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Originally Posted by FlamesAddiction
The Popes were "also king makers" however, and in a way that made them more powerful in some circumstances. In medieval Europe, no one could be declared the king of a realm or an emperor unless approved by either the Pope or the Orthodox Patriarchy.
This was a big reason why when the Bulgarian king declared himself "emperor", the Byzantine Empire (home of the Orthodox Patriarchy) and Croatia (on behalf of the Pope) declared war on Bulgaria and eventually defeated them. Incidentally, the Byzantine emperor rewarded Croatia with parts of Dalmatia for their part in the war.
Of course, pagan areas of Europe didn't adhere to any of that, but their kingdoms were not very organized to begin with.
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All true, however a touch simplified. Different princes and/or kings had personal relationships or personal tiffs with different popes. If a pope endorsed one son to become the next king of a particular realm, but the other son ended up succeeding his father, said son wouldn't give a rats ass about the pope's blessing. Whereas other times, people would go out of the way to seek the popes blessing or endorsement. Sometimes personal agendas trumped convention or law.
Extremely interesting history. I love that kind of stuff.