Giovanni Boccamazza

Giovanni Boccamazza (died 1309) was an Italian Cardinal. He was from the Roman nobility, and was a nephew of Cardinal Giacomo Savelli, who had been an important figure in the Roman Curia since his creation as cardinal in 1261.

On 14 May 1264 Giovanni was granted the benefice of the church of S. Fortunato de Vernot in the Diocese of Sens. In 1285 Giovanni's uncle, Cardinal Savelli, was elected Pope Honorius IV. Giovanni Boccamazza began his career in the Church as a Canon of the Vatican Basilica and Chaplain of Pope Nicholas III (1277-1280).

He was made Archbishop of Monreale, near Palermo, by Pope Nicholas III on 15 August 1278. He had not, however, been the original choice as bishop. The Chapter of the Cathedral of Monreale had originally and unanimously chosen Guillaume, Bishop of Potenza, but he declined the position and resigned the election into the hands of the Pope. The matter was referred to the usual committee of cardinals on episcopal elections, in this case composed of Cardinals Latino Malabranca, Guillaume de Bray, and Matteo Rosso Orsini. Nicholas then received the bishop's resignation of the election to Monreale and sought to appoint Bernard de Montemirato, OSB, the Abbot of Montismajoris in the Diocese of Arles. But he flatly refused. Nicholas then chose his Chaplain, Giovanni Boccamazza. He was there at the time of the Sicilian Vespers (1282). It was Cardinal Boccamazza who delivered the news of the Sicilian Vespers to King Charles I After fleeing Sicily, he was made cardinal-bishop of Frascati on 22 December 1285—the only cardinal created by Pope Honorius.

As soon as Honorius IV became pope, he was approached by King Rudolf of Germany, King of the Romans, with regard to his coronation as Holy Roman Emperor. This honor had been promised him by Gregory X in 1275, but succeeding popes had not authorized the coronation. Now he approached the new pope through the new Archbishop of Mainz, Heinrich de Isnay, O.Min. (1286-1288). In reply Honorius sent Cardinal Giovanni Boccamazza as Apostolic Legate to Germany, Bohemia, Hungary and Sweden to engage in conversations with Rudolf. Cardinal Giovanni attended the significant synod of March 1287 in Würzburg, considered as a German national council. On 22 July 1287, during the Sede Vacante following the death of Honorius IV (1285-1287), he was at Cambrai, where he issued orders for Dacia and Suecia. While he was at Cambrai the Legate, Cardinal Giovanni was attacked by a nobleman, Nicholas, his brothers and sons, and his retainers, while he was in church. When that attempt failed, they followed him to his house, where there was a riot. The bishop of Cambrai, who held both spiritual and temporal power in the city, was excommunicated by Cardinal Giovanni, and the city was placed under interdict. When Cardinal Giovanni returned to Rome and explained the whole affair to Pope Nicholas personally, the Pope cited the Bishop, the Archdeacon, the Bailli, the Chapter of the Cathedral, and numerous others, to appear before his court in Rome. The case was finally disposed of on 3 October 1291 with the suspension of the Bishop from his pontifical powers and right to collate to benefices for three years. Also, during the same Legatine assignment, Cardinal Giovanni became involved in strife between the Dominicans and the people of Strasbourg, and he felt compelled to lay the city under the Interdict. On 16 September 1287 Cardinal Giovanni was at Clairvaux, and he was still there on 8 November, when he wrote to the Archbishop of Uppsala, Sweden (Suecia), and 6 December 1287, when he wrote to the Dominicans of Hungary and Poland. He wrote from Novaevallis, on 14 December, to all of the clergy in his Legation for the benefit of the Cistercians. He did not, therefore, attend the Conclave of 1287-1288.

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