Sergius III

Sergius III, succeeded Christopher as pope in 904 and reigned till 911. His pontificate, so far as is known, was remarkable for nothing but the rise of the pornocracy of Theodora and her daughters. Sergius restored the Lateran palace, which had been shattered by an earthquake.

Sergius was also known for reaffirming the decisions made against Pope Formosus in the Cadaver Synod. He even went so far as to place a laudatory remark on Pope Stephen VII's tombstone. Sergius declared that the ordinations conferred by Formosus were invalid, and demanded all Bishops ordained by Formosus be re-ordained. By then the Bishops involved had ordained a number of others, and this caused a great amount of confusion. The decision of Sergius was not upheld following his death.

Sergius was not well regarded following his death, and had come to be seen as a murderer and immoral man. After him, Anastasius sat on the pontifical throne.

Preceded by Christopher

Pope (list)

Succeeded by Anastasius III

from the 9th edition (1886) of an unnamed encyclopedia.