The Vacant See in Early Modern Rome: A Social History of the Papal Interregnum (Studies in Medieval and Reformation Traditions, 200)

In The Vacant See in Early Modern Rome John M. Hunt offers a social history of the papal interregnum from 1559 to 1655. The study concentrates on the Roman people's relationship with their sacred ruler. Using criminal sources from the Archivio di Stato di Roma and Vatican sources, Hunt emphasizes the violent and tumultuous nature of the lapse in papal authority that followed the pope's death. The vacant see was a time in which Romans of modest social backgrounds claimed unprecedented power. From personal acts of revenge to collective protests staged at the Capitol Hill and citywide discussions of the papal election the vacant see provided Romans with a unique opportunity for political involvement in an age of omnipresent hierarchy. John M. Hunt, Ph.D. (2009), Ohio State University, is an Assistant Professor of History at Utah Valley University. He has published numerous articles on early modern Rome, including "Carriages, Violence, and Masculinity in Early Modern Rome," winner of the I Tatti Prize for best essay by a junior scholar. Acknowledgments List of maps List of images List of abbreviations Notes on currency, measurements, and time List of popes and their vacant sees Introduction Rome and its people The vacant see and historians Criminal sources and the vacant see Chapter One The papal hydra: The political structures of the vacant see The Pope’s relatives The College of Cardinals Noble offices of the vacant see Jurisdictional battles Chapter Two The Pope is dead! Rumor and ritual in the vacant see Rumors and the Pope’s death Announcing the Pope’s death “Sic transit gloria mundi”: Papal funeral rites Chapter Three Fear and loathing in the vacant see The surge in violence A city of soldiers The paradox of protection Chapter Four Violence and vengeance in the vacant see Waiting for vengeance The motives behind revenge The scripted violence of revenge Chapter Five Protesting the Papal Prince The liberty of the vacant see Ritual assaults against papal statues Pasquino and the pasquinade tradition Protesting the Pope’s princely soul Chapter Six The conclave and the people of Rome The porous conclave The market and the conclave The conclave and the public sphere The election and its public reception Conclusion The two ceremonies of the papal inauguration The vacant see, popes and the people Bibliography Index