John III
Catelinus · 561 – 574
Governed Rome during the Lombard invasions, often hiding outside the city walls while trying to keep the Church together.
John III was a Roman nobleman, the son of a provincial governor. His pontificate was dominated by the Lombard invasion of Italy beginning in 568. Rome was cut off, poorly defended, and terrified. John spent much of his time at the Coemeterium of Praetextatus on the Appian Way, unable to safely reside in the city. He worked with the Byzantine general Narses to maintain some order, but the situation was desperate. He completed the church of the Apostles, later called Santi Apostoli.
A Pope in Exile Within His Own City
John III governed from outside Rome's walls because it was too dangerous inside. The Lombards were carving up Italy, and the Byzantine garrison could barely hold the city. It was not a glamorous pontificate. But he kept the Church functioning when everything around it was falling apart, and that counts for something.