PART III.

THE

HE third period of ecclefiaftical history, will prefent to our view the Romish hierarchy ftill more fully established, and the Pope of Rome ufurping more extenfive power, and ruling with defpotic fway, both as a spiritual and fecular prince.

I have had occafion to mention the formidable irruptions made into the empire at different times, particularly in the fifth and fixth centuries, by the Goths, Vandals, Lombards, Burgundians, the Huns, Franks, and other barbarous nations. They rushed in amazing multitudes from the northern parts of Germany, from about the Baltic, from Sweden, Denmark, and Tartary, and like a mighty deluge fpread devaftation wherever they came. Thefe fierce and mighty conquerors difmembered and fhared the Roman empire among them. The kings of the Goths were for a confiderable time mafters of almost all Italy, the north parts chiefly falling to the fhare of the Lombards. Narfes, General of Juftinian's army, reduced the power of the Goths, and re-established the dominion of the Greek Emperors in the year 553. The Lombards, who came from Pannonia, ravaged Italy in 568, and made large fettlements there. The Exarchs O

of

of Ravenna, who ruled under the Greek Emperors, endeavoured to expel them, maintained a long war against that people, and at last brought them into a kind of fubjection. Various revolutions and many civil occurrences enfued, extraneous to our plan, or inconsistent with the brevity of it. But the Lombards obtaining poffeffion of a great part of Italy, did, in confederacy with other northern nations, lay fiege to Rome A. D. 755. Pepin, king of France, to which dignity he was exalted by the Pope, was prevailed on to march to the relief of the imperial city. He raised the fiege, obtained feveral victories over the Lombards, recovered Ravenna out of their hands, and this with the adja cent territory, together with the dominion of Rome, he conferred upon the Pope A. D. 756, who thereby became a temporal prince *. The Lombards endeavoured to regain Ravenna, whereupon Charlemagne, the fon of Pepin, invaded Lombardy, and took Didier the last king prisoner. He confirmed Rome and Ravenna to the Pope, to which he added, in a very princely manner, the Marquifate of Ancona, and the Dutchy of Spoletto or Umbria, A. D. 774. Thus the Roman Pontif was exalted to the dignity and opulence of a

fecular

*A confiderable part of the book of Revelation, does, with evident propriety, relate to the Church of Rome. Among other paffages the following one is applied to the Pope, viz. ch. xiii. v. 18. "Here is wifdom. Let him that hath un"derstanding count the number of the beaft; for it is the "number of a man: And his number is fix hundred, three "score and fix." The celebrated Sir Ifaac Newton decyphers it thus: The words λalvos and ", the man of La. tium, or of Rome, confift of numeral letters, which taken together, make 666. This number of years from the date of the Revelations, which was about A. D. 90, brings us to the year 756, which remarkably coincides with the precife time I have pitched on, at which period the Roman Pontif became a

tem

fecular monarch, put in poffeffion of a large extent of territory, and invested with new powers and titles. This gave fresh additional luftre to his former rank and grandeur, emboldened his ambitious pretenfions, and enabled him more effectually to profecute his schemes of abfolute fupremacy.

In return for all these mighty favours, the Pope Leo III. crowned Charlemagne Emperor of the Romans A. D. 800.

It may here be remarked as a kind of key to the original hiftory of Europe, that a new empire was thus founded in the weft, which comprehended Italy, France, Germany, and part of Spain. The emperors themselves fixing their refidence in Germany, divided Italy into feveral diftricts and governments. The governors of these different provinces at last affumed to themselves a fovereign power; and fome of them purchased with confiderable fums of money grants from the Emperor, confirming their respective titles, by which, feparate ftates and principalities came to be erected. In imitation of this, and in procefs of time, alfo from a concurrence of various events, France, Spain, and other European provinces were also disjoined, and formed into diftinct independent kingdoms, fuch as in general fubfift at this day.

I may likewife obferve, tho' by way of anticipation, that the Popes did for a long time acknowledge,

temporal power, represented by a beast according to prophetic language. From this as a kind of key, and from a variety of other circumstances, is the æra of the fall of Babylon to be calculated. Mr Fleming, who is followed in this opinion by Sir Ifaac Newton and Mr Lowman, reckons, that the reign of popery is to continue from that time, viz. 756, for the space of 1260 years, and that about the year 2016, or 2000, the papacy will be entirely destroyed, and that then the Millenium will commence.

ledge, that they held their territories of the Emperor, who was confidered the grand patron and protector of the Church. This continued to be the cafe until the reign of the Emperor Henry IV. The Roman Pontif, particularly Gregory VII. tired of fubjection, and obferving how the Emperors fometimes opposed, at other times annulled the election to the Papal-chair, fhook off his allegiance, embroiled the Emperor's affairs in Germany and Italy, excited infurrections against him, and even excommunicated his imperial master. And indeed the ufurpations of the Pontif upon the prerogatives of the Emperor, occafioned frequent wars between them, of which the Italian princes availed themfelves, and thereby procured for their respective ftates, peculiar powers and privileges from the contending parties, who courted their alliance.

The annual revenues of the Pope, may amount to one million Sterling, chiefly raifed by a monopoly of corn, and from duties on wine and various other provisions. He lives in great fplendor and magnificence, and always makes his appearance with distinguished state and folemnity. He is defpotic in his own dominions, and regulates the administration of civil government by himself alone, and fuch officers as are of his fole nomination. The conclave of Cardinals only intermeddle with ecclefiaftical affairs, who are feventy in number, and whofe vacancies are filled up by the Pope's appointment. His ecclefiaftical dominion is far fuperior to his temporal. The fecular Clergy have a great dependance upon him, but the Monks and Regulars are entirely at his devotion, and may be accounted his militia, or indeed a kind of standing army, ready to obey his orders. They are in all computed

* Paul IV. boafted of having 288,000 parifhes, and 44,000 monaftries under his jurifdiction.