WORLD HISTORY

Detailed explanation-1: -The Pope only grew more powerful than the Emperor in Western Europe, when Imperial authority collapsed after the 5th century. Then and only then could the Pope take control.

Detailed explanation-2: -By the 11th century (1000s), the Pope, the leader of the Catholic Church, claimed papal supremacy or authority over all secular rulers (non religious rulers, including kings and emperors). The Pope had the power to decide who would be king in some regions and was able to raise an army to go to war.

Detailed explanation-3: -From a Catholic viewpoint, the primacy of the bishop of Rome is largely derived from his role as the apostolic successor to Saint Peter, to whom primacy was conferred by Jesus, who gave Peter the Keys of Heaven and the powers of “binding and loosing", naming him as the “rock” upon which the Church would be built.

Detailed explanation-4: -In 1073, however, Pope Gregory VII restricted its use to the bishop of Rome, confirming a practice that had existed since the 9th century. According to the Annuario Pontificio, the papal annual, there have been more than 260 popes since St. Peter, traditionally considered the first pope.