The period when popes resided in Avignon is called by which name?

• A. The Western Schism
• B. The Investiture Controversy
• C. The Renaissance Papacy
• D. The Babylonian Captivity of the Papacy

Answer: (D)

The period when popes resided in Avignon is called the Babylonian Captivity of the Papacy. This era, roughly from 1309 to 1377, began when Clement V moved the papal court to Avignon under French political influence, and the papacy remained there for several decades. The name comes from Petrarch and later writers who likened the popes’ sojourn away from Rome to the Israelites’ exile in Babylon, signaling a break with Rome and a shift in power dynamics in Western Christendom. When Gregory XI finally returned the papacy to Rome in 1377, the Avignon period ended.

The other choices point to different developments. The Western Schism happened after the Avignon years, when rival popes claimed the throne in Rome and Avignon, creating a split in authority. The Investiture Controversy was an earlier clash over who had the authority to appoint bishops. The Renaissance Papacy refers to a later phase in Rome when popes promoted arts and learning during the 15th and 16th centuries.