to offer any effective resistance to these demands. In 1354, 1372,
1459, 1487, and in 1500, the German bishops protested strongly against
the attempts of the Pope to levy taxes on ecclesiastical property.

But in addition to these extraordinary levies there were many
permanent sources of revenue for the support of the Papal Court. In
the first place from the time of Boniface IX. annats, which consisted
of a certain proportion of the first year's revenue, were to be paid
by all clerics on whom a minor benefice was conferred by the Holy See.
In case of the major benefices, bishoprics and abbacies, the /servitia
communia/ and the /servitia minuta/ took the place of annats. The
/servitia communia/ was a fixed sum the amount of which depended upon
the annual revenue of the See or abbey, and was divided between the
Pope and the cardinals of the Curia. The /servitia minuta/, amounting
to about 3 1/2 per cent. of the /servitia communia/, was given to the
lower officials, who prepared the letters of appointment. The revenues
of vacant Sees and the property of deceased bishops were also claimed
by the Holy See. From England the Pope received yearly the Peter's
Pence, and from all countries that acknowledged his feudal
jurisdiction he was entitled to a definite annual tribute.

Furthermore, the reservations[7] of benefices were another fruitful
source of revenue. The policy of reserving benefices to the Holy See
might be defended, on the ground that it was often necessary in order
to counterbalance the interference of secular rulers in regard to
ecclesiastical appointments, and that it afforded the Pope a
convenient means of rewarding officials whose services were required
for the government of the Church. But the right of the Pope to reserve
benefices was abused during the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries,
and gave rise to constant friction with the civil and ecclesiastical