Nicholas IV

Pope Nicholas IV

Pope Nicholas IV, born Girolamo Masci on September 30, 1227, at Lisciano, near Ascoli Piceno, was the first Franciscan to ascend to the papacy. He served as the head of the Catholic Church and leader of the Papal States from February 22, 1288, until his death on April 4, 1292. His life as a friar was dedicated to protecting the Church, promoting crusades, and combating heresy, and he was recognized as a Doctor of Theology.

Life and Pontificate

Masci's early career involved serving as the superior for the Franciscans in Dalmatia. He was chosen to accompany a papal legation to the Byzantine emperor in 1272, aiming for the reunion of Eastern and Western Christendom. Following the death of St. Bonaventure, Masci was elected minister general of the Franciscan Order in 1274, even in his absence. He later served as an associate of John of Vercelli in arranging peace between French and Aragonese monarchs. Pope Nicholas III elevated him to cardinal priest in 1278 and later assigned him the titular church of Santa Pudenziana. Pope Martin IV promoted him to cardinal bishop of Palestrina in 1281.

After the death of Pope Honorius IV, the papal conclave was marked by significant losses due to illness among the cardinals. In February 1288, the remaining seven electors, including Masci, unanimously elected him pope. Reluctant at first, he accepted the papacy and chose the name Nicholas IV, in honor of Pope Nicholas III, who had made him a cardinal. His pontificate was immediately occupied with filling vacancies in the Sacred College, naming six new cardinals in May 1288.

Major Contributions and Actions

Nicholas IV issued a significant constitution on July 18, 1289, granting the cardinals half of the Holy See's income and a share in financial management, a move that would later contribute to the independence of the College of Cardinals. In matters of the Sicilian succession, he annulled a treaty that favored the interests of James II of Aragon and instead crowned Charles II as king of Sicily, recognizing papal suzerainty. He also worked to expel James from Sicily through a treaty with the Kings of Aragon and France. In 1288, he met with the Nestorian Christian traveler Rabban Bar Sauma. In August 1290, he granted the University of Lisbon its status as a studium generale. The loss of Acre in 1291 spurred renewed enthusiasm for crusades, leading him to send missionaries to various regions, including China.

Legacy

Nicholas IV's papacy is remembered for its diplomatic endeavors concerning the Kingdom of Sicily and its efforts to promote missionary activities. The Taxatio, an ecclesiastical valuation he initiated in 1291–92, remains an important historical document for ecclesiastical taxation in medieval England and Wales. He died in Rome on April 4, 1292, and is buried in the Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore, with an epitaph noting him as "Son of St. Francis."