As God, in the midst of the celestial hierarchy, ruled blessed spirits in paradise, so the Pope, His Vicar, raised above priests, bishops, metropolitans, reigned over the souls of mortal men below. But as God is Lord of earth as well as of heaven, so must He (the Imperator cœlestis) be represented by a second earthly viceroy, the Emperor (Imperator terrenus), whose authority shall be of and for this present life. And as in this present world the soul cannot act save through the body, while yet the body is no more than an instrument and means for the soul’s manifestation, so must there be a rule and care of men’s bodies as well as of their souls, yet subordinated always to the well-being of that which is the purer and the more enduring.
-James Viscount Bryce, The Holy Roman Empire Theory of the Medieval Empire
The War for Christendom 
Is this book currently available?
LikeLiked by 1 person
The book The Holy Roman Empire by James Bryce is available through Project Gutenberg here: http://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/44101. Unfortunately, as a Protestant Bryce is too dismissive of the Hapsburg Emperors, but he excellently captures the theory of the Empire.
LikeLike
Do you know who is the artist of the image? It looks a bit Lorenzetti to me, although I could be wrong. Lovely image though.
LikeLiked by 1 person
The image is a fresco by Andrea di Bonaiuto, an Italian artist known for his work on the basilica of Santa Maria Novella in Florence.
LikeLike
Thank you, it is lovely. Definitely Italian looking for sure. Florence…well, and I picked an artist known for working in Siena! That might have upset some Florentines back in the day…(the old Siena/Florence rivalry.)
LikeLiked by 1 person
Pingback: Reflections on Imperium | The War for Christendom