After the death of Sixtus IV and three days of the conclave, he himself was elected pope in 1484 and took on the name of Innocent VIII. He was considered a compromise candidate (transitional), since neither the nephew of the deceased pope from the della Rovere family, nor his bitter enemy – Vice-Chancellor Rodrigo Borgia (the latter Pope Alexander VI) managed to convince the majority of the cardinals. However, both of them counted that in selecting cardinal Cibo, they will be the ones holding the reins of power, while his pontificate will not be a lengthy one due to weak health of the candidate. This came to pass – the sickly pope often spent weeks on end in bed. However, when he was healthy he enjoyed splendor and luxury. The wars which he waged additionally emptied the treasury of the State of the Church. In order to refill it, Innocent not only sold and auctioned off papal offices, but even mortgaged the papal tiara.

Acknowledgement and legitimization of some of his children met with discontent of the College of Cardinals as up to now this was considered something nearly impossible. It was something else for the pope to have children but wholly another matter to flaunt it in front of everybody – in those times it was considered highly inappropriate behavior. It was then that Innocent’s son – Franceschetto obtained the title of governor of Rome and the function of commander-in-chief of the papal armed forces. Due to his ambitions a military conflict with Naples erupted, but it was temporarily resolved thanks to the marriage of the pope’s granddaughter with a relative of the king of Naples. A real political success of Innocent was the renewed establishment of good relations of the Holy See with Florence, which was sealed with another marriage, this time of the pope’s son, the aforementioned Franceschetto with the daughter of Lorenzo the Magnificent de Medici, the ruler of Florence. In exchange for this “favor” the young son of Lorenzo – Giovanni de Medici (the latter Pope Leo X) became a cardinal. In addition, in exchange for 40 thousand ducats of annual salary and the relics of the Holy Spear (St. Longinus), received from the Turkish Sultan Bayezid II for allowing his brother and rival Cema, to enter onto the papal court, Innocent forwent his thoughts about a crusade against the Ottoman Turks.

This pope will be remembered in history as an author of the bulla most often referred to as “bulla against witchcraft”, which was issued for some provinces, bishoprics and parishes of Central Germany and confirmed the authorizations of the inquisitors residing there in their fight against heresy. It is often interpreted by critics of the Church as a permission to “burn witches”, however it was nothing other than a confirmation of a document issued previously in which it was explicitly stated that a person committing heresy shall be jailed and ordered to pay a fine and not killed. Nevertheless, shortly afterwards, it was supplemented by a kind of textbook (describing how to judge and torture) known as Malleus Maleficarum (Hammer Of Witches), giving inquisitors (Dominicans) and unrestricted authority of pursuing heretics and therefore it constituted a beginning of persecutions and executions by burning of a countless number of those suspected of witchcraft and contacts with Satan. However, the pope’s move, which is most worthy of criticism, was the crusade against the Waldensians, or more appropriately their pogrom.

Innocent VIII was no outstanding patron of art. He will be remembered as the initiator and the funder of the first Roman leisure villa, situated on the northern slope of the Vatican (presently it is part of the Vatican complex included in the square built by Donato Bramante). Belvedere, since that was the name given to this urban residence, soon became a form willingly imitated by Roman dignitaries, bankers and cardinals. In the chambers of the villa, the frescos were painted by Pinturicchio (only fragments remain today) and by another outstanding painter of that time Andrea Mantegna (destroyed during the construction of the Museo Pio-Clementino  – Musei Vaticani).

Circumstances of the death of the sickly pope have stimulated the imagination of people for generations, although it is not entirely known how much truth there is in the story surrounding them. The pope had numerous enemies, and they knew how to depreciate both him and the papacy. The often ailing Innocent seemed to be on the verge of death numerous times yet constantly lived on. His bitter critic, the popular in Florence monk, Girolamo Savonarola, reportedly accurately foretold the date of his death. Moreover, a chronicler contemporary to the pope, Stefano Infessura (who also wrote about Sixtus IV), announced that few months prior to his death, the Bishop of Rome at the encouragement of a Jewish doctor, was to undergo a strange blood transfusion. It was taken from three boys, who subsequently died, while the blood was administered to Innocent orally. However, we cannot believe everything that Infessura writes, as he was an ally of the Colonnas, who were the pope’s enemies, while his Diary of the City of Rome is not an objective report.

When the bells proclaiming the pope’s death sounded, the crowds thirsty for spoils filled the streets of Rome, the servants robbed the papal apartaments, while the cardinals quickly fled to their palaces to protect their own properties.

The pope was buried in the Vatican Basilica (San Pietro in Vaticano), while his tombstone monument made of bronze is one of the smallest papal monuments, located there. It shows Innocent among personifications of virtues with the aforementioned Spear of Longinus in his left hand. The tombstone, consisting of two parts – a seated (living) and a lying (deceased) figure of the pope was created for the old St. Peter’s Basilica and was later moved (as the only one) to the newly built church. The authors of the masterpiece created in 1498, are two Florentine masters – brothers Antonio and Piero Pollaiuolo. It is found in the second pillar on the left side, from the entrance.

 

Buildings and structures erected in Rome during the pontificate of Innocent VII:

• Leisure villa – Belvedere in the Vatican gardens, serving as a place of leisure for the papal court
• A non-existent papal chapel and its decorations created by Andrea Mantegna (destroyed after the construction of one of the departments of Musei Vaticani)
• Tabernacle for the Church of Santi Quattro Coronati