VII and Henry IV had hurled depositions and anathemas at each other nearly a hundred years before". The situation, suggest Duggan, was "a minefield", for the Pope, and Adrian had to negotiate it. It was the ambition of the Emperor of the Eastern Empire, Manuel I Kommenus, to reunite both Empires under one crown, and, as such, he wished to be crowned by the Pope in Rome, as Western emperors were. The death of Roger II presented Manuel with an opportunity he could not afford to let by, argues Professor Paul Magdalino. The Kingdom of Sicily had been recognised by Innocent II in 1143, notes the Italianist Graham Loud, but "relations with the Papacy remained fraught". The previous King of Sicily, Roger II, had ruled his kingdom with an iron fist, and his nobility chafed, particularly the large number he had effectively dispossessed. His son was less interested than his father in the minutiae of government, and when Roger died in 1154 they took advantage of the new king and rebelled. This was of interest to the Papacy as the rebels were willing to ally themselves with anyone for their purpose. Election, 1154 It was Breakspear's being "in the right place at the right time", suggests the Papal librarian Bradford Lee Eden, that led to his election as pope on Saturday, 4 December 1154, although Duggan argues that he must also have had exceptional qualities, both to reach the rank he had and as seen in his Scandinavian trip—or as William of Newburgh later wrote, "raised as if from the dust to sit in the midst of princes. Events moved rapidly: the period was one of great crisis for the papacy. Adrian was enthroned on the 5th and crowned in St Peter's on the 6th. His election, said Boso, "happened—not without divine council—that they unanimously agreed" on Adrian. To date, Adrian has been the only English pope. He was one of the few popes of his era who did not need consecrating on his election, as he was already a bishop. According to Boso, Breakspear had to be forced "against his will" into the Papal throne. He took the name Adrian IV, possibly in honour of Adrian I, who revered St Alban and first granted the abbey of that name its privileges. It was, suggests Julius Norwich, " wise choice, for energy and force were desperately needed". Although he had