1.
Mendicant order
–
By contrast, the mendicants avoided owning property, did not work at a trade, and embraced a poor, often itinerant lifestyle. They depended for their survival on the goodwill of the people to whom they preached, what is called the mendicant movement in Church history arose primarily in the 13th century in Western Europe. Until that time the monks of Europe worked at their trade in their monastery, renouncing personal property, they owned all things in common as a community after the example of chapters 2 and 4 of the Acts of the Apostles. With the rise of Western monasticism, monasteries attracted not only individuals aspiring to become monks and nuns, the idea that Christ came down to earth poor and that the true Church must be the church of the poor clashed with this image. The desire for true Christian authenticity was thus seen by some to contrast to the reality of the empirical Church, the twelfth century saw great changes in western Europe. As commerce revived, urban centers arose and with them an urban middle class, new directions in spirituality were called for. Ecclesiastical reform became a theme of the cultural revival of this era. In response to crisis, there emerged the new mendicant orders founded by Francis of Assisi. The mendicant friars were bound by a vow of poverty and dedication to a way of life, renouncing property. Their survival was dependent upon the good will and material support of their listeners and it was this way of life that gave them their name, mendicant, derived from the Latin mendicare, meaning to beg. The mendicant movement had started in France and Italy and became popular in the poorer towns and cities of Europe at the beginning of the thirteenth century. The refusal of the mendicants to own property and therefore to pay taxes was seen as threatening the stability of the established Church which was planning a crusade. Francis came to this manner of life through a period of personal conversion, the Franciscans spread far and wide the devotion to the humanity of Christ, with the commitment to imitate the Lord. The Franciscan movement summarized and surpassed all the others and this was not only in the obvious holiness of Francis of Assisi, but also in the personality of the followers whom Francis attracted. Many of them were priests and men of learning whose contributions were notable in the rapid evolution, notable Franciscans include Anthony of Padua, who were inspirations to the formation of Christian mendicant traditions. While on a visit to southern France, Saint Dominic met the Albigensians, before this time, religious life had been monastic, but with Dominic the secluded monastery gave way to priories in the cities. With deep insight the Franciscans and Dominicans put into practice a pastoral strategy suited to the social changes, the emergence of urban centers meant concentrated numbers of the homeless and the sick. This created problems for the churches who found themselves unable to address these issues
Mendicant order
–
Cluny Abbey
2.
Roman Catholic Marian movements and societies
–
These societies, form part of the fabric of Roman Catholic Mariology. This article reviews the major Marian movements and organizations, the Sodality of Our Lady was formed in 1563 in Rome by members of the Society of Jesus and has remained the official Marian society of the Holy See for centuries. In 1584, Pope Gregory XIII issued a Papal Bull commending this Sodality, granting it indulgences, over several centuries the organization listed many saints, several popes and various royal figures as members. Until the Second Vatican Council in 1965, the Sodality of Our Lady or the Children of Mary as it was known, was a part of the life of Catholic Communities worldwide. After the Second Vatican Council, many sodalities were transformed by the Jesuits, since then, the number of active sodalities has dwindled, as other Marian organizations have grown. They are a religious institute and pledge support to the Pope and their aim is to spread devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary as the Immaculate Conception, pray for the souls in purgatory and undertake a variety of apostolic work. Marians were the first Catholic men’s religious institute dedicated to the honor of Mary’s Immaculate Conception, the organization was formed in 1673 by Saint Stanislaus Papczyński. Pope Innocent XII granted his approval for the institute in 1699 with solemn vows under the French Rule of the Ten Virtues of the Blessed Virgin Mary, the experience had left him with a lifelong respect and admiration for the Marian Fathers. The new Constitutions for the institute were approved by Pope Pius X in 1910 and their role in spreading the Divine Mercy message was acknowledged by Pope John Paul II in a Papal Blessing in 2001, the 70th anniversary of the revelation of the Divine Mercy Message and Devotion. Marian Fathers are well known as Official promoters of the authentic Divine Mercy message since 1941, the Company of Mary, also called the Montfort Missionaries is the earliest Marian society based on the influence of Saint Louis de Montfort. The organization was formed in 1705 by Saint Louis himself with just one missionary disciple, during the intervals between his missions Montfort wrote the Rule of the Company of Mary. After he died in 1716, two priests and sometime collaborators, Father Adrien Vatel and Father Rene Mulot continued his mission. From 1718 till 1781 the Mulotins, although few in number, gave over 430 missions throughout western France, after the French Revolution Montforts community was reorganized by Father Gabriel Deshayes, elected superior general in 1821. He received from Pope Leo XII a brief of praise for the Company of Mary and for the Daughters of Wisdom, the company has since grown to an international congregation of missionary priests and brothers serving in nearly 30 countries and numbering near 1,000 men. The Marianists, also called the Society of Mary was founded in 1801 by Blessed William Joseph Chaminade, there are currently 500 priests and over 1,500 religious in the organization. The Society is one of the four branches of the Marianist Family, Marianists can be classified as priests, teaching brothers, or working brothers, but, regardless of classification, most members of the institute work in schools or programs for young people. In all of their institutions, the Characteristics of Marianist Education guide the curriculum. The society has many affiliated organizations, such as, the Daughters of Mary Immaculate, the society has branches on every continent
Roman Catholic Marian movements and societies
–
Madonna,
Filippo Lippi, 1459
Roman Catholic Marian movements and societies
–
Saint Peter Chanel, martyr
Roman Catholic Marian movements and societies
–
St. Marcellin Champagnat, Founder of the Marist Brothers
Roman Catholic Marian movements and societies
–
Madonna,
Luigi Crosio, 1898
3.
Santissima Annunziata, Florence
–
The Basilica della Santissima Annunziata is a Renaissance-style, Roman Catholic minor basilica in Florence, region of Tuscany, Italy. This is considered the church of the Servite Order. It is located at the side of the Piazza Santissima Annunziata near the city center. The church was founded in 1250 by the seven members of the Servite Order. This painting was placed in the church and became so venerated that in 1444 the Gonzaga family from Mantua financed a special tribune, albertis designs were constricted by the pre-existing foundations. Construction was completed in 1481, after Alberti’s death, though the structure was refurbished in Baroque-style in the seventeenth century, the basic scheme of a domed circular space flanked by altar niches is still evident. The building across from the Foundling Hospital, designed by Sangallo the Elder, was given a Brunelleschian facade in the 1520s. Pilgrims who came to the church to venerate the miraculous painting often left wax votive offerings, in 1516, a special atrium was built to house these figures, the Chiostrino dei Voti. By the late 18th century there were six hundred of these images. In 1786, however, they were all melted down to make candles, pope Alexander VI, in appreciation for the survival of Rome after French occupation, paid homage and gifted a silver effigy to the church. The Florentine brides traditionally visit the shrine to leave their bouquets and this church is entered from the Chiostrino dei Voti. The Baroque decoration of the interior was begun in 1644. The 1st chapel to right contains a Madonna in Glory by Jacopo da Empoli, the 5th chapel on the right contains a Monument to Orlando de Medici by Bernardo Rossellino. The right transept has a side chapel has a Pietà by Baccio Bandinelli. The chapel-surrounded tribune or choir, known as the Rotonda, was designed in turn by Michelozzo, the next chapel has a Resurrection by Bronzino with a statue of St Roch attributed to Veit Stoss. The next chapel has a Madonna with Saints by a follower of Perugino and this chapel was elaborately decorated in a baroque fashion by Gianbattista Foggini in 1692. The first chapel just to the left of the entrance has a tabernacle of the Annunciation by Michelozzo, the organ is the oldest in Florence and the second oldest in Italy. The church contains the tomb of the Italian writer Maria Valtorta, the Chiostrino dei Voti was designed by Michelozzo
Santissima Annunziata, Florence
–
Santa Annunziata.
Santissima Annunziata, Florence
–
Pietà by Baccio Bandinelli
4.
Italy
–
Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a unitary parliamentary republic in Europe. Located in the heart of the Mediterranean Sea, Italy shares open land borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia, San Marino, Italy covers an area of 301,338 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal and Mediterranean climate. Due to its shape, it is referred to in Italy as lo Stivale. With 61 million inhabitants, it is the fourth most populous EU member state, the Italic tribe known as the Latins formed the Roman Kingdom, which eventually became a republic that conquered and assimilated other nearby civilisations. The legacy of the Roman Empire is widespread and can be observed in the distribution of civilian law, republican governments, Christianity. The Renaissance began in Italy and spread to the rest of Europe, bringing a renewed interest in humanism, science, exploration, Italian culture flourished at this time, producing famous scholars, artists and polymaths such as Leonardo da Vinci, Galileo, Michelangelo and Machiavelli. The weakened sovereigns soon fell victim to conquest by European powers such as France, Spain and Austria. Despite being one of the victors in World War I, Italy entered a period of economic crisis and social turmoil. The subsequent participation in World War II on the Axis side ended in defeat, economic destruction. Today, Italy has the third largest economy in the Eurozone and it has a very high level of human development and is ranked sixth in the world for life expectancy. The country plays a prominent role in regional and global economic, military, cultural and diplomatic affairs, as a reflection of its cultural wealth, Italy is home to 51 World Heritage Sites, the most in the world, and is the fifth most visited country. The assumptions on the etymology of the name Italia are very numerous, according to one of the more common explanations, the term Italia, from Latin, Italia, was borrowed through Greek from the Oscan Víteliú, meaning land of young cattle. The bull was a symbol of the southern Italic tribes and was often depicted goring the Roman wolf as a defiant symbol of free Italy during the Social War. Greek historian Dionysius of Halicarnassus states this account together with the legend that Italy was named after Italus, mentioned also by Aristotle and Thucydides. The name Italia originally applied only to a part of what is now Southern Italy – according to Antiochus of Syracuse, but by his time Oenotria and Italy had become synonymous, and the name also applied to most of Lucania as well. The Greeks gradually came to apply the name Italia to a larger region, excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence dating back to the Palaeolithic period, some 200,000 years ago, modern Humans arrived about 40,000 years ago. Other ancient Italian peoples of undetermined language families but of possible origins include the Rhaetian people and Cammuni. Also the Phoenicians established colonies on the coasts of Sardinia and Sicily, the Roman legacy has deeply influenced the Western civilisation, shaping most of the modern world
Italy
–
The
Colosseum in Rome, built c. 70 – 80 AD, is considered one of the greatest works of
architecture and
engineering of ancient history.
Italy
–
Flag
Italy
–
The
Iron Crown of Lombardy, for centuries symbol of the
Kings of Italy.
Italy
–
Castel del Monte, built by German Emperor
Frederick II,
UNESCO World Heritage site
5.
Mary (mother of Jesus)
–
Mary, also known by various titles, styles and honorifics, was a 1st-century Galilean Jewish woman of Nazareth and the mother of Jesus, according to the New Testament and the Quran. The gospels of Matthew and Luke in the New Testament and the Quran describe Mary as a virgin, the miraculous birth took place when she was already betrothed to Joseph and was awaiting the concluding rite of marriage, the formal home-taking ceremony. She married Joseph and accompanied him to Bethlehem, where Jesus was born, the Gospel of Luke begins its account of Marys life with the Annunciation, when the angel Gabriel appeared to her and announced her divine selection to be the mother of Jesus. According to canonical gospel accounts, Mary was present at the crucifixion and is depicted as a member of the early Christian community in Jerusalem. According to the Catholic and Orthodox teaching, at the end of her life her body was assumed directly into Heaven. Mary has been venerated since Early Christianity, and is considered by millions to be the most meritorious saint of the religion and she is claimed to have miraculously appeared to believers many times over the centuries. The Eastern and Oriental Orthodox, Roman Catholic, Anglican, and Lutheran churches believe that Mary, there is significant diversity in the Marian beliefs and devotional practices of major Christian traditions. The Roman Catholic Church holds distinctive Marian dogmas, namely her status as the Mother of God, her Immaculate Conception, her perpetual virginity, many Protestants minimize Marys role within Christianity, based on the argued brevity of biblical references. Mary also has a position in Islam, where one of the longer chapters of the Quran is devoted to her. Marys name in the manuscripts of the New Testament was based on her original Aramaic name ܡܪܝܡ. The English name Mary comes from the Greek Μαρία, which is a form of Μαριάμ. Both Μαρία and Μαριάμ appear in the New Testament, in Christianity, Mary is commonly referred to as the Virgin Mary, in accordance with the belief that she conceived Jesus miraculously through the Holy Spirit without her husbands involvement. The three main titles for Mary used by the Orthodox are Theotokos, Aeiparthenos as confirmed in the Second Council of Constantinople in 553, Catholics use a wide variety of titles for Mary, and these titles have in turn given rise to many artistic depictions. For example, the title Our Lady of Sorrows has inspired such masterpieces as Michelangelos Pietà, the title Theotokos was recognized at the Council of Ephesus in 431. However, this phrase in Greek, in the abbreviated form ΜΡ ΘΥ, is an indication commonly attached to her image in Byzantine icons. The Council stated that the Church Fathers did not hesitate to speak of the holy Virgin as the Mother of God, some Marian titles have a direct scriptural basis. For instance, the title Queen Mother has been given to Mary since she was the mother of Jesus, the scriptural basis for the term Queen can be seen in Luke 1,32 and the Isaiah 9,6. Queen Mother can be found in 1 Kings 2, 19-20 and Jeremiah 13, other titles have arisen from reported miracles, special appeals or occasions for calling on Mary
Mary (mother of Jesus)
–
Our Lady of Vladimir, one of the medieval representations of the
Theotokos
Mary (mother of Jesus)
–
Virgin and Child with angels and Sts. George and Theodore. Icon from around 600, from
Saint Catherine's Monastery.
Mary (mother of Jesus)
–
The
Annunciation by
Eustache Le Sueur, an example of 17th-century
Marian art. The
Angel Gabriel announces to Mary her pregnancy with Jesus and offers her
White Lilies.
Mary (mother of Jesus)
–
The Virgin's first seven steps, mosaic from
Chora Church, c. 12th century
6.
Our Lady of Sorrows
–
As Mater Dolorosa, it is also a key subject for Marian art in the Catholic Church. The Seven Sorrows of Mary are a popular Roman Catholic devotion, in common religious Catholic imagery, the Blessed Virgin Mary is portrayed in a sorrowful and lacrimating affect, with seven daggers piercing her heart, often bleeding. Devotional prayers that consist of meditation began to elaborate on her Seven Sorrows based on the prophecy of Simeon. Common examples of piety under this title are Servite rosary, or the Chaplet of the Seven Sorrows of Our Lady, the feast of Our Lady of Sorrows is liturgically celebrated every 15 of September, while a feast of Friday of Sorrows is observed in some Catholic countries. The Seven Sorrows are events in the life of the Blessed Virgin Mary that are a popular devotion and are depicted in art. These Seven Sorrows should not be confused with the five Sorrowful Mysteries of the Rosary, the escape and Flight into Egypt. The Loss of the Child Jesus in the Temple of Jerusalem, the Meeting of Mary and Jesus on the Via Dolorosa. The Crucifixion of Jesus on Mount Calvary, the Piercing of the Side of Jesus, and His Descent from the Cross. The Burial of Jesus by Joseph of Arimathea and it is a common practice for Catholics to say daily one Our Father and seven Hail Marys for each. Earlier, in 1233, seven youths in Tuscany founded the Servite Order, five years later, they took up the sorrows of Mary, standing under the Cross, as the principal devotion of their order. Over the centuries several devotions, and even orders, arose around meditation on Marys Sorrows in particular, the Servites developed the two most common devotions to Our Ladys Sorrows, namely the Rosary of the Seven Sorrows and the Black Scapular of the Seven Dolours of Mary. The Black Scapular is a symbol of the Confraternity of Our Lady of Sorrows, most devotional scapulars have requirements regarding ornamentation or design. The devotion of the Black Scapular requires only that it be made of woollen cloth. It depicts the Virgin Mary at the moment that Simeon the Righteous says, Yea and she stands with her hands upraised in prayer, and seven swords pierce her heart, indicative of the seven sorrows. This is one of the few Orthodox icons of the Theotokos which do not depict the infant Jesus, the refrain Rejoice, much-sorrowing Mother of God, turn our sorrows into joy and soften the hearts of evil men. The Feast of Our Lady of Sorrows grew in popularity in the 12th century, some writings would place its roots in the eleventh century, especially among the Benedictine monks. The first altar to the Mater Dolorosa was set up in 1221 at the Cistercian monastery of Schönau, the formal feast of the Our Lady of Sorrows was originated by a provincial synod of Cologne in 1423. It was designated for the Friday after the third Sunday after Easter and had the title and its object was the sorrow of Mary during the Crucifixion and Death of Christ
Our Lady of Sorrows
–
A statue of the Blessed Virgin Mary being pierced by seven daggers representing her sorrows, as once prophesied by Simeon.
Our Lady of Sorrows
–
Mary, surrounded by the Seven Sorrows
Our Lady of Sorrows
–
Archetypal
Gothic Lady of Sorrows from a
triptych by the
Master of the Stauffenberg Altarpiece,
Alsace c. 1455
Our Lady of Sorrows
–
Our Lady who softens evil hearts, Russian icon, 19th century
7.
Amadeus of the Amidei
–
Saint Amadeus of the Amidei, also known as Bartholomeus Amadeus degli Amidei, was an important religious figure in 13th century Florence. He was born from the Amidei family, when he was still young he attended a religious congregation, where he met six friends with whom he founded the Servite Order in 1233. Born into a wealthy Florentine family, Bartolomeus joined the Confraternity of the Blessed Virgin, with the approval of the bishop he and six friends withdrew from the world and betook themselves to a house called La Carmarzia, outside the gates of Florence. At first they were known as Laudesi, “Praisers”, sometime between the years 1240 and 1247 they were approved by the bishop of Florence as a religious Order under the rule of St Augustine. They came to be known as the “Friar Servants or Servites of Mary” and made other foundations at Carfaggio outside Florence, Siena, Pistoia, Arezzo, Amadeus governed the important convent of Carfaggio, but returned to Monte Senario to die. Amadeus lived at Mount Senario until his death on 12 February 1266, when he died, the other father founders saw a flame which went up to the sky looking like a small light between all the other stars which reminded them of his love for God. In Italian, in fact, it is said he was predestined to such a life since his name in Italian is Amadio, as one of the seven founders of the Servite Order he was canonized in 1888, and shares their common feast day on 17 February. The date first assigned to this feast day was 11 February, in 1907 this date was assigned to the celebration of Our Lady of Lourdes and the feast day of the Seven Holy Founders was moved to 12 February. In accordance with tradition, the date was changed in 1969 to the anniversary of the death of one of them, Alexis Falconieri. There is a Catholic church named in his honor in Alburgh, Vermont
Amadeus of the Amidei
–
Fresco of Saint Amadeus of the Amidei
8.
Dominican Order
–
Members of the order, who are referred to as Dominicans, generally carry the letters O. P. after their names, standing for Ordinis Praedicatorum, meaning of the Order of Preachers. Membership in the order includes friars, nuns, active sisters, the order is famed for its intellectual tradition, having produced many leading theologians and philosophers. The Dominican Order is headed by the Master of the Order, in the year 2000, there were 5,171 Dominican friars in solemn vows,917 student brothers, and 237 novices. By the year 2013 there were 6,058 Dominican friars, a number of other names have been used to refer to both the order and its members. In England and other countries the Dominican friars are referred to as Black Friars because of the black cappa or cloak they wear over their white habits, Dominicans were Blackfriars, as opposed to Whitefriars or Greyfriars. They are also distinct from the Augustinian Friars who wear a similar habit and their identification as Dominicans gave rise to the pun that they were the Domini canes, or Hounds of the Lord. The Dominican Order came into being in the Middle Ages at a time when religion began to be contemplated in a new way, men of God were no longer expected to stay behind the walls of a cloister. Instead, they travelled among the people, taking as their examples the apostles of the primitive Church. Out of this emerged two orders of mendicant friars, one, the Friars Minor, was led by Francis of Assisi, the other. Dominics new order was to be an order, trained to preach in the vernacular languages. Rather than earning their living on vast farms as the monasteries had done, at the same time, Dominic inspired the members of his order to develop a mixed spirituality. They were both active in preaching, and contemplative in study, prayer and meditation, the brethren of the Dominican Order were urban and learned, as well as contemplative and mystical in their spirituality. While these traits affected the women of the order, the nuns especially absorbed the latter characteristics, in England, the Dominican nuns blended these elements with the defining characteristics of English Dominican spirituality and created a spirituality and collective personality that set them apart. The orders origins in battling heterodoxy influenced its development and reputation. Many later Dominicans battled heresy as part of their apostolate, indeed, many years after St. Dominic reacted to the Cathars, the first Grand Inquistor of Spain, Tomás de Torquemada, would be drawn from the Dominican Order. As an adolescent, he had a love of theology. During his studies in Palencia, Spain, he experienced a famine, prompting Dominic to sell all of his beloved books. At the age of twenty-four or twenty-five, he was ordained to the priesthood, at that time the south of France was the stronghold of the Cathar or Albigensian heresy, named after the Duke of Albi, a Cathar sympathiser and opponent to the subsequent Albigensian Crusade
Dominican Order
Dominican Order
–
Order of Preachers
Dominican Order
–
Saint Dominic on the front cover of
Doctrina Christiana catechism with an eight-pointed star (a symbol of the
Blessed Virgin Mary) over his head. Woodcut cover, circa 1590.
Dominican Order
–
Saint Dominic (1170–1221), portrait by
El Greco, about 1600.
9.
Franciscan
–
The Franciscans are a group of related mendicant religious orders within the Catholic Church, founded in 1209 by Francis of Assisi. These orders include the Order of Friars Minor, the Order of Saint Clare, Francis began preaching around 1207 and traveled to Rome to seek approval from the Pope in 1209. The original Rule of Saint Francis approved by the Pope disallowed ownership of property, the austerity was meant to emulate the life and ministry of Jesus Christ. Franciscans traveled and preached in the streets, while boarding in church properties, Saint Clare, under Franciss guidance, founded the Poor Clares in 1212, which remains a Second Order of the Franciscans. The extreme poverty required of members was relaxed in final revision of the Rule in 1223, the degree of observance required of members remained a major source of conflict within the order, resulting in numerous secessions. The Order of Friars Minor, previously known as the Observant branch, is one of the three Franciscan First Orders within the Catholic Church, the others being the Capuchins and Conventuals. The Order of Friars Minor, in its current form, is the result of an amalgamation of smaller orders completed in 1897 by Pope Leo XIII. The latter two, the Capuchin and Conventual, remain distinct religious institutes within the Catholic Church, observing the Rule of Saint Francis with different emphases, Franciscans are sometimes referred to as minorites or greyfriars because of their habit. In Poland and Lithuania they are known as Bernardines, after Bernardino of Siena, the name of original order, Friars Minor, means lesser brothers, and stems from Francis of Assisis rejection of extravagance. Francis was the son of a cloth merchant, but gave up his wealth to pursue his faith more fully. Francis adopted of the tunic worn by peasants as the religious habit for his order. Those who joined him became the original Order of Friars Minor and they all live according to a body of regulations known as the Rule of St Francis. First Order The First Order or the Order of Friars Minor are commonly called simply the Franciscans and this Order is a mendicant religious order of men, some of whom trace their origin to Francis of Assisi. Their official Latin name is the Ordo Fratrum Minorum, St. Francis thus referred to his followers as Fraticelli, meaning Little Brothers. Franciscan brothers are informally called friars or the Minorites and they all live according to a body of regulations known as the Rule of St Francis. These are The Order of Friars Minor, known as the Observants, most commonly simply called Franciscan friars, official name, the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin or simply Capuchins, official name, Friars Minor Capuchin. The Conventual Franciscans or Minorites, official name, Friars Minor Conventual, Second Order The Second Order, most commonly called Poor Clares in English-speaking countries, consists of religious sisters. The order is called the Order of St. Clare, but in the century, prior to 1263, this order was referred to as The Poor Ladies, The Poor Enclosed Nuns
Franciscan
–
Francis of Assisi, founder of the Order of Friars Minor; oldest known portrait in existence of the saint, dating back to St. Francis' retreat to
Subiaco (1223–1224)
Franciscan
–
Regula bullata, the Rule confirmed by
Honorius III
Franciscan
–
"The Confirmation of the Franciscan Rule" by
Domenico Ghirlandaio (1449-1494), Capella Sassetti,
Florence.
Franciscan
–
Anthony of Padua (c1195-1231) with the
Infant Christ, painting by
Antonio de Pereda (c1611-1678)
10.
Bishop of Florence
–
The Archdiocese of Florence is a metropolitan see of the Catholic Church in Italy. Traditionally founded in the 1st century, it was elevated to the dignity of an archdiocese on May 10,1419 and its mother church is the Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore, which has as its pastor the Archbishop of Florence. Since September 2008 Giuseppe Betori is the new Archbishop, the former Archbishop, alamanno Adimari Francesco Zabarella Amerigo Corsini Giovanni Vitelleschi Ludovico Trevisan, called Scarampo Bartolomeo Zabarella Antoninus of Florence, O. P. Orlando Bonarli Giovanni Neroni Diotisalvi Pietro Riario, O. F. M, alfonso Mistrangelo Elia Dalla Costa Ermenegildo Florit Giovanni Benelli Silvano Piovanelli Ennio Antonelli Giuseppe Betori GCatholic. org Catholic Hierarchy Davies, Gerald Stanley. Renascence, The Sculptured Tombs of the Fifteenth Century in Rome, with Chapters on the Previous Centuries from 1100
Bishop of Florence
–
Facade of Basilica di Santa Maria del Fiore
11.
Pope Alexander IV
–
Pope Alexander IV was Pope from 12 December 1254 to his death in 1261. Born as Rinaldo di Jenne in Jenne, he was, on his mothers side, a member of the family de Conti di Segni, the counts of Segni, like Pope Innocent III and Pope Gregory IX. His uncle Gregory IX made him deacon and Protector of the Order of Franciscans in 1227, Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church from 1227 until 1231. He became Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals in 1244, on the death of Pope Innocent IV in 1254 he was elected pope at Naples on 12 December 1254. Alexander IV threatened excommunication and interdict against the party of Manfred without effect, nor could he enlist the kings of England and Norway in a crusade against the Hohenstaufens. Rome itself became too Ghibelline for the Pope, who withdrew to Viterbo and he was buried in Viterbo Cathedral, but his tomb was destroyed during sixteenth-century renovations. On 26 September 1255, Alexander IV canonized S. Clare of Assisi and he also confirmed, on 29 October 1255, in the Bull Benigna Operatio, the reality of the stigmata attributed to S. Francis of Assisi. On 14 May 1254, shortly before his death, Innocent IV had granted Sicily, nicolaus de Curbio, OFM, Vita Innocentii Papae IV, Ludovico Antonio Muratori, Rerum Italicarum Scriptores Tomus Tertius pp. 592–592e. Bernardus Guidonis, Vita Alexandri Papae IV, Ludovico Antonio Muratori, alexis François Artaud de Montor, Histoire des souverains Pontifes Romains Tome III, pp. 1–11. Augustinus Theiner, Caesaris S. R. E. Cardinalis Baronii, laderchii Annales Ecclesiastici Tomus Vigesimus Primus 1229-1256. August Karst, Geschichte Manfreds vom Tode Friedrichs II, bourel de la Roncière Les Registres d Alexandre IV Tome premier. F. Gregorovius, History of Rome in the Middle Ages, Volume V.2 second edition, revised Book X, Chapter 1, pp. 335–358. F. Tenckhoff, Papst Alexander IV. S. Andreotta, La famiglia di Alessandro IV e labbazia di Subiaco, rodríguez de Lama, La documentación pontificia de Alejandro IV. Raoul Manselli, Alessandro IV, Dizionario dei Papi. The Crusades, c.1071 – c, herbermann, Charles, ed. Pope Alexander IV. Attribution This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh
Pope Alexander IV
–
Pope Alexander IV
12.
Philip Benizi de Damiani
–
Philip Benizi de Damiani was a general superior of the Order of the Servites, and credited with reviving the order. Pope Leo X had beatified him in 1516, and Pope Clement X canonized him as a saint in 1671, Philip Benizi was born on August 15 in the Florentine district of Oltrarno, the day the Blessed Virgin first appreared to the Seven Founders. He became the great propagator of the Order of the Servants of Mary, when he was elected the general superior on June 5,1267, the order, which had long been the object of attack from enemies, entered into the crisis of its existence. In 1276 Pope Innocent V, in a letter addressed to Philip, Philip then proceeded to Rome, but before his arrival there, Innocent V had died. The city of Forlì was part of the Papal States and, in 1283, Pope Martin V asked Philip to go to Forlì and try to reconcile the divided city. Eighteen-year-old Peregrine Laziosi, the son of a Ghibelline leader, was among those abusive towards Philip, however Philips meeting with the initially antagonistic Peregrine help the young man later decide to join the Servite order. Saint Peregrine was canonized by Pope Benedict XIII in 1726, Philip died on August 22,1285, during the Octave of the Assumption at Todi, where he is buried. In the cloister of Santa Maria of the Servites in Vicenza, the Church of the Servites of Mary in Todi, Umbria, contains the body of St Philip Benizi, whose statue is the work of Bernini. St Philips feast day is celebrated on August 23 and he and Santa Maria Addolorata are the titular co-patrons of the minor basilica of Monte Senario, Province of Florence, in the Diocese of Florence. In Jonesboro, GA, United States, a Catholic church named after St Philip Benizi was erected by the Archdiocese of Atlanta, St Philip Benizi Roman Catholic Church, Chicago, Illinois. St Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Fullerton, California, St Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Oregon City, Oregon. St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Viburnum, Missouri, St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Moncks Corner, South Carolina. St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Poteet, Texas, St. Philips Priory, Chelmsford, England - a priory of the Premonstratensian Order. Our Lady of Sorrows and St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Fordingbridge, Hampshire, St. Philip Benizi Mission, Black Canyon City, Arizona. There is a statue of him on the Charles Bridge in Prague, designed in 1714, this statue was made from Salzburg marble and donated by the Servites convent in Prague. The statue portrays him holding a cross, a book and a spray, by his legs there is the crown of the pope. A clay model of this statue can be found in the Salzburg museum, Lives of the Saints, For Every Day of the Year, edited by Rev. Hugo Hoever, S. O. New York, Catholic Book Publishing Co,1952,511 pp Lives of the Saints, Saint Philip Benizi Catholic Encyclopedia, Servants of Mary - Order of Servites Colonnade Statue in St Peters Square
Philip Benizi de Damiani
–
Saint Philip Benizi
Philip Benizi de Damiani
–
Statue of Philip Benizi on the
Charles Bridge, Prague
Philip Benizi de Damiani
–
St. Philip Benizi refuses the papal tiara. Church of San Marcello al Corso.
Philip Benizi de Damiani
13.
St. Philip Benizi
–
Philip Benizi de Damiani was a general superior of the Order of the Servites, and credited with reviving the order. Pope Leo X had beatified him in 1516, and Pope Clement X canonized him as a saint in 1671, Philip Benizi was born on August 15 in the Florentine district of Oltrarno, the day the Blessed Virgin first appreared to the Seven Founders. He became the great propagator of the Order of the Servants of Mary, when he was elected the general superior on June 5,1267, the order, which had long been the object of attack from enemies, entered into the crisis of its existence. In 1276 Pope Innocent V, in a letter addressed to Philip, Philip then proceeded to Rome, but before his arrival there, Innocent V had died. The city of Forlì was part of the Papal States and, in 1283, Pope Martin V asked Philip to go to Forlì and try to reconcile the divided city. Eighteen-year-old Peregrine Laziosi, the son of a Ghibelline leader, was among those abusive towards Philip, however Philips meeting with the initially antagonistic Peregrine help the young man later decide to join the Servite order. Saint Peregrine was canonized by Pope Benedict XIII in 1726, Philip died on August 22,1285, during the Octave of the Assumption at Todi, where he is buried. In the cloister of Santa Maria of the Servites in Vicenza, the Church of the Servites of Mary in Todi, Umbria, contains the body of St Philip Benizi, whose statue is the work of Bernini. St Philips feast day is celebrated on August 23 and he and Santa Maria Addolorata are the titular co-patrons of the minor basilica of Monte Senario, Province of Florence, in the Diocese of Florence. In Jonesboro, GA, United States, a Catholic church named after St Philip Benizi was erected by the Archdiocese of Atlanta, St Philip Benizi Roman Catholic Church, Chicago, Illinois. St Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Fullerton, California, St Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Oregon City, Oregon. St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Viburnum, Missouri, St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Moncks Corner, South Carolina. St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Poteet, Texas, St. Philips Priory, Chelmsford, England - a priory of the Premonstratensian Order. Our Lady of Sorrows and St. Philip Benizi Catholic Church, Fordingbridge, Hampshire, St. Philip Benizi Mission, Black Canyon City, Arizona. There is a statue of him on the Charles Bridge in Prague, designed in 1714, this statue was made from Salzburg marble and donated by the Servites convent in Prague. The statue portrays him holding a cross, a book and a spray, by his legs there is the crown of the pope. A clay model of this statue can be found in the Salzburg museum, Lives of the Saints, For Every Day of the Year, edited by Rev. Hugo Hoever, S. O. New York, Catholic Book Publishing Co,1952,511 pp Lives of the Saints, Saint Philip Benizi Catholic Encyclopedia, Servants of Mary - Order of Servites Colonnade Statue in St Peters Square
St. Philip Benizi
–
Saint Philip Benizi
St. Philip Benizi
–
Statue of Philip Benizi on the
Charles Bridge, Prague
St. Philip Benizi
–
St. Philip Benizi refuses the papal tiara. Church of San Marcello al Corso.
St. Philip Benizi
14.
Second Council of Lyons
–
The First Council of Lyon, the Thirteenth Ecumenical Council, took place in 1245. The Second Council of Lyon was the ecumenical council of the Catholic Church, convoked on 31 March 1272 and convened in Lyon, France. Pope Gregory X presided over the council, called to act on a pledge by Byzantine emperor Michael VIII to reunite the Eastern church with the West. The council was attended by about 300 bishops,60 abbots and more than a thousand prelates or their procurators, among whom were the representatives of the universities. Due to the number of attendees, those who had come to Lyon without being specifically summoned were given leave to depart with the blessing of God. Thomas Aquinas had been summoned to the council, but died en route at Fossanova Abbey, bonaventure was present at the first four sessions, but died at Lyon on 15 July 1274. As at the First Council of Lyons Thomas Cantilupe was an English attender and this innovation marks a stepping-stone towards the acknowledgment of coherent ideas of nationhood, which were in the process of creating the European nation-states. The main topics discussed at the council were the conquest of the Holy Land and the union of the Eastern and Western Churches. The first session took place on 7 May 1274 and was followed by five additional sessions on 18 May 1274,4 or 7 June 1274,6 July 1274,16 July 1274, by the end of the council,31 constitutions were promulgated. The Greeks conceded on the issue of the Filioque, and union was proclaimed, the council also recognized Rudolf I as Holy Roman Emperor, ending the Interregnum. Eastern dignitaries arrived at Lyon on 24 June 1274 presenting a letter from the Emperor, on 29 June 1274, Gregory celebrated Mass in St Johns Church where both sides took part. The Greeks read the Nicene Creed, with the Western addition of the Filioque clause sung three times. The council was seemingly a success, but did not provide a solution to the schism, the Emperor was anxious to heal the schism. Patriarch Joseph of Constantinople abdicated, and was replaced by John Bekkos, michaels death in December 1282 put an end to the union of Lyons. His son and successor Andronicus II repudiated the union in the Council of Blachernae and he is to this day reviled by many in the Eastern Church as a traitor to Orthodoxy. The council drew up plans for a crusade to recover the Holy Land, the plans were approved but nothing concrete was done. James I of Aragon wished to organize the expedition at once, ambassadors of the Khan of the Tatars negotiated with the Pope, who asked them to leave Christians in peace during their war against Islam. The Mongol leader Abaqa Khan sent a delegation of 13-16 Mongols to the Council, among the embassy were David of Ashby, and the clerk Rychaldus
Second Council of Lyons
–
Cathedral of St John, Lyon, illuminated for a festival
15.
Religious orders
–
The order is composed of initiates and, in some traditions, ordained clergy. Religious orders exist in many of the worlds religions, in Buddhist societies, a religious order is one of the number of monastic orders of monks and nuns, many of which follow under a different school of teaching, such as Zen. A well-known Chinese Buddhist order is the ancient Shaolin order in Chan Buddhism, a Catholic religious institute is a society whose members pronounce vows that are accepted by a superior in the name of the Church and who live a life of brothers or sisters in common. Catholic religious orders and congregations are the two categories of Catholic religious institutes. Religious institutes are distinct from secular institutes, another kind of institute of consecrated life, in the Catholic Church, members of religious institutes, unless they are also deacons or priests in Holy Orders, are not clergy, but belong to the laity. Several religious orders evolved during the Crusades to incorporate a military mission thus became religious military orders, hence they cannot move – nor be moved by their abbot or abbess – to another abbey. An independent house may occasionally make a new foundation which remains a dependent house until it is granted independence by Rome, in the Eastern Orthodox Church, there is only one type of monasticism. The profession of monastics is known as tonsure and is considered by monks to be a Sacred Mystery, the Rite of Tonsure is printed in the Euchologion, the same book as the other Sacred Mysteries and services performed according to need. Religious orders in England were dissolved by King Henry VIII upon the separation of the English church from Roman primacy, with the Catholic Revival in the Church of England and worldwide Anglicanism in the middle of the nineteenth century, several orders appeared. In 1841, the first order for women was established, there are presently thirteen active religious orders for men, fifty-three for women, and eight mixed gender. The Methodist Church of Great Britain, and its ancestors, have established a number of orders of Deaconesses, the Methodist Diaconal Order currently admits both men and women to the Order. Since the functions of a deacon are primarily pastoral, the MDO may therefore be regarded as an order of Regular clerics, the Order of Saint Luke is a religious order in the United Methodist Church dedicated to sacramental and liturgical scholarship, education, and practice. While Martin Luther had concerns with the value of monastic life, there are Lutheran religious orders in the United States. This order has strong ties to Lutheran Benedictine orders in Sweden, in 2011, an Augustinian religious order, the Priestly Society of St. Augustine was established by the Anglo-Lutheran Catholic Church. Its headquarters is at Christ Lutheran Church ALCC, jens Bargmann, Ph. D. is the Grand Prior. Among their corporations, the Religious Order of Jehovahs Witnesses cares for matters specific to Jehovahs Witnesses special full-time servants, in a particular branch, traveling overseers, special pioneers, and branch staff are considered members of the Order of Special Full-time Servants and the Bethel Family. Globally, their order is the Worldwide Order of Special Full-Time Servants of Jehovah’s Witnesses, male and female members of such religious orders typically make a formal vow of poverty and are granted certain status and exemptions by many governments. Jehovahs Witnesses do not have a separate class, but consider an adherents qualified baptism to constitute his ordination as a minister
Religious orders
–
Francisco de Zurbarán 's painting of a
Mercedarian Friar, Fra Pedro Machado.
16.
Holy See
–
The Holy See, also referred to as the See of Rome, is the ecclesiastical jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, the episcopal see of the Pope, and an independent sovereign entity. It serves as the point of reference for the Catholic Church everywhere. Today, it is responsible for the governance of all Catholics, organised in their Particular Churches, Patriarchates, as an independent sovereign entity, holding the Vatican City enclave in Rome as sovereign territory, it maintains diplomatic relations with other states. Diplomatically, the Holy See acts and speaks for the whole church and it is also recognised by other subjects of international law as a sovereign entity, headed by the Pope, with which diplomatic relations can be maintained. The creation of the Vatican City state was meant to ensure the diplomatic, in Greek, the adjective holy or sacred is constantly applied to all such sees as a matter of course. The word see comes from the Latin word sedes, meaning seat, while Saint Peters basilica in Vatican City is perhaps the church most associated with the Papacy, the actual cathedral of the Holy See is the church of Saint John Lateran within the city of Rome. The Pope governs the Catholic Church through the Roman Curia, the Secretariat of State, under the Cardinal Secretary of State, directs and coordinates the Curia. The incumbent, Archbishop Pietro Parolin, is the Sees equivalent of a prime minister, Archbishop Paul Gallagher, Secretary of the Section for Relations with States of the Secretariat of State, acts as the Holy Sees minister of foreign affairs. Parolin was named in his role by Pope Francis On 31 August 2013, mamberti was named in his role by Pope Benedict XVI in September 2006. The Secretariat of State is the body of the Curia that is situated within Vatican City. The others are in buildings in different parts of Rome that have rights similar to those of embassies. The Roman Rota handles normal judicial appeals, the most numerous being those that concern alleged nullity of marriage and it also oversees the work of other ecclesiastical tribunals at all levels. The most important of these is the Administration of the Patrimony of the Apostolic See, the Prefecture of the Papal Household is responsible for the organization of the papal household, audiences, and ceremonies. The Holy See does not dissolve upon a Popes death or resignation and it instead operates under a different set of laws sede vacante. The government of the See, and therefore of the Catholic Church, canon law prohibits the College and the Camerlengo from introducing any innovations or novelties in the government of the Church during this period. In 2001, the Holy See had a revenue of 422.098 billion Italian lire, the Guardian newspaper described Mennini and his role in the following manner. Paolo Mennini, who is in effect the popes merchant banker, Mennini heads a special unit inside the Vatican called the extraordinary division of APSA – Amministrazione del Patrimonio della Sede Apostolica – which handles the patrimony of the Holy See. The Holy See has been recognized, both in practice and in the writing of modern legal scholars, as a subject of public international law, with rights
Holy See
–
The
papal throne (
cathedra), in the apse of
Archbasilica of St. John Lateran, symbolises the Holy See.
17.
Pope Innocent V
–
Pope Innocent V, born Pierre de Tarentaise, was Pope from 21 January to 22 June 1276. He was a member of the Order of Preachers and was a collaborator of Pope Gregory X during his pontificate. He was beatified in 1898 by Pope Leo XIII and he was born around 1225 near Moûtiers in the Tarentaise region of the County of Savoy. An alternative popular hypothesis, however, affirms that he was born in La Salle in the Aosta valley in Italy. Both places were part of the Kingdom of Arles in the Holy Roman Empire, but now the first is in southeastern France. Another hypothesis, favored by some French scholars, is that Peter originated in a Tarantaise in Burgundy, in early life, around 1240, he joined the Dominican Order, at their convent in Lyons. In the summer of 1255, he was transferred to the studium generale of the Convent of S. Jacques in Paris and this move was essential for someone who was likely to study at the University of Paris. He obtained the degree of Master of Theology, and quickly acquired fame as a preacher. Between 1259 and 1264 he held the Chair of the French, Peter participated together with Albert the Great, Thomas Aquinas, Bonushomo Britto, and Florentius. Each convent was expected to have an elected Lector to supervise the preparative studies, in the next year he was assigned the title of Preacher General. In 1264 a new Master General of the Order of Preachers was elected and it was taken as an opportunity to engage in some academic politics, since Humbertus de Romans, Peters patron, was dead. One hundred and eight of Peters statements in his Commentary on the Sentences of Peter Lombard were denounced as heretical, but, though Peter withdrew from his professorship, John of Vercelli appointed Thomas Aquinas to write a defense of the 108 propositions. Peters reputation was such that he was immediately elected Provincial of the French Province for a three-year term and he was granted his release from office at the General Chapter, which was held in Bologna in May,1267. At the conclusion of his term, and after Thomas of Aquinas rejoinder to his critics was circulated, in 1269 he was reelected to the office of Provincial of the French Province, and he held the post until he was named Archbishop of Lyons. On 6 June 1272, Pope Gregory X himself named Peter of Tarantaise to be Archbishop of Lyons and it is said, however, that Peter was never consecrated. He did, however, take the oath of fealty in early December,1272, Pope Gregory himself arrived in Lyons in mid-November,1273, intent upon bringing as many prelates as possible to his planned ecumenical council. He met immediately with King Philip III of France and their conversations were obviously harmonious, since Philip ceded to the Church the Comtat Venaissin, which he had inherited from his uncle Alphonse, Count of Toulouse. The Second Council of Lyons opened on 1 May 1274, the first session was held on Monday,7 May
Pope Innocent V
–
Pope Blessed Innocent V
18.
Pope John XXI
–
Pope John XXI, born Peter Juliani, was Pope from 8 September 1276 to his death in 1277. Apart from Damasus I, he has been the only Portuguese pope and he is usually identified with the logician and herbalist Peter of Spain, which would make him the only pope to have been a physician. Pope John XXI was actually the 20th pope named John, pedro Julião was probably born in Lisbon between 1210 and 1220. He started his studies at the school of Lisbon Cathedral and later joined the University of Paris. Wherever he studied, he concentrated on medicine, theology, logic, physics, metaphysics and he is traditionally and usually identified with the medical author Peter of Spain, an important figure in the development of logic and pharmacology. Peter of Spain taught at the University of Siena in the 1240s, at the court in Lisbon, he was the councilor and spokesman for King Afonso III in church matters. Later, he became prior of Guimarães and he was Archdeacon of Vermoim in the Archdiocese of Braga. He tried to become bishop of Lisbon but was defeated, instead, he became the Master of the school of Lisbon. Peter became the physician of Pope Gregory X early in his reign, in March 1273 he was elected Archbishop of Braga, but did not assume that post, instead, on 3 June 1273, Pope Gregory X created him Cardinal Bishop of Tusculum. After the death of Pope Adrian V on 18 August 1276 and he was crowned a week later on 20 September. Though much of John XXIs brief papacy was dominated by the powerful Cardinal Giovanni Gaetano Orsini, John attempted to launch a crusade for the Holy Land, pushed for a union with the Eastern church, and did what he could to maintain peace between the Christian nations. He also launched a mission to convert the Tatars, but he died before it could start, to secure the necessary quiet for his medical studies, he had an apartment added to the papal palace at Viterbo, to which he could retire when he wished to work undisturbed. On 14 May 1277, while the pope was alone in this apartment, it collapsed, John was buried under the ruins and he was buried in the Duomo di Viterbo, where his tomb can still be seen. After his death, it was rumored that John XXI had actually been a necromancer and it was also said that his death had been an act of God, stopping him from completing a heretical treatise. Guiraud, J. and L. Cadier, Les registres de Grégoire X et de Jean XXI, walter, Fritz, Die Politik der Kurie unter Gregor X. Stapper, Richard, Papst Johannes XXI. Gregorovius, Ferdinand, History of Rome in the Middle Ages, Volume V. part 2, second edition, H. D. Sedgwick, Italy in the Thirteenth Century Volume II. Pietro Hispano papa Giovanni XXI, Rivista di storia della medicina 15, morceau, Joseph, Un pape portugais, Jean XXI, dénommé Pierre dEspagne, Teoresi 24, 391-407. Maxwell-Stuart, P. G. Chronicle of the Popes, The Reign-by-Reign Record of the Papacy from St. Peter to the Present, Thames & Hudson,2002, p.119
Pope John XXI
–
Pope John XXI
19.
Pope Benedict XI
–
Pope Benedict XI, born Nicola Boccasini, was Pope from 22 October 1303 to his death on 7 July,1304. He was also a member of the Order of Preachers, among the events of his brief pontificate was his revocation of Pope Boniface VIIIs papal bull, Unam Sanctam, on papal supremacy. He was beatified with his cultus confirmed by Pope Clement XII in 1736 and he is a patron of Treviso. Niccolò Boccasini was born in Treviso to Boccasio, a notary, whose brother was a priest, and Berarda. The family lived outside the walls of Treviso, in a suburb called S. Bartolommeo, in 1246, a Dominican friar left a sum of money in his will to Bernarda and her children, recently orphaned. A condition was that if Niccolò were to enter the Dominican Order he would receive half of the entire legacy, from the age of six, it seems, Niccolò was destined for the monkish life. His first teacher was his uncle, the priest of S. Andrea and he entered the Order of Preachers in 1254, at the age of fourteen, taking the habit of a novice in his native Treviso. He was taken to Venice by his Prior and presented to the Provincial, for the next seven years or so, Niccolò pursued his basic education in Venice. Toward the end of period, he served as tutor to the young sons of Romeo Quirini of Venice. In 1262, Niccolò was transferred to Milan, to the new studium of S. Eustorgio and he spent the next six years at S. Eustorgio. By the end of his term at S. Eustorgio he must have become a member of the Order of Preachers. As a professed brother he served in the position as a Lecturer in the studium in Venice. He served as lector for fourteen years, from 1268 to 1282, in 1276 he is attested as being lector at the Dominican convent in his native Treviso, a post he was still holding in 1280. In February,1282, he is found at Genoa, again as lector and he was not a professor, since he had never taken a university degree. In 1286, at the meeting of the Provincial Chapter, which took place that year in Brescia, Niccolò was elected Provincial Prior of Lombardy. Instead of being attached to a single convent for years, he would instead become peripatetic, moving from one convent to another on visits of inspection, encouragement. In Lombardy at the time there were some fifty-one convents and he also had responsibility as an Inquisitor, a task for which popes considered Franciscans and Dominicans especially suited. He also had the responsibility of convening the Provincial Chapters, in 1287, the Chapter was at Venice, in 1288, it was at Rimini, in 1289 at the General Chapter, which was held at Trier, Fr
Pope Benedict XI
–
Blessed Pope Benedict XI
Pope Benedict XI
–
Cardinal Boccasini.
Pope Benedict XI
–
Tomb of Benedict XI.
20.
Papal bull
–
A Papal bull is a specific kind of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by a pope of the Roman Catholic Church. It is named after the seal that was traditionally appended to the end in order to authenticate it. Papal bulls have been in use at least since the 6th century, but the phrase was not used until around the end of the 13th century, and then only internally for unofficial administrative purposes. However, it had become official by the 15th century, when one of the offices of the Apostolic Chancery was named the register of bulls, by the accession of Pope Leo IX in 1048, a clear distinction developed between two classes of bulls of greater and less solemnity. The majority of the bulls now in existence are in the nature of confirmations of property or charters of protection accorded to monasteries. In an epoch when there was much fabrication of such documents, a Papal confirmation, under certain conditions, could be pleaded as itself constituting sufficient evidence of title in cases where the original deed had been lost or destroyed. Since the 12th century, Papal bulls have carried a seal with the heads of the Apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul on one side. Papal bulls were issued by the Pope for many kinds of communication of a public nature. Papyrus seems to have used almost uniformly as the material for these documents until the early years of the eleventh century. Popularly, the name is used for any Papal document that contains a metal seal, today, the bull is the only written communication in which the Pope will refer to himself as Episcopus Servus Servorum Dei. For example, when Pope Benedict XVI issued a decree in bull form, while Papal bulls always used to bear a metal seal, they now do so only on the most solemn occasions. A Papal bull is today the most formal type of public decree or letters patent issued by the Vatican Chancery in the name of the Pope, the body of the text had no specific conventions for its formatting, it was often very simple in layout. For the most solemn bulls, the Pope signed the document himself, following the signature in this case would be an elaborate monogram, the signatures of any witnesses, and then the seal. Nowadays, a member of the Roman Curia signs the document on behalf of the Pope, usually the Cardinal Secretary of State, and thus the monogram is omitted. The most distinctive characteristic of a bull was the seal, which was usually made of lead. On the obverse it depicted, originally somewhat crudely, the early Fathers of the Church of Rome, the Apostles Saint Peter and Saint Paul, identified by the letters Sanctus PAulus and Sanctus PEtrus. Each head was surrounded by a circle of globetti, and the rim of the seal was surrounded by a ring of such beads. On the reverse was the name of the issuing Pope in the nominative Latin form, with the letters PP, for Pastor Pastorum
Papal bull
–
Papal bull of
Pope Urban VIII, 1637, sealed with a lead
bulla.
Papal bull
–
The Apostolic constitution Magni aestimamus issued as a Papal bull by
Pope Benedict XVI in 2011 which instituted the
Military Ordinariate of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Papal bull
–
Printed text of
Pope Leo X 's Bull against the errors of
Martin Luther, also known as
Exsurge Domine, issued in June 1520
Papal bull
–
Lead
bulla (
obverse and reverse) of
Urban V, Pope 1362 to 1370
21.
Pope Boniface IX
–
Pope Boniface IX, born Pietro Tomacelli, was Pope from 2 November 1389 to his death in 1404. He was the second Roman Pope of the Western Schism, during this time the Popes of the Avignon Obedience, Clement VII and Benedict XIII, maintained the Roman Curia in Avignon, under the protection of the French monarchy. Piero Tomacelli came of an ancient but impoverished family of Casarano in the Kingdom of Naples. An unsympathetic German contemporary source, Dietrich of Nieheim, asserted that he was illiterate, neither Pope had the magnanimity to put an end to the terrible state of affairs by resigning. After his election at the conclave of 1389, Germany, England, Hungary, Poland. The remainder of Europe recognized the Avignon Pope Clement VII and he and Boniface mutually excommunicated each other. Boniface IX saw to it that Ladislaus was crowned King of Naples at Gaeta on 29 May 1390, Boniface IX was born circa 1350 in Naples as Piero Tomacelli, one brother was Andrea. He also took over the port of Ostia from its Cardinal Bishop, in the Papal States, Boniface IX gradually regained control of the chief castles and cities, and he re-founded the States as they would appear during the fifteenth century. The antipope Clement VII died at Avignon on 16 September 1394, but the French cardinals quickly elected a successor on 28 September, Cardinal Pedro de Luna, who took the name Benedict XIII. Over the next few years, Boniface IX was entreated to abdicate, even by his strongest supporters, King Richard II of England, the Diet of Frankfurt, and King Wenceslaus of Germany. Pressure for a council also grew as the only way to breach the Western Schism. During the reign of Boniface IX two jubilees were celebrated at Rome, the first, in 1390, had been declared by his predecessor Pope Urban VI and was largely frequented by people from Germany, Hungary, Poland, Bohemia, and England. Several cities of Germany obtained the privileges of the jubilee, as indulgences were called, the jubilee of 1400 drew to Rome great crowds of pilgrims, particularly from France, in spite of a disastrous plague. Pope Boniface IX remained in the city nonetheless and their numbers spread to Spain and northern Italy. These evoked uneasy memories of the processions of wandering flagellants of the Black Death period. They went in procession from city to city, clad in garments, with faces hooded. Rumors of imminent divine judgement and visions of the Virgin Mary abounded and they sang the newly-popular hymn Stabat Mater during their processions. Boniface IX gradually discountenanced these wandering crowds, a prey of agitators and conspirators
Pope Boniface IX
–
Pope Boniface IX
22.
Marianum
–
This article is about the pontifical institute. For Ptolemys town of Corsica, see Bonifacio, for the plant S. marianum, the Marianum is both the name of a Pontifical institute for the study of Mariology and the name of a prestigious journal of Marian theology. The school and the share the same name since their formation was based on the work of Father Gabriel Roschini. The name Marianum itself goes back to Pope Boniface IX, who in 1398 granted the Servants of Mary the right to confer theological degrees. This college in Rome was closed in 1870 by the victorious Italian government and it opened again under the name Sant Alessio Falconieri in 1895. In 1939 Father Roschini founded the journal Marianum and directed it for thirty years, Father Roschini served as the rector. Since 1971, the institute has been open to lay persons. The Marianum theological faculty is now an academic institution for the study of Mariology and is located at Viale 30 Aprile-6,00153. The Marianum offers both a Masters degree in Mariology and a doctorate in Mariology and this Mariological facility has a library with more than 85,000 volumes on Mariology and a number of magazines and journals that treat of theological and Mariological topics. Ngô Đình Lệ Quyên - served as Commissioner of Immigration for the city of Rome, Pontifical Academy of Mary Marianum photo
Marianum
–
A series of articles on
23.
Innsbruck
–
Innsbruck is the capital city of Tyrol in western Austria. It is located in the Inn valley, at its junction with the Wipp valley, Innsbruck lies about halfway between Munich in Germany and Verona in Italy. Located in the valley between high mountains, the so-called North Chain in the Karwendel Alps to the north. Innsbruck is an internationally renowned winter sports centre, and hosted the 1964 and 1976 Winter Olympics as well as the 1984 and 1988 Winter Paralympics, Innsbruck also hosted the first Winter Youth Olympics in 2012. The name translates as Inn bridge, earliest traces suggest initial inhabitation in the early Stone Age. Surviving pre-Roman place names show that the area has been populated continuously, in the 4th century the Romans established the army station Veldidena at Oenipons, to protect the economically important commercial road from Verona-Brenner-Augsburg in their province of Raetia. The first mention of Innsbruck dates back to the name Oeni Pontum or Oeni Pons which is Latin for bridge over the Inn, the Counts of Andechs acquired the town in 1180. In 1248 the town passed into the hands of the Counts of Tyrol, the citys arms show a birds-eye view of the Inn bridge, a design used since 1267. The route over the Brenner Pass was then a major transport, the revenues generated by serving as a transit station enabled the city to flourish. Innsbruck became the capital of all Tyrol in 1429 and in the 15th century the city became a centre of European politics, the city benefited from the emperors presence as can be seen for example in the Hofkirche. Here a funeral monument for Maximilian was planned and erected partly by his successors, the ensemble with a cenotaph and the bronze statues of real and mythical ancestors of the Habsburgian emperor are one of the main artistic monuments of Innsbruck. A regular postal service between Innsbruck and Mechelen was established in 1490 by the Thurn-und-Taxis-Post, in 1564 Ferdinand II, Archduke of Austria received the rulership over Tirol and other Further Austrian possessions administrated from Innsbruck up to the 18th century. He had Schloss Ambras built and arranged there his unique Renaissance collections nowadays mainly part of Viennas Kunsthistorisches Museum, up to 1665 a stirps of the Habsburgian dynasty ruled in Innsbruck with an independent court. In the 1620s the first opera house north of the Alps was erected in Innsbruck, in 1669 the university was founded. Also as a compensation for the court as Emperor Leopold I again reigned from Vienna, during the Napoleonic Wars Tyrol was ceded to Bavaria, ally of France. Andreas Hofer led a Tyrolean peasant army to victory in the Battles of Bergisel against the combined Bavarian and French forces, the combined army later overran the Tyrolean militia army and until 1814 Innsbruck was part of Bavaria. After the Vienna Congress Austrian rule was restored, until 1918, the town was part of the Austrian monarchy, head of the district of the same name, one of the 21 Bezirkshauptmannschaften in the Tyrol province. The Tyrolean hero Andreas Hofer was executed in Mantua, his remains were returned to Innsbruck in 1823, during World War I, the only recorded action taking place in Innsbruck was near the end of the war
Innsbruck
–
Innsbruck
Innsbruck
–
View of Innsbruck by
Albrecht Dürer, 1495
Innsbruck
–
Ambras Castle, 1679
Innsbruck
–
Andreas Hofer with his Consultants at the Hofburg by
Franz Defregger, 1879
24.
Austria
–
Austria, officially the Republic of Austria, is a federal republic and a landlocked country of over 8.7 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Hungary and Slovakia to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, the territory of Austria covers 83,879 km2. The terrain is mountainous, lying within the Alps, only 32% of the country is below 500 m. The majority of the population speaks local Bavarian dialects of German as their native language, other local official languages are Hungarian, Burgenland Croatian, and Slovene. The origins of modern-day Austria date back to the time of the Habsburg dynasty, from the time of the Reformation, many northern German princes, resenting the authority of the Emperor, used Protestantism as a flag of rebellion. Following Napoleons defeat, Prussia emerged as Austrias chief competitor for rule of a greater Germany, Austrias defeat by Prussia at the Battle of Königgrätz, during the Austro-Prussian War of 1866, cleared the way for Prussia to assert control over the rest of Germany. In 1867, the empire was reformed into Austria-Hungary, Austria was thus the first to go to war in the July Crisis, which would ultimately escalate into World War I. The First Austrian Republic was established in 1919, in 1938 Nazi Germany annexed Austria in the Anschluss. This lasted until the end of World War II in 1945, after which Germany was occupied by the Allies, in 1955, the Austrian State Treaty re-established Austria as a sovereign state, ending the occupation. In the same year, the Austrian Parliament created the Declaration of Neutrality which declared that the Second Austrian Republic would become permanently neutral, today, Austria is a parliamentary representative democracy comprising nine federal states. The capital and largest city, with a population exceeding 1.7 million, is Vienna, other major urban areas of Austria include Graz, Linz, Salzburg and Innsbruck. Austria is one of the richest countries in the world, with a nominal per capita GDP of $43,724, the country has developed a high standard of living and in 2014 was ranked 21st in the world for its Human Development Index. Austria has been a member of the United Nations since 1955, joined the European Union in 1995, Austria also signed the Schengen Agreement in 1995, and adopted the euro currency in 1999. The German name for Austria, Österreich, meant eastern realm in Old High German, and is cognate with the word Ostarrîchi and this word is probably a translation of Medieval Latin Marchia orientalis into a local dialect. Austria was a prefecture of Bavaria created in 976, the word Austria is a Latinisation of the German name and was first recorded in the 12th century. Accordingly, Norig would essentially mean the same as Ostarrîchi and Österreich, the Celtic name was eventually Latinised to Noricum after the Romans conquered the area that encloses most of modern-day Austria, around 15 BC. Noricum later became a Roman province in the mid-first century AD, heers hypothesis is not accepted by linguists. Settled in ancient times, the Central European land that is now Austria was occupied in pre-Roman times by various Celtic tribes, the Celtic kingdom of Noricum was later claimed by the Roman Empire and made a province
Austria
–
First appearance of the word "ostarrichi", circled in red. Modern Austria honours this document, dated 996, as the founding of the nation.
Austria
–
Flag
Austria
–
Venus of Willendorf, 28,000 to 25,000 BC.
Museum of Natural History Vienna
Austria
–
"Heidentor" – Remains of the
Roman military city of
Carnuntum
25.
Germany
–
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres, with about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. After the United States, it is the second most popular destination in the world. Germanys capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Leipzig. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity, a region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period the Germanic tribes expanded southward, beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation, in 1871, Germany became a nation state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic, the establishment of the national socialist dictatorship in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After a period of Allied occupation, two German states were founded, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, in 1990, the country was reunified. In the 21st century, Germany is a power and has the worlds fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP. As a global leader in industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds third-largest exporter and importer of goods. Germany is a country with a very high standard of living sustained by a skilled. It upholds a social security and universal health system, environmental protection. Germany was a member of the European Economic Community in 1957. It is part of the Schengen Area, and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999, Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, and the OECD. The national military expenditure is the 9th highest in the world, the English word Germany derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz popular, derived from *þeudō, descended from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂- people, the discovery of the Mauer 1 mandible shows that ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons found anywhere in the world were discovered in a mine in Schöningen where three 380, 000-year-old wooden javelins were unearthed
Germany
–
The
Nebra sky disk is dated to c. 1600 BC.
Germany
–
Flag
Germany
–
Martin Luther (1483–1546) initiated the
Protestant Reformation.
Germany
–
Foundation of the
German Empire in
Versailles, 1871.
Bismarck is at the center in a white uniform.
26.
France
–
France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
France
–
One of the
Lascaux paintings: a horse –
Dordogne, approximately 18,000 BC
France
–
Flag
France
–
The
Maison Carrée was a temple of the
Gallo-Roman city of Nemausus (present-day
Nîmes) and is one of the best preserved vestiges of the
Roman Empire.
France
–
With
Clovis ' conversion to Catholicism in 498, the
Frankish monarchy,
elective and
secular until then, became
hereditary and of
divine right.
27.
Spain
–
By population, Spain is the sixth largest in Europe and the fifth in the European Union. Spains capital and largest city is Madrid, other urban areas include Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Bilbao. Modern humans first arrived in the Iberian Peninsula around 35,000 years ago, in the Middle Ages, the area was conquered by Germanic tribes and later by the Moors. Spain is a democracy organised in the form of a government under a constitutional monarchy. It is a power and a major developed country with the worlds fourteenth largest economy by nominal GDP. Jesús Luis Cunchillos argues that the root of the span is the Phoenician word spy. Therefore, i-spn-ya would mean the land where metals are forged, two 15th-century Spanish Jewish scholars, Don Isaac Abravanel and Solomon ibn Verga, gave an explanation now considered folkloric. Both men wrote in two different published works that the first Jews to reach Spain were brought by ship by Phiros who was confederate with the king of Babylon when he laid siege to Jerusalem. This man was a Grecian by birth, but who had given a kingdom in Spain. He became related by marriage to Espan, the nephew of king Heracles, Heracles later renounced his throne in preference for his native Greece, leaving his kingdom to his nephew, Espan, from whom the country of España took its name. Based upon their testimonies, this eponym would have already been in use in Spain by c.350 BCE, Iberia enters written records as a land populated largely by the Iberians, Basques and Celts. Early on its coastal areas were settled by Phoenicians who founded Western Europe´s most ancient cities Cadiz, Phoenician influence expanded as much of the Peninsula was eventually incorporated into the Carthaginian Empire, becoming a major theater of the Punic Wars against the expanding Roman Empire. After an arduous conquest, the peninsula came fully under Roman Rule, during the early Middle Ages it came under Germanic rule but later, much of it was conquered by Moorish invaders from North Africa. In a process took centuries, the small Christian kingdoms in the north gradually regained control of the peninsula. The last Moorish kingdom fell in the same year Columbus reached the Americas, a global empire began which saw Spain become the strongest kingdom in Europe, the leading world power for a century and a half, and the largest overseas empire for three centuries. Continued wars and other problems led to a diminished status. The Napoleonic invasions of Spain led to chaos, triggering independence movements that tore apart most of the empire, eventually democracy was peacefully restored in the form of a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Spain joined the European Union, experiencing a renaissance and steady economic growth
Spain
–
Lady of Elche
Spain
–
Flag
Spain
–
Altamira Cave paintings, in
Cantabria.
Spain
–
Celtic castro in
A Guarda,
Galicia.
28.
Hungary
–
Hungary is a unitary parliamentary republic in Central Europe. With about 10 million inhabitants, Hungary is a member state of the European Union. The official language is Hungarian, which is the most widely spoken language in Europe. Hungarys capital and largest metropolis is Budapest, a significant economic hub, major urban areas include Debrecen, Szeged, Miskolc, Pécs and Győr. His great-grandson Stephen I ascended to the throne in 1000, converting the country to a Christian kingdom, by the 12th century, Hungary became a middle power within the Western world, reaching a golden age by the 15th century. Hungarys current borders were established in 1920 by the Treaty of Trianon after World War I, when the country lost 71% of its territory, 58% of its population, following the interwar period, Hungary joined the Axis Powers in World War II, suffering significant damage and casualties. Hungary became a state of the Soviet Union, which contributed to the establishment of a four-decade-long communist dictatorship. On 23 October 1989, Hungary became again a democratic parliamentary republic, in the 21st century, Hungary is a middle power and has the worlds 57th largest economy by nominal GDP, as well as the 58th largest by PPP, out of 188 countries measured by the IMF. As a substantial actor in several industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds 36th largest exporter and importer of goods, Hungary is a high-income economy with a very high standard of living. It keeps up a security and universal health care system. Hungary joined the European Union in 2004 and part of the Schengen Area since 2007, Hungary is a member of the United Nations, NATO, WTO, World Bank, the AIIB, the Council of Europe and Visegrád Group. Well known for its cultural history, Hungary has been contributed significantly to arts, music, literature, sports and science. Hungary is the 11th most popular country as a tourist destination in Europe and it is home to the largest thermal water cave system, the second largest thermal lake in the world, the largest lake in Central Europe, and the largest natural grasslands in Europe. The H in the name of Hungary is most likely due to historical associations with the Huns. The rest of the word comes from the Latinized form of Medieval Greek Oungroi, according to an explanation the Greek name was borrowed from Proto-Slavic Ǫgǔri, in turn borrowed from Oghur-Turkic Onogur. Onogur was the name for the tribes who later joined the Bulgar tribal confederacy that ruled the eastern parts of Hungary after the Avars. The Hungarians likely belonged to the Onogur tribal alliance and it is possible they became its ethnic majority. The Hungarian endonym is Magyarország, composed of magyar and ország, the word magyar is taken from the name of one of the seven major semi-nomadic Hungarian tribes, magyeri
Hungary
–
Italian fresco depicting a Hungarian warrior shooting backwards
Hungary
–
Flag
Hungary
–
Hungarian raids in the 10th century
Hungary
–
King
Saint Stephen, the first
King of Hungary, converted the nation to Christianity
29.
Bohemia
–
Bohemia is the westernmost and largest historical region of the Czech lands in the present-day Czech Republic. Bohemia was a duchy of Great Moravia, later an independent principality, a kingdom in the Holy Roman Empire, and subsequently a part of the Habsburg Monarchy, after World War I and the establishment of an independent Czechoslovak state, Bohemia became a part of Czechoslovakia. Between 1938 and 1945, border regions with sizeable German-speaking minorities of all three Czech lands were joined to Nazi Germany as the Sudetenland, in 1990, the name was changed to the Czech Republic, which become a separate state in 1993 with the dissolution of Czechoslovakia. Until 1948, Bohemia was a unit of Czechoslovakia as one of its lands. Bohemia was bordered in the south by Upper and Lower Austria, in the west by Bavaria and in the north by Saxony and Lusatia, in the northeast by Silesia, and in the east by Moravia. In the 2nd century BC, the Romans were competing for dominance in northern Italy, the Romans defeated the Boii at the Battle of Placentia and the Battle of Mutina. After this, many of the Boii retreated north across the Alps, much later Roman authors refer to the area they had once occupied as Boiohaemum. The earliest mention was by Tacitus Germania 28, and later mentions of the name are in Strabo. The name appears to include the tribal name Boi- plus the Germanic element *haimaz home and this Boiohaemum was apparently isolated to the area where King Marobods kingdom was centred, within the Hercynian forest. The Czech name Čechy is derived from the name of the Slavic ethnic group, the Czechs, Bohemia, like neighbouring Bavaria, is named after the Boii, who were a large Celtic nation known to the Romans for their migrations and settlement in northern Italy and other places. Another part of the nation moved west with the Helvetii into southern France, to the south, over the Danube, the Romans extended their empire, and to the southeast in Hungaria, were Sarmatian peoples. In the area of modern Bohemia the Marcomanni and other Suebic groups were led by their king Marobodus and he took advantage of the natural defenses provided by its mountains and forests. In late classical times and the early Middle Ages, two new Suebic groupings appeared to the west of Bohemia in southern Germany, the Alemanni, many Suebic tribes from the Bohemian region took part in such movements westwards, even settling as far away as Spain and Portugal. With them were also tribes who had pushed from the east, such as the Vandals, other groups pushed southwards towards Pannonia. These are precursors of todays Czechs, though the amount of Slavic immigration is a subject of debate. The Slavic influx was divided into two or three waves, the first wave came from the southeast and east, when the Germanic Lombards left Bohemia. Soon after, from the 630s to 660s, the territory was taken by Samos tribal confederation and his death marked the end of the old Slavonic confederation, the second attempt to establish such a Slavonic union after Carantania in Carinthia. Other sources divide the population of Bohemia at this time into the Merehani, Marharaii, Beheimare, Christianity first appeared in the early 9th century, but only became dominant much later, in the 10th or 11th century
Bohemia
–
Karlštejn Castle
Bohemia
–
Historical map with Bohemia proper outlined in pink,
Moravia in yellow, and
Austrian Silesia in orange.
Bohemia
–
The more extreme Hussites became known as
Taborites, after the city of
Tábor that became their center.
Bohemia
–
Bohemia as the heart of
Europa regina, 1570
30.
Poland
–
Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe, situated between the Baltic Sea in the north and two mountain ranges in the south. Bordered by Germany to the west, the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south, Ukraine and Belarus to the east, the total area of Poland is 312,679 square kilometres, making it the 69th largest country in the world and the 9th largest in Europe. With a population of over 38.5 million people, Poland is the 34th most populous country in the world, the 8th most populous country in Europe, Poland is a unitary state divided into 16 administrative subdivisions, and its capital and largest city is Warsaw. Other metropolises include Kraków, Wrocław, Poznań, Gdańsk and Szczecin, the establishment of a Polish state can be traced back to 966, when Mieszko I, ruler of a territory roughly coextensive with that of present-day Poland, converted to Christianity. The Kingdom of Poland was founded in 1025, and in 1569 it cemented a political association with the Grand Duchy of Lithuania by signing the Union of Lublin. This union formed the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth, one of the largest and most populous countries of 16th and 17th century Europe, Poland regained its independence in 1918 at the end of World War I, reconstituting much of its historical territory as the Second Polish Republic. In September 1939, World War II started with the invasion of Poland by Nazi Germany, followed thereafter by invasion by the Soviet Union. More than six million Polish citizens died in the war, after the war, Polands borders were shifted westwards under the terms of the Potsdam Conference. With the backing of the Soviet Union, a communist puppet government was formed, and after a referendum in 1946. During the Revolutions of 1989 Polands Communist government was overthrown and Poland adopted a new constitution establishing itself as a democracy, informally called the Third Polish Republic. Since the early 1990s, when the transition to a primarily market-based economy began, Poland has achieved a high ranking on the Human Development Index. Poland is a country, which was categorised by the World Bank as having a high-income economy. Furthermore, it is visited by approximately 16 million tourists every year, Poland is the eighth largest economy in the European Union and was the 6th fastest growing economy on the continent between 2010 and 2015. According to the Global Peace Index for 2014, Poland is ranked 19th in the list of the safest countries in the world to live in. The origin of the name Poland derives from a West Slavic tribe of Polans that inhabited the Warta River basin of the historic Greater Poland region in the 8th century, the origin of the name Polanie itself derives from the western Slavic word pole. In some foreign languages such as Hungarian, Lithuanian, Persian and Turkish the exonym for Poland is Lechites, historians have postulated that throughout Late Antiquity, many distinct ethnic groups populated the regions of what is now Poland. The most famous archaeological find from the prehistory and protohistory of Poland is the Biskupin fortified settlement, dating from the Lusatian culture of the early Iron Age, the Slavic groups who would form Poland migrated to these areas in the second half of the 5th century AD. With the Baptism of Poland the Polish rulers accepted Christianity and the authority of the Roman Church
Poland
–
Reconstruction of a
Bronze Age,
Lusatian culture settlement in
Biskupin, c. 700 BC
Poland
–
Flag
Poland
–
Earliest known contemporary depiction of a Polish ruler; King
Mieszko II Lambert of Poland being presented with a
Liturgical book by
Matilda of Swabia, 1025–1031
Poland
–
Drawing of the
Battle of Grunwald, which was fought against the
German Order of Teutonic Knights, 15 July 1410
_-_Altare_dell%27Addolorata_-_San_Filippo_Benizi.jpg)
.jpg)
