The papal election from May 30, 1277 to November 25, 1277, convened in Viterbo

Viterbo

See also Viterbo, Texas and Viterbo UniversityViterbo is an ancient city and comune in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo. It is approximately 80 driving / 80 walking kilometers north of GRA on the Via Cassia, and it is surrounded by the Monti Cimini and...

 after the death of Pope John XXI

Pope John XXI

Pope John XXI, , born Pedro Julião Pope John XXI, , born Pedro Julião Pope John XXI, , born Pedro Julião (Latin, Petrus Iulianus (c. 1215 – May 20, 1277), a Portuguese also called Pedro Hispano (Latin, Petrus Hispanus; English, Peter of Spain), was Pope from 1276 until his death about eight...

, was the smallest papal election

Papal conclave

A papal conclave is a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Bishop of Rome, who then becomes the Pope during a period of vacancy in the papal office. The Pope is considered by Roman Catholics to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and earthly head of the Roman Catholic Church...

 since the expansion of suffrage

Suffrage

Suffrage, political franchise, or simply the franchise, distinct from mere voting rights, is the civil right to vote gained through the democratic process...

 to cardinal-priests and cardinal-deacons, with only seven cardinal electors

Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...

 (following the deaths of three popes who had not created cardinals). Because John XXI had revoked Ubi periculum

Ubi periculum

Ubi periculum was a document promulgated by Pope Gregory X during the Second Council of Lyon in 1274 that established the papal conclave as the method of selection for a pope...

, the papal bull

Papal bull

A Papal bull is a particular type of letters patent or charter issued by a Pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the bulla that was appended to the end in order to authenticate it....

 of Pope Gregory X

Pope Gregory X

Pope Blessed Gregory X , born Tebaldo Visconti, was Pope from 1271 to 1276. He was elected by the papal election, 1268–1271, the longest papal election in the history of the Roman Catholic Church....

 establishing the papal conclave

Papal conclave

A papal conclave is a meeting of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Bishop of Rome, who then becomes the Pope during a period of vacancy in the papal office. The Pope is considered by Roman Catholics to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and earthly head of the Roman Catholic Church...

, with his own bull Licet felicis recordationis, the cardinal electors were able to take their time in what would be the fifth to last non-conclave papal election.

After six months of deliberation, the cardinals eventually elected their most senior member Giovanni Gaetano Orsini as Pope Nicholas III

Pope Nicholas III

Pope Nicholas III , born Giovanni Gaetano Orsini, Pope from November 25, 1277 to his death in 1280, was a Roman nobleman who had served under eight Popes, been made cardinal-deacon of St...

. From the end of the election until Nicholas III's first consistory

Consistory

-Antiquity:Originally, the Latin word consistorium meant simply 'sitting together', just as the Greek synedrion ....

 on March 12, 1278, the number of living cardinals—seven—was the lowest in the history of the Roman Catholic Church

Roman Catholic Church

The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the world's largest Christian church, with over a billion members. Led by the Pope, it defines its mission as spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ, administering the sacraments and exercising charity...

.

Cardinal electors

The six cardinal electors were evenly divided between three supporters of Charles of Anjou and three cardinals from prominent Roman families, who opposed the interests of Charles in Italy, with one neutral cardinal.

Elector	Nationality	Faction	Order and Title	Elevated	Elevator	Notes
Bertrand de Saint-Martin Bertrand de Saint-Martin Bertrand de Saint-Martin was a French cardinal.He entered the Order of Benedictines and by 1238 was dean of the abbey of Saint-André de Villeneuve at Avignon. In 1248 he was elected bishop of Fréjus. In 1264 he was transferred to the see of Avignon, and in 1266 to the metropolitan see of Arles...	French France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...	neutral	Cardinal-bishop of Sabina	1273, June 3	Gregory X Pope Gregory X Pope Blessed Gregory X , born Tebaldo Visconti, was Pope from 1271 to 1276. He was elected by the papal election, 1268–1271, the longest papal election in the history of the Roman Catholic Church....	Dean of the College of Cardinals Dean of the College of Cardinals The Dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals is the president of the College of Cardinals in the Roman Catholic Church, and as such always holds the rank of Cardinal Bishop. The Dean is not necessarily the longest-serving member of the whole College...
Anchero Pantaleone Anchero Pantaleone Anchero Pantaleone was a French cardinal and cardinal-nephew of Pope Urban IV, his uncle who elevated him on May 22, 1262. He was cardinal protopriest from 1277 and died on November 1, 1286.-References:...	French France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...	Angevin	Cardinal-priest of S. Prassede	1262, May 22	Urban IV Pope Urban IV Pope Urban IV , born Jacques Pantaléon, was Pope, from 1261 to 1264. He was not a cardinal, and there have been several Popes since him who have not been Cardinals, including Urban V and Urban VI.-Biography:...	Cardinal primoprete Protopriest Protopriest — in the College of Cardinals, is the first Cardinal-Priest in the order of precedence. This title is always attached to the most senior Cardinal Priest according to date of his creation. From the 17th century until the end of 19th century Protopriest usually opted for the titulus San... ; Cardinal-nephew Cardinal-nephew A cardinal-nephew is a cardinal elevated by a Pope who is that cardinal's uncle, or, more generally, his relative. The practice of creating cardinal-nephews originated in the Middle Ages, and reached its apex during the 16th and 17th centuries. The word nepotism originally referred specifically to...
Guillaume de Bray	French France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...	Angevin	Cardinal-priest of S. Marco	1262, May 22	Urban IV Pope Urban IV Pope Urban IV , born Jacques Pantaléon, was Pope, from 1261 to 1264. He was not a cardinal, and there have been several Popes since him who have not been Cardinals, including Urban V and Urban VI.-Biography:...	Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals The Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals was the treasurer of that body.He administered all property, fees, funds and revenue belonging to the College of Cardinals, celebrated the requiem Mass for a deceased cardinal and was charged with the registry of the Acta Consistoralia.It is...
Giovanni Gaetano Orsini Pope Nicholas III Pope Nicholas III , born Giovanni Gaetano Orsini, Pope from November 25, 1277 to his death in 1280, was a Roman nobleman who had served under eight Popes, been made cardinal-deacon of St...	Roman Rome Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...	Roman	Cardinal-deacon of S. Nicola in Carcere Tulliano	1244, May 28	Innocent IV Pope Innocent IV Pope Innocent IV , born Sinibaldo Fieschi, was pope from June 25, 1243 until his death in 1254.-Early life:...	Protodeacon Protodeacon Protodeacon derives from the Greek proto- meaning 'first' and diakonos, which is a standard ancient Greek word meaning "servant", "waiting-man," "minister" or "messenger." The word in English may refer to various clergymen, depending upon the usage of the particular church in question.-Eastern... , archpriest of the patriarchal Vatican Basilica, Inquisitor General and protector of the Order of Franciscans; Elected Pope Nicholas III
Giacomo Savelli Pope Honorius IV Pope Honorius IV , born Giacomo Savelli, was Pope for two years from 1285 to 1287. During his unremarkable pontificate he largely continued to pursue the pro-French policy of his predecessor, Pope Martin IV...	Roman Rome Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...	Roman	Cardinal-deacon of S. Maria in Cosmedin	1261, December 17	Urban IV Pope Urban IV Pope Urban IV , born Jacques Pantaléon, was Pope, from 1261 to 1264. He was not a cardinal, and there have been several Popes since him who have not been Cardinals, including Urban V and Urban VI.-Biography:...	Future Pope Honorius IV
Goffredo da Alatri	Italian Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...	Angevin	Cardinal-deacon of S. Giorgio in Velabro	1261, December 17	Urban IV Pope Urban IV Pope Urban IV , born Jacques Pantaléon, was Pope, from 1261 to 1264. He was not a cardinal, and there have been several Popes since him who have not been Cardinals, including Urban V and Urban VI.-Biography:...
Matteo Orsini Rosso	Roman Rome Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...	Roman	Cardinal-deacon of S. Maria in Portico	1262, May 22	Urban IV Pope Urban IV Pope Urban IV , born Jacques Pantaléon, was Pope, from 1261 to 1264. He was not a cardinal, and there have been several Popes since him who have not been Cardinals, including Urban V and Urban VI.-Biography:...	Nephew of Giovanni Orsini

Absentee cardinal

Elector	Nationality	Order and Title	Elevated	Elevator	Notes
Simon Monpitie de Brie Pope Martin IV Pope Martin IV, born Simon de Brion held the papacy from February 21, 1281 until his death....	French France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...	Cardinal-priest S. Cecilia	1261, December 17	Urban IV Pope Urban IV Pope Urban IV , born Jacques Pantaléon, was Pope, from 1261 to 1264. He was not a cardinal, and there have been several Popes since him who have not been Cardinals, including Urban V and Urban VI.-Biography:...	Papal legate in France; Future Pope Martin IV

Procedure

Initially, the cardinals met only once a day for balloting and returned to their respective habitations after the scrutinies. For two months, voting proceeded uneventfully along national lines with the French and Roman cardinals evenly divided.

After six months the impatient magistrates of Viterbo locked the cardinals in the town hall (once elected, Nicholas III moved the papacy back to Rome).