Sword and hat

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Henry II, King of France , receives a consecrated sword , drawing by Sébastien Le Clerc the Elder. J. (1676–1763), on the right the bearer of the consecrated hat

The sword and hat (also known as the Pope's sword with the sole reference to the sword handed over ) were a papal award for services to the Catholic Church as a “defender of the faith” ( Fidei defensor ) from the end of the Middle Ages until the beginning of the 19th century could be awarded.

background

Ceremonial sword and hat (often designed as a ducal crown ) were consecrated by the Pope and given to a man in a traditional ceremony during a service, and more rarely to an organization, a state or a nation. If the recipient could not be present at the Pope's seat , the sword and hat were consecrated by the Pope in the absence of the recipient and then delivered by a papal envoy . The award with a consecrated sword and hat replaced the golden rose for male recipients , which as a gift of honor from the Pope has mainly been reserved for women since the 17th century.

History of the award of the consecrated sword and hat

The first reliably datable awarding of a consecrated sword to a recipient known by name took place in 1386 when Pope Urban VI. presented the gonfaloniere of Lucca with a consecrated sword and a consecrated cap ( pileus ) on Christmas Day . The tradition of presenting a consecrated sword with a cap to a prince or general for Christmas in the Vatican lasted from the early 15th century to the 17th century .

From the beginning of the 17th century, the Golden Rose was only awarded to queens, princesses and important nobles. Instead, emperors, kings and princes received a sword - the pope's sword - as the more appropriate gift, which was brought to them on Sunday by a papal legate or nuncio from Laetare . If, on the other hand, a Catholic emperor, king or important prince was present in Rome on Laetare Sunday , he would also receive the Golden Rose .

Pope Leo XII. presented the last papal sword to the Duke of Angoulême in 1823 for the storming of the Trocadero .

Design of sword and hat

Angel with a consecrated sword and hat in the left hand . Woodcut by Leonhard Beck , 1518

The sword and hat were new and individually designed works of art each year, designed by the most respected goldsmiths, jewelers, furriers and swordsmiths of their time, and the production of which required ever larger sums. The costs for the production of the award are known, since from the pontificate of Martin V (1417–1431) payment receipts for the production of the swords have been handed down, even if they cannot always be assigned to a recipient.

The sword was a long sword , usually made of silver, decorated with gold; the scabbard was covered with velvet and set with jewels. According to the recipient and the reason for the award, the swords were engraved with a dedication. After the conquest of Constantinople by the Ottomans in 1453, Pope Pius II , whose pontificate began in 1458, focused his energies on strengthening the power of the Pope and suppressing the “unbelievers”. When the French King Louis XI. In 1461, when the Pragmatic Sanction of Bourges was lifted, Pius II received the news "with tears of joy in his eyes", because France now belonged to Rome again, and the planned crusade against the Ottoman Empire was strengthened. Pius II promptly sent King Ludwig XI. sword and hat the following year. The scabbard was decorated with gold and precious stones and provided with a call to fight in the form of a poem that Pius II had written:

“EXERAT IN TVRCAS TVA ME, LUDOVICE, FVRENTES
DEXTERA; GRAIORVM SANGVINIS VLTOR ERO.
CORRVET IMPERIVM MAVMETHIS ET INCLYTA RVRSVS
GALLORVM VIRTVS TE PETET ASTRA DVCE. ”

“Let your right hand, Ludwig, pull me against the angry Turks. I will be the avenger of the blood of the Greeks. The kingdom of Muhammad will crumble to dust and the courage of the French will rise again to the stars under your leadership. "

- Pius II : dedication of the sword to Louis XI. (1461)

The consecrated hat - in a typical description from the 15th century - was a ducal hat made of beaver fur , set in ermine fur and embroidered with pearls in the shape of a dove, which represented the Holy Spirit . Symbolically, the Holy Spirit should watch over the ruler's head, protect him in battle, guide his sword-wielding arm and lead him to victory over the enemy; just as Christ triumphs over the devil.

Known recipients of swords and hats

Unless otherwise stated, the year numbers indicate the year the sword was consecrated:

literature

  • Elisabeth Cornides: Rose and Sword in Papal Ceremony - from the beginning to the pontificate of Gregory XIII . Geyer, Vienna 1967. (Dissertation in history at the University of Vienna .)
  • Golden rose . In: Charles G. Herbermann (Ed.): " The Catholic Encyclopedia  : an international work of reference on the constitution, doctrine, discipline and history of the Catholic church". The Encyclopedia Press, New York 1913.
  • Hermann Heimpel : Royal Christmas Service at the Councils of Constance and Basel . In: Norbert Kamp (ed.): "Tradition as historical force". De Gruyter, Berlin 1982, ISBN 3-11-008237-3 , pp. 388-411. (Festschrift for Karl Hauck )
  • Bernhard Schimmelpfennig : The ceremonial books of the Roman Curia in the Middle Ages . Niemeyer, Tübingen 1973, ISBN 3-484-80060-7 . (Volume 40 of the library of the German Historical Institute in Rome, habilitation thesis at the Free University of Berlin )
  • Flynn Warmington: The Ceremony of the Armed Man: the Sword, the Altar and the "Le'homme armé" Mass . In: Paula Marie Higgins (Ed.): "Antoine Busnoys: Method, Meaning, and Context in Late Medieval Music". Clarendon Press, Oxford 1999, ISBN 0-19-816406-8 , pp. 89-132.

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b c Flynn Warmington: The Ceremony of the Armed Man . In: Paula Marie Higgins (Ed.): "Antoine Busnoys: Method, Meaning, and Context in Late Medieval Music". Oxford 1999, p. 109.
  2. ↑ Flynn Warmington: The Ceremony of the Armed Man . In: Paula Marie Higgins (Ed.): "Antoine Busnoys: Method, Meaning, and Context in Late Medieval Music". Oxford 1999, pp. 111-112.
  3. ^ A b Flynn Warmington: The Ceremony of the Armed Man . In: Paula Marie Higgins (Ed.): "Antoine Busnoys: Method, Meaning, and Context in Late Medieval Music". Oxford 1999, p. 110.
  4. ^ A b Elisabeth Cornides: Rose and sword in the papal ceremony . Vienna 1967, pp. 95/96.
  5. ↑ Flynn Warmington: The Ceremony of the Armed Man . In: Paula Marie Higgins (Ed.): "Antoine Busnoys: Method, Meaning, and Context in Late Medieval Music". Oxford 1999, p. 124.
  6. ↑ Kunsthistorisches Museum Wien, 16th century: Illustration and description (click on the image of the sword) ( Memento from November 16, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
  7. ^ Ian Lancashire: Preface . In: “Two Tudor interludes”. Manchester University Press ND, 1980, ISBN 0719015235 , pp. 19-20.
  8. ↑ Histoire des papes: Histoire de Paul IV. (PDF; 4.4 MB)
Papal orders and decorations
medal

Order of Christ  • Order of the Golden Spur  • Order of Pius  • Order of Gregorius  • Order of New Year

Badge of honor

Pro Ecclesia et Pontifice  • Benemerenti  • Jerusalem pilgrim cross