#28 Why Was John XII The Worst Pope in History?
He turned the sacred papal headquarters into a brothel for his personal desires.
Hello Everyone!
Hope you are having an amazing week. Today, Things From The Past has brought you the details about history’s worst pope - John XII. Awarded with authority at a very young age, John XII’s rule was what brought Rome at the verge of falling. From sleeping with his sisters to gambling and drinking, this worst Pope busy in entertaining himself was the reason several people suffered. Hope you enjoy this read!
Popes with a righteous voice have governed the Roman Catholic Church throughout history, bringing everyone under one doctrine. However, not every pope had the same ambitions to represent Christ and so became famous for only the wrong reasons.
Similarly, when an eighteen-year-old boy claimed the throne to lead the sacred papacy, he lived a life filled with immorality and corruption. The protagonist we have today is Pope John XII, the Bishop of Rome who served from 955 till his untimely demise in 965.
What did John XII do to be considered unworthy of his position?
The Beginning of an Unforeseen Pope
John XII’s early life played a significant role in his unethical activities as not only just the pope but also the Prince of Rome.
Christened Octavian, born in 937, was the son of rebellious Alberic II of Spoleto. Ironically, he also came into power after revolting against his own family, his mother Marozia, and stepfather, King Hugh of Italy.
Alberic II then went ahead to wed his stepsister, who may or not have been the birth mother of Octavian. Claims are that a concubine birthed the famous young pope. In 954, Alberic II compelled the noblemen to take a pledge to elect his son, Octavian, in his place after his death.
Who, by the way, had no experience with the obligations he had to satisfy. Nonetheless. in December 955, Octavian became the 130th pope and the heir of Prince Alberic II.
Presumably, this change in his life may have been exciting for the teenager who was now accountable to no one. Nevertheless, he did not take the profoundness of his position with seriousness. And with a change in his name, Octavian became John XII, committing to all the things he was deemed not to do.
Youthful Papacy Adorned with Humiliation
It is rare to observe a young boy, born in a family of feudal lords, and given a catholic authority just in his youthful days, do anything of impressiveness.
But, John XII took it all to another level. Although we have to acknowledge that the young pope did not entirely idle. Unlike boys today, he had an actual army to play with, no matter how humiliating the results were.
To reconquer the fiefdoms seized by other lords, John XII held the sword and led his army to an expected glorious campaign. But, the campaign was nothing close to glorious and only a disaster in his papacy. On days when the young pope was not achieving never-ending insults on his popery, he busied himself with earthly desires.
The young adult was in no mood to devote his thrilling days of youth to preaching the teachings of God in the Roman Catholic Church. Instead, he spent his hours in the Vatican drinking, gambling, and sleeping with his mistresses. John XII was always hungry for money that he could spend on his dishonourable motives. He would accept cash in bulks but never used it for spiritual means.
Ordained A Deacon in the Stable of Horses
Just to have his hands full of this dirty money, John XII ordained a 10-year-old boy as Bishop of Todi. Undoubtedly, the boy’s family adorned the pope with heaps of money for this great honour. But, wait, there is more.
It is fair to say that John XII had zero understanding of the title he was carrying on his forehead. He did not think twice before ordaining a deacon in his stable of horses. Why, though? Just for a good laugh. The whole purpose of ordaining someone to carry out the ministry is to fulfil the duty by the grace of the Holy Spirit, commenced in the Christian Church. But to John XII, these rites held no value.
Despite his continuous failure as a pope, no one could argue with him. Who could stop a rebellious, misbehaving young pope? Whoever forced him into asking for forgiveness was either killed or given severe punishments. Being called immature once by a subdeacon hurt John’s pride so much that he castrated the man first and then killed him.
A Blatant Adulterer and Deceiver
There was no sane way to stop the young pope from spreading the venom of his devious schemes. He even stooped as low as sleeping with his niece and sisters because unknown mistresses were not enough for him anymore.
However, while John was busy entertaining himself, Rome was on the verge of falling apart. And soon, the pope’s weaknesses and incompetence reached his enemies.
Berengar II of Italy showed signs of invading Rome along with his unpleasant son. As incompetent as John could be, he still did not want any nasty king to spoil his fun and rule over him. Hence, he ran to Otto, the Great German king, and cried for help. But there, you did not get anything for free. In return for his aid against Berenger, John immediately made Otto the Holy Roman Emperor.
Then, in a sudden twist of events, John realized that the title he had just given to Otto was the most important in the Roman Catholic Church. And this time, upon Otto’s departure to Germany, John contacted his former enemy, Berenger, to seek his assistance. Thus, ignoring the forthcoming chaos.
To understand how worse, he could get, John even seduced a widow by giving her the power of numerous Italian cities, just so he could sleep with her. Then came a time when his sexual desires became horrendous, and he would rape any woman he could see near him.
He Preferred Hunting over Holiness
All this while, Otto took the right opportunity to attack his backstabber when he would be at his weakest. But, John took the hint of the imperial army marching towards the Vatican and ran off to Tivoli with all of the church’s treasures.
John XII’s actions, despite his title, angered the people and his council. Hence, the moment he ran away for hunting, Otto was asked to appoint another pope in his place. They named numerous reasons why John was never suitable for the sacred crown. On the other hand, John persuaded his loyal soldiers by showing shiny pockets of gold to butcher anyone who attempted to take his place.
Understandably, Otto would not tolerate being in a place where he was not wanted. Hence, he went back to Germany until he could attack John. Soon after, the pope arrived at the Vatican and picked up where left off. By then, he had committed countless offences, but the one that brought him down was his most cherished pastime.
John XII was caught sleeping with a married woman. And his stupidity and dishonesty to his title of nine years supposedly ended with a blow from her husband in 964. Nonetheless, lucky for him that he was killed before Otto could get his hands on him for vengeance. That was how the tale of the worst popes in the history of prestigious papacy ended.
I’d love to hear from you. Please, comment below if you want to talk about anything related to this article or History.