Donation of Pepin

The Donation of Pepin, or Donation of Pippin, was the transfer of Frankish territory in central Italy to Pope Stephen II made by Pepin the Short, King of the Franks, in 756. Credited with "effectively establishing the temporal authority of the papacy," the Donation took place amid the Byzantine Empire's decline in Italy and marked both "an important moment in the papal–Carolingian alliance" and an "important step" in the formation of the Papal States. With the fall of the imperial capital in Italy, Ravenna, to Aistulf, King of the Lombards in 751, "any semblance of imperial protection for Rome" had evaporated and the pope, who had technically been a Byzantine subject to this point, turned to Pepin for assistance. Pepin invaded Italy and, following an initial victory in 755, he decisively "defeated Aistulf and imposed a peace on him" in 756.

Pepin had promised Italian lands to Stephen II at a meeting in Quierzy, France in April 754. While this earlier promise is "often identified as the Donation," it may have been only verbal and "does not exist in written form." Papal accounts of the 754 promise state that Pepin "granted the pope the exarchate, including Ravenna, and the Roman duchy." In 756, the "Confession of St. Peter," a document listing the cities involved in the Donation, was "placed on the altar of Old St. Peter's Basilica in Rome" along with "keys of the cities and territories in central Italy." The Confession document was created "following Pippin's second invasion of Italy to assist the pope." After his initial invasion in 755, Pepin concluded the First Peace of Pavia, but Aistulf "refused to abide by" this agreement and attacked Rome. Pepin then defeated Aistulf again, imposing "heavy penalties" with the Second Peace of Pavia in 756.

The Donation extended the temporal rule of the popes beyond the duchy of Rome, establishing the "Frankish Papacy" and providing a legal basis for the creation of the Papal States. The Donation was subsequently "confirmed by Pippin's successors, Charlemagne and Louis the Pious, in 778 and 817 respectively," as both "sought to strengthen their ties with the pope." Although the Donation "involved territories that were technically not Pippin's to give," the inability of the Byzantine Empire to control these lands signalled that "the imperial presence in central Italy" was at an end. Before gaining Pepin's help, the pope had in fact appealed to Byzantine Emperor Constantine V, but without results. The Donation of Pepin came at a "critical time in the history of the early Middle Ages," and "had a significant impact on the history of the papal states." The Donation prompted debate "at the time as well as in subsequent historiography" due to the "symbolic importance of the cities involved" and the "practicalities of seeing the agreement implemented," since the donation did not adhere to the Quierzy statement exactly. It has also sparked debate regarding the credibility of the manuscript in which it was referenced. Some scholars take issue with the terminology due to the fact the lands in question were not "donated" in the traditional sense.