John X, whose father’s name was also John,[2] was born atTossignano, along the riverSanterno.[3] He was made adeacon by Peter IV, thebishop of Bologna, where he attracted the attention ofTheodora, the wife ofTheophylact I of Tusculum, the most powerful noble inRome.[4] John was a relative of Theodora's family.[5]Liutprand of Cremona alleged that John became her lover during a visit to Rome;[6] However,Johann Peter Kirsch says, "This statement is, however, generally and rightly rejected as a calumny. Liutprand wrote his history some fifty years later, and constantly slandered the Romans, whom he hated. At the time of John's election Theodora was advanced in years, and is lauded by other writers (e.g. Vulgarius)."[5]
It was through Theodora’s influence that John was on the verge of succeeding Peter as bishop of Bologna, when theArchbishopric of Ravenna became available.[3][7] He wasconsecrated as archbishop in 905 byPope Sergius III, another clerical candidate of thecounts of Tusculum. During his eight years as archbishop, John worked hard with Sergius in an unsuccessful attempt to deposeLouis the Blind and haveBerengar of Friuli, who claimed theKingdom of Italy, crowned emperor in his stead.[3] He also had to defend himself from a usurper who tried to take hisepiscopal see away, as well as confirming his authority overNonantola Abbey when theabbot attempted to free it from the jurisdiction of the archbishop of Ravenna.[8]
After the death ofPope Lando in 914, a faction of the Roman nobility, headed by Theophylact of Tusculum, summoned John to Rome to assume the vacant papal chair. Although this was again interpreted by Liutprand as Theodora personally intervening to have her lover madepope, it is far more likely that John’s close working relationship with Theophylact, and his opposition to the ordinations ofPope Formosus, were the real reasons for his being transferred from Ravenna to Rome.[9] Since switching sees was considered an infraction ofcanon law, as well as contravening the decrees of theLateran Council of 769, which prohibited the installation of a pope without election, John’s appointment was criticised by his contemporaries.[10] Nevertheless, while Theophylact was alive, John adhered to his patron’s cause.
After some preliminary engagements at Campo Baccano and atTrevi, the Saracens were driven to their stronghold on the Garigliano. There, at theBattle of Garigliano, the allies proceeded to lay siege to them for three months, at the end of which the Saracens burnt their houses and attempted to burst out of the encirclement. With John leading the way, all were eventually caught and killed, achieving a great victory and removing the ongoing Saracen threat on the Italian mainland.[13] John then confirmed the granting ofTraetto to the Duke of Gaeta, as a reward for abandoning his Saracen allies.[14]
Berengar had pressed for the imperial crown ever since he had defeated and driven EmperorLouis the Blind out of Italy in 905. John X used this as leverage to push Berengar into supporting and providing troops to the Saracen campaign.[12] Having completed his end of the bargain, Berengar now insisted that John do likewise.[15] So in December 915, Berengar approached Rome, and after being greeted by the family of Theophylact (whose support he secured), he met Pope John atSt. Peter’s Basilica. On Sunday 3 December, John crowned Berengar as emperor, while Berengar in turn confirmed previous donations made to theSee of Peter by earlier emperors.[16]
Although Berengar had the support of the major Roman nobility and the pope, he had enemies elsewhere. In 923, a combination of the Italian princes brought about the defeat of Berengar, again frustrating the hopes of a united Italy, followed by his assassination in 924.[17] Then in 925 Theophylact of Tusculum and Alberic I of Spoleto also died; this meant that within the course of a year, three of Pope John’s key supporters had died, leaving John dangerously exposed to the ambitions of Theophylact’s daughter,Marozia, who, it was said, resented John’s alleged affair with her mother, Theodora.[18]
To counter the rising threat, John X invitedHugh of Provence to be the nextking of Italy, sending his envoy toPisa to be among the first to greet Hugh as he arrived. Soon after Hugh had been acknowledged as king atPavia, he met with John atMantua, and concluded some type of treaty with him, perhaps to defend John’s interests at Rome.[19] KingRudolph II of Burgundy soon laid claim to Italy, and Hugh was not in a position to help John. The next few years were a time of anarchy and confusion in Italy.
Marozia in the meantime had married MargraveGuy of Tuscany. Soon a power struggle began between them and Pope John, with John’s brother,Peter, the first to feel their enmity.[20] John had Peter madeduke of Spoleto after Alberic’s death, and his increased power threatened Guy and Marozia.[3] Peter was forced to flee toLake Orta, where he sought the aid of a rampaging band ofMagyars. In 926 he returned to Rome in their company, and with their support he intimidated Guy and Marozia, and Peter was allowed to return to his old role as principal advisor to and supporter of Pope John.[21]
Although these troubles were continuing to trouble John in Rome, he was still able to participate and influence broader ecclesiastical and political questions across Europe. In 920, he was asked by theByzantine EmperorsRomanos I andConstantine VII and thePatriarch of ConstantinopleNicholas Mystikos to send some legates to Constantinople to confirm the acts of a synod which condemned fourth marriages (a legacy of the conflict which embroiled Constantine’s fatherLeo VI the Wise) thereby ending aschism between the two churches.[22]
A part of the letter written by John X to the Croatian rulerTomislav in 925, in which the latter, earlier titled "duke", is now titled "king"
In 925 John attempted to stem the use of the Slavliturgy inDalmatia, and enforce the local use ofLatin in the Mass. He wrote toTomislav, "king (rex) of theCroats", and to DukeMichael of Zahumlje, asking them to follow the instructions as articulated by John’s legates.[23][24]
The result was asynod held in Split in 925, which confirmed John’s request; it forbade the ordination of anyone ignorant of Latin, and forbade Mass to be said in the Slav tongue, except when there was a shortage of priests.[25] The decrees of the synod were sent to Rome for John’s confirmation, who confirmed them all except for the ruling which placed the Croatian Bishop ofNona under the jurisdiction of theArchbishop of Spalatro. He summoned the parties to see him at Rome, but they were unable to attend, forcing John to send some papal legates to settle the matter, which were only resolved byPope Leo VI after John’s deposition and death.[26]
Around the same time, TsarSimeon I of Bulgaria made overtures to John, offering the renounce his nation’s obedience to thePatriarch of Constantinople, and place his kingdom under the ecclesiastical authority of the popes at Rome. John sent two legates, who only made it as far as Constantinople, but whose letters urging Simeon to come to terms with theByzantine Empire were delivered to him.[27] However, John did confirm Simeon’s title ofTsar (emperor), and it was John’s representatives who crowned Simeon’s sonPeter I of Bulgaria as Tsar in 927.[28] Finally, John sent a legate to act as intermediary to attempt to stop a war between the Bulgarians and Croatians.[29]
John was just as vigorous in his activities in Western Europe. Early on in his pontificate he gave his support to KingConrad I of Germany in his struggles against the German dukes. He sent a papal legate to a synod of bishops convoked by Conrad atAltheim in 916, with the result that the synod ordered Conrad’s opponents to present themselves before Pope John at Rome if they did not appear before another synod for judgement, under pain ofexcommunication.[30]
In 920, John was called upon byCharles the Simple to intervene in the succession in theBishopric of Liège, when Charles’ candidate Hilduin turned against him and joined DukeGilbert of Lorraine in rebellion. Charles then tried to replace him with another candidate, Richer ofPrüm Abbey, but Hilduin captured Richer, and forced Richer to consecrate him as bishop. John X ordered both men to appear before him at Rome, with the result that John confirmed Richer’s appointment and excommunicated Hilduin.[31] When in 923 Charles was later captured by CountHerbert II of Vermandois, John was the only leader who protested over Charles’ capture; he threatened Herbert with excommunication unless he restored Charles to freedom, but Herbert effectively ignored him.[32] Contemptuous of the pope’s authority, in 925 Herbert had his five-year-old sonHugh madearchbishop of Reims, an appointment which John was constrained to accept and confirm, as Herbert declared that if his son were not elected, he would carve up the bishopric and distribute the land to various supporters.[33]
John also supported the spiritual side of the Church, such as his advice to Archbishop Herive of Reims in 914, who asked for advice on converting theNormans to Christianity.[34] He wrote:
"Your letter has filled me at once with sorrow and with joy. With sorrow at the sufferings you have to endure not only from the pagans, but also from Christians; with gladness at the conversion of the Northmen, who once revelled in human blood, but who now, by your words, rejoice that they are redeemed by the life-giving blood of Christ. For this we thank God, and implore Him to strengthen them in the faith. As to how far, inasmuch as they are uncultured, and but novices in the faith, they are to be subjected to severe canonical penances for their relapsing, killing of priests, and sacrificing to idols, we leave to your judgment to decide, as no one will know better than you the manners and customs of this people. You will, of course, understand well enough that it will not be advisable to treat them with the severity required by the canons, lest, thinking they will never be able to bear the unaccustomed burdens, they return to their old errors."[35]
In addition, John supported the monastic reform movement atCluny Abbey. He confirmed the strict rule of Cluny for the monks there.[34] He then wrote to KingRudolph of France, as well as local bishops and counts, with instructions to restore to Cluny the property of which Guido, abbot ofGigny Abbey, had taken without permission, and to put the monastery under their protection.[36] In 926, he increased the land attached to theSubiaco Abbey in exchange for the monks reciting 100Kyrie eleisons for the salvation of his soul.[37]
In 924 John X sent a papal legate named Zanello to Spain to investigate theMozarabic rite. Zanello spoke favourably of the rite, and the pope gave a new approval to it, requiring only to change the words of consecration to that of the Roman one.[38] John’s pontificate saw large numbers of pilgrimages fromEngland to Rome, including ArchbishopWulfhelm of Canterbury in 927. Three years before, in 924, KingÆthelstan sent one of his nobles, Alfred, to Rome, on charges of plotting to put out the king’s eyes, where he was supposed to swear an oath before Pope John declaring his innocence of the charges, but he died soon afterwards in Rome.[39] In 917 John also gave thearchbishop of Bremen jurisdiction over the bishops inSweden,Denmark,Norway,Iceland andGreenland.[40]
Finally, during his pontificate, John also restored theLateran Basilica, which had crumbled in 897.[41]
The power struggle between John X and Guy of Tuscany and Marozia came to a conclusion in 928. Guy had secretly collected a body of troops, and with them made an attack on theLateran Palace. Peter was caught off guard, having only a few soldiers with him, and was cut to pieces before his brother's eyes. John was thrown into a dungeon, where he remained until he died.[42] There are two variant traditions surrounding his death; the first has it that he was smothered to death by a pillow in the dungeon within a couple of months of his deposition. Another has it he died sometime in 929 without violence, but through a combination of the conditions of his incarceration and depression.[43]
For centuries, John X’s pontificate has been seen as one of the most disgraceful during theSaeculum obscurum. Much of this can be laid at the feet of theLiutprand of Cremona, whose account of the period is both inaccurate and uniformly hostile.[45] His characterisation of John as an unscrupulous cleric who slept his way to the papal chair, becoming the lover of Theodora,[46] and who held the throne of Saint Peter as a puppet of Theophylact I of Tusculum until he was murdered to make way for Marozia’s son John XI, has coloured much of the analysis of his reign, and was used by opponents of theCatholic Church as a propagandist tool.[47]
Thus according toJohn Foxe, John X was the son of Pope Lando and the lover of the Roman "harlot" Theodora, who had John overthrow his supposed father, and set John up in his place.[48] While according to Louis Marie DeCormenin, John was: "The son of a nun and a priest... more occupied with his lusts and debauchery than with the affairs of Christendom... he was ambitious, avaricious, an apostate, destitute of shame, faith and honour, and sacrificed everything to his passions; he held theHoly See about sixteen years, to the disgrace of humanity."[49]
However, in recent times, his pontificate has been re-evaluated, and he is now seen as a man who attempted to stand against the aristocratic domination of the papacy, who promoted a unified Italy under an imperial ruler, only to be murdered for his efforts.[50]
According toFerdinand Gregorovius (not known for his sympathies towards the Papacy), John X was the foremost statesman of his age. He wrote:
"John X, however, the man whose sins are known only by report, whose great qualities are conspicuous in history, stands forth amid the darkness of the time as one of the most memorable figures among the Popes. The acts of the history of the Church praise his activity, and his relations with every country of Christendom. And since he confirmed the strict rule of Cluny, they extol him further as one of the reformers of monasticism."[51]
^Johann Lorenz von Mosheim (1841). Soames, Henry (ed.).Institutes of ecclesiastical history, ancient and modern. A new and literal tr. Longman. p. 721.
^Norwich, John Julius,Byzantium: The Apogee (1993), p. 137; Mann, pp. 133–134
^Vlasto, A. P. (1970).The Entry of the Slavs into Christendom: An Introduction to the Medieval History of the Slavs. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 209.ISBN978-0521074599.
^John Foxe, George Townsend, Josiah Pratt,The acts and monuments of John Foxe, with a life and defence of the martyrologist, Vol. II (1870), p. 35
^DeCormenin, Louis Marie; Gihon, James L.,A Complete History of the Popes of Rome, from Saint Peter, the First Bishop to Pius the Ninth (1857), pp. 285–286
^Duffy, Eamon,Saints & Sinners: A History of the Popes (1997), p. 83
^Gregorovius, Ferdinand,The History of Rome in the Middle Ages, Vol. III, p. 280
