Pope Adrian V

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John XXI
Orders
Created cardinalDecember 1251
by Innocent IV
Personal details
Born
Ottobuono de' Fieschi

c. 1210–1220
Genoa, Republic of Genoa
Died(1276-08-18)18 August 1276
Viterbo, Papal States
Previous post(s)
Coat of armsAdrian V's coat of arms
Other popes named Adrian
Coat of Arms of the Fieschi family.

Pope Adrian V (

priesthood
.

In the

avarice
.

Biography

Ottobuono belonged to a feudal family of Liguria, the

Liberian Basilica
(attested from 1262).

He was sent to England in 1265 by

Thomas II of Savoy, who was a cousin of Henry's wife, Eleanor of Provence.[2]

He remained in England for several years as the

Protestant Reformation
of the sixteenth century.

Under the influence of

Year of Four Popes
" of 1276.

He annulled Pope Gregory X's bull on the holding of papal conclaves, but died before enacting new regulations.[1]

In literature

Pope Adrian V in Dante's Divine Comedy

In the Divine Comedy, Dante Alighieri meets Pope Adrian V in the fifth terrace of Purgatorio (reserved for the avaricious and the prodigal) where Adrian V cleanses for the vice of avarice (Purgatorio 19.79-145). Since the souls in this terrace purge their vices by facing down on earth and fixing their eyes on the ground, Adrian V’s identity is not revealed by facial recognition but through indirect inference. His papal identity is inferred from his Latin phrase, scias quod ego fui successor Petri ("I was Peter’s successor," Purgatorio 19.99), and by his words fui roman pastore ("I was a Roman shepherd," Purgatorio 19.107). These phrases reveal the papal identity of Adrian V, given that popes are successors of the first pope, Saint Peter, and shepherds of the church in the teachings of the Catholic Church. Adrian V also describes his family name as being descended from those that reside between Sestri and Chiavari (Purgatorio 19.100-102). This reveals his family title, Fieschi, as the family held extensive land between the two cities.[4]

There exists a lack of historical evidence about Adrian V’s avaricious behavior. Some scholars believe that Dante’s view of Adrian V emanated from reading excerpts from John of Salisbury's Policraticus, in which the author anonymously attributed the behavior of avarice to Adrian IV. Dante likely interpreted the excerpts as referring to Adrian V instead of Adrian IV.[4]

Despite the possible misinterpretation of Adrian V’s character, his presence in the Comedy help to understand Dante’s views about the Church and the role of women in achieving man’s salvation. Pope Adrian V’s representation of avarice reflects the zealous ambition for earthly power and goods.[5] Adrian V describes that he had to detach himself from the love of worldly things that came to be after he was assigned the papal sit in the short period he was a pope (Purgatorio 19.106-114).[5] This symbolizes Dante’s view of how avarice was at the heart of the church and popes in the Middle Ages were excessively drawn to earthly things and preoccupied with exercising power.[5] Moreover, Adrian V outlines not only his avarice but also the corrupt nature of his family, with the exception of his niece, Alagia Fieschi (Purgatorio 19.142-145). In a melancholic tone, Adrian V expresses how Alagia is the only remaining virtuous woman whose extension of prayer can help his journey of salvation. Alagia's portrayal reflects Dante’s view of how Christian women play a miraculous role in men’s achievement of salvation through their prayer.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ a b  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Loughlin, James (1907). "Pope Adrian V". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  2. ISBN 0-631-17286-6
  3. ^  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed. (1911). "Adrian". Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 1 (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. p. 216.
  4. ^ a b Dante Encyclopedia, Taylor & Francis Group, 2000.
  5. ^ a b c Scott, John A. 1932- (John Alfred). Dante's Political Purgatory. University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, 1996.
  6. ^ Paolucci, Anne. The Women in Dante's Divine Comedy and Spenser's Faerie Queene. Griffon House Publications, Dover, Del, 2005.

Bibliography

External links

  • Media related to Adrian V at Wikimedia Commons
Catholic Church titles
Preceded by Pope
1276 		Succeeded by
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