Leo IV (pope)

Leo IV (Rome,? – July 17, 855) was the 103rd.er pope of the Catholic Church, from 847 to 855.

Arciprest with Gregory IV and subdeacon with Sergio II, Leo was a cardinal when he was unanimously elected pope.

His accession to the pontificate was marked by the sack of Rome at the hands of the Saracens in 846.

The only defense provided by the city was the wall that the emperor Aurelian built in the III century and it did not include the Vatican Hill where at the beginning of the IV century the first St. Peter's Basilica was built where the treasures of the Church. The looting of the treasure and the desecration suffered by the apostle's own tomb led Leo IV to begin the mulching of the Vatican hill and the area around Saint Peter's Basilica, giving rise to what is now known as the “Leonine City”.

He also encouraged the formation of a league with the Byzantine cities of Naples, Gaeta and Amalfi to create a unified fleet with which to face the Saracens who were ravaging the Italian coast, managing to defeat them in the naval battle that took place off Ostia in 849. This victory was immortalized by Raphael in some frescoes painted in the Vatican Palace.

This same painter reflected in his work "Fire of the Burgo" the fire that suffered one of the districts of Rome and that according to tradition was miraculously put out by the Pope.

In the doctrinal order, he convened and celebrated three synods during his pontificate, one of which, held in 850, was attended by Louis II the Younger, but which were of little importance.

He confirmed to the Venetians their right to elect the Doge and was the first pontiff to date official documents.

He died on July 17, 855 and was buried in St. Peter's Basilica.

Leo IV in popular culture

• In the Vikingos series, John Kavanagh interprets this pope in the ninth episode of the fourth season.
• In the film The Pope John (1972), Trevor Howard incarnates this holy father.