The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church

Biographical Dictionary
Pope Paul III (1534-1549)
Consistory of May 21, 1535 (II)


(3) 1. SCHÖNBERG, O.P., Nikolaus von (1472-1537)

Birth. August 11, 1472, Meissen, Saxony. Of an illustrious family. Son of Theodor von Schönberg. His last name is also listed as Schomberg and Scomber.

Education. Studied jurisprudence in Pisa. In Prato he heard Dominican friar Girolamo Savonarola preach and decided to join the order; entered the Order of Preachers (Dominicans) at the convent of S. Marco, Florence, 1497; studied liberal arts and philosophy under Fr. Savonarola, from whom he had received the religious habit; obtained a doctorate in theology.

Priesthood. Ordained (no date found). Prior of the Dominican convents in Lucca, Siena and Florence. Socius of his order in Rome and provincial of the Holy Land, 1507-1508. Worked under the order's master general Tommaso de Vio Cajetan, future cardinal, as general procurator, 1508-1515. Starting in 1510 he was also a professor at La Sapienza University, Rome; and from 1512, he was also vicar of the German province, which he visited. Participated in the V Lateran council, 1515.

Episcopate. Elected archbishop of Capua, September 12, 1520. Consecrated (no information found). He was named nuncio before the Christian princes, March 10, 1524; as such, visited Poland, Hungary, France (Blois), Spain (Burgos) and England (London). Nuncio extraordinary before the emperor, June 5, 1529; he worked at achieving the peace of Cambrai; travelled to Lyon, August 8, 1529; returned to Rome, September 19, 1529. Governor of Florence, 1530. Represented German interests in the Roman Curia under four popes. Abbot commendatario of S. Salvatore de Colle until 1534; and of the Benedictine monastery S. Donato de Sexto Calendas, Pavia, until 1534.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of May 21, 1535. Resigned the government of the archdiocese, April 28, 1536. Received the red hat and the title of S. Sisto, May 31, 1537; in that consistory, the new cardinal asked for a decisive action against King Henry VIII of England and for the publication of the papal bull publicly condemning the monarch, but his opinion did not prevail. He urged Pope Paul III to elevate Bishop John Fisher of Rochester to the cardinalate. Cardinal Schönberg was a promoter of church reform.

Death. September 7 (1), 1537, at the Dominican convent of S. Maria sopra Minerva, Rome. Buried on the left side near the main entrance of the church of S. Maria sopra Minerva, Rome (2).

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 143-145; 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, 1630, II, cols. 1503-1504; Ehses, Stephan. "Der Todestag des Kardinals Nikolaus von Schömberg (9.-10. September 1537)", Römische Quartalschrift für christliche Altertumskunde und Kirchengeschichte, 24/2, 1910, S. 106; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi. Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 23, 70 and 151.

Webgraphy. His portrait and biography, in English, Wikipedia; his prosopography, in German, Requiem Datenbank; engravings, portrait and arms, Araldica Vaticana.

(1) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 23; and his prosopography, linked above; his biography in German, linked above, says that he died on August 7 or 10, 1537; according to the inscription on his monument, note 2, it should be understood that he died on September 8, 1537, which is the fifth day before the "idus" of September and falls on the 13th of that month, and not the 7th, 9th or 10th .
(2) This is the inscription on his monument transcribed by Ferdinando Ughelli in his addition to Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col, 1503: HOC. VILI. QVEM. A. TERGO. LECTOR. HABES. TVMVLO. CONDITVS. EST. IS IN QVO. MIRARERVM. PERITIA. CATHOLICA. DOCTRINA. ATQVE. RELIGIO. FVIT. NICOLAVS SCHONBERG. NATIONES SVEVVS. ORDINIS. PRÆDICATORVM. CARDINALIS. CAPVANVS. A. PAVLO. TERTIO. PONTIFICE. MAXIMO. CREATVS. QVEM. NOBILEM. GENERE. IPSA. NOBILIOREM. DEDIT. VIRTVS. QVI. TANTO. MAIORI. LAVDE. POST. MORTEM. EFFERENDVS. EST. QVANTO. IPSE. MORITVRVS. EAM. FVGERE. CVRAVIT. NCOLAVS. A. SCHONBERG. THEODORICI. FILIVS. EX. SVEVIS. MISNENSIBVS. ORIVNDVS. S. R. E. TIT. S. SIXTI. PRESBYTER. CARDINALIS. COGNOMENTO. CAPVANVS. SACRI. ORDINIS PRÆDICATORVM. VIXIT. ANNOS. LXV. D. XXIX. OBIIT. ANN. CHRISTI. MDXXXVII. QVINTO. IDVS. SEPTEMBRIS.

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(4) 2. GHINUCCI, Girolamo (1480-1541)

Birth. 1480, Siena. His last name is also listed as Ginucci.

Education. He was educated in the Roman court.

Early life. Canon of the cathedral chapter of Siena. Scriptor and secretary of apostolic benefices and letters. Cleric of the Apostolic Chamber; later its auditor general. Secretary of Pope Julius II.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Ascoli Pisceno, October 16, 1512. Consecrated (no information found). Participated in the Fifth Lateran Council from its third session to its closing, 1512-1517. Resigned the government of the dioceseof Ascoli Pisceno, retaining its denomination, July 30, 1518. Secretary of Apostolic Briefs, August 3, 1518. Nuncio of Pope Leo X in England. King Henry VIII named him one of his counselors and for three years his ambassador to Spain. Transferred to the see of Worcester, September 26, 1522; never took possession in person; enthroned by proxy, March 2, 1523. Administrator of the see of Malta, September 10, 1523; resigned, March 20, 1538. Expelled from the see of Worcester in 1534 by King Henry VIII when the monarch broke with Rome; deprived March 21, 1535; the bishop kept the title of the see until his death.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of May 21, 1535; received the red hat and the title of S. Balbina, May 31, 1535. Together with six other cardinals named member of a congregation for reform of the church, April 8, 1536 (1). Administrator of the see of Cavaillon, July 6, 1537; resigned, July 16, 1540. Opted for the title of S. Clemente, January 25, 1537. Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals, January 7, 1538 to January 10, 1539. Named with eight other cardinals to a commission to prepare a general council, January 7, 1538 (2). Administrator of the see of Tropea, June 19, 1538. Together with Cardinals Alessandro Cesarini and Giovanni Domenico de Cupis, named legate a latere before Emperor Charles V and King Francis I of France to reestablish the peace between them, 1538. Named with eleven other cardinals to a commission for the reform of the Roman Curia and its officials, August 27, 1540 (3).

Death. July 3 (4), 1541, Rome. Buried in the church of S. Clemente, Rome.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, ; 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, 1630, II, col. 1505; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi. Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 23, 60, 62, 119, 181, 244 and 334.

Webgraphy. Biography by Michele Di Sivo, in Italian, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 53 (2000), Treccani; his engraving and arms, Araldica Vaticana; his tomb in the church of S. Clemente, Rome, Requiem Datenbank; catalog of the bishops of Worcester, in English, British History Online, University of London & History of Parliament Trust.

(1) The other cardinals were Giovanni Piccolomini, Lorenzo Campeggio, Giacomo Simoneta, Gasparo Contarini, Alessandro Cesarini and Rodolfo Pio de Carpi.
(2) The other cardinals were Giovanni Domenico de Cupis, Lorenzo Campeggio, Giacomo Simoneta, Gasparo Contarini, Gian Pietro Carafa, Giacomo Sadoleto, Alessandro Cesarini and Reginald Pole.
(3) The other cardinals were Giovanni Domenico de Cupis, Reginald Pole, Alessandro Cesarini, Giovanni Maria del Monte, Bartolomeo Guidiccioni, Marino Grimani, Girolamo Aleander de Motta, Nicolò Ridolfi, Gasparo Contarini, Gian Pietro Carafa and Marcello Cervini.
(4) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 62; Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1505; Eubel, III, 23, says that he died on July 6, 1541.

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(5) 3. SIMONETA, Giacomo (1475-1539)

Birth. 1475, Milan. Son of Giovanni Simoneta and his second wife Catarina Barbavara. He had two brothers, Alessandro and Francesco. His last name is also listed as Simonetta. Uncle of Cardinal Ludovico Simoneta (1561).

Education. He studied law under the guidance of Alessandro Tartagni, Bartolomeo Socino and Giason del Maino in Padua and Pavia and, although he did not receive his degree, it was at the Ticino University that he received his doctorate in utroque iure, both canon and civil law, before 1498, the year in which he appears among the noble Milanese jurisconsults.

Early life. Member of Collegio degli Avvocati of Milan, 1494. Went to Rome at the beginning of the 16th century. Consistorial lawyer, 1505. Auditor of the Sacred Roman Rota, 1511; its dean, 1523-1528.

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Pesaro, July 17, 1528.

Sacred orders. Received the subdiaconate and the diaconate on December 28, 1528 from Cardinal Agostino Spinola, bishop of Perugia.

Priesthood. Ordained, December 28, 1528, by Cardinal Agostino Spinola, bishop of Perugia. Consecrated bishop, September 14, 1529, chapel of S. Lorenzo in Piscibus, Rome, by Cardinal Agostino Spinola, assisted by Giovanni Battista Bonciani, bishop of Caserta, and by Tommaso Campeggio, bishop of Feltre. Pope Clement VII named him to replace Paolo Capizzuchi, who was absent from Rome, to study the cause of divorce of King Henry VIII of England; he opposed the divorce. Participated in the Fifth Lateran Council, 1512-1517.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of May 21, 1535; received the red hat and the title of S. Ciriaco alle Terme, May 31, 1535. Named bishop of Perugia, December 20, 1535. Together with another six cardinals, named member of a congregation for the celebration of a general council, April 8, 1536 (1). Named bishop of Lodi, August 4, 1536; resigned in favor of his nephew Giovanni Simoneta, June 20, 1537. Resigned the government of the diocese of Pesaro in favor of his nephew Ludovico Sermoneta, future cardinal, December 10, 1537. Opted for the title of S. Apollinare, November 28, 1537. Prefect of the Tribunal of the Apostolic Signature of Grace. Named with another eight cardinals to a commission to prepare a general council, January 7, 1538 (2). Appointed to the see of Sutri e Nepi, February 6, 1538 (3). Resigned the government of the see of Perugia, July 20, 1538. Mediated between Florence and Siena in the dispute for the control over Montepulciano and was able to make them arrive at an amicable solution. Legate, together with Cardinals Girolamo Aleander de Motta and Bonifacio Ferreri, to the Council of Vicenza, 1539. Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals, January 10, 1539.

Death. November 1 (or 2), 1539, Rome, after two days of agony. Buried in the church of SS. Trinità al Monte Pincio, Rome, where he had built a magnificent chapel in 1524.

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 148-150; 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, 1630, II, cols. 1505-1506; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi. Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 23-24, 60, 63, 220, 271-272, 274 and 306; Katterbach, Bruno. Referendarii utriusque Signaturae a Martino V ad Clementem IX et Praelati Signaturae Supplicationum a Martino V ad Leonem XIII. Città del Vaticano 1931. (Studi e Testi 55), pp. 69, 79, 82, 88, 90 and 101.

Webgraphy. Biography by Paolo Sachet, in Italian, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 92 (2018), Treccani; biography, in English, Wikipedia; biography, in German, Wikipedia; his arms and portrait, Araldica Vaticana.

(1) The other cardinals were Giovanni Piccolomini, Lorenzo Campeggio, Girolamo Ghinucci, Gasparo Contarini, Alessandro Cesarini and Rodolfo Pio de Carpi.
(2) The other cardinals were Giovanni Domenico de Cupis, Lorenzo Campeggio, Girolamo Ghinucci, Gasparo Contarini, Gian Pietro Carafa, Giacomo Sadoleto, Alessandro Cesarini and Reginald Pole.
(3) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 306; Ferdinand Ughelli in his addition in Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, III, col. 1506, says that he was administrator of the see of Cosenza but the cardinal does not appear in any of the catalogs of occupants of that see and Cardella, Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa, IV, 149, indicates that the silence of the catalogs is an unequivocal sign that he never governed or administered that metropolitan see.

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(6) 4. FISHER, John (1469-1535)

Birth. 1469 (1), Beverley, Yorkshire, England. Eldest son of Robert Fisher, a prosperous merchant, and his wife Agnes. He is also known as John of Rochester.

Education. Early studies, probably, at the school attached to the collegiate church, Beverley; Michaelhouse (later incorporated into Trinity College), University of Cambridge, 1484 (bachelor of arts, 1487; master of arts, 1491; doctor in Divinity, 1501).

Priesthood. Ordained, December 17, 1491, with dispensation because he was under the canonical age, by Thomas Rotherham, archbishop of York. Named vicar of Northallerton, Yorkshire, 1491. Elected a fellow of Michaelhouse, 1491. Three years later, in 1494, he resigned his benefice to become proctor of his university. Master of Michaelhouse at the University of Cambridge, 1497. Chaplain and confessor of Margaret Beaufort, countess of Richmond and Derby, mother of future King Henry VII Tudor, 1497. Vice-chancellor of the University of Cambridge, 1501; its chancellor, 1504; re-elected annually for ten years and then, in 1514, appointed chancellor for life. Holder of the "Lady Margaret Chair" at the University of Cambridge, 1503. In 1504, King Henry VII nominated him bishop of Rochester and the Benedictine chapter approved his election.

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Rochester, October 14, 1504. Consecrated, November 24, 1504, at Lambeth Palace, Canterbury, by William Warham, archbishop of Canterbury, assisted by assisted by Richard Nykke, bishop of Norwich, and by William Smith, bishop of Lincoln. His episcopal motto was Faciam vos fieri piscatores hominum. Tutor of Prince Henry, future King Henry VIII. In 1505, he persuaded Margaret Beaufort to found Christ's College and St. John's College at Cambridge. After her death in 1509, he took over at St. John's, finalizing its establishment in 1511. Chaplain to King Henry VIII of England. Named one of the English representatives at the V Lateran Council in 1512; his journey to Rome had to be postponed, and finally never participated in the assembly. Invited Desiderius Erasmus to visit the University of Cambridge. Bishop Fisher began his work as a controversialist in the 1520's to combat Martin Luther's ideas. In 1521, he delivered the sermon at the public burning of Luther's writings in London. His books in Latin made him to be recognized as one of the leading theologians of Europe (2). In the House of Lords, he strongly opposed any state interference in church affairs and urged that the church should reform itself. In 1527, when the validity of the marriage between King Henry VIII and Queen Catherine of Aragón was first openly questioned, the king and Cardinal Thomas Wolsey, archbishop of York and pontifical legate in England, consulted Bishop Fisher. They sought his opinion because his prestige as a man of holy life and of great learning gave exceptional weight to his views. After studying the problem thoroughly he came to the conclusion that the papal dispensation was valid, and therefore that Henry and Catherine were man and wife in the eyes of the church. The bishop incurred the king's wrath when he defended Queen Catherine in 1529, later publishing his defense and preaching in London on the queen's behalf. In 1531, he vehemently opposed the granting to the king the title of "Supreme Head of the Church and Clergy of England" and subsequently repudiated the Supremacy Act of 1534.

In May, 1532, Sir Thomas More resigned the chancellorship, and in June, Bishop Fisher preached publicly against the divorce. In August, Archbishop William Warham of Canterbury, died, and Thomas Cranmer was at once nominated to the pope as his successor. In January, 1533, King Henry secretly married Anne Boleyn. Archbishop Cranmer's episcopal consecration took place in March of the same year, and, a week later, Bishop Fisher was arrested. In December 1533, the bishop fell seriously ill. Early in 1534, he was implicated in the cause against Elizabeth Barton, called the Nun of Kent, who had prophesied against the king, and was sentenced to be imprisoned at the king's pleasure, and to forfeit all his goods, although he was released on the payment of #300. In March 1534, the Act of Succession declared King Henry's marriage to Queen Catherine void and his marriage to Anne Boleyn as a valid one. On the following April 13, he was cited to appear at Lambeth to take the oath of compliance with the Act of Succession, but though he and Sir Thomas More were willing to admit the succession of the children of Henry and Anne Boleyn, both refused to declare the children of Catherine and the king illegitimate. Four days later, Bishop John Fisher and Sir Thomas More were committed to the Tower. They were kept apart. With the passage of the Act of Supremacy in November 1534, they both were again attainted of misprision of treason. The see of Rochester was declared vacant from January 2, 1535. The bishop was suffering from a serious illness and was clearly nearing his end. In spite of this, the king continued his relentless persecution of this aged man stricken by a fatal illness.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of May 21, 1535; received the title of S. Vitale, May 31, 1535. The pope hoped to save the newly created cardinal from his capital sentence but this enraged King Henry VIII and destroyed all hope for the bishop. The king prohibited that the cardinal's hat be brought into England and stated that he would send the bishop's head to Rome instead. The cardinal was called several times before councillors but refused to speak about the supremacy. In a conversation that was disguised as privileged, Sir Richard Rich, the solicitor general, reportedly tricked Bishop Fisher into confiding that the king was not and could not be supreme head of the Church of England (3). He was tried on June 17, 1535, condemned to be executed at Tyburn as a traitor, but the sentence was changed to decapitation at Tower Hill. Together with Thomas More, he was the most important Humanist of his time in England.

Death. June 22, 1535, at 10 a.m., executed by order of King Henry VIII at the Tower of London. He met death with a calm dignified courage which profoundly impressed all who were present. His body was treated with particular rancour, apparently on King Henry VIII's orders, being stripped and left on the scaffold until evening, when it was taken on pikes and thrown naked into a rough grave in the churchyard of All Hallows, Barking, also known as All-Hallows-by-the-Tower. There was no funeral prayer. A fortnight later, his body was laid beside that of Sir Thomas More in the chapel of St. Peter ad Vincula within the Tower of London. His head was stuck upon a pole on London Bridge, but its ruddy and lifelike appearance excited so much attention that, after a fortnight, it was thrown into the Thames, its place being taken by the head of Sir Thomas More, whose martyrdom, also at Tower Hill, occurred on July 6.

Sainthood. Beatified by Pope Leo XIII on December 29, 1886, together with fifty-four of the other English martyrs; and canonized by Pope Pius XI on May 19, 1935. His feast day is celebrated on July 9. In the same ceremonies was also beatified and canonized St. Thomas More.

Bibliography.
-Baxter, Dudley. England's cardinals. With an appendix showing the reception of the sacred pallium by the archbishops of Canterbury and Westminster. London : Burns & Oates ; New York : Benzinger, 1903, pp. 48-50;
-Bayly, Thomas ; Hall, Richard Hall. The life & death of that renowned John Fisher Bishop of Rochester. London : [s.n.], Printed in the yeare, 1655;
Bellenger, Dominc Aidan and Stella Fletcher. Princes of the church. A history of the English cardinals. Phoenix Mill, Gloucestershire : Sutton Publishing Ltd., 2001, pp. 70-76;
-Bradshaw, Brendan and Eamon Duffy. Humanism, reform, and the Reformation : the career of Bishop John Fisher. Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1989;
-Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 150-154;
-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, 1630, II, cols. 1506-1508;
-Dowling, Maria. Fisher of Men : A Life of John Fisher, 1469-1535. Basingstoke: Macmillan ; New York: St Martin's Press, 1999;
-Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 24, 71 and 286;
-Fisher, John, Saint. The English Works of John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester, (born 1459; died, June 22, 1535), now collected by John Eyton Bickersteth Mayor. Parts I and II. London : H Milford, 1915-1935. (Early English Text Society, 27);
-Fisher, John, Saint. Exposition of the seven penitential Psalms. San Francisco : Ignatius Press, ©1998;
-Fisher, John, Saint. Opera Omnia. Ioannis Fischerii, Roffensis in Anglia Episcopi, Opera quae hactenus inveniri potuerunt omnia, singulari studio diligenter conquisita, partim antea quidem excusa, nunc autem sedulo recognita; partim iam primum in lucem edita. Horum elenchum vide, studiose Lector, folio sequenti. Adiectus est rerum ac verborum memorabilium locupletissimus index. Gregg, 1967. Reprint of 1597 edition. -Fisher, John, Saint; Hatt, Cecilia A. The English works of John Fisher, Bishop of Rochester (1469-1535) : sermons and other writings, 1520-1535. New York : Oxford University Press, 2001;
-"Fisher, Saint John." The Encyclopaedia Britannica; a dictionary of arts, sciences, literature and general information, IV, 799-800;
-Lloyd, Albert Hugh. The early history of Christ's college, Cambridge, derived from contemporary documents. Cambridge, England : Cambridge University Press, 1934;
-Macklem, Michael. God Have Mercy. The life of John Fisher of Rochester. Ottawa : Oberon, 1969;
-Nichols, Vincent. St. John Fisher : bishop and theologian in reformation and controversy. Stoke on Trent [England] : Alive Publishing, 2011. Responsibility: Vincent Nichols ; afterword and textual editing by Kevin Eastell;
-Ortroy, François van. Vie du bienheureux martyr Jean Fisher, Cardinal, Évéque de Rochester (+1535). Bruxelles : Polleunis et Ceuterick, 1893;
-Piolanti, Antonio. "Giovanni Fisher." Enciclopedia Cattolica, 12 vols. Città del Vaticano : Ente per l'Enciclopedia cattolica e per il Libro cattolico, 1948-54, VI, 626-627;
-Rex, Richard. The Theology of John Fisher. Cambridge ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1991;
-Reynolds, Ernest Edwin. Saint John Fisher. London : Burns & Oates , 1955;
-Surtz, Edward L. The works and days of John Fisher; an introduction to the position of St. John Fisher (1469-1535), Bishop of Rochester, in the English Renaissance and the Reformation. Cambridge : Harvard University Press, 1967.

Webgraphy. Biography by Gilbert Huddleston, in English, The Catholic Encyclopedia; biography, in English, New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge; his portrait, arms and biography, in English, Catholic Online; another biography, in English, Encyclopaedia Britannica; seven portraits and biography, in Italian, Santi e Beati; 1535, The Execution of Fisher, More, etc by the Tudor chronicler Edward Hall, Tudor England, English History; his portrait after Hans Holbein the Younger, National Portrait Gallery, London; same portrait enlarged, Tudorhistory.org; another version of the same portrait enlarged, Bildindex der Kunst und Architektur; Reign of Henry VIII, engraving by an anonymous artist, probably 17th century, National Portrait Gallery, London; his engraving by Adriaen van der Werff and Gerard Valck, Antiquariat Hille, Berlin; his engraving by Jean-Jacques Boissard, Bibliotheca chalcographica ... 1652-1669, Universität Mannheim; his bust by Pietro Torrigiani, Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York, New York, Scholars Resource; his portrait by an unknown artist, Christ's College, University of Cambridge, The Public Catalogue Foundation, BBC; his portrait, British (English) School, The National Trust for Places of Historic Interest or Natural Beauty, The Public Catalogue Foundation, BBC; his portrait, British School, St John's College, University of Cambridge, he Public Catalogue Foundation, BBC; his portrait by an unknown artist, Old Schools, University of Cambridge, The Public Catalogue Foundation, BBC; St. John Fisher: Martyr and Model for Bishopsby Stephanie A. Mann, Catholic Register, Wednesday, Jun 22, 2016 10:07 AM; The Martyr Who Got Overshadowed by St. Thomas More by Thomas Craughwell. Nationa Catholic Register, June 22, 2017; St. John Fisher, Cardinal-Martyr of England by Stephanie Mann, National Catholic Register, June 22, 2017; St. John Fisher, Cardinal-Martyr of England by Stephanie Mann, National Catholic Register, Jun. 22, 2020; St. John Fisher, the Martyr Overshadowed by St. Thomas More by Thomas Craughwell, National Catholic Register, Jun. 22, 2020; St Thomas More and St John Fisher, Indpendent Catholic News, June 22, 2022; Conscience and leadership in the lives of Saints Thomas More and John Fisher by Bishop Thomas John Paprocki, The Catholic World Report, March 22, 2023.

(1) The year of birth given by the different sources vary from 1459 and 1460 to 1469. Reynolds, Saint John Fisher, p. 6, says that Archbishop Rotherham's Register indicates that he was in his twenty-second year at the moment of his ordination in 1491, therefore, 1469 should have been the year of his birth. According to Lloyd, The early history of Christ's college, Cambridge, p. 391, in June 1491 a papal dispensation was granted to him to be ordained while under the canonical age.
(2) To combat the Lutheran heresy, he wrote his Confutatio (1523) in Latin, a book for theologians by a theologian, which had a wide circulation on the European continent. His sermons and writings against heretics never used the abusive language of contemporary controversy; he relied on reason and persuasion to bring them back.
(3) According to the third biography in English, linked above, when Rich visited the bishop in the Tower and told him that the king, to satisfy his own conscience, wanted to know his opinion on the Supremacy. The solicitor general assured the prisoner that whatever he said would not be used against him but would remain private to the king. Thereupon John Fisher declared "that the King was not, nor could be, by the law of God, Supreme Head of the church of England." As a priest he could not refuse to answer a question of conscience, but he had fallen into a trap, and the words he had spoken were used against him at his trial on June 17th, 1535. In spite of his protest at this breach of trust, he was condemned as a traitor.

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(7) 5. DU BELLAY, Jean (1492-1560)

Birth. 1492 (1), Castle of Glatigny, Souday (Loir-et-Cher), diocese of Le Mans, France. Of a noble family. The second of the four sons of Louis du Bellay, seigneur of Langeais, and Marguerite de la Tour-Landry. He is also listed as Jean Bellay.

Education. Studied at the University of Angers; at Collège de Navarre, Paris; at the University of Orléans (law); at La Sorbonne University, Paris (science); and also studied belle lettres.

Early life. Cleric of Le Mans.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Bayonne, with dispensation for not having reached the canonical age, February 12, 1524 (2). Consecrated, February 1524, Rome? (no further information found); he lived in the court and never visited his diocese. He went on several missions to England between September 1527 and January 1534. He became an adviser of the Constable of Montmorency, and accompanied him in his first voyage to England in October 1527. The mission consisted of an embassy before King Henry VIII, following the treaties of Westminster. At that time, Cardinal Thomas Wolsey asked him to support his candidature for the papacy with the French king but the cardinal's hopes were unfounded and useless. In 1530, the bishop was again in Paris where he found his brother. Both went back to London for an embassy concerning the interview between the kings of France and England in Calais. It was at the time of this interview that King Henry VIII must have officially introduced Anne Boleyn to King François I. Named privy counsellor of King François I, 1530. Transferred to the see of Paris, September 16 (3), 1532. Abbot commendatario of Gildase and of St-Maury-de-Fossati, Paris, 1532. Ambassador of King François I before the Holy See. Bishop Du Bellay went to Marseilles in October 1533 to welcome Pope Clement VII in the name of the Church of France. The pope assessed his diplomatic qualities and his knowledge of the English court. The pontiff asked him to intervene with King Henry VIII in the matter of his request for divorce. The mission of the bishop consisted in asking the Tudor king to have patience without breaking with the Holy See. On his return, he went through Paris and was charged by King François I with trying to find an area of agreement with the pope, and to support King Henry VIII's cause. In Rome, he asked that the excommunication pronounced against the king of England be withdrawn. He remained in the Holy City until the matter was voted on and pleaded moderation to the cardinals to prevent them from confirming the sentence of excommunication. It was in vain, since the sentence was pronounced by nineteen votes against three. Abbot commendatario of the monastery of Sacro portu, Sens, November 6, 1534. His good relationship with King Henry VIII prevented the bishop from reaching higher ecclesiastical responsibilities under Pope Clement VII, but after this pope's death, the new pontiff, Pope Paul III, granted him the red hat at the request of King François I.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal priest in the consistory of May 21, 1535; received the red hat and the title of S. Cecilia, May 31, 1535. The king of France sent him to Rome where he tried to obtain a compromise with the German Lutherans with whom he himself had good relations (4). He pressed the pope to call a general council, and, in a mission much more difficult, he tried to explain the policy of approachment with the Turks carried out by King François I. In February 1536, when the war between Emperor Charles V and the French king started again, he had to secretly leave Rome for Lyon and took again service with Montmorency. When the imperial troops entered France, he was charged with the responsibility for the defense of Paris as Lieutenant Général of the government of Paris and l'Ile de France. He reinforced the bastions, built up the walls, picked up a middle-class militia of 40,000 men. He did not have to fight because the enemy stopped almost at the doors of the city. He entered the Royal Council in January 1537. When his brother Guillaume du Bellay was named governor of Piedmont, the cardinal was left in charge of the negotiations with the German Protestants, assisted mainly by the humanist Johann Sturm and the historian Johann Sleidan. Named administrator of the see of Limoges by the king of France, August 22, 1541 to August 13, 1544. His brother Rene Du Bellay, bishop of Le Mans, resigned the see in his favor, November 1, 1542 (5); and he resigned it on July 27, 1556. Administrator of the see of Bordeaux, December 17, 1544 to July 3, 1551 (6). On the accession of King Henri II in 1547, the cardinal's influence in the royal council diminished, supplanted by that of Cardinal François de Tournon. Opted for the title of S. Pietro in Vincoli, October 26, 1547. Opted for the title of S. Adriano, deaconry elevated pro illa vice to title, April 9, 1548. Opted for the title of S. Crisogono, February 25, 1549. Participated in the conclave of 1549-1550, which elected Pope Julius III. For three years, 1550-1553, he lived a quiet life in France; and finally was given another mission in Rome and resided in that city from 1553 until his death. Opted for the order of cardinal bishops and the suburbicarian see of Albano, February 28, 1550. Resigned the government of the see of Paris in favor of Eustache Du Bellay, March 16, 1551. Abbot commendatario of Fontaine-Daniel, 1552-1560. Opted for the suburbicarian see of Frascati, November 29, 1553. Opted for the suburbicarian see of Porto e Santa Rufina, December 11, 1553. Sub-dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals. Participated in the first conclave of 1555, which elected Pope Marcellus II. Participated in the second conclave of 1555, which elected Pope Paul IV. Opted for the suburbicarian see of Ostia e Velletri, proper of the dean of the Sacred College of Cardinals, May 29, 1555; King Henri II disapproved of the nomination and it brought the cardinal into more disgrace. Administrator of the see of Bordeaux again, February 15, 1559 until his death. Participated in the conclave of 1559, which elected Pope Pius IV; left the conclave early on December 25, 1559, before the final vote was taken; he knew that Cardinal Giovanni Angelo de' Medici would be elected within a few hours, and thought his vote was not necessary for the outcome. Together with his friend Guillaume Budé, persuaded King François I to found the Collège de France. Writer François Rabelais was his secretary and physician and the cardinal protected him in his debates with Parliament and La Sorbonne University. Also, he assisted other men of letters, such as Étienne Dolet and the poet Salmon Macrin. He was a tolerant man and protected the reformers. His correspondence is preserved in the Bibliothèque Nationale, Paris.

Death. February 16, 1560, at 1:30 p.m., after a long illness, in his Roman palace near the terme Diocleziane. Buried in the church of SS. Trinità al Monte Pincio, Rome. His obituary was read in the consistory of March 13, 1560.

Bibliography. Berton, Charles. Dictionnaire des cardinaux, contenant des notions générales sur le cardinalat, la nomenclature complète ..., des cardinaux de tous less temps et de tous les pays ... les détails biographiques essentiels sur tous les cardinaux ... de longues études sur les cardinaux célèbre ... Paris : J.-P. Migne, 1857 ; Facsimile edition. Farnborough ; Gregg, 1969, cols. 485-487; Bourrilly, V. L. Le cardinal Jean du Bellay en Italie (juin 1535-mars 1536). Paris : H. Champion, 1907. "Extrait de la Revue des études rabelaisiennes, 5e année, 3e et 4e fascicules."; Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 145-147; 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, 1630, II, cols. 1504-1505; Du Bellay, Jean. Ambassades en Angleterre de Jean Du Bellay. La première ambassade (septembre 1527-février 1529) correspondance diplomatique. Publiée avec une introduction par V.-L. Bourrilly & Pierre de Vaissière. Paris : A. Picard et fils, 1905. (Archives de l'histoire religieuse de la France); Du Bellay, Jean. Correspondance du cardinal Jean Du Bellay. Edited by Rémy Scheure. Paris : C. Klincksieck, 1969- . (Société de l'histoire de France. [Publications] Série antérieure à 1789, 475; Variation: Société de l'histoire de France (Series); 475) Contens: t. 1. 1529-1535.--t. 2. 1535-1536; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi. Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 24, 56, 57, 59, 61, 72, 128, 142, 162, 222 and 270; Gams, Pius Bonifatius. Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae. 3 v. in 1. Graz : Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt, 1957, p. 509; Michon, Cédric. Le cardinal Jean Du Bellay. Diplomatie et culture dans l'Europe de la Renaissance. Tours, 2016.

Webgraphy. biography, in Italian, diocesi Suburbicaria Tuscolana; portrait and biography, in English, Encyclopaedia Brittanica; his engraving by F. Stuerhelt, Antiquariat Hille / Berlin; his engraving, portrait, statue, image on a stamp and arms, Araldica Vaticana.

(1) This is according to all the printed sources listed in the bibliography except Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, p. 509, which never gives dates of birth; Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 128, does not give the date of birth but says that he was elected bishop of Bayonne when he was 26 years old. Of the electronic sources linked above, his first biography in English gives 1493 as the date of birth; the Italian biography says 1492; the second biography in English says 1492/98; the French one says vers (toward) 1498; the one in German says that he was born in 1498; and the site on his family and his genealogy say 1492. All the pictorial sites give 1492 as the year of his birth, except the last one, which does not mention any dates.
(2) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 128; Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, p. 509, says that he was elected in 1526.
(3) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 270; Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, p. 509, says that he was transferred on September 20, 1532 and on p. 597, says that he was init possessionem episcopatus sui on September 25, 1532.
(4) With his brother Guillaume, he had on several occasions had discussions with Martin Bucer and Philipp Melanchton. But the intransigence of Martin Luther impeded the reunion that the king of France strongly wished.
(5) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 162; Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, p. 563, says that the cardinal was named in 1546 after the death of his brother, which occurred in August of that year.
(6) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 142; Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, p. 520, says that he occupied the see until 1553.

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(8) 6. CONTARINI, Gasparo (1483-1542)

Birth. October 16, 1483, Venice. Of an ancient and noble family, one of the 12 that elected the first doge in 697 and later gave Venice eight doges and many other eminent citizens. He was the eldest of seven sons and four daughters of Alvise Contarini and Polissena Malpiero.

Education. Elementary training, Venice; University of Padua, Padua, 1501-1509 (Greek, mathematics, Aristotelean philosophy, and theology). Sustained a debate with his teacher, the famous Pietro Pompanazzi, to whom he demonstrated the immortality of the soul.

Early life. Member of the Great Council of the Republic of Venice; and later of a commission which administered the debt of the republic. Ambassador of Venice before Emperor Charles V, September 24, 1520 to 1525; he was instructed to defend the alliance of Venice with King François I of France and also to prevent all hostile measures of the emperor. Participated in the Diet of Worms in April 1521; never saw or spoke with Martin Luther. Later, he followed the emperor to the Netherlands, England and Spain and returned to Venice in August 1525. Named Savio di terra ferma (president of a commission for the affairs of the continental territories of Venice). Participated in the Congress of Ferrara in 1527 as the representative the Republic of Venice; a league was formed against the emperor, between France and several states of Italy. In 1527 he obtained the release of Pope Clement VII, prisoner of the emperor after the sack of Rome. Governor of Brescia. Ambassador of Venice before the Holy See, 1528; his instructions were to keep the pope in the league as well as to defend the action of Venice in withholding from the pope the cities of Ravenna and Cervia, that had been seized during the invasion of the Constable Bourbon. Ambassador Contarini failed in the two objectives: the republic was forced to surrender those two cities and to make peace with Emperor Charles V; the peace was concluded through the ambassador in Bologna in January, 1530. Present at the coronation of the emperor, February 24, 1530, Bologna; later, he returned to Venice and submitted the customary report to the Venetian Senate. Named to several important positions in the government and finally, became a senator. He was a layman at the moment of his promotion to the cardinalate.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal deacon in the consistory of May 21, 1535; received the deaconry of S. Maria in Aquiro, May 31, 1535.

Priesthood. He received the ecclesiastical tonsure and the minor orders from Gian Pietro Carafa and afterwards, he was ordained a priest; in June 1537 Cardinal Ercole Gonzaga congratulated him on the celebration of his first mass. Received the red hat and was promoted to the order of cardinal priests, Perugia, September 15, 1535. Opted for the title of S. Vitale, September 19, 1535. Named president of the congregation with another six cardinals for the reform of the church, April 8, 1536 (1); the congregation produced the report Consilium delectorum cardinalium praelatorum de emendanda ecclesia which was presented to the pope in the consistory of March 9, 1537, and then read and explained by Cardinal Contarini (2). There was no discussion at that time and copies of the document were given to the cardinals, who were given time to consult with their counselors.

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Belluno, October 23, 1536. Consecrated, February 17, 1538, at the Sistine Chapel, Rome, by Pope Paul III (no information found about the co-consecrators). Opted for the title of S. Balbina, January 15, 1537. Named with another eight cardinals (3) to a commission to prepare a general council, January 7, 1538. Named with another eleven cardinals (4) to a commission for the reform of the Roman Curia and its officials, August 27, 1540. Named papal legate to Germany, May 21, 1540 as such, he took part in the conference celebrated in Ratisbon to negotiate an agreement with the Lutherans; when it became obvious that an agreement was impossible to reach, the conference ended; the legate sent the final decision of all articles of faith to the pope, and went back to Rome. He actively collaborated with the internal reform of the church repressing abuses and spreading out the Consilium de emendanda Ecclesia (1537). Opted for the title of S. Apollinare, November 9, 1539. Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals, January 9, 1540 to January 10, 1541. Legate a latere to the Diet of Speyer, May 21, 1540; his mission was delayed for eight months because of political and procedural issues; the colloquy of Hagenau started in June 1540 without a papal legate present. On October 28, 1540, the Diet was transferred to Worms; and in January 1541 to Ratisbon; the cardinal was named legate in Germany on January 10, 1541; finally, on March 12, 1541, the cardinal legate was received with great ceremony; the religious colloquy opened on April 28 and the discussions ended on May 22, 1541 (5); he submitted the report of his legation, November 7, 1541. St. Ignatius of Loyola, founder of the Society of Jesus, acknowledged that Cardinal Contarini was largely responsible for the papal approbation of the order on September 27, 1540 (6). Legate in Bologna, January 21, 1542. Opted for the title of S. Prassede, February 15, 1542. In many of his writings (7) Cardinal Contarini touched upon the questions raised by Luther and other reformers but he always wished to remain a Catholic; at the Conference of Ratisbon, the cardinal protested repeatedly that he would not sanction anything contrary to the Catholic doctrine, and he left the final decision of all matters of faith to the pope.

Death. August 24, 1542, Bologna. Buried in the church of S. Petronio; and later, his body was moved to the church of the monastery of San Proculo. In December 1565, transferred to Venice and buried in his family's tomb in the church of S. Maria dell'Orto with an epitaph placed by his nephews Luigi and Gasparo Cornaro (8).

Bibliography. Brezzi, Paolo. "Contarini, Gaspare." Enciclopedia italiana di scienze, lettere ed arti. 36 vols. Rome : Istituto del'Enciclopedia italiana, 1949-1952, XI, cols. 434-435; Brieger, Theodor. Gasparo Contarini und das Regensburger Concordienwerk des Jahres 1541. Gotha : Perthes, 1870; Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 154-157; Ce, R. "Contarini, Gaspare." Enciclopedia Cattolica, 12 vols. Città del Vaticano : Ente per l'Enciclopedia cattolica e per il Libro cattolico, 1948-54, IV, 228; 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, 1630, II, cols. 1508-1510; "Contarini, Gaspar." Enciclopedia universal ilustrada europeo-americana. 70 vols. Madrid : Espasa-Calpe, 1958, c1907?-1930;, XV, 145; Dittrich, Franz. Gasparo Contarini, 1483-1542. Eine Monographie. Niewkoop : B. DeGraaf, 1972; Dittrich, Franz. Regesten und Briefe des Cardinals Gasparo Contarini. Braunsberg, 1881; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 24, 60, 69, 71, 74 and 131; Ferrara, Orestes. El cardenal Contarini, un gran embajador veneciano. Madrid : La Nave, 1956; Fragnito, Gigliola. Gasparo Contarini. Un magistrato veneziano al servizio della cristianità. Città di Castello : L.S. Olschki, 1988. (Biblioteca della Rivista di storia e letteratura religiosa ; Studi e testi 9); Gleason, Elisabeth G. Gasparo Contarini : Venice, Rome, and reform. Berkeley : University of California Press, 1993; Heurtebize, B. "Contarini, Gaspard." Dictionnaire de théologie catholique : contenant exposé des doctrines de la théologie catholique, leurs preuves et leur histoire. 15 v. in 30. Commencé sous la direction de A. Vacant, E. Mangenot ; continué sous celle de E. Amann ; avec le concours d'un grand nombre de collaborateurs. Paris : Letouzey et Ané, 1923-1950, III, pt. 2, cols. 1615-1616; Jedin, Hubert. "Gasparo Contarini e il contributo veneziano alla Riforma Cattolica", in Chiesa della Fede, Chiesa della Storia. Con un saggio introduttivo di Giuseppe Alberigo. Brescia : Morcelliana, 1972, pp. 624-639; Jedin, Hubert ; Contarini, Gasparo. Kardinal Contarini als Kontroverstheologe. Münster in Westfalen : Aschendorff, 1949. (Katholisches Leben und Kämpfen im Zeitalter der Glaubensspaltung, 9); Matheson, Peter. Cardinal Contarini at Regensburg. Oxford : Clarendon Press, 1972; Riklin, Alois. Die venezianische Mischverfassung im Lichte von Gasparo Contarini (1483-1542). St. Gallen : Hochschule St. Gallen, 1989.

Webgraphy.Biography by Francis Schaefer, in English, The Catholic Encyclopedia; biography by T. Brieger, in English, New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge; biography by Gigliola Fragnito, in Italian, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 28 (1983), Treccani; his bust, Contarini Chapel, church of S. Maria dell'Orto, Venice, Bridgeman Art Library Limited; his portrait, Northern Italian School, ca. 1600, National Museums Liverpool, The Public Catalogue Foundation, BBC; his arms, engravings and image in a postal stamp, Araldica Vaticana; his funeral monument by Danese Cattaneo (1542), church of S. Maria Dell'Orto, patriarchate of Venice, Beni Ecclesiastici in Web (BeWeb); Il cardinale che sapeva leggere, L'Osservatore Romano, 30 dicembre 2017.

(1) These cardinals were Giovanni Piccolomini, Lorenzo Campeggio, Giracomo Simoneta, Girolamo Ghinucci, Alessandro Cesarini and Rodolfo Pio de Carpi.
(2) Pope Paul III accepted the report in a well-meaning manner, although it uncovered the church abuses and gave decisive suggestions on improvements; Pope Paul IV, a member of the commission himself as Cardinal Giapietro Carafa, in 1559 included the edition printed in Strasbourg in 1538 by Sturm, which included invectives of the latter and Martin Luther, in the "Index librorum prohibitorum".
(3) The other cardinals were Giovanni Domenico de Cupis, Lorenzo Campeggio, Giacomo Simoneta, Girolamo Ghinucci, Gian Pietro Carafa, Giacomo Sadoleto, Alessandro Cesarini and Reginald Pole.
(4) These cardinals were Giovanni Domenico de Cupis, Reginald Pole, Alessandro Cesarini, Giovanni Maria del Monte, Bartolomeo Guidiccioni, Marino Grimani, Girolamo Aleander de Motta, Nicolò Ridolfi, Girolamo Ghinucci, Gian Pietro Carafa and Marcello Cervini.
(5) The emperor selected the six participating theologians: for the Catholics, Johannes Gropper, Julius Pflug and Johan Eck; for the Protestants, Philipp Melachton, Martin Bucer and Johannes Pistorius. Count Frederich of the Palatinate and Nicolas Perrenot de Granvelle were named president and six witnesses were present at all discussions. Cardinal Contarini as the representative of the pope was excluded from the talks because they were not officially recognized by Rome. Granvelle ordered the Catholic theologians to consult with Cardinal Contarini every morning in the presence of Tommaso Badia and Nuncio Giovanni Morone and to report to him again after the meetings.
(6) The Society of Jesus received canonical approbation by the bull Regimini militantis Ecclesiæ of Pope Paul III.
(7) His works were published in Paris in 1571: Libri duo de immortalitate animæ; De officio episcopi libri II; De magistratibus et republicæ Venetorum libri V; Compendii primæ philosophiæ libri VIII; De potestate Pontificis; De elementis libri V; Confutatio articulorum seu quæstionum Lutheri; De libero arbitrio; Conciliorum magis illustrium summa; De Sacramentis christianæ legis et catholicæ ecclesiæ libri IV; De justificatione; Cathechismus; De Prædestinatione; Explanatio in paslmum Ad te levavi; Epistolæ et relationes; and Scholia in epistolas divi Pauli et Jacobi. He also translated Ejercicios Espirituales of Saint Ignacio de Loyola.
(8) This is the text of his epitaph transcribed by Ferdinand Ughelli in his addtion to Chacón, Alfonso. Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1510: GASPARIS. CONTARENI. SANCTÆ. ROMANÆ. ECCL. CARD. OSSA. CVIVS. ADMIRANDAM. INTEGIRTATEM. DOCTRINAM. AS. ELOQVENTIAM. IN VTRAQVE. REPVBL. ET. APVD. SVMMOS. REGES. GESTA. ET. SCRIPTA. TESTANTVR. BONONIÆ. LEGATVS. PONTIF. NATVRÆ. CESSIT. MDXLII. VIXIT. ANN. LIX. ALOYSIVS. EQVES. ET. GASPAR. EX. FRATRE. NEPOTES. TANTO. VIRO.

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(9) 7. CARACCIOLO, Marino Ascanio (1468-1538)

Birth. 1468, Naples. Of an ancient and illustrious family. Neapolitan patrician. Second of the ten children of Domizio Caracciola, Neapolitan patrician, signore of Ruoti and governor of Calabria, and Martuscella Caracciolo, from a collateral branch of the paternal family. The other siblings were Giovanni Battista (called Ingrillo), Goffredo, Luisa, Isabella, Annibale, Scipione (bishop of Catania), Decio, Beatrice (or Potita) and Antonio, His first name is also listed as Martino. Other cardinals of the family were Innico Caracciolo, seniore (1666); Innico Caracciolo, iuniore (1715); Niccolò Caracciolo (1715); Giovanni Costanzio Caracciolo (1759); Diego Innico Caracciolo (1800); and Filippo Giudice Caracciolo, Orat. (1833).

Education. Studied in Milan under the tutelage of Cardinal Ascanio Maria Sforza.

Early life. Sent at an early age to Milan to the court of Cardinal Sforza. Ambassador of Milan in Rome, 1513. Protonotary apostolic, ca.1515. Orator of the duke of Milan to the Fifth Lateran Council in 1515. Nuncio of Pope Leo X before Emperor Maximilian in the Diet of Augsburg. In the Diet of Worms of 1520, together with Girolamo Aleandro, worked tirelessly in favor of the Catholic Religion and obtained the burning of the writings of Martin Luther. Imperial ambassador before King Henry VIII of England; mediated the peace between the two monarchs. He was named twice imperial ambassador before the Venetian Senate; obtained the formation of a league between the emperor and the senate. Papal nuncio before the imperial court, 1520-1523.

Sacred orders. (No information found).

Episcopate. Elected bishop of Catania, January 18 (1), 1524; resigned, July 24, 1524 (2) in favor of his brother Scipione Caracciolo. Consecrated (no information found). Count of Vespolate, May 24, 1524. Named again bishop of Catania, November 29, 1529, after the death of his brother Bishop Scipione occurred on October 28, 1529; resigned, March 9, 1530 in favor of Ludovico Caracciolo. First count of Gallarate with Ferno, Samarate, Cassine, Verghera, Boladello, Fulpiata, Peveranzia, Arnate, Cedrate, Santo Stefano and Orgiono, July 13, 1530; received the imperial confirmation, June 10, 1536.

Cardinalate. Created cardinal deacon and reserved in pectore in the consistory of May 21, 1535; published in the consistory of May 31, 1535; received the red hat, November 12, 1535; and the deaconry of S. Maria in Aquiro, November 15, 1535. Together with Cardinals Agostino Trivulzio and Francisco Quiñones, named legate before Kings Ferdinand of the Romans and François I of France to preserve the peace, June 2, 1536. Named bishop of Catania for the third time after the death of Bishop Ludovico occurred on September 1, 1536; resigned, January 8, 1537 in favor of Nicola Maria Caracciolo (3). Governor of Milanesado, August 15, 1536 until his death.

Death. January 28 (4), 1538, Milan. Buried in the metropolitan cathedral of Milan. The recumbent effigy of the cardinal is above the epitaph (5).

Bibliography. Cardella, Lorenzo. Memorie storiche de' cardinali della Santa Romana Chiesa. Rome : Stamperia Pagliarini, 1793, IV, 157-158; 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, 1630, II, cols. 1511-1512; Eubel, Conradus and Gulik, Guglielmus van. Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, Münich : Sumptibus et Typis Librariae Regensbergianae, 1935; reprint, Padua : Il Messagero di S. Antonio, 1960, III, 24, 74 and 159; Gams, Pius Bonifatius. Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae. 3 v. in 1. Graz : Akademische Druck- u. Verlagsanstalt, 1957, p. 944.

Webgraphy. Biography by Gaspare De Caro, in Italian, Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani - Volume 19 (1976), Treccani; biography by Massimo Carlo Giannini, in Italian, DB~e, Diccionario Biográfico Español; his genealogy, A2 B3 C1 D2, Libro d'Oro della Nobiltà Mediterranea; his engraving and arms, Araldica Vaticana; his tomb, Requiem Datenbank; Un ammiratore di Moro: il cardinale Marino Caracciolo by Giacomo de Antonellis, in Italian; letter of Cardinal Schönberg to Cardinal Marino Caracciolo on the process and exceution of Sir Thomas More, in Italian.

(1) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 159; his genealogy, linked above, indicate that he was elected on April 12, 1524.
(2) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 24; his genealogy, linked above, indicates that he resigned on March 24, 1525; and Gams, Series episcoporum Ecclesiae catholicae, p. 944, says that he resigned on April 12, 1524.
(3) Gams only mentions the first time he occupied the see.
(4) This is according to Eubel, Hierarchia Catholica Medii et Recentioris Aevi, III, 24; his genealogy, linked above, indicates that he died on January 26, 1538.
(5) This is the text of his epitaph kindly provided by Mr. Mark West, from London: MARINO. CARACCIOLO. CARDINALI. NEAPOLITANO. ILLVSTRI. GENERE. ORTO. QVI. PLURIMIS. PRO. PONTIFF. CÆSSQ. FVNCTVS. LEGATIONIBVS. PRIMAM. CAROLO. V. IMP. AD. AQVASGRANI. CORONAM. IMPOSVIT. ANGLOS. EI. CONIVNXIT. ET. VENETOS. AC. DEMVM. A. PAVLO. III. PONT. MAX. IN. CARDINALIVM. NVMERVM. COOPTATVS. ORDINEM. DVM. PROVNCIAM. MEDIOLAN. AB. EODEM. CAROLO. SIBI. CREDITAM. REGERET. IMPRTVNA. MORTE. MAXIMA. CVM. REIP. CHRISTIANÆ IACTVRA. SVBLATVS. EST. V. KALEND. FEBR. MDXXXVIII. ANNOS. NATVS. LXIX. IOANN. BAPTISTA. FRATRI. OPTIMO. POS. It is slightly different from the one trasncribed from Chacón, Vitæ, et res gestæ Pontificvm Romanorum et S. R. E. Cardinalivm, II, col. 1512: MARINO. CARACCIOLO. CARDINALI. NEAPOLITANO. ILLVSTRI. GENERE. ORTO. QVI. PLURIMIS. PRO. PONTIF. CÆSAREO. FVNCTVS. LEGATIONIBVS. PRIMAM. CAROLO. V. IMPERATORI. AD. AQVISGRANVM. CORONAM. IMPOSVIT. ANGLOS. EI. CONIVNXIT. ET. VENETOS. AC. DEMVM. A. PAVLO. III. PONT. MAX. IN. CARDINALIVM. NVMERVM. COOPTATVS. DVM. PROVNCIAM. MEDIOLANENSEM. AB. EODEM. CAROLO. SIBI. CREDITAM. REGERET. IMPRTVNA. MORTE. MAXIMA. CVM. REIPVBLICÆ. CHRISTIANÆ. IACTVRA. SVBLATVS. EST. V. KALEND. FEBR. MDXXXVIII. ANNOS. NATVS. LXIX. IOANN. BAPT. FRATRI. OPTIMO. POS.

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ERASMUS, Desiderius (1466-1536)

Birth. October 28, probably in 1466 (1), Rotterdam, Holland. He was the illegitimate child of Roger Gerard, a citizen of Gouda who was a monk copyist, and later a priest; and Margaretha Rogers, daughter of a physician. He himself was christened Herasmus; but in 1503, when he became familiar with Greek, he assimilated the name to a Greek original, which he had a few years before Latinized into Desyderius. He is also known as Erasmus of Rotterdam.

Education. Initial education at the school in Gouda, under Peter Winckel, who later became vice-pastor of the church; went to the school attached to St Lebuins church at Deventer, 1475 to 1484, which was one of the first in northern Europe to feel the influence of the Renaissance; there he learned from Johannes Sinthius (Syntheim) and Alexander Hegius, who had come as headmaster in 1483, the love of letters which was the ruling passion of his life. At some period, perhaps in an interval of his time at Deventer, he was a chorister at Utrecht under the famous organist of the cathedral, Jacob Obrecht. He entered the school of the Brethren of the Common Life, 1485; became acquainted there with Agricola, a "luminous" humanist, who would greatly influence his future orientation; school in Bar-le-Duc; after prolonged reluctance he joined the Augustinian Regular Canons in St Gregory's at Steyn, (the Classics, Latin and Greek); Collège de Montaigu, Paris, 1495 (theology); La Sorbonne University, until the summer of 1496; University of Cambridge, Cambridge, 1505 (doctorate in theology); University of Turin, Turin, 1506 (doctor of Divinity).

Early life. His mother died of the Plague in 1483 and he went back to Gouda, and then his father died the following year. His tutors sent him to Bar-le-Duc, where he felt he was wasting his time, and he returned to Gouda. Having discovered the richness of the library of the monks of Steyn, he joined the monastery and took his religious vows in 1488.

Priesthood. Ordained, April 25, 1492. Secretary to Henri de Bergis, bishop of Cambrai. In 1494 he finished writing Antibarbares, which is an anthem to humanism as opposed to the "barbarians", and a program for his whole life. Returned to Holland in 1496. He went back to Paris and lived there by giving private lessons; his pupils became his friends; at this time he wrote the Colloques; in 1498, he returned to Holland; he was reproached because his Parisian life was not in conformity with his ecclesiastical state but he did not mind; at this time, his friend Jacques Batt, secretary of the town of Bergen-op-Zoom, introduced him to Anne de Veere, protector of humanistes, who supported him in difficult times.The following year, 1499, he returned to Paris and fell sick; his English pupils William Blount and Lord Mountjoy took him to England; this visit was both physically and morally salutary for him; although he did not speak one word of English, he never needed to speak this language because Latin was enough for him to get to know in Greenswick all the English men of letters; even though he was only 32 years old, he was already celebrated like a humanist of great reputation. He set out again in 1500 first to Paris and then Orléans, where the best university of law was. Undoubtedly, he became acquainted there with Nicolas Bérault, lawyer and humanist, who would be the teacher of Louis de Berquin, his future translator and martyr. There he published the first version of his Adages, a collection of Latin proverbs which made his reputation in all of Europe and had multiple republications even while the author was alive; he increased the text throughout his life. In 1501 he arranged with the superior of his monastery to continue his studies for one more year. Thus, he went to Tournehem, where his friend Jacques Batt lived, and learned Greek. In the fall of 1501, he returned to France. The Plague spread throughout Europe in 1502 and his protector and friend Bishop Henri de Bergis died of it. He settled in Louvain where he worked on his first translations from the Greek. In 1504, he discovered a text of Lorenzo Valla, the great Italian humanist of the 15th century, which suggested corrections to be made to the Vulgate by comparison with the Greek text; the idea impassioned Erasmus; there he found the theoretical base for the work of de-dusting the old texts; he published the annotations of Valla, in a Parisian edition. Returning to England in 1505, he met through his friend Lord Mountjoy, John Colet, Thomas More, future chancellor of the kingdom and martyr, and other humanists of renown. He was registered with the faculty of theology of the University of Cambridge and worked on doctorate there. Also in Cambridge, André Ammonius, an Italian expatriate, became his closest confidant.

In 1506 his letters seem to indicate that he was suffering from depression and a dislike for life. However, in England he was about to make a career: a doctorate, ecclesiastical benefits, recognition and safety. He became the tutor of the children of Battista Boerio, physician of King Henry VII, who left for Florence with his family. On his way, Erasmus found his Parisian printer and he produced the edition of the translations of the Greek philosopher Lucien (120 to 180 after JC), a skeptic satirist and nonconformist, who would be put later in the index by La Sorbonne University ("lucianism" became a serious accusation); the translation of Euripides (480 to 406 front JC), the Greek playwright; Carmen de Senectute, reflexions on old age and death. In September of that year, he became doctor of Divinity in Turin. Then he went to Bologna where Pope Julius II made a triumphal entry at the head of his troops. This did not give Erasmus a positive image of the pope soldier, judging that it was not in his pontifical functions to make war. Erasmus expressed it in the Éloge de la Folie (1509) and in Julius Exclusus (1518), text that is credited to him, but that was not signed. In 1507 he went to Venice and became acquainted with Alde Manuce, the printer inventor of the pocket book and of a cast iron of great renown. In that city Erasmus met and worked with Hellenists Janus Lascaris, Marc Musurus and Aleandre. The following year, 1508, he published a new version of the Adages and was initiated in the Semitic languages, Hebrew and Aramaic, and translated Greek authors such as Seneca, Plutarch and Plato. He also visited Rome.

In 1509 Lord Mountjoy recalled him to England because the archbishop of Canterbury, William Warham, had promised to give Erasmus an ecclesiastical benefit. On the way, passing the Swiss Alps, he wrote Éloge de la Folie, book that he finished in England, and dedicated to Thomas More, his host. In 1511, in Paris, he worked on the editions of the Éloge de la Folie, and on the republication (one more) of the Adages. On August 24 of that year, he went back in England and fell ill. The archbishop granted him a rectorate and Erasmus transformed it into annual pension. Bishop John Fisher of Rochester, chancellor of the University of Cambridge and future martyr, induced Erasmus to visit Cambridge; he attributed to the bishop's protection that the study of Greek was allowed to proceed at Cambridge without the active difficulties that it had encountered at the University of Oxford. Again in France in 1514, he was called to the Netherlands by Servatius, the abbot of Steyn. He went to Germany, where he was celebrated by the German humanists. In Basle, he met Jean Froben, who would become his principal editor. In 1515, he went back to England for a short stay and then traveled to Basle, where he was proposed the charge of advising Duke Charles, who later would become Emperor Charles V. He accepted and wrote for this occasion in 1516 Institutio Principi Christiani. His translation of the New Testament also appeared and Pope Leo X accepted the dedication. King François I invited him in 1517 to go to France but Erasmus declined, undoubtedly being wary and informed by his friends of the rise of intolerance. To the institutional glory, he preferred his freedom. He went to England and then to the court of his former pupil and new king of Spain, Charles I, future emperor Charles V, who had to go to Spain. But Erasmus was not a man of the court. He prefered to remain in Northern Europe, and went to Louvain where he worked at the Collège de Lily; there he organized "trilingual college", which he saw as the humanist model of formation.

In 1518, Erasmus took the defense of Johannes Reuchlin, a great German humanist, attacked by the Inquisition in connection with his library, which contained books in Greek and Hebrew. The oppositions had found its day: Erasmus was criticized for his New Testament, and his initiative of the trilingual college is fought even in Louvain. Martin Luther wrote him a letter in 1519, asking support for the Reform. Erasmus refused and prefered to remain neutral. Erasmus became more and more criticized for not intervening against Luther and he asked for the protection of the pope. But from 1521 the Catholic party, with the pope at the head, requested Erasmus to defend their cause against Luther and his followers. He refused, and it had this prophetic word: "later it will be understood that it is not Luther whom I defend, but the peace of Christendom". He settled in Anderlecht, in the Netherlands, where he finally felt well and planned to remain definitively. Froben recalled him to Basle to proof read his third edition of the New Testament; he would not return again to his house of Anderlecht. He traveled to Brussels, Louvain, Antwerp, Maastricht, Coblentz, Mainz, Worms. In 1523 King François I invited him again to go to France and he again declined. The new Pope Adrian VI, a Dutch compatriot, and the Emperor, asked him to write against Luther, but he claimed his benevolent neutrality. But the ideas of Luther end up shocking the convictions of Erasmus, and in 1524 he published Libero Arbitrio, countering the Lutherans theses on predetermination. Luther retorted in 1526 with Servo Arbitrio and Erasmus answered him again with Hyperaspistes. The controversy completely separated Lutherans and Humanists. Some German friends of Erasmus moved away from him. With the publication of his Ciceronianus 1527, Erasmus upset part of the Christian humanists and created a conflict between the followers of Guillaume Budé, who was called the wisest man of France, and his. A controversy began with Noël Beda in 1528, where Beda "proved" that Erasmus was not a Christian. Erasmus left Basle in 1529 and went to Freiburg where he was very well received; there he completed the "Adages"; in 1531 he bought a house. In 1534, he wrote a treaty on the L'aimable concorde de l'Église and another on Preparation a la mort. In January 1535 he wrote to the pope to assure him of his attachment to the unity of the church. In Basle, he worked with Jérôme Froben, son of Jean, his publisher (dead in 1528).

Cardinalate. Pope Paul III wanted to create him cardinal but he declined because of age and poor health. He decided to go and settle in Basel and sold his house of Freiburg; he did not leave his room again and arranged his last businesses including his will and various donations. He hoped nevertheless to be able to set out again on a journey, and dreamed of his house of Anderlecht. Patient and weakened, he died surrounded by his friends. He is considered by many the leading figure of Humanism.

Death. July 12, 1536, Basel, Switzerland. The magistrates of Basel gave him a magnificent funeral, placed his body in the crypt of the cathedral and erected a statue in his honor in a public square of the city.

Bibliography. Augustijn, Cornelis. Erasmus : his life, works, and influence. Translated by J.C. Grayson. Toronto ; Buffalo : University of Toronto Press, 1991. Translation of : Erasmus von Rotterdam. (Erasmus studies ; 10); Bainton, Roland Herbert. Erasmus of Christendom. New York : Scribner, 1969; Bataillon, Marcel. Erasmo y España : estudios sobre la historia espiritual del siglo XVI. Traducción de Antonio Alatorre. 2. ed. en español, corr. y aum. México : Fondo de Cultura Económica, 1966, c1950. (Sección de obras de historia) Translation of Érasme et l'Espagne; Boyle, Marjorie O'Rourke. Erasmus on language and method in theology. Toronto ; Buffalo : University of Toronto Press, 1977. (Erasmus studies ; 2); Campbell, William Edward. Erasmus, Tyndale and More. London : Eyre & Spottiswoode, 1949; Emerton, Ephraim. Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam. New York ; London : G. P Putnam's Sons, 1899. (Heroes of the reformation ; v.3); García-Villoslada, Ricardo. Loyola y Erasmo : dos almas, dos épocas. Madrid : Taurus, 1965. (Ensayistas de hoy [Madrid, Spain] ; 42); Gordon, Walter M. Humanist play and belief : the seriocomic art of Desiderius Erasmus. Toronto ; Buffalo : University of Toronto Press, 1990. (Erasmus studies ; 9); Halkin, Léon-Ernest. Erasmus : a critical biography. Translated by John Tonkin. Oxford, UK ; Cambridge, Mass. : Blackwell, 1993. Translation of : Erasme parmi nous; Huizinga, Johan. Erasmus and the age of Reformation. New York : Harper & Row, 1957; (Harper torchbooks, the Cloister Library, TB 19); Huizinga, Johan. Erasmus of Rotterdam. With 32 Illustrations and a Selection from the Letters of Erasmus. London : Phaidon Press, 1952; Jardine, Lisa. Erasmus, man of letters : the construction of charisma in print. Princeton, N.J. : Princeton University Press, 1993; Luther, Erasmus, and the Reformation: A Catholic-Protestant reappraisal. Edited by John C. Olin; James D. Smart; and Robert E. McNally. New York : Fordham University Press, 1969; McConica, James. Erasmus. Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 1991; Mangan, John Joseph. Life, character, & influence of Desiderius Erasmus of Rotterdam. 2 vols. New York : Macmillan, 1927; New York, AMS Press, 1971; Phillips, Margaret Mann. Erasmus and the northern Renaissance. Rev. and illustrated ed. Woodbridge, Suffolk : Boydell Press ; Totowa, N.J. : Rowman & Littlefield, 1981, c1949; Rabil, Albert. Erasmus and the New Testament : the mind of a Christian humanist. Lanham : University Press of America, 1993; Reynolds, Ernest Edwin. Thomas More and Erasmus. New York : Fordham University Press, 1965; Ribhegge, Wilhelm ; Reinhardt, Volker. Erasmus von Rotterdam. Darmstadt : WBG, Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 2010. Responsibility: Wilhelm Ribhegge ; [herausgegeben von Volker Reinhardt]; Rummel, Erika. Erasmus. London ; New York : Continuum, 2004; Schoeck, Richard J. Erasmus of Europe : the making of a humanist, 1467-1500. Savage, Md. : Barnes & Noble Books, 1990; Sowards, Jesse Kelley. Desiderius Erasmus. New York : Twayne Publishers, 1975. (Twayne's world authors series ; TWAS 353 : The Netherlands); Thompson, Geraldine. Under pretext of praise: satiric mode in Erasmus' fiction. Toronto : University of Toronto Press, 1973 (Erasmus studies, 1); Tracy, James D. Erasmus of the Low Countries. Berkeley : University of California Press, 1996; Tracy, James D. The politics of Erasmus : a pacifist intellectual and his political milieu. Toronto : University of Toronto Press, 1978. (Erasmus studies ; 3); Vilanova, Antonio. Erasmo y Cervantes. Barcelona : Editorial Lumen, 1989. (Palabra crítica ; 8); Zweig, Stefan. Erasmus of Rotterdam. Translated by Eden and Cedar Paul. New York : Viking Press, 1956. (Compass books ; C13). Translation of : Triumph und Tragik des Erasmus von Rotterdam.

Webgraphy. Biography by Joseph Sauer, in English, The Catholic Encyclopedia; biography, also in English, The 1911 Classic Encyclopedia; biography, in French, Renaissance-France.Org; his portrait by Quentin Massys, Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica, Rome; his portrait by Hans Holbein, the Younger, National Gallery, London; his portrait by Hans Holbein, the Younger, Musée du Louvre, Paris; his engraving by Albrecht Dürer, Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire, U.S.A.; his engraving by Hans Holbein, the Younger, Rosenwald Collection, National Gallery of Art, Washington, D.C.; his statue, Rotterdam, Holland; thirty four images of Desiderius Erasmus; his effigy on a bronze medal by Quentin Massys, 1519, NGN produkties; The day Erasmus almost met Luther by Nikola Krestonosich, aleteia, Feb 05, 2018; Quando inizia la modernità?. Erasmo e la lettura dei Vangeli by Marco Vannini, L'Osservatore Romano, 01 aprile 2021.

(1) This is according to the first two biographies in English, linked above; the third one says that he was probably born in 1469; and the one in French gives 1467 as the year of his birth.

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