimately forced to back down, and also to put aside his wife,

Bertha of Burgundy Bertha of Burgundy (964 – 16 January 1010) was Queen of the Franks as the second wife of King Robert II. Bertha was the daughter of King Conrad of BurgundyStefan Weinfurter, ''The Salian Century: Main Currents in an Age of Transition'', trans ...

, by the rigorous enforcement of a sentence of

excommunication Excommunication is an institutional act of religious censure used to end or at least regulate the communion of a member of a congregation with other members of the religious institution who are in normal communion with each other. The purpose ...

on the kingdom. Until the conclusion of the council of

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the capit ...

in 997, Gregory V had a rival in the person of the

antipope John XVI John XVI ( 945 – 1001; born gr, Ιωάννης Φιλάγαθος, Ioannis Philagathos; it, Giovanni Filagato; la, Johannes Philagathus) was an antipope from 997 to 998. Biography John was of Greek descent and was a native of Rossan ...

(997–998), whom

Crescentius II Crescentius the Younger (or Crescentius II; died 29 April 998), son of Crescentius the Elder, was a leader of the aristocracy of medieval Rome. During the minority of Holy Roman Emperor Otto III, he declared himself Consul (or Senator) of Rome ( ...

and the nobles of Rome had chosen against the will of the youthful Emperor Otto III, Gregory's cousin. The revolt of Crescentius II was decisively suppressed by the Emperor, who marched upon Rome. John XVI fled, and Crescentius II shut himself up in the

Castel Sant'Angelo The Mausoleum of Hadrian, usually known as Castel Sant'Angelo (; English: ''Castle of the Holy Angel''), is a towering cylindrical building in Parco Adriano, Rome, Italy. It was initially commissioned by the Roman Emperor Hadrian as a mausol ...

. The Emperor's troops pursued the antipope, captured him, cut off his nose and ears, cut out his tongue, blinded him, and publicly degraded him before Otto III and Gregory V. When the much respected St. Nilus of Rossano castigated both the Emperor and Pope for their cruelty, John XVI was sent to the

monastery of Fulda The Abbey of Fulda (German ''Kloster Fulda'', Latin ''Abbatia Fuldensis''), from 1221 the Princely Abbey of Fulda (''Fürstabtei Fulda'') and from 1752 the Prince-Bishopric of Fulda (''Fürstbistum Fulda''), was a Benedictine abbey and ecclesiastic ...

in Germany, where he lived until c. 1001. The Castel Sant'Angelo was besieged, and when it was taken in 998,

was hanged upon its walls.

Death

Gregory V died suddenly, not without suspicion of foul play, on 18 February 999. He is buried in

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...

near

Pope Pelagius I Pope Pelagius I (died 4 March 561) was the bishop of Rome from 556 to his death. A former ''apocrisiarius'' to Constantinople, Pelagius I was elected pope as the candidate of Emperor Justinian I, a designation not well received in the Western C ...

. His successor was Gerbert, who took the name Sylvester II.

References

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Sources

External links

''Ein Salier auf dem Stuhl Petri''
Online article on Gregory V, from the Diocese of Speyer's publication, ''

Der Pilger ''Der Pilger'' (''The Pilgrim''; known until 1960 as ''Der christliche Pilger'', meaning ''The Christian Pilgrim''Up to Jg. 100, 1960, Nr. 48.) is the weekly newsletter of the Roman Catholic diocese of Speyer in Germany. It was founded on 1 Janu ...

'' *
''Ein Salier auf dem Stuhl Petri''
online article about Gregory V, from the Diocese of Speyer's circular, ''

'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Gregory, Pope, V Gregory 05 German popes 10th-century German clergy Salian dynasty 970s births 999 deaths 10th-century popes Burials at St. Peter's Basilica