Pope Benedict IV

?-903 Pope

Italy

Because the early tenth century is plagued by the scarcity of papal records, virtually nothing is known about Benedict IV. He was a Roman and his father's name was Mammalus. He was ordained by Pope Formosus, and he became pope himself sometime in the first half of 900 after his predecessor, John IX, died at an unknown date

During his pontificate, Benedict IV excommunicated Baldwin II of Flanders for having Archbishop Fulk of Reims assassinated, and he crowned Louis III the Blind as Holy Roman emperor. The contemporary historian Frodoard gives Benedict the title of "Great" and praises him for his generosity and zeal for the public good. It is believed that Fulda and other monasteries received privileges from him.

Benedict IV died sometime in the summer of 903. He was succeeded by Leo V.

On the Web

Pope Benedict IV
Brief bio by Horace K. Mann at the Catholic Encyclopedia.

Pope Benedict IV
Concise, heavily-hyperlinked biography at Wikipedia.

Benedict IV
Admiring biography at Christ's Faithful People.

Find A Grave: Pope Benedict IV
Brief data is accompanied by a small icon of the pope and a nice photo of the cemetery at St. Peter's Basilica where Benedict rests; click the photo for an enlarged verison.

In Print

The links below will take you to a site where you can compare prices at booksellers across the web. More in-depth info about the book may be found by clicking on to the book's page at one of the online merchants.

Lives of the Popes: The Pontiffs from St. Peter to John Paul II
by Richard P. McBrien

Chronicle of the Popes: The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Papacy over 2000 Years
by P. G. Maxwell-Stuart

Related Resources

The Papacy
Index of sites regarding the Popes and the political entity of the Papal States, their impact on medieval culture, and the schisms they endured and overcame.

Early Europe
Directory of sites that offer useful resources for the study of Europe in Late Antiquty, or shortly after the fall of Rome. 

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