Papal election, 1198

The papal election of January 8, 1198 was convoked after the death of Pope Celestine III; it ended with the election of Cardinal Lotario dei Conti di Segni, who took the name Innocent III. In this election for the first time the new pope was elected "per scrutinium". [A. Piazzoni, p. 177]

Death of Celestine III

Pope Celestine III had been elected to the papacy in 1191 at the age of 85. In spite of his very advanced age, his pontificate lasted almost seven years. On Christmas Day, 1197 the 91-year-old Pope expressed the wish to abdicate the papacy on condition that his close collaborator Cardinal Giovanni di San Paolo would be elected the new pope. [ [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08013a.htm The Catholic Encyclopedia: Pope Innocent III] ] The cardinals rejected the suggestion as inconsistent with the rule that papal elections must be free ones. [T. Greenwood, p. 358] Shortly thereafter, on January 8, 1198, Celestine III died and the cardinals present at his deathbed immediately started proceedings for the election of his successor.

List of participants

At the death of Celestine III there were 28 cardinals in the Sacred College. [K. Eubel, p. 3, note 1; and T. Greenwood, p. 358] However, only 23 were present at Rome: [T. Greenwood, p. 358]

Four electors were created by Celestine III, five by Lucius III, one by Alexander III and the remaining thirteen by Clement III.

Absentees

Five cardinals were absent: [ T. Greenwood, p. 358-359]

Election of Pope Innocent III

On the same day that Celestine III had died the cardinals assembled in Septizonium in the voluntary enclosure. [ For this reason, some authors consider this election as the first papal conclave (A. Piazzoni, p. 176, note 2), but the formal procedures of the conclave would not be developed until the papal election, 1268–1271, and were first implemented in the papal conclave, January 1276] For the first time the electors voted by scrutiny ("per scrutinium"). Some cardinals were elected scrutineers; they had to count the votes, to record the result and to announced it to the rest of the Sacred College. [A. Piazzoni, p. 177. Piazzoni cites for this statement two anonymous contemporary sources: "Oratio pro eligendo pontifice" and "Gesta Innocentii papae". However, according to T. Greenwood, p. 299, there is some evidence suggesting that similar procedure might have been already used in the papal election, 1191, but the source that he cited is brief and ambiguous, and is insufficient to ascertain it.] In the first scrutiny Cardinal Giovanni di Salerno was elected but he declined. [S. Miranda [http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/bios1190.htm#Salerno Cardinal Giovanni di Salerno] ] In the second scrutiny the cardinals united their votes [Unanimity of the election: Smith, p. 12] in favor of 37-years old Cardinal Lotario dei Conti di Segni, deacon of SS. Sergio e Bacco, who was the youngest of all the cardinals. [S. Miranda [http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/bios1190.htm#Segni Cardinal Lotario dei Conti di Segni] .] He accepted his election and took the name Innocent III.

On February 22, 1198 the new pope was ordained to the priesthood and consecrated to the episcopate by Cardinal Ottaviano di Paoli, bishop of Ostia e Velletri, and solemnly crowned by Cardinal Graziano da Pisa, protodeacon of SS. Cosma e Damiano. [S. Miranda [http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/bios1190.htm#Segni Cardinal Lotario dei Conti di Segni] .]

Notes

ources

Konrad Eubel, [http://archiv.twoday.net/stories/4122182/ "Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi"] , volumen I, Leipzig 1913

Salvador Miranda: [http://www.fiu.edu/~mirandas/bios1190.htm Consistory of 1190]

[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08013a.htm The Catholic Encyclopedia: Innocent III]

Ambrogio Piazzoni “Historia wyboru papieży”, Wyd. M, Kraków 2003

Thomas Greenwood, [http://books.google.com/books?id=o2lhAAAAMAAJ&hl=pl Cathedra Pethri] , C.J. Stewart, 1865

Philipp Jaffé, Regesta pontificum Romanorum ab condita Ecclesia ad annum post Christum natum MCXCVIII, Berlin 1851

Daniel J. Smith, [http://books.google.com/books?id=Ifc-dcWUmswC&hl=pl Innocent III and the Crown of Aragon] , Ashgate Publishing, Ltd., 2004