What are some medeival wars where the church picked sides and significantly altered the outcome of the war?

I am writing an AP European History Essay and am wondering if there are any wars in which the church picked sides between two Christian groups and changed to outcome of the war. I vaguely remember one but cant remember who, when or where so doesn't help much. Thank You in advance, and anything will help.|||Terrific topic idea for an AP history paper


I thought immediately of Henry VIII of England fighting the "Battle of the Spurs" in northern France as part of a Holy League with the Pope (Julius II) and the Holy Roman emperor. Some say that Pope Julius spent more time in his battle armor than he did in his papal robes - while Michelangelo was working for him painting the Sistine chapel ceiling.


Here's a good site and an excerpt - http://europeanhistory.about.com/library鈥?/a>


You can take it from here following other internet links for further info. Good Luck. Should be an excellent essay. I'd like one of my students to write on this topic.





"Holy League of 1510 - 13


This League, organized by Pope Julius II, comprised the Papacy, Emperor Maximilian, Ferdinand of Aragon, Henry VIII of England and Swiss forces; these had temporarily stopped acting as mercenaries and were under their own command. The target was French involvement in Italy. Numerous wars and shifting alliances between 1500 and 1509 had left France with several areas of influence in northern Italy, including the Duchy of Ferrara, which retained its independence largely due to French support. However, Julius wished to bring this Duchy under Papal control, and the other League members were keen to do the same with different areas of French activity."