Christian History Home > Issue 34 > Martin Luther's Early Years: A Gallery of Friends and Enemies
Martin Luther's Early Years: A Gallery of Friends and Enemies
Luther made plenty of both
Paul Thigpen, a professional writer, is a doctoral candidate at Emory University in Atlanta, Georgia. | posted 4/01/1992 12:00AM
Leo X (1475–1521)
Prodigal pope who sought income from indulgences
Extravagant son of a notorious Renaissance family, Giovanni de’ Medici was made a cardinal at the age of 13 and became Pope Leo X at 38. He has been described as “a polished Renaissance prince,” and “a devious and double-tongued politician.” Pleasure-loving and easy-going, Leo went on a wild spending spree as soon as he ascended the papal throne.
Expenses for his coronation festivities alone cost 100,000 ducats—one seventh of the reserve Pope Julius had left in the papal treasury. Leo’s plans for rebuilding St. Peter’s Basilica were estimated to cost over a million ducats. Within two years as pope, Leo had squandered the fortune left by his predecessor and was in serious financial embarrassment.
To keep up with his expenditures, his officials created more than two thousand saleable church offices during his reign. The estimated total profits from such offices have been estimated at three million ducats—but still they were not ... To view this item, you must be a member of ChristianHistory.net.
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