1305–1377

The Avignon Papacy: the 'Babylonian Captivity' of the Church

Clement V, elected in 1305, never once visited Rome. In 1309 he settled in Avignon and appointed almost exclusively French cardinals. Contemporaries, including the Fraticelli, called this the "Babylonian captivity of the church". It lasted nearly 70 years.

John XXII created a system of church taxes to fund a lavish court, which invited charges of simony. Under Clement V the Templar order was destroyed on fabricated charges, and its grand master Jacques de Molay was burned (1307–1314). The order's wealth had obstructed Philip IV's centralization of power.

The papacy served French policy during the Hundred Years' War, alienating England and the empire. The ascetic Catherine of Siena had undergone a mystical "betrothal" to Christ. She waged an energetic letter campaign for the pope's return to Rome. On 17 January 1377 Gregory XI finally entered Rome, ending the Avignon period.