Election of Pope Paul III From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1534 papal conclave (October 11 – October 13) was convened after the death of Pope Clement VII, and elected as his successor Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, who became Pope Paul III.
Although several Cardinals were considered papabili, it was generally thought that Cardinal Alessandro Farnese, dean of the Sacred College, had the best prospects for the election.[1] He had already official support of the king Francis I of France and of Cardinal Medici, leader of Italian party, who realized this way the will of his uncle Clement VII,[2] but, as neutral, he was also acceptable for the Imperial faction. Emperor Charles V declared this time a total disinterest in the result of the papal election, because the last two Popes, Clement VII and Adrian VI, whom he had helped to obtain the tiara, failed his hopes. The great advantage of the Cardinal Dean was his relatively advanced age (66) and poor health. It indicated that his pontificate would be very short, so even those cardinals, who themselves had papal ambitions (f.e. Trivulzio), inclined to vote for him, hoping for the next conclave in the near future.[3]
Conclave began on October 11, but the first electoral assembly took place on the next day. Cardinal de Lorraine in the name of king of France officially proposed the candidature of Farnese, and this initiative immediately obtained the support of Trivulzio, leader of pro-French Italians, and of Medici, leader of the Italian party. The consent of Imperialists was also quickly achieved, and in the evening it was clear that Alessandro Farnese would be elected unanimously.[4] On October 13 in the morning a formal scrutiny took place, but it was a mere formality: Farnese received all votes except of his own.[5] He accepted his election and took the name of Paul III. On November 3 he was solemnly crowned by ProtodeaconInnocenzo Cibo.[6]
Pope Clement VII died on September 25, 1534. At the time of his death, there were forty six Cardinals, but only thirty five of them participated in the election of his successor:[7]
Antonio Sanseverino, O.S.Io.Hieros. (November 21, 1527) – Cardinal-Priest of S. Maria in Trastevere; Archbishop of Taranto; Cardinal-protector of the Order of Capuchins
Philippe de la Chambre, O.S.B. (November 7, 1533) – Cardinal-Priest of SS. Martino ai Monti
Innocenzo Cibo (September 23, 1513) – Cardinal-Deacon of S. Maria in Domnica; Protodeacon of Sacred College of Cardinals; Archbishop of Genoa; Administrator of Turin; Legate in Bologna
Paolo Emilio Cesi (July 1, 1517) – Cardinal-Deacon of S. Eustachio; Administrator of Orte e Civita Castellana; Archpriest of the patriarchal Liberian Basilica; Prefect of the Apostolic Signature; Cardinal-protector of the Duchy of Savoy
Agostino Trivulzio (July 1, 1517) – Cardinal-Deacon of S. Adriano; Administrator of Toulon and Bayeux; Legate in Marittima e Capmagna
Francesco Pisani (July 1, 1517) – Cardinal-Deacon of S. Marco; commendatario of S. Maria in Portico and S. Agata in Suburba; Bishop of Padua; Administrator of Treviso and Cittànova
Twenty electors were created by Clement VII and thirteen of Leo X. Cardinal Dean Farnese was created by Alexander VI, while Cardinal Lang von Wellenberg by Julius II.
Eleven Cardinals did not participate in this conclave:[7]
Italian party – it grouped ten Italian Cardinals (Pucci, Salviati, Ridolfi, Medici, Cibo, Spinola, Grimaldi, Cupis, Cesi and Doria). Their leader was Vice-Chancellor Ippolito de' Medici, Cardinal-nephew of Clement VII.
French party – it included six French Cardinals and five Italians (Trivulzio, Sanseverino, Pisani, Gaddi and Palmieri). The leaders of this party were de Lorraine and Tournon.
Imperial faction – included seven Italians (Piccolomini, Cesarini, Vincenzo Carafa, Ercole Gonzaga, Campeggio, Grimani and Accolti) as well as two Spanish and two German Cardinals.
Cardinals Farnese, Ferreri and Cornaro were considered neutral.[8]