Which of the two sides of Clement prevailed the 'official' or the personal? The book attempts to answer this question by examining his ideas and actions in connection with some of the major issues of the reign: for example, his attempts to solve the problem of the 'usurping' emperor, Louis of Bavaria, through the appointment of Charles of Bohemia (Charles IV); to deal with a crisis in the Hundred Years War between France and England; to check Islamic expansion and to heal the Greek Schism; to curb the oligarchic challenge of those who thought that the papacy should be at Rome rather than at Avignon. Clement was a great orator and the book is based partly on his sermons, many of which are unpublished. It is the only study of an Avignon pope in English.

Presents Pope Clement VI (c. 1291-1352), with information provided by Kevin Knight as part of the Catholic Encyclopedia. Discusses his rule, his succession, his excommunication of Emperor Louis IV of Bavaria, and his activities in centralizing and strengthening papal authority.

The papacy of Clement VI (1342-1352) was distinguished by its political activism, its attempt to resurrect the impetus for crusading, and its efforts to attract the best and brightest talents to Avignon. The attributes which characterize his pontificate highlight his interest in resurrecting the papal monarchy. His political conservatism was manifested most vividly in his struggles with the German emperors Louis IV and Charles IV. Clement VI asserted that papal auctoritas superseded temporal imperium. Canonistic and publicists arguments were alloyed with Clement's own unique views to stem the loss of the papacy's secular power. Clement VI's political dynamism was also displayed in renewed efforts to create an expeditionary force to wage a holy war against the Muslims. His Smyrna Crusade and Holy League achieved the last resurgence of western Christian influence in the Levant in the Middle Ages. Finally, the intellectual legacy of Clement VI is one of humanistic involvement. In the pontificate of Clement VI can be found the seeds of Renaissance humanism, represented by realistic art forms, a rebirth of classical literature, and the presence of humanist scholars at the papal court. Confined by the realities of the Anglo-French war and the Black Death, Clement VI was able to achieve only limited results.

The stories of seven popes who ruled at seven different critical periods in the 600 years leading into the Reformation.

The pontificate of Clement VII (Giulio de' Medici) is usually regarded as amongst the most disastrous in history, and the pontiff characterized as timid, vacillating, and avaricious. It was during his years as pope (1523-34) that England broke away from the Catholic Church, and relations with the Holy Roman Emperor deteriorated to such a degree that in 1527 an Imperial army sacked Rome and imprisoned the pontiff. Given these spectacular political and military failures, it is perhaps unsurprising that Clement has often elicited the scorn of historians, rather than balanced and dispassionate analysis. This interdisciplinary volume, the first on the subject, constitutes a major step forward in our understanding of Clement VII's pontificate. Looking beyond Clement's well-known failures, and anachronistic comparisons with more 'successful' popes, it provides a fascinating insight into one of the most pivotal periods of papal and European history. Drawing on long-neglected sources, as rich as they are abundant, the contributors address a wide variety of important aspects of Clement's pontificate, re-assessing his character, familial and personal relations, political strategies, and cultural patronage, as well as exploring broader issues including the impact of the Sack of Rome, and religious renewal and reform in the pre-Tridentine period. Taken together, the essays collected here provide the most expansive and nuanced portrayal yet offered of Clement as pope, patron, and politician. In reconsidering the politics and emphasizing the cultural vitality of the period, the collection provides fresh and much-needed revision to our understanding of Clement VII's pontificate and its critical impact on the history of the papacy and Renaissance Europe.

Letter from Pope Clement VI to the Archbishop of Salzburg concerning the the privileges and status of the Mendicant Orders. Dated 1349 November 25.