Pelagius was a native ofRome, but probably ofOstrogothic descent, as his father's name was Winigild. Pelagius became Pope Benedict I's successor on 26 November 579, without imperial confirmation.[2]
Pelagius appealed for help fromEmperor Maurice against theLombards, but to no avail, forcing Pelagius to "buy" a truce and turn to theFranks, who invaded Italy, but left after being bribed by the Lombards.[1]
Pelagius labored to promoteclerical celibacy, and he issued stringent regulations on this matter.[1] During his pontificate, the bishop ofMilan, who had brokencommunion with Rome in theSchism of the Three Chapters, returned to full communion around 581, while other bishops in Northern Italy remained in schism.[1]
Pelagius fell victim to the plague that devastated Rome at the end of 590. His successor,Gregory I, thought his regulations of clerical celibacy too strict, and modified them to some extent.[1]
^Maxwell-Stuart, P. G.Chronicle of the Popes: The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Papacy from St. Peter to the Present, Thames & Hudson, 2002, p. 47.ISBN0-500-01798-0.
