The POPE Encyclopedia
ISNET Homepage | MEDIA Homepage | Program Kerja | Koleksi | Anggota
JOHN XII
Pope from 955 to 964. He was the illegitimate son of Alberic II (d. 954), princely ruler of Rome and the figure responsible for the election of four popes. John XII was born Octavian around 937. On his deathbed, Alberic compelled the Roman nobles to swear an oath that his son would succeed him as prince and would also be elected pontiff on the passing of Pope Agapitus II. This occurred on December 955 and the eighteen-year-old Octavian was duly elected pope as John XII. He was thus the second pope to change his name, the first being John II in 538. As pope, John displayed little interest in the spiritual well-being of the Church, succumbing to a series of scandals and debaucheries recounted by gossipers of the time. Most notorious were the tales that he used the Lateran as a brothel, called upon the pagan gods to help him win at dice, and once toasted the devil during a drinking binge. Despite these serious shortcomings, he displayed a certain talent for government and a desire to advance the cause of the papacy. To protect the Papal States from the danger posed by the Italian king Berengar 11 (r. 950-961) and his son Adalbert, John allied himself with the German king Otto I the Great, whom he crowned emperor in 962; he also accepted the Privilegium Ottonianum, which established imperial rights in papal elections. The two allies, however, soon had a falling out. Otto marched on Rome, and John fled. The emperor replaced him with an antipope, Leo VIII. In February 964 John returned to Rome and ousted Leo. He then launched reprisals against his enemies. Otto stormed back toward Rome, and John died suddenly of a stroke in May 964 while in Campagna working toward a negotiated settlement. His death was mysterious, coming in his twenties. He supposedly died while in the embraces of a married woman or was killed by her outraged husband. Successor: Leo VIII.
THE POPE ENCYCLOPEDIA - Matthew Bunson Published by Crown Trade Paperbacks 201 East 50th Street, New York New York 10022, USA ISBN 0-517-88256-6
ISNET Homepage | MEDIA Homepage | Program Kerja | Koleksi | Anggota