St. Vitalian
Vitalian · 657 – 672
Restored relations with Constantinople and promoted the use of organ music in Western liturgy.
Vitalian was from Segni in Campania. After the turmoil of Martin I's arrest and Eugene I's uneasy pontificate, Vitalian managed to rebuild relations with Constantinople. Emperor Constans II visited Rome in 663, the first imperial visit in nearly two centuries, though he stripped the city of its bronze decorations when he left. Vitalian is traditionally credited with promoting organ music in the Western Church's worship. He also supported the English mission, consecrating Theodore of Tarsus as Archbishop of Canterbury.
The Emperor's Visit
When Constans II came to Rome in 663, Vitalian welcomed him with full honors. It was a diplomatic triumph. Then the emperor left and took the bronze roof tiles from the Pantheon and other buildings with him. Vitalian had played the gracious host, and the emperor had robbed him. It was a hard lesson in the difference between ceremony and real power.