Birthplace
Rome
Pope from
19 February 607
Pope until
12 November 607
Died
12 November 607
Who he was
Boniface was a Roman, the son of John Cataadioce, and a deacon of the Roman Church. St Gregory the Great sent him as envoy to Constantinople in 603, where he won the good opinion of the Emperor Phocas, and Gregory described him as a man of tried faith and character. He was elected after a vacancy of nearly a year and reigned less than nine months.
What he is remembered for
He obtained a decree from Phocas declaring the see of St Peter the head of all the Churches and reserving the title of 'universal bishop' to the Bishop of Rome. At a Roman council of seventy-two bishops he forbade, under pain of excommunication, any discussion of a pope's or bishop's successor during his lifetime or until three days after his burial.
Sources
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