Gaetano Bedini (15 May 1806 – 6 September 1864) was an Italian ecclesiastic, cardinal, and diplomat of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

Biography

Bedini was born in

Senigallia Senigallia (or Sinigaglia in Old Italian; ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) and port town on Italy's Adriatic Sea, Adriatic coast. It is situated in the province of Ancona, in the Italian region of Marche, and lies approximately 30 kilometres nor ...

into the Bedini family of Ostra, the son of Alessandro Pellegrino and Marianna Spadoni. The youngest of 7 sons, Bedini was intended by his father to be a priest. He entered the seminary at Senigallia and was ordained a

Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...

priest on 20 December 1828 by Cardinal

Fabrizio Sceberras Testaferrata Fabrizio Sceberras Testaferrata (1 April 1757 - 3 August 1843) was a native of Malta and a bishop and cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was Bishop of Senigallia from 1818 until his death in 1843. Biography Testaferrata was born to a noble fami ...

. In the following years he became canon of the cathedral of Senigallia (1829–1838). Thanks to influential friends, including Giovanni Mastai Ferretti (the future

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX (; born Giovanni Maria Battista Pietro Pellegrino Isidoro Mastai-Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878. His reign of nearly 32 years is the longest verified of any pope in hist ...

, also native of Senigallia), he dedicated himself to politics. He was secretary of Lodovico Altieri,

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

Ephesus Ephesus (; ; ; may ultimately derive from ) was an Ancient Greece, ancient Greek city on the coast of Ionia, in present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in the 10th century BC on the site of Apasa, the former Arzawan capital ...

and

nuncio An apostolic nuncio (; 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 organization. A nuncio is ...

Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...

from 1838 to 1845. When Lodovico Altieri was named cardinal, Bedini gained exposure to the diplomatic atmosphere, and he was subsequently called to Rome as Papal Chamberlain of Gregorius XVI and the Protonotary apostolic.

Apostolic nunziatura in Brazil

The first important assignment received by Bedini was that of

Internuncio An apostolic nuncio (; 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 organization. A nuncio is ...

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, from 28 October 1845 to 16 August 1847. He worked for the improvement of the living conditions of German immigrants and supported Catholicism against the Protestant proselytism. His work led the Chamber of Deputies of

Rio de Janeiro Rio de Janeiro, or simply Rio, is the capital of the Rio de Janeiro (state), state of Rio de Janeiro. It is the List of cities in Brazil by population, second-most-populous city in Brazil (after São Paulo) and the Largest cities in the America ...

to improve the living conditions of the German immigrants. Cardinal Bedini2

Contacts with Garibaldi

Giuseppe Garibaldi Giuseppe Maria Garibaldi ( , ;In his native Ligurian language, he is known as (). In his particular Niçard dialect of Ligurian, he was known as () or (). 4 July 1807 – 2 June 1882) was an Italian general, revolutionary and republican. H ...

, who was also living in South America at the time, wrote a famous letter to Bedini in 1847 in which he declared "to offer to Pius IX its sword and the Italian legion for the native land and the church", remembered "the garnishments of our August religion, always new and always immortal" and reminded that "the throne of

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a su ...

rests over such foundations that need no aid because the human forces cannot shake them". Bedini replied thanking him, but the offer to Rome of the Roman legion was never received.

Roman Republic and legation in Bologna

Returning to Rome in March 1848, Bedini replaced the

Cardinal Secretary of State The Secretary of State of His Holiness (; ), also known as the Cardinal Secretary of State or the Vatican Secretary of State, presides over the Secretariat of State of the Holy See, the oldest and most important dicastery of the Roman Curia. Th ...

Giacomo Antonelli Giacomo Antonelli (2 April 1806 – 6 November 1876) was an Italian Catholic prelate who served as Cardinal Secretary of State for the Holy See from 1848 until his death. He played a key role in Italian politics, resisting the unification o ...

, from 10 March 1848 until November 1848 following Pius IX when he was forced into exile in Gaeta, by the Roman Republic (1849) revolution in Rome. Once the Pope had recovered his temporal power, Bedini continued his job of Papal Nuncio and commissioner in the

Legation A legation was a diplomatic representative office of lower rank than an embassy. Where an embassy was headed by an ambassador, a legation was headed by a minister. Ambassadors outranked ministers and had precedence at official events. Legation ...

s to

Bologna Bologna ( , , ; ; ) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in northern Italy. It is the List of cities in Italy, seventh most populous city in Italy, with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nationalities. Its M ...

from 1849 to 1852. Just at the beginning of that period,

Ugo Bassi Ugo Bassi (12 August 1800 – 8 August 1849) was a Roman Catholic priest and Italian nationalist. Bassi was born at Cento, Emilia-Romagna, and received his early education at University of Bologna. An unhappy love affair induced him to become a ...

was captured at

Comacchio Comacchio (; ) is a town and ''comune'' of Emilia Romagna, Italy, in the province of Ferrara, from the provincial capital Ferrara. It was founded about two thousand years ago; across its history it was first governed by the Exarchate of Ravenna, ...

and executed on 8 August 1849 in Bologna by the Austrians. Many patriots accused Bedini of non-intervention in order to save himself. In his position at Bologna, however, he restored the

Palazzo d'Accursio 260px, Palazzo d'Accursio. Palazzo d'Accursio (or Palazzo Comunale) is a palace once formulated to house major administrative offices of the city of Bologna, region of Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It is located on the Piazza Maggiore, and is the city's ...

with the restyling of ''Sala Urbana'' and the construction of the ''Aula Piana'', he adopted provisions for the unemployed, favoured commerce with the construction of new roads, promoted agriculture, and restored important artistic monuments like the Villa San Michele in Foresta. Foto Cardinal Bedini1853

Apostolic nunciature in United States

On 15 March 1852 he was named titular Archbishop of Thebes, and, three days after,

Apostolic Nuncio An apostolic nuncio (; 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 organization. A nuncio is ...

. Once he received the archiepiscopal order on 4 July 1852 from cardinal

Luigi Lambruschini Luigi Lambruschini (6 March 1776 – 12 May 1854) was an Italian cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church in the mid nineteenth century. He was a member of the Clerics Regular of St. Paul and served in the diplomatic corps of the Holy See. Biograp ...

, he decided to leave for Brazil, but since he could not enter the country because of a plague epidemic, he went to the United States. He was the first Papal Nuncio in the United States. He arrived in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

on 30 June 1853. He became the target of attacks by non-Catholics because of his role in overthrowing the Anti-Papal

Roman Republic The Roman Republic ( ) was the era of Ancient Rome, classical Roman civilisation beginning with Overthrow of the Roman monarchy, the overthrow of the Roman Kingdom (traditionally dated to 509 BC) and ending in 27 BC with the establis ...

in 1849, and his visit triggered the

Cincinnati Riot of 1853 Cincinnati ( ; colloquially nicknamed Cincy) is a city in Hamilton County, Ohio, United States, and its county seat. Settled in 1788, the city is located on the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which ...

in which several hundred men marched in protest against his visit. While travelling, Bedini met the president of the United States,

Franklin Pierce Franklin Pierce (November 23, 1804October 8, 1869) was the 14th president of the United States, serving from 1853 to 1857. A northern Democratic Party (United States), Democrat who believed that the Abolitionism in the United States, abolitio ...

, to whom he delivered a letter from the Pope, and the American Secretary of State,

William L. Marcy William Learned Marcy (December 12, 1786July 4, 1857) was an American lawyer, politician, and judge who served as U.S. Senator, the eleventh Governor of New York, U.S. Secretary of War and the twenty-first U.S. Secretary of State. In the la ...

. He ordained some new bishops, amongst whom were

James Roosevelt Bayley James Roosevelt Bayley (August 23, 1814 – October 3, 1877) was an Catholic Church in the United States, American Catholic prelate who served as the first Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Newark, Bishop of Newark (1853–1872) and as Roman Ca ...

, Bishop of the Diocese of Newark; John Loughlin, bishop of the Diocese of Brooklyn; and Louis De Goesbriand, bishop of the Diocese of Burlington. After visiting New York,

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

Louisville Louisville is the most populous city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky, sixth-most populous city in the Southeast, and the 27th-most-populous city in the United States. By land area, it is the country's 24th-largest city; however, by populatio ...

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

, and

Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...

, he returned to Rome from

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

in January 1854.

Possition in Curia

After returning to Italy he worked more intensely in the

Roman Curia The Roman Curia () comprises the administrative institutions of the Holy See and the central body through which the affairs of the Catholic Church are conducted. The Roman Curia is the institution of which the Roman Pontiff ordinarily makes use ...

. On 20 June 1856 he was named General Secretary of the Sacred Congregation for the Propaganda of the Faith. He also initiated some plans such as the constitution of the North American College to Rome that with his aid had bought a building on Humility Street on 22 September 1858. After having resolved all the bureaucratic problems this institute was inaugurated on 8 December 1859. Chiesa Bedini

Cardinal of Viterbo

In March 1861, Bedini was named Bishop of Viterbo and Tuscanella (today's

Tuscania Tuscania is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Viterbo, Lazio Region, Italy. Until the late 19th century the town was known as Toscanella. History Antiquity According to the legend, Tuscania was founded by Aeneas' son, Ascanius, wher ...

). He entered the city 8 May 1861 from the Porta Romana, met by the Community and the Clergy, and went to the cathedral through the illuminated streets. He opened the pastoral visit by going to several of the counties of the diocese and taking care of the sacred places, the monasteries, and especially of the

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

, where his generosity left considerable debts on his death; in the seminary he improved the instruction (calling Pietro Artemi from

Bagnoregio Bagnoregio () is a (municipality) in the Province of Viterbo in the Italian region of Lazio, located about northwest of Rome and about north of Viterbo. History The current main town was in ancient times a suburb of the hill town in the sa ...

for the rhetorical school), arranged the cleaning of the premises and enlarged the building with the purchase of the Cristofari palace. 27 September 1861 he was created

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 ...

of the Order of the Priests with

Santa Maria sopra Minerva Santa Maria sopra Minerva is one of the major Church (building), churches of the Order of Preachers (also known as the Dominicans) in Rome, Italy. The church's name derives from the fact that the first Christian church structure on the site was b ...

as his titular church.

Death

Cardinal Bedini died on the morning of 6 September 1864 at 59 years old, probably of an apoplectic stroke. The people of the city of

Viterbo Viterbo (; Central Italian, Viterbese: ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in the Lazio region of Italy, the Capital city, capital of the province of Viterbo. It conquered and absorbed the neighboring town of Ferento (see Ferentium) in ...

grieved immensely at the unexpected news. The theatre was closed in sign of mourning, although there were many people in the city. He was buried in the Cathedral of the city, in a beautiful monument in marble, near his predecessor as bishop, Saint Matteo Gonella. In

Luigi Magni Luigi Magni (21 March 1928 – 27 October 2013) was an Italian screenwriter and film director. Life and career Born in Rome, Italy, Magni started his career as a screenwriter, in 1956, with '' Tempo di villeggiatura''. In 1968 he collabo ...

's film ''

In the Name of the Sovereign People ''In the Name of the Sovereign People'' () is a 1990 Italian historical comedy drama film written and directed by Luigi Magni. The film takes place during the First Italian War of Independence. It won the David di Donatello for best costumes. ...

'' (1990), Bedini is played by

Luigi De Filippo Luigi De Filippo (10 August 1930 – 31 March 2018) was an Italian actor, stage director and playwright. Born in Naples, the son of actors Peppino De Filippo and Adele Carloni, he studied literature at the university, leaving the studies on the ...

References

* Artemi, Pietro - Elogio funebre del cardinale Gaetano Bedini Arciv. Vescovo di Viterbo e Toscanella letto de' solenni funerali degli 8 settembri 1864 nella chiesa cattedrale viterbese / - Viterbo - 1864 * Bedini, Gaetano - Agli alunni del Pontificio Collegio Urbano in propaganda : parole dette da Monsig. Gaetano Bedini nella solenne messa pontificale per l'Epifania del 1861 - Roma - 1861 * Bedini, Gaetano - '' 14 you open them 1850. State of the Church, Papal Government. We Gaetano Bedini, Patrizio Sinigalliese… Extraordinary Papal Commissioner of S.S. Pope Pio IX and For-Legacy of Bologna. People of the Legations. … Today he is given us of being able to you to announce that Devout immortale already IX is found in its Rome and with It shines of new in the Vatican the twofold Maestà of the Pontefice and the Monarch… '' - Bologna, Governmental Printing office to the Vixen. Millimeter 781x530. * '' Biographical Dictionary of the Italians '' - pp. 520–522 * *Connelly, James F. - The visit of archbishop Gaetano Bedini to the United States of America (June, 1853 - February, 1854) / James F. Connelly - Roma - 1960 * Sanfilippo, Matteo - '' Monsignor Gaetano Bedini and the emigration towards the Americas '' in '' Studies Emigration '' - 106 (1992) - pp. 277–286 53. * Polverari, Alberto - '' Cronotassi of the bishops of Senigallia '' - p. 142 * Mencucci, Mons. Angel - '' Senigallia and its Diocese '' - and Fortune - pp. 139–147 * Mounts Guarnieri, Giovanni - '' Annals of Senigallia '' - tip. Situated - Ancona - p. 315-316 377 *

Vatican Secret Archives The Vatican Apostolic Archive (; ), formerly known as the Vatican Secret Archive (; ), is the central repository in the Vatican City of all acts promulgated by the Holy See. The Pope, as the sovereign of Vatican City, owns the material held ...

, '' Sacrae Visitationes '' - "Visit Gaetano Bedini, 1861" - vol. I-VI

External links

catholic-hierarchy
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bedini, Gaetano 1806 births 1864 deaths People from Senigallia 19th-century Italian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Pius IX 19th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops Apostolic pronotaries Apostolic nuncios to the United States Apostolic nuncios to Brazil Latin archbishops of Thebes