From the American Ecclesiastical Review, June, 1944.
Pseudo-Malachy and the Popes
“He too (St. Malachy of Ireland, + 1184) is said to have written several small
works, which I have not seen, except for a certain Prophecy concerning the
Sovereign Pontiffs; since this is brief, and still, as far as I know, unpublished, and
because of a widespread interest in the subject, we have reproduced it here.”
With this brief preamble, Arnold Wion, Benedictine monk of Douai, presented to
the world in 1595 the celebrated “Prophetia S. Malachiae archiepiscopi de
Summis Pontificibus.” The periodic interest in these auguries is persistently
recurrent, and to make them readily accessible is the main purpose of the
present article.
The text of the Lignum Vitae contains a series of 112 oracles, together with the
adjecta or interpretations of the Dominican savant, Alfonso Ciacconio, for the first
seventy-four, beginning with Celestine II and ending with Urban VII. The oracles
seldom consist of more than two or three words, descriptive of the Pontiff’s
name, place of birth, previous title, coat of arms, etc. In the following list the
interpretations follow Ciacconio’s adjecta, except in those instances where more
apt exegesis seems indicated. Indeed, the first seventy-four devices do not
require the aid of an exegete, for they are so clear that their appropriateness
literally leaps to the eye.
1. Celestine II, 1143—44: Ex castro Tiberis (from a castle on the Tiber), Guido di
Costello, from Città di Castello on the Tiber.
2. Lucius II, 1144—45: Inimicus expulsus (the enemy routed), Gerhard
Caccianemici (It. “chase-enemy”).
3. Eugene III, 1145—53: Ex magnitudine montis (of the high mountain), from
Montemagno.
4. Anastasius IV, 1153—54: Abbas Suburranus (The suburban Abbot), Conrad
della Suburra, Abbot of St. Rufus of Velletri.
5. Adrian IV, 1154—59: De rure albo (from the white country), of St. Albans in
England, and Cardinal Bishop of Albano.
6. Victor IV * (Asterisk signifies antipope) 1159—64: Ex tetro carcere (out of the
loathsome prison), Card. Deacon of St. Nicholas in Carcere tulliano.
7. Paschal III, * 1164—68: Via Transliberina (road on the further side of the
Tiber), Guido of Crema, Cardinal Priest of Santa Maria in Trastevere.
8. Calistus III, * 1168—78: De Pannonia Tusciae (from the Hungary of
Tusculum), John Unghieri, Cardinalis Tusculanus.
9. Alexander III, 1159—81: Ex ansere custode (from the watchful goose), Roland
Bandinelli, alias Paparo (goose); the ‘‘custode” very likely refers to the keep or
tower in the family arms.
10. Lucius III, 1181—85: Lux in ostio (light in the gate), Lucius’ name was
Humbald Allucignoli, Cardinal Bishop of Ostia.
11. Urban III, 1185—87: Sus in cribro (the sow in the sieve), Humbert Crivelli
(sieve), whose family coat of arms is “canting,” and contains a pig in a sieve.
12. Gregory VIII, 1187: Ensis Laurentii (Sword of Lawrence), Cardinal Priest of
St. Lawrence in Lucina; coat of arms has two crossed swords.
13. Clement III, 1187-91: De schola exiet (he will come out of the school), Paul
Scolari (scholars).
14. Celestine IlI, 1191- 98: De rure bovensi (from the animal country), Hyacinth
Boboni-Orsini.
15. Innocent III, 1198 -1216: Comes signatus (a signed count), Lothaire Conti,
Count of Segni.
16. Honorius III, 1216—1227: Canonicus ex latare (a canon from the side),
Canon of St. John Lateran.
17. Gregory IX, 1227-41: Avis Ostiensis (the bird of Ostia), Cardinal Archbishop
of Ostia, had an eagle on his arms.
18. Celestine IV, 1241: Leo Sabinus (the Sabine lion), Cardinal Bishop of Sabina;
lion in arms.
19. Innocent IV, 1243—54: Comes Laurentius (Count Lawrence), Count of
Lavagna, Cardinal Priest of S. Lawrence in Lucina.
20. Alexander IV, 1254—61: Signum Ostiense (sign of Ostia), Count of Segni,
Cardinal Bishop of Ostia.
21. Urban IV, 1261—64: Jerusalem Campaniae (Jerusalem of Champagne), of
Troyes in Champagne, Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem.
22. Clement IV, 1265—68: Draco depressus (the crushed dragon).2
23. Gregory X, 1271—76: Anguinus vir (the snake-man), the arms display a
snake devouring a man.
24. Innocent V, 1276: Concionator Gallus (the French Preacher), Peter de
Champagni, Frenchman of Tarentaise, Savoy, Dominican (friar preacher).
25. Adrian V, 1276: Bonus Comes (the good count), Ottobono Fieschi, Count of
Lavagna.
26. John XXI, 1276—77: Piscator Thuscus (the Tusculan Fisherman), Cardinal
Bishop of Frascati (Tusculum).
27. Nicholas III, 1277—80: Rosa composita (a well-formed rose), an Orsini,
whose family arms has a rose gules in chief.
28. Martin IV, 1281—85: Ex telonio Liliacaei Martini (from the treasury of Martin
with the lilies), Name: formerly treasurer of the Church of St. Martin of Tours;
fleurs-de-lis traditionally emblazoned on the shield of France.
29. Honorius IV, 1285—87: Ex rosa Leonina (of the leonine rose), shield contains
a rose and two lions.
30. Nicholas IV, 1288—1292: Picus inter escas (a woodpecker amidst the food),
pun on the pontiff’s native city, Ascoli Piceno.
31. Celestine V, 1294: En eremo celsus (elevated from the hermitage), the hermit
raised to the papacy.
32. Boniface VIII, 1294—1303: Ex undarum benedictione (from the benediction
of the waves), Benedict Gaetani, whose arms display a fesse wave.
33. Benedict XI, 1303—1304: Concionator pataraeus (a preacher of Patara),
Nicholas Boccasini, General of Dominican Order, named for St. Nicholas of
Myra, native of Patara.
34. Clement V, 1305--1314: De Fessis Aquitanicis (of the Aquitanian fesses),
Frenchman of Billandreau, Gascony-Aquitaine; arms have three bars like narrow
fesses.
35. John XXII, 1316—1334: De sutore osseo (of the bony shoemaker), of Ossa
(Guienne), whose father was a shoemaker.3
36. Nicholas V, * 1328—1333: Corvus schismaticus (schismatic crow), antipope,
from Corbara; his shield has five crows.
37. Benedict XII, 1334—1342: Frigidus Abbas (the cold Abbot), Abbot of
Fontfroide.
38. Clement VI, 1342—52: Dc rosa Arthrebatensi (of the rose of Arras), Bishop of
Arras; shield displays six rose gules.
39. Innocent VI, 1352—62: De montibus Pammachii (from the mountain of
Pammachius), Frenchman of Mons, Limousin, Cardinal Priest of the Church of
SS. John and Paul, called the Titulus Pammachii.
40. Urban V, 1362—1370; Gallus Vicecomes (French viscount), born of a
knightly family in France.
41. Gregory XI, 1370—78: Novus de virgine forti (a new man from a strong
virgin), Peter Roger de Beaufort, Cardinal Deacon of Santa Maria Nuova.
42. Clement VII, * 1378-1394; De cruce apostolica (of the apostolic cross),
Cardinal Priest of the Church of the SS. Dodici Apostoli; cross on the shield.
43. Benedict XIII, * 1394-1423: Luna Cosmedina (Moon of Cosmedia), Peter de
Luna; arms have a crescent; Cardinal Deacon of S. Maria in Cosmedin.
44. Clement VIII, * 1423—1429: Schisma Barchinonium (Schism of Barcelona),
antipope, Canon of Barcelona.
45. Urban VI, 1378—89: De inferno praegnanti (out of the teeming hell),
Bartholomew Prignano, Italian of Naples, near Vesuvius.
46. Boniface IX, 1389—1404: Cubus de mixtione (the mixed cubes), referring to
his arms, a bend checky argent and azure.
47. Innocent VII, 1404—06: De meliore Sydere (of the better star), Cosmo
Miglioroti (It. migliore, better); has star in shield.
48. Gregory XII, 1406—15: Nauta de Ponte nigro (sailor of the black bridge),
traveled considerably, Commendator of the Church of Negropont.
49. Alexander V, * 1409—10: Flagellum solis (scourge of the sun), antipope, sun
in arms.
50. John XXIII, * 1410-15: Cervus Sirenae (stag of the siren), Cardinal Deacon of
St. Eustace (cf. legend of stag), Italian of Naples, whose ancient name was
Parthenope (a siren).
51. Martin V, 1417-31: Corona veli aurei (pillar of the golden awning), Otho
Colonna, whose family arms display a crown over a pillar; Cardinal Deacon of St.
George in Velabro (velabrum, awning).
52. Eugene IV, 1431—47: Lupa coelestina (the celestinian she-wolf), Celestinian,
Bishop of Siena, which has a she-wolf on its municipal shield.
53. Felix V, * 1439—49: Amator crucis (a lover of the cross), Amadeus of the
house of Savoy, whose arms display a cross argent.
54. Nicholas V, 1447—55: De modicitate Lunae (of the humble moon), from Luna
in Tuscany, born of poor parents.
55. Callistus III, 1455—58: Bos pascens (the browsing bull), Panvinio attributes
to this pontiff a coat of arms displaying a bull with his head down cropping tufts of
grass. In the authentic device the figure is more of a “bos mugiens.”
56. Pius II, 1458—1464: De capra et albergo (of the goat and the inn), secretary
to Cardinals Capranica and Albergati.
57. Paul II, 1464 1471: De Cervo et leone (of a stag and a lion), Bishop of Cervia,
Venetian, Cardinal Priest of San Marco (winged lion of Venice).
58. Sixtus IV, 1471 1484: Piscator Minorita (Franciscan Fisherman), General of
the Franciscans.
59. Innocent VIII, 1484 92: Praecursor Siciliae (Precursor of Sicily), John Baptist
Cibo, long stationed at the court of the king of Naples and Sicily.
60. Alexander VI, 1492 1503: Bos Albanus in portu (an Alban ox in the Port),
Cardinal Bishop of Albano and of Porto, with the characteristic Borgia ox in his
shield.
61. Pius III, 1503: De parvo homine (of a little man), of the Piccolomini family.
62. Julius II, 1503 1513: Fructus Jovis juvabit (the fruit of Jupiter will avail), shield
contains an oak tree, sacred to Jupiter.
63. Leo X, 1513-1521: De craticula Politiana (of the gridiron of Politian), John de
Medici, son of Lawrence (cf. story of gridiron in martyrdom of St. Lawrence),
taught by celebrated humanist, Angelo Poliziano.
64. Adrian VI, 1522 23: Leo Florentinus (lion of Florentius), son of Florentius of
Utrecht, lions rampant on shield.
65. Clement VII, 1523- 34: FIos pilaei aegri (the flower of the pill for the sick),
Julius de Medici, whose family escutcheon bears the well known six torteaux.
66. Paul III, 1534 49: Hiacinthus Medicorum (the hyacinth of the physicians),
Cardinal Deacon of SS. Cosmas and Damian, physicians; “hyacinth” seems to
refer to the golden tint of the field in the arms of the Farnese family.
67. Julius III, 1550 55: De corona montana (of the mountain crown); John Mary
Ciocchi dal Monte, whose arms display two laurel wreaths and three mountains.
68. Marcellus II, 1555: Frumentum floccidum (the weak grain), an allusion to the
brevity of his pontificate (22 days), and to the limp stalks of grain in his shield.
69. Paul IV, 1555-59: De fide Petri (of the faith of Peter), Peter Caraffa (cara
fides).
70. Pius IV, 1559-65: Esculapii pharmacuм (the medicine of Aesculapius), John
Angelo de Medici.
71. Pius V, 1566—72: Angelus nemorosus (the angel of the wood), Michael
Ghislieri, saintly pontiff, of Bosco (It. wood)
72. Gregory XIII, 1572-85: Medium corpus pilarum (a half-body of the balls),
refers to the arms, a demi-dragon; created Cardinal by Pius IV, whose coat
contained the customary six torteaux of the Medici.
73. Sixtus V, 1585—90: Axis in medietate signi (the axis in the midst of the sign),
arms contain a lion (Leo, sign of zodiac), across which stretches a bend gules
(axis).
74. Urban VII, 1590: De rore coeli (of the heavenly dew), Archhishop of Rossano.
Modern scholars have unanimously noted, in the thirty-seven subsequent
mottoes, a radical departure from the unfailing precision and appropriateness of
the previous seventy-four, and they are agreed that the “Prophecy of Malachy” is
a counterfeit. In other words, we have in the series from Celestine II to Urban VII
a perfect sample of a prophetia post factum, that entitles the pseudo-Malachy to
a distinguished place among the prophets portrayed by Horace Walpole: “The
wisest prophets make sure of the event first.” It will be recalled that the latter
series of mottoes begins with Gregory XIV (1590-91), and that Wion’s Lignum
Vitae appeared in 1595. Far from harking back to St. Malachy of Armagh in 1139,
the original ink could have scarcely been dry when the prophecies were first
published.
Internal evidence overwhelmingly supports the view first advanced by Claude
Menestrier, S.J. (163l—1705),4 and championed by modern scholarship, e.g.,
Harnack, Vacandard, Pastor, etc.,5 that the prophecies were forged shortly
before the election of Gregory XIV, and precisely between September 16 and
December 4, 1590, (interregnum between Urban VII and Gregory XIV).
Moreover, most authorities now hold, with Menestrier, that the forgeries were
perpetrated to favor the cause of Cardinal Simoncelli of Orvieto in the conclave
that elected Cardinal Sfrondato (Gregory X1V). The seventy-fifth Malachian
augury would have fitted Cardinal Simoncelli to a nicety: “Ex antiquitate Urbis,”
(Orvieto,—urbs vetus, antiqua).6 As to the actual identity of pseudo-Malachy,
various individuals have been suggested, viz., Wion himself, Ciacconio, etc.
In view of the foregoing, the latter series of Malachian auguries is herewith
presented without any adjecta, except the exegesis unavoidably entailed in a
translation:
75. Gregory XIV, 1590—91: Ex antiquitate urbis (from the old city).
76. Innocent IX, 1591: Pia civitas in belio (a pious city in war).
77. Clement VIII, 1592—1605: Crux Romulea (cross of Romulus).
78. Leo XI, 1605: Undosus vir (man of the waves).
79. Paul V, 1605-21: Gens perversa (a perverse race).
80. Gregory XV, 1621—23: In tribulatione pacis (in the tribulation of peace).
81. Urban VIII, 1623—44: Lilium et rosa (the lily and the rose).
82. Innocent X, 1644—55: Jucunditas crucis (the joy of the cross).
83. Alexander VII, 1655—67: Montium custos (the guardian of the mountains).
84. Clement IX, 1667—69: Sidus olorum (the star of the swans).
85. Clement X, 1670—76: De flumine magno (of the great river).
86. Innocent XI, 167689: Bellua insatiabilis (the insatiable beast).
87. Alexander VIII, 16$--9l : Poenitentia gloriosa (glorious penance).
88. Innocent XII, 1691—1700: Rastrum in porta (portcullis in the gate).
89. Clement XI, 1700—21: Flores circuмdati (the encircling flowers).
90. Innocent XIII, 1721—21: De bona religione (of the good religious order).
91. Benedict XIII, 1724—30: Miles in bello (a soldier at war).
92. Clement XII, 1730—40: Columna excelsa (the lofty column).
93. Benedict XIV, 1740—58: Animal rurale (a rural animal).
94. Clement XIII, 1758—69: Rosa Umbriae (rose of Umbria).
95. Clement XIV, 1769—74: Ursus velox (the swift bear).
96. Pius VI, 1775—99: Peregrinus apostolicus (Apostolic wanderer).
97. Pius VII, 1800—23: Aquilla rapax (the rapacious eagle).
98. Leo XII, 1823—29: Canis et coluber (the dog and the serpent).
99. Pius VIII, 1829—30: Vir religiosus (a religious man).
100. Gregory XVI, 1831—46: De balneis Etruriae (from the Tuscan baths).
101. Pius IX, 1846—78: Crux de Cruce (the cross of the cross).
102. Leo XIII, 1878—1903: Lumen in coelo (light in the heavens).
103. Pius X, 1903—14: Ignis ardens (burning fire).
104. Benedict XV, 1914--22: Religio depopulata (depopulated religious life).
105. Pius XI, 1922—39: Fides intrepida (faith undaunted).
106. Pius XII, 1939— : Pastor angelicus (the angelic shepherd).
107. Pastor et nauta (a shepherd and a sailor).
108. Flos florum (the flower of flowers).
109. De medietate lunae (of the half-moon).
110. De labore solis (from the toil of the sun).
111. De gloria olivae (from the glory of the olive).
112. In persecutjone extrema Sacrae Romanae Ecclesiae sedebit Petrus
Romanus qui pascet oves in multis tribulationibus; quibus transactis, civitas
septicollis diruetur; et Judex tremendus judicabit populum. (In the final
persecution, there will sit upon the throne Peter the Roman, who will feed his
sheep amid many tribulations, after which the seven-hilled city will be
demolished, and the awful judge will judge the people).7
Despite the patent fog-artistry of this latter series of mottoes, M. Elie Daniel does
not hesitate to say that these legends are almost perfectly descriptive! If the
reader desires to see how “perfectly descriptive” they have been, he is referred to
the welter of interpretations offered by the initiati.9
The article “Prophecy” in the Catholic Encyclopedia professes to see “something
more than a coincidence” in the mottoes applied to Pius IX, Leo XIII and Pius X.
A coincidence, perhaps, but hardly more! The ignis ardens, for instance, applied
to Pius X, might very well, in the spirit of the early series’ penchant for the arma
virimque, have been attributed to Cardinal Svampa, whose coat of arms
displayed a golden sun, or to Cardinal Seraphin Vannutelli (Seraphin in Hebrew
means the “burning one”). Vacandard, who terms the forgery “l’horoscope des
Papes,” feels that only three of the mottoes can be “rigorously” applied, namely,
Alexander VII, Pius VI and Leo XIII.” Granting that they can be “rigorously”
applied, three out of twenty-nine is still a very unsatisfactory score for a prophet,
for they are ‘‘rari nantes in gurgite vasto.” But the classical tour-de-force is the
aqnila rapax of Pius VII (1800—23). In 1808 Napoleon Bonaparte ordered Rome
to be occupied by his troops, and in the following year he abolished the Papal
States, then had the aged Pontiff carried off first to Savona and then to
Fontainebleau, and held him prisoner until March 10, 1814 . A particularly
unrapacious eagle, one would be tempted to exclaim! Yet, apply the aquila rapax
to Napoleon “and all becomes clear”! 11
The one thing that does emerge clearly
from the vague and vaporous jargon of the whole latter series is that the forger
should he labeled “pseudo-Malachy” until his identity can be clearly determined,
and that the whole series be definitely branded as counterfeit.
I can think of no more fitting epitaph for the latter series of Papal mottoes, and
hence for the “prophecy” as a whole than Cicero’s remarks about the oracles of
Apollo:
Chrysippus has filled an entire volume with your [Apollo’s] oracles, which,
to my mind are in part false, in part true by coincidence (as is very often
the case in oracular utterances), in part so tortuous and hazy that the
interpreter must consult an interpreter, and the ensuing enigma be in turn
submitted to an oracle for interpretation; in part so ambiguous that they
must be referred to a dialectician. 12
The Church, “the pillar and ground of truth,” is ill-served by forgery. Non tali
auxilio, nec defensoribus istis! As Pastor rightly insists, “the Catholic Church has
no need of such prophetic inventions; she has all that she needs in the promise
of Christ that the gates of hell shall not prevail against His Church, which is built
upon the Rock, Peter.” 13
Philadelphia, Pa.
JOHN J. DRISCOLL.
1. Cf. Lignum Vitae, ornamentum et decor Ecclesiae, in quinque libros divisum,
etc., Auctore D. Arnoldo Wion Belga, Duacensi, Venice, 1595, Pars. I, lib. II, cap.
XL, p. 307.
2. The details for the prophetic jargon were furnished to the forger by two works
of the historian and archeologist, Onofrio Panvinio (1530—68), who was styled
by Paul Manutius “a glutton for antiquity.” Like all gluttons, he sacrificed
something to careful digestion, and we find his mistakes copied by pseudoMalachy.
Clement IV is a case in point, for in the arma attributed to this Pontiff by
Panvinio we find an eagle trampling upon a dragon, but in the authentic arms we
discover nothing but six lilies. Similar cases will be noted as they occur.
3. According to Panivio. The story is now discredited.
4. Cf. Refutation des Prophéties faussement attribuées á S. Malachie sur les
élections des Papes, par le P. Cl. Fr. Menestrier, S.J., Paris, 1689.
5. “It cannot be for a moment in doubt that the whole series of mottoes . . . is a
fabrication…” Herbert Thurston, S.J., in his Preface to The Book of the Popes, by
F. J. Bayer, English Translation by E. M. Lamond, London, 1925.
6. ‘‘The supporters of Cardinal Simoncelli of Orvieto tried to work on his behalf by
putting about the well-known prophecy concerning the Popes attributed to St.
Malachy, Archbishop of Armagh in Ireland.” L. von Pastor. The History of the
Popes, English Translation by K. F. Kerr, St. Louis and London, 1932, Vol. 22,
pp. 349—50.
7. This apocalyptic augury seems to indicate that the end of the world and the
parousia are not far off, since there are only six mottoes left to be assigned.
Authorities, however, disagree on its interpretation, some holding that it implies
an imminent final catastrophe while others believe that there is an undetermined
hiatus between the de gloria olivae and Petrus Romanus. H. J. Forman in his
The Story of Prophecy, New York, 1910, pp. 154—55, favors the first
interpretation, while the article “Prophecy” in the Catholic Encyclopedia gives the
second.
8. Cf. Serait-ce vraiment la fin des temps? Paris, 1932.
9. Among the more important tentatives at interpretation were that of Giovanni
Germano in his Vita . . . del Glorioso Padre S. Malachia, Naples, 1670; that of
Joseph Maitre, in his La Prophétie des Papes, Beaune, 1901; and that of
Forman, mentioned above. The reader is also referred to the excellent study by
the Marquis of Bute, “The Prophecies of St. Malachi” in the Dublin Review, Oct.
1885, pp. 369 ff.
10. Cf. “Un Eveque d’Irlande au XIIe siecle, S. Malachie O’Morgair,” in the Revue
des questions historiques, July, 1892. See also Etudes de critique d’histoire
religieuse, 4th series, Paris, 1923.
11 Cf. Furman, op. cit. p. 144.
12 De Divinatione, II, 56.
13 Op. cit. p. 350.
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