tized by the pope in 852 with its new name. He also settled at Ostia a colony of Sardinians and Corsicans, who had fled before the Saracens. The fortifications of Rome itself were restored, and important works were executed at the mouth of the Tiber to prevent the incursions of the Saracens. Leo crowned the emperor, Louis II., and some authors say that by his dispensation Ethelwulf, who had been a monk, was allowed to be king of England, in return for which the kingdom was made tributary to him, and a yearly tax levied upon its inhabitants for the court of Rome. During his pontificate Gratian attempted to restore the authority of the Greek emperors, and Leo was himself suspected of being an accomplice. He, however, cleared himself by an oath before Lotharius, to whom he vowed perpetual allegiance, and promised submission to the missi or representatives of the emperor. In 853 he held a council at Rome, at which Anastasius, a presbyter and cardinal who had neglected his church for five years, and could not be influenced by admonitions, was condemned and deposed from the priesthood. Sixty-seven prelates attended this council. Leo also had some difficulty with Hincmar of Rheims, who denied that archbishops need have recourse to Rome in cases already provided for by canons and decrees. This pontiff pronounced against the authority of the decretal epistles preceding those ascribed to Sylvester, &c. He died in 855, having governed with great energy a little more than eight years. He was succeeded by Benedict III., unless the story of Pope Joan, which comes at this period, has some foundation in truth.—B. H. C.
LEO V., a benedictine and a cardinal, was a native of Priapi, near Ardea. He was elected pope in October, 903, as it would appear in an irregular manner. Immediately afterwards an insurrection arose, headed by a priest named Christopher, which resulted in the deposition of Leo, who was cast into prison, and died at the end of forty days' confinement. Christopher usurped the vacant see, but he was almost immediately driven out by a revolt of the Romans, and the notorious Sergius III. put in his place.—B. H. C.
LEO VI., a Roman, was appointed the successor of John X. or XI. in 928, and died seven months after. Nothing is known of him, save that he is said to have been a friend of peace, and a man of probity in base and troublous times. Some say he was poisoned by Marozia, who had poisoned his real predecessor John.—B. H. C.
LEO VII., sometimes called Leo VI., was a Roman, and took possession of the papal see in 936, as the successor of John the son of Marozia. Very little is recorded of him, save that he was a charitable and zealous man who sought to reform the order of Benedictines, and took steps to bring about a reconciliation between Hugo, king of Lombardy, and Alberic, duke of Rome. Leo, who occupied the pontificate only three years and a half, died in 939, and was succeeded by Stephen VIII. Three of his letters are extant, one to Hugo, one to the archbishop of Lorch, and one to the bishops of France and Germany.—B. H. C.
LEO VIII., a Roman, was appointed to succeed John XII. or XIII. in 963, by a council assembled at Rome before Otho I., the emperor. The council had previously deposed John, who had been convicted of many heinous crimes. As soon as Otho left the city Leo was expelled by the partisans of John, who was restored. The emperor vindicated the claims of Leo successfully, but a second revolt followed his departure, and a second time Leo was expelled and John brought back. Otho once more undertook to set up Leo, and prepared to visit Rome for that purpose; but in the meantime John was killed in the arms of an adulteress, and Benedict V. was appointed his successor. Otho refused to confirm the election of Benedict, saying he would rather lose his empire than let Leo be deposed; he therefore went to Rome, deposed Benedict, and restored Leo, who died, however, early in the following year, 965.—B. H. C.
LEO IX., an Italian, related to the imperial family, was born in 1002, and in 1026 was elected bishop of Toul, where, under his original name of Bruno, he distinguished himself as a reformer of ecclesiastical discipline. On the death of Damasus II., a diet was held at Worms to nominate a new pope, and Bruno was chosen. He took the name of Leo, and set out for Rome; but an interview with Hildebrand convinced him that his election by imperial influence was uncanonical, and he entered the city as a humble pilgrim, leaving himself in the hands of the Romans, who gladly re-elected him in 1049. Leo spent much time in going about and holding councils for the rectification of abuses. He condemned the doctrine of Berengarius, and the marriage of the clergy, &c. In a campaign against the Normans in Apulia, he was taken prisoner and kept at Beneventum, but after a time sent to Rome, where he died in 1054, some say of poison. Nineteen of his letters have been published.—B. H. C.
LEO X. (Giovanni de' Medici) was the second son of Lorenzo de' Medici, the Magnificent, and was born at Florence on the 11th of December, 1475. His education was superintended by Politian; and at his father's court he acquired a taste for literature, art, and profusion; nor did he fail to be influenced by the intellectual liberalism which pervaded it. From secular motives, however, his father destined him for the church. At seven he received the tonsure, and at thirteen he was made a cardinal by Innocent VIII., whose son had married his sister. Lorenzo died when he was seventeen; and on the invasion of Italy by Charles VIII. of France in 1497, the Medicis were expelled from Florence. For some years he led a changeful life—joining his brothers in their unsuccessful attempts to recover their lost supremacy in Florence; travelling in Germany, Flanders, and France; and at last settling in Rome as a cardinal, his natural home. There he cultivated literature and the arts until, in 1511, the friendly Julius II. made him legate of Bologna, and commander of the papal forces which, with Spanish and Swiss aid, were to attempt the expulsion of the French from Italy. The valour and skill of Gaston de Foix proved more than a match for the allies, who were defeated at the battle of Ravenna, 11th April, 1512, and the Cardinal de' Medici was among the prisoners taken by the French. In a few months more, however, the French were driven out of Italy, and the cardinal entered Florence as a conqueror. In the February of 1513 Julius II. died, and Cardinal de' Medici was elected pope, assuming the name of Leo. X. Another war broke out with Louis XII. of France, who invaded the Milanese, and against whom, supported by the Venetians, Leo formed a league, consisting of himself, the emperor elect, the king of Arragon, and Henry VIII. of England. Once more the French were driven from Italy, and Louis, humiliated, was reconciled to the pope. It was now that Leo, victorious and respected, began to mature designs for the aggrandizement of his family. He projected the establishment of his brother on the throne of Naples, while Tuscany was to be ruled by his nephew, Lorenzo. To secure these splendid prizes he would have even encouraged the re-occupation of the Milanese by France. The negotiations came to nothing; Louis XII. died, and was succeeded by Francis I. Maximilian, the king of Arragon, and the Swiss formed a league to repel the claims of Francis to the Milanese, and after some hesitation they were joined by Leo. After the victory of Marignano, 13th September, 1515, Francis recovered the Milanese. Once more Leo veered round, consented to a conference with Francis, which was held in December at Bologna, when and where the pope and the king of France framed their celebrated concordat. The following year Leo again changed his policy, when Maximilian, with unexpected vigour, forced his way to the walls of Milan. So long as the emperor-elect was victorious, Leo, forgetful of his alliance with France, was disposed to aid Maximilian, until the retreat of the imperialists led the pope to remember the nature of his engagements with Francis. In the suspension of hostilities which ensued, and which was followed by a general peace, Leo seized the duchy of Urbino and conferred it on his nephew, Lorenzo. During the eight months' contest which preceded the final and secure acquisition of Urbino, Leo discovered a conspiracy at Rome to poison himself, and in which several cardinals were implicated. One of them was strangled in prison, and Leo created in a single day no fewer than thirty-one cardinals. This measure secured him a majority of friends in the college of cardinals. The new cardinals brought wealth to Rome, which the example of the pope encouraged them to spend liberally. Leo abrogated the former monopolies which had oppressed the population of the states of the church, and all kinds of merchandise were freely imported and exported throughout his dominions. In all temporal respects Rome flourished, and under such a pontiff it seemed to be the centre of civilization. From the time of his accession to the pontificate he had been the munificent patron of art and letters, and had drawn their cultivators to Rome. He had founded colleges and libraries, brought Greek scholars and scholarship to Rome, and defrayed the expense of printing costly editions of classical and oriental works. Not forgetful of contemporary genius, he patronized Ariosto, Bembo, and Machiavel. He had rewarded
