Career
A Roman by birth, Alexander III appointed him in succession Archpriest of the patriarchal Liberian Basilica, -deacon of Sergio e Bacco, and finally bishop of Palestrina in December 1180. He appears as signatory of the papal bulls issued between 15 October 1179 and 11 December 1187. Shortly after his accession at the conclusion of the papal election of December 1187, Clement succeeded in allaying the conflict which had existed for half a century between the s and the citizens of Rome, with an agreement by which the citizens were allowed to elect their magistrates, while the nomination of the governor of the city remained in the hands of the On 31 May 1188 he concluded a treaty with the Romans which removed long standing difficulties, thus returning the Papacy to Rome.
Clement also inherited a depleted college of cardinals, consisting of no more than twenty cardinals.
He orchestrated three series of promotions (March 1188, May 1189 and October 1190) that resulted in over thirty new cardinals. He pushed King Henry II of England and King Philip II of France to undertake the Third Crusade.
In April 1189, Clement made peace with the Emperor Frederick I Barbarossa. He settled a controversy with King William I of Scotland concerning the choice of the archbishop of Saint Andrews, and on 13 March 1188 removed the Scottish church from the legatine jurisdiction of the Archbishop of York, thus making it independent of all save Rome.
In spite of agreeing to crown Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI, Clement III angered him by bestowing Sicily on Tancred, son of Roger III, Duke of Apulia.
The crisis was acute when the died in the latter part of March 1191.
