Note 321:5 — Chapter XIV · RELATION OF THE CHURCH AND STATE UP TO THE DISSOLUTION OF THE CAROLINGIAN EMPIRE
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He did insist, however, upon his dominion over Rome and over the Pope as his vassal. Pope Stephen IV. at once caused the Romans to swear fealty to the Emperor and ordained that the consecration of the Pope must take place in the presence of the imperial ambassadors. His son Lothair was crowned Emperor in Rome and repeatedly repaired thither to protect the Holy See. Another son, Louis, was also anointed king by Pope Sergius in Rome. This act strengthened the papal claim to control elections to secular power. In 871 Louis II. acknowledged his divine right to imperial rule to be derived from papal sanction. Another step was taken when the council of Aix-la-Chapelle deposed Emperor Lothair (842).