Antonio Francesco Sanvitale (10 February 1660 – 17 December 1714) was made a cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church from 1709.

Life

Antonio Francesco was born in

Parma Parma (; egl, Pärma, ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmigiano-Reggiano, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,292 ...

. Descended from a prominent family, including

Galeazzo Sanvitale Galeazzo Sanvitale (died 8 September 1622) was a Roman Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Bari-Canosa (1604–1606). ''(in Latin)''Urbino Urbino ( ; ; Romagnol: ''Urbìn'') is a walled city in the Marche region of Italy, south-west of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially under the patronage of ...

. He served as

nuncio An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international or ...

to Tuscany, and vice-legate to Avignon.I Sanvitali. Prosa e versi di Filandro Cretense
by Count Antonio Cerati, page 82. He was born in Parma on 10 February 1660 in the noble Sanvitale family and had the title of Count of Fontanellato. He graduated in utroque iure at the

University of Parma The University of Parma ( it, Università degli Studi di Parma, UNIPR) is a public university in Parma, Emilia-Romagna, Italy. It is organised in nine departments. As of 2016 the University of Parma has about 26,000 students. History During the ...

. He was named mayor of the Vatican

Basilica In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...

under the

pontificate The pontificate is the form of government used in Vatican City. The word came to English from French and simply means ''papacy'', or "to perform the functions of the Pope or other high official in the Church". Since there is only one bishop of Ro ...

Innocent XI Pope Innocent XI ( la, Innocentius XI; it, Innocenzo XI; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 21 September 1676 to his death on August 12, 1689. Poli ...

. On 27 December 1699 he was ordained a priest. On 15 March 1700 he was appointed vice-tied to Avignon. He was elected, on 16 July 1703, Archbishop of Ephesus, On the 22nd of the same month he was consecrated by

Fabrizio Paolucci Fabrizio Paolucci (2 April 1651 – 12 June 1726) was an Italian cardinal in the Roman Catholic Church, appointed by Pope Innocent XII. Biography Born at Forlì, he went to Rome at the age of eight, in 1659, to be educated by his grand-uncl ...

and was then transferred to the metropolitan headquarters in

Urbino Urbino ( ; ; Romagnol: ''Urbìn'') is a walled city in the Marche region of Italy, south-west of Pesaro, a World Heritage Site notable for a remarkable historical legacy of independent Renaissance culture, especially under the patronage of ...

on 6 May 1709. On 17 July 1703 a nuncio was created in Florence for him. For many years during his stay in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

, his secretary was

Gaetano Bedini Gaetano Bedini (15 May 1806 – 6 September 1864) was an Italian ecclesiastic, cardinal, and diplomat of the Catholic Church. Biography Bedini was born in Senigallia into the Bedini family of Ostra, the son of Alessandro Pellegrino and Mariann ...

who would latter be a Cardinal himself. Pope

Clement XI Pope Clement XI ( la, Clemens XI; it, Clemente XI; 23 July 1649 – 19 March 1721), born Giovanni Francesco Albani, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 23 November 1700 to his death in March 1721. Clement XI w ...

created him

cardinal in pectore ''In pectore'' (Latin for "in the breast/heart") is a term used in the Catholic Church for an action, decision, or document which is meant to be kept secret. It is most often used when there is a papal appointment to the College of Cardinals wit ...

in the consistory of 15 April 1709 and published the nomination on 22 July the same year. On 9 September that year he received the title of St. Peter in Montorio. He died in Urbino on 17 December 1714 at the age of 54 and was buried in the cathedral of the city.

Episcopal succession

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanvitale Antonio Francesco 1660 births 1714 deaths Religious leaders from Parma 18th-century Italian cardinals 18th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops