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Pope Leo XI (June 2, 1535 – April 27, 1605), born Alessandro Ottaviano de' Medici, was Pope
Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church and head of state of Vatican City. The current pope is Pope Benedict XVI, who was elected April 19, 2005 in Papal conclave, 2005....
 from April 1, 1605 to April 27 of the same year.

as born in Florence
Florence

Florence is the Capital city of the Italy Regions of Italy of Tuscany and of the provinces of Italy Province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany and has a population of 364,779 ....
: his mother, Francesca Salviati, was a daughter of Jacopo Salviati
Jacopo Salviati

Jacopo Salviati was an Italian politician born in Florence on 15 September 1461.Son of Giovanni Salviati and Maddalena Gondi, he devoted himself in the economic affairs of the family, becoming very wealthy....
 and Lucrezia de' Medici, a sister of Leo X
Pope Leo X

Pope Leo X, born Giovanni de' Medici was Pope from 1513 to his death. He was the last non-priest to be elected Pope. He is known primarily for the sale of indulgences to reconstruct St....
, while his father, Ottaviano
Ottaviano de' Medici

Ottaviano de' Medici was an Italy politician and statesman, ancestor of the Princes of Ottaiano line of the Medici family.He held several important positions in Florence, including that of Gonfaloniere di Giustizia, although now a merely formal one after the suppression of the Republic by the Spanish troops in 1530....
, was a more distant scion of the Medici family. After a late start, he was ordained priest
Priest

A priest or priestess is a person having the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities....
, and Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany
Tuscany

Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of and a population of about 3.6 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence.Tuscany is known for its landscapes and its artistic legacy....
, sent him as an appropriate ambassador
Ambassador

An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents their country. They are usually accredited to a Sovereignty or government, or to an international organization, to serve as the official representative of their country....
 to Pope Pius V
Pope Pius V

Pope Saint Pius V , born Antonio Ghislieri was Pope from 1566 to 1572 and is a saint of the Roman Catholic Church. He is chiefly notable for his role in the implementation of the Council of Trent, the Counterreformation and the standardisation of the liturgy....
, a position which he held for fifteen years.






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Pope Leo XI (June 2, 1535 – April 27, 1605), born Alessandro Ottaviano de' Medici, was Pope
Pope

The Pope is the Bishop of Rome, the leader of the Roman Catholic Church and head of state of Vatican City. The current pope is Pope Benedict XVI, who was elected April 19, 2005 in Papal conclave, 2005....
 from April 1, 1605 to April 27 of the same year.

Biography

He was born in Florence
Florence

Florence is the Capital city of the Italy Regions of Italy of Tuscany and of the provinces of Italy Province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany and has a population of 364,779 ....
: his mother, Francesca Salviati, was a daughter of Jacopo Salviati
Jacopo Salviati

Jacopo Salviati was an Italian politician born in Florence on 15 September 1461.Son of Giovanni Salviati and Maddalena Gondi, he devoted himself in the economic affairs of the family, becoming very wealthy....
 and Lucrezia de' Medici, a sister of Leo X
Pope Leo X

Pope Leo X, born Giovanni de' Medici was Pope from 1513 to his death. He was the last non-priest to be elected Pope. He is known primarily for the sale of indulgences to reconstruct St....
, while his father, Ottaviano
Ottaviano de' Medici

Ottaviano de' Medici was an Italy politician and statesman, ancestor of the Princes of Ottaiano line of the Medici family.He held several important positions in Florence, including that of Gonfaloniere di Giustizia, although now a merely formal one after the suppression of the Republic by the Spanish troops in 1530....
, was a more distant scion of the Medici family. After a late start, he was ordained priest
Priest

A priest or priestess is a person having the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particular, rites of sacrifice to, and propitiation of, a deity or deities....
, and Cosimo I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany
Tuscany

Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of and a population of about 3.6 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence.Tuscany is known for its landscapes and its artistic legacy....
, sent him as an appropriate ambassador
Ambassador

An ambassador is the highest ranking diplomat who represents their country. They are usually accredited to a Sovereignty or government, or to an international organization, to serve as the official representative of their country....
 to Pope Pius V
Pope Pius V

Pope Saint Pius V , born Antonio Ghislieri was Pope from 1566 to 1572 and is a saint of the Roman Catholic Church. He is chiefly notable for his role in the implementation of the Council of Trent, the Counterreformation and the standardisation of the liturgy....
, a position which he held for fifteen years. Gregory XIII
Pope Gregory XIII

Pope Gregory XIII , born Ugo Boncompagni, was Pope from 1572 to 1585....
 made him bishop of Pistoia in 1573, archbishop of Florence in 1574, and cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)

A cardinal is a senior Ecclesiology official, usually a Bishop , of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope....
 in 1583.

In 1596, Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII

Pope Clement VIII , born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was Pope from January 30, 1592 to March 3, 1605....
 sent him as legate to France
France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
 where Maria de' Medici was queen. Alessandro was a friend and disciple of St. Philip Neri
Philip Neri

Philip Romolo Neri , was an Italy priest, noted for founding a society of secular priests called the "Congregation of the Oratory"....
.

On March 14, 1605, eleven days after the death of Clement VIII, 62 cardinals entered the conclave. Prominent among the candidates for the papacy were the great historian
Historian

A historian is an individual who studies and writes about history, and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, systematic narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all events in time....
 Baronius and the famous Jesuit
Society of Jesus

The Society of Jesus is a Roman Catholic religious order of clerks regular whose members are called Jesuits, Soldiers of Jesus Christ, and Foot soldiers of the Pope, because the founder, Saint Ignatius of Loyola, was a knight before becoming a Holy Orders....
 controversialist Robert Bellarmine
Robert Bellarmine

Robert Bellarmine was an Italian Jesuit and a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. He participated in the Catholic Church's proceedings against Giordano Bruno and Galileo Galilei ....
. But Aldobrandini, the leader of the Italian party among the cardinals, allied with the French cardinals and brought about the election of Alessandro against the express wish of King Philip III of Spain
Philip III of Spain

Philip III was the monarch of Spain and King of Portugal, where he ruled as Philip II , from 1598 until his death. His Political minister was the Francisco Gom?z de Sandoval y Rojas, Duke of Lerma....
. King Henry IV of France
Henry IV of France

Henry de Bourbon, , ruled as Henry III, List of Navarrese monarchs, from 1572 to 1610, and as Henry IV, List of French monarchs, from 1589 to 1610....
 is said to have spent 300,000 écu
ECU

ECU may refer to:* East Carolina University, a university in Greenville, North Carolina * East Central University, a university in Ada, Oklahoma ...
s in the promotion of Alessandro's candidacy. On April 1, 1605, Alessandro ascended the papal throne with the Medici name Leo XI, being then almost seventy years of age, but was taken ill immediately after his coronation
Papal Coronation

The Papal Coronation is the ceremony in which a new pope is crowned as earthly head of the Roman Catholic Church, sovereignty of Vatican City, and Monarch of the Holy See....
 and died within the month.

He was nicknamed Papa Lampo ("Lightning Pope") for the brevity of his pontificate.




External links

  • Pope Leo XI
  • St Peter's Basilica