Conclave 1352
The conclave of 1352 (December 16-18) was made after the death of Pope Clement VI. convene; it chose to be his successor Étienne Aubert, who was named Innocent VI. the fifth Pope with his seat in Avignon was (cf. Avignon Papacy ). This conclave is also noteworthy because, for the first time in history, the cardinals wrote an apostolic letter to the conclave that restricted the power of the new incumbent.
First Apostolic Letter to a Conclave
On December 16, five cardinals entered the conclave in the Palais des Papes in Avignon. At the beginning, all eligible voters signed the first apostolic letter to a conclave, although some of them (including Cardinal Aubert) did so with reservations, provided it did not violate canon law. The terms of the letter were:
- The college of cardinals is limited to 20 members; new cardinals are not appointed until their number has dropped to 16.
- The appointment, excommunication, disenfranchisement, confiscation of property or income of cardinals must be approved by the college by a two-thirds majority , as must the petition for subsidies from sovereigns or national clergy.
- The college has a right of veto over papal decisions and guidelines.
- All papal income is shared with the quorum.
The adoption of these Apostolic Letters is seen as part of the general College of Cardinals strategy to limit papal power and transform the government of the Church into an oligarchy rather than a monarchy .
Election of Pope Innocent VI.
After the Apostolic Letter was signed, the election of the Pope began. Initially, the candidacy was proposed by Jean Birel , General of the Carthusian Order and not a Cardinal, but revered for his piety. But Cardinal Talleyrand addressed the College of Cardinals that it would be unwise, if not dangerous, to elect a new Celestine V in such a critical situation in Europe . H. a holy but completely incompetent Pope. The college finally agreed with him and abandoned Birel's candidacy in favor of Cardinal Étienne Aubert, Bishop of Ostia , who was unanimously elected Pope on December 18. He accepted the election and called himself Innocent VI. On December 30th, he was solemnly crowned in the Notre-Dame des Doms Cathedral in Avignon by the cardinal protodeacon Gaillard de la Mothe .
On July 6, 1353, Pope Innocent VI declared. the apostolic letter resolved by the conclave is invalid because it violates the rule that (legal) business is limited during a conclave for the election of a new pope, as well as violating the power of the papal office. However, in most of the conclaves held over the next 300 years, apostolic letters were signed.
Eligible voters
Pope Clement VI died on December 6, 1352 in Avignon. During his pontificate he consistently refused to return to Rome and instead bought sovereignty over Avignon (where the papal court resided) from Queen Joan I of Naples . There were 26 cardinals alive at his death. 25 of them attended the conclave
19 cardinals were from Clement VI. appointed, eight of them were members of his family. Of the remaining six, three were from John XXII. and three from Benedict XII. been appointed.
The office of Camerlengo , the most important during the Sedis vacancy , was held by Stefano Aldebrandi Cambaruti , Archbishop of Toulouse , who was not a cardinal.
Only one cardinal (appointed by Clement VI) did not attend the conclave, as he was a legate in France, where he unsuccessfully tried to bring peace between France and England during the Hundred Years War
cardinal | Cardinal title | Appointed on | by | Remarks |
---|---|---|---|---|
Guy de Boulogne | Bishop of Porto-Santa Rufina | September 20, 1342 | Clement VI. | Papal legate in France |
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- Conclave of December 16-18, 1352. In: Salvador Miranda : The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church. ( Florida International University website, English)
- Guillaume Mollat : The Popes at Avignon 1305-1378. London 1963.
- JND Kelly: The Oxford Dictionary of Popes. Oxford 1986.