Editing Pope Romanus

{{Short description|Head of the Catholic Church in 897}}
{{Infobox Christian leader 
|type = Pope
|honorific-prefix=[[List of popes|Pope]]
|name=Romanus
|title= [[Bishop of Rome]]
|church = [[Catholic Church]]
|image =
|birth_name=
|term_start=August 897
|term_end=November 897
|predecessor=[[Stephen VI]]
|successor=[[Pope Theodore II|Theodore II]]
|birth_place=[[Gallese]], [[Papal States]]
|death_place=
}}

'''Pope Romanus''' ([[Floruit|fl.]] 867–897) was the [[bishop of Rome]] and ruler of the [[Papal States]] from August to November 897. His short reign occurred during a period of partisan strife in the [[Catholic Church]], amid the violence and disorder in [[central Italy]]. His pontificate ended when he was deposed and confined to a monastery.

== Family and early career ==
Little is known of Romanus's background. He was born in [[Gallese]], near [[Civita Castellana]]. His father was called Constantine.{{sfn|Kelly|Walsh|2010|p=115}} According to Anura Gurugé, Romanus was supposedly the nephew of [[Pope Marinus I]], who had also come from Gallese. Romanus was installed as the [[cardinal priest]] of [[San Pietro in Vincoli]], in Rome, in 867.{{sfn|Gurugé|2010|p=88}}

==Papacy==
[[File:Coin of Pope Romanus.png|thumb|Coin of Pope Romanus, bearing the name of Lambert on the obverse, and "[[Saint Peter|Scs. Petrus]]" and his [[monogram]] on the reverse{{sfn|Mann|1912}}]]
In January 897, [[Pope Stephen VI]] held what is known as the [[Cadaver Synod]]. He had the body of [[Pope Formosus]], the rival of his ally, [[Lambert of Spoleto]], exhumed and tried for "perjury, violating the canons prohibiting the [[translation of bishops]], and coveting the papacy."{{sfn|Kelly|Walsh|2010|p=114}} After finding him guilty, the synod annulled all of Formosus' acts and ordinations. Formosus' body was reburied in a common grave, and then thrown in the river [[Tiber]]. Supporters of Formosus rebelled, and seven months after the synod, Stephen VI was deposed, and died soon after in prison.{{sfn|Kelly|Walsh|2010|pp=114–115}}

Romanus was elected to succeed Stephen VI in August 897. He was generally considered to be pro-Formosan,{{sfn|Kelly|Walsh|2010|p=115}} and annulled all the acts and decrees of his predecessor. This was criticised by the 15th-century historian [[Bartolomeo Platina]], who wrote that "these popelings studied nothing else but to extinguish the memory and honour of their predecessors".{{sfn|Platina|1479|p=239}} During his short pontificate, he granted the [[pallium]] to  Abbot [[Vitalis of Farfa]], appointed him as the [[patriarch of Grado]], and bestowed a [[Privilege (canon law)|privilege]] upon the [[Patriarch of Grado|See of Grado]]. Romanus also confirmed the possessions of the bishops of [[Girona]] and Elna of their sees. His short rule was regarded as a virtuous one by contemporary historian [[Flodoard]].{{sfn|Mann|1912}}

== Death and aftermath ==
Romanus' reign as pope ended in November 897, when it is said that "he was made a monk", a term used when a pope is deposed and often confined to a monastery.{{sfn|Kelly|Walsh|2010|p=115}}{{sfn|Mann|1912}} It is unknown whether he was deposed by supporters of his predecessor, Stephen VI,<ref name="britan">{{cite encyclopedia|url=http://www.britannica.com/biography/Romanus-pope-897|title=Romanus|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|access-date=3 August 2015}}</ref> or by pro-Formosan supporters, who wanted to replace him with a pope who would more actively vindicate Formosus.{{sfn|Kelly|Walsh|2010|p=115}} Romanus' date of death is unknown.{{sfn|Kelly|Walsh|2010|p=115}}

The power struggle between supporters of Formosus and those of Stephen continued for over ten years; Romanus was succeeded by [[Pope Theodore II|Theodore II]], who was only pope for twenty days, during which time he had Formosus' body reburied, and held a synod annulling the Cadaver Synod. This was reaffirmed by [[Pope John IX|John IX]] who held synods reaffirming that of Theodore II, and he further banned the trial of people after their death. In turn, [[Pope Sergius III|Sergius III]] later annulled the synods of Theodore II and John IX, and reinstated the validity of the Cadaver Synod.{{sfn|Dollison|1994|pp=96–97}}

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

== Bibliography ==

{{Portal|Biography|Christianity|History}}
* {{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nY_YjyW75L8C |title=Pope-Pourri: What You Don't Remember From Catholic School |last=Dollison |first=John |publisher=Fireside |location=New York |year=1994 |isbn=978-0-671-88615-8 }}
* {{cite book |last=Gurugé |first=Anura |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=B5JVthemvvwC |title=The Next Pope |location=Alton, New Hampshire |publisher=WOWNH LLC |year=2010 |isbn=978-0-615-35372-2 }}
* {{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uVmcAQAAQBAJ |title=Oxford Dictionary of Popes |last1=Kelly |first1=J. N. D. |last2=Walsh |first2=M. J. |publisher=Oxford University Press |year=2010 |orig-year=1986 |isbn=978-0-19-929581-4 }}
* {{cite CE1913 |wstitle=Pope Romanus |volume=13 |first=Horace Kinder |last=Mann }}
* {{cite book |last=Platina |first=Bartolomeo |author-link=Bartolomeo Platina |title=The Lives of the Popes From The Time Of Our Saviour Jesus Christ to the Accession of Gregory VII |publisher=Griffith Farran & Co. |location=London |volume=I |year=1479 |url=https://archive.org/details/thelivesofthepop01platuoft }}

==External links==
*[http://www.documentacatholicaomnia.eu/01_01_0897-0897-_Romanus.html Opera Omnia by Migne Patrologia Latina with analytical indexes]

{{s-start}}
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{{s-bef|before=[[Pope Stephen VI|Stephen VI]]}}
{{s-ttl|title=[[Pope]]|years=897}}
{{s-aft|after=[[Pope Theodore II|Theodore II]]}}
{{s-end}}

{{Popes}}
{{Catholicism}} 
{{History of the Catholic Church}}

{{Authority control}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2017}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Romanus}}
[[Category:Popes]]
[[Category:Italian popes]]
[[Category:Roman Catholic monks]]
[[Category:Italian Christian monks]]
[[Category:9th-century archbishops]]
[[Category:Year of birth unknown]]
[[Category:Year of death unknown]]
[[Category:9th-century popes]]
[[Category:Burials at St. Peter's Basilica]]