Giacomo Filippo Fransoni (10 December 1775 – 20 April 1856) was an Italian

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

and cardinal who served from 1834 to 1856 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

Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith Sacred describes something that is dedicated or set apart for the service or worship of a deity; is considered worthy of spiritual respect or devotion; or inspires awe or reverence among believers. The property is often ascribed to objects (a ...

. He was the

cardinal priest 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 the Church of

San Lorenzo in Lucina The Minor Basilica of St. Lawrence in Lucina ( it, Basilica Minore di San Lorenzo in Lucina or simply it, San Lorenzo in Lucina; la, S. Laurentii in Lucina) is a Roman Catholic parish, titular church, and minor basilica in central Rome, Italy. ...

at the time of his death.

Life

Born in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of t ...

, Fransoni was ordained a priest on 14 March 1807, at 31 years of age, by Cardinal

Pietro Francesco Galeffi Pietro Francesco Galleffi (Galeffi) (1770–1837) was an Italian Cardinal. During the Napoleonic period, he was expelled from Rome, in 1798. He was created Cardinal in 1803. He was removed to France, in 1809. He became titular archbishop of Dama ...

. On 7 September 1822, he was appointed Titular Archbishop of Nazianzus and ordained to the episcopate three months later. On 21 January 1823, aged 47, he was appointed

Apostolic Nuncio An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international org ...

to Portugal. On 2 October 1826, aged 50, he was elevated to the cardinalate and named cardinal priest of the

Basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

Santa Maria in Aracoeli The Basilica of St. Mary of the Altar of Heaven ( la, Basilica Sanctae Mariae de Ara coeli in Capitolio, it, Basilica di Santa Maria in Ara coeli al Campidoglio) is a titular basilica in Rome, located on the highest summit of the Campidoglio. I ...

. On 21 November 1834, Fransoni was appointed prefect of the Sacred Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith in the

Curia Curia (Latin plural curiae) in ancient Rome referred to one of the original groupings of the citizenry, eventually numbering 30, and later every Roman citizen was presumed to belong to one. While they originally likely had wider powers, they came ...

. On 28 September 1855, aged almost 80, his titular church was changed to that of the Church of

. Fransoni died on 20 April 1856, aged 80. He had been a priest for 49 years, a bishop for 33 and a cardinal for almost 30. Fransoni is in the

episcopal lineage The historic or historical episcopate comprises all episcopates, that is, it is the collective body of all the bishops of a church who are in valid apostolic succession. This succession is transmitted from each bishop to their successors by the r ...

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

. Among those whom he ordained as priests was the English convert,

John Henry Newman John Henry Newman (21 February 1801 – 11 August 1890) was an English theologian, academic, intellectual, philosopher, polymath, historian, writer, scholar and poet, first as an Anglican priest and later as a Catholic priest and ...

, Cong.Orat.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fransoni, Giacomo Filippo 1775 births 1856 deaths Clergy from Genoa 19th-century Italian Roman Catholic titular archbishops Apostolic Nuncios to Portugal 19th-century Italian cardinals Members of the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith