Back منحة قسطنطين ARZ Константинов дар Bulgarian Konstantinova darovnica BS Donació de Constantí Catalan Konstantinova donace Czech Konstantinische Schenkung German Δωρεά του Κωνσταντίνου Greek Donaco de Konstanteno EO Donación de Constantino Spanish Constantinuse kingitus ET
The Donation of Constantine (Latin: Donatio Constantini) is a forged Roman imperial decree by which the 4th-century emperor Constantine the Great supposedly transferred authority over Rome and the western part of the Roman Empire to the Pope. Composed probably in the 9th century, it was used, especially in the 13th century, in support of claims of political authority by the papacy.[1][2]
In many of the existing manuscripts, including the oldest, the document bears the title Constitutum domini Constantini imperatoris.[3] The Donation of Constantine was included in the 9th-century Pseudo-Isidorean decretals. Lorenzo Valla, an Italian Catholic priest and Renaissance humanist, is credited with first exposing the forgery with solid philological arguments in 1439–1440,[4] although the document's authenticity had been repeatedly contested since 1001.[1]
- ^ a b Vauchez, Andre (2001). Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages. Routledge. p. 445. ISBN 978-1-57958-282-1.
- ^ Cushing, Kathleen G. (September 29, 2005). Reform and the papacy in the eleventh century: Spirituality and social change. Manchester University Press. p. 58. ISBN 978-0719058349.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
WikisourceCatholicEncyclopedia1913was invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Whelton, M. (1998). Two Paths: Papal Monarchy – Collegial Tradition. Salisbury, MA: Regina Orthodox Press. p. 113.