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The Western Schism , also known as the Papal Schism , the Great Occidental Schism , the Schism of 1378 , or the Great Schism ( Latin : Magnum schisma occidentale, Ecclesiae occidentalis schisma ), was a split within the Roman Catholic Church lasting from 20 September 1378 to 11 November 1417, in which bishops residing in Rome and Avignon simultaneously claimed to be the true pope , and were eventually joined by a third line of Pisan claimants in 1409. The event was driven by international rivalries, personalities and political allegiances, with the Avignon Papacy in particular being closely tied to the French monarchy .

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115-624: The papacy had resided in Avignon since 1309, but Pope Gregory XI returned to Rome in 1377. The Catholic Church split in September 1378, when, following Gregory XI's death and Urban VI's subsequent election, a group of French cardinals declared his election invalid and elected Clement VII , who claimed to be the true pope. After several attempts at reconciliation, the Council of Pisa (1409) declared that both rivals were illegitimate and elected

230-476: A bull that would excommunicate the king of France and put an interdict over all France. Before this was finalized, Italian allies of the King of France broke into the papal residence and beat Pope Boniface VIII. He died shortly thereafter. Nicholas Boccasini was elected as his successor and took the name Pope Benedict XI . He absolved King Philip IV and his subjects of their actions against Pope Boniface VIII, though

345-628: A culture quite independent from Northern France, where most of the advisers to the King of France were based. The Kingdom of Arles was not yet part of France at that time, formally a part of the Holy Roman Empire . The literature produced by the troubadours in the Languedoc is unique and strongly distinct from that of Royal circles in the north. Even in terms of religion, the South produced its own variety of Christianity, Catharism , which

460-428: A direct bus line from Brussels South Charleroi Airport to Bruges. Bruges has an extensive web of bus lines, operated by De Lijn , providing access to the city centre and the suburbs (city lines, Dutch : stadslijnen ) and to many towns and villages in the region around the city (regional lines, Dutch : streeklijnen ). In support of the municipal traffic management (see "Road" above), free public transport

575-758: A flood of capital that soon took over the banking of Bruges. The building where the Genoese Republic housed its commercial representation in the city still survives, now housing the Frietmuseum . The Bourse opened in 1309 (most likely the first stock exchange in the world) and developed into the most sophisticated money market of the Low Countries in the 14th century. By the time Venetian galleys first appeared, in 1314, they were latecomers. Numerous foreign merchants were welcomed in Bruges, such as

690-552: A full-time carillonneur , who gives free concerts regularly. In addition to the "Historic Centre of Bruges" and the tower included in the "Belfries of Belgium and France", Bruges is also home to a third UNESCO World Heritage Site; the Ten Wijngaerde Béguinage , a beguinage built in the 13th century, is included in the World Heritage Site of "Flemish Béguinages". Bruges is known for its lace ,

805-532: A holy cause, was taken up against the Flemings , because they were Urbanists, that is, infidels. Sustained by such national and factional rivalries, the schism continued after the deaths of both Urban VI in 1389 and Clement VII in 1394. Boniface IX was crowned in Rome in 1389, and Benedict XIII , who was elected against the wishes of Charles VI of France, reigned in Avignon from 1394. When Pope Boniface died in 1404,

920-536: A major temporal role in addition to its spiritual role. The conflict between the Pope and the Holy Roman Emperor was fundamentally a dispute over which of them was the leader of Christendom in secular matters. In the early 14th century, the papacy was well past the prime of its secular rule – its importance had peaked in the 12th and 13th centuries. The success of the early Crusades added greatly to

1035-502: A meeting of the Estates General , a council of the lords of France, who had supported his position. The King of France issued charges of sodomy , simony , sorcery, and heresy against the pope and summoned him before the council. The pope's response was the strongest affirmation to date of papal sovereignty. In Unam sanctam (18 November 1302), he decreed that "it is necessary to salvation that every human creature be subject to

1150-570: A novel arrangement for choosing a new pope acceptable to all sides. To this day the Church has never made any official, authoritative pronouncement about the papal lines of succession for this confusing period; nor has Martin V or any of his successors. Modern scholars are not agreed in their solutions, although they tend to favor the Roman line. Avignon papacy The Avignon Papacy ( Occitan : Papat d'Avinhon ; French : Papauté d'Avignon )

1265-457: A relative of the House of Savoy , pursued a particularly ruthless policy against the league to re-establish control over these cities. He convinced Pope Gregory to hire Breton mercenaries. To quell an uprising of the inhabitants of Cesena he hired John Hawkwood and had the majority of the people massacred (between 2,500 and 3,500 people were reported dead). Following such events opposition against

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1380-572: A ship to Avignon and reestablished the papal court there. Charles V of France , who seems to have been irked beforehand by the choice of the Roman pontiff, soon became his greatest protector. Besides France, Clement eventually succeeded in winning to his cause Castile , Aragon , Navarre , a great part of the Latin East, and Scotland . Years later, Owain Glyndŵr 's rebellion in Wales also recognized

1495-521: A southern Dutch variant. The Dutch word and the English bridge both derive from Proto-Germanic * brugjō- . Bruges was a location of coastal settlement during prehistory. This Bronze Age and Iron Age settlement are unrelated to medieval city development. In the Bruges area, the first fortifications were built after Julius Caesar 's conquest of the Menapii in the first century BC, to protect

1610-668: A surge in tourism and economic activity in the downtown area. International tourism has boomed, and new efforts resulted in Bruges being designated European Capital of Culture in 2002. It attracts some eight million tourists annually. The port of Zeebrugge was built in 1907. The Germans used it for their U-boats in World War I. It was greatly expanded in the 1970s and early 1980s and has become one of Europe's most important and modern ports. The municipality comprises following sub-municipalities : Bruges has an oceanic climate ( Köppen Cfb ). The medieval architecture in Bruges

1725-483: A textile technique. Moreover, the city and its lace would go on to inspire the Thread Routes film series, the second episode of which, shot in 2011, was partly set in Bruges. Several beers are named after the city, such as Brugge Blond , Brugge Tripel , Brugs , Brugse Babbelaar , Brugse Straffe Hendrik , and Brugse Zot . However, only the latter two— Brugse Zot and Brugse Straffe Hendrik —are brewed in

1840-462: A third purported pope. The schism was finally resolved when the Pisan claimant Antipope John XXIII called the Council of Constance (1414–1418). The Council arranged for the renunciation of both Roman pope Gregory XII and Pisan antipope John XXIII. The Avignon antipope Benedict XIII was excommunicated, while Pope Martin V was elected and reigned from Rome. The event is sometimes referred to as

1955-469: A year and awaited French military support, which never came. Innocent died 6 November 1406, and the Roman cardinals elected Angelo Correr as Gregory XII. The suggestion for a church council to resolve the Schism, first made in 1378, was not adopted initially, because canon law required that a pope call a council. Eventually theologians like Pierre d'Ailly and Jean Gerson, adopted arguments that permitted

2070-473: Is a prominent World Heritage Site of UNESCO . It is oval and about 430 hectares in size. The city's total population is 117,073 (1 January 2008), of whom around 20,000 live in the city centre. The metropolitan area , including the outer commuter zone, covers an area of 616 km (238 sq mi) and had a total of 255,844 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008. Along with a few other canal-based northern cities, such as Amsterdam and Saint Petersburg , it

2185-432: Is available for those who park their cars in the main railway station car park. Although a few streets are restricted, no part of Bruges is car-free. Cars are required to yield to pedestrians and cyclists. Plans have long been underway to ban cars altogether from the historic center of Bruges or to restrict traffic much more than it currently is, but these plans have yet to come to fruition. In 2005, signs were changed for

2300-505: Is mostly intact, making it one of the best-preserved medieval towns in Europe. The "Historic Centre of Bruges" has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000. Its medieval buildings include the Church of Our Lady , whose brick spire reaches 115.6 m (379.27 ft), making it the world's second-highest brick tower/building. The sculpture Madonna and Child , which can be seen in

2415-559: Is now retroactively recognized by the Catholic Church as the sole legitimate line during the Western Schism. However, Popes Alexander VI through VIII have not been renumbered, leaving a gap in the numbering sequence. According to John F. Broderick (1987): Doubt still shrouds the validity of the three rival lines of pontiffs during the four decades subsequent to the still disputed papal election of 1378. This makes suspect

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2530-907: Is sometimes referred to as the Venice of the North . Bruges has significant economic importance, thanks to its port , and was once one of the world's chief commercial cities. Bruges is a major tourism destination within Belgium and is well-known as the seat of the College of Europe , a university institute for European studies. The earliest mention of the location's name is as Bruggas , Brvggas or Brvccia in AD 840–875. Afterwards, it appears as Bruciam and Bruociam (892); as Brutgis uico (late ninth century); as in portu Bruggensi ( c.  1010 ); as Bruggis (1012); as Bricge in

2645-544: Is the capital and largest city of the province of West Flanders in the Flemish Region of Belgium , in the northwest of the country. It is the sixth most populous city in the country. The area of the whole city amounts to more than 14,099 hectares (140.99 km ; 54.44 sq miles), including 1,075 hectares off the coast, at Zeebrugge (from Brugge aan zee , meaning 'Bruges by the Sea'). The historic city centre

2760-855: The Kruispoort , the Gentpoort , the Smedenpoort and the Ezelpoort . The Dampoort , the Katelijnepoort and the Boeveriepoort are gone. The Old St. John's Hospital (Hans Memling museum) and Our Lady of the Potteries are Hospital museums . The city is known for Bruggemuseum ("Bruges Museum"), the general name for a group of 11 different historical museums in the city, including: Bruges' non-municipal museums include

2875-760: The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (1037); as Brugensis (1046); as Brycge in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle (1049–1052); as Brugias (1072); as Bruges (1080–1085); as Bruggas ( c.  1084 ); as Brugis (1089); and as Brugge (1116). The name probably derives from the Old Dutch for 'bridge': brugga . Also compare Middle Dutch brucge , brugge (or brugghe , brigghe , bregghe , brogghe ), and modern Dutch bruggenhoofd ('bridgehead') and brug ('bridge'). The form brugghe would be

2990-793: The Flemish revolts that occurred around the County of Flanders between 1323 and 1328. At the end of the 14th century, Bruges became one of the Four Members , along with Brugse Vrije , Ghent , and Ypres . Together they formed a parliament; however, they frequently quarrelled amongst themselves. In the 15th century, Philip the Good , Duke of Burgundy , set up a court in Bruges, as well as Brussels and Lille , attracting several artists, bankers, and other prominent personalities from all over Europe. The weavers and spinners of Bruges were thought to be

3105-768: The Great Schism , although this term is usually reserved for the East–West Schism of 1054 between the churches remaining in communion with the See of Rome and those remaining with the Eastern Orthodox Church . The papacy had, since 1309, resided in Avignon, a papal enclave surrounded by France . Initiated by Pope Clement V , the Avignon Papacy had developed a reputation for corruption that estranged much of Western Christendom . This reputation

3220-612: The Roman Curia from Rome to Poitiers in France in 1305, and then to Avignon in 1309. Following the impasse during the previous conclave , and to escape from the infighting of the powerful Roman families that had produced earlier Popes, such as the Colonna and Orsini families , the Catholic Church looked for a safer place and found it in Avignon, which was surrounded by the lands of the papal fief of Comtat Venaissin . Formally it

3335-428: The cardinals elected Bartolomeo Prignano, the archbishop of Bari , as Pope Urban VI . The majority of the cardinals who had elected Urban VI quickly regretted their decision and removed themselves to Anagni . Meeting at Fondi , thirteen cardinals elected Count Robert of Geneva as Pope Clement VII on 20 September 1378. The cardinals argued that the election of Urban VI was invalid because it had been out of fear of

3450-453: The 19th century, Bruges became one of the world's first tourist destinations, attracting wealthy British and French tourists. By 1909, the 'Bruges Forward: Society to Improve Tourist' association had come into operation. In World War I , German forces occupied Bruges. However, the city suffered virtually no damage, and was liberated on 19 October 1918 by the Allies. The city was occupied by

3565-508: The Apostle to which the parish Church of St. Andrew & St. Anna is dedicated. Bruges has motorway connections in all directions: Driving within the 'egg', the historical centre enclosed by the main circle of canals in Bruges is discouraged by traffic management schemes, including a network of one-way streets. The system encourages the use of set routes leading to central car parks and direct exit routes. The car parks are convenient for

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3680-461: The Avignon antipope Benedict XIII. In the intense partisanship that was characteristic of the Middle Ages, the schism engendered a fanatical hatred noted by Johan Huizinga : when the town of Bruges went over to the "obedience" of Avignon, a great number of people left to follow their trade in a city of Urbanist allegiance..[..].. In the 1382, the oriflamme , which might only be unfurled in

3795-469: The Avignon papacy bought the city of Avignon from the Angevins. Pope Innocent VI (1352–1362), born Etienne Aubert, was less partisan than Clement VI. He was keen on establishing peace between France and England, having worked to this end in papal delegations in 1345 and 1348. His gaunt appearance and austere manners commanded higher respect in the eyes of nobles at both sides of the conflict. However, he

3910-489: The Babylonian Captivity of the Church (1520), but he claimed it had nothing to do with the Western Schism or papacy in Avignon. The relationship between the papacy and France changed drastically over the course of the 14th century. Starting with open conflict between Pope Boniface VIII and King Philip IV of France, it turned to cooperation from 1305 to 1342, and finally to a papacy under strong influence by

4025-569: The Bold of the Duchy of Burgundy and Margaret III, Countess of Flanders , rather than giving dispensation to one of Edward III of England 's sons to marry Margaret. This clearly showed the partisanship of the papacy; correspondingly, the respect for the church dropped. The most influential decision in the reign of Pope Gregory XI (1370–1378) was the return to Rome, beginning on 13 September 1376 and ending with his arrival on 17 January 1377. Although

4140-570: The Brewery Museum, Hof Bladelin , Choco-Story (chocolate museum), Lumina Domestica (lamp museum), Museum-Gallery Xpo: Salvador Dalí , Diamond Museum, Frietmuseum (a museum dedicated to Belgian fries ), Historium (museum of the medieval history of Bruges), Lace centre, St. George's Archers Guild, St. Sebastian's Archers’ Guild, St. Trudo Abbey, and the Public Observatory Beisbroek. The patron saint of both

4255-548: The Burgh terrain, probably with a fortified settlement and church. In 1089, Bruges became the capital of the County of Flanders . Bruges received its city charter on 27 July 1128, and new walls and canals were built. By the 12th century, the city had gained an autonomous administration. Het Zwin (Golden Inlet), the tidal inlet of Bruges, was crucial to the development of local commerce. Since about 1050, gradual silting had caused

4370-534: The Castilian wool merchants who first arrived in the 13th century. After the Castilian wool monopoly ended, the Basques , many hailing from Bilbao (Biscay), thrived as merchants (wool, iron commodities, etc.) and established their own commercial consulate in Bruges by the mid-15th century. The foreign merchants expanded the city's trading zones. They maintained separate communities governed by their own laws until

4485-466: The Cathars in southern France); the reorganization of the internal administration of the church; and the preservation of an untainted image of the church as the sole instrument of God's will on earth. The latter was directly challenged by Philip IV when he demanded a posthumous trial of his former adversary, the late Boniface VIII, for alleged heresy . Phillip exerted strong influence on the cardinals of

4600-407: The Catholic Church recognized the Roman popes as the legitimate line from 1378 to 1409, followed by the Pisan popes from 1409 to 1415. All Avignon popes after 1378 are considered to be antipopes. This recognition is reflected in the numbering of popes Alexander VI , VII , and VIII , who numbered themselves consecutively after their Pisan namesake Alexander V. The recognition of the Pisan popes made

4715-407: The Church found its way to the lower ranks: when a bishop had to pay up to a year's income for gaining a benefice, he sought ways of raising this money from his new office. This was taken to extremes by the pardoners who sold absolutions for all kinds of sins. While pardoners were hated but popularly regarded as helpful to redeem one's soul, the friars who were commonly regarded as failing to follow

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4830-639: The Church to call a council to resolve this issue, while Francesco Zabarella argued that a council could only be convoked by an emperor. Pope Benedict and Gregory agreed to abdicate their respective papacies in December 1406. However, Benedict stated that he wanted to negotiate a solution first. Gregory sent an ambassador to the St. Victor abbey in Marseille, where Benedict was staying. On the other hand, Gregory preferred Savona, and Benedict concurred. They balked at

4945-518: The Church's moral commandments by ignoring their vows of chastity and poverty and were despised. This sentiment strengthened movements calling for a return to absolute poverty, relinquishment of all personal and ecclesiastical belongings, and preaching as the Lord and his disciples had. For the Catholic Church , an institution embedded in the secular structure and its focus on property, this

5060-593: The Easter celebrations of 1378. Before he could return to Avignon, Gregory XI died in the Vatican palace on 27 March 1378. The Romans put into operation a plan to use intimidation and violence ( impressio et metus ) to ensure the election of a Roman pope. The pope and his curia had returned to Rome after seventy years in Avignon, and the Romans were prepared to do everything in their power to keep them there. On 8 April 1378,

5175-502: The English side over Guy's strong ties with the French court. In a letter Innocent VI himself wrote to the Duke of Lancaster : "Although we were born in France and although for that and other reasons we hold the realm of France in special affection, yet in working for peace we have put aside our private prejudices and tried to serve the interests of everyone." With Pope Urban V (1362–1370),

5290-538: The French court were much stronger than those of his predecessors. At some point he even financed French war efforts out of his own pockets. He reportedly loved luxurious wardrobe and under his rule the extravagant life style in Avignon reached new heights. Clement VI was also pope during the Black Death , the epidemic that swept through Europe between 1347 and 1350 and is believed to have killed about one-third of Europe's population . Also during his reign, in 1348,

5405-509: The French throne up to 1378. Such partisanship of the papacy was one of the reasons for the dropping esteem for the institution, which in turn was one of the reasons for the schism from 1378 to 1417. In the period of the Schism, the power struggle in the papacy became a battlefield of the major powers, with France supporting the antipopes in Avignon and England supporting the popes in Rome . At

5520-437: The French, he fled to Perpignan in 1403. The schism ended in 1417 at the Council of Constance . Among the popes who resided in Avignon, subsequent Catholic historiography grants legitimacy to these: The two Avignon-based antipopes were: Benedict XIII was succeeded by three antipopes, who had little or no public following, and were not resident at Avignon: The period from 1378 to 1417, when there were rival claimants to

5635-623: The Germans from 1940 during World War II and was again spared destruction. On 12 September 1944, it was liberated by the 12th Manitoba Dragoons ' Canadian troops. The liberation of the city was facilitated by the bridge, now known as the Canada Bridge  [ nl ] , connecting the outer municipalities with the city centre. After 1965, the original medieval city experienced a "renaissance". Restorations of residential and commercial structures, historic monuments, and churches generated

5750-602: The Pope was French born and still under strong influence by the French King, the increasing conflict between factions friendly and hostile to the Pope posed a threat to the papal lands and to the allegiance of Rome itself. When the papacy established an embargo against grain exports during a food scarcity 1374 and 1375, Florence organized several cities into a league against the papacy: Milan , Bologna , Perugia , Pisa , Lucca and Genoa . The papal legate, Robert of Geneva,

5865-399: The Pope was also under the influence of Catherine of Siena , later canonized, who preached for a return to Rome. This resolution was short-lived when, having returned the papal court to Rome, Pope Gregory XI died. A conclave met and elected an Italian pope, Urban VI . Pope Urban alienated the French cardinals, who held a second conclave electing one of their own, Robert of Geneva, who took

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5980-574: The Portuguese traders selling pepper and other spices. With the reawakening of town life in the 12th century, a wool market, a woollens weaving industry, and the cloth market all profited from the shelter of city walls, where surpluses could be safely accumulated under the patronage of the counts of Flanders . The city's entrepreneurs reached out to make economic colonies of England and Scotland's wool-producing districts. English contacts brought Normandy grain and Gascon wines. Hanseatic ships filled

6095-427: The Roman pontiff." He was preparing a bull that would excommunicate the King of France and put the interdict over France when in September 1303, William Nogaret , the strongest critic of the papacy in the French inner circle, led a delegation to Rome, with intentionally loose orders by the king to bring the pope, if necessary by force, before a council to rule on the charges brought against him. Nogaret coordinated with

6210-410: The Schism. This new reformist movement held that a general council is superior to the pope on the strength of its capability to resolve ecclesiastical issues. Theorists such as Jean Gerson explained that the priests and the church itself are the sources of the papal power and, thus, the church should be able to correct, punish, and, if necessary, depose a pope. On 18 January 1460, Pope Pius II issued

6325-552: The best in the world, and the population of Bruges grew to at least 46,000 inhabitants at this time around 1350 AD. The new oil-painting techniques of the Flemish school gained world renown. The first book in English ever printed was published in Bruges by William Caxton . Edward IV and Richard III of England were then living in exile in Bruges. Starting around 1500, the Zwin channel, (the Golden Inlet) which had given

6440-506: The bull Salvator Mundi , retracting all privileges granted to the French king by previous popes, and a few weeks later Ausculta fili with charges against the king, summoning him before a council to Rome. In a bold assertion of papal sovereignty, Boniface declared that "God has placed us over the Kings and Kingdoms." In response, Philip wrote "Your venerable conceitedness may know, that we are nobody's vassal in temporal matters," and called for

6555-496: The bull Execrabilis which forbids any attempt to appeal papal judgements by general councils. There was also a marked decline in discipline within the church. Scholars note that the Western Schism effectively eroded the church's authority and its capacity to proclaim the gospel. This dissension and loss of unity ultimately culminated in the Protestant Reformation of the 16th century. For the next five centuries,

6670-489: The cardinal archbishop of Milan, as Alexander V . He reigned briefly in Pisa from June 26, 1409, to his death in 1410, when he was succeeded by, Baldassare Cossa as John XXIII , who achieved limited support. In 1414, Council of Constance was convened by the Pisan pope John XXIII to resolve the schism once and for all. The council was also endorsed by the Roman pope Gregory XII , giving it greater legitimacy. On 6 April 1415,

6785-423: The cardinals of the Colonna family, long-standing rivals against whom the pope had even preached a crusade earlier in his papacy. In 1303 French and Italian troops attacked the pope in Anagni , his home town, and arrested him. He was freed three days later by the population of Anagni. Boniface VIII, then 68 years of age, was deeply shattered by this attack on his own person and died a few weeks later. In reaction to

6900-510: The central commercial and tourist areas; they are not expensive. Bruges' main railway station is the focus of lines to the Belgian coast. It also provides at least hourly trains to all other major cities in Belgium, as well as to Lille in France. Further there are several regional and local trains. A third track is being constructed between Bruges and Dudzele, the junction for Zeebrugge to alleviate congestion. Similarly, two extra tracks are being built between Bruges and Ghent. Bus links to

7015-471: The centre are frequent, though the railway station is just a 10-minute walk from the main shopping streets and a 20-minute walk from Market Square. The national Brussels Airport , one hour away by train or car, offers the best connections. The nearest airport is the Ostend-Bruges International Airport in Ostend (around 25 kilometres (16 miles) from the city centre of Bruges), but it offers limited passenger transport and connections. Recently there also started

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7130-433: The city its prosperity, began silting up and the Golden Era ended. The city soon fell behind Antwerp as the economic flagship of the Low Countries . During the 17th century, the lace industry took off, and various efforts to bring back the glorious past were made. During the 1650s, the city was the base for Charles II of England and his court in exile. The maritime infrastructure was modernized, and new connections with

7245-447: The city itself, in the De Halve Maan Brewery . Bruges is home to many museums. Its art museums include the Arents House, as well as the Groeningemuseum , which has an extensive collection of medieval and early modern art. Members of the 15th century Early Netherlandish school of painters are represented, including works by Jan van Eyck . Van Eyck, as well as Hans Memling , lived and worked in Bruges. The preserved old city gateways:

7360-410: The city of Bruges and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bruges is Donatian of Reims . The St. Salvator's Cathedral is therefore also known as Cathedral of the Saviour and St. Donat . The Basilica of the Holy Blood ( Dutch : Heilig-Bloedbasiliek ) houses the relic of the Holy Blood , which was brought to the city after the Second Crusade by Thierry of Alsace , and is paraded every year through

7475-414: The city to lose its direct access to the sea. A storm in 1134, however, re-established this access, through the creation of a natural channel at the Zwin . The new sea arm stretched to Damme , a city that became the commercial outpost for Bruges. Bruges had a strategic location at the crossroads of the northern Hanseatic League trade, who had a kontor in the city, and the southern trade routes. Bruges

7590-418: The coastal area against pirates. The Franks took over the whole region from the Gallo-Romans around the fourth century and administered it as the Pagus Flandrensis . The Viking incursions of the ninth century prompted Count Baldwin I of Flanders to reinforce the Roman fortifications; trade soon resumed with England and Scandinavia . Early medieval habitation starts in the ninth and tenth centuries on

7705-448: The collegium, and compliance with his demand could mean a severe blow to the church's authority. Much of Clement's politics was designed to avoid such a blow, which he finally did (persuading Phillip to leave the trial to the Council of Vienne, where it lapsed). However, the price won concessions on various fronts; despite strong personal doubts, Clement supported Phillipe's proceedings against the Templars, and he personally ruled to suppress

7820-605: The continued legitimacy of the Roman pope Gregory XII doubtful for 1409–1415. The Annuario Pontificio for 1860 listed the Pisan popes as true popes from 1409 to 1415, but it acknowledged that Gregory XII's reign ended in either 1409 or 1415. The Western Schism was, in practice, reinterpreted in 1958 when Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli chose to reuse the ordinal XXIII upon his election as Pope John XXIII, citing "twenty-two [sic] Johns of indisputable legitimacy." (There had actually been twenty undisputed Johns due to antipopes and numbering errors .) Although Roncalli's declaration of assuming

7935-409: The control by Charles V of France of the papacy became more direct. Urban V himself is described as the most austere of the Avignon popes after Benedict XII and probably the most spiritual of all. However, he was not a strategist and made substantial concessions to the French crown especially in finances, a crucial issue during the war with England. In 1369 Pope Urban V supported the marriage of Philip

8050-424: The convenience of cyclists, allowing two-way cycle traffic on more streets; however, car traffic has not decreased. Nevertheless, in common with many cities in the region, there are thousands of cyclists in the city of Bruges. The port of Bruges is Zeebrugge (Flemish for Bruges-on-Sea). On 6 March 1987, the British ferry MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsized after leaving the port, killing 187 people, in

8165-414: The council issued Haec sancta , stating that the council is the Church's highest governing body and has the authority to remove popes. The council, advised by the theologian Jean Gerson , secured the resignation of Gregory XII and the detention and removal of John XXIII. The Avignon antipope Benedict XIII , who refused to step down, was excommunicated on 27 July 1417, having lost all his supporters in

8280-533: The credentials of the cardinals created by the Roman, Avignon, and Pisan claimants to the Apostolic See. Unity was finally restored without a definitive solution to the question; for the Council of Constance succeeded in terminating the Western Schism, not by declaring which of the three claimants was the rightful one, but by eliminating all of them by forcing their abdication or deposition, and then setting up

8395-526: The culprits who assaulted Boniface were excommunicated and ordered to appear before a pontifical tribunal. Benedict XI died within eight months of being elected to the papacy. After eleven months, Bertrand de Got, a Frenchman and a personal friend of King Philip IV, was elected as pope and took the name Pope Clement V. Beginning with Clement V , elected 1305, all popes during the Avignon papacy were French. However, this makes French influence seem greater than it was. Southern France ( Occitania ) at that time had

8510-544: The customary election process that traditionally allotted this considerable income. Many other forms of payment brought riches to the Holy See and its cardinals: tithes , a ten-percent tax on church property; annates , the income of the first year after filling a position such as a bishopric ; special taxes for crusades that never took place; and many forms of dispensation, from the entering of benefices without basic qualifications like literacy for newly appointed priests to

8625-569: The economic collapse after 1700. Such wealth gave rise to social upheavals, which were for the most part harshly contained by the militia. In 1302, however, after the Bruges Matins (the night-time massacre of the French garrison in Bruges by the members of the local Flemish militia on 18 May 1302), the population joined forces with the Count of Flanders against the French , culminating in

8740-530: The eight cardinals of the Roman conclave offered to refrain from electing a new pope if Benedict would resign; but when Benedict's legates refused on his behalf, the Roman party then proceeded to elect Pope Innocent VII . Discussions continued instead with Innocent, but quickly stalled and by February 1405, and Benedict's envoys had returned to Avignon. Benedict quickly excommunicated Innocent and with an army started marching towards Rome, in May 1405. He occupied Genoa for

8855-430: The end of the century, still in the state of schism, the papacy had lost most of its direct political power, and the nation states of France and England were established as two of the main powers in Europe. Bruges Bruges ( / b r uː ʒ / BROOZH , French: [bʁyʒ] ; Dutch : Brugge [ˈbrʏɣə] ; West Flemish : Brugge [ˈbrœɦə] )

8970-648: The finances of the Church to pay for his war with the English. Pope Boniface VIII protested, leading to a feud. This state of affairs culminated in the unbridled declaration of papal supremacy, Unam sanctam , in November 1302. In that papal bull , Pope Boniface VIII decreed that "it is necessary to salvation that every human creature be subject to the Roman pontiff." This was directed primarily to King Philip IV of France who responded by saying, "Let thy foolishness know that in temporal things we are subject to no man." In 1303 AD, Pope Boniface VIII followed up with

9085-594: The harbor, which had to be expanded beyond Damme to Sluys to accommodate the new cog-ships . In 1277, the first merchant fleet from the Republic of Genoa appeared in the port of Bruges, the first of the merchant colony that made Bruges the main link to the trade of the Mediterranean. This development opened not only the trade in spices from the Levant but also advanced commercial and financial techniques and

9200-679: The influence of the French Crown. In 1376, Gregory XI abandoned Avignon and moved his court to Rome, arriving in January 1377. After Gregory's death in 1378, deteriorating relations between his successor Urban VI and a faction of cardinals gave rise to the Western Schism . This started a second line of Avignon popes, subsequently regarded as illegitimate. The last Avignon antipope , Benedict XIII , lost most of his support in 1398, including that of France . After five years besieged by

9315-536: The intransigence of Popes like Boniface VIII, the French tightened their influence under the papacy, eventually reducing the Popes to puppets and stacking the Papal court with French clerics. The death of Pope Boniface VIII deprived the papacy of its most able politician who could stand against the secular power of the king of France. After the conciliatory papacy of Benedict XI (1303–04), Pope Clement V (1305–1314) became

9430-432: The last moment, and both groups of cardinals abandoned their preferred leaders. The Council of Pisa met in 1409 under the auspices of the cardinals to try solving the dispute. At the fifteenth session, on 5 June 1409, the Council of Pisa attempted to depose both the Roman pope and Avignon antipope as schismatical, heretical, perjured and scandalous, but proceeded to inflame the problem even further by electing Peter Philargi,

9545-399: The memory of Pope Boniface VIII still fresh. The temporal role of the Catholic Church increased the pressure upon the papal court to emulate the governmental practices and procedures of secular courts. The Catholic Church successfully reorganised and centralized its administration under Clement V and John XXII . The papacy now directly controlled the appointments of benefices , abandoning

9660-468: The name Clement VII , to succeed Gregory XI, thus beginning a second line of Avignon popes. Clement VII and his successors are not regarded as legitimate, and are referred to as antipopes by the Catholic Church . This situation, known as the Western Schism , persisted from 1378 until the ecumenical Council of Constance (1414–1418) settled the question of papal succession and declared the French conclave of 1378 to be invalid. A new Pope, Pope Martin V ,

9775-644: The name specified that his decision was made "apart from disputes about legitimacy", this passage was subsequently excised from the version appearing in the Acta Apostolicae Sedis , and the Pisan popes Alexander V and John XXIII have since been classified as antipopes by the Roman Curia. The reinterpretation is reflected in modern editions of the Annuario Pontificio , which extend Gregory XII's reign to 1415. The line of Roman popes

9890-459: The next pontiff . He was born in Gascony , in southern France, but was not directly connected to the French court. He owed his election to the French clerics. He decided against moving to Rome and established his court in Avignon . In this situation of dependency on powerful neighbours in France, three principles characterized the politics of Clement V: the suppression of heretic movements (such as

10005-575: The order. One important issue during the papacy of Pope John XXII (born Jacques Duèze in Cahors , and previously archbishop in Avignon) was his conflict with Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor , who denied the sole authority of the Pope to crown the Emperor. Louis followed the example of Philippe IV, and summoned the nobles of Germany to back his position. Marsilius of Padua justified secular supremacy in

10120-431: The papacy strengthened. Florence came in open conflict with the Pope, a conflict called "the war of the eight saints" in reference to the eight Florentine councilors who were chosen to orchestrate the conflict. The entire city of Florence was excommunicated and as reply the forwarding of clerical taxes was stopped. Trade was seriously hampered and both sides had to find a solution. In his decision about returning to Rome,

10235-542: The pope with seventy errors and seven heresies. The proceedings against the Knights Templar in the Council of Vienne are representative of this time, reflecting the various powers and their relationships. In 1314 the collegium at Vienne convened to make a ruling concerning the Templars. The council, overall unconvinced about the guilt of the order as a whole, was unlikely to condemn the entire order based on

10350-572: The prestige of the Popes as secular leaders of Christendom , with monarchs like those of England , France , and even the Holy Roman Emperor merely acting as marshals for the popes and leading "their" armies. One exception was Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor , who was twice excommunicated by the Pope during a Crusade. Frederick II ignored this and was moderately successful in the Holy Land . King Philip IV of France wanted to use

10465-449: The process. The Council elected Pope Martin V in 1417, essentially ending the schism. Benedict XIII, recognized by King Martin of Aragon in 1397, chose to ignore pleas for his resignation. Benedict died 23 May 1423: to succeed him three cardinals elected Gil Sanchez Munoz y Carbon as Clement VIII . Clement VIII resigned in 1429 and recognized Martin V, putting a definite end to the Avignon Papacy . Conciliarism gained impetus due to

10580-400: The request of a converted Jew to visit his unconverted parents. Popes such as John XXII , Benedict XII , and Clement VI reportedly spent fortunes on expensive wardrobes, and silver and gold plates were used at banquets . Overall the public life of leading church members began to resemble the lives of princes rather than members of the clergy. This splendor and corruption at the head of

10695-550: The rioting Roman crowds. Unable to maintain himself in Anagni, and following the defeat of his forces at the battle of Marino, Clement VII fled to Naples, which was ruled by one of his supporters, Queen Joanna I of Naples . Despite being met regally by Joanna, Clement was met with the populace chanting, "Viva Papa Urbano" (Long Live Pope Urban) and "Muoia l'Anticristo" (Death to the Antichrist), which convinced him to leave. He took

10810-563: The same amount of time as the exile of the Jews in Babylon, making the analogy convenient and rhetorically potent. The Avignon papacy has been and is often today depicted as being totally dependent on the French kings, and sometimes as even being treacherous to its spiritual role and its heritage in Rome. Almost a century and a half later, Protestant reformer Martin Luther wrote his treatise On

10925-589: The scarce evidence brought forward. Exerting massive pressure in order to gain part of the substantial funds of the Order, the King managed to get the ruling he wanted, and Pope Clement V ordered by decree the suppression of the order. In the cathedral of Saint Maurice in Vienne, the King of France and his son, the King of Navarre , were sitting next to him when he issued the decree. Under pain of excommunication , no one

11040-404: The sea were built, but without much success, as Antwerp became increasingly dominant. Bruges became impoverished and gradually faded in importance. The symbolist novelist George Rodenbach made the city into a character in his novel Bruges-la-Morte , meaning "Bruges-the-dead", which was adapted into Erich Wolfgang Korngold 's opera, Die tote Stadt (The Dead City). In the second half of

11155-487: The souls of the examined, taking a lot of time in the proceedings. His interest in pacifying southern France was also motivation for mediating between the King of France and the King of England, before the outbreak of the Hundred Years' War . Under Pope Clement VI (1342–1352) the French interests started dominating the papacy. Clement VI had been Archbishop of Rouen and adviser to Philippe IV before, so his links to

11270-580: The streets of the city. More than 1,600 inhabitants take part in this mile-long religious procession , many dressed as medieval knights or crusaders. Other religious landmarks and museums include the Church of Our Lady , English Convent, Jerusalem Church, St. Trudo's Abbey , Ten Wijngaerde Béguinage ( Dutch : Begijnhof ), and Ter Doest Abbey ( Dutch : Abdij Ter Doest ) in Lissewege . The sub-municipality (or deelgemeente ) and former parish of Bruges Sint-Andries has its own patron saint Andrew

11385-626: The subsequent death of Pope Benedict XI , Philip forced a deadlocked conclave to elect the French Clement V as pope in 1305. Clement refused to move to Rome, and in 1309 he moved his court to the papal enclave at Avignon, where it remained for the next 67 years. This absence from Rome is sometimes referred to as the " Babylonian captivity " of the Papacy (cf. Italian cattività avignonese , i.e. "Avignonese captivity"). A total of seven popes reigned at Avignon, all French , and all under

11500-657: The territory of the Holy Roman Empire. This conflict with the Emperor, often fought out in expensive wars, drove the papacy even more into the arms of the French king. Pope Benedict XII (1334–1342), born Jacques Fournier in Pamiers, was previously active in the inquisition against the Cathar movement. In contrast to the rather bloody picture of the Inquisition in general, he was reported to be very careful about

11615-425: The title of pope, is referred to as the " Western Schism " or "the great controversy of the antipopes" by some Catholic scholars and "the second great schism" by many secular and Protestant historians. Parties within the Catholic Church were divided in their allegiance among the various claimants to the office of pope. The Council of Constance finally resolved the controversy in 1417 when the election of Pope Martin V

11730-497: The transept, is believed to be the only of Michelangelo 's sculptures to have left Italy within his lifetime. Bruges' best-known landmark is the Belfry of Bruges , a 13th-century belfry housing a municipal carillon comprising 47 bells. The Belfry of Bruges, independent of the previously mentioned UNESCO World Heritage Site in Bruges, is included on the World Heritage Site of Belfries of Belgium and France . The city still employs

11845-733: The victory at the Battle of the Golden Spurs , fought near Kortrijk on 11 July. The statue of Jan Breydel and Pieter de Coninck , the leaders of the uprising, can still be seen on the Big Market square. The city maintained a militia as a permanent paramilitary body. It gained flexibility and high prestige through close ties to a guild of the organized militia, comprising professionals and specialized units. Militia men bought and maintained their own weapons and armour, according to their family status and wealth. Later, Bruges would be consumed in

11960-429: The west", referring to the worldly practices of the church hierarchy. The nickname is polemical, in referring to the claim by critics that the prosperity of the church at that time was accompanied by a profound compromise of the papacy's spiritual integrity, especially in the alleged subordination of the powers of the Church to the ambitions of the French kings. As noted, the "captivity" of the popes at Avignon lasted about

12075-696: Was a dangerous development, and beginning in the early 14th century most of these movements were declared heretical . These included the Fraticelli and Waldensian movements in Italy and the Hussites in Bohemia (inspired by John Wycliffe in England). Furthermore, the display of wealth by the upper ranks of the church, which contrasted with the common expectation of poverty and strict adherence to principles,

12190-606: Was accepted by all. Avignon and the small enclave to the east ( Comtat Venaissin ) remained part of the Papal States until 1791 when, under pressure from French Revolutionaries , they were absorbed by the short-lived revolutionary Kingdom of France (1791–92) , which, in turn, was abolished in favor of the French First Republic the following year. The papacy in the Late Middle Ages played

12305-531: Was allowed to speak at that occasion except when asked by the Pope. The Templars who appeared in Vienne to defend their order were not allowed to present their case—the cardinals of the collegium originally ruled that they should be allowed to raise a defense, but the arrival of the King of France in Vienne put pressure on the collegium, and that decision was revoked. After the arrest of the Bishop of Pamiers by Philip IV of France in 1301, Pope Boniface VIII issued

12420-600: Was already included in the circuit of the Flemish and French cloth fairs at the beginning of the 13th century, but when the old system of fairs broke down, the entrepreneurs of Bruges innovated. They developed, or borrowed from Italy, new forms of merchant capitalism, whereby several merchants would share the risks and profits and pool their knowledge of markets. They employed new forms of economic exchange, including bills of exchange (i.e. promissory notes) and letters of credit. The city eagerly welcomed foreign traders, most notably

12535-412: Was also indecisive and impressionable, already an old man when being elected Pope. In this situation, the King of France managed to influence the papacy, although papal legates played key roles in various attempts to stop the conflict. Most notably in 1353 the Bishop of Porto , Guy de Boulogne, tried to set up a conference. After initial successful talks the effort failed, largely due to the mistrust from

12650-399: Was attributed to perceptions of strong French influence, the papal curia 's efforts to extend its powers of patronage, and attempts to increase its revenues. The last Avignon pope, Gregory XI , at the entreaty of relatives, friends, and his retinue, decided to return to Rome on 17 January 1377. Gregory, however, announced his intention to reverse his decision and return to Avignon just after

12765-413: Was elected in 1417; other claimants to succeed to Avignon line (though not resident at Avignon) continued until c. 1437. The period has been called the " Babylonian captivity " of the popes. When and where this term originated is uncertain although it may have sprung from Petrarch , who in a letter to a friend (1340–1353) written during his stay at Avignon, described Avignon of that time as the "Babylon of

12880-475: Was part of Arles, but in reality it was under the influence of the French king. During its time in Avignon, the papacy adopted many features of the Royal court: the life-style of its cardinals was more reminiscent of princes than clerics; more and more French cardinals, often relatives of the ruling pope, took key positions; and the proximity of French troops was a constant reminder of where secular power lay, with

12995-497: Was the period from 1309 to 1376 during which seven successive popes resided in Avignon (at the time within the Kingdom of Arles , part of the Holy Roman Empire , now part of France ) rather than in Rome (now the capital of Italy ). The situation arose from the conflict between the papacy and the French crown , culminating in the death of Pope Boniface VIII after his arrest and maltreatment by Philip IV of France . Following

13110-541: Was ultimately declared heretical. The movement was fueled in no small part by the strong sense of independence in the South even though the region had been severely weakened during the Albigensian Crusade a hundred years before. By the time of the Avignon Papacy, the power of the French King in this region was uncontested, although still not legally binding. A stronger impact was made by the move of

13225-466: Was used by enemies of the papacy to raise charges against the popes; King Philip of France employed this strategy, as did Louis IV, Holy Roman Emperor . In his conflict with the latter, Pope John XXII excommunicated two leading philosophers, Marsilius of Padua and William of Ockham , who were outspoken critics of the papacy, and who had found refuge with Louis IV in Munich . In response, William charged

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