(1) 1. ACCOLTI, Benedetto (1497-1549)

Birth. October 29, 1497, Florence. Son of Michele Accolti, patrician of Arezzo and podestà of Montevarchi, and Lucrezia Alamanni. He was called "il Giovane" and the Cardinal of Ravenna. Nephew of Cardinal Pietro Accolti (1511).

Education. University of Florence, Florence (humanities); University of Pisa, Pisa (philosophy; doctorate in jurisprudence).

Early life. Went to Rome after finishing his studies and entered the Curia. Protonotary apostolic, 1515. Abbreviatore di parco maggiore, 1518.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Cádiz, July 24, 1521; constituted administrator until reaching the canonical age of 27. Named secretary of Apostolic Briefs by Pope Adrian VI. Transferred to the see of Cremona, March 16 (1), 1523. Secretary of Pope Clement VII, 1523. Consecrated, February 1527 (no further information found).

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of May 3, 1527; received the red hat and the title of S. Eusebio, May 5, 1527. Promoted to the metropolitan see of Ravenna, August 17, 1524. Administrator of the see of Bovino, January 24, 1530 until April 15, 1535. Administrator of the see of Policastro, February 6, 1531 until July 5, 1535. Legate a latere in Marca Anconitana, July 8, 1532. Abbot commendatario of S. Bartolomeo nel bosco, Ferrara. Participated in the conclave of 1534. Pope Paul III removed him from his legation on September 2, 1534; he was accused of misspending 19,000 ducats for the expedition against the Turks, and was deprived of the cardinalate; on August 27, 1534, he confessed to Cardinal Paolo Cesi; he was imprisoned in Castello Sant'Angelo, Rome, April 15, 1535; on August 30, 1535, the cardinal accepted the conditions imposed by the pope to be absent from the Roman Curia for two years and pay a large sum of money, 59,000 scudi d'oro; on that same date he was restored to the cardinalate; some say that Cardinal Ippolito de' Medici, a relative of Pope Clement VII, with whom Cardinal Accolti had serious controversies, was the author of the imprisonment; he owed his freedom in part to the good offices of Cardinal Ercole Gonzaga and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, who greatly esteemed him. Imperial resident ambassador in Florence. He wrote several works in Latin, which were printed in Venice in 1553; also, poetry that was included in the collection Quinque illustrium Poetarum; and a treatise on the rights of the pope over the Kingdom of Naples.

Death. September 21, 1549, Florence, of an apoplexy (2). Buried in the church of S. Lorenzo, Florence.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 80-83; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1630, II, col. 1462-1463; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 19, 63, 135, 181, 277, 283; Moroni, Gaetano. Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica da S. Pietro sino ai nostri giorni. 103 vols. in 53. Venezia : Tipografia Emiliana, 1840-1861, I, 60; Sanclemente, Enrico. Series critico-chronologica episcoporvm cremonensivm svb avspiciis prætantissimi antistitis Homoboni Offredi ex authenticis monvmentis avcta et emendata svaqve integritati maxima ex parte restitvta. Cremonæ : apvd Josephvm Feraboli, MDCCCXI, p. 153-159.

Links. Biographical data, in English; biography, in Italian; his genealogy, A1 B1 C3; and his portrait.

(1) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 185; Sanclemente, Series critico-chronologica episcoporvm cremonensivm, p. 181, says that he was transferred on March 18, 1523.
(2) This is according to Cardella, Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa, IV, 83, who adds that other sources indicate that he was poisoned; and his genealogy, linked above, also says that he was poisoned (forse avvelenato).

(2) 2. SPINOLA, Agostino (ca. 1482-1537)

Birth. Ca. 1482, Savona. Son of Giovanni Spinola, consignore of Garessio, and Petruccia Riario. Grand-nephew of Pope Sixtus IV. Nephew of Cardinal Pietro Riario, O.F.M.Conv. (1471). Cousin of Cardinal Raffaele Sansoni Riario (1477).

Education. (No information found).

Early life. Secretary of Pope Julius II.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Perugia, December 19, 1509. Consecrated (no information found). Participated in ninth to twelfth sessions of the V Lateran Council, which took place from 1512-1517. Abbot commendatario of S. Pastore de Contigliano, 1518-1537. Accompanied Pope Leo X in his trip to Bologna.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of May 3, 1527; received the red hat and the title of S. Ciriaco alle Terme, August 3, 1527. Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church, June 8, 1528 until his death. Administrator of the see of Savona, July 17, 1528 until his death. Resigned the government of the see of Perugia in favor of his brother Carlo Spinola, February 15, 1529. Opted for the title of S. Apollinare, September 5, 1534. Participated in the conclave of 1534. Administrator of the see of Alatri, May 10, 1535 until his death.

Death. October 18, 1537, Rome. Transferred to Savona and buried in his family's tomb in the church of the convent of S. Domenico, which was demolished in 1544; the marble bas-relief of the tomb are in Palazzo Pozzobonello-Del Carretto, Savona.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 83-84; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1630, II, col. ; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 19, 60, 63, 81, 99, 271 and 291-292; Weber, Christoph and Becker, Michael. Genealogien zur Papstgeschichte. 6 v. Stuttgart : Anton Hiersemann, 1999-2002. (Päpste und Papsttum, Bd. 29, 1-6), II, 919.

(3) 3. GADDI, Niccolò (1499-1552)

Birth. 1499 (1), Florence. Son of Taddeo Gaddi and Antonia Altoviti. Uncle of Cardinal Taddeo Gaddi (1557). Direct descendant of the famous medieval painter Taddeo Gaddi. Relative of Queen Caterina de' Medici of France.

Education. (No information found).

Early life. Cleric of the Apostolic Chamber. Abbreviatore of the Apostolic Letters.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Fermo, October 16, 1521; ceased, before December 5, 1544. Did not receive the episcopal consecration. Abbot commendatario of S. Leonardo di Manfredonia.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal deacon in the consistory of May 3, 1527; received the red hat and the deaconry of S. Teodoro, May 3, 1527. Assigned as hostage of Pope Clement VII by the imperial troops, he was locked up in the fortress of Naples for a long time. Administrator of the metropolitan see of Cosenza, January 31, 1528 until June 21, 1535. Protector of France from 1533. Administrator of the see of Sarlat, France, December 12, 1533 until July 3, 1545. Participated in the conclave of 1534. Opted for the deaconry of Ss. Vito e Modesto, January 9, 1545. Participated in the conclave of 1549-1550. Opted for the deaconry of S. Maria in Domnica, February 28, 1550. Opted for the deaconry of S. Maria in Via Lata, June 27, 1550. Cardinal protodiacono. Opted for the order of cardinal priests and his deaconry was elevated pro illa vice to title, November 20, 1551.

Death. January 16, 1552 (2), Florence. Buried in the Gaddi Chapel in the church of S. Maria Novella, Florence (3).

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 84-86; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1630, II, col. 1470; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi. Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 19, 74, 75, 76, 183, 196 and 293; Weber, Christoph and Becker, Michael. Genealogien zur Papstgeschichte. 6 v. Stuttgart : Anton Hiersemann, 1999-2002. (Päpste und Papsttum, Bd. 29, 1-6), IV, 559.

(1) This is according to Webber, Genealogien zur Papstgeschichte, IV, 559; Cardella, Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa, IV, 85, says that he died in 1552 without having turned 62; his epitaph, transcribed in note 2, says that he died in 1552 at 61 years, 7 months and 20 days, therefore, he would have been born on May 27, 1495.
(2) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 19 and 75; his epitaph, transcribed in note 3, says that he died on ANN. MDLII. XVII KAL. FEBR.
(3) This is the text of his epitaph transcribed by Ferdiando Ughelli, Cist., in his addition to Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1470: D. O. M. NICOLAO. GADDIO. THADÆI. FILIO. S. R. E. CARDINALI. DE. REPVBLICA. CHRISTIANA. OPTIME. MERITO. SEPVLCHRVM. HOC. TANTO. PATRVO. DEBERI. NICOLAVS. GADDIVS. CENSVIT. ANN. SAL. MDLXXVII. VIXIT. ANN. LXI. MENS. VII. DIES. XX. OBIIT. ANN. MDLII. XVII. KAL. FEBR.

(4) 4. GONZAGA, Ercole (1505-1563)

Birth. November 23, 1505, Mantua. Son of Francesco II Gonzaga, 4th marquis of Mantua, and Isabella d'Este. Nephew of Cardinal Sigismondo Gonzaga (1505). Uncle of Cardinals Francesco Gonzaga (1561) and Giovanni Vincenzo Gonzaga, O.S.Io.Hier. (1578). Other cardinals of the family are: Francesco Gonzaga (1461); Pirro Gonzaga (1527); Scipione Gonzaga (1587); Ferdinando Gonzaga (1607); and Vincenzo Gonzaga (1615).

Education. University of Bologna, Bologna (philosophy and literature).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Mantua, May 10, 1521; constituted administrator until reaching the canonical age of 27; did not receive the episcopal consecration until 1561; occupied the see until his death.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal deacon in the consistory of May 3, 1527; received the red hat and the deaconry of S. Maria Nuova, May 5, 1527. Administrator of the see of Sovana, July 5, 1529 until April 17, 1532. Governor of Tivoli, 1530-1535. Protector of Castilla and León; and later of Spain. Legate before Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, 1532. Participated in the conclaves of 1534. Administrator of the see of Tarazona, June 26, 1537 to December 3, 1546. Together with his sister-in-law, Margherita Paleologa, was the regent of the duchy of Mantua during the minority of his nephews Francesco III and Guglielmo I, 1540-1556. Participated in the conclave of 1549-1550. Participated in the first conclave of 1555. Participated in the second conclave of 1555.

Priesthood. Ordained, 1556. Opted for the order of cardinal priests and his deaconry was elevated pro illa vice to title, July 6, 1556. Participated in the conclave of 1559. Legate in Campagna e Marittima for two years, September 4, 1560; resigned legation, May 9, 1561. Named first of the five legates a latere to the Council of Trent, February 14, 1561. Received the episcopal consecration on June 8, 1561 in the cathedral of S. Vigilio, Trent, from Cardinal Girolamo Seripando, archbishop of Salerno, assisted by Giovanni Tommaso San Felice, bishop of Cava, and by Angelo Massarelli, bishop of Telese.

Death. March 2, 1563, Trent, of fever; he was assisted spiritually by Father Diego Laínez, S.J. Transferred to Mantua, he was buried in the tomb of his ancestors in the chapel of S. Pietro (1) in the cathedral of that city.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 86-90; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1630, II, cols. 1468-1470; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 19, 234, 305 and 314; Murphy, Paul V. Ruling Peacefully. Cardinal Ercole Gonzaga and Patrician Reform in Sixteenth-Century Italy. Washington, DC : The Catholic University of America Press, 2007.

Links. Biography, in English; portrait and biographical profile, in Italian; arms, portrait and biography, in Italian; his seal by Benvenuto Cellini, Episcopal Curia, Mantua; and his genealogy, A2 B5 C2 H6.

(1) This is the inscription on the marble of his tomb transcribed by Ferdinando Ughelli, Cist., in his addition to Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1470: HERCVLIS. GONZAGÆ. CARDINALIS. ET. EPISCOPI. MANTVANI. MAGNI. CONSILII. MAGNÆQ. ERUDITIONIS.IVRI. DVM. SACRO. CONCILIO. TRIDENTINO. PRÆSIDET. VITA. FVNCTI. CADAVER.

(5) 5. GRIMANI, Marino (ca. 1489-1546)

Birth. Ca. 1489, Venice. Of a noble family. Third of the eight children of Gerolamo Grimani and Elena Priuli. Nephew of Cardinal Domenico Grimani (1493). Relative of Cardinal Vincenzo Grimani (1697).

Education. " ... uomo sommamente dotto, di straordinaria eloquenza fornito, e generose mecenate de' literati ..." (1). (No further educational information found).

Early life. Cleric of Venice.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Ceneda, August 16, 1508; constituted administrator until reaching the canonical age of 27 years; occupied the see until 1517. Consecrated (no information found). Promoted to the patriarchal see of Aquileia, January 19, 1517; occupied the see until April 18, 1529; and again from September 17, 1535 to January 23, 1545.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of May 3, 1527 (2); received the red hat and the title of S. Vitale, February 7, 1528. Administrator of the see of Ceneda, December 18, 1531 (3) until February 20, 1540; and again, January 23, 1545 until his death. Opted for the title of S. Marcello, November 12, 1532. Administrator of the see of Concordia, July 1533 until 1537 (4). Administrator of the see of Città Castello, April 19, 1534 until March 4, 1539. Participated in the conclave of 1534. Administrator of the see of S. Pons de Tomières, November 13, 1534 until November 20, 1534. Legate in Perugia and Umbria, September 17, 1535. Member of several commissions for the reform of the offices of the Papal State. Opted for the title of S. Maria in Trastevere, August 4, 1539. Legate to establish the peace between King François I of France and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V. Opted for the order of cardinal bishops and the suburbicarian see of Frascati, March 13, 1541. Opted for the suburbicarian see of Porto e Santa Rufina, September 24, 1543. Vice-dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals. Legate in Gallia Cispadana, Parma and Piacenza, March 5, 1544. Titular Latin patriarch of Constantinople, March 23, 1545 until his death.

Death. September 28, 1546, Orvieto. Buried in the cathedral of Orvieto; later, transferred to Venice and buried in the church of S. Francesco delle Vigne, next to the tomb of his uncle the cardinal (5).

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 89-90; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1630, II, col. 1404; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi. Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 19, 57, 59, 65, 66, 71, 114, 162, 168, 174, 177 and 277; Gams, Pius Bonifatius. Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae. 3 v. in 1. Graz : Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt, 1957, pp. 774, 784 and 788; Weber, Christoph and Becker, Michael. Genealogien zur Papstgeschichte. 6 v. Stuttgart : Anton Hiersemann, 1999-2002. (Päpste und Papsttum, Bd. 29, 1-6), II, 497.

Links. Biography, in Italian; brief biographical data, in Italian; catalog of bishops of the see of Concordia.

(1) Cardella, Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa, IV, p. 89: an exceedingly learned man, provided with extraordinary eloquence, and a generous supporter of the men of letters.
(2) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 19, which does not mention that he was created in pectore; Cardella, Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa, IV, 89, says that he was created cardinal priest assente (absent); his biography in Italian, linked above, indicates that he was created and reserved in pectore in 1527 and rese noto (made known) in 1528.
(3) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 162; Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, p. 784, says that he was named on January 31, 1532.
(4) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 174; the catalog of bishops of the see of Concordia, linked above, indicates that he occupied the post from 1533 to 1545; Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, p. 788, says that his successor, Pietro Quirini was in possession fo the see on March 9, 1547, while Eubel says that Bishop Quirini was named on April 11, 1537 by cessation of Cardinal Grimani.
(5) This is the text of his epitaph transcribed by Ferdinando Ughelli, Cist., in his addition to Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1404: D. O. M. MARINO. GIRMANO. VENETO. SANCT. ROM. ECCL. CARDINALI. CVIVS. VIRTVTVM. IN. OMNES. GENTES. EGRESSA. MEMORIA. MAGIS. APVD. HOMINES. CVIVSQ. QVAM. APVD. TVMVLVM. HOSPITATVR. ILLVSTRIVM. ERGO. VIVRORVM. VERVM. SEPVULCRVM. ANIMIS. HOMINVM. ÆDITVI. BENEFICORVM. MEMORES. EX. PVBLICO. DECRETO. INSTAURARVNT.

©1998-2009 Salvador Miranda.