Council Of Florence, the 16th general council of the church, according to Roman Catholic theologians. It was convened in Ferrara by Eugenius IV. for the purpose of reuniting the eastern and western churches. The first session was held in Ferrara Jan. 10, 1438, Nicholas Al-bergati presiding as cardinal legate. The pope himself opened the second session, Feb. 15, and on March 10 the Greek emperor John VI. or VII. was present, with the patriarch of Constantinople and a number of eastern prelates. The public discussion of the doctrinal differences between the churches commenced the next day, and was continued without any satisfactory result until the breaking out of the plague obliged the pope, Jan. 10, 1439, to transfer the council to Florence. The number of prelates from the East particularly had been now more than trebled, and the emperor, whose power was daily undermined by the advance of the Mussulmans, urged the bishops to come to an understanding. At length, on June 8, a doctrinal agreement was reached on the procession of the Holy Ghost, and the addition to the Nicene creed of the words filioque, and it was signed by all present.

Another month's continuous debating brought both parties to an agreement on the remaining points, viz.: purgatory, the use of unleavened bread in the eucharist, and the primacy of the bishop of Rome. On July 6, the pope officiating, and the Greek emperor being present with his bishops, the solemn doctrinal decree on which both East and West agreed was promulgated by Cardinal Cesarini. The emperor and the eastern prelates took their departure from Florence Aug. 26; but the sessions continued, to afford the other eastern communions an opportunity of ratifying what was done. A decree of union with the Armenian church was published on Nov. 22, and another with the Jacobites of Abyssinia on Feb. 5, 1441. Can-onists are generally agreed in considering this council to have ended in the solemn session of April 2G, 1442. The two supplementary sessions held afterward in Rome had for their object the reunion of the Syrians, Chaldeans, and Maronites, for which preliminary steps had been taken in Florence.