TheCatholic Church hasexcommunicated some of its adherents throughout its existence for various reasons, includingheresy,schism, and disobedience to the Church or itsteachings.

InRoman Catholic canon law, excommunication is acensure and thus a "medicinal penalty" intended to invite the person to change behavior or attitude that incurred the penalty,repent, and return tofull communion.^[1] Excommunication severs one from communion with the Church; excommunicated Catholics are forbidden from receiving anysacrament and refused a Catholic burial, but are still bound by canonical obligations such as attendingMass orfasting seasonally. Excommunicated Catholics, however, are barred from receiving theEucharist or from taking an active part in the liturgy (reading, bringing the offerings, etc.).^[2]

Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, with 5 separate excommunications from 3 different popes, carries the distinction of publicly being the most excommunicated individual. In this list below there are two popes (Honorius I andLeo I) and sixCatholic saints (Leo I,Athanasius,Columba,Arialdo,Joan of Arc,Mary Mackillop) who were issued an excommunication by a church authority.

This list only includes excommunications acknowledged or imposed by a decree of thepope or abishop in communion with him.Latae sententiae excommunications, those that automatically affect classes of people (members of certain associations or those who perform actions such as directly violating theseal of confession^[3] or carrying out an abortion),^[3] are not listed unless confirmed by a bishop orecclesiastical tribunal with respect to certain individuals.

• Simon Magus, for attempting to purchase apostleship and for whomsimony was named. He is also alleged to have foundedGnosticism by certainChurch Fathers.
• An unnamedCorinthian who had married a woman who had been his father's wife as recounted in1 Corinthians 5:1–8.^[4]
• Hymenaeus andAlexander, excommunicated bySaint Paul the Apostle as recounted in1 Timothy.^[5]

• Valentinus, originator ofValentinianism.
• Marcion of Sinope, originator ofMarcionism, excommunicated byPope Pius I.
• Montanus, originator ofMontanism.
• Theodotus of Byzantium, proponent ofAdoptionism, excommunicated byPope Victor I.

• Sabellius, originator ofSabellianism.
• Novatian, an early antipope who taughtNovatianism.
• Paul of Samosata, excommunicated by a synod at Antioch in 269.
• BishopMarcellus of Ancyra, excommunicated in 336 for believing in a modified form of Sabellianism by a bishops' synod in Constantinople led byArian bishopEusebius of Nicomedia.Pope Julius I argued for his innocence to the bishops who excommunicated him, and in 343 the Council of Serdica found Marcellus' book to be without heresy, but Marcellus was never reinstated as bishop nor formally reconciled.
• Felicissimus, a Carthaginian deacon, was excommunicated byCyprian,Bishop of Carthage. Cyprian was in hiding at the time from persecution and he sent people to distribute alms to those hurt by the persecutions. Felicissimus tried to frustrate the efforts of those distributing alms as he saw it as an encroachment on his office.^[6]

• Arius, Cyrenaic presbyter who startedArianism.
• Celestius, earlyPelagian leader.
• Roman EmperorTheodosius I was excommunicated by theBishop of Milan,Saint Ambrose, for authorizing theMassacre of Thessalonica.^[8] After repentance, penance andrestitution, the Emperor was restored to communion with the Church.^[9]
• Supporters ofAntipope Ursicinus were excommunicated by a Roman synod after they accusedPope Damasus I of adultery in a Roman court in 378.^[10]
• Auxentius of Milan, an Arian bishop, was excommunicated by the Roman synod of 369.^[10]
• Saint Athanasius was excommunicated byPope Liberius allegedly for refusing to attend a synod. Athanasius believed the pope was acting under duress (the pope had been exiled from Rome) and refused to accept the validity of the excommunication.^[11][12]
• Some Egyptian monks byTheophilus I of Alexandria. These monks went to Constantinople, where their presence resulted in accusations made againstJohn Chrysostom.^[13]

• ArchbishopNestorius of Constantinople, founder ofNestorianism.
• ArchimandriteEutyches, founder ofEutychianism, along with his monastery, was excommunicated by ArchbishopFlavian of Constantinople.^[14]
• PopeDioscorus I of Alexandria, who presided over theRobber Council of Ephesus.
• PatriarchJohn of Antioch and his party by theCouncil of Ephesus in 431.^{[clarification needed]}
• Peter the Tanner,Patriarch of Antioch was excommunicated byPope Felix III at a synod in Rome for heresy.^[15]
• Peter Mongus, Patriarch of Alexandria was excommunicated by Felix III.^[15]
• PatriarchAcacius of Constantinople was excommunicated by Felix III on account of his receiving the excommunicated Peter Mongus into communion. This led to theAcacian schism.^[15]
• Papal legates that were sent by Pope Felix III to Constantinople were excommunicated by Pope Felix III. They were sent to call Acacius to explain his conduct and urge the Byzantine Emperor to depose Peter Mongus from his see. After being imprisoned and threatened after arriving at Constantinople, they caved in and held communion with heretics, which led to the pope excommunicating them.^[15]
• Monks in Constantinople were excommunicated byNestorius, Archbishop of Constantinople, on account of their opposition to his teachings. This took place before Nestorius himself was excommunicated by theCouncil of Ephesus. The monks appealed to the EmperorTheodosius II to help them against Nestorius, who later summoned theCouncil of Ephesus.^[16]
• Ibas of Edessa was excommunicated by theRobber Council of Ephesus in 449. This council and its decisions were themselves overturned two years later at theCouncil of Chalcedon.^[17][14]
• Theodoret,Bishop of Cyrrhus, was excommunicated by the Robber Council of Ephesus. This council and its decisions were themselves overturned two years later at theCouncil of Chalcedon.^[17][14]
• Pope Leo I was excommunicated byDioscorus I, Patriarch of Alexandria and ten bishops. Pope Leo would later excommunicate Dioscorus and all others who participated in the Robber Council of Ephesus.^[17][14]
• Classicianus, a Roman official was excommunicated along with his entire household by a bishop named Auxilius after he had entered a church to seize severalperjurers. Classicianus wrote afterwards toAugustine of Hippo to intercede for him to Auxilius. Augustine then wrote to Auxilius on Classicianus's behalf.^[18][19]

• Macliau [fr], Bishop ofVannes was excommunicated after he abandoned his episcopacy and religious vows to become Count ofVannes in 560.^[20]
• KingCharibert I of Paris by BishopGermain of Paris for immorality.
• Saint Columba was excommunicated in 562 by the synod ofTeltown for allegedly praying for the winning side in an Irish War. The excommunication was later held to be an abuse of justice and the bishops in question removed their charge.^[21]
• The sons of Conall mac Domnaill bySaint Columba some time in the late sixth century, due to their persecution of churches.^[21]
• ArchbishopTheodore of Mopsuestia by theSecond Council of Constantinople.^{[clarification needed]}
• Leudaste [fr],Count of Tours, by a synod of bishops in 581 on account of creating scandals and false accusations he made against BishopGregory of Tours.
• A layman named Pelagius was excommunicated byGregory of Tours in the late sixth century after the former had beaten and robbed some of Gregory's men. Gregory later received him back into communion after he and others made oaths.^[22]
• Eulalius, futureCount of Auvergne was excommunicated byCautinus,Bishop of Clermont as a young man as a result of suspicion of murdering his mother. He protested his innocence and Cautinus agreed to allow him to return to communion.^[22][23]
• Basina, daughter of Chilperic I, her cousinChrodield, daughter of the previously excommunicatedCharibert I, and their party were excommunicated by a synod of bishops who condemned them for a violent monastic rebellion atHoly Cross Abbey in Poitiers in 589.^[22]

• Ecumenical PatriarchPyrrhus of Constantinople was excommunicated in 648 byPope Theodore I and a synod of bishops after he had gone back on his recantation ofmonothelitism. The pope and the bishops also declared him deposed from his see. Theodore reportedly signed the excommunication upon St Peter's tomb using ink that was mingled with drops ofCommunion wine.^[24]
• Ecumenical PatriarchPaul II of Constantinople was excommunicated and deposed from his see in 649 byPope Theodore I after he had professedMonothelitism.^[25]
• Pope Honorius I was posthumously named as excommunicated by theThird Council of Constantinople and byPope Leo II in a 682 letter to Byzantine EmperorConstantine IV.^{[26][clarification needed]}
• John Philoponus was posthumously named excommunicated by theThird Council of Constantinople. He was condemned by the council as being a 'tritheist'.^[26]
• An unnamed nobleman was excommunicated byCedd,Bishop of London on account of an unlawful marriage he was in.^[27] According toBede, this noble was one of the assassins ofSigeberht the Good.

• Mystic preachersAldebert and Clement by a German council headed bySaint Boniface in 745. Clement's excommunication was subsequently upheld by Rome, while Aldebert's was not.
• TheSecond Council of Nicaea posthumously excommunicated a number of clergy and theologians by name who had centuries past, some of whom had already been condemned, including:Arius and his followers,Macedonius I of Constantinople,Nestorius and his followers,Eutyches,Dioscorus,Severus of Antioch andPeter the Fuller along with those with them,Origen,Didymus the Blind,Evagrius Ponticus, as well asSergius I of Constantinople,Pyrrhus of Constantinople,Pope Honorius I,Cyrus of Alexandria, andMacarius I of Antioch along with their followers.
• Adiaconissa named Epiphania was excommunicated by a synod in Rome in 721 that dealt with the issue of illicit conjugal relations.^[28]

• TheFourth Council of Constantinople excommunicated by name and upheld a number of previous excommunications of previous councils of a number of people who had died in previous centuries. Those names in this list were:Arius and his followers,Macedonius I of Constantinople,Nestorius,Eutyches,Dioscorus,Severus of Antioch,Peter the Fuller,Zoharas the Syrian,Origen,Theodore of Mopsuestia,Didymus the Blind,Evagrius Ponticus,Theodore of Pharan,Sergius I of Constantinople,Pyrrhus of Constantinople,Peter of Constantinople,Paul II of Constantinople,Pope Honorius I,Cyrus of Alexandria,Macarius I of Antioch and his disciple Stephen,Anastasius of Constantinople,Constantine II of Constantinople,Nicetas I of Constantinople,Theodosius III of Ephesus, Sisinnius Pastilas, Basil Tricacabus,Theodoret, Anthony and John (priests of Constantinople) and Theodore Krithinos.^{[clarification needed]} Ecumenical PatriarchPhotios I of Constantinople was also named as excommunicated by the council.
• John VIII,Archbishop of Ravenna, was excommunicated byPope Nicholas I for various crimes, including the forging of documents to support claims against the Roman See, making unjust demands onsuffragan bishops for money, illegally imprisoning priests and maltreatingpapal legates. He later submitted to the pope at the Roman synod in 861. But he was then subsequently excommunicated a second time after he entered into a pact with the excommunicated Archbishops of Trier and Cologne. He then submitted again to the pope after this second excommunication and was reconciled.^[29]
• Ingiltrud, wife ofBoso the Elder,Count of Turin, was excommunicated by bishops in the empire ofCharles the Bald at the direction ofPope Nicholas I after she left her husband for a secret lover and didn't respond to a summons to appear before theSynod of Milan in 860.^[29]
• Judith of Flanders, Frankish princess and daughter ofCharles the Bald was excommunicated by Frankish bishops after she marriedBaldwin I, Margrave of Flanders without her father's consent.^[29]
• Photios I,Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople was excommunicated byPope Nicholas I in 863 on grounds that he had raised himself to thePatriarchal See in violation of canon law.^[29] He had been consecrated bishop byGregory Asbestas, who was already excommunicated; he hadn't obeyed theinterstices, the mandatory waiting period for ordination between different orders, andIgnatios of Constantinople was considered to still be the Patriarch of Constantinople.^[30] He was named as excommunicated in the 869–870Fourth Council of Constantinople. WhenIgnatios of Constantinople died in 877,Pope John VIII agreed to restore him to communion and confirm him as Ecumenical Patriarch. However, he was excommunicated again by Pope John after he held asynod in 879 that sought to revoke the acts of theFourth Council of Constantinople.^[30]
• Gregory Asbestas was excommunicated by PatriarchIgnatios of Constantinople on account of insubordination in relation to his consecration of Photios.^[30]
• Rodoald of Porto andZachary of Anagni, were excommunicated byPope Nicholas I in 863 at a synod in the Lateran. The two men had served as papal legates to Constantinople with direction to hear the two sides in the dispute between Photios and Ignatios, who both claimed to be rightful Patriarchs of Constantinople. They received bribes and passed a ruling in the pope's name in favour of Photios.^[30]
• Gunther,Archbishop of Cologne andThietgaud,Archbishop of Trier, were excommunicated byPope Nicholas I at a synod in October 863. The two bishops had given approval for the divorce and remarriage of KingLothair II. Gunther's excommunication was lifted in 869 byPope Adrian II after Gunther made a public retraction but his clerical status was not restored and was instead placed in a state oflay communion.^[31]

• In 998,Robert II of France, who had been insisting on his right to appoint bishops, was ultimately forced to back down, after being excommunicated byPope Gregory V^[32] and ultimately also to put aside his wifeBertha of Burgundy who had also been excommunicated. The stated reason was the degree ofconsanguinity between the two. They had the marriage annulled byPope Sylvester II in 1000 and were reinstated.

• Bishops in France, under orders of PopeBenedict VIII, excommunicated feudal barons who had seized property belonging toCluny Abbey in 1016.^[33]
• In 1031 theCouncil of Limoges in France excommunicated feudal barons in theDiocese of Limoges who were conducting private warfare between themselves in the midst of widespread famine and pestilence that was killing off a large portion of the peasantry. The famine and pestilence were thought to be punishments from God for grave sins being committed close to the millennium anniversary of Christ's death and resurrection. The members of the council dashed their candles to the ground in unison after calling out 'As these lights are extinguished before your eyes, so let their joy be extinguished before the angels.'^[33]
• Heribert,Archbishop of Milan, was excommunicated byPope Benedict IX when he was at enmity with him.^[34]
• Michael Cerularius,Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople, along withLeo of Ohrid and their adherents, were excommunicated in 1054 after he had erased the pope's name from churchdiptychs in Constantinople and accused the western Church of heresy. The excommunication was carried out by legates ofPope Leo IX after the pope's death. This excommunication was only directed at these individuals named and not at the wider eastern church; the legates specifically made note that they considered the wider eastern church to remain pious and orthodox.^[35] However, in the ensuing years, most of the eastern bishops followed Cerularius and also ceased recognition of the pope by striking his name from their diptychs. This led to theEast–West Schism. The legal validity of this excommunication has been questioned as it was issued by legates ofPope Leo IX after the pope's death. It was declared lifted on 7 December 1965.^[36]
• Arialdo was excommunicated byGuido da Velate, Bishop of Milan while he was working against clerical abuses in Milan. He was immediately reinstated byPope Stephen IX.^[37]
• Guido da Velate was excommunicated in turn because of repeated lapses in his failure to reform.^[37]
• Harold II, King of England, excommunicated for possibly politically motivated reasons byPope Alexander II in order to justify the invasion and takeover of the kingdom byWilliam the Conqueror in 1066.^[38]
• Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor was excommunicated four times in the eleventh century (and would later be excommunicated a fifth time in the twelfth century). He was excommunicated byPope Gregory VII three separate times, and once more byPope Urban II. The first was on 22 February 1076 over theInvestiture Controversy. This excommunication was lifted on 28 January 1077 after Henry's public show of penitence known as theRoad to Canossa. His second excommunication by Gregory was on 7 March 1080, and the third was in 1084 or 1085. Urban II excommunicated Henry in 1088.
• Bolesław II the Generous,Duke of Poland, was excommunicated in 1080 after murdering BishopStanislaus of Kraków.
• KingPhilip I of France, first excommunicated in 1094 byHugh of Die,Archbishop of Lyon^[39] for repudiating his marriage withBertha of Holland and remarrying, and later reaffirmed byPope Urban II in November 1095 at theCouncil of Clermont.^[40]
• TheBishop of Autun excommunicatedCluniac monks in his diocese who took overVézelay Abbey without his permission; the excommunication was removed after they left the diocese.^[33]

• Frederick I Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor, byPope Alexander III.
• Anselm V, Archbishop of Milan, excommunicated in 1135 byPope Honorius II.^[41]
• William I of Sicily, by PopeAdrian IV, while the king was waging war against the papal states and raiding pilgrims on their way to the tombs of the apostles.
• Ralph I, Count of Vermandois was said to have been excommunicated in 1142 by Bishop SaintIvo of Chartres for repudiating his lawful wife and marrying another.^[42]
• Roger II of Sicily, was excommunicated under the decrees of theSecond Lateran Council in 1139.
• AntipopeAnacletus II
• Henry IV, Holy Roman Emperor, excommunicated byPope Paschal II in 1106 for refusing to abjure his claim to imperial investitures, posthumously lifted in 1111. (Henry IV had already been excommunicated four times in the 11th century.)
• Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor byJordan, Archbishop of Milan in 1116 and ratified byPope Paschal II over the Investiture Controversy. He was excommunicated again byPope Gelasius II andPope Callistus II for setting up and supportingAntipope Gregory VIII. Received back into communionc. 1122.
• Mauritius Burdinus,Archbishop of Braga, was excommunicated for crowning Henry V as Holy Roman Emperor at Rome during Henry's invasion of Italy during theInvestiture Controversy in 1117 byPope Paschal II. He was excommunicated a second time in 1118 when after Paschal II died,Pope Gelasius II was elected and Henry established Archbishop Mauritius as Antipope Gregory VIII in opposition to him.^[43]
• In 1170 Archbishop of CanterburyThomas Becket excommunicatedRoger de Pont L'Évêque, the archbishop of York, along withGilbert Foliot, the Bishop of London, andJosceline de Bohon, the Bishop of Salisbury, for crowning the heir-apparent Henry at York, thereby usurping Canterbury's privileges. In response to these excommunications, the heirs father,Henry II of England famously exclaimed words that led to Becket's assassination.

• In 1171,Pope Alexander III excommunicatedReginald Fitzurse,Hugh de Morville,William de Tracy andRichard le Breton for the murder ofThomas Becket. They later did penance to the pope in Rome who ordered them to join the crusade in the Holy Land in reparation.
• TheThird Council of the Lateran excommunicated theCathars and mercenary groups that were plaguing Europe at the time.
• DukeLeopold V of Austria byPope Celestine III.
• Markwuld of Anweiler, Imperial Seneschal in theHoly Roman Empire, was excommunicated byPope Innocent III after he failed to return theRomagna and theMarch of Ancona to thePapal States.^[44]

• KingJohn of England, excommunicated in 1208 byPope Innocent III after refusing to accept Cardinal Stephen Langdon as the pope's choice for Archbishop of Canterbury. John relented in 1213 and was restored to communion.
• KingAfonso II of Portugal, excommunicated in 1212 byPope Honorius III for weakening theclergy and investing part of the large sums destined to the Catholic Church in the unification of the country. Afonso II promised to reconcile with the Church, however, he died in 1223 without making any serious attempt to do so.
• Bouchard IV of Avesnes, a Hainaut nobleman and subdeacon, excommunicated in 1216 byPope Innocent III for violatingclerical celibacy by marryingMargaret II of Flanders, who was ten years old at the time. The marriage was annulled three years later.
• KingAndrew II of Hungary, was excommunicated in 1231 after not following the points ofGolden Bull of 1222, a seminal bill of rights, which contained new dispositions related to thetithe and hostile practices against the Jews and Muslims of the realm.
• Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, was excommunicated three times. The first time byPope Gregory IX in 1227 for delaying his promise to begin theFifth Crusade; the excommunication was lifted in 1229. The same pope excommunicated him again in 1239 for making war against thePapal States, a censure rescinded by the new pope,Celestine IV, who died soon after. Frederick was again excommunicated byPope Innocent IV at theFirst Council of Lyons in 1245. Frederick repented just before his death and was absolved of the censure in 1250.
• a number of clerics and prominent lay people in the German church were excommunicated by papal legateAlbert von Behaim after they had proved negligent in carrying out the needed measures to make the sentence of 1239 excommunication againstFrederick II, Holy Roman Emperor effective^[45]
• Manfred, King of Sicily in 1254, for taking the regency ofConradin. He became papal vicar the same year. He was excommunicated again in 1258 after crowning himself king.
• Gilbert de Clare, 7th Earl of Gloucester was excommunicated in 1264 byPope Clement IV for rebelling againstKing Henry III of England during theSecond Barons' War. This was lifted in 1268.
• KingLadislaus IV of Hungary in 1279, by the pope's envoyPhilip, foracting against the Catholic Church and living in a pagan way with theCumans.
• James II of Aragon, in 1286 byPope Boniface VIII for being crowned King of Sicily and thereby usurping a papal fief. His younger brotherFrederick III of Sicily was excommunicated for the same reason in 1296.
• Jacopo Colonna and Pietro Colonna, both cardinals, were excommunicated by Pope Boniface VIII in the bull 'excelso throno' (1297) for refusing to surrender their relative Stefano Colonna (who had seized and robbed the pope's nephew) and refusing to give the popePalestrina along with twofortresses, which threatened the pope. This excommunication was extended in the same year to Jacopo's nephews and their heirs, after the twoColonna cardinals denounced the pope's election as invalid and appealed to a general council.^[46]
• KingEric VI of Denmark in 1298, byPope Boniface VIII, for imprisoningArchbishop of Lund,Jens Grand.^[46]
• Byzantine EmperorMichael VIII Palaiologos of Constantinople, by Pope Martin IV.
• Peter III of Aragon, byPope Martin IV
• Raymond VI, Count of Toulouse was excommunicated byPierre de Castelnau, legate of PopeInnocent III in 1207 for refusing to persecuteAlbigensians in his lands and even showing them signs of favour, such as allowing them to preach in front of him. He later did penance and joined in the crusade against the Albigensians, but was excommunicated again in 1209 when he went to Toulouse and tried to elude his obligations.^[47]
• the people ofToulouse were excommunicated by theCouncil of Avignon in 1209 for failing to expel the Albigensians from their city.^[48]
• Otto IV, Holy Roman Emperor was excommunicated by PopeInnocent III in 1210 after he had invaded and taken over lands belonging to thePapal States as well as invading theKingdom of Sicily that was under the pope's suzerainty.^[44]
• Alfonso IX of León, King of Leon and Galicia, was excommunicated by PopeInnocent III for marrying a near relative.^[44]
• Venetian crusaders in theFourth Crusade that had diverted the purpose of the crusade away from theHoly Land and ended up sackingConstantinople instead were excommunicated by PopeInnocent III^[44]
• Robert Grosseteste,Bishop of Lincoln was excommunicated by monks ofCanterbury Cathedral in 1243, during a time period when there was a vacancy in thesee of Canterbury.^[49]
• The Second Council of Lyons excommunicated all pirates and corsairs in the Mediterranean as well as their principal helpers and supporters.^[50]

• Antipopes at AvignonClement VII andBenedict XIII and their followers by proxy, causing theWestern Schism
• Marguerite Porete, a Frenchbeguine was excommunicated and burned at the stake for heresy in 1310^[51]
• Barnabò Visconti, tyrant of Milan, by Blessed Urban V in 1363. This was later rescinded after Barnabo restored castles he had seized and peace was concluded between him and the papal states. He was again excommunicated byPope Gregory XI after he took overReggio and other places that were feudatory to the Holy See in 1371. Barnabo reportedly forced the papal legates who brought him the bull of excommunication to eat the parchment on which it was written.^[52]
• The inhabitants ofFlorence were collectively excommunicated byPope Gregory XI after they conspired with the excommunicatedBarnabò Visconti, tyrant of Milan, in 1375 to stir up the inhabitants of the Papal States against the French legates that Pope Gregory had sent to rule them in his place, since Gregory lived in Avignon. Florence sentCatherine of Siena to intercede for them with the pope and she successfully convinced the pope to leave Avignon and return to Rome.^[52]
• Mercenary bands known as the 'free companies' that had overrun Italy and France were excommunicated by BlessedUrban V in 1366. Included in this excommunication were the GermanKonrad von Landau and the Englishman SirJohn Hawkwood.^[53]
• Pedro the Cruel was excommunicated byPope Urban V for his persecutions of clergy and cruelty.^[54]
• KingPhilip the Fair of France in 1303 by Pope Boniface VIII, for failing to respond adequately to a papal letter regarding Philip's effective rejection of the pope's temporal authority.
• William of Littlington, an English Carmelite friar, in 1305; he was reconciled, after a four years' penance, in 1309.
• Ladislaus Kán, Hungarian noble regent of the region of Transylvania that was excommunicated in 1309 by the pope's envoyGentile Portino da Montefiore for not handing over theHoly Crown of Hungary, that was being kept illegally by him.
• Matthew III Csák, Hungarian noble that was excommunicated in 1311 by the pope's envoy Gentile, for not accepting the new KingCharles I of Hungary.
• Robert the Bruce, King of Scots from 1306 to 1329, was excommunicated following his killing ofJohn Comyn before the altar of the Greyfriars Church atDumfries in 1306.^[55] His excommunication was lifted byPope John XXII.^[56]
• William de Lamberton, Bishop of St Andrews.
• David de Moravia, Bishop of Moray.
• Robert Wishart, Bishop of Glasgow.
• Joanna I of Naples in 1378 byPope Urban VI for her support ofAntipope Clement VII, support deemed heretical by Urban.
• All cardinals who voted for Antipope Clement VII were excommunicated by Urban VI.
• Charles III of Naples in 1385 for his alleged involvement in a plot against Urban VI.
• John Wycliffe was posthumously excommunicated by theCouncil of Constance.
• Angelo da Clareno and his group ofSpiritual Franciscans were excommunicated byPope John XXII in 1317.^[57]
• theSpiritual Franciscans ofTuscany were excommunicated byPope John XXII in 1317.^[57]
• theSpiritual Franciscans ofProvence were excommunicated byGuillaume d'Astre, Franciscan provincial superior.^[57]
• Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor byPope John XXII in 1324. Louis later marched on Rome, issued a decree that deposed the pope and installedAntipope Nicholas V.

• Lorenzo De Medici and the city of Florence in 1478, after the papacy-backedPazzi Conspiracy failed, for the hanging of Salviati in his vestial robes.
• Jerome of Prague in 1409 byZbyněk Zajíc of Hazmburk,Archbishop of Prague, for his role in the CzechWycliffe campaign.^[58]
• FuturePope Martin V in 1411 byPope Gregory XII for supportingPisanAntipope Alexander V andAntipope John XXIII.^[59] His excommunication was lifted in 1415 at theCouncil of Constance in order for Martin to become pope and end theWestern Schism.
• Antipope Benedict XIII byPope Martin V in 1415, for refusing to step down despite his promise at theCouncil of Constance.
• Hussites founderJan Hus by theCouncil of Constance in 1415.
• Saint Joan of Arc by BishopPierre Cauchon of Beauvais on 30 May 1431 (even though he allowed herHoly Communion before herimmolation). She was fully reconciled with the Church at herTrial of Nullification in 1456.
• AntipopeFelix V and his followers byPope Eugene IV at theCouncil of Florence on 23 March 1440.^[60]
• BishopPierre Cauchon in 1457 byPope Callixtus III for hispersecution and condemnation of Joan of Arc.^[61]
• The town ofPrudnik inSilesia on 23 March 1464 byPope Pius II for refusing to pay the debt of DukeKonrad IV the Elder.^[62]
• KingGeorge of Poděbrady of Bohemia, anUtraqist, was excommunicated byPope Paul II on 23 December 1466. This led to a Crusade against him in theBohemian–Hungarian War (1468–1478).
• Girolamo Savonarola in 1497 byPope Alexander VI.^[63]

• CardinalPietro Colonna in 1501 byPope Alexander VI
• James IV of Scotland in 1513 for breaking theTreaty of Perpetual Peace with England.
• Martin Luther, theProtestantReformer, in 1521 byPope Leo X.
• Henry VIII of England in 1533, officially promulgated on 17 December 1538 byPope Paul III.
• Thomas Cranmer,Archbishop of Canterbury and first Protestant Archbishop of Canterbury of theChurch of England.
• CardinalOdet de Coligny, on 31 March 1563, for professingCalvinism.
• Elizabeth I of England in 1570 by the papal bullRegnans in Excelsis.
• Thomas Erastus, founder ofErastianism
• Henry IV of France and Navarre, who famously retaliated by "excommunicating" the pope. He later converted to Catholicism and his excommunication was lifted on 17 September 1595.
• Giovanni Bentivoglio, leader of Bologna, in 1506 byJulius II, while the pope was at war with him and leading an army to take Bologna.
• Alfonso I d'Este, Duke of Ferrara, by Julius II in 1510.
• Discalced Carmelites in Spain who participated in an illicit meeting to elect a provincial without approval, by the pope's legate in Spain Filippo Sega in 1578^[64] This was ignored by those excommunicated. It was formally revoked in 1579.^[65]
• Carmelite nuns of the Monastery of the Encarnacion inÁvila who refused to renounceTeresa of Ávila's leadership of the convent, by the ordersprovincial, after the church authorities ordered a replacement in 1577.^[66][67] This excommunication was revoked later that year.^[68]
• Gérard Cauvin, father ofJean Calvin, was excommunicated by the chapter of theDiocese of Noyon on account of him not sending in his accounts while he served as a procurator for the diocese.^[69]
• Giordano Bruno for heresy in 1576, he was later tried and burned to death by the Inquisition in 1600

• Mikołaj Sapieha in approximately 1625 byPope Urban VIII; punishment for stealing a painting. The excommunication was lifted in 1634 to allow Sapieha to publicly oppose the suggested marriage ofWładysław IV Vasa andPrincess Elizabeth of Bohemia.
• Odoardo Farnese, Duke of Parma in 1641 by Pope Urban VIII during theWars of Castro. He later reconciled with the Church and was readmitted to thesacraments.^[70]
• Priests Francisco de Jaca and Epiphane de Moirans in 1681 for opposing slavery in Cuba by their local bishop, however in 1686 the Holy Office under Pope Innocent XI formally agreed with a document they co-authored, which decried the slave trade.^[71]

• Most important supporters ofJansenism, in the 1718 bullPastoralis officii^[72]
• Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord,Bishop of Autun, byPope Pius VI. Before his death, Talleyrand was later reconciled with the Church.^[73]

• Napoleon was excommunicated in the 1809 bullQuum memoranda byPope Pius VII for ordering the annexation of Rome and a long period of anti-Papal orders.^[74][75] Before Napoleon's death, his excommunication was lifted and he received thelast rites.^[76]
• Fr. John Power was excommunicated byThomas Scallan,Bishop of Newfoundland in 1820, when the former celebrated mass inLabrador after having been already suspended^[77]
• Stephen Kaminski, Bishop of thePolish National Catholic Church, in 1898^[78]
• Francis Hodur, Roman Catholic priest (Scranton, Pennsylvania) and Prime Bishop of thePolish National Catholic Church^[79]
• Gregorio Aglipay Cruz y Labayan was a Roman Catholic priest who became the first FilipinoSupreme Bishop of thePhilippine Independent Church, a new Protestant revolutionary-nationalist church, who would later become anAnglo-Catholic church.^[80] Excommunicated in May 1899 by Archbishop of Manila Bernardino Norzaleda y Villa upon the expressed permission ofPope Leo XIII due to "usurpation of ecclesiastical jurisdiction" during thePhilippine–American War.^[81]
• Saint Mary MacKillop by BishopLaurence Sheil in 1871.^[82] Five months later, from his deathbed, Shiel rescinded the excommunication.^[83]
• Fr.Edward McGlynn was excommunicated in 1887 for opposing the establishment of parochial schools believing that they were unnecessary.^{[citation needed]} The excommunication was lifted in 1892.^{[citation needed]}
• Fr.José María Morelos and Fr.Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla (both allegedly reconciled before their death)^[84] for "disturbances of the public order, corrupting the public, sacrilege [and] perjury" in 1810.^{[citation needed]}
• KingVictor Emmanuel II of Italy was excommunicated byPope Pius IX when the king annexed thePapal States and captured the city of Rome, forcing the pope to take refuge in the Vatican City.^[85] Before Victor Emmanuel II's death his excommunication was lifted and the Royal Chaplain was authorized to administer the last rites. However, the king died before this could be done.^[86]
• Charles Loyson (name as aCarmelite: Hyacinthe) was excommunicated in 1869 for leaving hisreligious order after refusing to retract his protest against the manner of convocation of theFirst Vatican Council.^[87]
• Colombian writer and atheistJosé María Vargas Vila was excommunicated upon the publication his novelIbis (1900).^[88]
• Scientist Dr.Gregorio Chil y Naranjo was excommunicated in 1878 for his work on evolution in the Canary Islands entitled "Estudios historicos, climatologicos y patológicos de las Islas Canarias." The Bishop of Barcelona,José María de Urquinaona y Vidot, declared the work "false, impious, scandalous, and heretical" and excommunicated the doctor.^[89]
• Ignaz von Döllinger andJohann Friedrich were excommunicated byGregor von Scherr,Archbishop of Munich and Freising on 18 April 1871, on account of their opposition to the doctrine ofpapal infallibility. This was part of the events in the creation of theOld Catholic Church^[90]
• Joseph Hubert Reinkens, bishop in theOld Catholic Church, was excommunicated byPope Pius IX on 9 November 1873^[91]
• Bernhard Josef Hilgers,Joseph Langen,Franz Heinrich Reusch andFranz Peter Knoodt, theology professors at theUniversity of Bonn were excommunicated by Cardinal Archbishop of Cologne,Paul Melchers in 1872 on account of their opposition to the doctrine ofpapal infallibility^[91]

This articleis missing information aboutthe disputed claim that Fidel Castro was excommunicated. Please expand the article to include this information. Further details may exist on thetalk page.(September 2022)

• All Catholics who participated in the creation of thePhilippine Independent Church in thePhilippines, in December 1902^[81]
• Feliksa Kozłowska,Maria Michał Kowalski and theMariavite movement in December 1906 byPope Pius X^[92]
• Alfred Loisy, a French cleric associated withmodernism, possibly in 1908^[93]
• Fr.Romolo Murri, a leader of the Italian Catholic Democrats, for giving speeches against papal policy in 1909^[94]
• MarshalJosip Broz Tito, leader of Communist Yugoslavia, and all Catholics who participated in the trial of ArchbishopAloysius Stepinac of Zagreb and the trial of ArchbishopJózsef Mindszenty of Hungary, which included most of the jury members, in 1946^[95]
• Fr.Michel Collin of France was excommunicated in 1951 for various heresies, and later declared himself Pope Clement XV.^[96]
• Fr.Leonard Feeney, SJ on 13 February 1953 for disobedience to the Holy See.^[97] Feeney promotedFeeneyism, a view condemned by the Catholic Church.^[98] Feeney was later reconciled to communion in the church without recanting his views.^[98]
• Juan Perón, in 1955, after he signed a decree ordering the expulsion of Argentine bishopsManuel Tato andRamón Novoa.^[99][100] In 1963 Perón was reconciled with the Church and his excommunication lifted.^[101][102]
• Anthony Tu Shihua receivedlatae sententiae excommunication in 1959, later confirmed by the Holy See, for having receiving illicit episcopal ordination to become Bishop of Hanyang. This excommunication was later lifted shortly before his death in 2017.^[103]
• Plaquemines Parish PresidentLeander Perez, Jackson G. Ricau (secretary of the Citizens Council of South Louisiana) and Mrs. B.J. Gaillot, Jr., president of Save Our Nation, Inc., on 16 April 1962 by ArchbishopJoseph Rummel of theArchdiocese of New Orleans. They were excommunicated for aggressively opposing theracial integration of Catholic schools in the Archdiocese starting in the 1963–64 school year. Perez and Ricau were later reinstated into the Church following public retractions.^[104]
• In 1976, the Holy See confirmed the excommunication of those who participated in illicit episcopal consecrations for thePalmarian Christian Church includingPierre MartinNgô Đình Thục, formerlyArchbishop of Huế in Vietnam.^[105]
• Archbishop Thục quickly repented and was received back into the Church, but in 1981 he carried out new unauthorized ordinations of bishops. For this he was excommunicated again in 1983, but repented and was again received back into the Church in 1984.^[106]
• In April 1984 Fr. Gunther Storck was excommunicated for being consecrated bishop by excommunicated BishopMichel-Louis Guérard des Lauriers.
• ArchbishopMarcel Lefebvre, BishopsAntonio de Castro Meyer,Bernard Fellay,Bernard Tissier de Mallerais,Richard Williamson andAlfonso de Galarreta for theEcône Consecrations (Society of St. Pius X) without papal mandate. Formally declared to have incurredlatae sententiae excommunication by CardinalBernardin Gantin on 1 July 1988.^[107][108] The excommunications of the latter four (the bishops consecrated in that 1988 ceremony) were lifted in 2009; the first two (the consecrator and the co-consecrator) had died in the meantime.^{[citation needed]} Williamson fell under a second excommunication after illicitly ordaining a bishop.^[109]
• Members of multiple organizations in theRoman Catholic Diocese of Lincoln, Nebraska were excommunicated by BishopFabian Bruskewitz in March 1996 for promoting positions he deemed "totally incompatible with the Catholic faith".^[110] The organizations includeCall to Action,Catholics for a Free Choice,Planned Parenthood, theHemlock Society, theFreemasons, and theSociety of St. Pius X. The Vatican later confirmed the excommunication of Call to Action members in November 2006,^[110] but in 2017, the current Bishop of Lincoln met with leadership of the group and proposed a way for individuals to be reconciled to the Church, without having to renounce their membership in the organization, as long as they reaffirmed their commitment to all of Church teaching.^[111]
• AfterBishop Michael Cox consecratedPat Buckley a bishop without papal approval, both were excommunicated.^[112]
• Isabelo de los Reyes, founder of thePhilippine Independent Church, was excommunicated byPope Leo XIII in 1903 as aschismaticapostate.
• Vincent Zhan Silu excommunicatedlatae sententiae, later confirmed by the Vatican, for receiving illicit episcopal consecration in 2000.^[113] His excommunication was lifted in 2018 when Pope Francis recognized all bishops in China.
• Fr. James Callan in 1999 of Rochester, New York for allowing women to offer Mass.

• Bp.Rómulo Antonio Braschi on 5 August 2002 for having "attempted to confer priestly ordination on several Catholic women," theDanube Seven.^[114]
• Chinese bishopsJoseph Liu Xinhong,Joseph Ma Yinglin,John Wu Shi-zhen andBernardine Dong Guangqing were excommunicated by the Holy See in 2006 for engaging in illicit episcopal consecrations.^[115] The two who received ordination (Liu Xinhong and Ma Yinglin) had their excommunications lifted when the Holy See announced that all bishops in China were formally recognized in 2018.
• Zambian bishopEmmanuel Milingo was stated to be excommunicated by the Holy See in 2006 after he engaged in illicit episcopal consecrations.
• TheCommunity of the Lady of All Nations for heretical teachings and beliefs after a six-year investigation. The declaration was announced by theCanadian Conference of Catholic Bishops on 12 September 2007.^[116]
• Fr.Basil Kovpak, traditionalist priest of Ukrainian Greek Catholic Church was excommunicated in 2007^[117]
• Fr.Dale Fushek (also laicized byPope Benedict XVI in February 2010) and Fr. Mark Dippre. Former Priests were issued a Decree of Excommunication by BishopThomas J. Olmsted for operating "an opposing ecclesial community" in direct disobedience to orders to refrain from public ministry.^[118]
• Fr. Marek Bozek (sincelaicized by Pope Benedict XVI), and the lay parish board members ofSt. Stanislaus Kostka Church inSt. Louis, Missouri in December 2005 were declared guilty of the ecclesiastical crime ofschism by then-ArchbishopRaymond Leo Burke.^[119] Their excommunication was ratified by the Vatican in May 2008. Four of the parish board members have since reconciled with the Church.
• Rev. Fr.Alejandre Galias of theDiocese of Sorsogon was automatically excommunicated on September 21, 2007 by BishopArturo Bastes due to someone who accused the Fr. of breaking theSeal of confession in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.^[120][121]
• Both the doctors and the mother of the nine-year-old victim in the2009 Brazilian girl abortion case were said by ArchbishopJosé Cardoso Sobrinho of Olinda and Recife to have incurred an automatic excommunication. The victim had an abortion after being raped and impregnated by her stepfather.^[122][123] TheNational Conference of Bishops of Brazil contradicted Sobrinho's statement: it declared that, in accordance withcanon law, the girl's mother was not in fact excommunicated and that there were no grounds for stating that any of the doctors involved were in fact excommunicated.^[124] Disagreement with the Archbishop's view of the supposed excommunication was expressed also by other bishops.^[125][126]
• Sr.Margaret McBride, a nun, for allowing anabortion.^[127] McBride later reconciled with the Church and is no longer living in a state of excommunication.
• In 2010Joseph Guo Jincai was excommunicated by the Holy See for illicitly receiving episcopal consecration to become Bishop of Chengde.^[128] This excommunication was lifted in 2018 when Pope Francis recognized all bishops in China.
• In 2011Joseph Huang Bingzhang was excommunicated by the Holy See for illicitly receiving episcopal consecration to become Bishop ofShantou.^[129] His consecrators were not formally excommunicated and the Holy See noted that it was possible they were forced to take part, however, if they were not forced, they would have also suffered an automatic excommunication. This excommunication was lifted in 2018 when Pope Francis recognized all bishops in China.
• Lei Shiyin was excommunicated in 2011 by the Holy See for receiving illicit episcopal consecration to become Bishop ofLeshan. His consecrators were not formally excommunicated because of the possibility that they were forced, however, they would suffer an automatic excommunication if they were not forced to participate.^[130] This excommunication was lifted in 2018 when Pope Francis recognized all bishops in China.
• In October 2012, the newspapersEl Observador andEl País reported that all the Catholics who promoted theabortion law in Uruguay were excommunicated.^[131][132] The newspaperUrgente24, in spite of a headline stating that what it called the "abortionist lawmakers" were excommunicated, explained in the body of the article that automatic excommunication applied only to someone who directly carried out an abortion.^[133] The bishop's website also explained that excommunication would automatically apply, underCanon 1398, only to anyone carrying out an abortion, and not to lawmakers.^[134]
• Fr.Roy Bourgeois (also laicized and dismissed from theMaryknoll Fathers) for participating in the attempted ordination of a woman.^[135]
• Yue Fusheng was excommunicated in 2012 by the Holy See for episcopal ordination to become Bishop of Harbin.^[136] His consecrators were not formally excommunicated because of the possibility they were forced, but they would suffer automatic excommunication if they had not been forced. This excommunication was lifted in 2018 when Pope Francis recognized all bishops in China.
• Fr. Robert Marrone on 6 March 2013 by BishopRichard Gerard Lennon of theDiocese of Cleveland inCleveland,Ohio for direct disobedience to orders from the bishop regarding the terms of his leave of absence and orders to refrain from public ministry.^[137] Marrone set up "an opposing ecclesial community" (the Community of St. Peter's) in a vacant warehouse that is not a Catholic church building and is outside of the authority of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Cleveland after St. Peter's Parish in Cleveland was closed (it has since been reopened with a new pastor).
• Fr. Roberto Francisco Daniel, known by local community as "Fr. Beto", by Bishop Caetano Ferrari, fromBauru, Brazil. Daniel was excommunicated because he refused a direct order from his bishop to apologize for or retract his statement that love was possible between people of thesame sex. The priest also said a married person who chose to have anaffair, heterosexual or otherwise, would not be unfaithful as long as that person's spouse allowed it.^{[138][139][140]}
• Fr. Greg Reynolds ofMelbourne, Australia was excommunicated in 2013 for continuing to celebrate Mass when not permitted, advocatingthe attempted ordination of women, and promotingsame-sex marriage.^[141]
• Fr.Jose Mercau in 2014 as part of theCatholic Church sexual abuse cases scandal.^[142][143]
• According toNational Catholic Reporter, Pope Francis excommunicated two founders of the 'We Are Church' movement Martha and Gert Heizer on 22 May 2014 for regularly celebrating simulated Masses in their home in Tyrol without a priest.
• Samantha Hudson, a Spanish drag artist, was excommunicated in 2015 byBishop of MallorcaJavier Salinas Viñals for a controversial musical video about the oppression the LGBTQ+ community faces due to the Catholic Church. The video was for a school project and was produced when she was 15 years old.^{[144][145][146][better source needed]}
• Fr. Alessandro Maria Minutella, of theArchdiocese of Palermo, was excommunicated in 2017 by his bishopCorrado Lorefice after his denunciation of Pope Francis as a heretic.^[147]
• In February 2018, Fr. Ezinwanne Igbo, a Nigerian priest working on theSunshine Coast of Queensland, Australia, was excommunicated by Pope Francis for breakingconfession secrecy rules after a two-year investigation.^[148]
• Pablo de Rojas Sánchez-Franco, a self-proclaimed bishop, was excommunicated in 2019 by BishopMario Iceta ofBilbao.^[149] He was later expelled from the convent he had been living as a bishop in following his excommunication.^[150]
• On Christmas Eve, 2019, three hermits named Fr. Stephen de Kerdrel, Sister Colette Roberts and Brother Damon Kelly living inScotland were excommunicated after accusingPope Francis of heresy in an online statement.^[151]
• In July 2020,Tomislav Vlašić, a former director of the alleged seers ofOur Lady of Medjugorje was excommunicated for holding himself out as a priest and simulating sacraments, after continuing to preach after being laicized for teaching false doctrine, manipulating consciences, disobeying ecclesiastical authority, and of committing acts of sexual misconduct.^[152]
• In August 2020, Fr. Jeremy Leatherby, a priest of theDiocese of Sacramento, incurred an automatic excommunication for schism after refusing to recognize the legitimacy ofPope Francis, most notably substituting his name with that of his predecessorPope Benedict XVI and omitting the name of BishopJaime Soto during the Eucharistic Prayer while offering Mass. Bishop Soto announced the excommunication on 7 August.^[153]
• Fr.Marko Ivan Rupnik, SJ in 2021 for absolution of an accomplice. Later lifted after he sought forgiveness from Pope Francis.
• Fr. Ramon Guidetti of thediocese of Livorno was excommunicated by his bishopSimone Giusti in January 2024 following a New Year's Eve homily shared online in which he denounced Pope Francis as an "anti-pope usurper".^[154]
• Fr. Michał WoźnickiSDB on 8 September 2023 for "refusing to recognize the authority of the Roman Pontiff and not remaining in community with members of the Church who recognize his authority".^[155]
• TenPoor Clares nuns inBelorado, Spain, were excommunicated in June 2024 by ArchbishopMario Iceta of Burgos following a property dispute with Iceta.^[156]
• On 4 July 2024, ArchbishopCarlo Maria Viganò, the Vatican's formerapostolic nuncio to the United States, was excommunicated forschism. The Vatican elaborated: "His public statements manifesting his refusal to recognize and submit to the Supreme Pontiff, his rejection of communion with the members of the Church subject to him, and of the legitimacy and magisterial authority of theSecond Vatican Council are well known."^[157]
• On 28 January 2025, Fr. Natale Santonocito, parish priest of theSan Cesareo Church in theDiocese of Tivoli was excommunicated for schism by MonsignorMauro Parmeggiani,Bishop of Tivoli. He claimed that Benedict XVI had never resigned and Francis I was thus an illegitimate anti-pope, saying "Bergoglio is not the legitimate Pope and never has been".^[158][159]
• Scott E. Peyton (former permanent deacon of theDiocese of Lafayette, Louisiana), was declared to have incurred alatae sententiae excommunication by BishopJ. Douglas Deshotel on 13 March 2024, after formally resigning from the diaconate, leaving the Catholic Church and joining an Anglican congregation.^[160][161]
• Anthony Ward of Colorado was excommunicated on November 10, 2025 for being ordained to the episcopacy by Archbishop Telesphore George Mpundu, the retired Archbishop of Lusaka, Zambia, without papal mandate.^[162]

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