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How did Leo III retaliate against papal opposition in southern Italy?
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Leo III
Leo III, gold solidus from Constantinople, 717–741.
When Pope Gregory II and Pope Gregory III strongly rejected Emperor Leo III’s efforts to impose Iconoclasm upon Byzantine-controlled areas of Italy, Leo III retaliated by halting financial contributions to the papacy from southern Italy.1
Additionally, it is believed that he removed the churches of Sicily, Calabria, and Illyria from papal jurisdiction, placing them instead under the authority of the patriarch of Constantinople. These actions, combined with other harsh taxation and administrative measures, severely strained relations between the Byzantine Empire and the papacy, ultimately weakening Byzantine influence in the Italian peninsula and encouraging the popes to seek protection from the Frankish kings.12