Papal election, December 1187

The papal election of December 19, 1187 was a papal election convoked after the death of Pope Gregory VIII. It resulted in the election of Cardinal Paolo Scolari, who took the name of Clement III.

List of participants

According to the very old work of Alfonso Chacón (died 1599) "Vitae et res gestae Pontificum Romanorum et S.R.E. Cardinalium", I, cols., 1133-1134, there were 33 cardinals in the Sacred College in December 1187, of whom 22 participated in the election of the successor of Urban III, [ [http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/conclave-xii.htm#1187A F. Bourkle-Young: notes to the papal election of December 1187] ] but more recent sources have substantially reduced these numbers [I.S. Robinson, p. 44 and 87] . Basing on the countersigning of the papal bulls in December 1187 [Jaffé Philipp, "Regesta...", p. 866-870 ] it is possible to establish that 9 out of 20 cardinals [I.S. Robinson, p. 44] were present at the death of Gregory VIII at Pisa, but it is known that one of them could not attend the election due to illness, so only 8 [I.S.Robinson, p. 87] cardinals participated in the subsequent papal election:

Seven absentees were created by Lucius III, three by Alexander III, and one by Adrian IV.

Death of Urban III and the election of Pope Gregory VIII

Pope Gregory VIII died at Pisa on December 17, 1187 after a pontificate of only one month and twenty-seven days. Two days later the cardinals present on his deathbed started proceedings to elect his successor. The election was celebrated in the presence of Consul of Rome Leo de Monumento. In the first round of voting Cardinal Thibaud of Ostia was elected but declined. In the second round the cardinals unanimously elected Cardinal Paolo Scolari, who was present at Pisa but was too ill to attend the election. He accepted his election and took the name Clement III [A. Piazzoni, p. 175] . On January 7, 1188 he was solemnly crowned by protodeacon Giacinto Bobone Orsini and in February 1188 he returned to Rome [S. Miranda [http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/bios1179.htm#Scolari Cardinal Paolo Scolari] ] .

Notes

ources

* [http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/conclave-xii.htm#1187 F. Bourkle-Young: notes to the papal election of October 1187]
*Ian Stuart Robinson, The Papacy, 1073-1198: Continuity and Innovation, Cambridge 1990
*Jaffé Philipp, "Regesta pontificum Romanorum ab condita Ecclesia ad annum post Christum natum MCXCVIII", Berlin 1851
*Ambrogio Piazzoni, Historia wyboru papieży, Wyd. M, Kraków 2003