On Becoming Legate

Abstract

As the late English diplomat, scholar, and spy, Harold Nicolson (1886-1968), once stated: ‘It is not … sufficient to possess a [diplomatic] machine; what is important is [sic] the purposes for which that machine is employed and the spirit in which it is operated.’¹ This observation resonates as much today as for the ancient, medieval, and early modern worlds. Even with working systems, principles, and practices firmly in place, however, an office of representation is only as good as its incumbents. The plain and simple truth is that, for the office of papal legation in the early Middle Ages, its composite worth and effectiveness relied upon the papacy’s deliberate and careful selection and commissioning of personnel. In seeking the right combination of charisma, experience, and diplomatic ability among their agents, individual popes carved out a model for this representative office, appointing figures deemed suitable and qualified for the business at hand. In a Weberian interpretation, these hand-picked agents were ‘disciple officials’, individual figures ‘selected in terms of their official qualifications, status, or personal dependence’.² Whether commissioned with full or specific papal powers, acting as nuncii, vicarii, apocrisiarii, or legati ad causam, their mere presence held sway in the political and ecclesiastical arena. Their activity beyond Rome and her immediate surroundings, moreover, defined the papacy’s contemporary outlook and immediate political concerns, helping to legitimize claims for Roman primacy while simultaneously fostering mutual interests with emerging Christian provinces.