SEDE VACANTE 1549-1550

Reginald Cardinal Pole

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GUIDO ASCANIO CARDINAL SFORZA (1518-1564) was the son of Bosio Sforza, Conte di Santa Fiora e Cotignola, and Costanza Farnese, the legitimized daughter of Alessandro Farnese (Pope Paul III). He became Cardinal at the age of sixteen on December 18, 1534, in his grandfather's first Consistory. He was named Bishop of Parma (1535-1560), and became Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church in 1537 at the age of 19. It was a post he held until his death on October 6, 1564. He served as Legate of Bologna and the Romagna ( from 1537), and was Papal Legate in Hungary in 1540. He presided over the Interregnum of 1549-50, the two interregna of 1555, and that of 1559.

 

The Dean of the Sacred College was Giovanni Domenico Cardinal de Cupis (1493-1553) He was the son of Pope Julius II's former mistress, Lucrezia, and thus the half-brother of Felice della Rovere Orsini, Julius' daughter. A cardinal since 1517, he had been participating in conclaves since 1521-1522. He became Dean of the Sacred College in 1537. He was a close friend of St. Ignatius Loyola. [ His stemma at right ]

 

The security of the Conclave was placed by the Sacred College in the hands of Niccolò Orsini, with five hundred troops in addition to the Swiss Guard. The city itself, and the defense of the Vatican were placed in the care of Orazio Farnese, nephew of the deceased pope and Prefect of the City of Rome, with four thousand soldiers. These special arrangements were made necessary by the revolt of Ascanio Colonna against the papal government.

 

The Maestro di Ceremonie was Msgr. Giovanni Francesco Firmano. His diary from 1529 to 1565 survives in manuscripts.

Death of Pope Paul III (Farnese)

Severely depressed by the treachery of his own family and by the fall of Parma to Emperor Charles V, Pope Paul III contracted a fever, which finally took his life. He died on November 10, 1549, aged eighty-one.

The Cardinals

There were fifty-four cardinals at the time of the pope's death. A list of the cardinals is given by Onuphrio Panvinio (pp. 416-417).

Cardinals attending:

1. Giovanni Domenico de Cupis (aged 56), Suburbicarian Bishop of Ostia e Velletri (died 1553). Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals. "Cardinal of Trani"
2. Giovanni Salviati (aged 59), Suburbicarian Bishop of Porto e Santa Rufina (died 1553) Sub-Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals.
3. Philippe de la Chambre, OSB (aged 59?), Suburbicarian Bishop of Frascati (died February 21, 1550).
4. Gian Pietro Carafa (aged 73), Suburbicarian Bishop of Sabina (died 1559). Archbishop of Naples.
5. Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte (aged 62), Suburbicarian Bishop of Palestrina (died 1555).
6. † Ennio Filonardi (aged 83), Suburbicarian Bishop of Albano. (died December 19, 1549, during the Conclave).
   
   
7. Louis de Bourbon de Vendôme (aged 56), Cardinal Priest of S. Sabina (died 1557). Administrator of Laon, Adminstrator of Sens
8. Francesco Pisani (aged 55), Cardinal Priest of S. Marco (died 1570). Bishop of Padua.
9. François de Tournon (aged 60), Cardinal Priest of SS. Marcellino e Pietro (died 1562). Archbishop of Auch
10. Jean du Bellay (aged 57), Cardinal Priest of S. Crisogono (died 1560). Bishop of Paris, Administrator of Bordeaux
11. Rodolfo Pio di Carpi (aged 49), Cardinal Priest of S. Maria in Trastevere.(died 1564). .Administrator of Agrigento.
12. Juan Álvarez de Toledo, OP (aged 61), Cardinal Priest of S. Clemente (died 1557). Bishop of Burgos
13. Robert de Lenoncourt (aged 64?), Cardinal Priest of S. Apollinare (died 1561). Bishop of Châlons sur Marne
14. Antoine Sanguin de Meudon (aged 56), Cardinal Priest of S. Maria in Portico (died 1559). Bishop of Orléans
15. Marcello Cervini degli Spannochi (aged 48), Cardinal Priest of S. Croce in Gerusalemme (died 1555). Bishop of Reggio Emilia.
16. Miguel de Silva (aged 69), Cardinal Priest of S. Prassede (died 1556). Bishop of Massa Marittima.
17. Giovanni Girolamo Morone (aged 40), Cardinal Priest of S. Stefano al Monte Celio (died 1580). Bishop of Modena.
18. Marcello Crescenzi (aged 49), Cardinal Priest of S. Marcello (died 1552). Administrator of Conza.
19. Cristoforo Madruzzo (aged 37), Cardinal Priest of S. Cesareo in Palatio (died 1578). Bishop of Trent, Bishop of Brixen
20. Francisco Mendoza de Bobadilla (aged 41), Cardinal Priest of S. Maria in Ara Coeli (died 1566). Bishop of Coria
21. Bartolomé de la Cueva de Albuquerque (aged 50), Cardinal Priest of S. Matteo in Merulana (died 1562)..
22. Georges d'Armagnac (aged 40), Cardinal Priest of SS. Giovanni e Paolo (died 1585). Bishop of Rodez, Administrator of Tours
23. Otto Truchess von Waldburg (aged 35), Cardinal Priest of S. Balbina (died 1573). Bishop of Augsburg
24. Francesco Sfondrati (aged 56), Cardinal Priest of S. Anastasia (died 1550). Bishop of Cremona.
25. Federico Cesi (aged 49), Cardinal Priest of S. Pancrazio (died 1565). Apostolic Administrator of Caserta.
26. Durante de Duranti (aged 42), Cardinal Priest of Santi. XII Apostoli (died 1557). Bishop of Cassano.
27. Pedro Pacheco de Villena (aged 61), Cardinal Priest without titulus (died 1560). Bishop of Jaén
28. Georges d'Amboise (aged 61), Cardinal Priest of S. Susanna (died 1550). Archbishop of Rouen
29. Charles de Lorraine-Guise (aged 25), Cardinal Priest of S. Cecilia (died 1574). Archbishop of Reims
30. Girolamo Verallo (aged 52), Cardinal Priest of S. Martino ai Monti (died 1555). Archbishop of Rossano, Bishop of Capaccio.
31. Giovanni Angelo Medici (aged 50), Cardinal Priest of S. Pudenziana (died 1565). Archbishop of Ragusa
32. Bernardino Maffei (aged 35), Cardinal Priest of S. Ciriaco alle Terme Diocleziane (died 1553). Archbishop of Chieti.
    
    
33. Innocenzo Cibo (aged 58), Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Domnica (died April 14, 1550). Archbishop of Genoa. Administrator of Marseille
34. † Nicolò Ridolfi (aged 48), Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Via Lata (died January 31, 1550, during the Conclave). Bishop of Vicenza.
35. Jean de Lorraine (aged 51), Cardinal Deacon of S. Onofrio (died May , 1550). Bishop of Metz, Administrator of Narbonne, Albi, Agen, and Nantes
36. Niccolò Gaddi (aged 50), Cardinal Deacon of SS. Vito e Modesto in Macello Martyrum (died 1552). .
37. Ercole Gonzaga (aged 44), Cardinal Deacon of Cardinal-Deacon of S. Maria Nuova (died 1563). Bishop of Mantua.
38. Girolamo Doria (aged 55), Cardinal Deacon of S. Tommaso in Parione (died 1558). Adminstrator of Tarragona.
39. Odet de Coligny de Châtillon (aged 32), Cardinal Deacon of SS. Sergio e Bacco (died 1571). Administrator of Beauvais, and Toulouse
40. Alessandro Farnese, (aged 29), Cardinal Deacon of S. Lorenzo in Damaso (died 1589). Administrator of Avignon, Tours, Viseu, and Monreale. Vice-Chancellor.
41. Guido Ascanio Sforza di Santa Fiora (aged 31), Cardinal Deacon of S. Eustachio (died 1564). Apostolic Administrator of Parma. Camerlengo.
42. Reginald Pole (aged 49), Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Cosmedin (died 1558). Archbishop of Canterbury
43. Niccolò Caetani (aged 23), Cardinal Deacon of S. Nicola in Carcere (died 1585). Archbishop of Capua.
44. Ippolito II d'Este (aged 40), Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Aquiro (died 1572). Archbishop of Milan; Administrator of Lyon, Administrator of Autun
45. Giacomo Savelli (aged 26), Cardinal Deacon of SS. Cosma e Damiano.(died 1587). Apostolic Administrator of Nicastro.
46. Andrea Cornaro (aged 38), Cardinal Deacon of S. Teodoro (died 1551). Bishop of Brescia.
47. Girolamo (Recanati) Capodiferro (aged 47), Cardinal-Deacon of S. Giorgio in Velabro (died 1559). Bishop of Saint-Jean de Maurienne
48. Tiberio Crispo (aged 51), Cardinal-Deacon of S. Agata alla Suburra (died 1566). Administrator of Amalfi.
49. Ranuccio Farnese (aged 19), Cardinal Deacon of S. Angelo in Pescheria (died 1565). Patriarch of Constantinople, Administrator of Ravenna. Major Penitentiary. Archpriest of the Lateran Basilica.
50. Giulio Feltre della Rovere (aged 16), Cardinal Deacon of S. Pietro in Vincoli (died 1578). Administrator of Urbino.
51. Charles de Bourbon-Vandôme (aged 26), Cardinal Deacon of S. Sisto (died 1590). Bishop of Saintes

Cardinals not attending:

1. Claude de Longuy de Givry (aged 68), Cardinal Priest of S. Agnese in Agone (died 1561). Administrator of Poitiers, Administrator of Langres.
2. Jacques d'Annebaut (49?), Cardinal Priest of S. Susanna (died 1557). Bishop of Lisieux.
3. Henrique de Portugal (aged 37), Cardinal Priest of SS. Quattro Coronati (died 1580). Archbishop of Evora

Opening of the Conclave

The Conclave was due to begin on November 9, but the French cardinals requested additional time for their associates to arrive. Fifty-one entered conclave at the opening on December 3, 1549, though two left the conclave due to illness (Filonardi and Ridolfi). Thirty-two votes were needed to elect. Bernardino della Croce had demanded entrance and a vote, having been named by Paul III in a secret consistory, but his claim was rejected (Cartwright, 129-130).

Factions

Novaes says that there were three factions, the Imperialists, the French, and the Farnesiani; and that the most likely soggetti papabili were Cardinals Pole, Sfondrati, Carpi and Ridolfi (who died on the night of January 31). The first scrutiny took place on December 4. Reginald Cardinal Pole (Archbishop of Canterbury), the favorite of the Imperial party, received 26 votes, two short of election. An attempt was made that evening to proclaim him "by adoration", but the cardinal himself resisted. Cardinal Carafa, the Grand Inquisitor (since 1542) began to put it about that Cardinal Pole was touched by Lutheranism in an effort to diminish his chances (De Leva, 72-76). In the second scrutiny he received 25, in the third 22 with two accessions, in the fourth 22 with three accessions, in the fifth 23, and in the sixth 21.

The next contestant was Cardinal Juan Alvarez de Toledo (Bishop of Burgos), the father of the Duke of Alba, Viceroy of Naples. He was one of those favored by Charles V and Cosimo II, but he could not get French or Farnese votes. He reached as high as twenty-six votes (De Leva, 77), but could not break through.

Arrival of the French

On December 12, the five French cardinals finally arrived: de Guise, du Bellay, Vendome, Chastillon and Tournon. In the scrutiny of December 13, Pole got only one more vote (none of them French), and Alvarez 18. French orders were obviously to exculde Pole by their votes. The King of France, Henri II, favored his long-standing personal friend, Cardinal Ippolito d'Este II, but that was an impossibility. The other French choices were Guise, Ridolfi, Salviati and Cervini. (De Leva, 77-78).Cardinal Alessandro Farnese was promoting Cardinal Marcello Cervini, but the Imperial forces blocked him. The French were promoting Giovanni Salviati (Bishop of Porto) and Ridolfo Pio de Carpi. It gradually became apparent that one side would continue to exclude the candidates of the others, and so a compromise began to be sought.

On December 16, Cardinal Filonardo left the conclave because of illness; three days later he was dead. On the 22nd, Cardinal Cervini left, suffering from the quartan fever. Cardinal Ridolfi was carried out and died at his palace on January 31 (De Leva, 89).

On January 15, Cardinal Giovanni Morone, the Bishop of Modena, who had been born in Milan and served as Legate in Bologna from 1542-1548, emerged with 24 votes and two accessions. But this was as far as his candidacy got.

Real Choices

There were really two possibilities, Cervini (who was firmly in favor of Cardinal Pole) and del Monte. Del Monte belonged to the Farnese faction, and was believed to be friendly toward the French; the Imperial party found him obnoxious. Cardinal de Guise, too, had a number of negative observations to make about him, including his temper and his scandalous private life, and did his best to oppose the candidacy.

Nonetheless, on February 7, 1550, in the evening, Cardinal Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte, aged sixty-three, was elected. After the election, Cardinal de Guise was compelled to request the assistance of Cardinal Sforza in making his peace with the new Pope (Cardinalismo, 177)..

Julius III, was crowned on February 22, 1550, by Cardinal Innocenzo Cibò, the Cardinal Protodeacon. He took possession of his cathedral, the Lateran Basilica, on June 24.

Bibliography

A copious list of primary sources is given by Anton Pieper, Die päpstlichen Legaten und Nuntien in Deutschland, Frankreich und Spanien I. Theil (Munster 1897) 1-2.

Onuphrio Panvinio, Epitome Pontificum Romanorum a S. Petro usque ad Paulum IIII gestorum (videlicet) electionisque singulorum & Conclavium compendiaria narratio (Venice: Impensis Iacobi Strada, 1557).

Francesco Maria Cardinal Sforza Pallavicino, S. J., Istoria del Concilio di Trento Book XI, chapter vi [Opere edite ed inedite del Cardinale Sforza Pallavicino, ordinata e pubblicata da Ottavio Gigli, Tomo XIII (Roma 1846) pp. 67-72]. [Gregorio Leti], Il Cardinalismo di Santa Chiesa Parte Terza (1668), 170-178.

Giuseppe de Novaes, Elementi della storia de' Sommi Pontefici third edition Volume 7 (Roma 1822) pp. 61-64. Gaetano Moroni, Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica Volume 15 (Venezia 1842) p. 286; Volume 21 (Venezia 1843), p. 241; Volume 31 (Venezia 1845) p. 164. A. F. Artaud de Montor, Histoire des souverains pontifes Romains Volume IV (Paris 1851), pp. 148-151. L. F. Bungener, History of the Council of Trent (New York: Harper 1855), 203-208. F. Petruccelli della Gattina, Histoire diplomatique des conclaves Second Volume (Paris 1864) 23-64. For the Imperial viewpoint see: Giuseppe de Leva, "La elezione di Papa Giulio III," Rivista storica italiana 1 (1884) 22-38. Giuseppe de Leva, Storia documentata di Carlo V in correlazione all' Italia Volume V (Boklogna 1894) pp. 69-92. G. Constant, "Une rivalité Franco-Allemande en conclave: L' élection de Jules III," Revue hebdomadaire (18 février 1922) 333. F. J. Baumgartner, "Henry II and the Papal Conclave of 1549," Sixteen Century Journal 16. 3 (1985) 301-314.

Martin Haile, The Life of Reginald Pole (New York 1910) 356-364. W. C. Cartwright, On the Constitution of Papal Conclaves (Edinburgh 1878).