Pope Urban VII

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
Gregory XIV
Orders
Ordination30 March 1553
by Filippo Archinto
Consecration4 April 1553
by Girolamo Verallo
Created cardinal12 December 1583
by Gregory XIII
Personal details
Born
Giovanni Battista Castagna

4 August 1521
Rome, Papal States
Died27 September 1590(1590-09-27) (aged 69)
Rome, Papal States
Previous post(s)
  • Archbishop of Rossano
    (1553)
  • Governor of Fano (1555–1559)
  • Governor of Perugia and Umbria (1559–1560)
  • Apostolic Nuncio to Spain
    (1565–1572)
  • Apostolic Nuncio to Venice
    (1573–1577)
  • Governor of Bologna (1576–1577)
  • Papal Legate to Flanders and Cologne (1578–1580)
  • Cardinal-Priest of S. Marcello
    (1584–1590)
Coat of armsUrban VII's coat of arms
Other popes named Urban
Papal styles of
Pope Urban VII
His Holiness
Spoken styleYour Holiness
Religious styleHoly Father
Posthumous styleNone

Pope Urban VII (

Latin: Urbanus VII; Italian: Urbano VII; 4 August 1521 – 27 September 1590), born Giovanni Battista Castagna, was head of the Catholic Church, and ruler of the Papal States
from 15 to 27 September 1590. His papacy was the shortest recognized in history, during which a smoking ban encompassing churches across the world was implemented.

Castagna, born in Rome in 1521, was a highly educated man who held various positions within the Roman Catholic Church. He served as the Archbishop of Rossano, Governor of Fano, Perugia, and Umbria, and participated in the Council of Trent. Later, he was appointed as the Apostolic Nuncio to Spain and Venice and served as the Papal legate to Flanders and Cologne. He was elevated to cardinalate in 1583 by Pope Gregory XIII.

Upon the death of Pope Sixtus V, Castagna was elected as pope on 15 September 1590, taking the name Urban VII. He was known for his charity, public works projects, and strict opposition to nepotism. His papacy was short-lived as he died of malaria on 27 September 1590 after just 12 days in office. Urban VII is remembered for instituting the world's first known public smoking ban, threatening excommunication for those using tobacco in or near a church.

Biography

Giovanni Battista Castagna was born in Rome in 1521 to a noble family as the son of Cosimo Castagna of Genoa and Costanza Ricci Giacobazzi of Rome.[1]

Castagna studied in universities all across Italy and obtained a doctorate in civil law and canon law when he finished his studies at the

episcopal consecration
a month after at the home of Cardinal Verallo.

He served as the governor of

Apostolic Nuncio to Venice from 1573 to 1577 and served also as the Papal Legate to Flanders
and Cologne from 1578 to 1580. Pope Gregory XIII elevated him to the cardinalate on 12 December 1583 and he was appointed as the Cardinal-Priest of San Marcello al Corso.[citation needed]

Papacy

Election

Main article: September 1590 papal conclave

After the death of

Francesco in 1587, to succeed to the title (there were suspicions that Francesco and his wife died of arsenic poisoning after having dined at Ferdinando's Villa Medici, although one story has Ferdinando as the intended target of his sister-in-law). Ferdinando's foreign policy attempted to free Tuscany
from Spanish domination.

He was consequently opposed to the election of any candidate supported by Spain. He persuaded Cardinal

Marco Antonio Colonna, which brought the support of the younger cardinals appointed by the late Sixtus.[3]

Castagna, a seasoned diplomat of moderation and proven rectitude, was elected as pope on 15 September 1590 and selected the pontifical name of "Urban VII".[3]

Activities

Urban VII's short reign gave rise to the world's first known public smoking ban, as he threatened to excommunicate anyone who "took tobacco in the porchway of or inside a church, whether it be by chewing it, smoking it with a pipe or sniffing it in powdered form through the nose".[4]

Urban VII was known for his charity to the poor. He subsidized Roman

bakers so they could sell bread under cost, and restricted the spending on luxury items for members of his court. He also subsidized public works projects throughout the Papal States. Urban VII was strictly against nepotism and he forbade it within the Roman Curia.[5]

Death

Urban VII died in Rome on 27 September 1590,

scudi, was bequeathed to the Archconfraternity of the Annunciation, for use as dowries for poor young girls.[citation needed
]

menorah
and the legend
SIC•LUCEAT•LUX•VESTRA
(Let your light so shine - Matt. 5:16)

See also

References

  1. ^ a b c  One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Ott, Michael (1912). "Pope Urban VII". In Herbermann, Charles (ed.). Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 15. New York: Robert Appleton Company.
  2. ^ Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Urban VII". Encyclopedia Britannica
  3. ^ a b Pirie, Valérie Pirie. The Triple Crown: An Account of the Papal Conclaves, London. Sidgwick & Jackson, 1935.
  4. ^ "Public smoking ban: Europe on the move" (PDF). European Society of Cardiology. 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on 24 May 2011.
  5. ^ "Pope Urban VII". Saints SQPN. 4 April 2012. Retrieved 12 February 2015.
  6. ^ "Urban VII", The Holy See, vatican.va. Accessed 25 February 2024.

External links

Catholic Church titles
Preceded by
Sixtus V
 Pope
15–27 September 1590 		Succeeded by
Gregory XIV
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