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Name:
Pope Eugene IV (Eugenius)
Born: Gabriele Condulmaro (Condulmer)
Preceded by: Martin V (1417 - 1431)
Succeeded by: Nicholas V (1447 - 1455)
Roman Catholic Pope #208
Antipope: Felix V (1439-1449)
Dates:
Born: c. 1383 (Venice, Italy)
Died: February 23, 1447
Pope: March 3, 1431 - February 23, 1447 (15 years, 11 months)
Biography:
An Augustinian monk and a nephew of Pope Gregory XII, Eugene IV was chosen by the cardinals
in large part because they were looking for someone who would treat them less as servants
of the papacy and more as partners when it came to adminstering the Church and making
decisions about theology and doctrine. Martin V had been too authoritarian for the tastes
of many, so they were looking for a change.
Unfortunately the didn't quite get what they were looking for - in part because Eugene believed in papal supremacy and in part because Eugene seems to have been naive about how his decisions would be treated. Although Eugene had published a bull immediately after his election which committed him to an agenda of reform and collaboration, he didn't pay much attention to it.
For example, he summarily dismissed the Council of Basel, an act which shocked everyone involved - but Eugene was himself surprised to find that most of those involved simply ignored his order and pressed ahead. According to them, general church councils were superior to the pope and, as such, could not be commanded in such a manner. The Council of Basel had been called for the purpose of reforms and the people attending were committed to finding and enacting those reforms, regardless of what Eugene thought. In 1435, the Council declared an end to papal taxes (annates) and sharp limitations on the power of the pope and the Curia, decisions which Eugene would condemn the following year.
In 1437 the Council was moved to Ferrara, Italy, where it was joined by a large delegation from Constantinople; in 1438 the entire group was moved again to Florence - apparently, Eugene had promised to pay for all of the costs of the 700+ eastern delgation and he was behind on his payments. John VIII Palaeologus, Byzantine emperor, agreed to an act of reunification between the Eastern and Western churches - not out of any desire to heal the religious rift bur rather because Constantinople was threatened by Turkish invasion and John needed help from the West.
This agreement, entitled Laetentur coeli, stipulated that the Eastern churches acknowledge the primacy of the pope, the existence of Purgatory, the use of unleavened bread in the Eucharist, and the use of filioque in the Nicene Creed. This agreement would not prove to be very substantive and it was eventually ignored by all concerned.
Meanwhile, a number of church delegates had remained in Basel and even went so far as to depose Eugene IV. In his place they elected Amadeus VIII, the duke of Savoy, as antipope. Amadeus took the name Felix V, but he was only accepted as legitimate in those few areas where he had previously held secular influence.
Also Known As: none
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
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