The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church - Cardinals camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals

The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
Cardinals camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals
(1198-1997)

The post may have originated from a quite obscure office of the "camerlengo of the Roman Curia", which is attested only in 12th century. Certain Guido, future cardinal-bishop of Tivoli, is explicitly mentioned as camerlengo of the Roman Curia in 1123; and in the year 1151, two curial officials Franchus and Rainerius, both non-cardinals are styled as "camerlengos" without any further specifications. Ian Stuart Robinson, The papacy 1073-1198: continuity and innovation (New York: Cambridge University Press, c1990), p. 41 and 253, assumed that one of them was probably camerlengo of the Pope, and the second of the Curia or of the College of Cardinals. If this hypothesis is correct, the post of camerlengo of the College would have been initially a non-cardinalitial office, which perhaps would explain why the names of its early occupants have not been preserved to our times. In 1150, Pope Eugenius III created the post of camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals at the same time that he decreed that the bishop of Ostia would be the dean of the college. The camerlengo administered the property and revenues of the college and kept the record of business transacted in consistories. With the establishment of those two offices, the Sacred College of Cardinals was organized. For the period before 1431, the information is taken from Paul Maria Baumgarten, Untersuchungen und Urkunden über die Camera Collegii Cardinalium für die Zeit von 1295 bis 1437 (Leipzig : Verlag von Giesecke & Devrient, 1898, reprinted by BiblioBazar LLC), pp. LI-LVII. Before 1437 the camerlengos of the College occupied this post until death, with only five known cases of resignations (Jean Le Moine in 1310; Nicolas de Fréauville in 1313; Pedro Gómez Barroso in 1340; Niccolò Caracciolo Moschino in 1386; and Antonio Panciera in 1431, shortly before his death). In September 1437, Pope Eugene IV reformed the Camera of the College, issued its statutes and modifications, and from that time onwards the camerlengos were elected for an annual term only. For the period after 1437, the information is taken from Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recientoris Aevi, Volumen II (1431-1503), p. 59; Volumen III (1503-1592), p. 81; Volumen IV (1592-1667), p. 58-59; Volumen V (1667-1730), p. 58-59; Volumen VI (1730-1799), p. 55-56; Volumen VII (1800-1846), p. 50-51; Volumen VIII (1846-1903), p.62-63 ; and Volumen IX (1903-1922), p. 29-30. And from Acta Sanctae Sedis, 1903-1908; and Acta Apostolica Sedis, 1909-1988. The 1983 Code of Canon Law eliminated the term "sacred" from the official name of the college as well as of all the dicasteries of the Roman Curia. The post of camerlengo of the Sacred College was abolished in 1997, without any official announcement. The post of camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals should not be confused with that of camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church.

(1) Elected camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals on January 29, 1798. Resigned cardinalate on March 12, 1798; the resignation was accepted by Pope Pius VI on September 7, 1798.
(2) Elected camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals during the conclave of 1799-1800; confirmed by Pope Pius VII in 1800.
(3) 1997 was the last year in which Annuario Pontificio listed a cardinal as camerlengo of the College of Cardinals. The post was abolished at an unknown date that year.

Top

Catalogs

Home