ABSTRACT

A general consensus has emerged in the last forty years that Adrian’s pontificate saw a deliberate shift in papal policies from a pro-imperial to a pro-Sicilian alliance, with momentous consequences not only for Italy and Sicily, but also for the empire and the whole Latin Church. According to this interpretation, Adrian’s Curia was riven by deep-seated tensions, between pro-imperialists who wanted to continue the alleged pro-imperial policies of Eugenius III (symbolized by the accord reached at Constance in March 1153), 1 and pro-Sicilians who preferred an ‘alliance’ with the king of Sicily, in which the balance of influence shifted from the one to the other under the leadership of the papal chancellor, Cardinal Roland—the bearer and perhaps the drafter of the Besangon letter. Although seemingly well supported, this view depends on a narrow and partisan interpretation of events: it ignores the complexity of the Italian situation during Adrian’s pontificate, the serpentine diplomacy of Frederick I, and the bias of most of the contemporary sources.