Pope Sergius I

Sergius was elected bishop of Rome on 15 December 687, emerging from a deadlock between two rivals, Paschal and Theodore, neither of whom could claim the seat. His papacy became a test of will against Constantinople. The Quinisext Council had issued canons he would not accept, and Emperor Justinian II responded by ordering his arrest. But when the exarch of Ravenna moved to drag Sergius east, the Roman people and the Italian militia refused to hand him over. He held Rome until his death on 8 September 701, a saint to the church he would not let an emperor bend.