Pope Adrian IV
From Free net encyclopedia
Adrian IV, born Nicholas Breakspear (c. 1100 – 1 September, 1159) was Pope from 1154 to 1159.
Adrian IV is the only Englishman who has occupied the papal chair. It is generally believed that he was born at Abbots Langley in Hertfordshire and to have received his early education at the Abbey School, St Albans (St Albans School).
Contents |
Early life
His father was Robert, a priest of the diocese of Bath, who became a monk at St Albans. Nicholas himself, however, was refused admission to the monastery, being told by the abbot to 'wait to go on with his schooling so that he might be considered more suitable' (Abbey chronicles). In the event he did not wait and went instead to Paris and finally became a monk of the cloister of St Rufus near Arles. He rose to be prior and in 1137 was unanimously elected abbot.
His reforming zeal as abbot led to the lodging of complaints against him at Rome; but these merely attracted to him the favourable attention of Pope Eugene III (1145–53), who created him cardinal bishop of Albano.
From 1152 to 1154 Nicholas was in Scandinavia as papal legate, organizing the affairs of the new Norwegian archbishopric of Trondheim, and making arrangements which resulted in the recognition of Gamla Uppsala (later moved to Uppsala) as seat of the Swedish metropolitan in 1164. As a compensation for territory thus withdrawn, the Danish archbishop of Lund was made legate and perpetual vicar and given the title of primate of Denmark and Sweden.
Accession as Pope
On his return Nicholas was received with great honour by Pope Anastasius IV (1153–54), and on the death of the latter was elected pope on 4 December, 1154. He at once endeavoured to bring down Arnold of Brescia, the leader of anti-papal sentiment in Rome. Disorder within the city led to the murder of a cardinal, causing Adrian IV shortly before Palm Sunday 1155 to take the previously-unheard-of step of putting Rome under the interdict. The Senate thereupon exiled Arnold. The Pope, with the co-operation of Frederick I Barbarossa, was instrumental in procuring his execution. Adrian IV crowned the Emperor at Saint Peter's on 18 June, 1155, a ceremony which so incensed the Romans that the Pope had to leave the city, not returning until November 1156.
The Byzantine Alliance
Then, suddenly and unexpectedly, a new force dramatically appeared on the scene. In the year 1155, Byzantine Emperor Manuel Comnenus invaded Italy from the south, landing his forces in the region of Apulia. Making contact with local rebels who were hostile to the Sicilian crown, Byzantine forces quickly overran the coastlands and began striking inland. Pope Adrian IV watched these developments with some satisfaction. The Papacy was never on good terms with the Normans of Sicily, except when under duress by the threat of direct military action. Having the "civilised" Eastern Roman Empire on its southern border was infinitely preferable to Adrian than having to constantly deal with the troublesome Normans. Therefore, negotatiations were hurriedly carried out, and an alliance was formed between Adrian and Manuel. Adrian undertook to raise a body of mercenary troops from campania. Meanwhile, Manuel dreamed of restoration of the Roman Empire at cost of union between Orthodox and Catholic Church. Negotiations for union of the eastern and western churches, which had been in a state of schism since 1054, soon got underway. The combined Papal-Byzantine forces joined with the rebels against the Normans in Southern Italy, achieving a string of rapid successes as a number of cities yielded either to the threat of force or to the lure of gold. The future looked bleak for the Sicilians.
It was at this point, just as the war seemed decided in the allies' favour, that things started to go wrong. The Byzantine commander Michael Palaeologus alienated some of his allies by his arrogance, and this stalled the campaign as rebel Count Robert of Loritello refused to speak to him. Although the two were reconciled, the campaign lost some of its momentum. Yet worse was to come: Michael was soon recalled to Constantinople. Although his arrogance had slowed the campaign, he was a brilliant general in the field, and his loss was a major blow to the allied campaign. The turning point was the Battle for Brindisi, where the Sicilians launched a major counter attack by both land and sea. At the approach of the enemy, the mercenaries that were serving in the allied armies demanded impossible rises in their pay. When this was refused, they deserted. Even the local barons started to melt away, and soon Adrian's Byzantine allies were left hopelessly outnumbered. The naval battle was decided in the Sicilians' favour, and the Byzantine commander was captured. The defeat at Brindisi put an end to the restored Byzantine reign in Italy, and by 1158 the Byzantine army had left Italy.
Hopes for a lasting alliance with the Byzantine Empire had also come up against insuperable problems. Pope Adrian IV's conditions for a union between the eastern and western church included recognition of his religious authority over all Christians everywhere, and the Emperor's recognition of his secular authority. Neither East nor West could accept such conditions. Adrian's secular powers were too valuable to be surrendered; Manuel's subjects could never have accepted the authority of the distant Pope in Rome. In spite of his friendliness towards the Roman church, Adrian never felt able to honour Manuel with the title of "Augustus". Ultimately, a deal proved elusive, and the two churches have remained divided ever since.
Barbarossa and the death of Adrian IV
At the diet of Besançon in October 1157, the legates presented to Barbarossa a letter from Adrian IV which alluded to the beneficia or "benefits" conferred upon the Emperor, and the German chancellor translated this beneficia in the feudal sense of the presentation of property from a lord to a vassal (benefice). Barbarossa was infuriated by the suggestion that he was dependent on the Pope, and in the storm which ensued the legates were glad to escape with their lives, and the incident at length closed with a letter from the Pope, declaring that by beneficium he meant merely bonum factum or "a good deed," the coronation. The breach subsequently became wider, and Adrian IV was about to excommunicate the Emperor when he died at Anagni on 1 September, 1159.
Template:Start box Template:Succession box Template:End boxcy:Pab Adrian IV de:Hadrian IV. (Papst) fr:Adrien IV ko:교황 히드리아노 4세 it:Papa Adriano IV he:אדריאנוס הרביעי nl:Paus Adrianus IV no:Hadrian IV nn:Pave Hadrian IV pl:Hadrian IV pt:Papa Adriano IV ru:Адриан IV (папа римский) sk:Hadrián IV. fi:Hadrianus IV sv:Hadrianus IV uk:Адріан IV zh:亞德四世