(1) 1. CAPRANICA, Angelo (ca. 1415-1478)

Birth. Ca. 1415, Rome. Son of de Niccoló Pantagati da Capranica and his wife, Iacobella. Brother of Cardinal Domenico Capranica (1423). The paternal last name was Pantagati but both brothers used as last name the name of the place where the family was from, Capranica. Called the Cardinal of S. Croce or of Rieti.

Education. "... dopo aver fatto regolarmente i suoi studi, e datto saggio di sè ..." (1).

Early life. Governor of Cesena.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected archbishop of Manfredonia, March 17, 1438. Consecrated (no information found). Transferred to the see of Ascoli Piceno, May 5, 1447; took possession of the see on July 2 of that same year. Transferred to the see of Rieti, September 25, 1450; resigned the see at the end of 1468; also, abbot comendatario of the Benedictine monastery of S. Eutitius in Spoleto. Named by Pope Pius II governor of Bologna in September 1458. Charged in 1459 with the inquiry for the cause of canonization of Bernardino di Siena, notably in Aquila and in Siena. After the death of his brother the cardinal, he enlarged his palace and made it into a residence for students in 1460; it became Collegio Capranica, the oldest of the Renaissance in Rome.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of March 5, 1460, celebrated in Siena; arrived in Siena on March 21, 1460 and on that same day received the red hat; received the title of S. Croce in Gerusalemme on March 26, 1460. Named legate a latere in Bologna, he left Siena on April 4, 1460; returned to Rome on December 31, 1460; went back to his legation on May 18, 1461; and returned to Rome the following November 17; went back to Bologna on February 23, 1462; on July 23, 1462 he wrote to congratulate the new Venetian doge, Ludovico Moro; went back to Siena on March 24, 1464. Participated in the conclave of 1464, which elected Pope Paul II. Named legate a latere in Bologna again on October 1, 1464; left Rome on January 12, 1465; returned the following November 27; went back to Bologna on May 6, 1466. In November 1466, resigned the commendam of the Vallombrosian of S. Pancrazio in Florence. Returned to Rome on January 10, 1468. On January 9, 1469, together with Cardinal Rodrigo Borja y Borja, accompanied Emperor Friedrich III from Rome to Viterbo. Resigned the commendam of the Vallombrosian monastery of S. Basilio di Cavata, diocese of Parma. February 27, 1469. Participated in the conclave of 1471, which elected Pope Sixtus IV. Named legate before the Italian princes for the crusade against the Turks, November 23, 1471. Opted for the order of cardinal bishops and the suburbicarian see of Palestrina, retaining in commendam his title of S. Croce in Gerusalemme, December 11, 1472. Named archbishop of Fermo on April 9, 1473; celebrated a synod; fell ill and returned to Rome on November 17, 1473; resigned the see in June 17, 1474. Named abbot commendatario of the Benedictine monastery of S. Bartolomeo in Ferrara, October 1, 1477. Abbot commendatario of the Benedictine monasteries of S. Sofia in Benevento, and S. Giovanni degli Eremiti in Palermo. Reintroduced in Italy the Order of the Cistercians.

Death. July 3, 1478, Rome. Buried on that same day in the tomb of his brother in the chapel of the Rosary of S. Catalina da Siena, in the left nave of the basilica of S. Maria sopra Minerva, Rome, without an epitaph. On the following November 5 began the nine days of funeral masses according to custom.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, III, 136-137; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1677, II, col. 1035 and 1272; "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;. Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933, Paris : Maison de la Bonne Presse, 1933, p. 131-132; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi. Volumen II (1431-1503). Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1914; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, pp. 13, 32, 33, 34, 35, 37, 38, 39, 41, 60, 62, 6, 154, 221, and 238; Moroni, Gaetano. Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica da S. Pietro sino ai nostri giorni. 103 vols. in 53. Venezia : Tipografia Emiliana, 1840-1861, IX, 213-214.

Webgraphy. His image, fresco by Antoniazzo Romano, Sala degli Affreschi, Collegio Capranica, Rome; his image, fresco by Antoniazzo Romano, chapel of Collegio Capranica; Angelo Capranica is the one on the right (of the observer) and his brother Domenico Capranica is on the left; his arms, no. 53, last row, in the middle; and Almo Collegio Capranica, Rome.

(1) Moroni, Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica da S. Pietro sino ai nostri giorni, IX, 213.

(2) 2. EROLI, Berardo (1409-1479)

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of March 5, 1460, celebrated in Siena; received the red hat on March 8, 1460; and the title of S. Sabina on March 19, 1460, in the church of S. Francesco fuori le mura, Siena. Abbot commendatario of the abbey of San Paolo alle Tre Fontane, Rome. Named legate a latere in Perugia; left from Piacenza, after the consistory, on August 27, 1462; went to Todi, where Pope Pius II was on December 13, 1462; returned to Perugia, retaining his legation until his death. He was in Tivoli with the pope on July 9, 1463. Rejoined the pope in Terni in June 1464 for to accompany him to Ancona. Did not participate in the conclave of 1464, which elected Pope Paul II. Together with Cardinal Johannes Bessarion and Juan Carvajal, he was a member of the commission to regulate the affairs of Bohemia in August 1465. Elected camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals on January 3, 1466; reelected on January 24, 1467 for a year. Participated in the conclave of 1471, which elected Pope Sixtus IV. Opted for the order of cardinal bishops and the suburbicarian see of Sabina, May 23, 1474. Vicar of Rome in 1475. He had a monastery and a hospital built in Narni.

Death. April 2, 1479 (2), Rome. Buried in the patriarchal Vatican basilica, Rome (3). His funeral did not take place until April 20, 1479 because of Easter.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, III, 137-140; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1677, II, col. 1036-1037 and 1273; "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;. Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933. Paris : Maison de la Bonne Presse, 1933, p.132; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi. Volumen II (1431-1503). Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1914; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, pp.13, 59, 60, 64 and 241; Moroni, Gaetano. Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica da S. Pietro sino ai nostri giorni. 103 vols. in 53. Venezia : Tipografia Emiliana, 1840-1861, XXII, 69-70.

Webgraphy. Biography by Anna Esposito, in Italian, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 43 (1993), Treccani; portrait and biography, in Italian; same portrait and biography, in Italian, pp. 8-9; his image, whose identification is not certain according to the page; and his arms, first row, no. 55, Araldica Vaticana.

(1) This is according to Cardella, Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa, III, 138; and Moroni, Dizionario di erudizione storico-ecclesiastica da S. Pietro sino ai nostri giorni, XXII, 69; his two biographies in Italian, linked above, say that he was of a noble family.
(2) This is according to "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;. Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933, p. 132; and Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi. , II, 13 and 60; Chacón,Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1037, in the cardinal's obituary, transcribed in note 3, says that he died on April 3, 1479.
(3) This is the text of his epitaph taken from Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1036-1037: SEDENTE XYSTO IV. PONTIFICE MAXIMO. Berardo Herulo Narniensi, Episcopo Sabinensis S. R. E. Cardinalis Spolitano, Pontificii, Ciuslisque Iuris summo interpreti, iustitiæ ac, religioniscultori, singulari integritate cunctis eximiis Romanæ curiæ honoribus functo, abstinetia, severitate insigne, humanæ vitæ exemplo, a Pio II. Pontifice Maximo Cardinali ob vietutem creato, cæteris Pontificibus, ac Patribus æque charo. Constantinus Episcopus Spolitanus avunculo B. M. posuit. Anno agens LXX communi omnium bonorum mærore, immortalis de se apud posteros amaredicta, Decessit iis. Non. Aprilis anno Salutis MCDLXXIX.

(3) 3. FORTIGUERRA, Niccolò (1419-1473)

Birth. October 7, 1419 (1), Pistoia. Of a noble family. Son of Bartolomeo Fortiguerra and his wife, Pippa. Relative of Pope Pius II on his mother's side. His last name is also listed as Forteguerri. Called the Cardinal of Teano.

Education. Studied law under Filippo dei Lazzari in Bologna and Siena; obtained a doctorate in utroque iure, both canon and civil law, in the latter.

Early life. Vice-treasurer of His Holiness. Governor of Viterbo. Both Popes Eugenius III and Nicholas V charged him with several missions. Familiar of Pope Pius II.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Teano, November 25, 1458; occupied the see until his death. Consecrated (no information found). Sent by the pope to Naples to negotiate the marriage between the niece of Pius II, Antonia Piccolomini, and a son of King Ferdinando I; he was successful and obtained for the church Benevento and Terracina.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of March 5, 1460, celebrated in Siena; received the red hat on March 8, 1460; and the title of S. Cecilia on March 19 in the church of S. Francesco fuori le mura, Siena. Elected camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals in 1462, for a part of the year. Named legate in Bologna; left Rome on February 22, 1462 at the head of the papal troops against Sigismondo Malatesta, who had occupied Romagna and Marches; the cardinal took Fano on September 23, 1463; reentered Rome the following November 21 after having submitted Fano to the obedience of Pope Pius II. On May 4, 1464, he was given the command of the fleet of the crusade against the Turks with the title of legate; shortly after, he went to Pisa to inspect the armament of the galleys; went on June 20, 1464 to Ancona to meet the pope; returned to Pisa; the fleet could not depart because of the plague and the death of Pope Pius II. Did not participate in the conclave of 1464, which elected Pope Paul II; he went to Rome and crowned the new pope because Cardinal Rodrigo Borja y Borja, who was the cardinal protodeacon, was ill. In 1465, he entered in campaign against Deifobo d'Anguilara, who had ravaged the Papal States; he occupied thirteen castles in twelve days and forced Deifobo to seek refuge in Venice. Participated in the conclave of 1471, which elected Pope Sixtus IV. He was a protector of writers and artists. Founded in Pistoia a collegio called "La Sapienza"; a library was established in it after 1528 and was named after him; the library was expanded in 1811 and in 1860. Named legate in Viterbo. Fell ill in that city and died.

Death. December 21, 1473, Viterbo. His body was transferred to Rome on December 24, 1473 and buried in the church of S. Cecilia in Trastevere, Rome (2); his tomb was sculpted by Mino de Fiesole. The funeral took place on December 30, 1473. In 1865, a monument in his honor was erected in front of the palace of the podestà in Pistoia, work of Cesare Sighinolfi.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, III, 140-142; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1677, II, col. 1037-1039 and 1271; "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;. Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933. Paris : Maison de la Bonne Presse, 1933, p. 132-134; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi. Volumen II (1431-1503). Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1914; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, pp. 13, 59, 61 and 249.

Webgraphy. Biography by Anna Esposito, in Italian, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 49 (1997), Treccani; his tomb in the church of S. Cecilia in Trastevere, Rome, The Australian National University; more views of his tomb, Requiem Datenbank; and his cenotaph in the cathedral of Pistoia, Italy, commissioned to Andrea del Verrocchio (1477) but done in several phases and finished in the 17th century by L. Lotti, diocese of Pistoia; his arms, Araldica Vaticana.

(1) This date is arrived at by deducting from the date of his death, the number of years, months and days that his epitaph, transcribed in note 2, says that he lived; "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;. Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933, p. 132, says that he was born in January 1419.
(2) This is the text of his epitaph taken from: Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1039: NICOLAO. PISTORIENSI. COGNOMENTO. FORTIGVERRA. S. CÆCILIÆ. PRESBYTERO. CAR. EXPVGNATO. FANO. SVPERATA. FLAMINIA. DEVICTIS. SABINIS. EVERSANISQ. HOSTIBVS. DE. ECCLESIA. BENEMERITO. FRATRES PIENTISSIMI. FACIVDVM. CVRAVARVNT. IS. VT. FORTIS. INVICTI. ITA. DOMI. SENTENTIIS. DICENDIS. GRAVIS. ET. CONSTANTIS. ANIMI. EST. HABITVS. VIXIT. AN. LIIII. MENS. II. DIES. XIIII. MCDLXXIII.

(4) 4. OLIVA, O.E.S.A., Alessandro (1407-1463)

Webgraphy. Biography, in Latin, under "Oliva Fr. Alexander"; portrait and biography in Italian; brief biography, in Italian; biography, also in Italian; his image on a mural, sacristy of the cathedral of Bergamo, Italy; his tomb in S. Agostino, Rome; and his epitaph.

(1) This is according to the first, third and fourth biographies linked above; Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;. Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933, p. 134, says that he was born in 1408; his epitaph indicates that he died at 55 in 1463.
(2) This is according to all the sources consulted except his fourth biography, linked above, which says that he was born in Fossombrone.
(3) It remained in Rome until it was returned to the Patriarch of Constantinople by Pope Paul VI in 1967.
(4) This is the text of his epitaph taken from Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1043:

(5) 5. TODESCHINI-PICCOLOMINI, Francesco (1439-1503)

Birth. May 29, 1439, Siena. Fourth child of Nanno Todeschini and Laudomia Piccolomini. Nephew of Pope Pius II, on his mother's side. His uncle the pope allowed him to assume the name and arms of the Piccolomini family. Uncle of Cardinal Giovanni Piccolomini (1517). Other cardinals of the family were Celio Piccolomini (1664); Enea Silvio Piccolomini (1766); and Giacomo Piccolomini (1844). His last name is also listed as Piccolomini Todeschini. He was called the Cardinal of Siena.

Education. Studied law at the University of Perugia and obtained a doctorate; his uncle the pope arranged for his studies.

Early life. Protonotary apostolic. Familiar of Pope Pius II.

Episcopate. Administrator of the new metropolitan see of Siena, February 6, 1460; kept the post until his election to the papacy; he had been given the title and insignias of archbishop on April 23, 1459, but would not receive the episcopal consecration until he became pope. For many years, he was protector of England and Germany.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal deacon in the consistory of March 5, 1460, celebrated in Siena; arrived in Siena on March 21, 1460; received the red hat in the cathedral of Siena on that same day; received the deaconry of S. Eustachio on March 26 1460. Named legate a latere in the Marche di Piceno; he left Siena on April 30, 1460; returned to Rome on February 1, 1461; went back to his legation the following June 1; returned to Rome on November 8, 1461. He went to Narni with Cardinals Johannes Bessarion and Alessandro Oliva, O.E.S.A. in April 1462 to take to Rome the skull of the Apostle St. Andrew. Archdeacon of Brabant in the cathedral of Cambrai from 1462 until 1503. On November 9, 1463, he went to Pienza for sometime because of the plague. When Pope Pius II went to Ancona on June 18, 1464, he named the cardinal, on June 11, his legate in Rome and the Papal States for the duration of his absence. Participated in the conclave of 1464, which elected Pope Paul II. He was charged with receiving Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich III at the door of Rome on December 24, 1468. Resigned the commendam of the Cistercian monastery of S. Salvatore Montisarmati, in Siena, on May 15, 1469; and received the Benedictine monastery of Quarto, in that same archdiocese. Because of his knowledge of German, he was named legate in Germany on February 18, 1471; he left for his legation on March 18 and arrived in Regensburg on May to attended the Diet; he had little success; returned to Rome on December 27 and was received in public consistory by the new Pope Sixtus IV. He did not participate in the conclave of 1471, which elected Pope Sixtus IV because he was in Germany. Cardinal protodeacon in August 1471. On March 19, 1483, he resigned the commendam of the Benedictine monastery of S. Maria inter Montes, diocese of Genève. Participated in the conclave of 1484, which elected Pope Innocent VIII; as cardinal protodeacon, he announced to the people the election of the new pope and crowned him on September 11, 1484. Named administrator of the see of Fermo on February 21, 1485; resigned the post on May 26, 1494 in favor of Agostino Piccolomini; was named again when the latter ceased in 1496 and kept it until his election to the papacy. On November 5, 1488, he was named legate a latere in Perugia; left for his legation on November 11; pacified the city and regulated the borders of the cities of Foligno and Spello, which were in conflict; returned definitively to Rome on November 15, 1489; on November 20, he went to the Apostolic Palace to greet the pope, who had just returned from Ostia. Participated in the conclave of 1492, which elected Pope Alexander VI; he crowned new pope on August 20, 1492 in the steps of the patriarchal Vatican basilica. Named legate a latere before King Charles VIII of France on October 1, 1493; left for his legation on October 17; the king arrived in Tuscany and was in Lucca on November 8; the monarch did not receive the cardinal and the latter returned to Rome on March 5, 1495. He went to Orvieto with the pope on May 27, 1495, leaving Rome ahead of the French troops. Named administrator of the see of Pienza e Montalcino on October 31, 1495; occupied the post until March 1498; was succeeded by Girolamo Piccolomini. In August 1497, he named member of a commission of six cardinals to prepare the bull of reform of the church that the pope signed. On August 30, 1497, he resigned the commendam of the Benedictine monastery of S. Maria di Caramagna, archdiocese of Turin; and on April 30, 1498, that of the Camaldolese monastery of Rocca, diocese of Arezzo. On February 8, 1501, he was named member of a commission of the three cardinal heads of orders charged with the financing of the crusade. Participated in the first conclave of 1503 and was elected pope; thirty-six cardinals attended.

Papacy. Elected pope on September 22, 1503. Took the name Pius III. He had not received the priestly ordination and the episcopal consecration at the time of his election to the papacy.

Priesthood. Ordained, September 30, 1503. Consecrated bishop of Rome, October 1, 1503, Vatican, Rome by Cardinal Giuliano della Rovere, bishop of Ostia e Velletri, dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals, future Pope Julius II, assisted by Adello Piccolomini, bishop of Soana, and by Francesco Erulli, bishop of Spoleto. Crowned in the steps of the patriarchal Vatican basilica on October 8, 1503 by Cardinal Raffaello Sansoni Riario, protodeacon of S. Giorgio in Velabro; several of the ceremonies of the coronation had to be omitted because of the pope's bad health. To honor the memory of Pope Pius II, he founded the Piccolomini Library, next to the cathedral of Siena; it housed that pope's library and was decorated by Bernardino di Betto (Benedetto), Italian painter called II Pinturicchio.

Death. October 18, 1503, at the Apostolic Palace, Rome, after having celebrated a consistory in which he did not create any cardinals. Buried in the chapel of S. Andrea in the patriarchal Vatican basilica, next to his uncle Pope Pius II; the tomb was ordered by his brothers Giacomo and Andrea. During the rebuilding of the basilica, the monument was transferred to the grotto and the remains of both popes to the church of S. Andrea della Valle, Rome, next to the palace of the family; they were placed in a mausoleum erected by Cardinal Alessandro Damasceni Peretti in 1614; an epitaph, composed at a later date, was placed on the tomb.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, III, 146-147; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1677, II, col. 1351-1357; Del Re, Niccolò. Mondo vaticano. Passato e presente. Città del Vaticano : Libreria Editrice Vaticana, 1995, p. 840-841; "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;. Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933, Paris : Maison de la Bonne Presse, 1933, p. 134-135; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi. Volumen II (1431-1503). Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1914; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, pp. 13, 32, 33, 34, 35, 37, 40, 51, 52, 54, 55, 66, 154, 216 and 235; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi. Volumen III (1503-1592). Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, pp. 1-8 and 196; Kelly, John Norman Davidson. The Oxford Dictionary of Popes. Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 1986, pp. 254-255; Richardson, Carol M. "Francesco Todeschini Piccolomini (1439-1503), Sant'Eustachio, and the Consorteria Piccolomini" in The possessions of a Cardinal : politics, piety, and art, 1450-1700. Edited by Mary Hollingsworth & Carol M. Richardson. University Park, Pa. : Pennsylvania State University Press, 2010, p. 46-60; Sanfilippo, Matteo. "Pio III." Enciclopedia dei papi. 3 vols. Roma : Istituto della Enciclopedia italiana, 2000, III, 22-31; Scarpellini, Pietro. Pintoricchio : Libreria Piccolomini. Milano : F. Fabbri : A. Skira, 1968. ( I grandi decoratori ; 7); Wilkie, William E. The beginnings of the cardinal protectorship of England ; Francesco Todeschini Piccolomini, 1492-1503. Dubuque, Iowa : Loras College Press, 1972. Excerpt (sections 2 through 5 of Chapter I) of doctoral dissertation entitled: The Cardinal protectors of England in the Roman Curia, 1492-1534, University of Fribourg, Switzerland, 1966.

Webgraphy. Biography by James Loughlin, in English, The Catholic Encyclopedia; biography, in English, Encyclopaedia Britannica; his genealogy, A2 B1, Libro d'Oro della Nobiltà Mediterranea; his cardinalitial creation by Francesco di Girogio Martini, 1460, Web Gallery of Art; his papal arms, Rome Art Lover; his arms, Araldica Vaticana; his engraving by Daniel Hopfer, Germanisches Nationalmuseum, Nürnberg, Germany; his tomb, grotto of the patriarchal Vatican basilica, Requiem Datenbank; his funeral monument, church of S. Adrea della Valle, Rome, Rome Art Lover; La légation du cardinal de Sienne auprès de Charles VIII (1494) by Joseph Calmette (1873-1952), Rome : Imprimerie de la Paix di Filippe Cuggiani, 1902, via della Pace Num. 35, Mélanges de l'école française de Rome, pp. 361-377. Gallica Bibliothèque nationale de France; Establishing the Tudor Dynasty: The Role of Francesco Piccolomini in Rome as First Cardinal Protector of England by Susan Janet May, Royal Studies Journal, 4 (2), pp.103–140 (Abstract).

(1) This is the text of his epitaph taken from Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1355:

(6) 6. WEISBRIACH, Burkhard (1420/1423-1466)

Birth. 1420/1423, Castle of Weisbriach, Villach, Germany. Of a noble family. Son of Burkhard II von Weisbriach and Anna von Liechtenstein-Castelkorn. His last name is also listed as Weissbriach and Weißpriach.

Education. Studied at the University of Vienna from 1437; he was very learned in theology and law.

Early life. Went to Rome and was named protonotary apostolic. Canon of the metropolitan cathedral chapter of Salzburg, 1448; its provost, 1452. Around 1450, Archbishop Friedrich Truchsess von Emmerberg entrusted him a delicate diplomatic mission of trying to reconcile the archbishop and its brother-in-law Witowec. Both, Holy Roman Emperor Friedrich III and his brother Duke Albrecht VI, used his good services in Rome, before Pope Nicholas V. In March 1459, he was sent as imperial envoy to Siena to congratulate Pope Pius II him for his election to the pontificate. Intervened in the Congress of Mantua in June 1459. Also in that year, he accompanied Archbishop Sigmund von Volkersdorf of Salzburg to hold negotiations with Emperor Friedrich III.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Cardinalate. Created cardinal in secret in the consistory of March 5, 1460, celebrated in Siena; published on May 31, 1462 in Viterbo with the title of Ss. Nereo ed Achilleo.

Episcopate. Elected archbishop of Salzburg, November 16, 1461, by the unanimous vote of the cathedral chapter; the pope confirmed the election of January 15, 1462 and sent the pallium three days later on January 18; took possession January 23, 1462 (1). Consecrated on May 9, 1462, by Ulrich Plankenfels, bishop of Chiemsee. He was the second archbishop of Salzburg to become a cardinal since the creation of Konrad von Wittelsbach (1177-1183), who was the first cardinal residing in a see outside Rome. In the summer of 1462, there was a rebellion of the farmers in the mountains, particularly in the Pongau, Pinzgau and Brixental (Tyrol), because the cardinal had quadrupled their taxes in some instances; the farmers submitted rural complaints in twelve articles to the Salzburger federal state parliament; the final settlement of the conflict was reached through an arbitration award by Duke Ludwig of Bavaria. Did not participate in the conclave of 1464, which elected Pope Paul II. In 1465, he founded in Mülln a collegiate church with twelve canonships.

Death. February 16, 1466, after a long illness, in Salzburg. Buried near the altar of St. Rupert in the metropolitan cathedral of Salzburg, which he had richly endowed.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, III, 42; Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm ab initio nascentis Ecclesiæ vsque ad Vrbanvm VIII. Pont. Max. 2 volumes. Romae : Typis Vaticanis, 1677, II, col. 1068 and 1118; "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;, Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933, Paris : Maison de la Bonne Presse, 1933, p. 135; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi. Volumen II (1431-1503). Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1914; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, pp. 13, 33, 64 and 228; Ortner, Franz. "Weißpriach, Burkard von." Die Bischöfe des Heiligen Römischen Reiches, 1448 bis 1648 : ein biographisches Lexikon. Herausgegeben von Erwin Gatz, unter Mitwirkung von Clemens Brodkorb. Berlin : Duncker & Humblot, 1996, pp. 744-745.

Webgraphy. His arms, first row, no. 56; catalog of the archbishops of Salzburg until 1900.

(1) This is according to Ortner, Franz. "Weißpriach, Burkard von." Die Bischöfe des Heiligen Römischen Reiches, 1448 bis 1648, p. 244; Gams, Pius Bonifatius. Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae (3 v. in 1. Graz : Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt, 1957), p. 308; and "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;, Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933, p. 135; Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii Aevi, II, 228, indicates that he was elected on January 23, 1462, which is the date that Ortner, Franz. "Weißpriach, Burkard von." Die Bischöfe des Heiligen Römischen Reiches, 1448 bis 1648, p. 745; and "Essai de liste générale des cardinaux. VIII. Les cardinaux du XVIe siècle;. Annuaire Pontifical Catholique 1933, p. 135, give as the date in which he took possession of the see.

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