The Rise of the Papacy 345 cessation of the pest! Then the archangel Michael was seen over the tomb of Hadrian (Fig. 137) sheathing his fiery sword as a sign that the wrath of the Lord had been turned away. With Gregory we leave behind us the Rome of Caesar and Trajan and enter upon that of the popes. Fig. 137. Hadrian's Tomb The Roman Emperor Hadrian (d. 138) built a great circular tomb at Rome, on the west bank of the Tiber, for himself and his successors. It was 240 feet across, perhaps 165 feet high, covered with marble and adorned with statues. When Rome was besieged by the Germans in 537, the inhabitants used the tomb for a fortress and threw down the statues on the heads of the barbarians. Since the time when Gregory the Great saw the archangel Michael sheathing his sword over Hadrian's tomb it has been called the Castle of the Holy Angel Gregory enjoyed an unrivaled reputation during the Middle Gregory' Ages as a writer. His works show, however, how much less ^^" '"^^ cultivated his period was than that of his predecessors. His most popular book was his Dialogues, a collection of accounts of miracles and popular legends. It is hard to believe that it
