Francesco Sforza (

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

, 6 November 1562 –

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, 5 February 1624) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, a Romance ethnic group related to or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance languag ...

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal most commonly refers to * Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of three species in the family Cardinalidae ***Northern cardinal, ''Cardinalis cardinalis'', the common cardinal of ...

and

bishop A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...

. He was very influential in a number of conclaves.

Biography

Background and early career in the military

A member of the

House of Sforza The House of Sforza () was a ruling family of Renaissance Italy, based in Milan. Sforza rule began with the family's acquisition of the Duchy of Milan following the extinction of the Visconti family in the mid-15th century and ended with the d ...

, Francesco Sforza was born in

on 6 November 1562, the son of Sforza Sforza of Santa Fiora, 1st Marquess of Castell'Arquato, 11th Count of

Santa Fiora Santa Fiora is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Grosseto, in the Italian region of Tuscany, located about southeast of Florence and about east of Grosseto. Santa Fiora borders the following municipalities: Abbadia San Salvatore, ...

(1520 -

Castell'Arquato Castell'Arquato (; Piacentino (dialect), Piacentino: or ) is an Italian town located on the first hills of Val D’Arda in the province of Piacenza, in Emilia-Romagna, approximately from Piacenza and from Parma. Places nearby include Bacedasco ...

, 21 October 1555), by his second wife Caterina de' Nobili (? - 12 December 1605), a grandniece of

Pope Julius III Pope Julius III (; ; 10 September 1487 – 23 March 1555), born Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 February 1550 to his death, in March 1555. After a career as a disting ...

. He was the 2nd Marquess of Castell'Arquato, 1st Marquess of Varzi and 12th Count of Santa Fiora. He was the nephew of Cardinals

Guido Ascanio Sforza di Santa Fiora Guido Ascanio Sforza di Santa Fiora (26 November 1518 – 6 October 1564) was an Italian Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinal, known also as ''The cardinal of Santa Fiora''. Life Born in Rome, he was the eldest son of Costanza Farnese and therefor ...

Roberto de' Nobili Roberto de Nobili (1577 – 16 January 1656) was an Italian priest, a member of the Society of Jesus (Jesuits), who worked as a missionary in Southern India. He used novel methods to preach Christianity, adopting many local customs of India whi ...

, and

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 ...

, and paternal grandson of

Costanza Farnese Costanza Farnese (19 December 1500 – 23 May 1545) 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 married Bosio II Sforza, ...

(daughter of Alessandro Farnese, later Pope Paul III. He received a military education under

Ottavio Farnese, Duke of Parma Ottavio Farnese (9 October 1524 – 18 September 1586) reigned as Duke of Parma and Piacenza from 1547 until his death and Duke of Castro from 1545 to 1547 and from 1553 until his death. Biography Born in Valentano, Ottavio was the second so ...

and later at the

court A court is an institution, often a government entity, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between Party (law), parties and Administration of justice, administer justice in Civil law (common law), civil, Criminal law, criminal, an ...

Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany Francesco I (25 March 1541 – 19 October 1587) was the second Grand Duke of Tuscany, ruling from 1574 until his death in 1587. He was a member of the House of Medici. Biography Born in Florence, Francesco was the son of Cosimo I de' Med ...

. He also studied

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

rhetoric Rhetoric is the art of persuasion. It is one of the three ancient arts of discourse ( trivium) along with grammar and logic/ dialectic. As an academic discipline within the humanities, rhetoric aims to study the techniques that speakers or w ...

mathematics Mathematics is a field of study that discovers and organizes methods, Mathematical theory, theories and theorems that are developed and Mathematical proof, proved for the needs of empirical sciences and mathematics itself. There are many ar ...

philosophy Philosophy ('love of wisdom' in Ancient Greek) is a systematic study of general and fundamental questions concerning topics like existence, reason, knowledge, Value (ethics and social sciences), value, mind, and language. It is a rational an ...

, and

politics Politics () is the set of activities that are associated with decision-making, making decisions in social group, groups, or other forms of power (social and political), power relations among individuals, such as the distribution of Social sta ...

. He married a sister of Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany. At age 18, he served in

Flanders Flanders ( or ; ) is the Dutch language, Dutch-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to culture, la ...

under his cousin

Alexander Farnese, Duke of Parma Alexander Farnese (, ; 27 August 1545 – 3 December 1592) was an Italian noble and military leader, who was Duke of Parma, Piacenza and Castro from 1586 to 1592, as well as Governor of the Spanish Netherlands from 1578 to 1592. Nephew to Kin ...

; he commanded Italian troops.

Early ecclesiastical career

Following his wife's death, his half-sister

Costanza Sforza, duchess of Sora Costanza Sforza of Santa Fiora (1550 – 22 January 1617) was an Italian noblewoman. By birth she was member of the powerful House of Sforza and by marriage member of the House of Boncompagni. Early life Costanza was daughter of Sforza Sforz ...

, who was married to

Giacomo Boncompagni Giacomo Boncompagni (also ''Jacopo Boncompagni''; 8 May 1548 – 18 August 1612) was an Italian feudal lord of the 16th century, the illegitimate son of Pope Gregory XIII (Ugo Boncompagni). He was also Duke of Sora, Aquino, Arce and Arpino, a ...

, the legitimized son of

Pope Gregory XIII Pope Gregory XIII (, , born Ugo Boncompagni; 7 January 1502 – 10 April 1585) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 May 1572 to his death in April 1585. He is best known for commissioning and being the namesake ...

, encouraged him to pursue an ecclesiastical career. He became a cleric in

and rose quickly in the church, first becoming a

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the material accepted as officially written by an author or an ascribed author * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western canon, th ...

of the

cathedral chapter According to both Catholic and Anglican canon law, a cathedral chapter is a college of clerics ( chapter) formed to advise a bishop and, in the case of a vacancy of the episcopal see in some countries, to govern the diocese during the vacancy. In ...

San Nicola in Carcere San Nicola in Carcere (Italian, "Saint Nicholas in prison") is an ancient titular church and minor basilica in Rome near the Forum Boarium in rione Ripa. It is constructed in the remains of the three temples of the Forum Holitorium and is one o ...

before he had even been

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration in Christianity, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominationa ...

as a

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deity, deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in parti ...

Cardinalate

Pope Gregory XIII made him a

cardinal deacon A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. C ...

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 12 December 1583. He received the

red hat Red Hat, Inc. (formerly Red Hat Software, Inc.) is an American software company that provides open source software products to enterprises and is a subsidiary of IBM. Founded in 1993, Red Hat has its corporate headquarters in Raleigh, North ...

and the deaconry of

San Giorgio in Velabro San Giorgio in Velabro is a Catholic church dedicated to St. George on Via del Velabro in the historic center of Rome in the Velabrum and the Ripa district. The church—the result of the 9th century expansion of a previous diaconal building ...

on 6 January 1584, but later exchanged it for

Santa Maria in Via Lata Santa Maria in Via Lata is a church on the Via del Corso (the ancient Via Lata), in Rome, Italy. It stands diagonal from the church of San Marcello al Corso. It is the stational church for Tuesday in the fifth week of lent. History The first ...

. He participated in the papal conclave of 1585 that elected

Pope Sixtus V Pope Sixtus 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, where h ...

; and in the first papal conclave of 1590 that elected

Pope Urban VII Pope Urban VII (; ; 4 August 1521 – 27 September 1590), born Giovanni Battista Castagna, was head of the Catholic Church, and ruler of the Papal States from 15 to 27 September 1590. His papacy was the shortest recognized in history. Castagn ...

. Contemporary newspapers reported that a disagreement between Cardinals

Ascanio Colonna Ascanio Colonna (April 3, 1560 – May 17, 1608) was an Italian Cardinal who in his lifetime enjoyed a reputation for eloquence and learning.Franca Petrucci,Colonna, Ascanio, in ''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani'', vol. 27 (1982) Life Colon ...

and Sforza di Santa Fiora during the conclave nearly became violent. In the second papal conclave of 1590 he was a member of the Gregorian faction and threw his support to Niccolò Sfondrati, who was elected

Pope Gregory XIV Pope Gregory XIV (; ; 11 February 1535 – 16 October 1591), born Niccolò Sfondrato or Sfondrati, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 5 December 1590 to his death, in October 1591. Early career Niccolò S ...

. He also participated in the papal conclave of 1591 that elected

Pope Innocent IX Pope Innocent IX (; ; 20 July 1519 – 30 December 1591), born Giovanni Antonio Facchinetti, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 October to 30 December 1591. Prior to his short papacy, he had been a canon ...

. In the papal conclave of 1592, Sforza opposed

Philip II of Spain Philip II (21 May 152713 September 1598), sometimes known in Spain as Philip the Prudent (), was King of Spain from 1556, King of Portugal from 1580, and King of Naples and List of Sicilian monarchs, Sicily from 1554 until his death in 1598. He ...

's candidate,

Giulio Antonio Santorio Giulio Antonio Santorio (6 June 1532 – 9 May 1602) was an Italian Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church. Biography Santorio was born in Caserta. He served as Archbishop of Santa Severina from 1566 until his death.

. Sforza'a brother-in-law and French ally,

Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (30 July 1549 – 17 February 1609) was Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1587 to 1609, having succeeded his older brother Francesco I, who presumably died from malaria. Early life Ferdinando was the ...

secretly engineered the election of Ippolito Aldobrandini as

Pope Clement VIII Pope Clement VIII (; ; 24 February 1536 – 3 March 1605), born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 January 1592 to his death in March 1605. Born in Fano, Papal States to a prominen ...

. From 20 July 1591 until 1597 he was

papal legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the Pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title '' legatus'') is a personal representative of the Pope to foreign nations, to some other part of the Catho ...

Romagna Romagna () is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, in northern Italy. Etymology The name ''Romagna'' originates from the Latin name ''Romania'', which originally ...

, where he was charged with ridding the province of

bandits Banditry is a type of organized crime committed by outlaws typically involving the threat or use of violence. A person who engages in banditry is known as a bandit and primarily commits crimes such as extortion, robbery, kidnapping, and murder, e ...

, which he accomplished. He represented

at the

baptism Baptism (from ) is a Christians, Christian sacrament of initiation almost invariably with the use of water. It may be performed by aspersion, sprinkling or affusion, pouring water on the head, or by immersion baptism, immersing in water eit ...

of his nephew

Cosimo II de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany Cosimo II de' Medici (12 May 1590 – 28 February 1621) was Grand Duke of Tuscany from 1609 until his death. He was the elder son of Ferdinando I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany, and Christina of Lorraine. For the majority of his 12-year rei ...

. He accompanied the pope to

Ferrara Ferrara (; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Emilia-Romagna, Northern Italy, capital of the province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main ...

in 1598. He participated in the first papal conclave of 1605,Eubel, Konrad; van Gulik, Wilhelm. ''Hierarchia catholica medii et recentioris aevi'' he Catholic Hierarchy of the Middle and Recent Ages(in Latin). Vol. 3. Monasterii Sumptibus et typis librariae Regensbergianae. 1913, p. 47 where he had been angered by Spain's exclusion of

Caesar Baronius Cesare Baronio, C.O. (as an author also known as Caesar Baronius; 30 August 1538 – 30 June 1607) was an Italian Oratorian, cardinal and historian of the Catholic Church. His best-known works are his ''Annales Ecclesiastici'' ("Ecclesiast ...

. The conclave chose Alessandro Ottaviano de' Medici, who had also been excluded after the fact, as

Pope Leo XI Pope Leo XI (; 2 June 153527 April 1605), born Alessandro di Ottaviano de' Medici, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1 April 1605 to his death, on 27 April 1605. His pontificate is one of the briefest in history, ...

. He was also present at the second papal conclave of 1605 that elected

Pope Paul V Pope Paul V (; ) (17 September 1552 – 28 January 1621), born Camillo Borghese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 16 May 1605 to his death, in January 1621. In 1611, he honored Galileo Galilei as a mem ...

. Sforza crowned Pope Paul V in the

papal coronation A papal coronation was the formal ceremony of the placing of the papal tiara on a newly elected pope. The first recorded papal coronation was of Pope Nicholas I in 858. The most recent was the 1963 coronation of Paul VI, who soon afterwards aba ...

held on 29 May 1605. He was ordained as a priest in 1614. On 13 November 1617 he opted for the order of

cardinal priest A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. Ca ...

s and received the

titular church In the Catholic Church, a titular church () is a Churches in Rome, church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the Holy orders in the Catholic Church, clergy who is created a Cardinal (Catholic Church), cardinal. These are Catholic churches in ...

San Matteo in Via Merulana San Matteo in Via Merulana was a titular church in Rome, dedicated to the Apostle and Evangelist Matthew, for cardinal priests (the intermediary class). History San Matteo was first established as a titular church in 112 by Pope Alexander I, th ...

. He became the

protopriest The Protopriest of the College of Cardinals (, and, rare, ) in the College of Cardinals, is the first Cardinal-Priest in the order of precedence, hence directly after the Cardinal-bishops. This title is always attached to the most senior Cardi ...

of the

College of Cardinals The College of Cardinals (), also called the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. there are cardinals, of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Appointed by the pope, ...

. He opted for the order of

cardinal bishop A cardinal is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. As titular members of the clergy of the Diocese of Rome, they serve as advisors to the pope, who is the bishop of Rome and the visible head of the worldwide Catholic Church. C ...

on 5 March 1618, receiving the Suburbicarian Diocese of Albano. He was

consecrated 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 ...

as a bishop by Pope Paul V in the apostolic chapel of the

Quirinal Palace The Quirinal Palace ( ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, the main official residence of the President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporziano, an estate on the outs ...

on 1 May 1618. He opted for the Suburbicarian Diocese of Frascati on 6 April 1620. He participated in the papal conclave of 1621 that elected

Pope Gregory XV Pope Gregory XV (; ; 9 January 1554 – 8 July 1623), born Alessandro Ludovisi, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 February 1621 until his death in 1623. He is notable for founding the Congregation for the ...

and in the papal conclave of 1623 that elected

Pope Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII (; ; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death, in July 1644. As pope, he expanded the papal terri ...

. On 27 September 1623 he opted for the Suburbicarian Diocese of Porto-Santa Rufina. He was Vice-

Dean of the College of Cardinals The dean of the College of Cardinals () presides over the College of Cardinals in the Catholic Church, serving as ('first among equals'). The position was established in the 12th century. He always holds the rank of a cardinal bishop and is as ...

. He died in Rome on 9 September 1624. He was buried in

San Bernardo alle Terme is a Baroque style, Catholic abbatial church located on Via Torino 94 in the rione Castro Pretorio of Rome, Italy. It is affiliated with the Benedictine order. History The church was built on the remains of a circular tower, which marked a corn ...

, the church built by his mother."San Bernardo alle Terme", Churches of Rome
/ref>

Issue

By an unknown mistress he had: * Caterina Sforza (1587 - 1609), legitimized by

on 5 July 1599, married firstly on 19 November 1601

Fabrizio Savelli Fabrizio Savelli (1607 – 26 February 1659) was an Italian military leader, commander of papal troops and, later, a Catholic Cardinal. Early life Savelli was born in 1607 of the House of Savelli which included Pope Honorius IV (1285 - 1287) ...

of the Lords of Ariccia (? - 16 September 1605), 1st Prince of Albano, without issue, and married secondly on 2 August 1606 as his second wife Federico I de' Rossi (18 May 1580 - 22 March 1632), 5th Marquess of San Secondo, without issue By Cecilia Pariseni-Mezangola he had: * Sforza called Sforzino Sforza (1593 - Castell'Arquato, 5 February 1644), legitimized by

on 5 July 1599, 2nd Marquess of Varzi in 1604, 1st Duke of Fiano in 1607 with

Papal Bull A papal bull is a type of public decree, letters patent, or charter issued by the pope of the Catholic Church. It is named after the leaden Seal (emblem), seal (''bulla (seal), bulla'') traditionally appended to authenticate it. History Papal ...

of Pope Paul V until 1621, 3rd Marquess of Castell'Arquato in 1624, married in 1606 Maria di Rodolfo Pio di Carpi, already Lady of Meldola, separated, without issue

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sforza, Francesco 1562 births 1624 deaths 17th-century Italian cardinals House of Sforza