Luna, Pedro de
Luna, Pedro de
(pā`thrō dā lo͞o`nä), 1328?–1423?, Aragonese churchman, antipope (1394–1417) with the name Benedict XIII. He was a doctor of canon law and as cardinal (1375) became an outstanding member of the Curia Romana. He supported the election of Urban VIUrban VI,1318?–1389, pope (1378–89), whose election was the immediate cause of the Great Schism; a Neapolitan named Bartolomeo Prignano; successor of Gregory XI. He was made archbishop of Acerenza (1364) and of Bari (1377).
..... Click the link for more information. , but later switched his allegiance to Robert of GenevaRobert of Geneva,
d. 1394, Genevan churchman, antipope (1378–94; see Schism, Great) with the name Clement VII. He was archbishop of Cambrai (1368) and was created (1371) a cardinal.
..... Click the link for more information. , who, as Antipope Clement VII, launched the Great Schism (see Schism, GreatSchism, Great,
or Schism of the West,
division in the Roman Catholic Church from 1378 to 1417. There was no question of faith or practice involved; the schism was a matter of persons and politics.
..... Click the link for more information. ). As Robert's legate in Spain, Cardinal de Luna secured the adherence of his country to the Avignon obedience. On Robert's death, the cardinals at Avignon elected Cardinal de Luna, having first elicited his promise to abdicate should that be necessary to bring an end to the schism. As Benedict XIII, the new antipope proved himself the most able of all of the popes and antipopes of the period. He showed himself unwilling, however, to negotiate an end to the schism. His outright refusal to abdicate at the Council of Pisa (see Pisa, Council ofPisa, Council of,
1409, unrecognized council of the Roman Catholic Church. It was summoned to end the Great Schism (see Schism, Great) by members of the colleges of cardinals of the two rivals, Gregory XII (in Rome) and Benedict XIII (Pedro de Luna, in Avignon).
..... Click the link for more information. ) only made matters worse, and Benedict lost all his obedience but Scotland, Sicily, Castile, and Aragón. The Council of Constance (see Constance, Council ofConstance, Council of,
1414–18, council of the Roman Catholic Church, some of its sessions being reckoned as the 16th ecumenical council. It was summoned to end the Great Schism (see Schism, Great), in which three men were claiming to be pope—Gregory XII (since
..... Click the link for more information. ) moved Benedict to even greater intransigence. The council deposed him in 1417. Benedict, forsaken by all but his household, lived on in his fortress at Peñiscola (near Valencia), claiming to be the rightful pope until his death.