CLEMENT IV, POPE. - Guido Fulcodi, born in St-Gilles near Nîmes in Provence at the beginning of the 13th century, was in the service of the King of France at the very time when the latter was extending his authority in the south. After the death of his wife, by whom he had two daughters, he became a priest and rapidly ascended the various ranks of the ecclesiastical hierarchy: bishop of Puy in 1257, archbishop of Narbonne in 1259, cardinal-bishop of Sabina on 17 December 1261, carrying out important curial duties. Upon his return from a legation in England, he learned that the Conclave, gathered after the death of Urban IV for four months in Perugia, had elected him pope (5 February 1265); he accepted the appointment and took the name C. IV. He secretly entered Italy at once and was in Perugia by 20 February. He soon resumed negotiations with Charles of Anjou, which had been initiated by his predecessor to overthrow the power of Manfred, King of Sicily, who, having become the leader of the Ghibelline party, aimed to dominate Italian politics, following in the footsteps of his father Frederick II. Charles came down to Italy and was invested with the kingdom in the Lateran on 29 May by C., with whom he concluded a solemn pact. C. had a crusade preached against Manfred, and the victory at Benevento on 27 February 1266 marked the end of the Swabian, who was killed there.
The disputes between the Pope and Charles of Anjou were frequent due to the latter’s excessive financial demands, the harshness of his rule, and his cruelty toward the last heir of the Swabians, the young Conradin (q.v.), son of Conrad IV, emperor. Among the Pope’s more specifically religious activities, one may recall the measures taken against Philip of Savoy, who had been appointed archbishop of Lyon without having received holy orders, and the decree by which the pope reserved for himself the benefices of those who died where the Curia was residing.
C. died on 29 November 1268 in Viterbo, and this was followed by a vacancy of almost three years.