Pons of Melgueil (''c''. 1075 – 1126) was the seventh

Abbot of Cluny The Abbot of Cluny was the head of the powerful monastery of the Abbey of Cluny in medieval France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, o ...

from 1109 to 1122. Pons was the second child of Peter I of Melgueil and Almodis of Toulouse. He was descended from a noble lineage of

Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...

which had long supported the

Gregorian reform The Gregorian Reforms were a series of reforms initiated by Pope Gregory VII and the circle he formed in the papal curia, c. 1050–80, which dealt with the moral integrity and independence of the clergy. The reforms are considered to be nam ...

. He himself was a nephew and godson of

Pope Paschal II Pope Paschal II ( la, Paschalis II; 1050 1055 – 21 January 1118), born Ranierius, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 August 1099 to his death in 1118. A monk of the Abbey of Cluny, he was cre ...

. He was an

oblate In Christianity (especially in the Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Anglican and Methodist traditions), an oblate is a person who is specifically dedicated to God or to God's service. Oblates are individuals, either laypersons or clergy, normally livi ...

at the abbey of Saint-Pons-de-Thomières, before pronouncing his vows with the

Benedictines , image = Medalla San Benito.PNG , caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal , abbreviation = OSB , formation = , motto = (English: 'Pray and Work') , foun ...

at Cluny.Miranda, Salvador. "Melgueil, O.S.B. Clun., Pons de", Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
/ref> Pons was elected to succeed

Hugh of Semur Hugh (13 May 1024 – 29 April 1109), sometimes called Hugh the Great or Hugh of Semur, was the Abbot of Cluny from 1049 until his death. He was one of the most influential leaders of the monastic orders from the Middle Ages. Biography Hugh was ...

after the latter's death. For most of his abbacy he continued Hugh's policies: the construction of the third great abbey church of Cluny ("Cluny III"), expansion of the Cluniac order into northern France and England, and mediating the

Investiture Controversy The Investiture Controversy, also called Investiture Contest (German: ''Investiturstreit''; ), was a conflict between the Church and the state in medieval Europe over the ability to choose and install bishops (investiture) and abbots of monast ...

between

Emperor An emperor (from la, imperator, via fro, empereor) is a monarch, and usually the sovereignty, sovereign ruler of an empire or another type of imperial realm. Empress, the female equivalent, may indicate an emperor's wife (empress consort), ...

and

Pope The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

.Catherine Vincent, "Pons of Melgueil", ''Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages'' (Routledge, 2000), 1164. In 1118 the Holy Roman Emperor,

Henry V Henry V may refer to: People * Henry V, Duke of Bavaria (died 1026) * Henry V, Holy Roman Emperor (1081/86–1125) * Henry V, Duke of Carinthia (died 1161) * Henry V, Count Palatine of the Rhine (c. 1173–1227) * Henry V, Count of Luxembourg (121 ...

, still contesting the Investiture Controversy, marched on Rome and

Pope Gelasius II Pope Gelasius II (c. 1060/1064 – 29 January 1119), born Giovanni Caetani or Giovanni da Gaeta (also called ''Coniulo''), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 January 1118 to his death in 1119. A monk of Monte C ...

fled to Cluny. Before his death in 1119, Gelasius indicated that either Archbishop Guy of Vienne, or Pons of Cluny be chosen to succeed him. Guy was elected and took the name Callixtus II. Relations were strained between Rome and Cluny for a time. In 1119 Pons' government was publicly protested by

Bérard de Châtillon Berard (or Bérard) is both a surname and a given name. Notable people with the name include: People with the given name *Berard of Carbio (died 1220), Italian Franciscan friar *Berard of Castagna (died 1252), Italian archbishop *Bérard d'Albret, ...

, the

Bishop of Mâcon A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

, and Humbaud, the Archbishop of Lyon. In the consistory of January 1120 Pope Calixtus II named Pons a cardinal-deacon. He also canonized Pons' predecessor and raised the

Diocese of Santiago de Compostela The Metropolitan Archdiocese of (Santiago de) Compostela ( la, Archidioecesis Compostellana), is the senior of the five districts in which the Catholic Church divides Galicia in North-western Spain.metropolitan status for the benefit of Pons' friend,

Diego Gelmírez Diego Gelmírez or Xelmírez ( la, Didacus Gelmirici; c. 1069 – c. 1140) was the second bishop (from 1100) and first archbishop (from 1120) of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela, Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de Compost ...

. In 1122, on a pretext of extravagance, Pons' own monks challenged his leadership. Pope Callistus II summoned him to Rome to attend the First Ecumenical Lateran Council and the abbot resigned his post. He then went to Jerusalem and a year later, returned to Italy and founded a small monastery near Vicenza. In 1123 he was one of the participants in the Diet of Worms. Pons tried to regain his position in 1125 but was arrested. He died in prison. Historians have generally rejected the official rationale for Pons' removal. Pietro Zerbi argued that he was the victim of opposition from the bishops disadvantaged by the many privileges his order received under his and Hugh's management. Adriaan Bredero believed he was brought down by a faction of reform-minded monks who desired to bring Cluny closer to the ideal of Cîteaux. Financial difficulties had also appeared for Cluny during Pons' abbacy, after Alfonso VI of León defaulted on his pledged annual donations (the so-called "Alfonsine census") in 1111. They did not resume, as the source of the monies, the '' parias'' León had been collecting, had dried up ''c''. 1100. Richard A. Fletcher
''The Episcopate in the Kingdom of León in the Twelfth Century''
(Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1978), 9.

Notes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pons Of Melgueil 1070s births 1126 deaths French abbots Cluniacs 12th-century French Roman Catholic priests