Reconstructing the Papal Coronation of Louis the Pious

This article examines the papal coronation of Louis the Pious in 816 to argue for the necessity of reconstructing the form and context of ritual before engaging in further interpretation. The accounts of this coronation are compiled and evaluated to indicate its major steps and characteristics, while remaining sensitive to the sources that describe it. The discussion stresses the experimentation animating the creation of the ritual, and the negotiation involved with the decisions such as setting it outside of a mass and determining the participation of the queen. Aspects of this coronation indicate broader mentalities about religion and gender.