The Via Papalis
Title
The Via Papalis
Description
The road most of the procession would follow along was known as the via Papalis, or the road of the Pope. The via Papalis was the main road that connected the Vatican, the papal residence and home of St. Peter’s Basilica, to the Basilica of St. John Lateran, the official cathedral of Rome. This road was one of the most desirous streets to live on or have a business in medieval Rome due to its prestige as a papal road and its accessibility to Rome’s most important secular and religious sites, such as the Vatican and the Capitoline Hill. It was home to the two wealthiest communities in Rome: the old Roman nobility and members of the papal bureaucracy and curia who had arrived following the pope’s return from Avignon in 1377.
The pope’s return from Avignon doubled the population of Rome as he brought over the papal bureaucracy and business followed suit. This led to the transformation of the via Papalis as new palaces were constructed to house this inflow of residents, as well as conflict between the old Roman elite and new papal curia. Often times the pope enacted policies that favored new curia and penalized native Romans such as granting these new members construction permits and privileges over members of the old elite. To increase papal control along the via Papalis, the pope demolished porticoes, some of the most important spaces in the city where business and legal matters were conducted. The destruction of porticos and widening of narrow streets served to improve papal defense in the chance of a revolt.
In this way, the via Papalis became the theater for tensions between the old and new elite which manifested themselves in the utilization of space and construction of palaces. When the pope processed down the via Papalis, he would often have been facing the people most critical of him: old noble Romans. As the pope walked along the road during his coronation, a member of his cavalcade would toss coins into the crowd. By completing the papal procession along this route, traversing the territory of the Roman elite and the most important religious and secular sites, the pope claimed to unify and dominate the city, often provoking stoning and rioting in the process.
The pope’s return from Avignon doubled the population of Rome as he brought over the papal bureaucracy and business followed suit. This led to the transformation of the via Papalis as new palaces were constructed to house this inflow of residents, as well as conflict between the old Roman elite and new papal curia. Often times the pope enacted policies that favored new curia and penalized native Romans such as granting these new members construction permits and privileges over members of the old elite. To increase papal control along the via Papalis, the pope demolished porticoes, some of the most important spaces in the city where business and legal matters were conducted. The destruction of porticos and widening of narrow streets served to improve papal defense in the chance of a revolt.
In this way, the via Papalis became the theater for tensions between the old and new elite which manifested themselves in the utilization of space and construction of palaces. When the pope processed down the via Papalis, he would often have been facing the people most critical of him: old noble Romans. As the pope walked along the road during his coronation, a member of his cavalcade would toss coins into the crowd. By completing the papal procession along this route, traversing the territory of the Roman elite and the most important religious and secular sites, the pope claimed to unify and dominate the city, often provoking stoning and rioting in the process.
Creator
Grace Brindle (2021)
Source
Cafà, Valeria. “The via Papalis in Early Cinquecento Rome: a Contested Space between Roman Families and Curials.” Urban History 37, no. 3 (2010): 434–51. doi:10.1017/S0963926810000556.
Partridge, Loren. The Art of the Renaissance in Rome, 1400-1600. London: Laurence King Publishers, 2012.
Partridge, Loren. The Art of the Renaissance in Rome, 1400-1600. London: Laurence King Publishers, 2012.
Date
1377
Identifier
viapapalis_2019
Coverage
Spatial Coverage
Via dei Banchi Nuovi, 00186 Roma RM
Description
The road most of the procession would follow along was known as the via Papalis, or the road of the Pope. The via Papalis was the main road that connected the Vatican, the papal residence and home of St. Peter’s Basilica, to the Basilica of St. John Lateran, the official cathedral of Rome. This road was one of the most desirous streets to live on or have a business in medieval Rome due to its prestige as a papal road and its accessibility to Rome’s most important secular and religious sites, such as the Vatican and the Capitoline Hill. It was home to the two wealthiest communities in Rome: the old Roman nobility and members of the papal bureaucracy and curia who had arrived following the pope’s return from Avignon in 1377.The pope’s return from Avignon doubled the population of Rome as he brought over the papal bureaucracy and business followed suit. This led to the transformation of the via Papalis as new palaces were constructed to house this inflow of residents, as well as conflict between the old Roman elite and new papal curia. Often times the pope enacted policies that favored new curia and penalized native Romans such as granting these new members construction permits and privileges over members of the old elite. To increase papal control along the via Papalis, the pope demolished porticoes, some of the most important spaces in the city where business and legal matters were conducted. The destruction of porticos and widening of narrow streets served to improve papal defense in the chance of a revolt.
In this way, the via Papalis became the theater for tensions between the old and new elite which manifested themselves in the utilization of space and construction of palaces. When the pope processed down the via Papalis, he would often have been facing the people most critical of him: old noble Romans. As the pope walked along the road during his coronation, a member of his cavalcade would toss coins into the crowd. By completing the papal procession along this route, traversing the territory of the Roman elite and the most important religious and secular sites, the pope claimed to unify and dominate the city, often provoking stoning and rioting in the process.
Creator
Grace Brindle (2021)Date
1377Coverage
1300sSource
Cafà, Valeria. “The via Papalis in Early Cinquecento Rome: a Contested Space between Roman Families and Curials.” Urban History 37, no. 3 (2010): 434–51. doi:10.1017/S0963926810000556.Partridge, Loren. The Art of the Renaissance in Rome, 1400-1600. London: Laurence King Publishers, 2012.