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Clement VII
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antipope
Great Schism of the West

 

Name:
Clement VII born: Robert of Geneva

Dates:
Born: ?
Died: 1394
Antipope: 1378 - 1394

Biography:
Clement VII was part of the "Great Schism of the West" controversy and set up residence as pope in Avignon. He and his successors became known as the "Avignon obedience." While still a cardinal he actually voted for Urban IV, but because of the latter's policies Robert grew disillusioned and ended up leading the revolt against Urban. Thirteen other French cardinals agreed with Robert that the election of Urban had been an error, so elected Robert in his place.

Early on he had quite a lot of support: Sicily, Aragon, Castile, Navarre, Portugal, Savoy, Cyprus, Scotland, and France all backed Clement VII as pope while Urban IV was supported by Italy, Hungray, Poland, Ireland, Egnalnd, and Flanders. Over time, though, Clement's support decreased because he spent too much money and collected too much in taxes. France led the effort to end the schism and force Clement or his successors to submit to the pope in Rome.

Also Known As: none

Alternate Spellings: none

Common Misspellings: none

Related Resources:

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