Although supermajority rules originated in Rome, their true golden age began in the twelfth century. In many ways, the emergence of supermajority rule mirrored the development of the counted vote in the Greek world. In the preceding chapter, we saw that the counted vote replaced acclamatory devices in classical Athens where individual judgment was deemed paramount. Acclamation in the form of hand-waving was used when the presence of a minority was considered risky, and when a consensual outcome would have been highly desirable.

If there were one collective decision in which universal acclamation or unanimity might be expected to prevail regardless of the selection procedure or threshold governing it, it would seem to be the choice of a pope. The famous example of St. Ambrose evokes this vision of decision: prompted by the cry of an infant, a popular assembly is inspired by the Holy Spirit to choose him (Kantorowicz 1946, 118–120; Benson 1968, 36). Elections in the eleventh and twelfth centuries were religious occasions, events in which the electors would assemble so that the will of God might be expressed through them (Robinson 1990, 57). Unanimitas – oneness of spirit – was the hallmark of such bodies, by which power could be conferred upon a pope or bishop (or secular leader, for that matter). In other words, the means by which God could divinely ordain a pope or a bishop was through the “flock” to be governed (Burns 1988, 449).