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Only a few dozencardinals of theRoman Catholic Church have beenexcommunicated by theCatholic Church. A cardinal is a Roman Catholicpriest,deacon, orbishop entitled to vote in apapal election. They are collectively known as theCollege of Cardinals.
Excommunication—literally, the denial ofcommunion—usually means that a person is barred from participating in theSacraments or holdingecclesiastical office.Ne Romani (1311),promulgated byPope Clement V during theCouncil of Vienne, extended suffrage in papal election to excommunicated cardinals in an attempt to limitschisms.[1]
This list includes only cardinals who have been explicitly excommunicated by apope orecumenical council, rather than those who (depending on one's interpretation) may have been excommunicatedlatae sententiae. For example, several precepts of papal election law prescribed automatic excommunication, such asLicet de vitanda of theLateran Council which prohibited election by one-third, andPope Pius X'sCommissum Nobis, which made the exercise of thejus exclusivae by any cardinal punishable by excommunication.[2][3] It also does not include excommunicated quasi-cardinals (cardinals elevated byantipopes) or clerics excommunicated before receiving thered hat.
Many excommunicated cardinals reconciled (most often with the successor of their excommunicator) and had their offices restored. Some would later be electedpope; for example,Formosus andSergius III.

| Cardinal | Elevating pope | Date of elevation | Excommunicating pope or council | Date of excommunication | Reason | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rodoaldo, bishop of Porto | Leo IV | 853 | Nicholas I | 864 | Simony | [4] |
| Anastasioil Bibliotecario | Leo IV | 847 | Council of Rome Council of Ravenna Council of Rome | December 6, 860 May 29, 853 December 8, 853 | Intrigue against the pope | Reconciled with Nicholas I and Adrian II[4] |
| Formoso | Nicholas I | 861 | John VIII | 867 | Various charges | Reconciled with Marinus I; future Pope Formosus; re-excommunicated posthumously by theCadaver Synod[4] |
| Sergio | Stephen V | ante 897 | John IX/Roman Synod | April 898 | Role in theCadaver Synod | Later reconciled; future Pope Sergius III[4] |
| Benedetto | Formosus | ante 896 | John IX/Roman Synod | April 898 | Role in theCadaver Synod | [4] |
| Martino | Formosus | ante 896 | John IX/Roman Synod | April 898 | Role in theCadaver Synod | [4] |
| Giovanni | Formosus | ante 896 | John IX/Roman Synod | April 898 | Role in theCadaver Synod | [4] |
| Pasquale | Formosus | ante 896 | John IX/Roman Synod | April 898 | Role in theCadaver Synod | [4] |
| Leone | Formosus | ante 896 | John IX/Roman Synod | April 898 | Role in theCadaver Synod | [4] |

| Cardinal | Elevating pope | Date of elevation | Excommunicating pope or council | Date of excommunication | Reason | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hugh of Remiremont | Leo IX | 1049 | Gregory VII/Roman synod of Letran | March 3, 1078 | Simony | JoinedAntipope Clement III[5] |
| Richard Milhau | Gregory VII | Ante May 7, 1078 | Victor III/Council of Benevento | August 1087 | Joined allegiance ofAntipope Clement III | [6] |
| Cardinal | Elevating pope | Date of elevation | Excommunicating pope or council | Date of excommunication | Reason | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pietro Pierleoni | Paschal II | ca.1112 | Innocent II/Council of Reims | October 18, 1131 | Election as Antipope Anacletus II | [7] |
| Ottaviano de' Monticelli | Innocent II | 1138 | Alexander III | 1162 and 1163 | Election as Antipope Victor IV | [7] |
| Cardinal | Elevating pope | Date of elevation | Excommunicating pope or council | Date of excommunication | Reason | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Riccardo | Innocent IV orAlexander IV | Between 1252 and 1256 | Alexander IV | April 10, 1259 | He participated in the coronation ofManfred Hohenstauf | [8][9] |
| Giacomo Colonna | Nicholas III | March 12, 1278 | Boniface VIII | May 10, 1297 | He corresponded secretly withFrederick III of Sicily and withPhilip IV of France; and refused to surrender to the pope the fortresses that he possessed | Rehabilitated by Benedict XI (1303–1304) and reinstated by Clement V on December 17, 1305[8] |
| Pietro Colonna | Nicholas IV | May 16, 1288 | Boniface VIII | May 10, 1297 | He corresponded secretly withFrederick III of Sicily and withPhilip IV of France; and refused to surrender to the pope the fortresses that he possessed | Rehabilitated by Benedict XI (1303–1304) and reinstated by Clement V on December 17, 1305[8] |
| Cardinal | Elevating pope | Date of elevation | Excommunicating pope or council | Date of excommunication | Reason | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Louis Aleman | Eugene IV | Eugene IV | December 11, 1440 | Role in theCouncil of Basel | Reconciled with Nicholas V[10] |

| Cardinal | Elevating pope | Date of elevation | Excommunicating pope or council | Date of excommunication | Reason | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Francisco de Borja | Alexander VI | September 28, 1500 | Julius II | October 24, 1511 | Role in theCouncil of Pisa | Cardinal-nephew; Died before his conciliar colleagues reconciled[11] |
| Federico di Sanseverino | Innocent VIII | March 9, 1489 | Julius II | October 24, 1511 | Role in the Council of Pisa | Reconciled with Leo X[12] |
| Bernardino López de Carvajal | Alexander VI | September 20, 1493 | Julius II | October 24, 1511 | Role in the Council of Pisa | Reconciled with Leo X[12] |
| Guillaume Briçonnet | Alexander VI | January 16, 1495 | Julius II | October 24, 1511 | Role in the Council of Pisa | Reconciled with Leo X[12] |
| René de Prie | Julius II | December 18, 1506 | Julius II | October 24, 1511 | Role in the Council of Pisa | Reconciled with Leo X[12] |
| Odet de Coligny | Clement VII | 7 November 1533 | Pius IV | 31 March 1563 | Apostasy (conversion to Calvinism) | Never ordained. Died in exile in England, buried inCanterbury Cathedral |
| Cardinal | Elevating pope | Date of elevation | Excommunicating pope or council | Date of excommunication | Reason | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Niccolò Coscia | Benedict XIII | June 11, 1725 | Clement XII | May 9, 1733 | Financial irregularities | Reconciled with Clement XII[13] |