Antipope Paschal III (
Latin
Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
: ''Paschalis III''; ) was a 12th-century clergyman who, from 1164 to 1168, was the second
antipope
An antipope () is a person who claims to be Bishop of Rome and leader of the Roman Catholic Church in opposition to the officially elected pope. Between the 3rd and mid-15th centuries, antipopes were supported by factions within the Church its ...
to challenge the reign of
Pope Alexander III
Pope Alexander III (c. 1100/1105 – 30 August 1181), born Roland (), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 7 September 1159 until his death in 1181.
A native of Siena, Alexander became pope after a Papal election, ...
. He had previously served as
Cardinal
Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to
* Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds
**''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae
***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...
of
St. Maria.
Biography
Born Guido of Crema; he was a nephew of Cardinal
John of Crema. In 1159, he joined the obedience of
Victor IV and organized synods in
England
England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...
and
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
in favour of the antipope. Pope Alexander III
interdict
In Catholic canon law, an interdict () is an ecclesiastical censure, or ban that prohibits certain persons or groups from participating in particular rites, or that the rites and services of the church are prohibited in certain territories for ...
ed him. In 1164, Victor IV died. A small number of
cardinals, who had been obedient to Victor IV, met again in
Lucca
Città di Lucca ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, Central Italy, on the Serchio River, in a fertile plain near the Ligurian Sea. The city has a population of about 89,000, while its Province of Lucca, province has a population of 383,9 ...
to elect a successor. Guido was elected as the successor, took the name Paschal III, and was consecrated by
Henry II of Leez, Bishop of Liège. The new pope was established at
Viterbo
Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Lazio region of Italy, the Capital city, capital of the province of Viterbo.
It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in ...
and successfully prevented Alexander from reaching Rome. However, he was soon driven from Rome, leading to the return of Alexander III in 1165.
In order to gain more support from Emperor
Frederick Barbarossa
Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (; ), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death in 1190. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt on 4 March 1152 and crowned in Aachen on 9 March 115 ...
, Paschal
canonized
Canonization is the declaration of a deceased person as an officially recognized saint, specifically, the official act of a Christian communion declaring a person worthy of public veneration and entering their name in the canon catalogue of sa ...
Charlemagne
Charlemagne ( ; 2 April 748 – 28 January 814) was List of Frankish kings, King of the Franks from 768, List of kings of the Lombards, King of the Lombards from 774, and Holy Roman Emperor, Emperor of what is now known as the Carolingian ...
in a magnificent celebration at
Aachen
Aachen is the List of cities in North Rhine-Westphalia by population, 13th-largest city in North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, 27th-largest city of Germany, with around 261,000 inhabitants.
Aachen is locat ...
in 1165. Paschal soon lost the support of Burgundy, but the emperor crushed opposition in Germany and gained the cooperation of
Henry II of England
Henry II () was King of England
The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the form of government used by the United Kingdom by which a hereditary monarch reigns as the head of state, with the ...
.
Concerned over rumours that Alexander III was about to enter into an alliance with the Byzantine Emperor
ManuelI, in October 1166, Frederick embarked on his fourth Italian campaign, hoping as well to secure the claim of PaschalIII and the imperial coronation of his wife,
Beatrice. In 1167, Frederick began besieging
Ancona
Ancona (, also ; ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region of central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona, homonymous province and of the region. The city is located northeast of Ro ...
, which had acknowledged the authority of ManuelI. Meanwhile, his forces achieved a great victory over the Romans at the
Battle of Monte Porzio
The Battle of Monte Porzio (also called the Battle of Tusculum) was fought on 29 May 1167 between the Holy Roman Empire and the Commune of Rome. The communal Roman army, which one historian has called the "greatest army which Rome had sent int ...
. Heartened by this victory, Frederick lifted the siege of Ancona and hurried to Rome. Supported by Frederick's imperial army, Paschal was enthroned at St Peter's on , and Alexander III became a fugitive. On the following 30 July, Frederick received a second coronation from PaschalIII. Two days later, Paschal crowned Beatrice empress. Frederick's campaign was halted by the sudden outbreak of an epidemic (
malaria
Malaria is a Mosquito-borne disease, mosquito-borne infectious disease that affects vertebrates and ''Anopheles'' mosquitoes. Human malaria causes Signs and symptoms, symptoms that typically include fever, Fatigue (medical), fatigue, vomitin ...
or the
plague), which threatened to destroy the Imperial army and drove the emperor back to Germany. Without the support of the Emperor, Paschal was able to hold only the quarter on the right bank of the
Tiber
The Tiber ( ; ; ) is the List of rivers of Italy, third-longest river in Italy and the longest in Central Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Tuscany, Umbria, and Lazio, where it is joined by the R ...
where he died of cancer . He was succeeded by
Antipope Callixtus III
Callixtus III (also Calixtus III or Callistus III; died between 1180 and 1184) was an antipope from September 1168 until his resignation in August 1178. He was the third antipope elected in opposition to Pope Alexander III during the latter's stru ...
.
The
Catholic Church
The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...
has never recognized Charlemagne's canonization as Paschal was an antipope. In 1179, the
Third Council of the Lateran
The Third Council of the Lateran met in Rome in March 1179. Pope Alexander III presided and 302 bishops attended. The Catholic Church regards it as the eleventh ecumenical council.
By agreement reached at the Peace of Venice in 1177 the bitt ...
annulled all of his ordinances, including the canonization. Charlemagne remained in good regard still, however, among Catholics, and
Prosper Guéranger even composed a prayer to Charlemagne. He is a Blessed of the Church. Also annulled was the coronation of Empress Beatrice, who ceased to be referred as empress.
See also
*
Papal selection before 1059
*
Papal conclave
A conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to appoint the pope of the Catholic Church. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church.
Concerns around ...
(since 1274)
Note
References
Further reading
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Paschal, Antipope, Iii
12th-century antipopes
12th-century Christian clergy
Paschal 3
Apostolic Envoys to Poland
Date of birth unknown
1168 deaths