Pope from June 5, 1305 - April 20, 1314
Lived: c. 1264 - April 20, 1314
Who was this guy before he was pope?
Bertrand de Got was born in Gascony, France around the year 1264. He studied civil and canon law for a time, before serving his brother, then the Archbishop of Lyon, as vicar-general. Bertrand was eventually elevated to a bishop himself, serving first as Bishop of St-Bertrand-de-Comminges, then as Archbishop of Bordeaux in 1297. During that time, he was also personal chaplain to Pope Boniface VIII.
Give me the scoop on Clement V.
Eleven months passed between the death of Benedict XI and the election of Pope Clement V, primarily because the French cardinals wanted to play spoiler to the Italian faction. An all-too-convenient compromise candidate -- Clement V -- was presented, him being neither an Italian nor a cardinal. However, it turned out Clement was pushed forward behind the scenes by none other than King Philip IV of France, more or less Al Capone without the pinstripes.
Clement’s nearly nine-year papacy was a disaster in many ways, but he at least contributed a few good things to the Church during that time. He sent the Franciscan John of Montecorvino to China, where the latter established success evangelizing the Mongols. Clement also successfully held off Philip’s absurd desire to posthumously condemn Pope Boniface VIII, Pope-Formosus-style. Pope Clement V died at the relatively young age of 50 on April 20, 1314.
What was he known for?
Pope Clement V spent his papacy both being stricken with illness and serving as a mere pawn, in large part, of Philip IV. This sad fact led to two monumental moments in Church history. The first was done solely for the ambitious and greedy king’s political gain: The suppression of the famed Knights Templar. The second was the Holy See’s retreat from Rome to Avignon for the next 70 years, known both as the “Babylonian Captivity” and the “Avignon Papacy.”
The suppression of the Templar, a military order created in the 12th Century to defend the Holy Land, was particularly dubious. Because the order had developed a sophisticated system for banking and business, and had thus built up much wealth across all of Europe, Philip wanted their dough for himself. To get his wish, Philip simultaneously blackmailed Clement and had Guillaume de Nogaret, the king’s henchman, orchestrate a smear campaign alleging the order of sodomy, idolatry, blasphemy, and heresy (denial of Christ, etc.). Many Templars, including the Grand Master and other leaders, were tortured and ultimately burned at the stake by the king’s men, Clement V suppressed the order at the Council of Vienne in 1311, and Philip walked away with the riches.
Fun Fact: Pope Clement V was a proud Frenchman, having taken his papal name as a shout-out to Clement IV (No. 184), who also hailed from France.
What else was going on in the world at the time?
The year 1308 marked the beginning (approximately) of when Dante Alighieri began to write his landmark work, the Divine Comedy. It was finally completed in 1320, a year before his death.
Coming Monday...Pope John XXII
John, E. (1964). The Popes: A concise biographical history. New York: Hawthorn Books.
Lived: c. 1264 - April 20, 1314
Birth name: Bertrand de Got
Bertrand de Got was born in Gascony, France around the year 1264. He studied civil and canon law for a time, before serving his brother, then the Archbishop of Lyon, as vicar-general. Bertrand was eventually elevated to a bishop himself, serving first as Bishop of St-Bertrand-de-Comminges, then as Archbishop of Bordeaux in 1297. During that time, he was also personal chaplain to Pope Boniface VIII.
Give me the scoop on Clement V.
Eleven months passed between the death of Benedict XI and the election of Pope Clement V, primarily because the French cardinals wanted to play spoiler to the Italian faction. An all-too-convenient compromise candidate -- Clement V -- was presented, him being neither an Italian nor a cardinal. However, it turned out Clement was pushed forward behind the scenes by none other than King Philip IV of France, more or less Al Capone without the pinstripes.
Clement’s nearly nine-year papacy was a disaster in many ways, but he at least contributed a few good things to the Church during that time. He sent the Franciscan John of Montecorvino to China, where the latter established success evangelizing the Mongols. Clement also successfully held off Philip’s absurd desire to posthumously condemn Pope Boniface VIII, Pope-Formosus-style. Pope Clement V died at the relatively young age of 50 on April 20, 1314.
What was he known for?
Pope Clement V spent his papacy both being stricken with illness and serving as a mere pawn, in large part, of Philip IV. This sad fact led to two monumental moments in Church history. The first was done solely for the ambitious and greedy king’s political gain: The suppression of the famed Knights Templar. The second was the Holy See’s retreat from Rome to Avignon for the next 70 years, known both as the “Babylonian Captivity” and the “Avignon Papacy.”
The suppression of the Templar, a military order created in the 12th Century to defend the Holy Land, was particularly dubious. Because the order had developed a sophisticated system for banking and business, and had thus built up much wealth across all of Europe, Philip wanted their dough for himself. To get his wish, Philip simultaneously blackmailed Clement and had Guillaume de Nogaret, the king’s henchman, orchestrate a smear campaign alleging the order of sodomy, idolatry, blasphemy, and heresy (denial of Christ, etc.). Many Templars, including the Grand Master and other leaders, were tortured and ultimately burned at the stake by the king’s men, Clement V suppressed the order at the Council of Vienne in 1311, and Philip walked away with the riches.
Fun Fact: Pope Clement V was a proud Frenchman, having taken his papal name as a shout-out to Clement IV (No. 184), who also hailed from France.
What else was going on in the world at the time?
The year 1308 marked the beginning (approximately) of when Dante Alighieri began to write his landmark work, the Divine Comedy. It was finally completed in 1320, a year before his death.
Coming Monday...Pope John XXII
SOURCES (and further reading)
John, E. (1964). The Popes: A concise biographical history. New York: Hawthorn Books.
Guruge, A. (2010). The Next Pope. New Hampshire: WOWNH
Pope Clement V - http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/04020a.htm
Pope Clement V - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Clement_V
Divine Comedy - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Divine_Comedy
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