How the Medieval Church Ended Up With Two Popes

In 1378, the same cardinals who had crowned one pope elected another. Suddenly, Western Christianity had two men claiming to be the true successor of Saint Peter. In this episode of Crown & Covenant, we enter the Great Western Schism—one of the deepest crises of authority in medieval Church history. Urban VI ruled from Rome. Clement VII established a rival papal court in Avignon. France supported one pope, England another, while kingdoms changed allegiance according to wars, alliances, and political interests. But the crisis was more than a struggle between two ambitious men. Each pope created his own cardinals, bishops, administration, finances, and diplomatic network. Even when a pope died, his faction simply elected a successor. After decades of failed negotiations, theologians and cardinals faced a radical question: if the popes could not reunite the Church, could a general council stand above them? The fight over the true pope had become a fight over who held ultimate authority in Christianity.