No man in the thirteenth century rose to a greater height of power than Pope Boniface VIII. Born Benedict Gaetani, he came from a noble family and was related to three earlier popes. He studied law, and was made a cardinal before he was fifty years old.
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| Pope Boniface VIII |
Nicholas refused to sign the agreement,
and Charles’ sons—ages 8, 12, and 14—remained prisoners. After a couple of years, Pope Nicholas died.
The cardinals split into two camps and for two years they argued, but failed to
elect a pope. When they convened in Perugia in 1294, King Charles came to them
and asked them to ratify his treaty with Aragon. Though they had the power to
do it, the cardinals refused. Cardinal Gaetani, who had dealt with the royal
family of Naples since Charles was a child, berated him for bringing his
request to the curia, and they parted in anger.
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| King Charles II of Naples |
Charles stopped at an abbey in Sulmona
on his way to Naples, and shortly thereafter the retired founder of the abbey,
Peter of Morrone, wrote to the cardinals urging them to speed the election,
because the church needed a leader. One of the cardinals was a longtime friend
and admirer of Peter, and taking his letter as a sign from God, proposed Peter
of Morrone as a papal candidate.
Peter, in his mid-eighties, had lived a
rustic life, often as a hermit, in the rural mountains of central Italy, part
of Charles’ kingdom. He had founded a monastic order and several churches, and
his spiritual life was greatly admired by those who knew him.
The cardinals found it expedient to
elect him pope, considering his great age and the limited time he was likely to
serve. No doubt many of these sophisticated men, including Cardinal Gaetani,
believed that a rustic hermit like Peter of Morrone could be used for their own
ends.
King Charles heard of Peter’s election
within days, and raced back to Sulmona. He arrived at the hermitage before the
cardinals’ delegation, and pleaded for his sons’ release. Peter promised to
help him, and in fact agreed to visit Charles’ court in Naples before going to
Rome.
The cardinals were furious, but Peter
was crowned Celestine V, went to Naples, and set up his papal court in King
Charles’ castle. By December it was clear to Celestine that he was ill-equipped
for the job, essentially a political position. He wanted to resign, withdraw
back to his hermitage. With no precedent for the resignation of a pope, Celestine
called on Cardinal Gaetani for legal advice.
Ambitious for the ultimate advancement,
Gaetani saw the possibilities. He went to King Charles, promising to free his
sons if Charles would support Celestine’s resignation and Gaetani’s election.
Charles knew Gaetani had the political savvy to fulfill his promise, but did
not trust Gaetani. Still, his sons had been prisoners nearly six years.
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| Pope Celestine V |
Gaetani arranged the legal aspects of
Celestine’s resignation, and the next day he was elected pope, taking the name
Boniface VIII. Celestine’s supporters were convinced that Boniface had coerced
the resignation—which I doubt. Boniface requested Celestine to join him in Rome
for the coronation, to convince the public that the new election was
legitimate. However, as Celestine was traveling to Rome he learned that Boniface
planned to imprison him. Celestine escaped with a friend, and for months hid in
the mountains and forests.
In May, Pope Boniface heard rumors of
Celestine’s whereabouts, and immediately called on King Charles. His
assignment: Capture Celestine, and then I’ll sign your treaty with Aragon and
free your sons.
Charles had looked to Celestine for
spiritual advice, and counted him a good friend. Now he had to capture him,
ensuring he would end his life a prisoner of Pope Boniface.
This had to be the bitterest of
conflicts for King Charles. He sons had grown to manhood as prisoners in
Aragon. To free them, he had to betray his friend. In fact, Pope Boniface did
free Charles’ sons, and he kept Celestine in a family castle south of Rome
until his death.
Villains come in many forms, some from
the low-life criminal element, from whom you would expect no good thing.
Others, like Pope Boniface VIII, come from places of privilege and honor, and
their villainy is all the more contemptible because of the power they have to
do good.
