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From Hutton Webster's, Early European History (1917); edited for this on-line publication, by ELLOPOS
XVI. THE PAPACY AND THE HOLY ROMAN EMPIRE, 962-1273 A.D.
» Contents of this Chapter
Page 21
INCOME OF THE PAPACY
To support the business of the Papacy and to maintain the splendor of the papal court required a large annual income. This came partly from the States of the Church in Italy, partly from the gifts of the faithful, and partly from the payments made by abbots, bishops, and archbishops when the pope confirmed their election to office. Still another source of revenue consisted of "Peter's Pence," a tax of a penny on each hearth. It was collected every year in England and in some Continental countries until the Reformation. The modern "Peter's Pence" is a voluntary contribution made by Roman Catholics in all countries.
THE CAPITAL OF THE PAPACY
The Eternal City, from which in ancient times the known world had been ruled, formed in the Middle Ages the capital of the Papacy. Hither every year came tens of thousands of pilgrims to worship at the shrine of the Prince of the Apostles. Few traces now remain of the medieval city. Old St. Peter's Church, where Charlemagne was crowned emperor, gave way in the sixteenth century to the world-famous structure that now occupies its site. The Lateran Palace, which for more than a thousand years served as the residence of the popes, has also disappeared, its place being taken by a new and smaller building. The popes now live in the splendid palace of the Vatican, adjoining St. Peter's.
THE PAPACY AND THE EMPIRE
The powers exercised by the popes during the later Middle Ages were not secured without a struggle. As a matter of fact the concentration of authority in papal hands was a gradual development covering several hundred years. The pope reached his exalted position only after a long contest with the Holy Roman Emperor. This contest forms one of the most noteworthy episodes in medieval history.
THE MAKING OF EUROPE / EARLY EUROPEAN HISTORY: Table of Contents
url: www.ellopos.net/politics/european-history/default.asp
Cf. The Ancient Greece * The Ancient Rome
Eastern Roman Empire (Byzantium) * Western Medieval Europe * Renaissance in Italy
