The 1144

papal election A papal conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a bishop of Rome, also known as the pope. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church. ...

followed the death of

Pope Celestine II Pope Celestine II ( la, Caelestinus II; died 8 March 1144), born Guido di Castello,Thomas, pg. 91 was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 26 September 1143 to his death in 1144. Early life Guido di Castello, possibly ...

and resulted in the election of Pope Lucius II.

Election of Lucius II

Pope Celestine II died on 8 March 1144 at Rome, after a pontificate of only five months. The election of his successor took place in the shadow of this municipal revolution, which opposed the secular rule of the Pope. Celestine II was unable to recover full control over the city of Rome; in addition he had to face also the demands of the king

Roger II of Sicily Roger II ( it, Ruggero II; 22 December 1095 – 26 February 1154) was King of Sicily and Africa, son of Roger I of Sicily and successor to his brother Simon. He began his rule as Count of Sicily in 1105, became Duke of Apulia and Calabria i ...

. This problem remained unresolved on his death, because he had refused to confirm the privileges granted to Roger by his predecessor Innocent II. The cardinals present at Rome elected Cardinal Gerardo Caccianemici, priest of the '' titulus'' of S. Croce in Gerusalemme and former canon regular of S. Frediano di Lucca. The details concerning the place of the election or the exact date of electoral proceedings are not registered. Since the elect was chancellor of the Holy See and close collaborator of both Innocent II and Celestine II, it may be assumed that the cardinals wanted to continue their policy, friendly towards the Empire and hostile towards the king Roger. The elect took the name Lucius II and received episcopal consecration on 12 March 1144.

Cardinal-electors

There were probably 39 cardinals in the Sacred College of Cardinals in March 1144. Based on examination of the subscriptions of the papal bulls in 1144Jaffé, p.1 and 7 and the available data about the external missions of the cardinals, it is possible to establish that no more than 36 cardinals participated in the election: Twenty two electors were created by

Pope Innocent II Pope Innocent II ( la, Innocentius II; died 24 September 1143), born Gregorio Papareschi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 14 February 1130 to his death in 1143. His election as pope was controversial and the fi ...

, ten by Celestine II, two by

Pope Callixtus II Pope Callixtus II or Callistus II ( – 13 December 1124), born Guy of Burgundy, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1 February 1119 to his death in 1124. His pontificate was shaped by the Investiture Controversy, ...

and one by Pope Paschalis II.

Absentees

Notes

Sources

* * * * * {{Subject bar , portal1= Catholicism , portal2= Christianity , portal3= Vatican City , b=y, b-search=Biblical Studies/Christianity/Roman Catholicism/History , commons=y, commons-search=Papal conclave , n=y, n-search=Roman Catholic Church , q=y, q-search=Popes , s=y, s-search=Popes , v=y, v-search=Christian History , wikt=y, wikt-search=Pope , d=y 12th-century elections 1144 1144 1144 in Europe 12th-century Catholicism