Alderano Cybo (sometimes Alderano Cibo or Alderano Cybo-Malaspina) (16 July 1613 – 22 July 1700) was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

. He served as the Secretary of State of Pope Innocent XI.

Early life

Cybo was born 16 July 1613 in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the List of cities in Italy, sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian ce ...

, the fifth of fourteen children of

Carlo I Cybo-Malaspina Carlo I Cybo-Malaspina (18 November 1581 - 13 February 1662) was an Italian nobleman, who was prince of Massa and marquis of Carrara from 1623 until his death. Born in Ferrara, he was the son of Alderano Cybo-Malaspina and Marfisa d'Este. He wa ...

, sovereign Prince of Massa and Carrara, and of Brigida Spinola (1587–1660), the daughter of the Marchese di Calice, Giannettino Spinola. As was the custom in his family (he was descended from

Pope Innocent VIII Pope Innocent VIII ( la, Innocentius VIII; it, Innocenzo VIII; 1432 – 25 July 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death in July 1492. Son of th ...

and, through his grandmother

Marfisa d'Este Marfisa d'Este (c.1554 in Ferrara – 16 October 1608 in Ferrara) was a Ferrarese noblewoman. She was the illegitimate daughter of Francesco d'Este and Maria Folch de Cardona. She and her sister Bradamante (born 1559) were legitimised by both ...

, from

Pope Alexander VI Pope Alexander VI ( it, Alessandro VI, va, Alexandre VI, es, Alejandro VI; born Rodrigo de Borja; ca-valencia, Roderic Llançol i de Borja ; es, Rodrigo Lanzol y de Borja, lang ; 1431 – 18 August 1503) was head of the Catholic Churc ...

, and was probably Cardinal Innocenzo Cybo's adulterous great-great-grandson), Alderano and several of his siblings were destined for ecclesiastical careers. His elder sister , on the other hand, was married to the Florentine nobleman Jacopo Salviati, but was involved in an obscure episode in 1633, when she was alleged to be behind the savage murder of Caterina Brogi, Jacopo's mistress, whose head was delivered to him in a basket. Veronica was repudiated by her family, but their pressures on

Medici The House of Medici ( , ) was an Italian banking family and political dynasty that first began to gather prominence under Cosimo de' Medici, in the Republic of Florence during the first half of the 15th century. The family originated in the Muge ...

government managed to prevent her being prosecuted for the murder. She was forced to leave Florence and to retire to the countryside, near Figline, in the Salviati's . Later she moved to Rome, where she took up residence in the Palazzo Salviati.

Ecclesiastical career

To pursue his ecclesiastical career, Cybo went to

Rome , established_title = Founded , established_date = 753 BC , founder = King Romulus (legendary) , image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg , map_caption ...

in 1641, as

Domestic Prelate Monsignor (; it, monsignore ) is an honorific form of address or title for certain male clergy members, usually members of the Roman Catholic Church. Monsignor is the apocopic form of the Italian ''monsignore'', meaning "my lord". "Monsignor" ca ...

and as a

referendary Referendary is the English form of a number of administrative positions, of various rank, in chanceries and other official organizations in Europe. Pre-modern history The office of ' (plural: ', from the Latin ', "I inform") existed at the Byzan ...

of the Tribunal of the Two Signatures to

Pope Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII ( la, Urbanus VIII; it, Urbano VIII; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death in July 1644. As po ...

. In 1644 he was appointed master of the Papal Chamber and prefect of the Holy Apostolic Palace. On 6 March 1645, Cybo was elevated to the rank of

cardinal Cardinal or The Cardinal may refer to: Animals * Cardinal (bird) or Cardinalidae, a family of North and South American birds **''Cardinalis'', genus of cardinal in the family Cardinalidae **''Cardinalis cardinalis'', or northern cardinal, the ...

Pope Innocent X Pope Innocent X ( la, Innocentius X; it, Innocenzo X; 6 May 1574 – 7 January 1655), born Giovanni Battista Pamphilj (or Pamphili), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 15 September 1644 to his death in January ...

, and named Cardinal-Priest of

Santa Pudenziana Santa Pudenziana is a church of Rome, a basilica built in the 4th century and dedicated to Saint Pudentiana, sister of Praxedes and daughter of Pudens (mentioned by Paul the Apostle in ''2 Timothy'', 4: 21). It is one of the national churches i ...

. In 1646 he was given the office of

papal legate 300px, A woodcut showing Henry II of England greeting the pope's legate. A papal legate or apostolic legate (from the ancient Roman title ''legatus'') is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic ...

(i.e. governor) 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 ...

, and in 1648 of papal legate in the

Romandiola Romagna ( rgn, Rumâgna) is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna, North Italy. Traditionally, it is limited by the Apennines to the south-west, the Adriatic to the ...

. In 1651 he became legate in

Ferrara Ferrara (, ; egl, Fràra ) is a city and ''comune'' in Emilia-Romagna, northern Italy, capital of the Province of Ferrara. it had 132,009 inhabitants. It is situated northeast of Bologna, on the Po di Volano, a branch channel of the main stream ...

. On 24 April 1656 he was appointed

Bishop of Jesi The diocese of Iesi ( la, Dioecesis Aesina) is a Catholic ecclesiastical territory in the Marche, Italy. It is a suffragan of the archdiocese of Ancona-Osimo.Avignon Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label=Provençal dialect, Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture of the Vaucluse Departments of France, department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur Regions of France, region of So ...

, which was an

exclave An enclave is a territory (or a small territory apart of a larger one) that is entirely surrounded by the territory of one other state or entity. Enclaves may also exist within territorial waters. ''Enclave'' is sometimes used improperly to deno ...

of the Papal States in France. He held the office until 1690, though he administered his office only through appointees, never visiting personally. On 6 February 1679 Cybo was appointed suburbicarian Bishop of Palestrina by Pope Innocent XI. He was transferred to the diocese of Tusculum (Frascati) on 8 January 1680. He was promoted to the diocese of Porto e Santa Rufina on 8 January 1680. He became

Dean of the College of Cardinals The dean of the College of Cardinals ( la, Decanus Collegii Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalium) presides over the College of Cardinals in the Roman Catholic Church, serving as '' primus inter pares'' (first among equals). The position was establ ...

and Bishop of Ostia e Velletri on 10 November 1687. Cybo participated in the

papal conclave A papal conclave is a gathering of the College of Cardinals convened to elect a Bishops in the Catholic Church, bishop of Rome, also known as the pope. Catholics consider the pope to be the Apostolic succession, apostolic successor of Saint ...

s of

1655 Events January–March * January 5 – Emperor Go-Sai ascends to the throne of Japan. * January 7 – Pope Innocent X, leader of the Roman Catholic Church and the Papal States, dies after more than 10 years of rule. * Febr ...

, 1667, 1669–1670 and

1676 Events January–March * January 29 – Feodor III of Russia, Feodor III becomes Tsar of Russia. * January 31 – Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala, the oldest institution of higher education in Central America, is fo ...

. As Dean, he presided over the Papal conclave of 1689 and the conclave of 1691. 250 px, Sculpture of Alderano Cybo at the Santa Maria del Popolo.

Later life and death

In 1676, Cybo was appointed

Cardinal Secretary of State The Secretary of State of His Holiness (Latin: Secretarius Status Sanctitatis Suae, it, Segretario di Stato di Sua Santità), commonly known as the Cardinal Secretary of State, presides over the Holy See's Secretariat of State, which is the ...

Pope 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 ...

; he held the post until the death of Pope Innocent in 1689. In 1698, Cardinal Cybo held a diocesan synod at Velletri on 24 and 25 November. The constitutions of the synod were published. Cybo died on 22 July 1700 in Rome, and was buried in the Cybo Chapel of the church of

Santa Maria del Popolo it, Basilica Parrocchiale Santa Maria del Popolo , image = 20140803 Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo Rome 0191.jpg , caption = The church from Piazza del Popolo , coordinates = , image_size ...

, which he had radically rebuilt by

Carlo Fontana Carlo Fontana (1634 or 1638–1714) was an Italian architect originating from today's Canton Ticino, who was in part responsible for the classicizing direction taken by Late Baroque Roman architecture. Biography There seems to be no proof that ...

and

Carlo Maratta Carlo Maratta or Maratti (13 May 162515 December 1713) was an Italian painter, active mostly in Rome, and known principally for his classicizing paintings executed in a Late Baroque Classical manner. Although he is part of the classical tradition ...

to glorify the achievements of his family.H. Hager, "La cappella del card. Alderano Cybo in S. Maria del Popolo," in: ''Commentari'' XXV (1974), pp. 47-61.

References

Bibliography

* * *Mussi, L. (1913). ''Il cardinal Alderano dei principi Cybo Malaspina''. Massa 1913. * *

External links

* Stumpo, Enrico (1981)
"Cibo, Alderano."
''Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani'' Volume 25 (1981) {{DEFAULTSORT:Cybo, Alderano 1613 births 1700 deaths 18th-century Italian cardinals Cardinal-bishops of Frascati Cardinal-bishops of Palestrina Cardinal Secretaries of State