Pope Sergius II

Popular acclamation proclaims the archdeacon John as pope on the death of Gregory IV in January 844, while the nobility elects Sergius, a Roman of noble birth.

The opposition is suppressed, with Sergius intervening to save John's life.

Sergius is consecrated immediately by the nobles as the one hundred and second pope, without seeking the ratification of the Frankish court.

The Emperor Lothair I, however, disapproves of this abandonment of the Constitutio Romana of 824, which includes a statute that no pope should be consecrated until his election had the approval of the Frankish emperor.

He sends an army under his son Louis, the recently appointed Viceroy of Italy, to reestablish his authority.

The Church and the Emperor reach an accommodation, with Louis being crowned king of Lombardy by Sergius, although the Pope does not accede to all the demands made upon him.

Sergius contributes to urban redevelopment in Rome, relying on what some consider to be dubious means of gaining money.

Starting in 827, Muslim forces had begun to conquer Sicily.

The Saracens of southern Italy, repulsed at Naples in 846, come north to the mouth of the Tiber River, capture the fort recently constructed there by the late Pope Gregory, and march on Rome, looting and burning the suburbs as they advance.

They reach the Vatican Hill area outside Rome’s defensive walls, and pillage the buildings there, desecrating Saint Peter’s Basilica, then, laden with plunder, escape to their ships.

The Saracens also assault Portus and Ostia in August 846.

Sergius dies in January 847 while negotiating between two patriarchs.

The cardinal of Santi Quattro Coronati, Roman by birth, a former subdeacon of Gregory IV and archpriest under Sergius, is unanimously chosen as his successor, elected on April 10, 847.

The pontificate of Leo IV will chiefly be distinguished by his efforts to repair the damage done by the Saracens during the reign of his predecessor to various churches of the city, especially those of St Peter and St Paul.

News of a massing of Saracen ships off Sardinia reaches Rome early in 849.

When the Muslims approach Portus, Pope Leo summons the Repubbliche Marinare (or mariner cities of Italy)—Naples, Gaeta and Amalfi—to form a league.

The command of the unified fleet is given to Cesarius, son of Duke Sergius I of Naples.

The Christian armada assembles off recently refortified Ostia, and Pope Leo IV comes out to bless it and offer a mass to the troops.

The subsequent Battle of Ostia is one of the most famous in history of the papacy of the Middle Ages and is celebrated in a famous fresco by Raphael and his pupils in his Rooms of the Vatican Palace in the Vatican City.

After the pirate ships appear, battle is joined with the Neapolitan galleys in the lead.

Midway through the engagement, a storm divides the Muslims and the Christian ships manage to return to port.

The Saracens, however, are scattered far and wide, with many ships lost and others sent ashore.

When the storm dies down, the remnants of the Arab fleet are easily picked off, with many prisoners taken.

In the aftermath of the battle, much booty washes ashore and is pillaged by the locals, per ius naufragii.

The prisoners taken in battle are sent to work in chain gangs building the Leonine Wall which is to encompass the Vatican Hill.

Rome will never again be threatened by a Muslim army.

Gaeta is the ancient Caieta, situated on the slopes of the Torre di Orlando, a promontory overlooking the Mediterranean Sea.

Gaeta was an ancient Ionian colony of the Samians according to Strabo, who believed the name stemmed from the Greek kaiétas, which means "cave", probably referring to the several harbors.

According to Virgil's Aeneid (vii.1–9), Caieta was Aeneas’ (another legend says Ascanius') wet-nurse, whom he buried here.

In classical times, Caieta, famous for its lovely and temperate climate, like the neighboring Formia and Sperlonga, was a tourist resort and site of the seaside villas of many important and rich characters of Rome.

Like the other Roman resorts, Caieta was linked to the capital of the Empire by Via Appia and its end trunk Via Flacca (or Valeria), through an opposite diverticulum or byroad.

Its port was of great importance in trade and in war, and was restored under Emperor Antoninus Pius.

Among its antiquities is the mausoleum of Lucius Munatius Plancus.

After the Lombard invasion of the eighth century, Gaeta had remained under suzerainty of the Eastern Roman Empire.

In the following years, like Amalfi, Sorrento and Naples, it seems to have established itself as a practically independent port and to have carried on a thriving trade with the Levant.

As imperial influence declined in Southern Italy the town had begun to grow.

The inhabitants of the neighboring Formiæ had fled to Gaeta in 840 for fear of the Saracens.

Although under the suzerainty of Constantinople, Gaeta has, like nearby ports Naples and Amalfi, a republican form of government with a dux ("duke", or commanding lord under the command of the imperial Exarch of Ravenna), as a strong bulwark against Saracen invasion.

Around 830, it had become a lordship ruled by hereditary hypati, or consuls: the first of these is Constantine (839–866), who in 847 had aided Pope Leo IV in the naval fight at Ostia.

At this same time (846) the episcopal see of Gaeta had been founded when Constantine, Bishop of Formiae, fled thither and established his residence.

He is associated with his son Marinus I.

The Saracens have been besieging Gaeta, which had led to Leo's order that the walls of the city be restored and strengthened between 848 and 849.

Pope Leo, in order to counter the Saracen menace definitively, has ordered a new line of walls encompassing the suburb on the right bank of the Tiber to be built, including Old St. Peter's Basilica, which has been undefended until this time.

The Leonine Wall, which defines Rome’s Leonine City, has been constructed following the sack of St. Peter's by Saracens in 846.

Built from 848 to 852 as the only extension ever made to the walls of Rome, this three-kilometer wall completely encircles the Vatican Hill for the first time in its history.

An abortive start had been made by Leo III, but disturbances in the city had suspended work, and the Romans had dismantled the sections that had been begun and used them in private constructions.

Pope Leo IV has used his estate workers, inhabitants from the surrounding countryside, Saracens captured after the sea battle of Ostia in 849 and funding from an imperial Frankish donation, to construct the wall, which runs in an enclosing U-shape from the riverbank at Hadrian's Mausoleum, soon to be Christened the Castel Sant'Angelo, up the slopes of the Vatican hill encircling the basilica and descending again to the river.

The walling is constructed of tufa and tiling, forty feet high, with 44 strong towers at bowshot intervals.

The massive round corner tower that still crowns the Vatican hill has its origins in this construction campaign.

Three new gates gave access to the newly enclosed Borgo.

Two are in the stretch of wall that leads back from the Castel Sant'Angelo: a small postern gate behind the fortified Mausoleum, called the Posterula S. Angeli and later, from its proximity to the Castello, the Porta Castelli, and a larger one, the principal gate through which emperors pass, near the church of St. Peregrino, called the Porta Peregrini, later the Porta S. Petri.

A third gate opens the Leonine City to the rione of Trastevere.

In addition, chain towers have been built along the Tiber river to repel Saracen assaults by water.

A festival celebrates the official completion of the walling on June 27, 852.

Leo has also restored and embellished the damaged Basilica di San Paolo fuori le Mura and St. Peter's: the latter's altar again receives its gold covering (after being stolen), which weighs two hundred and six pounds and is studded with precious gems.

Following the restoration of St. Peter's, Leo appeals to the Christian kingdoms to confront the Arab raiders.

Pope Leo has held three synods, one in 850 that was distinguished by the presence of Holy Roman Emperor Louis II, but the other two are of little importance.

The history of the papal struggle with Hincmar of Reims, which begins during Leo's pontificate, belongs properly to that of Nicholas I. Leo dies on July 17, 855 and is buried in St. Peter's Basilica.

Benedict III is Leo's immediate successor, beginning his papacy on September 29, 855.

A medieval tradition claimed that a woman, Pope Joan, succeeded him, disguising herself as a man, but Joan is generally believed to be fictitious.

Little is known of Benedict's life before his papacy.

He was educated and lived in Rome and was cardinal priest of the church of San Callisto at the time of his election.

Benedict has a reputation for learning and piety.

He had been elected upon the refusal of Hadrian, the initial choice of the clergy and people.

A group of important people prefer a different candidate, Anastasius.

This latter group has Benedict's election disavowed and Anastasius installed.

However, popular opinion is so strong that Benedict's consecration is allowed.

The envoys of Emperor Louis II force Benedict to handle Anastasius and his adherents leniently.

The schism helps to weaken the hold of the emperors upon the popes, especially upon their elections.