1285 papal election

Papal election
1285
Papal election; 1285;
Dates and location
	1–2 April 1285; Giacomo Savelli
Election
Ballots	1
Elected pope
	Giacomo Savelli; Name taken: Honorius IV
	← 1280–81 1287–88 →

Perugia cityscape (15th century)

The 1285 papal election, convened in

Charles I of Naples

(who had died on January 7, 1285). It may even be that the cardinals proceeded so swiftly to an election with the intention of forestalling any intervention from Naples.

Participants

Pope Martin IV, who was living at Perugia, never having visited the city of Rome, was stricken ill with a slow fever on Easter Sunday, March 25, and died on March 28, 1285. At that time, there were 18 living cardinals in the Sacred College, though three of them were away as Legates and were not notified in time. Fifteen of them participated in the election of his successor:

Elector	Nationality	Cardinalatial title	Elevated	Elevator	Notes
Ordonho Alvares	Portuguese	Bishop of Frascati	1278, March 12	Nicholas III	Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals
Bentivenga dei Bentivenghi, O.F.M.	Italian	Bishop of Albano	1278, March 12	Nicholas III	Grand penitentiary
Latino Malabranca Orsini, O.P.	Italian	Bishop of Ostia e Velletri	1278, March 12	Nicholas III	Inquisitor General of the Papal Inquisition
Girolamo Masci, O.F.M.	Italian	Bishop of Palestrina	1278, March 12	Nicholas III
Anchero Pantaleone	French	Priest of S. Prassede	1262, May 22	Urban IV	Protopriest of the Sacred College of Cardinals
Hugh of Evesham	English	Priest of S. Lorenzo in Lucina	1281, April 12	Martin IV
Gervais Jeancolet de Clinchamp	French	Priest of SS. Silvestro e Martino ai Monti	1281, April 12	Martin IV
Cosmo Glusano de Casate	Italian	Priest of SS. Marcellino e Pietro	1281, April 12	Martin IV
Geoffroy de Bar	French	Priest of S. Susanna	1281, April 12	Martin IV
Giacomo Savelli	Italian	Deacon of S. Maria in Cosmedin	1261, December 17	Urban IV	Protodeacon of the Sacred College of Cardinals. Elected as Pope Honorius IV
Goffredo da Alatri	Italian	Deacon of S. Giorgio in Velabro	1261, December 17	Urban IV
Matteo Rosso Orsini	Italian	Deacon of S. Maria in Portico Octaviae	1262, May 22	Urban IV	Archpriest of the patriarchal Vatican Basilica; Cardinal-protector of the Order of Franciscans
Giordano Orsini	Italian	Deacon of S. Eustachio	1278, March 12	Nicholas III
Giacomo Colonna	Italian	Deacon of S. Maria in Via Lata; commendatario of S. Marcello and S. Maria in Aquiro	1278, March 12	Nicholas III	Archpriest of the patriarchal Liberian Basilica
Benedetto Caetani	Italian	Deacon of S. Nicola in Carcere Tulliano	1281, April 12	Martin IV

Absentee cardinals

Three cardinals were absent:

Elector	Nationality	Cardinalatial Title	Elevated	Elevator	Notes
Gerardo Bianchi	Italian	Bishop of Sabina	1278, March 12	Nicholas III	Papal Legate in the Kingdom of Sicily
Bernard Languissel	French	Bishop of Porto e Santa Rufina	1281, April 12	Martin IV	Papal Legate in Lombardy and Tuscany
Jean Cholet	French	Priest of S. Cecilia	1281, April 12	Martin IV	Papal Legate in France

The election of Pope Honorius IV

Fifteen cardinals assembled in the episcopal residence at Perugia on April 1, three days after the death of Martin IV. This was according to the ancient custom, rather than the Constitution "Ubi Periculum" (1274) of Pope Gregory X. In the first scrutiny on the following day, they unanimously elected Cardinal Giacomo Savelli, prior Diacanorum of the College of Cardinals. Although he was already 75 years old, Savelli accepted his election and took the name of

Vatican Basilica. On the following day, he was consecrated bishop by Cardinal-Bishop of Ostia Latino Malabranca Orsini and solemnly crowned by Cardinal Goffredo da Alatri

, who became new protodeacon of the Sacred College.

Notes

^ His predecessor Martin IV (Simon de Brion) was French, and he was not able to visit Rome during his ponticate because of the enmity of Romans who were led by committed Ghibbelines. See Robert Brentano, Rome before Avignon: A Social History of Thirteenth Century Rome (Berkeley-Los Angeles: U. California 1974), pp. 143-144, 183-184.

Bibliography

Bernhard Pawlicki, Papst Honorius IV. Eine Monographie (Münster 1896).
Ferdinand Gregorovius, History of Rome in the Middle Ages, Volume V.2, second edition, revised (London: George Bell, 1906).

External links

[1] His predecessor Martin IV (Simon de Brion) was French, and he was not able to visit Rome during his ponticate because of the enmity of Romans who were led by committed Ghibbelines. See Robert Brentano, Rome before Avignon: A Social History of Thirteenth Century Rome (Berkeley-Los Angeles: U. California 1974), pp. 143-144, 183-184.