The Great (Western) Schism: What Happened?
So, it has been a a while since my last history post, and a few days since my last post in general. So, recently, on “Prose” and elsewhere, I have been reading a lot about philosophy and religion. This has inspired my next history post, which deals with religion. Most people are unfamiliar with the Great (Western) Schism, but those who know about it probably only know its general essence. So, how did three popes come to rule at the same time? And, how did arguably the largest cause of the Protestant Reformation begin? I urge you to keep reading.
It actually started all the way back in 1303 C. E. The current English king at the time, King Philip IV (1268-1314), had much influence over France, and in particular, over northern French cities such as Hanovar, Saxony, and Avignon (cities from the Middle-Ages have the coolest names). King Philip IV wanted more money (as if that isn’t new), and thus, he decided to tax the French clergy members. However, Pope Boniface VIII (1294-1303), who was the current pope at the time, stepped in, claiming that the king could not tax members of the clergy without the pope’s consent.
If history shows us anything, it is that you do not want to argue with a leader in Medieval Europe unless you really, really have power to back it up. Well, the pope did not, and about halfway through 1303, King Philip had Pope Boniface captured and brought to the dungeons of England. The date on which this occurred is infamous: Friday the thirteenth (this is only one of many unfortunate events in history that occurred on this date, but this event was one of the earliest).
In England, Philip IV ordered Boniface VIII and other members of captured clergy to be tortured until they confessed to charges ranging from theft to homosexuality (both of which were punishable by death at the time). However, the pope was rescued a few weeks later by some Italian mercenaries. Unfortunately for him, though, he would die on October 11, 1303, due to complications from the torture.
With the old pope out of the way, Philip IV saw his chance to influence the Catholic Church to his will. The College of Cardinals, which is a group of Catholics that would meet after the death, deposition, or abdication of each pope to elect a new one from the members of the college, met in Avignon to elect a new pope. However, Philip IV pressured them to elect a French Pope: Pope Clement V (1264-1314). Pope Clement V agreed to make the Church pay taxes to the king of England, who was in this case the secular ruler. Unfortunately for Philip, however, he would die that same year, but the implications of his actions were not soon undone.
What followed were a series of elections and changes to the College of Cardinals that transformed it into a group of clerics that wanted the pope to remain in France and stay loyal to the king (in this case, the king of France, for some reason). The next pope was also a French one, Pope Clement VI (1291-1351) who also ruled from Avignon, and yet another one after him, Pope Gregory (I’m not sure which one - records tend to compromise each other).
After the death if Pope Gregory, the College of Cardinals met once again in Rome to elect a new pope. Their plan, as it had been for the last few decades, was to elect a pope who would be loyal to France and the nation’s economic interests. The citizens of Rome, however, were not happy about that, so they decided to pressure the college into conforming back to tradition. They threatened the College of Cardinals, affirming that they would not let them leave Rome until they elected a Roman or at least an Italian Pope. The college, for their own safety, elected Pope Urban VI (1318-1389) in 1378.
However, once the college returned back to Avignon, they declared the vote to be null and void, and elected the “actual” pope, Pope Clement VII, in that same year. (There was another, more-official Pope Clement VII later on, in the 1500s). So by 1378, there were two popes ruling at the same time, both claiming to be the true leaders of the Catholic Church. This began what was known as the Great Schism, formally known as the Great Western Schism (1378-1417). The College of Cardinals was not much of a help, either, as their members were also hotly divided over which pope to support.
With religion being such an important part of society as it was back then, Europe soon became divided. Nations such as France remained loyal to Avignon, and nations such as England, who had returned to tradition, remained loyal to Rome.
With the situation looking helpless, and really damaging the Catholic Church’s image, members from both sides of the College of Cardinals began to try to resolve the problem. This effort, known as the Conciliar Movement, would at first fail. The college declared that both of the current ruling popes were not official, and then elected Pope Alexander V (1339-1410) to be the “real” pope.
However, Pope Clement VII and Pope Urban VI both refused to step down, and Alexander V wouldn’t budge, so now there were - count em’ - three popes! The situation grew increasingly hopeless, until finally, authority of the Conciliar Movement went to Holy Roman Emperor Sigismund (1368-1437). The Holy Roman Emperor established an entirely new College of Cardinals, and together, they waited until the the current popes either died or were deposed, and then elected a new pope. In 1417, Cardinal Oddone Colonna was elected as Pope Martin V (1369-1431), thus and finally ending the Great (Western) Schism.
Whew! That was not even the first Great Schism, thus why it is officially termed as the Great Western Schism. However, the one I have just described is the more commonly-known one. So, what did this major event in history accomplish, aside from confusing pretty much all of Europe? Well, as I stated before, the Great Schism was likely the greatest cause for the Protestant Reformation, as it displayed the fact that, at that time, the Catholic Church had become more or less corrupt. In fact, other elements of it were riddled with scandals and acts of nepotism.
The Protestant Reformation, by the way, is by far one of my absolute favorite subjects in history to study. There were so many wars and clashes and battles and massacres that took place because these Europeans simply could not stop fighting about religion. But hey, I suppose that at that time, religion was possibly the greatest influence on society as a whole. I will get to that post eventually, but not today, as it will likely be the longest one I will ever write. If you made it to the end of this post, thank you so much for your patience and your interest. (And, yes, I did have to memorize all of this to pass my exams a few years ago).