For the title "Patrician," which was introduced by Constantine the Great signified the highest rank
next to that of the emperor, and since the sixth century was attached to the Byzantine Viceroy, of
Italy. On the other hand, this elevation and coronation was made the basis of papal superiority over
the crowns of France and Germany.
The pope soon reaped the benefit of his favor. When hard pressed again by the Lombards,
he called the new king to his aid.
Stephen III., who succeeded Zacharias in March, 752, and ruled till 757, visited Pepin in
person, and implored him to enforce the restoration of the domain of St. Peter. He anointed him
again at St. Denys, together with his two sons, and promised to secure the perpetuity of his dynasty
by the fearful power of the interdict and excommunication. Pepin accompanied him back to Italy
and defeated the Lombards (754). When the Lombards renewed the war, the pope wrote letter upon
letter to Pepin, admonishing and commanding him in the name of Peter and the holy Mother of
God to save the city of Rome from the detested enemies, and promising him long life and the most
glorious mansions in heaven, if he speedily obeyed. To such a height of blasphemous assumption
had the papacy risen already as to identify itself with the kingdom of Christ and to claim to be the
dispenser of temporal prosperity and eternal salvation.
Pepin crossed the Alps again with his army, defeated the Lombards, and bestowed the
conquered territory upon the pope (755). He declared to the ambassadors of the East who demanded
the restitution of Ravenna and its territory to the Byzantine empire, that his sole object in the war
was to show his veneration for St. Peter. The new papal district embraced the Exarchate and the
Pentapolis, East of the Apennines, with the cities of Ravenna, Rimini, Pesaro, Fano, Cesena,
Sinigaglia, lesi, Forlimpopoli, Forli, Montefeltro, Acerra, Monte di Lucano, Serra, San Marino,
Bobbio, Urbino, Cagli, Luciolo, Gubbio, Comachio, and Narni.^236
This donation of Pepin is the foundation of "the Patrimony of St. Peter." The pope was
already in possession of tracts of land in Italy and elsewhere granted to the church. But by this gift
of a foreign conqueror he became a temporal sovereign over a large part of Italy, while claiming
to be the successor of Peter who had neither silver nor gold, and the vicar of Christ who said: "My
kingdom is not of this world." The temporal power made the papacy independent in the exercise
of its jurisdiction, but at the expense of its spiritual character. It provoked a long conflict with the
secular power; it involved it in the political interests, intrigues and wars of Europe, and secularized
the church and the hierarchy. Dante, who shared the mediaeval error of dating the donation of Pepin
back to Constantine the Great,^237 gave expression to this view in the famous lines:
"Ah, Constantine! of how much ill was mother,
Not thy conversion, but that marriage-dower
Which the first wealthy Father took from thee."^238(^236) This is the enumeration of Baronius ad ann. 755. Others define the extent differently. Comp. Wiltsch,Kirchl.
Geographie und Statistik, I. pp. 246 sqq.
(^237) Constantine bestowed upon the pope a portion of the Lateran palace for his residence, and upon the church the right
to hold real estate and to receive bequests of landed property from individuals. This is the slender foundation for the fable of
the Donatio Constantini.
(^238) Inferno xix. 115-118:
"Ahi Costantin, di quanto mal fu matre,
Non la tua conversion, ma quella dote,
Che da te presse il primo ricco patre!"