Enrico Caetani (6 August 1550 – 13 December 1599) was an Italian
cardinal.
Early life
He was born at
Sermoneta, the second son of Bonifacio, lord of Sermoneta, and Caterina di Alberto Pio, daughter of the lord of
Carpi. He was the nephew of Cardinal
Niccolò Caetani, and brother of
Camillo Caetani.
On 11 Aug 1585, he was
consecrated
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
bishop by
Giulio Antonio Santorio,
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
San Bartolomeo all'Isola, with
Massimiliano Palumbara
Massimiliano Palumbara or Massimiliano Palombella (died 23 Jan 1607) was a Roman Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Benevento (1574–1607). ,
Archbishop of Benevento,
Annibale de Capua,
Archbishop of Naples, and
Guillaume Damasi Van der Linden,
Bishop of Roermond, serving as
co-consecrators.
Pope Sixtus V
Pope Sixtus V ( it, Sisto V; 13 December 1521 – 27 August 1590), born Felice Piergentile, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 1585 to his death in August 1590. As a youth, he joined the Franciscan order ...
gave him the title of cardinal on 18 December 1585. In the same year he was appointed as Latin
Patriarch of Alexandria
The Patriarch of Alexandria is the archbishop of Alexandria, Egypt. Historically, this office has included the designation "pope" (etymologically "Father", like "Abbot").
The Alexandrian episcopate was revered as one of the three major epis ...
, a position he held until 1587. In 1585 to 1587 he was legate in
Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language, Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 1 ...
, and recommended
Galileo Galilei
Galileo di Vincenzo Bonaiuti de' Galilei (15 February 1564 – 8 January 1642) was an Italian astronomer, physicist and engineer, sometimes described as a polymath. Commonly referred to as Galileo, his name was pronounced (, ). He w ...
to the university there in 1588. The chair, however, went to
Giovanni Antonio Magini
Giovanni Antonio Magini (in Latin, Maginus) (13 June 1555 – 11 February 1617) was an Italian astronomer, astrologer, cartographer, and mathematician.
His Life
He was born in Padua, and completed studies in philosophy in Bologna in 1579. ...
.
Diplomat in France
In 1589 Caetani led the papal diplomatic mission to
France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...
sent to defend the Catholic church position during the
French wars of religion
The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholics and Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estimates, between two and four mil ...
. He was accompanied by
Lorenzo Bianchetti,
Robert Bellarmine and others in a strong delegation. Caetani supported the
Catholic League and the Spanish interest against
Henry of Navarre. In March 1590 he presided over a ceremony in which militia and city officials took an oath to defend Paris against Henry. He blessed in May the monastic forces raised by
Guillaume Rose for the defence. He was a defender during the
Siege of Paris that year, spending heavily.
Later life
After the death of
William Allen William Allen may refer to:
Politicians
United States
*William Allen (congressman) (1827–1881), United States Representative from Ohio
* William Allen (governor) (1803–1879), U.S. Representative, Senator, and 31st Governor of Ohio
* Willia ...
in 1594, there was no generally acceptable candidate as successor, to lead the English mission. Caetani took on the role of
Cardinal Protector. He then appointed
George Blackwell as
archpriest for England.
[Paul Arblaster, ''Antwerp and the World: Richard Verstegan and the international culture of Catholic reformation'' (2004), p. 63]
Google Books
He served as
legate a latere in Poland from 3 April 1596 until 23 June 1597.
He died in Rome in 1599.
References
External links
WorldCat pagetreccani.it biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Caetani, Enrico
1550 births
1599 deaths
Enrico
People from the Province of Latina
16th-century Italian cardinals
16th-century Italian diplomats
Diplomats of the Holy See
16th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops