ANTIPOPE. A pontiff elected in oppositiot to one canonically chosen. The regular Pope of Rome were occasionally out of favor with a faction which chose its own bishop (e.g., Hip polytus, 21S-223: Felix II., 355-350), but the first Antipope is reputed to be Laurentins, elect ed in 498, in opposition to Symmachus. Sev eral emperors of Germany set up Popes agains those whom the Romans had elected without con sulting them. Otho the Great displaced successive ly two Popes of Rome; and when the Antipope Sylvester III. had expelled Pope Benedict 1X., Conrad II., Emperor of Germany, brought back this ecclesiastic, who transferred his dignity to Gregory Vl. (1044). There were now, con sequently, three Popes, and their number was increased to four by the election of Clement II. in 1046. Shortly after, Alexander II. found a rival in llonorius II. (1001), and in 1080 the same unseemly spectacle was witnassed when Henry IV., Emperor of Germany, elevated to the papal chair Guibert of Ravenna, under the title of Clement ITT., in opposition to his im placable adversary, Gregory VII. But after the death of Gregory, Clement was himself opposed successively by Victor III. and Urban II., and at last died at a distance from Rome, having just beheld the exaltation of Pascal 11. as the suc cessor of Urban. During the twelfth century several Antipopes flourished, such as Gregory VIII. and ilonorius ill. On the death of the latter, France began to intermeddle in these dis graceful strifes, and upheld the cause of Inno cent II. against Anaeletus,while the kings of Sic ily, on the other hand, more than once set up a pontiff of their own against the choice of the emperors. Between 1159 and 1378 there were
four Antipopes; but the most remarkable epoch is "the great schism of the West" produced by these unedifying rivalries in 137S schism which divided the Church for fifty years. It broke out after the death of Gregory XI. at the election of Urban Vi., whom the voice of the Roman people, demanding an Dalian l'ope and not one who should fix his pontificate, like sev eral of his predecessors, at a distance from Rome, had elevated to the papal throne. The French cardinals objected, withdrew to Provence and elected a new Pope, under the name of Clem ent VII., who was recognized by France, Spain, Savoy, and Scotland, while Italy, Germany, Eng land, and the whole north of Europe supported Urban VI. These two Popes excommunicated each other; nor did they even fear to compromise their sacred character by their strife. The schism con tinned after their death, when three Popes were elected by different parties, all of whom were de posed by the Council of Constance, in 1415, and Cardinal Colonna elected in their place, under the title of Martin V. The last Antipope was Felix V. (1439-49). These divisions are often alleged as an argument against the doctrine of papal infallibility: hut Catholics consistently af firm that the privilege of infallibility is only claimed in matters of doctrine, and has no rela tion to questions of fact, such as disputed suc cession or canonicity of election.