Gregory III (pope)

Gregory was the son of a Christian Syrian named John ^[1] . He was elected pope by popular unanimous approval on February 11, 731 , but was not officially ordained until March 18 ^[2] , after receiving approval from the Byzantine exarch in Ravenna. He was the last dad who required the exarch’s consent for intronization ^[3] .

Having ascended to the papal throne, Gregory III immediately turned to the Byzantine emperor Leo III to soften his position on iconoclasm . When the representative of Gregory III was arrested by order of the emperor, the pope convened the Synod in November 731 , condemning the iconoclasm ^[4] . Leo III answered, trying to return the pope to control, but the fleet, sent by him to ensure the imperial will, died during a storm in the Adriatic ^[5] . The emperor transferred church jurisdictions in Sicily and Calabria to the Patriarch of Constantinople ^[6] . However, his attempt to force the Duke of Naples to implement the decree on confiscation of papal possessions in the duchy failed, since the duke supported the pope ^[7] .

Gregory III openly demonstrated his rejection of iconoclasm, emphasizing his veneration of icons and relics. He renovated and decorated numerous churches ^[8] . He also ordered the construction of an iconostasis in the center of St. Peter's Basilica, located between six onyx and marble columns, which were sent to Gregory III as a gift by Exarch Eutyches ^[9] . Gregory III was an active supporter of monasticism. He established the monastery of St. Chrysogon and rebuilt the hospice of Saints Sergius and Bacchus, not far from St. Peter's Basilica, transferring it to the needs of the poor ^[10] .

The temporary lull in the conflict between the Byzantines and the Lombards allowed Gregory III to tackle some of the long-standing domestic problems, in particular, the ongoing jurisdictional dispute between the patriarchs of Grado and Aquileia. The synod of 731 made a decision in this matter in favor of Grado, and Gregory III rebuked the patriarch of Aquileia, Callista, who tried to take possession of the island of Barbana, which was under the jurisdiction of Grado ^[11] . In 731 , he approved the election of Tatvin , Archbishop of Canterbury, who came to Rome personally to ask for the mantle of the archbishop. Gregory III approved the election of his successor, Nothelm , but in 735 he agreed to the demands of the king of Northumbria, Keolwulf , to elevate Egbert, bishop of York, to the rank of archbishop ^[12] .

Gregory III contributed to the development of the church in Northern Europe. He supported the ongoing mission of St. Boniface in Germany, elevating him to the rank of Archbishop of Germany in 732 . After Boniface’s personal visit to Rome in 737 , Gregory made Boniface a papal legate in Germany ^[13] . Gregory sent Boniface back to Bavaria with three letters. One ordered the bishops and the highest church officials to provide Boniface with all possible assistance. The second was addressed to the nobility and the people of Germany and encouraged them to respect Boniface. The third was addressed to the bishops in Alemania and Bavaria and confirmed the status of Boniface as papal vicar ^[14] . Gregory III contributed to the Willibald mission in the Czech Republic.

In 732 , Gregory III banned the consumption of horsemeat, anathema to it as an “abomination”, as it was associated with pagan rituals of sacrifice ^[15] .

Aware of the continuing threat from the Lombards, Gregory III completed the restoration of the walls of Rome in the early 730s . He also strengthened Civitavecchia by acquiring the fortress of Gallese from the Flaminian road from the Duke of Trasimund II of Spoletsky ^[16] .

The opposition of Gregory III to iconoclasm did not contradict his efforts to maintain the position of the empire in Italy, in particular, to counteract the seizure of the Ravenna Exarchate by the Lombards ^[17] . In 738 , the Lombard king Liutprand demanded that the dukes of Spoleto and Benevento ravage the area around Rome, but both refused, citing an agreement with the pope ^[18] . Gregory III actively encouraged the uprising of Trasimund II, forcing Liutprand to temporarily abandon his attacks on exarchate and take up the suppression of the rebellion. Trazimund II was forced to flee to Spoleto , and then seek refuge in Rome, where he was met by Gregory III ^[19] .

By the middle of 739 , Liutprand again attacked the exarchate and threatened Rome. In desperation, Gregory III sent ambassadors to the Duke Karl Martell, the Frankish major. When the Frankish king Theodoric IV died in 737 , the pope invited Charles to ascend the throne. He refused, but ruled without a king, and dad said about him: "Almost a king!" Gregory III was on good terms with Martell, and even gave him the title of Roman "patrician" (guardian of Rome).

Despite the fact that Gregory III promised to officially put the papacy and the whole West under the protection of the Franks, Karl did not promise help ^[20] . The Lombards captured the cities of Amelia , Orte , Bomarzo and Blair, which forced Gregory III to write to Karl again, begging him for help:

"Our sorrow encourages us to turn to you again, hoping that you are the loving son of Peter and that out of respect for him you will come and protect the Church of God and His people, who are now unable to endure the persecution and oppression of the Lombards ... Please come immediately to show his love for St. Peter ... " ^[21]

This time, Karl Martell sent an embassy to Rome, and this implicit support, along with the onset of fever that hit the Lombard forces, forced Liutprand to return to Pavia at the end of August 739 ^[22] . Taking advantage of this, Gregory III agreed to support the return of Trasimund II to Spoleto. Trazimund II got home by December 739 , but refused to hand over the four captured cities, as promised in exchange for papal support ^[23] . At the same time, Karl Martell’s illness became known, and Liutprand again attacked the exarchate in 740 , forcing Gregory III to turn once again to the Franks, who again refused to take part in the defense of Rome ^[24] . He sent an embassy to Liutprand, asking for the return of the cities, but to no avail.

Having failed to eliminate the Lombard threat, Gregory III died on November 28, 741 ^[25] . He was buried in St. Peter's Basilica. Feast of St. Gregory is celebrated on November 28.

• Vasiliev P.P. , Korelin M.S. Gregory, popes // Encyclopedic Dictionary of Brockhaus and Efron : 86 volumes (82 volumes and 4 additional). - SPb. , 1890-1907.
• Levillain, Philippe (2002). The papacy: Gaius-Proxies. New York: Routledge. ISBN 9780415922302 .
• Duffy, Eamon (2006). Saints & Sinners: A History of the Popes. New Haven, Conn .: Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300115970 .
• Treadgold, Warren (1997). A History of the Byzantine State and Society. Stanford, California: Stanford University Press. ISBN 0804726302 .
• Mann, Horace K. (1914). The Lives of the Popes in the Early Middle Ages. Vol. I: The Popes Under the Lombard Rule, Part 2, 657-795. pp. 203–224.