De Jacques Duèse à Jean XXII : la construction d’un entourage pontifical

Abstract

While the first moves of John XXII’ s papacy are well known, it is less so with regard to the way he constituted his entourage, apart from the significant presence of the Quercynois at the court. The relative surprise of being elected has obliged the new pope to organize his court without much preparation. Taking into account family and familiars as well as fellow countrymen from Quercy, this paper uses the 1316 entou¬ rage as a starting point to retrace the various steps in the constitution of Jacques Duèse ’s networks before the election. Most of those who came in service of the pontifical institution in the pope’s wake, at the beginning of the papacy, were part of his staff when he was bishop in Fréjus and bishop and cardinal in Avignon. Looking at their careers before and after the election allows us to identify some mechanisms used by John XXII and his circle to give strength and cohesion to that group of men coming from various origins and employed at various hierarchical levels, a group whose arrival in/at the court deeply transforms its sociology and the work habits of the papacy.