Electing the Pope in early modern Italy, 1450-1700

Description

Electing the Pope in Early Modern Italy, 1450-1700 offers a radical reassessment of the history of early modern papacy, constructed through the first major analytical treatment of papal elections in English. Papal elections, with their ceremonial pomp and high drama, are compelling theater, but, until now, no one has analyzed them on the basis of the problems they created for cardinals: how were they to agree rules and enforce them? How should they manage the interregnum? How did they decide for whom to vote? How was the new pope to assert himself over a group of men who, until just moments before, had been his equals and peers? This study traces how the cardinals' responses to these problems evolved over the period from Martin V's return to Rome in 1420 to Pius VI's departure from it in 1798, placing them in the context of the papacy's wider institutional developments. Miles Pattenden argues not only that the elective nature of the papal office was crucial to how papal history unfolded but also that the cardinals of the fifteenth to eighteenth centuries present us with a unique case study for observing the approaches to decision-making and problem-solving within an elite political group. Content: Cover Electing the Pope in Early Modern Italy, 1450-1700 Copyright Dedication Acknowledgements Table of Contents List of Figures List of Tables List of Abbreviations 1: Introduction 2: The Pope and His Electors THE CONCEPT OF A CARDINAL CARDINALS AND THE POPE CARDINALS AND THEIR FAMILIES CARDINALS AND THE CATHOLIC FAITH CARDINALS AND SECULAR POWERS 3: Methods of Election DEVISING THE RULES IMPLEMENTING THE RULES ENFORCING THE RULES POPULAR CRITICISM AND REFORM GREGORY XV AND 'CONCLAVE REFORM' 4: The Vacant See THE POPE DIES RECONFIGURING AUTHORITY IMPLEMENTING AUTHORITYENFORCING AUTHORITY WIDER EFFECTS 5: Choosing Candidates THE IMPORTANCE OF INFORMATION OBTAINING INFORMATION ASSESSING INFORMATION ACTING ON KNOWLEDGE THE RESULTS OF ACTION 6: The New Pope THE POPE ELECT VISUALIZING AUTHORITY PATRONAGE AND NEPOTISM COERCION THE EFFECTS OF PAPAL POWER 7: Papal Government VENALITY BUREAUCRACY AND LEGISLATION PUBLIC DEBT THE DECLINE OF NEPOTISM EXPLANATIONS AND EFFECTS 8: Conclusion Bibliography 1. MANUSCRIPTS 2. PRINTED PRIMARY SOURCES 3. REFERENCE WORKS 4. SECONDARY LITERATURE Index