Pope Stephen V ( la, Stephanus V; died 14 September 891) 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 ...

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 September 885 to his death. In his dealings with Photius I of Constantinople, as in his relations with the young Slavic Orthodox church, he pursued the policy of

Pope Nicholas I Pope Nicholas I ( la, Nicolaus I; c. 800 – 13 November 867), called Nicholas the Great, was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 858 until his death. He is remembered as a consolidator of papal authority, exerting d ...

Early life

His father Hadrian, who belonged to the Roman aristocracy, entrusted his education to his relative, Bishop Zachary, librarian of 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 ...

. Stephen was created

cardinal-priest A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

of Santi Quattro Coronati by Marinus I.

Pontificate

Stephen V was elected to succeed

Adrian III Pope Adrian III or Hadrian III ( la, Adrianus or ''Hadrianus''; died July 885) was the bishop of Rome and ruler of the Papal States from 17 May 884 to his death. He served for little more than a year, during which he worked to help the people of I ...

on the account of his holiness on May 17, 885, but was not accepted by the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...

Charles III the Fat Charles III (839 – 13 January 888), also known as Charles the Fat, was the emperor of the Carolingian Empire from 881 to 888. A member of the Carolingian dynasty, Charles was the youngest son of Louis the German and Hemma, and a great-grandson ...

. However, he was consecrated in September 885 without waiting for the imperial confirmation. The emperor sent a legate to overthrow him, but when he found with what unanimity he had been elected, he let the matter rest. Stephen was called upon to face a famine caused by a drought and by locusts, and as the papal treasury was empty he had to fall back on his father's wealth to relieve the poor, to redeem captives, and to repair churches. Methodius of Thessaloniki was succeeded by his disciple, Gorazd. However, due to the influence of the German clergy, Stephen forbade the use of the Slavonic liturgy. Most of the Slavs then fell under the jurisdiction of the Patriarchate of Constantinople. To promote order, he adopted Guy III of Spoleto "as his son" and crowned him emperor in 891. He also recognized Louis the Blind as king of Provence. Since Archbishop

Aurelian Aurelian ( la, Lucius Domitius Aurelianus; 9 September 214 October 275) was a Roman emperor, who reigned during the Crisis of the Third Century, from 270 to 275. As emperor, he won an unprecedented series of military victories which reunited ...

would not consecrate Teutbold, who had been canonically elected

bishop of Langres The Roman Catholic Diocese of Langres (Latin: ''Dioecesis Lingonensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Langres'') is a Roman Catholic diocese comprising the ''département'' of Haute-Marne in France. The diocese is now a suffragan in ecclesiastical pr ...

, Stephen himself consecrated him. He had also opposed the arbitrary proceedings of the archbishops of

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectu ...

and

Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the c ...

, and resisted the attacks which Patriarch Photius I of Constantinople made on the

. His resistance was successful, and Emperor Leo VI sent Photius into exile. When writing against Photius, Stephen begged the emperor to send warships and soldiers to enable him to ward off the assaults of the

Saracens upright 1.5, Late 15th-century German woodcut depicting Saracens Saracen ( ) was a term used in the early centuries, both in Greek and Latin writings, to refer to the people who lived in and near what was designated by the Romans as Arabia ...

on papal territory, and southern Italy and from 885 to 886 the Byzantines reoccupied southern Italy from the Muslims. In 887/8, Stephen wrote that Christian slaves of Muslims, who were mutilated by their captors, could become priests. He also excused them if they murdered during their captivity. Stephen, who received many English

pilgrim A pilgrim (from the Latin ''peregrinus'') is a traveler (literally one who has come from afar) who is on a journey to a holy place. Typically, this is a physical journey (often on foot) to some place of special significance to the adherent of ...

s and envoys bringing

Peterspence Peter's Pence (or ''Denarii Sancti Petri'' and "Alms of St Peter") are donations or payments made directly to the Holy See of the Catholic Church. The practice began under the Saxons in England and spread through Europe. Both before and after th ...

, was buried in the

portico A portico is a porch leading to the entrance of a building, or extended as a colonnade, with a roof structure over a walkway, supported by columns or enclosed by walls. This idea was widely used in ancient Greece and has influenced many cul ...

Saint 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 ...

References

Sources

* 9th edition (1880s) of the

Encyclopædia Britannica The (Latin for "British Encyclopædia") is a general knowledge English-language encyclopaedia. It is published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc.; the company has existed since the 18th century, although it has changed ownership various t ...

CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: Pope Stephen (V) VI

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Stephen 05 Popes Italian popes 891 deaths 9th-century archbishops Year of birth unknown 9th-century popes Burials at St. Peter's Basilica