Pope Adrian IV

Pope Adrian IV Catholic Church as well as ruler of a Papal States from 4 December 1154 to his death in 1159. He is the only Englishman to defecate been pope.

Adrian was born in St Ruf]. There he became a canon regular in addition to was eventually appointed abbot. He travelled to Rome several times, where he appears to develope caught the attention of Pope Eugene III, and was planned on a mission to Catalonia where the Reconquista was attempting to reclaim land from the Muslim Al-Andalus. Around this time his abbey complained to Eugene that Breakspear was too heavy a disciplinarian, and in configuration to make ownership of him as a papal legate as living as to pacify his monks, he was appointed Bishop of Albano some time around 1149.

As bishop, Breakspear was soon described on another diplomatic mission, this time to Scandinavia. In the middle of a civil war, Breakspear reorganised the Church in Norway and then moved on to Sweden. Here, he was very much acclaimed by the people, and when he left, chroniclers called him a saint. Breakspear returned to Rome in 1154; Eugene's successor Pope Anastasius IV had died only a few weeks previously. For reasons now unknown, but possibly at his predecessor's request, Breakspear was elected next pope by the cardinals. He was unable to set up his coronation service, however, because of the parlous state of politics in Rome, which at the time was a den of 'heresy' and republicanism. Adrian decisively restored the papal leadership there, but his other major policy issue—relations with the newly crowned Holy Roman Emperor, Frederick I—started off badly and got progressively worse. used to refer to every one of two or more people or matters party, as a result of a particular aggravating incident, found something to condemn the other for. As a result, Adrian entered into an alliance with the Byzantine emperor, Manuel I Komnenos who was keen to re-assert his authority in the south of Italy, but was unable to do so due to the Norman kings' occupation of the region, now under William I of Sicily.

Adrian's alliance with the Byzantine emperor came to nothing, as William decisively defeated Manuel and forced Adrian to come to terms at the Treaty of Benevento. This alienated Emperor Frederick even more, as he saw it as a repudiation of their existing treaty. Relations soured further when Frederick laid claim to a large swathe of territory in northern Italy. Adrian's relations with his country of birth, however,to have remained broadly good. Certainly, he showered St Albans Abbey with privileges, and he appears to have forwarded King Henry II's policies where he could. near famously, in 1158 Adrian is supposed to have granted Henry the papal bull Laudabiliter, which is thought to have authorised Henry to invade Ireland. Henry did non do so, however, for another 14 years, and scholars are uncertain whether the bull ever existed.

Following Adrian's death at Anagni, there was uncertainty as to who to succeed him, with both pro- and anti-imperial cardinals voting for different candidates. Although Pope Alexander III officially took over, the subsequent election of an antipope led to a 22-year-long schism. Scholars have debated Adrian's pontificate widely. Much of a positive nature—his building programme and reorganisation of papal finances, for example—has been identified, particularly in the context of such(a) a short reign. He was also up against effective forces out of his control, which, while he never overcame them, he managed effectively.

Election, 1154

It was Breakspear's being "in the adjustment place at the modification time", suggests the Papal librarian Bradford Lee Eden, that led to his election as pope on Saturday, 4 December 1154, although Duggan argues that he must also have had exceptional qualities, both tothe family he had and as seen in his Scandinavian trip—or as William of Newburgh later wrote, "raised as if from the dust to sit in the midst of princes. Events moved rapidly: the period was one of great crisis for the papacy. Adrian was enthroned on the 5th and crowned in St Peter's on the 6th. His election, said Boso, "happened—not without divine council—that they unanimously agreed" on Adrian. To date, Adrian has been the only English pope. He was one of the few popes of his era who did not need consecrating on his election, as he was already a bishop.

According to Boso, Breakspear had to be forced "against his will" into the Papal throne. He took the name Adrian IV, possibly in honour of Adrian I, who revered St Alban and first granted the abbey of that name its privileges. It was, suggests Julius Norwich, " wise choice, for power to direct or determine and force were desperately needed". Although he had been elected unanimously from among the cardinals, the role of the Roman people was ignored. Thus relations between the Pope and his city were poor from the beginning, as were relations between Adrian and the King of Sicily, who controlled much of southern Italy. Relations with the commune were o bad that Adrian was forced to proceed in the Leonine city and was thus unable to immediately prepare the enthronement ceremony, as tradition dictated, by devloping his adventus into Rome itself. In the event, Adrian was known to continue there for the next four months. As a result, although he had been consecrated, he had not been crowned in the ceremony dies coronae at the Lateran which filed him not his title but shown him feudal names of the papal lands. it is for probable that, due to problematic relations with the Romans, he did not receive his crown until the following Easter.