Who he was
Rolando Bandinelli, of a leading Sienese family, made his name teaching canon law at Bologna. Called to Rome by Eugene III, he became a cardinal, papal chancellor and the trusted adviser of Adrian IV. Most of the cardinals elected him in September 1159, but a small imperial party set up the antipope Victor IV.
What he is remembered for
Backed by Frederick Barbarossa, the schism lasted seventeen years and ended when the emperor submitted to him at Venice in 1177 after his defeat at Legnano. He supported St Thomas Becket in his struggle with Henry II of England, and he held the Third Lateran Council in 1179, which required a two-thirds vote of the cardinals to elect a pope. A great canon lawyer, he is among the most important popes of the Middle Ages.
Sources
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