He was born in the hamlet of Brogny, now part of
Annecy-le-Vieux in
Savoy. Biographers are not agreed as to his parentage and real name. According to some, he belonged to a peasant family of Brogny, called Allarmet; others say he was descended from the d'Alouzier, a noble house in
Comtat Venaissin. It is certain, however, that the future cardinal was a swineherd, when two monks, struck by his open disposition and thoughtful answers, took him with them to
Geneva, and procured for him an education which was completed at the
University of Avignon. Despite the friendship and the inducement of Guillaume de Marcossey,
Bishop of Geneva, young Allarmet retired to the
Dijon Charterhouse, where his merits soon became widely known. When
Robert of Geneva was elected pope by the faction hostile to
Pope Urban VI, Allarmet joined him at
Avignon, either having been sent by the
Duke of Burgundy or called by Robert himself. At Avignon favors were bestowed upon him in quick succession by the
Avignon Pope Clement VII: the
Bishopric of Viviers, in 1382, the dignity of Cardinal of
Sant'Anastasia, in 1385, ==References==