Leo IV,
pope from
847 to
855, was a
Roman by birth, and was unanimously chosen to succeed
Sergius II. His pontificate was chiefly distinguished by his efforts to repair the damage done by the
Saracens during the reign of his predecessor to various churches of the city, especially those of St Peter and St Paul. It was he who built and fortified the suburb on the right bank of the
Tiber still known as the
Civiats Leonina. A frightful conflagration, which he is said to have extinguished by his prayers, is the subject of
Raphael's great work in the Sala dell'Incendio of the
Vatican.
He held three synods, one of them in 850, distinguished by the presence of Louis II, but none of them otherwise of importance. The history of the papal struggle with Hincmar of Reims, which began during Leo's pontificate, belongs rather to that of Nicholas I. Benedict III was Leo's immediate successor.
original text taken from the 9th edition (1882) of a famous encyclopedia
