Pope Sergius III

Born around 860, Sergius came to power on 29 January 904 when Theophylact I of Tusculum backed his violent seizure of the papal throne from Antipope Christopher, who had just deposed Leo V. Contemporary sources accused Sergius of ordering both predecessors killed. Once installed, he governed under Theophylact's heavy influence during a period of aristocratic warfare over the papacy's resources. His reign carried forward old ecclesiastical feuds: he annulled every ordination performed by the late Pope Formosus, clashed with eastern patriarchs over the filioque, and supported Byzantine Emperor Leo VI's controversial fourth marriage while refusing to crown Berengar I as Holy Roman Emperor. He also oversaw the restoration of the Lateran Palace. Rumors persisted that he fathered an illegitimate son with Theophylact's daughter - a boy who later became Pope John XI. Sergius died 14 April 911, leaving a pontificate historians have called both disgraceful and ruthlessly efficient.