Pope Gregory XII (Latin:Gregorius XII;Italian:Gregorio XII;c. 1327 – 18 October 1417), bornAngelo Corraro,Corario,[1] orCorrer,[2] was head of theCatholic Church from 30 November 1406 to 4 July 1415. Reigning during theWestern Schism, he was opposed by the Avignon claimantBenedict XIII and thePisan claimantsAlexander V andJohn XXIII. Gregory XII wanted to unify the Church and voluntarily resigned in 1415 to end the schism.[3]
Angelo Corraro was born in Venice of a noble family, about 1327, son of Niccolò di PietroCorrer and wife Polissena,[4] and was appointedBishop of Castello in 1380, succeeding Bishop Nicolò Morosini.[4] He was uncle of cardinalAntonio Correr and cardinal Gabriele Condulmer, futurePope Eugene IV.
On 1 December 1390, he was made titularLatin Patriarch of Constantinople. On 12 June 1405, he was created cardinal and the Cardinal-Priest of San Marco byPope Innocent VII. He was Apostolic Administrator of Constantinople from 30 November 1406 to 23 October 1409.[5]
Gregory XII was chosen at Rome on 30 November 1406 by aconclave consisting of only fifteen cardinals under the express condition that, shouldAntipope Benedict XIII (1394–1423), the rival papal claimant atAvignon, renounce all claim to thepapacy, he would also renounce his, so that a fresh election might be made and theWestern Schism (1378–1417) ended.[4]
The two claimants opened wary negotiations to meet on neutral turf atSavona in Liguria, but soon began to waver in their resolve. The Corraro relatives of Gregory XII inVenice and KingLadislaus of Naples, a supporter of Gregory XII and his predecessor for political reasons, used all their influence to prevent the meeting, and each claimant of the papal title feared being captured by partisans of his rival.[4]
The cardinals of Gregory XII openly showed their dissatisfaction at this manoeuvring and gave signs of their intention to abandon him. On 4 May 1408, Gregory XII convened hiscardinals atLucca and ordered them not to leave the city under any pretext. He tried to supplement his following by creating four of his Corraro nephews cardinals – including the futurePope Eugene IV, despite his promise in the conclave that he would create no new cardinals. Seven of the cardinals secretly left Lucca and negotiated with the cardinals of Benedict XIII concerning the convocation of a general council by them, at which both Gregory XII and Benedict XIII should be declared deposed and a new pope elected. Consequently, they convoked theCouncil of Pisa and invited both claimants to be present. Neither Gregory XII nor Benedict XIII appeared.
Meanwhile, Gregory XII stayed inRimini with the family of his loyal and powerful protector, thecondottieroCarlo I Malatesta.[6] Malatesta went to Pisa in person during the process of the council to support Gregory XII. At the fifteenth session, 5 June 1409, the Council of Pisa declared that it deposed both Gregory and Benedict as schismatical, heretical, perjured, and scandalous; they pronounced that they had electedAlexander V (1409–10) later that month.[7] Gregory XII, who had meanwhile created ten more cardinals, had convoked arival council atCividale del Friuli, nearAquileia; but only a few bishops appeared. Gregory XII's cardinals pronounced Benedict XIII and Alexander V schismatics, perjurers, and devastators of the Church, but their pronouncement went unheeded. Gregory XII was very saddened by the way he was treated; he also had some adventures while barely escaping from enemies and former friends.[8]
TheCouncil of Constance finally resolved the situation. Gregory XII appointed Carlo Malatesta and CardinalGiovanni Dominici ofRagusa as his proxies. The cardinal then convoked the council and authorized its succeeding acts, thus preserving the formulas ofpapal supremacy.
Thereupon on 4 July 1415, Gregory XII's resignation was pronounced in his name by Malatesta and accepted by the cardinals. As they had agreed previously, they retained all the cardinals created by Gregory XII, thus satisfying the Corraro clan, and appointed Gregory XIIBishop of Frascati,Dean of the College of Cardinals and perpetual legate atAncona. The Council then set asideAntipope John XXIII (1410–15), the successor of Alexander V. After the former follower of Benedict XIII appeared, the council declared him deposed, ending the Western Schism. A new Roman pontiff,Martin V, was electedafter the death of Gregory XII, which many took as an indication that Gregory had been the true pope.[9] Therefore,the papacy was vacant for two years.
The rest of the life of the former pope was spent in peaceful obscurity inAncona. He was the last pope to resign untilBenedict XVI did so on 28 February 2013, almost 600 years later.[10]
TheAnnuario Pontificio has historically recognized the decisions of theCouncil of Pisa (1409). Until the mid-20th century, theAnnuario Pontificio listed Gregory XII's reign as 1406–1409, followed byAlexander V (1409–1410) andJohn XXIII (1410–1415).[11] However, theWestern Schism was reinterpreted whenPope John XXIII (1958–1963) chose to reuse the ordinal XXIII, citing "twenty-two Johns of indisputable legitimacy".[12] This is reflected in modern editions of theAnnuario Pontificio, which extend Gregory XII's reign to 1415. Alexander V and the first John XXIII are now considered to be antipopes.
^Miranda, Salvador (2022)."Correr, Angelo".The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church – Biographical Dictionary.Archived from the original on 15 January 2018.
^Riccoboni, Bartolomea (2000).Life and Death in a Venetian Convent: the chronicle and necrology of Corpus Domini, 1395–1436. Chicago & London: The University of Chicago Press. pp. 60–63.ISBN0-226-71789-5.
^Creighton, Mandell (1907).A History of the Papacy from the Great Schism to the Sack of Rome. Volume I. London: Longmans, Green, and Company. p. 223[ISBN missing]
^Riccoboni, Bartolomea (2000).Life and Death in a Venetian Convent: the chronicle and necrology of Corpus Domini, 1395–1436. Chicago & London: The University of Chicago Press. pp. 57, 59.ISBN0-226-71788-7.
^Riccoboni, Bartolomea (2000).Life and Death in a Venetian Convent: the chronicle and necrology of Corpus Domini, 1395–1436. Chicago & London: The University of Chicago Press. p. 63.ISBN0-226-71788-7.
^Annuario pontificio per l'anno 1942. Rome. 1942. p. 21.205. Gregorio XII, Veneto, Correr (c. 1406, cessò a. 1409, m. 1417) – Pont. a. 2, m. 6. g. 4. 206. Alessandro V, dell'Isola di Candia, Filargo (c. 1409, m. 1410). – Pont. m. 10, g. 8. 207. Giovanni XXII o XXIII o XXIV, Napoletano, Cossa (c. 1410, cesso dal pontificare 29 mag. 1415{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Ott, Michael (1910). "Pope Gregory XII". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.).Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
