Pope Gregory XIV (Latin: Gregorius XIV; Italian: Gregorio XIV; 11 February 1535 – 16 October 1591), born Niccolò Sfondrato[1] or Sfondrati,[2] was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 5 December 1590 to his death, in October 1591.
Niccolò Sfondrati was born on 11 February 1535 at Somma Lombardo, then part of the Duchy of Milan, in the highest stratum of Milanese society. His mother, of the house of Visconti, died in childbirth. His father Francesco Sfondrati, a senator of the ancient comune of Milan, after the death of his wife in 1538 entered in the ecclesistic state and was created cardinal-priest by Pope Paul III in 1544.[3] As soon as appointed bishop of Cremona, Niccolò's father died in 1550.[4]
Niccolò in his youth was known for his modest lifestyle and stringent piety. He studied law at Perugia and he graduated in utroque iure at the University of Padua on 2 March 1555. He replaced his father as Commendatory abbot of the Abbey of Civate: differently from the uses of most commendatory abbots at that time, Niccolò with religious fervour took care of the buildings and reformed the religious life of the Abbay.[4] In June 1552 he was appointed by Philip II of Spain a senator in Milan, and the Spain government urged the Pope to appoint him Bishop of Cremona in 1557. That appointment occurred on 13 March 1560 with the election of Pope Pius IV, a Lombard as were the Sfondrati.[4] Niccolò Sfondrati was consecrarted bishop in Milan on next 19 May by the auxiliary bishop of Milano Melchiorre Crivelli who acted in the name of Cardinal Carlo Borromeo.[5][6]
He participated in the sessions of the Council of Trent from 1561 to 1563 where he took a position in favour of the divine origin of the residence of bishops in their diocese, a position not well seen by Rome. Returned in his diocese, he applied the reforms of the Council of Trento under the supervision of his Metropolitan Archbishop, Cardinal Carlo Borromeo, to whom he was related.[4]Pope Gregory XIII made him a Cardinal-Priest of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere on 12 December 1583. When the Cardinal Borromeo died, Niccolò Sfondrati celebrated the Requiem Mass for Borromeo on 7 November 1584.[7] Sfondrati was an intimate friend and a great admirer of Philip Neri, an Italian priest who died in 1595 and was canonised in 1622.
After the death of Pope Urban VII on 27 September 1590, the Spanish ambassador Olivares presented the conclave a list of the seven cardinals who would be acceptable to his master Philip II of Spain. On 5 December 1590, after two months of deadlock, Sfondrati, one of Philip II's seven candidates but who had not aspired to the office, was elected pope. Alessandro Cardinal Montalto came to Sfondrati's cell to inform him that the Sacred College had agreed on his election and found him kneeling in prayer before a crucifix.[8]
On the day after he was elected Pope, Gregory XIV burst into tears and said to the cardinals: "God forgive you! What have you done?"[8] In his bull of 21 March 1591, Cogit nos, he forbade under pain of excommunication all betting concerning the election of a Pope, the duration of a pontificate, or the creation of new cardinals.
PapacyEdit
Gregory XIV's brief pontificate was marked by vigorous intervention in favour of the Catholic party in the French Wars of Religion. Instigated by the king of Spain and the duke of Mayenne, he excommunicated Henry IV of France on 1 March 1591, reiterating the 1585 declaration of Pope Sixtus V that as a heretic (Protestant) Henry was ineligible to succeed to the throne of Catholic France and ordered the clergy, nobles, judicial functionaries, and the Third Estate of France to renounce him.[8]
Gregory XIV levied an army for the invasion of France, and dispatched his nephew Ercole Sfondrati to France at its head. He also sent a monthly subsidy of 15,000 scudi to Paris to reinforce the Catholic League. By coming down solidly on the side of Spanish interests, in part because Gregory XIV was elected due to the influence of the Spanish cardinals, the recent papal policy of trying to maintain a balance between Spain and France was abandoned.
Gregory XIV created five cardinals in two consistories, among whom was his nephew Paolo Emilio Sfondrati, his Secretary of State. He attempted to convince Philip Neri, a long-time friend, to accept the post of Cardinal,[8] but Neri refused, saying that there were many more deserving of the honour than him.
In a decree dated 18 April 1591 (Bulla Cum Sicuti), Gregory XIV ordered reparations to be made by Catholics in the Philippines to the natives, who had been forced into slavery by Europeans, and he commanded under pain of excommunication of the owners that all native slaves in the islands be set free.[8]
The biographers mention that Pope Gregory XIV had a nervous tendency to laughter, which occasionally became irresistible and even manifested itself at his coronation. Gregory XIV, who was in poor health before his election to the papacy, died due to a large gallstone and was succeeded by Innocent IX.
^"Baynes, T. S.; Smith, W. R., eds. (1880). "Gregory XIV." . Encyclopædia Britannica. Vol. 11 (9th ed.). New York: Charles Scribner's Sons.
^Francesco Patrizi's Hermetic Philosophy, Cees Leijenhorst, Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times, ed. R. van den Broek, Wouter J. Hanegraaff, (State University of New York Press, 1998), 125.
^Terence Scully, The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi (1570), (University of Toronto Press, 2008), vi.
^ abcde One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Ott, Michael (1910). "Pope Gregory XIV". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 7. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
External linksEdit
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gregorius XIV.
pope, gregory, latin, gregorius, italian, gregorio, february, 1535, october, 1591, born, niccolò, sfondrato, sfondrati, head, catholic, church, ruler, papal, states, from, december, 1590, death, october, 1591, popegregory, xivbishop, romeportrait, philip, gall. Pope Gregory XIV Latin Gregorius XIV Italian Gregorio XIV 11 February 1535 16 October 1591 born Niccolo Sfondrato 1 or Sfondrati 2 was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 5 December 1590 to his death in October 1591 PopeGregory XIVBishop of RomePortrait by Philip Galle c 1591ChurchCatholic ChurchPapacy began5 December 1590Papacy ended16 October 1591PredecessorUrban VIISuccessorInnocent IXOrdersConsecration19 May 1560 Bishop by Melchiorre Crivelli O P Created cardinal12 December 1583by Gregory XIIIPersonal detailsBornNiccolo Sfondrato11 February 1535Somma Lombardo Duchy of MilanDied16 October 1591 1591 10 16 aged 56 Rome Papal StatePrevious post s Abbot of Civate 1551 1560 Bishop of Cremona 1560 1590 Cardinal Priest of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere 1585 1590 Coat of armsOther popes named GregoryPapal styles of Pope Gregory XIVReference styleHis HolinessSpoken styleYour HolinessReligious styleHoly FatherPosthumous styleNone Contents 1 Early career 1 1 Papal election 2 Papacy 3 See also 4 References 5 External linksEarly career EditNiccolo Sfondrati was born on 11 February 1535 at Somma Lombardo then part of the Duchy of Milan in the highest stratum of Milanese society His mother of the house of Visconti died in childbirth His father Francesco Sfondrati a senator of the ancient comune of Milan after the death of his wife in 1538 entered in the ecclesistic state and was created cardinal priest by Pope Paul III in 1544 3 As soon as appointed bishop of Cremona Niccolo s father died in 1550 4 Niccolo in his youth was known for his modest lifestyle and stringent piety He studied law at Perugia and he graduated in utroque iure at the University of Padua on 2 March 1555 He replaced his father as Commendatory abbot of the Abbey of Civate differently from the uses of most commendatory abbots at that time Niccolo with religious fervour took care of the buildings and reformed the religious life of the Abbay 4 In June 1552 he was appointed by Philip II of Spain a senator in Milan and the Spain government urged the Pope to appoint him Bishop of Cremona in 1557 That appointment occurred on 13 March 1560 with the election of Pope Pius IV a Lombard as were the Sfondrati 4 Niccolo Sfondrati was consecrarted bishop in Milan on next 19 May by the auxiliary bishop of Milano Melchiorre Crivelli who acted in the name of Cardinal Carlo Borromeo 5 6 He participated in the sessions of the Council of Trent from 1561 to 1563 where he took a position in favour of the divine origin of the residence of bishops in their diocese a position not well seen by Rome Returned in his diocese he applied the reforms of the Council of Trento under the supervision of his Metropolitan Archbishop Cardinal Carlo Borromeo to whom he was related 4 Pope Gregory XIII made him a Cardinal Priest of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere on 12 December 1583 When the Cardinal Borromeo died Niccolo Sfondrati celebrated the Requiem Mass for Borromeo on 7 November 1584 7 Sfondrati was an intimate friend and a great admirer of Philip Neri an Italian priest who died in 1595 and was canonised in 1622 Papal election Edit Main article October December 1590 papal conclave After the death of Pope Urban VII on 27 September 1590 the Spanish ambassador Olivares presented the conclave a list of the seven cardinals who would be acceptable to his master Philip II of Spain On 5 December 1590 after two months of deadlock Sfondrati one of Philip II s seven candidates but who had not aspired to the office was elected pope Alessandro Cardinal Montalto came to Sfondrati s cell to inform him that the Sacred College had agreed on his election and found him kneeling in prayer before a crucifix 8 On the day after he was elected Pope Gregory XIV burst into tears and said to the cardinals God forgive you What have you done 8 In his bull of 21 March 1591 Cogit nos he forbade under pain of excommunication all betting concerning the election of a Pope the duration of a pontificate or the creation of new cardinals Papacy EditGregory XIV s brief pontificate was marked by vigorous intervention in favour of the Catholic party in the French Wars of Religion Instigated by the king of Spain and the duke of Mayenne he excommunicated Henry IV of France on 1 March 1591 reiterating the 1585 declaration of Pope Sixtus V that as a heretic Protestant Henry was ineligible to succeed to the throne of Catholic France and ordered the clergy nobles judicial functionaries and the Third Estate of France to renounce him 8 Gregory XIV levied an army for the invasion of France and dispatched his nephew Ercole Sfondrati to France at its head He also sent a monthly subsidy of 15 000 scudi to Paris to reinforce the Catholic League By coming down solidly on the side of Spanish interests in part because Gregory XIV was elected due to the influence of the Spanish cardinals the recent papal policy of trying to maintain a balance between Spain and France was abandoned Gregory XIV created five cardinals in two consistories among whom was his nephew Paolo Emilio Sfondrati his Secretary of State He attempted to convince Philip Neri a long time friend to accept the post of Cardinal 8 but Neri refused saying that there were many more deserving of the honour than him In a decree dated 18 April 1591 Bulla Cum Sicuti Gregory XIV ordered reparations to be made by Catholics in the Philippines to the natives who had been forced into slavery by Europeans and he commanded under pain of excommunication of the owners that all native slaves in the islands be set free 8 The biographers mention that Pope Gregory XIV had a nervous tendency to laughter which occasionally became irresistible and even manifested itself at his coronation Gregory XIV who was in poor health before his election to the papacy died due to a large gallstone and was succeeded by Innocent IX See also EditCardinals created by Gregory XIVReferences Edit Baynes T S Smith W R eds 1880 Gregory XIV Encyclopaedia Britannica Vol 11 9th ed New York Charles Scribner s Sons Francesco Patrizi s Hermetic Philosophy Cees Leijenhorst Gnosis and Hermeticism from Antiquity to Modern Times ed R van den Broek Wouter J Hanegraaff State University of New York Press 1998 125 Terence Scully The Opera of Bartolomeo Scappi 1570 University of Toronto Press 2008 vi a b c d Borromeo Agostino 2002 GREGORIO XIV papa Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani Volume 59 Graziano Grossi Gondi in Italian Rome Istituto dell Enciclopedia Italiana ISBN 978 8 81200032 6 David Cheney Pope Gregory XIV Catholic Hierarchy org Retrieved 27 May 2023 Archivio di Stato di Milano Atti notarili della Cancelleria arcivescovile b 22 fasc 80 Miranda Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church a b c d e nbsp One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain Ott Michael 1910 Pope Gregory XIV In Herbermann Charles ed Catholic Encyclopedia Vol 7 New York Robert Appleton Company External links Edit nbsp Wikimedia Commons has media related to Gregorius XIV Gregory Popes Gregory XIV Encyclopaedia Britannica 11th ed 1911 Biography on St Michael s Call Papal Library Defending the Faith website Gregory XIV Pope Gregory XIV Germania Sacra people index in German Gottingen Academy of Sciences and Humanities Catholic Church titlesPreceded byFederico Cesi Bishop of Cremona1560 1590 Succeeded byCesare SpecianoPreceded byUrban VII Pope5 December 1590 16 October 1591 Succeeded byInnocent IX Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Pope Gregory XIV amp oldid 1173528783, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
