Anagni#Outrage of Anagni
The so-called assassination of Anagni on September 7, 1303 was the end of a long conflict between Pope Boniface VIII and the French King Philip IV
Background
The conflict between the Pope and King had been looming years earlier. Background was the policy of Philip, who wanted to tax the clergy in 1296, in order to finance the war against England, what significant opposition of the Curia with the result. In response, Philip 1296 forbade the export of valuables from France, what the Papsthof section of the duties of the French benefices. 1301 supported the Pope Saisset Bernard, bishop of Pamiers, the Philippines had been arrested for criticizing his rule. Apparently, however, the Pope overestimated his power: In the Bull Unam Sanctam he formulated in 1302 the papal claim to power in never seen before form, whereupon they answered the Paris court with several refutations ( see, eg, John Quidort of Paris).
Course
End of August, the rumor had spread that Boniface intend to impose on September 8 at the portal of the cathedral of Anagni, where the popes of the time were staying during the summer months by an appropriate bull Philip because of his arrogant behavior with a curse, its to absolve subjects from their oath of allegiance and to explain the transactions undertaken by him alliances void.
Philip Chancellor Guillaume de Nogaret was able to form an alliance with the influential Sciarra Colonna, a Roman aristocrat whose family was at enmity with the Caetani, the Pope's family, because of disputes over land in Latium. In the morning hours of September 7, 1303 a group of armed men came, led by Nogaret and Colonna to the palace of the pope in Anagni. Boniface should have been almost alone, according to the sources at this time and have set themselves only with the rod cross in his hand to defend. They threatened Boniface and asked him to resign. When he " Here is my neck, here is my main " rejected this by saying, they beat him, mocked him, saying she threw him a donkey fur as a coat and held him captive in his own palace. On 9 September, the citizens Anagnis liberated the Pope and drove the attackers. Nevertheless, the already 68 -year-old pope was taken away by the events so that it four weeks later, now returned to Rome, died.
The pope, who learned through this act a deep humiliation came in the following years in an ever -increasing dependence on the French king, so that 1309 was moved, even for several decades, the pope based in the city of Avignon, who then officially part of the Holy Roman Empire was, but was in the sphere of influence of the Kingdom of France (see Avignonesisches papacy ).
Due to a translation error, the event went down in history as a slap of Anagni. Manus inicere only means " someone " take. There is no evidence that Nogaret would have the Pope literally slapped out of his office.