St Silverius

Silverius, pope (536 - 537), was a legitimate son of Pope Hormisdas, born before his father entered the priesthood.

Silverius was a subdeacon in Rome after Pope Agapetus died in Constantinople, 22 April, 536. With the help and influence of Ostrogothic king Theodahad Silverius was consecrated on June 8, 536. (probable date)

Since Silverius opposed the restoration of the patriarch of Constantinople Anthimus, whom Agapetus had deposed, he brought upon himself the hatred of empress Theodora in Constantinople. Theodora desired to see Vigilius made pope. Six months afterwards (December 9), he was one of those who admitted the Byzantine general Belisarius into the city who's army was garrisoned near Naples. Theodahad's successor, Witiges, gathered together an army and besieged Rome, subjecting the city to privation and starvation. Theodora sent secret instructions to Antonina (wife of Belisarius), probably leaving it to her ingenuity to concoct a plot against the Pope by means of a forged letter, she accused the pope of a treasonable agreement with the Gothic king who was besieging Rome. Silverius resided at the Lateran church beside the Asinarian Gate, and a letter was fabricated as evidence that he was in treacherous communication with the Goths and proposed to admit them into the city. It was asserted that Silverius had offered the king to leave one of the city gates secretly open. Silverius was summoned to the Pincian Palace by Belisarius where he was deposed accordingly in March 537 on a charge of treasonable correspondence with the Goths, stripped of his robe and degraded to the rank of a simple monk.

Silverius was kidnapped and taken to Patara in Lycia, Asia Minor.

It seems relevant at this point to illustrate from a completely independent and unbiased source, the Vita Silveri (Gesta Pont. Rom. I. 146), just how malevolent Theodora’s self-deification had become:“Because the Empress was grieving for the Patriarch Anthimus, the most holy Pope Agapetus having deposed him on the grounds of heresy and his belief of Monophysitism and replaced him with Mennas . . . the Emperor, after conferring with the deacon Virgilius, sent this letter to (Agapetus’ successor) Pope Silverius at Rome: ‘Make no delay in coming to us; or without fail recall Anthimus to his own place.’“And when blessed Silverius had read this, he groaned and said: ‘I know very well that this affair has brought an end to my life,’ but replied by letter to the Empress: ‘Mistress Augusta, I shall never consent to do such a thing as to reinstate a man who is a heretic and who has been condemned in his own wickedness.’“Then the Empress in a fury sent orders to the patrician Belisarius by the deacon Virgilius: ‘Seek out some grounds of complaint against the Pope Silverius that will remove him from the office of Bishop; or at least send him quickly to us. You have there the Archdeacon Virgilius, our most beloved deputy, who has promised us to recall the patriarch Anthimus.’ “The patrician Belisarius undertook the commission, and under urgent orders, certain false witnesses issued forth and actually made the statement that they had discovered the Pope Silverius sending messages to the King of the Goths. Upon hearing this, Belisarius refused belief, knowing that these reports were motivated by envy; but when many more persisted in this same accusation, he became afraid.“Therefore he caused the blessed Pope Silverius to come to him in the Pincian Palace; and he stationed all the clergy at the first and second entrances; and when Silverius and Virgilius had come alone into the salon, the patrician Antonina was reclining on a couch, and her husband Belisarius was seated at her feet. Antonina said at once: ‘Tell me, Master Silverius, Pope; what have we done to you and the Romans, that you wish to betray us into the hands of the Goths?’ “And even while she was speaking these words, there entered John, the regional sub-deacon of the first ward, who lifted the blessed Pope Silverius’ collar from his neck and led him into a chamber. There he unfrocked him, put on him monk’s garb, and spirited him away. “And Virgilius took him under his personal protection, as it were; and sent him into exile in Pontus, where he sustained him with the bread of tribulation and water of necessity. And he weakened and died and became a confessor.”

The lieutenant of Justinian listened to their just complaints, but he rejected with disdain the idea of flight or capitulation; repressed their clamorous impatience for battle; amused them with the prospect of a sure and speedy relief; and secured himself and the city from the effects of their despair or treachery. Twice in each month he changed the station of the officers to whom the custody of the gates was committed: the various precautions of patroles, watch words, lights, and music, were repeatedly employed to discover whatever passed on the ramparts; out-guards were posted beyond the ditch, and the trusty vigilance of dogs supplied the more doubtful fidelity of mankind. A letter was intercepted, which assured the king of the Goths that the Asinarian gate, adjoining to the Lateran church, should be secretly opened to his troops. On the proof or suspicion of treason, several senators were banished, and the pope Sylverius was summoned to attend the representative of his sovereign, at his head-quarters in the Pincian palace. [89] The ecclesiastics, who followed their bishop, were detained in the first or second apartment, [90] and he alone was admitted to the presence of Belisarius. The conqueror of Rome and Carthage was modestly seated at the feet of Antonina, who reclined on a stately couch: the general was silent, but the voice of reproach and menace issued from the mouth of his imperious wife. Accused by credible witnesses, and the evidence of his own subscription, the successor of St. Peter was despoiled of his pontifical ornaments, clad in the mean habit of a monk, and embarked, without delay, for a distant exile in the East. [*] At the emperor's command, the clergy of Rome proceeded to the choice of a new bishop; and after a solemn invocation of the Holy Ghost, elected the deacon Vigilius, who had purchased the papal throne by a bribe of two hundred pounds of gold. The profit, and consequently the guilt, of this simony, was imputed to Belisarius: but the hero obeyed the orders of his wife; Antonina served the passions of the empress; and Theodora lavished her treasures, in the vain hope of obtaining a pontiff hostile or indifferent to the council of Chalcedon. [91]

He was then sent to Patara in Lycia, but the bishop there realizing Silverius was innocent traveled to Constantinople and was able to lay before Justinian I in who entertained his complaint, and agreed to send Silverius back to Rome to be reinstated as pope. Vigilius was eventually able to banish his rival Silverius to the prison island of Palmarola (near Ponza), where he starved to death. The year of his death is unknown, but he probably did not live long after reaching Palmarola. He was buried on the island, according to the testimony of the "Liber pontificalis(ed. Duchesne, I, 210) " on 20 June; his remains were never taken from Palmarola. According to the same witness he was invoked after death by the believers who visited his grave. In later times he was venerated as a saint. The earliest proof of this is given by a list of saints of the eleventh century (Mélanges d'archéologie et d'histoire, 1893, 169). The "Martyrologium" of Peter de Natalibus of the fourteenth century also contains his feast, which is recorded in the present Roman Martyrology on 20 June.

The images on this page and on the one on the main page are copper plate etchings used by printing presses, they were most likley made hundreds of years after St Silverio lived, possibly commisioned by the Vatican when he became saint. Since there are no surviving portraits or sculptures of St Silverio from the 6th century as we know of, all the images we see today are artist's depictions, 6th century portraits resemble folk art. If anyone knows of any 6th century art or portraits of St Silverio or have any other info please Email .

Notes: Theories of Silverius having purchased his elevation to the see by payment of money to Ostrogothic king Theodahad is totally unwarranted, possibly written by Orthodox Christians who tend to downplay St Silverius since they have made Theodora (the mastermind in Silverius's downfall and possibly death) a saint in the Orthodox Church.

Many publications erroneously state Sylverius was imprisoned on the island of Palmaria this is totally false, first of all Liber pontificalis(ed. Duchesne, I, 210) states it was Palmarola, also Palmaria located near La Spezia in the Ligurian Sea, it is much more hospitable, than the desolate island of Pamlarola where he died of starvation.