Another Proper Busride: 74. The Palace of the Popes

What a fascinating place this is!

The Palace of the Popes (Palais des Papes) stands as a mighty symbol of the church’s influence throughout the western Christian world in the 14th century.

Construction was started in 1335 and completed in less than twenty years under the leadership of two builder popes, Benedict XII and his successor Clement VI. The Popes’ Palace is the biggest Gothic palace in all of Europe, the equivalent of four Gothic cathedrals.

The cathedral stands to the north side of the Palais and closest to the "rock", the gardens that provide stunning views along the Rhône. The Palais, the Petit-palais, the cathedral, the ramparts of the forecourt and the Pont d'Avignon, together form the UNESCO World Heritage site.

The "rock" overlooks the Rhône. This area was the cradle of the first civilisations to live in this spot 5,000 years ago.

The famous medieval bridge, Pont Saint-Bezere, built in 1177 and abandoned after fatal flood damage in 1669. During the 15th century many windmills were at work on the "rock" and in 1860 the the area was converted to public gardens.

In 1997, the local winemakers guild created this vineyard called The Pope's Vineyard. It is planted with the four main grape varieties of the Côtes du Rhône - Viognier, Grenache blanc, Grenache rouge and Syrah.

Vines have been cultivated in Avignon and the surrounding areas since the time of papal rule in 12th century and were extended to the terraces and hillsides bordering the Rhône during the reigns of Louis XIV and Louis XV.

The Petit-palais, the ramparts and the forecourt are all part of the UNESCO classification. The Petit-palais was used to accommodate important dignitaries of the papal court. It now houses the main museum.

Looking down on the old buildings edging the city-side of the main square, and then across the city of Avignon to the Rhône and its new bridges.

The Palace of the Popes is the biggest building ever built during the Gothic period. It stands in powerful testimony to the presence of nine popes who lived in and reigned from Avignon in the 1300’s.

Construction of the Palace took less than 20 years between 1335 and 1352. Two popes were the primary builders - Pope Benedict XII, who built the first pontifical palace, now referred to as the “Old Palace” on the left, and Pope Clement VI who built new extensions, referred to as the “New Palace” on the right of this huge central courtyard.

This is a plywood model of the front facade, with the footprint of the cathedral on the left.

And this is the rear facade that includes two walled gardens. Basically, the old palace was the four square towers and the walls that joined them, and the new palace is all the pretty bits.

Here's a potted history of the nine Popes who ruled from Avignon (with a good deal of help from the Palais des Papes website)

The first:

The archbishop of Bordeaux was elected Pope in 1305 - he took the name of Clement V. Serious political infighting was afoot in Rome and other places in Italy so, in 1309 he decided to settle in Avignon, a vassal city of the Holy See.

The second:

The supremacy of the French cardinals was soon established and ensured the election of a former bishop of Avignon to the Papal throne in 1316 under the name of John XXII. The political unrest in Italy, the unruliness of the great families and the common people in Rome, persuaded the new Pope to remain in Avignon. He adapted the Episcopal Palace, next to the Cathedral, to the needs of the Pontifical court, and made it larger, more powerful and more beautiful.

The third:

Nevertheless, this Palace did not seem worthy of interest to Benedict XII who pulled it down in 1334 and had another built on the same site - the "Old Palace". It was a large fortress, austere and overpowering, reflecting his taste for sobriety born of his time as a Cistercian monk.

The fourth:

His successor was Clement VI, an aristocrat living a life of great luxury, who found this palace inadequate and unworthy of his Pontifical grandeur, so he had a second one erected nearby in 1342 known as the "New Palace", built in a more flowery style. He entrusted the whole building to a group of painters under the leadership of Matteo Giovannetti of Viterbo. These famous paintings have been preserved and are now in the museum. In 1348, he bought the city of Avignon from Queen Joan of Naples

The fifth:

Innocent VI (1352), whose preoccupation was to bring peace to the Italian territories belonging to the Holy See, brought his predecessor's monumental building work to a close.

The sixth:

Urbain V (1362) extended the gardens.

The seventh:

Gregory XI's (1370) sole concern was to reestablish the Holy See in Rome - which he did in 1376.

And so there followed a period of 39 years, from 1378 -1417, when the Church was split in two with allegiance to two different popes – a pope reigning from Rome and another pope remaining in Avignon. Despite attempts to reach compromise and threats of removal, seven successive popes reigned in Italy while two popes (below) continued to claim Avignon as the true papacy.

The eighth:

In 1378, Clement VII settled in Avignon and continued the cultural and artistic activity prevalent during the years of the Avignon papacy.

The ninth:

In 1394 Benedict XIII found himself in a Church that was deeply split. He was twice deposed yet refused to abandon his tiara. He barricaded himself in the Palace of the Popes and withstood two long sieges. He successfully fled the palace in March 1403 and after years of wandering, took refuge with his last undying supporter, the King of Aragon.

In the early 1400’s, at the end of the Great Schism, papal power returned fully to Rome. The Palace of the Popes became the residence of the Legates (governors), then of the Vice-legates and remained so until the French Revolution after which it was used as a barracks. In the early 1900’s the palace was opened to the public.

Here is a transcript from a board in the palace:

The pontifical residence was both an urban palace and a strong house, the architecture clearly demonstrating the power of the prince of the church.

As a strong house it has defensive features. It is flanked by high towers with very thick walls, topped by turrets for the watchmen. The facades are reinforced and fortified. They are topped by wall walks protected by battlements and pierced by holes for firing arrows. The main entrance gates, reinforced by iron bands, have guard posts.

But several aspects show that the popes of Avignon were preoccupied with making their palace a comfortable and magnificent place to the detriment of building a strong defence. The residence is penetrateable through several openings, the towers are rectangular instead of round, and the monumental ceremonial staircase exemplifies a style that is a long way from military defensive architecture.

In doing so, the Popes were the forerunners of the great Renaissance princes.

Despite the size of the Palace, the Pope occupied only two modest, but beautifully decorated rooms in one of the towers. Above him lived his most trusted advisor. Below him lived his treasurer and below the treasurer was the treasury itself. And below the treasury were secret compartments in the stone floor, not discovered until 1987, in which the Pope's most precious documents, fabrics, jewels and gold were secreted.