Nicholas Breakspear took the name Hadrian IV when he was elected Pope in 1154. He was, up to now, the only Englishman to become Pope. He worked as a papal Legate in Norway, and after his death was venerated as a saint by his beloved Norwegians.

168. Anastasius IV, 1153-1154. Already an old man when elected, he had all his life been a loyal servant of the Church, and a popular figure among the people of Rome. His conciliatory approach was welcomed by all. On the death of Henry Murdac, Archbishop of York, he resolved a bitter dispute that had raged during four pontificates by reinstating William Fitzherbert as Archbishop of York and sending him the pallium. During his reign, through the efforts of Nicholas Breakspear as Papal Legate in Scandinavia, the payment of Peter's Pence by Norway and Sweden was organized. A much loved Pope, he was buried in the Lateran Basilica in the porphyry sarcophagus of St Helena. Roman.

169. Hadrian IV, 1154-1159. Up to now the only English Pope, he was born about 1100 at Abbot's Langley near St Alban's. As a boy he went to France, joined the canons Regular of St Rufus at Avingon, and in 1137 was elected Abbott. From 1150-1153 he was Papal Legate in Scandinavia, establishing Trondheim as Metropolitan See of Norway, and preparing the ground for Uppsala to become an Archbishopric. A strong-willed and clear-sighted Pope he did much to strengthen the authority of the Holy See - although he was in conflict with Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa for all his pontificate. A friendly, humble and yet tough-minded Pontiff, Hadrian's chief intervention in English affairs was allegedly to encourage King Henry II to incorporate Ireland into the English realm. However, the authenticity of the Bull Laudabiliter which authorizes this, is doubted by many historians. During his reign we find the title Vicarius Christi, or Vicar of Christ, used more frequently as a title of the Holy Father. English.

170. Alexander III, 1159-1181. One of the great Popes of the Middle Ages. Close adviser to Hadrian IV, he supported his pro-Norman and anti-Imperial policies. He supported St Thomas a Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury in his dispute with King Henry II who aimed at making the English Church more dependent on the crown. He confirmed Alfonso I as King of Portugal and in 1181 placed King William of Scotland and his kingdom under an interdict for interfering in the appointment of Bishops and Abbots. He called the third Lateran Council which required a two-thirds majority of Cardinals for Papal elections (as is the case, still, today), encouraged the setting up of Universities, insisted that Cathedrals establish schools and called for the stamping out of the puritanical Albigensian heresy. A peaceful man, he did all in his power to avoid confrontation with the secular powers, but when obliged to do so stood resolute. He was one of the Great legal Popes, who embodied many of the wisest decrees in the corpus of Canon Law. Sienese.

171. Lucius III, 1181-1185. Elderly, of impeccable character, he was of a vacillating nature. His relations with the Imperial court were strained. Because of his desire for peace, and anxiety to summon a new crusade in response to pleas from the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem and the Grand Masters of the Military Orders, he seemed willing to agree to a marriage between Emperor Frederick's son Henry to Constance the daughter of Roger of Sicily. The Roman Curia feared this union of Empire and Sicily. The Pope died with the matter still unresolved. Lucchese

172. Urban III, 1185-1187. His pontificate was marred by a series of confrontations with Frederick Barbarossa who did all in his power to subjugate the Holy See to the Imperial power. The Pope withstood him, but suffered much in the process. Milanese.

173. Gregory VIII, October-December, 1187. During his short Pontificate he did much to reconcile the Papacy and Emperor Frederick. He also wished to call a fresh crusade when news of the momentous defeat of the crusaders at the spot called the Horns of Hattin in Galilee (July 4, 1187), followed by Saladin's capture of Jerusalem (October 2, 1187), reached Europe. The entire West was stunned by the news of this disaster. The Pope died while traveling to Pisa to Rome, on December 17, 1197. From Benevento.

174. Clement III, 1187-1191. Though in ill health, and politically inexperienced, this Aristocratic Roman succeeded in reconciling the Holy See and the troublesome senate, and even settling the vexatious disputes between Emperor and Papacy. He fostered the third crusade, sent legates throughout all the West not only to preach the crusade, sent legates throughout all the West not only to preach the crusade, but also to promote peace and unity between the Christian nations. He released the Catholics of Scotland from the jurisdiction of York, and made them directly dependent on Rome. The much dreaded consequences of the marriage of Henry and Constance of Sicily became a reality when William II of Sicily died without male heir in 1189, and Frederick died in Anatolia on his way to the crusade in 1190. Henry was now heir to both Empire and Sicily, and the prospect of all southern Italy under Imperial control bode ill for the Church and her traditional freedom from political dominance. He died as Henry reached Anguillara on Lake Bracciano, not far from Rome, seeking coronation as Emperor from the Pope. Roman.

175. Celestine III, 1191-1198. Eighty-five when elected, his reign was dominated by young Henry VI, waiting outside Rome. The Pope crowned him Emperor on April 15, 1191. Henry ignored the Pope's warnings, and his army was defeated near Naples and he had to retreat to Germany. Here he challenged the Pope's authority by arbitrarily appointing bishops and abbots, having the bishop of Liege murdered, and even imprisoning Richard the Lion-Hearted even though the English king was under Papal protection as a returning crusader. Despite Henry's belligerence, the Pope did all he could to reach an understanding with him. He also took a warm interest in Spain where he tried to unite the rival Christian Princes against Islam. Back in Rome he was a wise and prudent administrator, who put the Church's finances on a sound footing. Sometimes accused of temporising, he was in fact a moderate and prudent priest who preferred the mild reproof to a summons to arms. He feel sick at Christmas and died on January 8, 1198. Roman.

176. Innocent III, 1198-1216. The thirteenth century is ushered in by the reign of one of the greatest of all Popes, and certainly one of the shining lights of the Middle Ages. 37 years old when elected, he was recognized from his youth as a man born to rule. Endowed with remarkable gifts of mind and heart, he combined humanity with a deep spirituality; a rare gift for dealing with his fellow human beings, and a willingness to be flexible, with a conviction that the Holy See's authority in the spiritual realm had to be defended. He not only stopped the in-fighting of rival clans in Italy, he excommunicated King John of England for refusing to recognize Stephen Langton (died 1228) as Archbishop of Canterbury and took a great interest in Church reform. He insisted that all bishops around the world visit Rome every four years (ad illumina Petri, to the threshold of St Peter), he limited appeals to Rome, encouraged national councils, improved the quality and morale of the clergy. He won back a number of heretical groups to the Church, encouraging the realization of their ideals within the Church. More than 6,000 of his letters are extant. He sent Dominic Guzman, who later founded the Dominicans, to deal with the Albigensian heretics. Patrician Roman.