Pope Martin IV
Researched By Jessica Zwalua
Kalamazoo Valley Community College
Spring 2007

Historical Note:
He was born in 1210 at the castle of Montpensier in Touraine, France. His real name is Simon de Brie. When he was a priest he became a canon and treasurer at St. Martins church (in Tours). He was made Chancellor of France in 1260 by King Louis IX. Charles of Anjou, King Louis brother, became a good counselor to Simon de Brie. Simon would later be dependant on him for many things. In a year Pope Urban VI made him a cardinal-priest of the St. Cecilia church. He was later sent back to France by Pope Gregory X (1271-1276) to be a good representative of the Catholic Church and to bring attention to the abuses within the church. He reigned over many councils, the most important being Bourges in 1276.

Six months after Pope Nicholas IIIs death, Simon de Brie was unanimously elected Pope on February 22, 1281. His acquaintance Charles of Anjou caused two very influential cardinals to miss the nomination of the Pope by imprisoning them for retarding the election. Simon de Brie took the Pope name of Martin IV (even though he was only the 2nd Martin because someone miscounted the number of Martins and mistook it for Marinus.) He was dependant in everything on Charles of Anjou whom he at one time appointed as the Roman Senator.

The Pope excommunicated Michael Palaeologus who opposed Charles of Anjou. Pope Martin IV brought his entire power into command to assist Charles of Anjou in his fight. Sicily gave its hatred of Charles of Anjou and of France for its massacre known as the Sicilian Vespers. The Pope used his power to save Sicily for France by excommunicating Peter III the Great. He then announced a crusade (known as the Aragonese Crusade or the Crusade of Aragon) against the Sicilians (the leaders King of Aragon and Peter III the Great.) In May of 1284, Roger of Lauria blockaded Naples. The Neapolitans were upset by this and decided to launch a huge attack in June to destroy the blockading squadron. Roger of Lauria had learned of his plans and ended up capturing Charles and most of his crew. Anti-French riots began to occur in Naples upon hearing news of this reverse attack. The Pope had compromised the Papacy and botched the secular Crusades. There was a rebellion against Charles. The Pope said that Sicily was a fee owned to them because Peters grandfather surrendered it as a payment to the Holy See. The Pope gave it to Charles. A historian by the name of H. J. Chaytor said the Aragonese Crusade was perhaps the most unjust, unnecessary and calamitous enterprise ever undertaking by the Capetian monarchy. The Pope died in Perugia, Italy on March 28th 1285 of natural causes.

Reflection on historical fact, and integration to the Pied Piper story:
I believe the Pope tried to be a good man but politics interfered. He was a well-meaning and a very pious man. He only wanted to do what was best for his followers but he took too much advice from Charles of Anjou. He felt he owed it to him. The Pope wants the piper to bring the children to him because he wants them to fight in his Crusade. He thinks that this will be the best way to surprise the Sicilians. He has devoted all that he has into his crusade. The Pope just basically had a bad friend that gave him a lot of bad advice.

The Pope is a sacred man. He is a man that cannot make a decision for himself. He is afraid that he will make the wrong decision so he listens to the advice of others. The Pope takes the children and gives them to Charles of Anjou to train for the war just like Charles wanted. He thought that they would be the best for his war because they are not recognizable as French soldiers. They could also sneak very easily into Sicily without being spotted.

Questions for Reflection:
Would the Pope really have turned the children over to be trained as soldiers?

What was the true function of the childrens crusade?

Why is the story of the Pope important to the Pied Piper story?

In 1284, Germany was part of the Holy Roman Empire. Who ruled over this area during this time frame?

Citation:
Papal States. World Book. CD-ROM. Chicago, IL: TOPICS Entertainment. 2002.