born , Gaeta, Kingdom of Naples died Jan. 29, 1119, Cluny, Burgundy
pope from 1118 to 1119.
He was called to Rome from Montecassino, Italy, by Pope Urban II, who created him cardinal (1088) and papal chancellor (1089). He was elected pope on Jan. 24, 1118, as successor to Paschal II, whose pontificate had been damaged by dissension from the “investiture controversy,” an administrative struggle between the popes and the Holy Roman emperors over the right to grant titles to ecclesiastics. Paschal’s attempt to end the struggle with the Holy Roman emperor Henry V in 1111 had caused a revolt among the German bishops. Henry then fled Rome amidst an uprising there and took Paschal as his prisoner. Despite opposition from the Curia, Paschal—whom Gelasius fervently defended—granted Henry the right to investiture, but the controversy continued.
Gelasius’ election was blackened by Henry, whose loyal supporter Cencius II Frangipani attacked and imprisoned the elderly pope. Driven twice from Rome by Henry, who installed Antipope Gregory VIII, Gelasius died at the monastery of Cluny while planning a council at Reims; he was buried at the monastery.
Link to this article and share the full text with the readers of your Web site or blog-post.
If you think a reference to this article on "Gelasius II" will enhance your Web site,
blog-post, or any other web-content, then feel free to link to this article,
and your readers will gain full access to the full article, even if they do not subscribe to our service.
You may want to use the HTML code fragment provided below.
We welcome your comments. Any revisions or updates suggested for this article will be reviewed by our editorial staff. Contact us here.
Regular users of Britannica may notice that this comments feature is less robust than in the past. This is only temporary, while we make the transition to a dramatically new and richer site. The functionality of the system will be restored soon.