The Church gave its blessing to king and emperors, this was evident with the crowning of Charlemange by Pope Leo III on Christmas day. ... Pope Nicholas had sought to reform the church and enrich it but his efforts gave way. Alexander VI bribing of the cardinals to win his election to the papal throne was another smudge upon the church. ... The core stance of the councilor idea was that the general council of the church was the supreme judicature over prelates and popes. ... When Pope Leo X began to realized the impact of Luther's teaching he began by trying to silence him. ...

• Word Count: 2257
• Approx Pages: 9
• Has Bibliography
• Grade Level: High School

For example, Machiavelli discusses the way in which Pope Alexander VI's pursuit to make his son a duke ultimately left him engaged in destructive warfare, with only partial control of his land, and caught between two powerful armies. ...

• Word Count: 1464
• Approx Pages: 6
• Grade Level: Undergraduate