Pope John VI
| John VI | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Papacy began | October 30, 701 |
| Papacy ended | January 11, 705 |
| Predecessor | Sergius I |
| Successor | John VII |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | ??? |
| Born | 655 Ephesus, Greece, Byzantine Empire |
| Died | January 11, 705 ??? |
| Other Popes named John | |
Pope John VI was a Greek pope from Ephesus who reigned during the Byzantine Papacy from October 30, 701 to January 11, 705. His papacy was noted for military and political breakthroughs on the Italian peninsula. He succeeded to the papal chair two months after the death of Pope Sergius I, and his election occurred after a vacancy of less than seven weeks.[1] He was succeeded by Pope John VII after a vacancy of less than two months.[1] The body of the pope is buried in St. Peter's Basilica.[2]
Papacy
During his reign, he assisted the Exarch Theophylactos, who had been sent to Italy by the emperor Justinian II, and prevented him from using violence against the Romans. John VI's interventions prevented Theophylactos from being injured, having come to Rome to "cause trouble for the pontiff".[3]
Aside from this, he also succeeded in inducing Gisulf, Lombard duke of Benevento to withdraw from the territories of the empire, through tactics of persuasion and bribery. According to some sources, he "single-handedly convincd the Lombard duke Gisulf of Benevento to withdraw his forces and return home", after the duke had devastated the neighboring Campanian countryside and constructed an encampment within sight of the city walls of Rome.[4]
Other significant events during John VI's pontificate include the Lombard king Aripert II returning the Cottian Alps to their former status as a papal patrimony.[4] Numerous construction projects also occurred including new ambon in the Basilica of St. Andrew the Apostle, a new altar cloth for San Marco, and "suspended diaphonous white veils between the columns on either side of the altar in San Paolo.[4] John VI also promoted easterners within the episcopal hierarchy, including Boniface, the papal counselor.[5]
In 704, after the 70 year-old Saint Wilfrid of York, was expelled (after several times of expulsion) from his episcopal see, he went to Rome and pleaded his case "before the apostolic Pope John [VI]", three years into the Greek's pontificate.[5] Wilfrid had visited Rome in 654 and 679 and witnessed its progressive transformation, such as John VI convening a synod of Greek-speaking bishops to hear Wilfrid's cause, a linguistic hurdle that much perturbed Wilfird.[5] The synod exonerated Wilfrid, restored him to his see, which he occupied until his death in 709, and sent him back to England with letters for King Æthelred of Mercia for papal mandates to be implemented.[5][6]
Notes
References
This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (Eleventh ed.). Cambridge University Press.
- Ekonomou, Andrew J. 2007. Byzantine Rome and the Greek Popes: Eastern influences on Rome and the papacy from Gregory the Great to Zacharias, A.D. 590-752. Lexington Books.
| Catholic Church titles | ||
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| Preceded by Sergius I |
Pope 701–705 |
Succeeded by John VII |
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