The Western Schism and the Conciliar Movement

Overview

The return of the papacy from Avignon to Rome did not immediately produce stability. After Gregory XI’s death, the election of Urban VI in 1378 became contested, and dissenting cardinals elected Clement VII. Courts, bishops, universities, and religious communities chose rival obediences. This division was internal to Latin Christianity and is distinct from the East–West Schism.

Claims to legitimacy depended on election procedures, assertions of coercion, and competing interpretations of church law. Political alliances helped sustain rival courts, but contemporaries also faced genuine questions of conscience about which claimant to obey. Administration and pastoral life continued under competing authorities, demonstrating that institutional division did not mean complete religious collapse.

The Council of Pisa in 1409 attempted to depose both claimants and choose another, but it added a third line because the earlier claimants did not accept the decision. Constance, meeting in 1414–1418, combined political negotiation, resignations, depositions, and election to resolve the crisis. Martin V’s election in 1417 gained broad recognition. The same council condemned Jan Hus, showing that institutional reunion did not entail freedom for doctrinal dissent.

Haec sancta asserted conciliar authority in the crisis, while Frequens required future councils. Their precise authority, papal acceptance, and later interpretation remain debated. The subsequent Council of Basel and its conflict with Eugene IV showed that conciliar reform was not a settled constitutional solution. Historians examine university argument, political negotiation, and canon law together rather than treating Constance as either modern democracy or an uncomplicated papal triumph.