Pope Sylvester III
| Sylvester III | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Birth name | John |
| Papacy began | January 20, 1045 |
| Papacy ended | February 10, 1045 |
| Predecessor | Benedict IX |
| Successor | Benedict IX |
| Born | ??? Rome, Italy |
| Died | 1062 or 1063 Sabina, Italy |
Sylvester III, né John of Crescenzi – Ottaviani family (born in Rome; probably died in February 10, 1045); was Pope in 1045. When Pope Benedict IX (1032–44, 1045, 1047–48) was driven from Rome in September, 1044, John, bishop of Sabina, was elected after fierce and protracted infighting and took the title of Sylvester III in January 1045. He was later charged with having bribed his way into the election; a charge that was never confirmed to be true. Benedict IX issued an excommunication of the new Pope and within three months returned to Rome and expelled his rival, who himself returned to Sabina to again take up his office of bishop in that diocese. Nearly two years later (December 1046) the Council of Sutri deprived him of his bishopric and priesthood and ordered him sent to a monastery. This sentence was obviously suspended because he continued to function and was recognized as Bishop of Sabina until at least 1062. A successor bishop to the see of Sabina is recorded for October 1063, indicating that John must have died prior to this date.
While someone considered him to have been an antipope, Sylvester III continues to be listed as an official Pope (1046) in Vatican lists. A similar situation applies to both Pope Gregory VI (1045–46) and Pope Clement II (1046–47).
External links
- (Italian) Crescenzi family
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Benedict IX |
Bishop of Rome,
Vicar of Peter (deprecated A.D. 495), Vicar of
Christ, Successor of the Prince of the Apostles Supreme Pontiff (Pontifex Maximus) Patriarch of the West (deprecated 2006), Primate of Italy, Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman Province Servant of the Servants of God Pope 1045 |
Succeeded by Benedict IX |
| Antipopes of the Roman Catholic Church | |
|---|---|
| Hippolytus · Novatian · Felix II · Ursicinus · Eulalius · Laurentius · Dioscorus · Theodore · Paschal · Constantine II · Philip · John VIII · Anastasius · Christopher · Boniface VII · John XVI · Gregory VI · Sylvester III · Benedict X · Honorius II · Clement III · Theodoric · Adalbert · Sylvester IV · Gregory VIII · Celestine II · Anacletus II · Victor IV (1138) · Victor IV (1159–1164) · Paschal III · Callixtus III · Innocent III · Nicholas V · Clement VII · Benedict XIII · Alexander V · John XXIII · Clement VIII · Benedict XIV · Felix V |  |
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