Giuseppe Maria Capece Zurlo, Theat. (3 January 1711, Monteroni di Lecce,

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

– 31 December 1801) was an Italian

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 ...

who served as

Archbishop of Naples The Archdiocese of Naples () is a Latin Catholic archdiocese in southern Italy, the see being in Naples. A Christian community was founded there in the 1st century AD and the diocese of Naples was raised to the level of an Archdiocese in the 10 ...

. Capece Zurlo was born in Monteroni di Lecce, Apulia, into the noble family of the princes of Zurlo. He was the son of Prince Giacomo Capece Zurlo and Ippolita Sambiase, of the princes of Campana di Portanova.

Education

He entered the

Theatines The Theatines, officially named the Congregation of Clerics Regular (; abbreviated CR), is a Catholic order of clerics regular of pontifical right for men founded by Archbishop Gian Pietro Carafa on 14 September 1524. Foundation The order wa ...

, or Congregation of the Clerks Regular of the Divine Providence, and made his profession on 6 January 1727. He received the

diaconate A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian denominations, such as the Catholi ...

on 28 February 1733. He studied philosophy and theology in Theatine houses of study in Rome.

Priesthood

He was

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 ...

on 19 December 1733. In his order he served as lector of philosophy, at the House of the Santi Apostoli, for nine years; and as lector of theology, minister, consultor, vice-provost and lector of philosophy, in the House of San Silvestro, Rome. When he was about to be elected procurator general in 1756, the pope appointed him Bishop of Calvi, on 24 May 1756; he was consecrated three days later.

Cardinalate

He was created cardinal and promoted to the metropolitan see of Naples on 16 December 1782, and was installed as

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 ...

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 ...

on 17 February 1783. He was decorated by King Ferdinand IV of Sicily with the grand cross of the

Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George The Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George (; ), also historically referred to as the Imperial Constantinian Order of Saint George and the Order of the Constantinian Angelic Knights of Saint George, is a dynastic order of knighthood ...

in 1783 and was named Knight of the Order of Saint Januarius in 1790. In 1799 he tried to avoid the popular uprising encouraged by the

Sanfedismo ''Sanfedismo'' (from ''Santa Fede'', "Holy Faith" in Italian) was a popular anti-Jacobin movement, organized by Fabrizio Cardinal Ruffo, which mobilized peasants of the Kingdom of Naples against the pro-French Parthenopaean Republic in 1799, ...

revolt organized by Cardinal

Fabrizio Ruffo Fabrizio Dionigi Ruffo (16 September 1744 – 13 December 1827) was an Italian cardinal and politician, who led the popular anti-Jacobin '' Sanfedismo'' movement (whose members were known as the ''Sanfedisti''). Biography Ruffo was born at San ...

against the

French Revolutionary army The French Revolutionary Army () was the French land force that fought the French Revolutionary Wars from 1792 to 1802. In the beginning, the French armies were characterised by their revolutionary fervour, their poor equipment and their great nu ...

of General Championnet. He did not participate in the Papal conclave, 1799-1800, which elected

Pope Pius VII Pope Pius VII (; born Barnaba Niccolò Maria Luigi Chiaramonti; 14 August 1742 – 20 August 1823) was head of the Catholic Church from 14 March 1800 to his death in August 1823. He ruled the Papal States from June 1800 to 17 May 1809 and again ...

.California State University at Northridge website, ''Sede Vacante, 1799-1800''
/ref>

Death

He died on 31 December 1801 at the

monastery A monastery is a building or complex of buildings comprising the domestic quarters and workplaces of Monasticism, monastics, monks or nuns, whether living in Cenobitic monasticism, communities or alone (hermits). A monastery generally includes a ...

of Monte Vergine,

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

Honors

Sacro Militare Ordine Costantiniano di San Giorgio

Constantinian Order of Saint George (1783) Insigne e reale ordine di San Gennaro

Order of San Gennaro (1790)

References

External links

Catholic Hierarchy: career summary
{{DEFAULTSORT:Capece Zurlo, Giuseppe 1711 births 1801 deaths People from the Province of Lecce 17th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops Theatines Archbishops of Naples 18th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops