Innocent VI
Born near Pompadour in 1282, Etienne Aubert was a professor of law at Toulouse and cardinal bishop of Ostia before his election to the papacy in 1352. The conclave that elected him agreed that the number of cardinals should never be more than 20 or less than 15; they agreed also that the naming of a new cardinal required the consent of two-thirds of the existing cardinals. The pope rejected these restrictions. Innocent ruled from Avignon, where he reinforced the walls around the papal palace. Bridget of Sweden characterized him as the persecutor of the sheep because he sent several Spiritual Franciscans to the stake because of their fanatical preachings. He rebuked the Knights Hospitaller for their lack of discipline. In 1355, he crowned Charles IV Holy Roman Emperor and later quarreled with him over his Golden Bull, which denied the pope a voice in selecting an emperor and denied the importance of the pope crowning the emperor. Innocent died in 1362.
Karen Rae Keck
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