Editing Pope Sergius I (section)

== Election ==
[[Pope Conon]] died on 21 September 687 after a long illness and a reign of less than a year. His archdeacon, [[Antipope Paschal (687)|Paschal]], had already attempted to secure the papacy by bribing the exarch of Ravenna, [[John II Platyn]]. A more numerous faction wanted the archpriest [[Antipope Theodore|Theodore]] to become pope. The two factions entered into armed combat, each in possession of part of the [[Lateran Palace]], which was the papal residence. To break the deadlock, a group of civic authorities, army officers, clergy, and other citizens met in the Palatine imperial palace, elected Sergius, and then stormed the Lateran, forcing the two rival candidates to accept Sergius.<ref name=DWB/><ref name="e216">Ekonomou, 2007, p. 216.</ref>

Though pretending to accept Sergius, Paschal sent messengers to Platyn, promising a large sum of gold in exchange for military support.<ref name="e216"/> The exarch arrived, recognised that Sergius had been regularly elected, but demanded the gold anyway. After Sergius's [[episcopal consecration|consecration]] on 15 December 687, Platyn departed. Paschal continued his intrigues and was eventually confined to a monastery<ref name=DWB/><ref name="e216"/> on charges of witchcraft.<ref name="e216"/> Sergius's consecration ended the last disputed ''[[sede vacante]]'' of the [[Byzantine Papacy]].<ref name="e217">Ekonomou, 2007, p. 217.</ref>