The Failure of John XXIFs Policy toward France and England: Reasons and Outcomes, 1316-1334 SOPHIA MENACHE Political success is measured according to the accomplishment of the goals determined by politicians. This definition poses a challenge to historians, for political aims often are ambiguous, and our knowledge of them incomplete. This problem becomes more acute with regard to the history of the papacy, whose asserted aims on the one hand, and its real policy on the other, often were characterized by inner contradictions. This study attempts to reexamine the policy of Pope John XXII (1316- 1334) toward France and England and the reactions it aroused in contempo- rary society. Bearing in mind the ideological basis of the papacy, namely, the traditional acknowledgment by Christendom of the indispensability of the papal office, the attitudes of contemporary society become a matter of prime importance in ascribing "successes" or "failures" to the pope and his policy. Thus in analyzing the outcomes of papal policy, the assessment given by contemporaries acquires central importance. This perspective seems largely justified in light of socio-political developments at the time which demon- strate the significance ascribed to public opinion. 1 Of the many changes characterizing the late Middle Ages, the one most relevant in our context is the consistent participation of a broader segment of society in the political process through parliaments, cortes, or assemblies. 2 This widening of the political arena played a dominant role in what has been called the rise of centralizing monarchies. 3 At the beginning of the fourteenth century the kings of England and France increased their reliance on propaganda, thereby manipulating public opinion to be favorable to their policies. Their spokesmen attempted to spread the royal message by making I am deeply grateful to Professor Charles T. Wood of Dartmouth College for his constant encouragement and helpful advice during the writing of this article. 1. Sophia Menache, " 'Un peuple qui a sa demeure a part'—Boniface VIII et le sentiment national francais," Francia 12 (1985): 193-194. 2. Joseph Strayer, On the Medieval Origins of the Modern State (Princeton, 1970), pp. 64-68. 3. Elizabeth Brown, "Royal Necessity and Noble Service and Subsidy in Early Fourteenth- Century France: The Assembly of Bourges of November 1318," Traditio 32 (1976): 135-168. Teofilo Ruiz, "Oligarchy and Royal Power, The Castilian Cortes and the Castilian Crisis, 1248-1350," Parliaments, Estates and Representation 2 (1982): 95-101. Ms. Menache is a senior lecturer of medieval history in the University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel. 423