Avignon Papacy in the 1330s

Timeline

1. 1330–1334Palais des Papes, Avignon · AvignonPope John XXII ruled from Avignon, with the papal court continuing far from Rome. He strengthened papal fiscal collection, intervened in imperial and national disputes, and maintained tense relations with Emperor Louis IV, making Avignon the center of the highest religious authority in Western Europe.
2. 1334–1339Avignon · AvignonAfter his election, Benedict XII continued to use Avignon as the papal seat, expanding the papal palace complex and reforming monastic discipline and the papal bureaucracy. The papacy established a solid temporal power base in Provence while closely watching the escalation of the Anglo-French conflict.
3. 1337–1339Avignon · AvignonWith the outbreak of the Hundred Years' War between England and France, the Avignon Papacy attempted to mediate between King Philip VI of France and England while maintaining ecclesiastical jurisdiction over the emperor and the princes of various realms. Papal envoys traveled between Paris, London, and various courts.