Camillo Caccia-Dominioni (7 February 1877 – 12 November 1946) was an Italian cardinal of the

Roman Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

. He served as

prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

of the Pontifical Household from 1921 to 1935, and was elevated to the

cardinalate The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are appoi ...

in 1935.

Biography

Born in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, Camillo Caccia-Dominioni studied at the

seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy ...

in that same city before attending the

Pontifical Gregorian University The Pontifical Gregorian University ( it, Pontificia Università Gregoriana; also known as the Gregorian or Gregoriana,) is a higher education ecclesiastical school ( pontifical university) located in Rome, Italy. The Gregorian originated as ...

(from where he obtained his doctorate in canon law) and the

Pontifical Academy of Ecclesiastical Nobles A pontifical ( la, pontificale) is a Christian liturgical book containing the liturgies that only a bishop may perform. Among the liturgies are those of the ordinal for the ordination and consecration of deacons, priests, and bishops to Holy O ...

(from where he graduated in 1898) in

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

. He was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform ...

to the priesthood by Cardinal Andrea Ferrari on 23 September 1899. Caccia-Dominioni did pastoral work in Rome until 1921, and finished his studies in 1902. In 1903, he was appointed Coadjutor-

Canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western ca ...

St. Peter's Basilica The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter in the Vatican ( it, Basilica Papale di San Pietro in Vaticano), or simply Saint Peter's Basilica ( la, Basilica Sancti Petri), is a church built in the Renaissance style located in Vatican City, the papal e ...

. Named Protonotary Apostolic on 27 June 1921, Caccia-Dominioni was raised to the rank of

Monsignor Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

on 24 September 1914. He was appointed

Prefect Prefect (from the Latin ''praefectus'', substantive adjectival form of ''praeficere'': "put in front", meaning in charge) is a magisterial title of varying definition, but essentially refers to the leader of an administrative area. A prefect's ...

of the Pontifical Household, the papal majordomo, by

Pope Benedict XV Pope Benedict XV (Latin: ''Benedictus XV''; it, Benedetto XV), born Giacomo Paolo Giovanni Battista della Chiesa, name=, group= (; 21 November 185422 January 1922), was head of the Catholic Church from 1914 until his death in January 1922. His ...

on 16 June 1921. Upon the death of Pope Benedict on 22 January 1922, Caccia-Dominioni and all other major Vatican officials, in accord with custom, automatically lost their positions during the ''

sede vacante ''Sede vacante'' ( in Latin.) is a term for the state of a diocese while without a bishop. In the canon law of the Catholic Church, the term is used to refer to the vacancy of the bishop's or Pope's authority upon his death or resignation. Hi ...

''. He was later confirmed as Prefect of the Pontifical Household by Pope Pius XI on the following 7 February and succeeded to the post of Canon of St. Peter's Basilica on 14 February 1924. Caccia-Dominioni was considered to be a protege of Pius XI,''

Time Time is the continued sequence of existence and events that occurs in an apparently irreversible succession from the past, through the present, into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequence events, ...

''
Milestones
November 25, 1946 at whose final hours the former was present in his bedchamber. Caccia-Dominioni was created

Cardinal-Deacon A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...

of '' S. Maria in Domnica'' by Pope Pius XI in the

consistory Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to: *A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church * Consistor ...

of 16 December 1935. He was one of the cardinal electors in the 1939 papal conclave, which selected Pope Pius XII. In virtue of his position of Protodeacon (the senior cardinal deacon), Caccia-Dominioni announced Pius XII's election and later crowned him on 12 March 1939. According to

David Kertzer David Israel Kertzer (born February 20, 1948) is an American anthropologist, historian, and academic, specializing in the political, demographic, and religious history of Italy. He is the Paul Dupee, Jr. University Professor of Social Science, P ...

, Caccia-Dominioni was a

pederast Pederasty or paederasty ( or ) is a sexual relationship between an adult man and a pubescent or adolescent boy. The term ''pederasty'' is primarily used to refer to historical practices of certain cultures, particularly ancient Greece and an ...

.David I Kertzer: "The Pope and Mussolini: The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe" The

OVRA The OVRA, whose most probable name was Organization for Vigilance and Repression of Anti-Fascism ( it, Organizzazione per la Vigilanza e la Repressione dell'Antifascismo), was the secret police of the Kingdom of Italy, founded in 1927 under the ...

had a file on him, which detailed that he often lured young boys to his apartment in Rome for sex, and that the pope had been aware of this. The cardinal died from a heart ailment in Rome, at age 69. He is buried in the crypt of the Basilica of Ss. Ambrogio e Carlo.

Trivia

* It was falsely speculated that Caccia-Dominioni had been elevated to a cardinal '' in pectore'' by Pius XI in the consistory of 13 March 1933.''Time''
1900th Passion
April 3, 1933

References

External links

Media

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dominioni, Camillo Caccia Pope Pius XI Caccia-Dominioni, Camillo Caccia-Dominioni, Camillo Caccia-Dominioni, Camillo Caccia-Dominioni, Camillo Prefects of the Papal Household Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy alumni