The December 1187 papal election (held on 19 December) was convoked after the death of Pope Gregory VIII. It resulted in the election of Cardinal Paolo Scolari, who took the name of Clement III.
Verona and Ferrara
Alberto di Morra, as papal chancellor, had followed Pope Lucius III in his flight from the Roman campagna, to seek aid from the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in Verona. Negotiations between the two quickly broke down, and the pope and his court found themselves trapped in Verona by a hostile emperor. Frederick besieged the pope in Verona, forbidding appeals to the pope from anyone in his domains, and obstructing appeals from elsewhere. Anyone apprehended in an attempt to reach the papal curia or returning from it was imprisoned and subjected to torture.Gervase of Canterbury and the "Gesta Trevirorum", in: Watterich II, p. 668. Lucius died during the siege on 25 November 1185. His successor was Humbertus Crivelli, the Archbishop of Milan and Cardinal of S. Lorenzo in Damaso, " a violent and unyielding spirit, and a strong opponent of Frederick (Barbarossa)," in the words of Ferdinand Gregorovius. He took the name Urban III, and maintained all of the uncompromising policies of Lucius III.F. Gregorovius, The History of Rome in the Middle Ages Vol. IV, part 2 (London: George Bell 1896), pp. 610-612. Urban III continued the hostilities with the emperor, offering no concessions, and finally arriving at the decision to excommunicate him. He was deterred only by the urgent pleas of the people of Verona. Urban and the cardinals who were besieged with him were able to escape from Verona in the last weeks of September 1187, taking refuge in Ferrara. Urban died there on 20 October 1187.Jaffé, pp. 527-528.
On the following day thirteen cardinals who had been present in Ferrara began the proceedings to elect his successor.J.P. Migne (ed.), Patrologiae Latinae Collectio, Tomus CCII (Paris 1855), p. 1537, Pope Gregory VIII, in his electoral message, Inter Divinae Dispentionis: "Praedecessore siquidem nostro Urbano XIII Kal. Novemb. in bona confessione viam universae carnis ingresso, et tradito solemniter sepulturae, convenimus sequenti die in unum, et missa in honorem Sancti Spiritus, sicut moris est, celebrata, processimus seorsum in unum locum, nos episcopi, presbyteri et diaconi canonibus, et, postpositis diversis ecclesiasticis negotiis, et praecipue calamitatis Orientalis Ecclesiae, quae diebus illis audita fuerat, ad electionem pontificis visum est procedendum, ne, si forte dilationem acciperet, detrimentum ex tarditate per diversas partes Christiano populo proveniret." The cardinals were aware that the papal chancellor, Albert di Morra, was in great favor with the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, because he was a member of the imperial party in the curia, and because he reported to the emperor all the confidential activities of the Roman curia.Gervase of Canterbury, "Chronica", in: William Stubbs (ed.), p. 388: "Sciebant enim cardinales quod idem Albertus multam imperatoris haberet gratiam, eo quod, ipsius semper fovens partem, eidem omnia Romanae curiae revelaret secreta." On 21 October 1187 he was unanimously elected pope and took the name Gregory VIII.
Pope Gregory immediately began to reverse the anti-imperial policies of his predecessors. He announced that King Henry would be given an imperial coronation. The emperor Frederick immediately cancelled his blockade of the papal curia, and announced that Pope Gregory and his curia were free to go wherever they wished. Henry ordered Leo de Monumento, the Roman consul, and the German Count Anselm to conduct the pope safely to wherever he wished to go."Annales Romani", in: Watterich II, pp. 691-692. Gregory travelled to Bologna (18–20 November 1187), Modena (22 November), Reggio Emilia (24 November), Parma (26–29 November), Lucca (7–9 December), and finally Pisa (10–17 December).Jaffé, pp. 532-534.
Participants At the death of Gregory VIII there were probably only 20 cardinals.I.S. Robinson, p. 44 and 87; Kartusch, p. 31. Basing on the countersigning of the papal bulls in December 1187Jaffé, Regesta..., p. 528, 535-536. The papal court, however, was peripatetic, and it may well be that some of the cardinals and their entourages needed to travel a day or two, or even more, behind the pope, in order to find accommodation and services. Subscriptions, therefore, are more than usually unreliable. it is possible to establish that at least 9 cardinalsI.S. Robinson, p. 44. J.P. Migne Patrologiae Latinae Collectio Tomus CCII (Paris 1854), p. 1564 (11 December 1187). were present at Pisa at the death of Gregory VIII:
Elector Place of birth Title Elevated Elevator NotesPaolo ScolariRomeBishop of Palestrina21 September 1179Alexander IIIArchpriest of the patriarchal Liberian Basilica; elected Pope Clement IIIThibaud, O.S.B.Cluny FranceBishop of Ostia e Velletri1184Lucius IIILaborans de PontormoPontormoPriest of S. Maria in TrastevereSeptember 1173Alexander IIIMelior, O.S.B.Vall.Benedictines of S. Maur, Histoire littéraire de la France, Volume 15 (Paris: Académie des inscriptions et belles-lettres, Firmin-Didot, 1820), pp. 314-319.PisaPriest of SS. Giovanni e Paolo16 March 1185Lucius IIICamerlengo of the Holy Roman ChurchGiacinto BoboneRomeDeacon of S. Maria in Cosmedin22 December 1144 Lucius IISee: Lorenzo Cardella, Memorie storiche de'Cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa I. 2 (Roma: Pagliarini 1792), p. 49, for a wide variety of opinions as to which pope created Giacinto a cardinal.Protodeacon; legate in Spain, 1188;Roger of Hoveden, in: W. Stubbs (ed.), Chronica Magistri Rogeri de Houedene Vol. II (London: Longmans 1869), p. 333.future Pope Celestine III (1191-1198)Graziano da PisaPisaDeacon of SS. Cosma e Damiano4 March 1178Alexander IIIOttaviano di PaoliRomeDeacon of SS. Sergio e Bacco18 December 1182Lucius IIIFuture bishop of Ostia e Velletri (1189-1206)Pietro DianaPiacenzaDeacon of S. Nicola in Carcere16 March 1185Lucius III Radulfus Nigellusprobably FranceDeacon of S. Giorgio in Velabro16 March 1185Lucius III
Five electors were created by Pope Lucius III, three by Pope Alexander III, one by Pope Lucius II.
Absentee cardinals Probably eleven cardinals were absent:
Elector Place of birth Cardinalatial title Elevated Elevator NotesKonrad von WittelsbachBavariaBishop of Sabina and Archbishop of Mainz 18 December 1165 Alexander IIIprior cardinalium;Henri de Marsiac, O.Cist.Château de Marcy, FranceBishop of AlbanoMarch 1179Alexander III Papal legate in GermanyCardinal Henri was still in Germany in 1188, and was present in the imperial court on 27 March 1188. Watterich II, pp. 694-697.Joannes Anagninus (Giovanni dei Conti di Anagni)AnagniPriest of S. Marco1158/1159Adrian IVProtopriestRuggiero di San SeverinoSan SeverinoPriest of S. Eusebio and Archbishop of BeneventoCa. 1178-1180Alexander IIIGuillaume aux Blanches MainsFrancePriest of S. Sabina and Archbishop of ReimsMarch 1179Alexander IIIMinister of State of the Kingdom of FranceAlbino, C.R.S.F.Gaeta (?)Priest of S. Croce in Gerusalemme18 December 1182Lucius IIIFuture bishop of Albano (1189-1197)PandolfoLuccaPriest of SS. XII Apostoli18 December 1182Lucius III Adelardo CattaneoVeronaPriest of S. Marcello16 March 1185Lucius III Future bishop of Verona (1188-1214)SoffredoPistoiaDeacon of S. Maria in Via Lata18 December 1182Lucius IIIPapal legate in FranceBoboRomeDeacon of S. Angelo in Pescheria18 December 1182Lucius IIIPapal legate in FranceGerardoLuccaDeacon of S. Adriano18 December 1182Lucius IIIPapal Vicar
Seven absentees were created by Lucius III, three by Alexander III, and one by Adrian IV.
Death of Gregory VIII and election of Pope Clement III
Pope Gregory VIII died at Pisa of a brief illness, said to have been a fever lasting eight days, on 17 December 1187.Nicholas of Amiens , in: Watterich II, p. 692, with note 4. He had been pope only one month and twenty-seven days.
Two days later the cardinals assembled in the cathedral of Pisa, and began proceedings to elect his successor.Jaffé, p. 536. Cardinal Pietro Scolari had to be carried to the cathedral from the Hospitium Sancti Pauli de ripa Arni."Breviarium Historiae Pisanae", in Watterich II, p. 692. The election was celebrated in the presence of the Consul of Rome, Leo de Monumento.According to A. Piazzoni, p. 175, in a first round of voting Cardinal Thibaud of Ostia was elected but declined. No other authority reports such an occurrence. The cardinals unanimously elected Cardinal Paolo Scolari, bishop of Palestrina, on 19 December 1187, the Saturday after the Feast of S. Barbara. He accepted his election and took the name Clement III.Jaffé, p. 536. Watterich II, p. 692. On 20 December, he was solemnly crowned by protodeacon Giacinto Bobone Orsini,"Cronica de Mailros", quoted by Watterich II, p. 693. Gregorovius IV 2, p. 616.
Immediate arrangements were begun for a return to Rome. Without delay Pope Clement sent his legates to the Roman people, in order to formulate a firm peace between him and them.Roger de Hoveden, quoted by Watterich II, p. 699 . The treaty was signed on 31 May 1188. Gregorovius IV. 2, p. 617-619. Caesar Baronius, Annales Ecclesiastici (ed. Augustinus Theiner) Vol 19 (Bar-le-Duc: L. Guerin 1869), pp. 572-574. Orders were issued to the papal chamberlain, Cencius Camerarius, to receive the oaths of office of the ostiarii of the Lateran palace, which was carried out on 22 January; the also issued instructions for their service.Paul Fabre and Louis Duchesne, Le Liber Censuum de l'Église romaine (Paris: E. Thorin 1901), pp. 419-420. Watterich II, p. 693, note 3. On 26 January 1188, Pope Clement was in Siena, and by 11 February 1188 he returned to Rome and was resident at the Lateran.Watterich II, p. 693. quoting the "Annales Romani".S. Miranda Cardinal Paolo Scolari
Notes
Sources Gregorovius, Ferdinand (1896). The History of Rome in the Middle Ages Vol. IV, part 2. London: George Bell 1896.