Vienne, Council of

Vienne, Council of,

1311–12, 15th ecumenical council of the Roman Catholic Church, held at Vienne, France. It was convened by Pope Clement VClement V,
1264–1314, pope (1305–14), a Frenchman named Bertrand de Got; successor of Benedict XI. He was made archbishop of Bordeaux by Boniface VIII, who trusted him; surprisingly, he was also in some favor at the court of Philip IV, even though Philip and the pope
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 at the behest of Philip IVPhilip IV
(Philip the Fair), 1268–1314, king of France (1285–1314), son and successor of Philip III. The policies of his reign greatly strengthened the French monarchy and increased the royal revenues.
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 of France as a further move in the plan of the French king to destroy the Knights TemplarsKnights Templars
, in medieval history, members of the military and religious order of the Poor Knights of Christ, called the Knights of the Temple of Solomon from their house in Jerusalem.
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. The council voted to hear the knights in their own defense but, under pressure from Philip, reversed itself and recommended that the order be suppressed. The pope dissolved the order by papal bull a few days later. The council also passed minor doctrinal decrees and condemned the errors of the BeghardsBeghards
, religious associations of men in Europe, organized similarly to the Beguines. They resembled a Franciscan group, with whom they were later often confused. Of unknown origin, they first appeared at Louvain in 1220 and soon spread throughout the Netherlands and into
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.