Decio Carafa
Decio Carafa | |
|---|---|
| Archbishop of Naples | |
| Diocese | papal nuncio |
| Orders | |
| Created cardinal | 17 August 1611 |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 1556 |
| Died | 23 January 1626 (aged 69–70) Naples, Kingdom of Naples |
| Buried | Naples Cathedral |
| Nationality | Italian |
| Denomination | Catholic |
Decio Carafa (1556–1626) was an
Life
Carafa was born in Naples in 1556, the son of Ottaviano Carafa, lord of Cerza Piccola, by Marzia Mormile. Trained to the clergy, he became an
He served on a papal mission to Portugal in 1598–1605, after which Pope Paul V appointed him to the titular see of Damascus on 17 May 1606 and papal nuncio to Flanders on 12 June. He left Rome on 9 July, reached Brussels on 1 September, and was received in audience by the ruling Archdukes Albert and Isabella on 6 September 1606.[2]
Carafa served in Flanders for only eight months, his main concern being to encourage the negotiations that led to the
On 17 August 1611 he was created cardinal and recalled from Madrid. He did not leave Madrid until January 1612, after his successor's arrival, and was received by the pope on 2 April. On 7 January 1613 he was appointed archbishop of Naples, taking possession of the diocese by procuration on 8 May. He arrived in Naples only two years later, in May 1615.
As archbishop he held three diocesan synods, in 1619, 1622 and 1623, to improve clerical discipline and the fitting celebration of the liturgy. He issued decrees against excesses in ecclesiastical painting and music. He spent a great deal of money on restoring the interior of
As a cardinal, he took part in the conclaves of 1621, that elected Pope Gregory XV, and 1623, that elected Pope Urban VIII.
He died in Naples on 23 January 1626 and was buried in the cathedral.
References
- ^ Georg Lutz, "Carafa, Decio", Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, vol. 19 (1976).
- Analecta Vaticano-Belgica, as Correspondance du nonce Decio Carafa, archevêque de Damas, 1606-1607, edited by L. Van Meerbeeck (Brussels and Rome, 1979).
- ^ Georg Lutz, "Carafa, Decio", Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani, vol. 19 (1976).
- ^ Carafa's correspondence as nuncio in Madrid has been calendared in Correspondencia entre la nunciatura en España y la Santa Sede: Reinado de Felipe III, 1598-1621, edited by J. de Olarra Garmendia and M. L. de Larramendi (4 vols., Rome, 1960-1964).
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