(
pictured).
Background After the fall of the
Western Roman Empire in AD 476, the
Roman Senate continued to function, but it became increasingly irrelevant and seems to have disappeared in the seventh century. Usage of the "senator" title was eventually revived in 1144, when the
Commune of Rome attempted to establish a new 56-member senate in opposition to the temporal power of the nobles and the
pope. In 1191, however, a popular uprising overthrew the senate in favor of a single individual, styled
Summus Senator, who subsequently became the head of the civil government of Rome. Although a senate of 56 members was briefly restored in 1194, power was quickly seized by Giovanni Pierleone, who ruled until 1197. Pierleone was briefly succeeded by Scottus Paparone, but when
Innocent III was elected to the papacy, the new pope convinced Paparone to resign. This ultimately brought the senate under the authority of the pope. Within a few years, the multi-member senate would be restored, but by this point, the institution would come to be composed largely of nobles. ==References==