Conclave 1304-1305

The conclave from 1304 to 1305 , which on 10 July 1304 to June 5, 1305 in Perugia met, chose Bertrand de Got , Archbishop of Bordeaux , the Pope who, down the name Clement V was.

procedure

The unexpected death of Pope Benedict XI. and the still smoldering political conflicts which had been triggered off by the official acts of his predecessor Boniface VIII made the implementation of the conclave difficult. It took place for the fifth and last time in Perugia. In the College of Cardinals, two competing camps were formed, one Italian and one French. The French group was led by Napoleone Orsini , an Italian cardinal and supporter of the French king. This led to violent quarrels in the college, which is why the conclave was even temporarily dissolved. In February 1305, Charles of Naples appeared in Perugia and tried in vain to urge the cardinals to come to a decision. Nevertheless, no member of the conclave was able to obtain the necessary two-thirds majority , which is why the search for suitable candidates outside the college began. After 320 days, on June 5, 1305, the election meeting came to a result. The Archbishop of Bordeaux Bertrand de Got received the necessary ten of 15 votes. It was possible to convince three cardinals of the Italian camp to switch to the French side. Bertrand de Got was seen as an opponent of the French king. Since the chosen one was not in Perugia, the cardinals sent a letter of homage to Bordeaux. In it they asked him to travel to Rome as soon as possible for the coronation. Bertrand de Got did not comply with this request. He again invited the entire Holy College to Lyon, where on November 14, 1305, after a sedis vacancy of 495 days, the enthronement took place in the presence of the French king . The Dean of the College Napoleone Cardinal Orsini crowned de Got as the new Pope. During the ceremony, the new pontiff was hit by a collapsing wall and was slightly injured. His tiara was also knocked off his head in the incident . Contemporaries interpreted this as a bad omen for the papacy. With the pontificate of Clement V, as the Pope called himself from then on, the time of the Avignon papacy began .

Important offices

The following cardinals assumed central offices during the conclave:

Cardinal Dean : Niccolò Alberti di Prato
Cardinal Sub- Dean : Giovanni Mincio

Attendees

Benedict XI. created only three cardinals in his short tenure. The Holy Quorum had a total of 19 members at his death. 15 of these took part in the conclave 1304–1305.

The following cardinals took part in the conclave: