- Amadeus VIII, Duke of Savoy
Infobox Antipope
honorific-prefix =
name = Felix V
honorific-suffix =
title =
caption = Antipope Felix V, the last historical Antipope.
enthroned =5 November ,1439
ended =7 April ,1449
predecessor = Benedict XIV (as Antipope)
Eugene IV (as Pope)
successor = Nicholas V (as Pope)
opposed = Eugene IV and Nicholas V
ordination =
consecration =
other_post =
birth_name = Amadeus VIII
birth_date =September 4 ,1383
birthplace =
death_date =January 7 ,1451
deathplace =
buried =
nationality =
religion =
residence =
parents =Amadeus VII, Count of Savoy andBonne of Berry
spouse =
children =
alma_mater =
Amadeus VIII (
September 4 ,1383 –January 7 ,1451 ) was the son ofAmadeus VII, Count of Savoy andBonne of Berry . He was surnamed the Peaceful and was the Count ofSavoy from 1391 to 1416 and was elevated by Emperor Sigismund to theDuke of Savoy in 1416. Amadeus was also theantipope Felix V, elected by the Council of Basel-Ferrara-Florence, from November 1439 to April 1449.After the death of his father in 1391, his mother acted as a regent, because of his youth.
In 1418 his distant cousin
Louis of Savoy-Achaea , his brother-in-law, the last male of the elder branch ofHouse of Savoy , died, leaving Amadeus as hisheir-general , thus finally uniting the male-lines of the House of Savoy.He increased his dominions, encouraged several attempts to negotiate an end to the
Hundred Years' War , and, after the death of his wife, retired from his position as Duke to become ahermit . Elected by theCouncil of Basel as an alternative Pope in opposition toPope Eugene IV , Amadeus served as Felix V, regarded as an antipope, before stepping down to accept a Cardinal's hat instead [Pope Nicholas V named himCardinal-Bishop of Sabina ,dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals and perpetual legate in theDuchy of Savoy in April 1449] .Amadeus' image in history is marred by the account of him as a pontiff concerned with money, to avoid disadvantaging his heirs, found in the "Commentaries" of
Pius II . Nor is there evidence that he intrigued to obtain the papal office, sending the bishops of Savoy to Basel for this purpose.(Note on numbering: When numbering of the Popes began to be used,
Antipope Felix II was counted as one of the Popes of that name. The second true Pope Felix is thus known by the number III, and the true third Pope Felix was given the number IV. It also affected the name taken by Amadeus, who would have been the fourth Pope Felix.)Family and children
He married Mary of Burgundy (1380-1422), daughter of
Philip the Bold ,Duke of Burgundy and granddaughter ofJohn II of France and had nine children:
# Margaret of Savoy (1405-1418)
# Anthony of Savoy (1407)
# Anthony of Savoy (1408)
#Margaret of Savoy (1410-1479) married to:
## Louis III, titular king ofNaples ;
##Louis IV, Count Palatine of the Rhine ;
##Ulrich V, Count of Württemberg .
# Mary of Savoy (1411-1469), marriedFilippo Maria Visconti , duke of Milan.
# Amadeus of Savoy, Prince of Piemonte (1412-1431)
#Louis of Savoy (1413-1465), his successor
# Bonne of Savoy (1415-1430)
#Philip of Savoy , Count ofGenève (1417-1444) unmarried.Infobox Antipopestyles
name = Antipope Felix V
dipstyle = His Holiness
offstyle = Your Holiness
relstyle = Holy Father
deathstyle = Unknownee also
*
Louis Aleman References
External links
* [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/06031b.htm Catholic Encyclopedia entry]
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