Editing Antipope John XXIII (section)

== Early life ==
Baldassarre Cossa was born on the island of [[Procida]] in the [[Kingdom of Naples]], the son of Giovanni Cossa, lord of Procida.{{sfn|Levillain|2002|p=851}} Initially he followed a military career, taking part in the [[Kingdom of Naples|Angevin-Neapolitan war]]. His two brothers were sentenced to death for [[piracy]] by [[Ladislaus of Naples]].<ref name=mccabe>{{cite book|author=Joseph McCabe|title=Crises in the History of the Papacy|chapter=Chapter XI. John XXIII and the Great Schism|year=1916|publisher=G.P. Putnam's Sons|chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EkX2JjO4V6sC&pg=PA221|isbn=978-0-7661-7904-2}}</ref>

He studied law at the [[University of Bologna]] and obtained doctorates in both civil and canon law.{{sfn|Greenblatt|2011| loc=Chapter 7}} Probably at the prompting of his family, in 1392 he entered the service of [[Pope Boniface IX]], first working in Bologna and then in Rome. (The [[Western Schism]] had begun in 1378, and there were two competing popes at the time, one in Avignon supported by France and Spain, and one in Rome, supported by most of Italy, Germany and England.) In 1386 he is listed as canon of the cathedral of Bologna. In 1396, he became archdeacon in Bologna. He became [[cardinal (Catholicism)#Cardinal deacons|Cardinal deacon]] of Saint Eustachius in 1402 and [[Papal legate]] in [[Romagna]] in 1403. [[Johann Peter Kirsch]] describes Cossa as "utterly worldly-minded, ambitious, crafty, unscrupulous, and immoral, a good soldier but no churchman".<ref name=Kirsch>[http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08434a.htm Kirsch, Johann Peter. "John XXIII." The Catholic Encyclopedia] Vol. 8. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1910. 2 January 2016</ref> At this time Cossa also had some links with local robber bands, which were often used to intimidate his rivals and attack carriages. These connections added to his influence and power in the region.{{sfn|Greenblatt|2011| p=158}}