Pope Julius II is called the "Warrior Pope" because he is
the only pope ever to lead troops into battle. The fact that he did this shows how much
the Church was involved in Italian politics.
During this
time, the Pope was not simply the head of a church, but also the temporal ruler of the
Papal States. The Papal States were one of the many little states that made up what we
now call Italy. All of these states were jockeying with each other for increased
power. In the course of these competitions, they would also bring in foreign powers
like France. Therefore, there was a great deal of conflict going on between various
states at essentially all times.
The Church itself (as a
spiritual entity) was also deeply involved in these conflicts. The Pope would, for
example, use his power as the head of the Church to try to advance his temporal goals.
He used his power of excommunication against King Louis of France at one point in an
attempt to weaken France and its allies. At the same time, these allies were trying to
overthrow him and set up a new pope.
In these ways, it is
clear that religious and secular concerns were very much tied up with one another. This
helped to create the turmoil that wracked Italy during this
time.
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