Gregory III
700 — 741 · Feast day: November 28
A Syrian-born priest elected pope by popular acclamation in 731, Gregory III was the last pope born outside Europe until Francis in 2013. He convened a synod that excommunicated iconoclasts, beautified Roman churches with icons and relics to underscore his position, and sought Frankish military protection against the Lombards — the alliance that would reshape medieval Christendom.