There is no shortage of scholarly publications on late medieval saints or sainthood. What the late Professor Finucane adds to this lengthy list is a nicely integrated comparative collection of five studies of why and how the last five “medieval” saints—before a hiatus of 65 tumultuous years—reached the altar. From the later twelfth century the emerging papal curia, the international cardinalate, and the popes themselves had been centralizing the processes of entertaining candidate proposals, overseeing investigations into candidates' backgrounds and purported miracles, weighing the evidence, deciding candidates' fates, and hosting the canonization ceremonies when appropriate. By the thirteenth century there were a dozen recognized steps in the process, yet neither an archive nor standing papal committee. The modern Congregation charged with such matters dates to 1588, a tool of the Catholic Reformation movement established when canonizations resumed. The ad hoc nature of later medieval proceedings presented few problems, however, since between 1305 and 1523 the papacy canonized a new saint on average only once each decade. As most studies make clear, the authorities vested with the responsibility for determining a candidate's fate had to determine two indisputable facts: that he or she had lived an exemplary life; and during and/or after life in this world she or he had been a vessel of God's grace in being clearly linked to the divine acts against nature known as miracles.

Finucane's “unashamedly narrative study” (3) presents five distinct, yet curiously intertwined, cases. They are the only five between 1482 and 1523, and the last before 1588. Four were clergy or religious and one was a member of the Austrian imperial family. Leopold (d. 1136; canonized 1485), the first Austrian archduke, was a generous patron of the Church and founder of Klosterneuburg monastery, which housed his remains and cult. Bonaventure (d. 1274; cd. 1482), the famed Franciscan General; Francis of Paola (d.1507; cd. 1519), founder of the Minims offshoot of the O.F.M.; and Bishops Antonino of Florence, O.P. (d.1459; cd. 1523) and Saxon Benno of Meissen (d. 1106; cd. 1523) round out Finucane's subjects. In each case he presents a thumbnail of the candidate's life and the rationale that made him a candidate. Each had a popular cult, usually centered on his final resting place, and a group or specific patrons that lobbied for him. This, of course, is where politics entered the picture. Leopold's support came largely from the Habsburgs; Francis's from the French royal family, which had benefited from his presence in France; and the many issues surrounding the radical wings of the Franciscan Order muddied Bonaventure's case. Antonino of Florence became a counter to the continuing and unwelcome influence of fellow Dominican Savonarola, but the many problems of Pope Leo X Medici distracted that pontiff, leaving canonization to the second Medici pope, Clement VII. Similarly, Benno's cause gained papal support since it was propelled by the faithful Albertine Saxon Duke Georg in the face of his cousin Friedrich the Wise's protection of Martin Luther. Papal politics also colored the cases of Duke Leopold and Francis, and the kaleidoscope of shifting Peninsular alliances brought lobbyists in to and out of favor in Rome.

Finucane's research uncovered both the regularities in the processes, which produced, for example, hundreds of sworn testimonials for each candidate, as well as the particularities surrounding the course that each cause and case took. Opposition to the candidate, today charged to the “devil's advocate,” cropped up at various points in each process. The carefully copied testimonials were not simply accepted, especially where miracles were concerned. Surviving records show a healthy skepticism, especially regarding the two twelfth-century figures. All of this Finucane deftly handles, stopping at points to draw useful conclusions that link two or more of his group together. He recognizes that his is the first group study of these men, and he takes full advantage of this as the chapters accumulate.

Contested Canonizations is a scholarly work for Finucane's colleagues and students. Though he wears his scholarship lightly, he assumes of his reader a great deal of knowledge of the period, its personalities, dynamics, and events. Yet the work flows smoothly, generally avoiding the weeds in which such a study might so easily become entangled. Much of this is characteristic of Finucane's earlier work, but some credit, no doubt, is owed to Simon Ditchfield at the University of York, who prepared Finucane's manuscript for publication.