Sede Vacante 1187

Background

In 1184 a controversy had broken out over the succession to the Archbishopric of Trier. The two contestants had each appealed to a friendly ear, Volcmar (Folcmar, Folmarus) to Pope Lucius III, and Rudolf von Wied to the Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. After some posturing, Frederick agreed to let the Papal Curia handle the case, knowing perhaps of the divisions among the cardinals and courtiers, or perhaps expecting that the Pope would reciprocate his reasonable attitude. Cardinal Konrad of Mainz, for example, was completely hostile to the Emperor, while his friends were led by Cardinal Alberto di Morra. But the Pope made no decision before he died on November 25, 1185. The Emperor was greatly annoyed when Urban III took up the issue and inally settled the dispute over the See of Trier in favor of his own supporter Volcmar, rather than the Emperor's candidate Rudolf von Wied. This, according to Arnold of Lübeck, was the beginning of strife between the two. Volcmar's principal supporter at the Curia was Cardinal Konrad von Wittelsbach of Mainz, and the decision caused some friction among the cardinals [Arnoldus Lubecensis III. 16; Watterich II, 667 and 672-673]. Volcmar did not get to enjoy his victory. He was forced to flee from Trier by the Emperor in 1187. He was welcomed in France, until Frederick made a treaty with Philip, which included the explulsion of Volcmar from Phili's domains as one of its provisions. Volcmar sought protection from the Archbishop of Reims, Cardinal Guillaume de Champagne [Gesta Trevirorum, 111; Watterich II, 669-670]. He ended up in Tours, from which he retreated to Northampton [Ralph de Diceto; MGH SS 23, 801].

Frederick retaliated against the pope and his system of justice by issuing an edict which forbade appeals to the Papal Court. He closed all the passes and highways that led to Verona and the Papal Court [Arnold of Lübeck, Chronica Slavorum III. 17]. He imprisoned, and sometimes mutilated, persons who were going to the Papal Court with appeals, and he also attacked, seized, and plundered various papal properties [Gervaise of Auxerre, in Watterich II, 668]. His son King Henry campaigned in Tuscany and the Roman Campagna, and cut off papal access to central and southern Italy [Chronicon de rebus in Italia gestis, sub anno MCLXXXVI, p. 138]:

eodem anno rex Henricus fecit parlamentum aput burgum Sancti Dompnini cum Lombardis, in quo parlamento Cremonenses et parmenses cum Placentinis prelium commiserunt. Et inde rex motus cum magno exercituy versus Romam properavit in Campaniam pro discordia quam cum domino papa urbano habebat, ibique multa loca cepit et destruxit.

Pope Urban made an effort to get Archbishop Wicmann of Magdeburg to intercede with the Emperor to restore papal property, or face citation to the Court of Rome. The Emperor began to treat the attitude of the German bishops, most of whom were against his policy toward the Church and Papacy, as a conspiracy against the throne, and grew more and more harsh [Migne Patrologiae Latinae 202, columns 1497 (February 24, 1187); Watterich II, 668-669]. Finally, he was cited to appear before the Pope. When he failed to appear, the Pope decided to excommunicate him pro usurpatione spiritualium [Annales Pegaviensis, in Watterich, p. 678; Arnoldus Lubecensis. in Watterich, p. 681].

This would seem like an unnecessarily narrow view of events, but the issues that were in play were the same as had brought about the Investiture Controversy, which, even now, after sixty-five years since the Concordat of Worms, was still not resolved. The Archbishop of Trier was one of the Imperial Electors, and one of the most important magnates in the German empire. At the same time, his conflict with the Emperor, which caused most of the bishops of Germany to side with the Archbishop and the Church, was a blow to the Emperor. At a time when Frederick was trying to secure the Imperial crown for his son Henry, the Archbishop's support would be critical.

Death of Pope Urban III

Urban III (Uberto Crivelli of Milan) reigned less than two years. He had spent all of his time in Verona, up to September 22, 1187, unable to leave the city. As the Annales Romani puts it: Erat enim maxima discordia inter Imperatorem Fridericum et Papam, ita ut nullo modo dicto Papae et cardinalibus et qui cum ipso erant, extra ipsam civitatem exiendi erat licentia. The trouble between the Emperor and the Pope was so great that the Pope, the Cardinals, and those who were with him, could not leave the city. Due to his enmity with the Emperor Frederick, he was forced to flee secretly from Verona, and ended up dying in Ferrara a month later, on Monday, October 20, 1187, the day after the Feast of St. Luke [Annales Romani, in Watterich II, p. 682; JL p. 528, citing the sources for the date]. He had spent all of his time in Verona, up to September 22, 1187.

In his Electoral Manifesto to the German hierarchy, "Inter divinae dispensationis" [Migne, PL 202, 1537 (JL 16014)], the new Pope, Gregory VIII, says:

Praedecessore siquidem nostro Urbano XIII Kal. Novemb. in bona confessione viam universae carnis ingresso, et tradito solemniter sepulturae, convenimus sequenti die in unum, et missa in honorem Sancti Spiritus, sicut moris est, celebrata, processimus seorsum in unum locum, nos episcopi, presbyteri et diaconi canonibus, et, postpositis diversis ecclesiasticis negotiis, et praecipue calamitatis Orientalis Ecclesiae, quae diebus illis audita fuerat, ad electionem pontificis visum est procedendum, ne, si forte dilationem acciperet, detrimentum ex tarditate per diversas partes Christiano populo proveniret.

There was an emergency (the Cardinals said) due to various matters ecclesiastical, and especially the disaster which had happened to the Church in the Holy Land. This statement absolved them from the necessity of waiting three days until beginning the Election, as the legislation of Pope Boniface in the Roman Synod of 607 demanded [Liber Pontificalis, MGH SS 5, p. 164 ed. Mommsen]: nullus pontificem viventem aut episcopum civitatis suae praesumat loqui aut partes sibi facere nisi tertio die depositionis eius adunato clero et filiis ecclesiae. The death of the Pope was received by the people of Ferrara with seven days of solemn mourning. Canon Robert of Auxerre writes in his Chronicon [MGH SS 26, 252]:

Urbanus papa, cum iam flebilem rem [the fall of Jerusalem] audisset, nimis indoluit, et ex nimio animi dolore languescens, post breve moritur sepeliturque in urbe Ferrarias, quo nuper advenerat de Verona. Ferrarienses cives miram defuncto honorificentiam exhibuerunt et septem diebus eius exequias cum immensis luminaribus celebrarunt.

The Cardinals

Ciaconius-Olduin (columns 1129-1130) states that there were twenty-three cardinals present at the election of Gregory VIII (Alberto de Morra). They omit Cardinal Albino of S. Croce and Cardinal Rogerio of S. Eusebio, but they include Guillaume de Champagne of S. Sabina.

Cardella [I. 2, pp. 156-159] knows of only two cardinals created by Urban III: Henri de Sully and Gandolfo, and he recognizes the dubious nature of both creations.

Cardinals attending:

1. Konrad von Wittelsbach, consanguineus Imperatoris [Frederici], de Bavaria oriundus. Count Palatine of the Rheinland. Bishop of Sabina, Archbishop of Mainz (November 1163-October 25, 1200) and Salzburg. Brought up in the Church of Salzburg (Christiani Chronicum Moguntinum, in P. Jaffé, Bibliotheca Germanica III, p. 693). In the early part of his career he was embroiled in the schism between Alexander III and "Victor IV" and his Imperial supporters in Germany, and was forced to flee to Rome. In 1177 it was agreed that he should have the Archbishopric of Salzburg, since he was exiled from Mainz (which was given to Archbishop Christian, who died in 1183, after which Conrad was able to regain his seat in Mainz). He subscribed documents for Urban III in the first three months of 1186 [PL 202, 1351 (January 11, 1186)]. He did not subscribe papal documents at all for Gregory VIII or Clement III, and only once for Celestine III (in February, 1197). He died at the end of 1200 [cf. Innocent III, Epistolae III. 4: Migne, PL 214, columns 873-876 (mid-October, 1200) (Potthast 1148); Potthast 1179 (November, 1200)]; and Theiner (editor), Vetera monumenta Slavorum I, no. 246 (Potthast 1225)]. In the Catalogus Moguntinus and in the Annales Moguntini (P. Jaffé, Bibliotheca Germanica III, p. 4 and p. 708), the date of his death is given as 1200. Cardinal Konrad was, of course, hostile to the Emperor, because of the dispute over the See of Mainz. He was no friend of Archbishop Christian or of Christian's patron, Pope Lucius III.
2. Henri de Marsiac [de Castro Marsiaco], O.Cist., Bishop of Albano. Former Abbot of Altacomba [Hautecombe] in Savoy (1161), of Clairvaux (1176) [Gallia Christiana 4 (Parisiis 1728), 802-803], elevated at the III Lateran Council on March 7, 1179, in the second session {Mansi Sacrorum Conciliorum nova et amplissima collectio 22, 234; JL, p. 339].  Gregory VIII sent him to Germany to preach the Crusade (Watterich II, p. 682). His surviving works: Migne, Patrologiae Series Latina Tomus CCIV, cols. 204-402. He died on July 14, 1188. [One may ignore Henriquez, 1554, who wrongly puts his death "circa annum Domini 1186"]
3. Paolo Scolari, Bishop of Palestrina (first subscribed on January 13, 1181). Educated at S. Maria Maggiore, and made Canon of the Liberian Basilica [F. Contelori, La gerarchia cardinalizia di Carlo Bartolomeo Piazza (Roma 1703) 221; G. Cappelletti, Le chiese d' Italia 1 (Venezia 1844), 606]. Formerly, it seems, Cardinal Deacon of SS. Sergio e Bacco (1179-1180) Built the Episcopal Palace in Palestrina. [future Pope Clement III] {cf. Cardella I. 2, p. 131]
4. Theobaldus [Thibaud], OSB.Clun.   Cardella I. 2, p. 133-134. He is made a creation of Lucius III by Panvinio, which is certainly true of his appointment as Bishop of Ostia; he appears in inscription of July 13, 1183, as Bishop of Ostia [Ciaconius-Olduin, 1113]. He subscribes from June 15, 1184 to October 29, 1188. He died at the end of 1188 of the pestilence [Epistolae Cantuarienses, no. ccxcii, pp. 275].
      
   
   
5. Alberto di Morra [Beneventanus], Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Lorenzo in Lucina. S.R.E. Cancellarius [Cardella I. 2, p. 87; JL, p. 146, 432] Cardinal Protopriest.
6. Giovanni dei Conti di Segni, Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Marco (1167-1190) [JL 16388], and before that Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Porticu (1159-1167) His latest subscription is March 22, 1196. [Cardella I.2, pp. 94-95].
7. Pietro de Bono [Bononiensis], Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Susanna. Along with Peter, Bishop of Tusculum, Legate to the Emperor Frederick I in 1180, instructed to settle a dispute between the Emperor and WIchmann, Archbishop of Magdeburg [JL 13611-13612 (February 15, 1180)]. He continued to subscribe as late as November 11, 1187. The Necrologium Renanum of S. Maria de Reno (Bologna) enters his death on November 20, 1187: XII. Kl. O. petrus de bono canonicus noster card. sancte susanne, de quo habuimus plantam unam cocineam. a. d. MC Nonagesimo VII [G. G. Trombelli, Memorie istoriche cocern. le due canoniche di S. Maria di Reno e di S. Salvatore (Bologna 1752), p. 227 and 352; J. Brixius, Mitglieder, p. 65]. His successor, Cardinal Alexius, was appointed in March, 1188, in the First Creation of Pope Clement III.
8. Laborans [Florentine], Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Maria in Trastevere (1179-after June 26, 1189). Formerly Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Porticu. Studied law at Paris. Wrote a work entitled Compilatio decretorum, .which was published on April 30, 1182 [Baronius-Theiner, sub anno 1182, no. 5, p. 502]. Held the degree of Magister.
9. Albinus, Cardinal Priest of S. Croce in Gerusalemme (1185-1189). Previously Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria Nova (1182-1185). [His name is omitted from Ciaconius-Olduin's list, and he seems to stop subscribing for Urban III on October 24, 1186. Miranda lists him as "present"]
10. Pandulfus Masca.[Pisanus] (aged 74 or above), Cardinal Priest in the title of Ss. XII Apostoli (1182-1201). Apostolic Subdeacon of Callistus II. (date of death unknown, though he subscribed a bull in 1201). Author of lives of the popes of the XII century.
11. Melior, Cardinal Priest of SS. Ioannis et Pauli. Archdeacon of Laon and Archdeacon of Reims, he had been made a Cardinal by Lucius III in 1185 [Th. Lejeune, Documents et rapports de la Société paléontologique et archéologique de Charleroi 12 (1883), no. xxvi, 335-339 (November 11, 1185)].
12. Adelardo Cattaneo, of Verona,. Cardinal Priest in the Title of S. Marcello. He signed bulls for Lucius III in 1185 [Jaffé, Regesta pontificum II, p. 431; Lucius died on November 21, 1185], for Urban III [Jaffé, p. 493; Urban died on October 20, 1187], for Gregory VIII [October-December 17, 1187], and Clement III, until October 29, 1188 [Jaffé, 536]. By 1193, the Cardinal Priest of S. Marcello was Cardinal Fidantius [Jaffé, p. 577; Julius von Pflugk-Harttung, Acta pontificum Romanorum inedita I (1880), no. 435, pp. 374 [JL 17341]. Cardinal Fidantius' successor, Petrus, began to subscribe documents on November 23, 1201 [Potthast, Regesta Pontificum p. 464]. Innocent III wrote four letters on May 10, 1202, to A(delardo) Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinali, Veronensi Episcopo [Migne, Patrologiae 214, columns 985-988; Potthast nr. 1674]. In his biographical notice of Raoul de Neuville, Salvador Miranda explains at n. 1 that "the practice of resigning the cardinalatial title when appointed to a diocese was followed by some cardinals in the 12th and 13th centuries", citing the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928 for Cardinal Adelardo Cattaneo in 1888 (The "practice" was not followed by Guillaume de Champagne of Reims, Stephen Langton of Canterbury or Guy Paré of Rheims, Bishop of Palestrina [Gallia Christiana 10 (1717), Instrumenta cols. 53-56 (July 6, 1204) = Potthast 2269]). Note that, according to the evidence cited, Cattaneo continues to be a Cardinal of the Holy Roman Church; it is only his titulus that he resigns. Migne remarks [column 985 n. 109] that Cardinal Adelard died in 1211 or 1212. And, as Eubel points out on p. 522, Cardinal Adelardo's successor, Bishop Norandinus, died on October 13, 1214. An inscription on Cardinal Adelardus' tomb in the Basilica of S. Zeno in Verona, to which his remains were transferred in 1642, states that he died in 1225; this inscription is not contemporary with Cardinal Adelardus. He was originally buried simply, and then his body was transferred to an appropriate marble monument, from which it was re-transferred in 1642; concerning the inscription Ciaconius states (column 1119): "eo enim anno non obiit Adelardus, sed eo anno ac die in eo tumulo ejus cadaver reclusum fuisse indicat". It should be noted that Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica I, p. 3 n.1, leaves the date of Adelard's death an open question. Since the Election of 1187 took place in Ferrara, it is very likely that Adelardus attended.
    
    
13. Hyacinthus (Giacinto) Bobone [Romanus], son of Petrus Bubonis de Orsinis, Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Cosmedin (1144-1191). Cardinal Protodeacon (primus inter diaconos). On April 27, 1138 he had subscribed as Jacinthus, prior subdiaconorum sacri palatii [JL I, p. 841and 7890].
        Peter of Blois [Epistles 123, in Migne, PL 207, columns 366-367]:
    
    Vidimus quamplures in Ecclesia Romana in ordine diaconatus usque ad decrepitam aetatem et exhalationem extremi spiritus ministrasse. Certe dominus Caelestinus, qui hodie sedet, sicut ex ipsius ore frequenter accepi, in officio levitae sexaginta quinque annos expleverat [1126-1191], antequam ipsum Dominus in summi Pontificatus apicem sublimasset.
14. Ardicius Rivoltella [Mediolanensis], Cardinal Deacon of S. Teodoro.
15. Gratianus (Graziano) [Pisanus], Cardinal Deacon of SS. Cosma e Damiano (1178-1203). Nephew of Pope Eugenius III (reigned 1145-1153).
    
16. Bobo (Andrea Boboni) [Romanus], deacon of S. Angelo in Pescheria (1182-1188). He was succeeded by Cardinal Gregorius (1188-1202). Sent by Pope Urban III to France along with Cardinal Soffredus to deal with the hostilities between Henry II of England and Philip Augustus of France.
17. Ottaviano di Paolo dei Conti di Segni [Romanus], Cardinal Deacon of SS. Sergio e Bacco (1182-1189/90), later Cardinal Bishop of Ostia e Velletri (1189-1206). His successor, Cardinal Lotharius dei Conti, first subscribes on December 7, 1190. Cardinal Lotharius' successor was his cousin, Ottaviano dei Conti di Segni (1205-1231). Clearly, SS. Sergius and Bacchus was a 'family' deanery at the end of the XII century.
18. Gerardo Allucingoli [Lucca], Cardinal Deacon of S. Adriano (1182–after April 1204) [JL 16419 (June 6, 1189); 16681 (May 2, 1191)]. Rector of Benevento early in the reign of Celestine III.
19. Soffredus, Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Via lata. Soffredus of Pisa (not Soffredus of Pistoia) who was made Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Via Lata by Lucius III [Cardella, 148-149] (1182-1193), where he was succeeded by Petrus Capuanus, who in 1205 became Cardinal Priest of S. Marcello [Cavazzi, S. Maria in Via Lata (1908) , p. 401].
20. Rolando, OSB, Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Porticu (1185–after June 23, 1187), Bishop of Dol (1177-1187) [Hauréau, Gallia Christiana 14 (Paris 1866) 1051], he was not enthroned until 1182, due to a long dispute with the Archbishop of Tours, who claimed Dol as a suffragan diocese. Rolando's successor in the Deaconry, Cardinal Gregorius, first subscribes on April 12, 1188. Rolandus was sent to Scotland while still Dolensis electus in 1182, to make peace between King William and John, Archbishop of St. Andrews, but Archbishop Hugo, the occupant of the seat, appealed to Rome. Rolandus wrote a letter to Pope Lucius with all the details, in which he calls himself Suae Sanctitatis servus et alumnus, Apostolicae Sedis subdiaconum minimus. Appeals and counterappeals kept the case running until January, 1188 [Roger of Hoveden]
21. Petrus Diana [quem docta Placentia mundo edidit, according to his tombstone in S. Cecilia], Cardinal Deacon of S. Niccolo in Carcere Tulliano (1185-1188), and then Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Cecilia (1188-1208).
22. Radulfus (Ridolfo) Nigelli [Pisanus], Cardinal Deacon of S. Giorgio in Velabro (1185-1188). Promoted to be Cardinal Priest of S. Prassede in 1188 [Epistolae Cantuarienses, no. ccxcii, pp. 276]. He was dispatched by Pope Clement to England on December 10, 1188 [Epistolae Cantuarienses, no. ccxci, pp. 274; JL 16360], with Legantine powers to settle the dispute between Archbishop Baldwin of Canterbury and the Monks of Canterbury. He fell ill at Pavia and died on December 30, 1188, at Mortara [Epistolae Cantuarienses, no. ccxcii, pp. 276].

Cardinals not attending:

1. Rogerius, OSB Cas., Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Eusebio. Former Abbot of Montecassino, appointed Archbishop of Benevento in 1179 by Alexander III [F. Ughelli, Italia sacra VIII (Venetiis 1721), 126]; he held the post until after July 5, 1217 [G. Cappelletti, Le chiese d' Italia III (1844), pp. 82-87]. His predecessor as Archbishop was Lombardus, who was appointed in 1171 and resigned before July 27, 1179 [Ughelli, Italia sacra VIII, 121-123]. His successor as Archbishop, in 1121, was Ugolino de Comite [Eubel Hierarchia Catholica I, p. 133]. He did not subscribe any papal documents. He is completely omitted by Salvador Miranda.
2. Guillaume de Champagne (ca. 1135-1202), "Blanches-Mains", fourth son of Thibault Comte de Champagne and Maude (Mahaud) de Flandre. Former Bishop of Chartres (1164-1176). Archbishop of Reims (1176-1202). Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Sabina since 1179 [JL 13369 (April 6, 1179)] [Migne, PL 200, 1228 (JL 13371, April 8, 1179)] [JL 13383 (April 14, 1179)]). He participated in the III Lateran Council of March 5-19, 1179 [Mansi, Sacrorum Conciliorum 22, 239 and 464], and was made Cardinal in the second session, March 7 [JL, p. 339]. Governor of the State in France (1183). When Pope Lucius expressed a desire to meet with him, King Philip II replied that there was no one in his kingdom dearer to him than his uncle the Cardinal, who was his vigilant eye in his Councils, and the Cardinal was not allowed to go. He did finally go in 1184 (not in 1185, as Duchesne reports; subscriptions show him in Rome in the last three months of 1184). He may have been back in France by April 15, 1185: JL 15402-15405. The last of these documents is a mandate to Cardinal Guillaume of Reims and the Abbot of Maioris-Monasterii (Tours), which would make no sense unless Guillaume were in France.

Dubii Salvatoris Mirandae

In his list of Cardinals present and absent at the Election of 1187, Salvador Miranda (Librarian Emeritus, Florida International University) states that there were thirty-four living cardinals (he forgets Roger of Beneventum), and he names eleven cardinals who did not participate in the Election:

The following ten, however, were not cardinals in 1187:

• Gandolfo, OSB, "Cardinal Deacon of SS. Cosma e Damiano". The Cardinal Deacon of SS. Cosma e Damiano from 1178-1203 was Cardinal Graziano. Gandolfo is a mirage. But, as he did in 1181 and 1185, Salvador Miranda assigns both Cardinal Graziano (correctly) and "Cardinal Gandolfo" to the Deaconry of SS. Cosma e Damiano. Gandolfo was not a cardinal.
  
  
• Petrus, "Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Lorenzo in Lucina". The title, however, was held by Cardinal Albertus de Morra from 1158 until he became Pope Gregory VIII in 1187. The title, then, cannot be bestowed on "Cardinal Peter". The dismal authors of the list of cardinals in the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928 appear to know of a bull, dated May 25, 1178, signed by this Cardinal Peter—a further demonstration of their unreliability. Miranda includes Petrus as a participant in the Election of 1181, with no evidence to support his statement, and in the knowledge (expressed in his biographical notice on Cardinal Albertus) of Albertus' tenure.
  
  
• Robertus, "Cardinal Priest in the title of S. Pudenziana." Ciaconius-Olduin (column 1102) and Cardella (p. 139), followed exactly by Salvador Miranda, base his entry on the record of his signature on a bull of 1170; this is impossible, since the Cardinal Priest of S. Pudenziana from 1166 to 1178 was Cardinal Boso, as the record of subscriptions shows [JL p. 145]. Both Chacon and Cardella may be dismissed from discussion. Miranda then cites "another two [papal bulls] issued in April 1179", but he gives no references. It is curious that, according to Miranda, "Cardinal Robert" was created in March 1179, just in time to sign the two bulls of April 1179. There is no evidence whatsoever that "he" was alive in 1181. On what basis does Miranda say that he did not participate in the Election of 1181? The only other item in Miranda "bibliography" besides Chacon and Cardella is the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928. It must be presumed that that is the source of Miranda's information. But the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928, is nothing but a compilation, not a scholarly investigation, and it is riddled with so many errors and fancies that it is laughable. A scholar must cite his sources, and Miranda has not done so. Indeed, Miranda engages in contradictions, placing the name of Cardinal Boso of S. Pudenziana on the list of Cardinals present at the Election of 1181, forgetting perhaps that he had made Robertus the Cardinal of S. Pudenziana too. "Robert"'s death "before 1188" is not a fact, only an easy inference, since there was a Cardinal Priest at S. Pudenziana in 1188, Jordanus (Giordano) de Ceccano, OCist. One may reasonably doubt the existence of "Cardinal Robert of S. Pudenziana", to say nothing of his participation in the election of 1181 or that of 1185.
  
  
• Rolando Paparoni [of Siena (Panvinio) or France (others)], Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Porticu. He first subscribes 1185, four years after the Election, as Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Porticu [Jaffe-Loewenfeld p. 146]. The Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Porticu, who subscribed up to at least July 27, 1179, was Cardinal Laborans, at which point he was promoted to S. Maria trans Tiberim (first subscribes with his new title on February 26, 1180).
        Salvador Miranda, depending entirely on the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928, puts Rolando's creation at the end of 1180 and his promotion to the title of SS. Silvestro e Martino ai Monti in 1184. This scenario is contrary to the documentary evidence. I see no positive reason to make him a creation of Alexander III; and the promotion to Cardinal Priest in 1184 finds no support in the subscriptions.   Cardella [I. 2, pp. 153-154], in fact, makes Rolando's creation as a Cardinal Deacon part of Lucius III's Second Creation, which took place in December, 1183 (Chacon) or Ash Wednesday, 1184, in Verona (Panvinio).
        This alleged creation at the end of 1180 was composed (according to Miranda) of only two cardinals. One, Rolando, has been shown to be nothing but an unjustified guess. The other was Cardinal Bernaredus, named Bishop of Palestrina, who died shortly after his creation. Cardinal Bernaredus is also called Berneredo, Bernaredo, Bernero, and Benemeredo [G. Cappelletti, Le chiese d' Italia 1 (Venezia 1844), 606]. He had earlier been the Abbot of SS. Crispinus and Crispinianus at Soissons when he came to Rome for the III Lateran Council in 1179. But he was named Cardinal in 1179, not at the end of 1180. He subscribes to papal documents as Bishop of Palestrina from May 4, 1179 to July 11, 1180 [JL, p. 145]. Peter of Celle knew Cardinal Bernaredus, wrote to him, and wrote to Peter of Pavia, Bishop of Tusculum, about Bernaredus' death [Epistolae IX. 6: Patrologiae 202, columns 541-549].
        There was, in fact, a promotion (not a creation) of one cardinal at the end of 1180, but it was that of Paolo Scolari, Cardinal Deacon of SS. Sergius and Bacchus (since 1179, before October 17), who succeeded Bernaredus as Bishop of Palestrina. He first subscribes on January 13, 1181, and died in the second half of March, 1191. Both of Miranda's creations of 1180 are fictitious.
  
  
• Raniero, titulus unknown, date of death unknown , birthplace unknown, education unknown (according to Miranda, basing his remarks on Ciaconius-Olduin, Cardella, and the notorious Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928, p. 153).
        Rainerius, Cardinal Deacon of S. Adriano [from before November 2, 1178 until mid-1182] (when Miranda thinks he died, August, 1182). Cardinal Rainerius was probably promoted to the title of SS. Giovanni e Paolo in mid-1182. He last subscribes on May 16, 1183, and is succeeded by Cardinal Melior by April 4, 1185.
        There was a second Rainerius, who was Cardinal Deacon of Sancti Georgii ad Velum Aureum (from 1175), who is last attested in the subscriptions on December 7, 1182 [JL, p. 725]—that date making it impossible for him to be either the Deacon of S. Adriano or the Cardinal Priest of SS. Giovanni e Paolo. He was succeeded by Radulfus by April 20, 1185.
        The Ranierus of unknown title is said by Ciaconius and Cardella to have subscribed the absolution of King William of Scotland (March 17, 1182), on the authority of Roger of Hoveden (ed. Stubbs II, p. 268) [JL 14613]. In fact both Cardinals Rainerius subscribed, as they both subscribed on May 13—Cardinal Deacon of S. Adriano and Cardinal Deacon of S. Georgio ad velum aureum [JL 14643]. The Raniero of unknown title is nonexistent. Another mistake of Ciaconius. How he came to be created in a Consistory of March 6, 1185, is a matter best left to Salvador Miranda to puzzle out.
  
  
• Simeone Paltinieri, title not known. (Olduin points out, in Ciaconius-Olduin Volume I, column 1122, that the knowledge of this "cardinal" comes entirely from one Bernardinus Scardeonius, an author from Padua. But where Scardeonius got the story, Olduin does not know: "at unde Scardeonius id acceperit, notum nobis non est." When Andrea Victorelli revised Ciaconius, he identified this Simon Paltinieri with the real cardinal of the same name, who had been a Canon of Padua, and who was Cardinal Priest of SS. Silvestri e Martini (1261-1277). There is no evidence to support the existence of the Simeone Paltinieri under Lucius III. [See Cardella I. 2, p. 155]   Simeone Paltinieri was not a Cardinal in 1185, or 1187, or 1191, or 1198, though Salvador Miranda markes him "absent" each time.
  
  
• Giovanni, Cardinal in 1185 (priest in 1186). The story of this Giovanni begins with Salvador Miranda's statement that he was appointed in the Consistory of March 6, 1185. For this statement, he cites Chacon (Ciaconius), Cardella, and the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928. It is the last of these which makes this Cardinal Giovanni a product of the Consistory of 1185. At the end of his biographical note, Miranda identifies this Giovanni of Ciaconius with Cardinal Giovanni Conti, but then how was this Giovanni created in the Consistory of March 6, 1185?? If he is the same as Giovanni Conti, then he had been a cardinal since 1158 and Cardinal Priest of S. Marco since 1167. Miranda does not consider Cardinal Giovanni Conti to be absent from the Election of 1186. And so there must be two Giovannis, or so he seems to believe.
        Ciaconius (I, column 1122), however, states that his Cardinal Giovanni (who is never identified with Giovanni Conti) was already a cardinal on June 17, 1183, when he signed a bull, issued at Ancona, by Pope Lucius III. Jaffé and Loewenfeld's Regesta pontificum Romanorum, no. 15056, however, register this bull correctly under 1184; Pope Lucius was nowhere near Ancona in June of 1183.
        Ciaconius mentions other bulls signed in the same year on February 17, that is to say 1184, for Abbot Geronimo of the Monstery of the Holy Trinity in Florence [JL 14983; Migne Patrologiae Latinae 201, column 1234], but in the subscriptions it is clear that it was Giovanni Conti of S. Marco who was subscribing immediately after Bishop Paul of Palestrina and in advance of Cardinal Laborans.   Another bull was subscribed by Giovanni, according to Ciaconius, on November 9, 1184 for Gabriel the Praepositus and the canons of the Church of Aquileia; but no such bull is registered in all of November.
        Again, on October 18, 1185, our Giovanni signed a bull in favor of Gerardo the Bishop-elect of Belluno. This bull is in Jaffé and Loewenfeld's Regesta pontificum Romanorum, no. 15466, but its subscriptions show a curious confusion: the titles of Joannes presb. card. tit S. Mariae Transtyb. and Laborans presb card. tit. S. Marci have been accidentally transposed by a copyist [F. Ughelli, Italia Sacra 5, columns 154-155]. This is clearly Cardinal Giovanni Conti.
        According to Ciaconius, his Giovanni died under Urban III or Clement III. He was Cardinal Priest, Ciaconius says, of S. Marco ad Palatinas (See Armellini, Le chiese di Roma, p. 327, where it is explained that the ancient name of San Marco is Pallacinae). But that would make him Cardinal Giovanni Conti (1155-1190), and Ciaconius' new entry as a separate cardinal is a horrible mistake, especially considering the dubious quality of the material used to sustain it. Miranda faces the same dilemma.
        Cardella (I. 2, pp. 155-156, does nothing but summarize what Ciaconius said, with the additional remark, "Quello, che in tanta oscurità è certo, egli è, che il di lui nome non si scorge registrato tra i Cardinali elettori di veruno dei due sunnominati Pontefici [Urban III and Clement III]." Obviously, he does not associate Ciaconius' Giovanni with Cardinal Giovanni Conti. Real subscriptiones show that Cardinal Giovanni Conti was the second most senior of the Cardinal Priests (after Cardinal Albertus, who usually signed as Chancellor in the date line), signing immediately after the Cardinal Bishops. That is not "oscurità". Cardella does not even perceive the problem.
        What is to be done? This Giovanni of the Consistory of 1185 and the Consistory of 1187 must be dismissed as a large error of Ciaconius, which is perpetuated by copyists: Cardella, the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928, and Salvador Miranda.
  
  
• Roberto, Bishop of Porto and Santa Rufina. His signature does not appear in the subscriptiones of the period. His existence is vouched for only by the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928 and Salvador Miranda. The existence of "Bishop Roberto" is rejected by Cappelletti, Le chiese d' Italia Volume primo (Venezia 1844), 516 and 542.   Ciaconius-Olduin (column 1140) states:
  
  Bobo Romanus, Diaconus cardinalis S. Georgii in Velabro subscripsit Clementis III. diplomati dato anno nostrae salutis 1188 pro ecclesia S. Petri. Paulo post ex Aubery ab eodem Clemente Romano Pontifice ex Diacono renunciatus est Episcopus Portuensis. Ferdinandus vero Ughellius in primo tomo Italiae sacrae in serie Episcoporum Portuensium huiusce Bobonis non meminit; ab anno tamen 1186 quo Theodinus ex Ughellio e vivis exemptus est, usque ad annum 1189 quo a Clemente Robertus Romanus ordinatus est Episcopus Portuensis, Episcopum nullum recenset, ac si Ecclesia illa trium annorum spatio Episcopo caruisset; hoc igitur tempore intermedio Ecclesiam Portuensem rexisse Bobonem affirmare quis poterit cum Aubery. Obiit initio anni 1189, sedente eodem Clemente in Petri Cathedra.
  
  But Olduin is incorrect. Bobo was Bishop of Porto under Clement III, as a subscription of June 6, 1189, attests (Pflugk-Harttung, Acta pontificum Romanorum inedita III, no. 430, p. 374 [JL 16419]). It was not Robertus who was created Bishop of Porto in 1189, but Petrus Galluzzi (Gallocia) in 1190. Olduin has made a lapsus calami, writing Robertus for Petrus, which accidentally created an entire new Cardinal Bishop, whose term is made to fall between the death of Theodinus and the elevation of Bobo. But Olduin is correct in stating that the See of Porto was vacant from 1186-1189.
  
  
• Henri de Sully, OCist., son of Archambault III Comte de Bourbon; nephew of Thibault the Great, Comte de Champagne. His brother was Eudes (some say Maurice), Bishop of Paris. [See Plongeron et Pietri, Le Diocèse de Paris I (Paris 1987), 102]. He had been Abbot of Chalis in the Diocese of Sens. In 1183, he was elected Archbishop of Bourges, and consecrated by the Legate, Lamberto Crivelli, Archbishop of Milan (who became Pope Urban III in 1185). The confirmation of his privileges as archbishop and primate is made in a bull of Lucius III, dated January 3, 1184 (Pflugk-Harttung, Acta pontificum Romanorum inedita I, no. 355, pp. 311-313); he is addressed as: venerabili fratri Henrico, Bituricensis ecclesiae archiepiscopo.(There were two other bulls of the same date: Catalogue général des manuscrits des bibliothèques publiques de France, Tome XXXVII. seconde partie [Paris 1905], p. 826)   Urban III allegedly made Henri a Cardinal in 1186 and Legatus in Aquitaine, but his alleged titulus as cardinal, if any, is unknown, and indeed most authorities never speak of him as a cardinal.
        Antoine Touron, OP, Histoire des hommes illustres de l'Ordre de Saint Dominique (Paris 1743) p. 405, states that Henri de Sully was named Bishop of Albano by Urban III. There was indeed an Henricus Albanensis under Urban III, and he had been Legate in France, but he had been subscribing bulls since the time of Alexander III in 1179, and continued to do so until 1187; he was succeeded as Bishop of Albano by Albinus Albanensis in 1189. Clearly, Henricus Albanensis is a different person from Henri de Sully. Is it possible, however, that this casual mistake (not originally Touron's, but part of the Cistercian tradition) brought about the assignment of the title of cardinal to Henri de Sully?
        In papal letters and bulls addressed to him, Henri de Sully is never called Cardinal, only archbishop, primate, and legate. This is in constrast to the habit of the papal chancery with reference to Cardinal Guillaume, Archbishop of Reims: venerabilis fratris nostri W(illelmi) Remensis archiepiscopi, S. Sabinae cardinali, apostolicae sedis legati, where the title of Cardinal is always mentioned.  Panvinius and Ciaconius have no knowledge of Henri's cardinalate; but cf. François Duchesne, Histoire de tous les Cardinaux françois de naissance (Paris 1660), pp. 183-184. Ciaconius-Olduin I, column 1128, traces the information about the cardinalate to the Cistercian writer, Gaspare Iongelino [Purpura Sancti Bernardi (Cologne 1644)].   It seems that Sully never came to Rome. He did not participate in the Election of 1187, or any papal election. His name should be deleted from any list of cardinals. Henri de Sully died on September 13, 1199 [not 1200].
  
  
• Ugo Geremei, Cardinal Deacon of S. Teodoro, a position which Salvador Miranda says he held from Pentecost, 1186 until his death ca. 1188 ("before March, 1188"). His name does not appear in Ciaconius or in Cardella. Miranda's authority for this information is the Annuaire Pontifical Catholique and Moroni, Dizionario storico-ecclesiastica 29, 88. If one reads the notice in Moroni, however, one sees that Ugo Geremei was a cardinal in the 1126, not in 1186. The Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1928 has committed an error, and Miranda has followed that error blindly. In the reign of Urban III the Cardinal Deacon was Ardicius, who last subscribes on March 13, 1186. Joannes de Malabranca, as the subscriptions demonstrate, first appears as Cardinal Deacon of S. Teodoro on March 16, 1188 [JL 16176 (10054)], and was apparently an appointee of Clement III. "Cardinal Ugo", of course, did not subscribe any documents. His dates are suspicious—in other words, precisely between the known subscriptions of known cardinals. They are made-up dates, to go with a misplaced cardinal.
  

There is one genuine cardinal among the spurii:

• Boso, Cardinal Deacon of S. Angelo in Pescheria. There were four Cardinals named Boso (or Bobo) around 1187. One was a Cardinal Bishop, Bobo of Porto (1189). A second was Cardinal Priest of S. Anastasia (from 1188), a titulus which had been vacant since the death of Johannes, ca. 1179. . A third was the Cardinal Deacon of S. Georgii ad velum aureum (from 1188), who succeeded Cardinal Radulfus (who last signed on March 17, 1188). The fourth was Bobo of S. Angelo in Pescheria (who is first attested in 1182), who was succeeded by Cardinal Gregorius by December of 1190. The fourth Bobo was a real cardinal in 1187, and appears on Ciaconius-Olduin's list of Cardinals present at the Election of Gregory VIII in 1187 (column 1130).

It should be noted that, if these comments are accepted, Urban III created NO new cardinals during his reign.

The Election

In his Electoral Manifesto sent to the German hierarchy, "Inter divinae dispensationis" [Migne, PL 202, 1537 (JL 16014)], the new Pope, Gregory VIII, says that the Electoral Meeting began on the day after the death and burial of Pope Urban III, that is to say, on October 21, 1187:

Praedecessore siquidem nostro Urbano XIII Kal. Novemb. in bona confessione viam universae carnis ingresso, et tradito solemniter sepulturae, convenimus sequenti die in unum, et missa in honorem Sancti Spiritus, sicut moris est, celebrata, processimus seorsum in unum locum, nos episcopi, presbyteri et diaconi canonibus, et, postpositis diversis ecclesiasticis negotiis, et praecipue calamitatis Orientalis Ecclesiae, quae diebus illis audita fuerat, ad electionem pontificis visum est procedendum, ne, si forte dilationem acciperet, detrimentum ex tarditate per diversas partes Christiano populo proveniret.

There was some competition at the Election. Albrich of Trois-Fontaines says [MGH SS 23, p. 860; Watterich II, 684]:

Interea curia Romana venerat de Verona Ferrarias, quae est civitas ad introitum Venetiae super Adriaticum mare, et super litus maximi fluminis Padi. Ibi in festo sancti Lucae [October 18, 1187] mortuus est papa Urbanus auditis predictis rumoribus et tactus dolore cordis intrinsecus. Ibidem sanior pars cardinalium voluit dominum Henricum Albanensem quondam Clarevallis abbatem eligere, sed timens et praecavens dissensionis periculum prosiliit in medium, dicens: se crucis Domini servum ad praedicandam crucem per gentes et regna praeparatum. Electus est itaque in Papam magister Albertus cancellarius, et vocatus est Gregorius octavus.

The term "sanior pars" is usually an admission that the party in question does not have the majority, and, since the Constitution of Alexander III (1179) that meant two-thirds majority, and it is sometimes an indication of the sympathies of the author of the lines. It seems, in this case, that there was a minority in favor of Cardinal Henri de Marsiac, Bishop of Albano. Henri must have recognized that he did not have a chance of being elected, and fearing the possible consequences of dissension or deadlock among the electors, announced that he wanted to preach the Crusade. Who could deny him his wish? And indeed the new pope assigned him to that very task. Gervase of Canterbury adds that Cardinal Albert di Morra had a good deal of credit with the Emperor, and it was he who had been keeping the Emperor briefed on the confidential doings of the Roman Curia [ed. Stubbs II, p. 402; Watterich II, p. 684]:

Sciebant enim cardinales quod idem Albertus multam imperatoris haberet gratiam, eo quod ipsius semper fovens partem, eidem omnia Romanae curiae revelaret secreta.

Cardinal Albert was elected on the day after the death of Urban III, October 21, 1187, the fourth day after the Feast of St. Luke. (October 18). He himself says [Migne, PL 202, 1537; Watterich II, p. 686 (JL 16014)]:

Cum autem requisitae fuissent civium voluntates, placuit omnibus mediocritati nostrae onus ecclesiasticae provisionis imponere, eet tantum instare, ut non una excusatio mea, cum multae mihi suppeterent, audiretur. Non satis occurrebat mihi quod agerem, dum nec contradicendo, nec acquiescehdo erat tuta libertas, hinc me multo defectu virtutis et scientiae dejiciente, hinc me concordi fratrum voluntati, et instantia provocante. tandem vero considerantes quod non sint hominis viae ejus, nec in eo est ut ambulet et dirigat gressus suos, et quod Christus pro nobis mortuus est et resurrexit, divinae misericordiae nos commisimus, et fratrum acquievimus voluntati, non quod nos ministros idoneos crediderimus, et tantum onus a nobis bene portari, sed ne multum videremur abundare in sensu nostro, et non satis de Domini Dei nostri confidere pietati.

Canterbury Tales

In 1187, there happened to be a delegation of monks of Canterbury at the Papal Court, pursuing their side of a case against Archbishop Baldwin of Canterbury. The Archbishop also had his procurators at the Papal Court, Peter of Blois, the Archdeacon of Bath, and William de S. Fide, Precentor of Wells. In October, just after the election, they wrote to their patron the Archbishop [Epistolae Cantuarienses ed. Stubbs, no. cxxxv., pp. 107-108]:

Benedictus Spiritus Sanctus, Qui non deserit sperantes in Se, sed secundum multitudinem dolorum nostrorum corda nostra laetificans, consolatur nos in omni tribulatione nostra. Afflicta insolentiam miserabiliter conculcata jacebat. Terrarum ducibus atque ecclesiarum praelatis et religionis maxime, bellum specialiter videbatur indictum, nec quieta religio nec tuta erat uspiam innocentia ... Sed non est oblitus miereri Deus ... quoniam perniciosissimo et superbissimo exactore de medio sublato [Urban III], cancellarius [Albertus de Morra] unanimi fratrum consensu in papam electus est et consecratus.

In quo vobis et ecclesiae vestrae misericorditer a Domino creditur esse provisum, quia personam vestram hucusque sincere dilexit, et nunciis vestris in afflicitionibus suis consilium quod tunc poterat et auxilium promptus impendit. Iste est qui nuncios vestros dehortatus est ne Urbano servirent. "Expectate," inquiens, "Expectate, non est regnum hujus durabile, et quodcunque statuerit, successor ejus in irritum revocabit." Hanc autem gratiam quam nobis et nostris exhibuit, pro posse nostro continuare curabimus, et vos quantum in vobis est pariter continuetis, missisque quantocius litteris vestris, tam vos quam obsequium vestrum plenius ei offeratis. Litteras quoque vestras et domini regis, et litteras de fraternitate quam instituistis, de quibus in curia quaestio facta est, nobis statim transmittatis, non expectatnes litteras illas a suffraganeis vestris et abbatibus, quas tamen nihilominus, quam citius poteritis remittatis.

Dominus Papa Gregorius nominatus est, et dominus Albanensis injunxit nobis, ut vobis ex parte ejus significaremus, quod cuncta de caetero ad honorem et voluntatem vestram procedent. Magister Moyses [Vice-Chancellor] vos affectuose salutat, qui utique honorem vestrum diligit, et tanquam unus nostrum, ubi opportunum est, circa negotia vestra sollicitum se exhibet et devotum. Adhuc noveritis quod cum universi cardinales tres personas nominassent, videlicet Albanensem, Praenestinum et cancellarium, et eis injunxissent ut secederent quousque deliberassent quem illorum reciperent, dominus Albanensis incontinenti respondit, "Ad quid secederemus? Ego in verbo veritatis dico, quod nunquam hanc administrationem suscipiam. Dominus quoque Praenestinus infirmatur gravissimo et ad onus tantum insufficiens est. Reliquum ergo est ut dictum cancellarium recipiamus; quia non est inter nos aliquis ita idoneus, et qui ita consuetudines et jura ecclesiae Romanae pernoverit, et adeo principibus terrae complaceat." Et ita in amicum vestrum suum honorem et onus curia Romana transfudit. Valete.

The Proctors are obviously showing off to the Archbishop as to the closeness of their confidential relationships with persons of power. It is hard to believe, however, that these persons would make such frank and judgmental statements about their colleagues and superiors to provincials who were persuing a legal case in which they were or would be involved as judges. It is especially hard to believe the scenario in which the College of Cardinals asks three of their members to withdraw from the discussion so that they can be the subject of discussion. Nowhere else in the history of papal elections do we find such a process. The alleged statement of Cardinal Henri of Albano, moreover, represents only what everybody outside the Electoral meeting was thinking anyway. But it is a vivid way of presenting information to cast it in the form of direct address. It is one of the commonest strategies used in preaching. As it happened, the Archdeacon and the Precentor did not know the mind of Alberto de Morra. He immediately ordered, Quoniam ad episcoporum [Epistolae Cantuarienses ed. Stubbs, no. cxxxviii., pp. 112; JL 16016 (October 29, 1187)], that all the decisions of Urban III in the last three months of his life (including the one that went in favor of the monks of Canterbury) were to be enforced. And, on January 26, Clement III issued a decision that went against the Archbishop [JL 16142].

It is said by some, nonetheless, that Cardinal Henri de Marsiac was actually elected, and that he made the Great Refusal. The facts are quite different. His party did not have the two-thirds of the electors, and Henri was not elected pope. In fact, he withdrew from the competition. His generosity and sensible attitude must be acknowledged and applauded. It is only later, non-contemporary sources, in the monkish hagiographies of his Order, that he is made a canonically elected pope. Even his Cistercian hagiography: Henriquez (Angelo Henrique), "Monumenta sacra", p. 1553, notes that he could have been elected pope on the death of Urban III, but he made the Grand Refusal: "tandem Domino Lucio post quatuor annos mortuo, et Urbano ei in Papatum succedente, ipsoque infra duos annos velociter defuncto, sanior pars Cardinalium voluit ipsum in Papam eligere. Ipse totis viribus renitens...". Ciaconius-Olduin (1098). Other hagiographical references collected in Gallia Christiana 4 (Parisiis 1728), 802.

On October 24, "IV. post electionem die, nondum inaugurato", Gregory VIII wrote to all the Faithful, "Nuntio cladis Hierosolimitanae", summoning them to a Crusade to liberate Jerusalem [JL 16013].

Coronation

Gregory VIII (Alberto di Morra) was crowned on October 25, 1187, in the Cathedral of Ferrara. Two days after his inauguration, he repeated his call to arms in an encyclical letter to all prelates, "Quoniam ad episcoporum" [Migne PL 202, 1538 (JL 16015)], and in a separate letter to the German hierarchy, "Inter divinae dispensationis" [Migne, PL 202, 1537 (JL 16014)].

According to Canon Robert of Auxerre in his Chronicon [MGH SS 26, 252], the news of the election was highly pleasing to Frederick Barbarossa:

Post eum [Urbanum tertium] Albertus cancellarius substituitur et Gregorius octavus vocatur, vir litteratura facundiaque clarus, sed puritate vitae et animi integritate praeclarior suique corporis vehemens castigator. Audita eius promotione laetatus est admodum Fredericus Augustus, eo quod virum discretum et justiciae zelatorem cognosceret sibique benivolum et omnibus, si diu viveret, profuturum.

Gregory VIII reigned for only fifty-seven days, and died at Pisa on December 17, 1187.

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B. Pallasticci (editor), Chronica tria Placentina a Johanne Codagnello, ab Anonymo, et a Guerino conscripta (Parmae: 1859), 11-13. 

Philippus Jaffé (editor) , Regesta pontificum Romanorum ab condita ecclesia ad annum post Christum natum MCXCVIII (Berolini 1851). Philippus Jaffé (editor) Regesta Pontificum Romanorum (editionem secundam correctam et auctam auspiciis Guilelmi Wattenbach; curaverunt S. Loewenfeld, F. Kaltenbrunner, P. Ewald) (Lipsiae: Veit et comp. 1885) [JL]. [contains summaries of subscriptiones, arranged by Pope]

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Nadig, Gregors VIII 57-tägiges Pontifikat (Basle 1890). G. Kleeman, Papst Gregor VIII (Bonn 1912). F. Gregorovius, History of Rome in the Middle Ages, Volume IV.2 second edition, revised (London: George Bell, 1896) Book VIII, Chapter vi. 3, pp. 608-622. Horace K. Mann, Lives of the Popes in the Middle Ages Vol. X 1159-1198 (London 1914).