Papal States - Renaissance Period

  General Description   The 1378-1527 CE period of the Papal States is known for ’Renaissance popes’ who "concentrated their efforts on protecting their Italian domain and in lavishly reconstructing the city of Rome." ^[1] The Sistine Chapel, a popular symbol of the renaissance, was built between 1475-1481 CE commissioned by Sixtus IV. Goldthwaite has argued that the papacy’s return to Rome in 1378 inaugurated a phase of economic growth for the Rome and its hinterland, reflecting Rome’s dependence on the papacy, and not Lazio’s productivity, to stimulate the economy. ^[2] Before the sack of Rome in 1527 CE ^[3] the population had finally begun to grow again, from about 30,000 early in the 14th century to 55,000.
The Renaissance Popes attempted to systematize and unify the financial administration of the Papal State. This meant ending financial and judicial immunities, and rolling back the power of locally powerful bishops and abbots. ^[4] However, the vast bureaucracy the Pope oversaw was a fundamentally corrupt one, by the late 14th century founded on bribery, the sale of offices, and patronage politics. ^[5] During the fifteenth century, the sale of offices within the curia became routinized; and Peterson has estimated that under Pope Leo X (1513-1521), two thousand offices were for sale in the city of Rome alone. ^[6]
The papacy’s ability to control the regions of the Papal States fluctuated dramatically during this period, especially during the Great Schism (1378-1417 CE). During the Schism, numerous ecclesiastical territories in the Papal State were seized by or alienated to secular lords. ^[7] The 1380s and 1390s were characterized by a long and futile struggle between the Roman and Avignon popes for control of territory and finances in central and southern Italy, with the long-term result being the destabilization of central Italy and the intensified decentralization of power in the Papal State, especially in the Romagna and le Marche. ^[8]
In general, the various lords, cities, and feudatories of the papal states were ready and willing to rebel when possible, for example, in 1375 CE. ^[9] Furthermore, the lords of the petty Lords known as the Romagna were de facto independent for much of the late 14th and early 15th centuries. ^[10] During the mid-15th century, King Ferrante of Naples deliberately contracted with Roman barons for them to raise mercenary bands for his service, undercutting these barons’ feudal ties to the papacy. ^[11]
As distinct from the previous centuries, up until 1494 CE the Papal States was usually free from influence of German emperors or Spanish kings, ^[12] but the drastically changed situation between 1494-1527 CE, following the French king Charles VIII’s invasion of Italy. ^[13]

[1]: (Madigan 2015, 386) K Madigan. 2015. Medieval Christianity: A New History. Yale University Press. New Haven.

[2]: (Goldthwaite 2010, 172) Richard Goldthwaite. 2010. The Economy of Renaissance Florence. Baltimore: Johns Hopkins University.

[3]: (Bairoch et al 1988, 47) Paul Bairoch. Jean Batou. Pierre Chèvre. 1988. The Population of European Cities from 800 to 1850. Geneva: Droz.

[4]: Partner, 385-87; Braudel, 697

[5]: (Martin 2002, 34) John M Marino, ed. Early Modern Italy, 1550-1796. Oxford: Oxford UP.

[6]: (Peterson 2010, 74) John M Najemy, ed. 2010. Italy in the Age of the Renaissance: 1300-1500. Oxford: Oxford UP.

[7]: (Partner 1972, 385) Peter Partner. 1972. The lands of Saint Peter. The Papal State in the Middle Ages and Early Renaissance. Berkeley: University of California Press.

[8]: (Partner 1972, 371) Peter Partner. 1972. The lands of Saint Peter. The Papal State in the Middle Ages and Early Renaissance. Berkeley: University of California Press.

[9]: (Partner 1972, 366-367) Peter Partner. 1972. The lands of Saint Peter. The Papal State in the Middle Ages and Early Renaissance. Berkeley: University of California Press.

[10]: For these petty lordships, see Larner

[11]: (Mallett and Shaw 2012, 10) Michael Mallett and Christine Shaw. 2012 The Italian Wars, 1494-1559: War, state and society in early modern Europe. Harlow, England: Pearson.

[12]: (Najemy 2010) John M Najemy, ed. 2010. Italy in the Age of the Renaissance: 1300-1500. Oxford: Oxford UP.

[13]: (Ady 1975, 343-367) Denys Hay ed. 1975. The New Cambridge Modern History, I: The Renaissance, 1493-1520. Cambridge: Cambridge UP