Judas kissing Christ surrounded by soldiers; St Peter attacking Malchus in foreground, after Dürer

Catholics recognize the pope as the successor to Saint Peter, whom Jesus designated as the "rock" upon which the Church was to be built. During the Early Church, the bishops of Rome enjoyed no temporal power until the time of Constantine. List of Popes: St. Peter (32-67) St. Linus (67-76) St. Anacletus (Cletus) (76-88) St. Clement I (88-97) St. Evaristus (97-105) St. Alexander I (105-115) St. Sixtus I (115-125) Also called Xystus I St. Telesphorus (125-136) St. Hyginus (136-140) St. Pius I (140-155) St. Anicetus (155-166) St. Soter (166-175) St. Eleutherius (175-189) St. Victor I (189-199) St. Zephyrinus (199-217) St. Callistus I (217-22) Callistus and the following three popes were opposed by St. Hippolytus, antipope (217-236) St. Urban I (222-30), St. Pontain (230-35) St. Anterus (235-36) St. Fabian (236-50) St. Cornelius (251-53) Opposed by Novatian, antipope (251) St. Lucius I (253-54) St. Stephen I (254-257) St. Sixtus II (257-258) St. Dionysius (260-268) St. Felix I (269-274) St. Eutychian (275-283) St. Caius (283-296) Also called Gaius St. Marcellinus (296-304) St. Marcellus I (308-309) St. Eusebius (309 or 310) St. Miltiades (311-14) St. Sylvester I (314-35) St. Marcus (336) St. Julius I (337-52) Liberius (352-66) Opposed by Felix II, antipope (355-365) St. Damasus I (366-84) Opposed by Ursicinus, antipope (366-367) St. Siricius (384-99) St. Anastasius I (399-401) St. Innocent I (401-17) St. Zosimus (417-18) St. Boniface I (418-22) Opposed by Eulalius, antipope (418-419) St. Celestine I (422-32) St. Sixtus III (432-40) St. Leo I (the Great) (440-61) St. Hilarius (461-68) St. Simplicius (468-83) St. Felix III (II) (483-92) St. Gelasius I (492-96) Anastasius II (496-98) St. Symmachus (498-514) Opposed by Laurentius, antipope (498-501) St. Hormisdas (514-23) St. John I (523-26) St. Felix IV (III) (526-30) Boniface II (530-32) Opposed by Dioscorus, antipope (530) John II (533-35) St. Agapetus I (535-36) Also called Agapitus I St. Silverius (536-37) Vigilius (537-55) Pelagius I (556-61) John III (561-74) Benedict I (575-79) Pelagius II (579-90) St. Gregory I (the Great) (590-604) Sabinian (604-606) Boniface III (607) St. Boniface IV (608-15) St. Deusdedit (Adeodatus I) (615-18) Boniface V (619-25) Honorius I (625-38) Severinus (640) John IV (640-42) Theodore I (642-49) St. Martin I (649-55) St. Eugene I (655-57) St. Vitalian (657-72) Adeodatus (II) (672-76) Donus (676-78) St. Agatho (678-81) St. Leo II (682-83) St. Benedict II (684-85) John V (685-86) Conon (686-87) St. Sergius I (687-701) Opposed by Theodore and Paschal, antipopes (687) John VI (701-05) John VII (705-07) Sisinnius (708) Constantine (708-15) St. Gregory II (715-31) St. Gregory III (731-41) St. Zachary (741-52) Stephen II followed Zachary, but because he died before being consecrated, modern lists omit him Stephen II (III) (752-57) St. Paul I (757-67) Stephen III (IV) (767-72) Opposed by Constantine II (767) and Philip (768), antipopes (767) Adrian I (772-95) St. Leo III (795-816) Stephen IV (V) (816-17) St. Paschal I (817-24) Eugene II (824-27) Valentine (827) Gregory IV (827-44) Sergius II (844-47) Opposed by John, antipope St. Leo IV (847-55) Benedict III (855-58) Opposed by Anastasius, antipope (855) St. Nicholas I (the Great) (858-67) Adrian II (867-72) John VIII (872-82) Marinus I (882-84) St. Adrian III (884-85) Stephen V (VI) (885-91) Formosus (891-96) Boniface VI (896) Stephen VI (VII) (896-97) Romanus (897) Theodore II (897) John IX (898-900) Benedict IV (900-03) Leo V (903) Opposed by Christopher, antipope (903-904) Sergius III (904-11) Anastasius III (911-13) Lando (913-14) John X (914-28) Leo VI (928) Stephen VIII (929-31) John XI (931-35) Leo VII (936-39) Stephen IX (939-42) Marinus II (942-46) Agapetus II (946-55) John XII (955-63) Leo VIII (963-64) Benedict V (964) John XIII (965-72) Benedict VI (973-74) Benedict VII (974-83) Benedict and John XIV were opposed by Boniface VII, antipope (974; 984-985) John XIV (983-84) John XV (985-96) Gregory V (996-99) Opposed by John XVI, antipope (997-998) Sylvester II (999-1003) John XVII (1003) John XVIII (1003-09) Sergius IV (1009-12) Benedict VIII (1012-24) Opposed by Gregory, antipope (1012) John XIX (1024-32) Benedict IX (1032-45) He appears on this list three separate times, because he was twice deposed and restored Sylvester III (1045) Considered by some to be an antipope Benedict IX (1045) Gregory VI (1045-46) Clement II (1046-47) Benedict IX (1047-48) Damasus II (1048) St. Leo IX (1049-54) Victor II (1055-57) Stephen X (1057-58) Nicholas II (1058-61) Opposed by Benedict X, antipope (1058) Alexander II (1061-73) Opposed by Honorius II, antipope (1061-1072) St. Gregory VII (1073-85) Gregory and the following three popes were opposed by Guibert ("Clement III"), antipope (1080-1100) Blessed Victor III (1086-87) Blessed Urban II (1088-99) Paschal II (1099-1118) Opposed by Theodoric (1100), Aleric (1102) and Maginulf ("Sylvester IV", 1105-1111), antipopes (1100) Gelasius II (1118-19) Opposed by Burdin ("Gregory VIII"), antipope (1118) Callistus II (1119-24) Honorius II (1124-30) Opposed by Celestine II, antipope (1124) Innocent II (1130-43) Opposed by Anacletus II (1130-1138) and Gregory Conti ("Victor IV") (1138), antipopes (1138) Celestine II (1143-44) Lucius II (1144-45) Blessed Eugene III (1145-53) Anastasius IV (1153-54) Adrian IV (1154-59) Alexander III (1159-81) Opposed by Octavius ("Victor IV") (1159-1164), Pascal III (1165-1168), Callistus III (1168-1177) and Innocent III (1178-1180), antipopes Lucius III (1181-85) Urban III (1185-87) Gregory VIII (1187) Clement III (1187-91) Celestine III (1191-98) Innocent III (1198-1216) Honorius III (1216-27) Gregory IX (1227-41) Celestine IV (1241) Innocent IV (1243-54) Alexander IV (1254-61) Urban IV (1261-64) Clement IV (1265-68) Blessed Gregory X (1271-76) Blessed Innocent V (1276) Adrian V (1276) John XXI (1276-77) Nicholas III (1277-80) Martin IV (1281-85) Honorius IV (1285-87) Nicholas IV (1288-92) St. Celestine V (1294) Boniface VIII (1294-1303) Blessed Benedict XI (1303-04) Clement V (1305-14) John XXII (1316-34) Opposed by Nicholas V, antipope (1328-1330) Benedict XII (1334-42) Clement VI (1342-52) Innocent VI (1352-62) Blessed Urban V (1362-70) Gregory XI (1370-78) Urban VI (1378-89) Opposed by Robert of Geneva ("Clement VII"), antipope (1378-1394) Boniface IX (1389-1404) Opposed by Robert of Geneva ("Clement VII") (1378-1394), Pedro de Luna ("Benedict XIII") (1394-1417) and Baldassare Cossa ("John XXIII") (1400-1415), antipopes Innocent VII (1404-06) Opposed by Pedro de Luna ("Benedict XIII") (1394-1417) and Baldassare Cossa ("John XXIII") (1400-1415), antipopes Gregory XII (1406-15) Opposed by Pedro de Luna ("Benedict XIII") (1394-1417), Baldassare Cossa ("John XXIII") (1400-1415), and Pietro Philarghi ("Alexander V") (1409-1410), antipopes Martin V (1417-31) Eugene IV (1431-47) Opposed by Amadeus of Savoy ("Felix V"), antipope (1439-1449) Nicholas V (1447-55) Callistus III (1455-58) Pius II (1458-64) Paul II (1464-71) Sixtus IV (1471-84) Innocent VIII (1484-92) Alexander VI (1492-1503) Pius III (1503) Julius II (1503-13) Leo X (1513-21) Adrian VI (1522-23) Clement VII (1523-34) Paul III (1534-49) Julius III (1550-55) Marcellus II (1555) Paul IV (1555-59) Pius IV (1559-65) St. Pius V (1566-72) Gregory XIII (1572-85) Sixtus V (1585-90) Urban VII (1590) Gregory XIV (1590-91) Innocent IX (1591) Clement VIII (1592-1605) Leo XI (1605) Paul V (1605-21) Gregory XV (1621-23) Urban VIII (1623-44) Innocent X (1644-55) Alexander VII (1655-67) Clement IX (1667-69) Clement X (1670-76) Blessed Innocent XI (1676-89) Alexander VIII (1689-91) Innocent XII (1691-1700) Clement XI (1700-21) Innocent XIII (1721-24) Benedict XIII (1724-30) Clement XII (1730-40) Benedict XIV (1740-58) Clement XIII (1758-69) Clement XIV (1769-74) Pius VI (1775-99) Pius VII (1800-23) Leo XII (1823-29) Pius VIII (1829-30) Gregory XVI (1831-46) Blessed Pius IX (1846-78) Leo XIII (1878-1903) St. Pius X (1903-14) Benedict XV (1914-22) Biographies of Benedict XV and his successors will be added at a later date Pius XI (1922-39) Pius XII (1939-58) St. John XXIII (1958-63) Paul VI (1963-78) John Paul I (1978) St. John Paul II (1978-2005) Benedict XVI (2005-2013) Francis (2013—)

Albrecht Dürer, whose work was admired and influential throughout Europe, was born in Nuremberg on 21 May 1471. His first training was as a goldsmith in his father's shop. In 1486 Dürer became an apprentice in the workshop of the painter Michael Wolgemut where he would remain for almost four years. Toward the end of his apprenticeship, he produced his first dated painting, the portrait of his father Albrecht Dürer the Elder of 1490. Same year Dürer departed Nuremberg for a four-year trip. The trip included the Netherlands, Cologne, and parts of Austria and Switzerland. Returning to Nuremberg in late May of 1494 Dürer married but forced to leave again due to an outbreak of plague in Nuremberg in August of 1494. Dürer traveled across the Alps to Venice, by way of Augsburg, Innsbruck, the Brenner pass, the Eisack valley and Trent. His Venice stay, which lasted until spring of 1495. Dürer became acquainted with artists such as Gentile and Giovanni Bellini and absorbed, often by copying, the work of Andrea Mantegna, Antonio Pollaiuolo, and Lorenzo di Credi. His awareness of and lifelong interest in the theory of human proportions also began in Venice, quite possible because of Jacopo de' Barbari. Upon his return to Nuremberg in 1495, Dürer embarked upon a career as printmaker and painter. The woodcut series, the Apocalypse, published in 1498, by reason of its innovative format, technical mastery, and the forcefulness of its imagery, made Dürer famous throughout Europe. In the summer of 1505, the plague reappeared in Nuremberg and Dürer again set out for Venice. This time, however, he arrived as a well-known artist with a reputation based on his woodcuts and engravings. From Venice Dürer apparently went to the university city of Bologna to learn about perspective and then journeyed further south to Florence, where he saw the work of Leonardo da Vinci and the young Raphael, and to Rome. Except for a few short journeys, Dürer remained in Nuremberg from 1507 until 1520. Dürer attracted the attention of Emperor Maximilian I who had visited Nuremberg in February 1512 and gave Dürer several commissions, including the marginal drawings for his prayerbook. The three so-called "Master Engravings": Knight, Death, and the Devil, of 1513, Saint Jerome in his Study, and Melancholia I both of 1514, raised the engraving technique to new heights and reflect Dürer's ongoing assimilation of Italian art and theory, and in the case of Melancholia I, Neoplatonic philosophy. In his last years, Dürer became increasingly involved in his theoretical writings. His last and most important treatise, Four Books on Human Proportion, was published posthumously on 31 October 1528. A number of painted and engraved portraits were produced in these years, but the major work is the Four Apostles, dated 1526, that was presented to the city council in Nuremberg. The Apostles John the Evangelist, Peter and Paul and the Evangelist Mark are accompanied by inscriptions warning against false prophets.

Printmaking in woodcut and engraving came to Northern Italy within a few decades of their invention north of the Alps. Engraving probably came first to Florence in the 1440s, the goldsmith Maso Finiguerra (1426–64) used the technique. Italian engraving caught the very early Renaissance, 1460–1490. Print copying was a widely accepted practice, as well as copying of paintings viewed as images in their own right.

The term "Northern Renaissance" refers to the art development of c.1430-1580 in the Netherlands Low Countries and Germany. The Low Countries, particularly Flanders with cities Antwerp, Ghent, and Bruges, were, along with Florence, the most economically advanced region in Europe. As in Florence, urban culture peaked here. The common understanding of the Renaissance places the birth of the Renaissance in Florence, Italy. Rennaisance's ideas migrated to Germany from Italy because of the travels of Albrecht Dϋrer. Northern artists such as Jan van Eyck remained attached to Medieval traditions. In their paintings, Low Countries painters attempted to reproduce space, color, volume, and light as naturalistically as possible. They achieved the perfection of oil paint in the almost impossible representation of things and objects. Rather than draw upon Classical Greek and Roman aesthetics like their Italian counterparts, Northern European Renaissance artists retained a Gothic sensibility of woodblock printing and illuminated manuscripts which clearly distinguished Northern Rennaisance art from Italian. Unlike Italian artists, northern painters were not interested in rediscovering the spirit of ancient Greece. Instead, they sought to exploit the full potential of oil paint, and capture nature exactly as they found it. Unlike their Italian counterparts, who embraced a mathematically calculated linear perspective and constructed a picture from within, Dutch artists used an empirical perspective with precise observation and knowledge of the consistency of light and things. They painted as they saw and came very close to the effect of central perspective. Long before Leonardo, they invented aerial and color perspectives. More, as with real-world human vision, their far-away shapes lose contours, and the intensity of the colors fades to a bluish hue. Robert Campin (c.1378-1444), was noted for works like the Seilern Triptych (1410) and the Merode Altarpiece (1425); Jan van Eyck (1390-1441) was noted for the Ghent Altarpiece (1432) and The Arnolfini Marriage (1434); Jan Eyck's pupil Petrus Christus (c.1410-75), best known for his Portrait of a Young Girl (1470, Gemaldegalerie, Berlin); Roger Van der Weyden (1400-64) noted for his extraordinary realism as in his masterpiece Descent From the Cross (Deposition) (1435), for the Church of Notre Dame du Dehors (now in the Museo del Prado, Madrid); Dieric Bouts (1420-75) for his devotional pictures; Hugo Van Der Goes (1440-82) famous for The Portinari Altarpiece (1475) which influenced the Early Renaissance in Florence; Hieronymus Bosch (1450-1516) noted for The Garden of Earthly Delights (1510-15) and other moralizing works; Joachim Patenier (1485-1524) the pioneer landscape painter; and Pieter Bruegel the Elder (c.1525-1569) known for landscape narratives such as The Tower of Babel (1563).