The Dead Pope Put on Trial
Did you know a pope was once put on trial… after he was dead?
In 897 AD, Pope Stephen VI ordered the corpse of his predecessor, Pope Formosus, to be dug up from his grave.
The rotting body was dressed in papal robes and placed on a throne inside the Basilica of St. John Lateran in Rome.
A deacon had to speak on behalf of the corpse while Stephen shouted accusations at the remains.
Unsurprisingly, the corpse was found guilty. Three of his fingers were cut off, and the body was thrown into the Tiber River.
This bizarre event became known as the Cadaver Synod.
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