pelled the clergy and the nobles „o swear allegiance to Carloman. But no sooner had Rome been cleared f)f Car- loman's friends than the pope himself set out for France, determined no longer to conceal his desire to create fur himself an emperor whom all the world should recognise as absolutely indebted for the crown to the see of Rome only. Arrived in France, the pope made Provence his refuge, Everj-where he was received with great re- spect, but especial deference was |iaid him by one Boso, duke of Lombardy, connected with the imperial house by marriage, possessed of great influence and wealth, and an aspirant for the imperial purple. He succeeded in winning the good graces of the Roman pontiff', and was designated for the vacant throne (comp. the letter in Mansi, xvii, 121). Boso was, however, only made kuig of Burgundy, as Charles the Fat proved too fast for the pope ; he had marched with a preponderating force into Italy, and the pope, foreseeing that the prince would not be likely to await his decision as to the rights ol' the Carlovingians to the throne, hastened to meet him at Ravenna, and reluctantly (though contriving to avoid the appearance of constraint) jilaced the crown upon the head of Charles the Fat. But, if John failed in placing upon the throne his own favorite, he certainly succeeded even now in exalting, as he had done under Charles the Bald, the pope above the emperor. To this, as well as to his efforts to make the clergy independent of the temporal princes, may be ascribed his popularity as a pope, and the magnificent reception he enjoyed on his visit to France. "At the Council of Ravenna in 877, and again at another at Troves, which he convened in the following year, during his stay in France, he pro- pounded several decrees, to the astonishment of the bishops themselves, claiming for them various rights and privileges which they had not themselves hitherto ventured to demand. This proceeding produced upoia their minds the greater impression, inasmuch as they had long been desirous of advancing their social posi- tion. Never until now had they been made aware of the points at -which they ought to aim in order to se- cure for themselves the highest rank and influence in the state, and the pontiff who gave them powerful as- sistance in this weighty affair could not but be highly popular among them. It was perhaps bj' this meas- ure that John principally contributed to the strength- ening of the papacy to such an extent that it remained without any considerable loss during a long succession of unworthy, or impotent and inactive popes, who occu- pied and disgraced the see during the troubles which shook Italy for more than half a century" (Riddle, Pa- pacy, ii, 31, 32). The controversy with tlie Eastern Church on the question of ecclesiastical jurisdiction over Bulgaria was continued under John. At first he in- clined to favor Photius (q. v.), and acknowledged hira as patriarch of Constantinople, but he was afterv^-ards obliged to excommimicate liim, as the Latin party se- verely condemned his course. Ffoulkes {Christendom's Division, ii, p. vii) says that the fable of pope Joan must have originated with the Latin party of this time, and that it was aimed against John VIII, "not because his theology was defective, or his life immoral, or his rule \ arbitrary', but solely because he had had the courage, the manliness, to appreciate the abilities and desire to cidtivate the friendship of the great patriarch his broth- er." But his excommunication of Photius was by no means the only one he pronounced. Indeed, "no pope was more prodigal of excommunion than John VIII. Of his letters, above 300 (found in Mansi, Concilia, vol. xvi), it is remarkable how large a proportion threaten, inflict, or at least allude to this last exercise of sacerdo- tal power" (ililman, Lat. Christianity, iii, 92 sq.). John found his death, as the A nnales Fitldenses relate, through a conspiracy of his own curia. The assassins first tried poison; when this did not operate quick enough, they slew him with a hammer, Dec. 15, 882. See Milman, Lat. Christ, bk. v, ch. iii ; Bower, History of the Popes, v, 30 sq. ; Riddle, Papacy, ii, 27 sq. ; Reichel, Rom. See in
jOHisr
980
JOHN
the Middle Ages, p. 109 sq. : Oieseler, Eccles. nist. ii, 347 ; <;icsfl)rc'cht, (ksch. der deutschen Kaiserzeif, i, 139 sq. ; Ilerzi)". Rt'td-Enctjklop. vi, 754 ; Muratori, Scriptt. iii, pt. i, ii. "(J.II.W.)
John IX, Tope, a Benedictine of Tivoli. was con- secrated to the ])ontitical office June, 898. He held two rouncils. one at St. Peter's, where the wrong done to his liaiUv-abused predecessor Formosus was redressed ; the other at IJavenna, which passed an act for the better I)rotection of Church property against thieves and in- c(-ndiaries. John displayed an honest zeal in defending the rights and regulating the discipline of the Church. His rival for the papal throne, Sergius (q. v.), he suc- cessfully combated, and, by authority of a council he liad called, excommunicated him, with several other ec- clesiastical accessories. John died July, 900. On his life, see Muratori, vol. iii, pt. ii; on the synods, Mansi, vol. xviii. See also Milman, Latin Christianity, iii, 112 sq. ; Howpr, History of the Popes, v, 77 sq.