St. Leo III, Pope - Feast day: June 12
(December 26, 795 - June 12, 816)
Leo came from a modest family in southern Italy. He was elected to the office of St. Peter unanimously by the clergy of Rome following the death of Pope Hadrian. The papacy had dramatically changed over the 8th century, and many Pope's had separated themselves from the protection the Byzantine emperors and their governors in Ravenna. Pope Stephen II had, in 754, sought the support of the Frankish king Pepin to defeat the invading Lombards. The pope would receive from Pepin the lands formally conquered by the Lombards, therefore creating the Papal States. The Lombards remained, and Leo soon found that he had other enemies within Rome, many of the aristocratic families of the city including relatives of the late Pope Hadrian who accused the pope of perjury and adultery.
On April 25, 799, Leo was attacked while riding in a procession by a gang who sought to cut out his eyes and tongue. While Leo survived the attack, …More