Guido Ascanio Sforza di Santa Fiora (26 November 1518 – 6 October 1564) was an Italian

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **'' Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **'' Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, t ...

, known also as ''The cardinal of Santa Fiora''. Born 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 the son of

Costanza Farnese Costanza Farnese (December 19, 1500 in Rome – May 23, 1545 in Rome) was a daughter of Alessandro Farnese and Silvia Ruffini. Born before her father became Pope Paul III, her siblings were Pier Luigi, Paul, Ranuccio and Lucrezia. She marri ...

and therefore grandson of

Pope Paul III Pope Paul III ( la, Paulus III; it, Paolo III; 29 February 1468 – 10 November 1549), born Alessandro Farnese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 October 1534 to his death in November 1549. He came to ...

, brother of Cardinal

Alessandro Sforza Alessandro Sforza (21 October 1409 – 3 April 1473) was an Italian condottiero and lord of Pesaro, the first of the Pesaro line of the Sforza family. Biography He was born in Cotignola in 1409, an illegitimate son of the famous condottier ...

(1565), uncle of Cardinal

Francesco Sforza Francesco I Sforza (; 23 July 1401 – 8 March 1466) was an Italian condottiero who founded the Sforza dynasty in the duchy of Milan, ruling as its (fourth) duke from 1450 until his death. In the 1420s, he participated in the War of L'A ...

and great-uncle of Cardinal Federico Sforza (1645). During his time as a cardinal he served as

legate Legate may refer to: * Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class :*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period *A member of a legation *A representative, ...

as well as administrator of different towns and

episcopal see An episcopal see is, in a practical use of the phrase, the area of a bishop's ecclesiastical jurisdiction. Phrases concerning actions occurring within or outside an episcopal see are indicative of the geographical significance of the term, mak ...

s. His ecclesiastical career started very early with his selection as Bishop of ''Montefiascone e Corneto'', nowadays

Diocese of Viterbo, Acquapendente, Bagnoregio, Montefiascone, Tuscania e San Martino al Monte Cimino The Diocese of Viterbo ( la, Dioecesis Viterbiensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in central Italy. From the 12th century, the official name of the diocese was the Diocese of Viterbo e Tuscania. I ...

on 12 November 1528 when he was not quite ten years of age. He resigned on 4 June 1548. He was created a cardinal deacon 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 18 December 1534 by

with the Deaconry of Santi Vito, Modesto e Crescenzia. Later he was appointed

Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church The Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church is an office of the papal household that administers the property and revenues of the Holy See. Formerly, his responsibilities included the fiscal administration of the Patrimony of Saint Peter. As regu ...

on 22 October 1537, a position he held until his death. He was opted for the Deaconry of Santa Maria in Cosmedin on 31 May 1540, for the Deaconry of

Sant'Eustachio Sant'Eustachio is a Roman Catholic titular church and minor basilica in Rome, named for the martyr Saint Eustace. It is located on Via di Sant'Eustachio in the rione Sant'Eustachio, a block west of the Pantheon and via della Rotonda, and a ...

on 10 December 1540 and finally for the Deaconry of Santa Maria in Via Lata on 9 March 1552. He participated in the two

papal conclave A papal conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a bishop of Rome, also known as the pope. Catholics consider the pope to be the apostolic successor of Saint Peter and the earthly head of the Catholic Church. ...

s of 1555 (the one in April which elected Marcellus II and that in May which chose Paul IV) as well as the conclave held in December 1559, which resulted in the election of

Pius IV Pope Pius IV ( it, Pio IV; 31 March 1499 – 9 December 1565), born Giovanni Angelo Medici, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 25 December 1559 to his death in December 1565. Born in Milan, his family considered ...

who re-convoked the

Council of Trent The Council of Trent ( la, Concilium Tridentinum), held between 1545 and 1563 in Trent (or Trento), now in northern Italy, was the 19th ecumenical council of the Catholic Church. Prompted by the Protestant Reformation, it has been described a ...

. Guido Ascanio Sforza died on 6 October 1564 of fever in

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and '' comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture. In 2017, it was named as the Eur ...

. His body was transferred to

and buried in his family's chapel in the patriarchal Liberian basilica.

References

Sources

Tha Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church - Biographical dictionary
* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Sforza Di Santa Fiora, Guido Ascanio 1518 births 1564 deaths Clergy from Rome 16th-century Italian cardinals Cardinal-nephews 16th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops Bishops of Lodève Bishops of Montefiascone Bishops of Parma Guido Ascanio Sforza di Santa Fiora Camerlengos of the Holy Roman Church