Rome and the Invention of the Papacy

Reviews / Votes

'With this book, Rosamond McKitterick makes a powerful contribution to medieval history. Her thorough study demonstrates the construction of the papacy through the act of collective biography embodied in the Liber Pontificalis, enabling us to look with new eyes at the city of Rome during its momentous transition from imperial capital to centre of western Christianity.' Marios Costambeys, University of Liverpool 'McKitterick shows how the Liber pontificalis, never objective or neutral, both chronicled and was itself an instrument in the transformation of Rome from imperial city to Christian capital, a capital in which the popes replaced the Emperor as its master.' Patrick J. Geary, Institute for Advanced Study 'A key narrative on the authority of papal Rome, the Liber pontificalis still carries so much weight that many historians take it for granted. This is no longer possible with Rosamond McKitterick's book at hand. It is an absorbing enquiry into the creation and dissemination of a powerful text.' Mayke de Jong, Utrecht University 'McKitterick's masterful book offers a novel approach to the Liber pontificalis, showing how diligently it shaped medieval views of Christian Rome, of the papacy and of the Church as an institution. She combines careful manuscript scholarship with a thorough explanation of the changing historical context and a broad sweep of ideas. This is a highly rewarding read for anyone interested in medieval Rome, in the formation of the Western Church and in the cultural transformation of post-classical Europe.' Walter Pohl, University of Vienna 'This is the kind of book whose every page makes the reader sit back and think.' Thomas F. X. Noble, Early Medieval Europe 'Beginners will benefit from reading her stimulating book just as much as specialists.' Kordula Wolf, Quellen und Forschungen aus italienischen Archiven und Bibliotheken 'It is through the Liber Pontificalis that we, historians of the 21st century, with all the necessary critical attention of which Rosamond McKitterrick gives a masterful demonstration, still tend to read and understand the history of Rome becoming Christian and of its bishops becoming popes and therefore of the Church, at least in the West.' Michel Sot