Pope Clement XIII ( la, Clemens XIII; it, Clemente XIII; 7 March 1693 – 2 February 1769), born Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico, was head of the
Catholic Church
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 ...
and ruler of the
Papal States
The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...
from 6 July 1758 to his death in February 1769. He was installed on 16 July 1758.
His pontificate was overshadowed by the constant pressure to suppress the
Society of Jesus
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
but despite this, he championed their order and also proved to be their greatest defender at that time.
He was also one of the few early popes who favoured dialogue with
Protestants
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
and to this effect hoped to mend the
schism
A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...
with the Catholic Church that existed in
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
and the
Low Countries
The term Low Countries, also known as the Low Lands ( nl, de Lage Landen, french: les Pays-Bas, lb, déi Niddereg Lännereien) and historically called the Netherlands ( nl, de Nederlanden), Flanders, or Belgica, is a coastal lowland region in N ...
. These efforts ultimately bore little fruit.
Biography
Early life
![CarloRezzonicoSenior](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/CarloRezzonicoSenior.jpg)
Carlo della Torre di Rezzonico was born in 1693 to a recently ennobled family of Venice, the second of two children of the man who bought the unfinished palace on the Grand Canal (now
Ca' Rezzonico
Ca' Rezzonico () is a palazzo and art museum on the Grand Canal in the Dorsoduro ''sestiere'' of Venice, Italy. It is a particularly notable example of the 18th century Venetian baroque and rococo architecture and interior decoration, and disp ...
) and finished its construction. His parents were Giovanni Battista della Torre Rezzonico and Vittoria
Barbarigo.
Carlo received a
Jesuit
, image = Ihs-logo.svg
, image_size = 175px
, caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits
, abbreviation = SJ
, nickname = Jesuits
, formation =
, founders ...
education in
Bologna
Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...
and later studied at the
University of Padua
The University of Padua ( it, Università degli Studi di Padova, UNIPD) is an Italian university located in the city of Padua, region of Veneto, northern Italy. The University of Padua was founded in 1222 by a group of students and teachers from B ...
where he obtained his doctorate in canon law and civil law. From there, he travelled 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 ...
where he attended the Pontifical Academy of Ecclesiastical Nobles.
In 1716 Rezzonico became the Referendary of the
Apostolic Signatura
The Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura () is the highest judicial authority in the Catholic Church (apart from the pope himself, who as supreme ecclesiastical judge is the final point of appeal for any ecclesiastical judgment). In additio ...
and in 1721 was appointed Governor of
Fano
Fano is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort southeast of Pesaro, located where the ''Via Flaminia'' reaches the Adriatic Sea. It is the third city in the region by popula ...
.
He was ordained to the priesthood on 23 December 1731 in Rome.
Pope Clement XII
Pope Clement XII ( la, Clemens XII; it, Clemente XII; 7 April 16526 February 1740), born Lorenzo Corsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 July 1730 to his death in February 1740.
Clement presided over the ...
appointed him to the cardinalate in 1737 as the Cardinal-Deacon of
San Nicola in Carcere
San Nicola in Carcere (Italian, " St Nicholas in prison") is a titular church in Rome near the Forum Boarium in rione Sant'Angelo. It is one of the traditional stational churches of Lent.
History
The first church on the site was probably built ...
. He also filled various important posts in the
Roman Curia.
Rezzonico was chosen as Bishop of Padua in 1743 and he received
episcopal consecration
A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution.
In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...
in Rome by
Pope Benedict XIV
Pope Benedict XIV ( la, Benedictus XIV; it, Benedetto XIV; 31 March 1675 – 3 May 1758), born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 17 August 1740 to his death in May 1758.Antipope ...
himself,
in the presence of
Giuseppe Accoramboni
Giuseppe Accoramboni JUD (24 September 1672 – 21 March 1747) was an Italian Cardinal who served as bishop of Imola.
Accoramboni was born in Castel de Preci, diocese of Spoleto and was baptised on the same day. He was educated that the Univers ...
and cardinal Antonio Saverio Gentili as
co-consecrator
A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop.
The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churche ...
s. Rezzonico visited his diocese on frequent occasions and reformed the way that the diocese ran, paying attention to the social needs of the diocese. He was the first to do this in five decades. He later opted to become the Cardinal-Priest of Santa Maria in Aracoeli in 1747 and later still to become the
Cardinal-Priest
A cardinal ( la, Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae cardinalis, literally 'cardinal of the Holy Roman Church') is a senior member of the clergy of the Catholic Church. Cardinals are created by the ruling pope and typically hold the title for life. Col ...
of San Marco in 1755.
Pontificate
Election to the papacy
Pope Benedict XIV
Pope Benedict XIV ( la, Benedictus XIV; it, Benedetto XIV; 31 March 1675 – 3 May 1758), born Prospero Lorenzo Lambertini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 17 August 1740 to his death in May 1758.Antipope ...
died of gout in 1758 and the
College of Cardinals
The College of Cardinals, or more formally the Sacred College of Cardinals, is the body of all cardinals of the Catholic Church. its current membership is , of whom are eligible to vote in a conclave to elect a new pope. Cardinals are appoi ...
gathered at the papal conclave in order to elect a successor. Direct negotiations between the rival factions resulted in the proposal for the election of Rezzonico. On the evening of 6 July 1758, Rezzonico received 31 votes out of a possible 44, one more than the required amount. He selected the pontifical name of "Clement XIII" in honor of
Pope Clement XII
Pope Clement XII ( la, Clemens XII; it, Clemente XII; 7 April 16526 February 1740), born Lorenzo Corsini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 12 July 1730 to his death in February 1740.
Clement presided over the ...
, who elevated him to the cardinalate. Rezzonico was crowned as pontiff on 16 July 1758 by the protodeacon, Cardinal
Alessandro Albani
Alessandro Albani (15 October 1692 – 11 December 1779) was a Roman Catholic cardinal, but should be best remembered as a leading collector of antiquities, dealer and art patron in Rome. He supported the art historian, Johann Joachim Winckelmann ...
.
Actions
Notwithstanding the meekness and affability of his upright and moderate character, he was modest to a fault (he had the classical sculptures in the Vatican provided with mass-produced
fig leaves
''Fig Leaves'' is a 1926 American silent comedy film directed by Howard Hawks, released by Fox Film Corporation, and starring George O'Brien and Olive Borden. The film had a sequence, a fashion show, that was filmed in 2-strip Technicolor.
...
)
and generous with his extensive private fortune. He also permitted vernacular translations of the Bible in Catholic countries.
[
]
The Jesuits
Clement XIII's pontificate was repeatedly disturbed by disputes respecting the pressures to suppress the Jesuits coming from the progressive Enlightenment circles of the ''philosophes
The ''philosophes'' () were the intellectuals of the 18th-century Enlightenment.Kishlansky, Mark, ''et al.'' ''A Brief History of Western Civilization: The Unfinished Legacy, volume II: Since 1555.'' (5th ed. 2007). Few were primarily philosophe ...
'' in France.
Clement XIII placed the ''Encyclopédie
''Encyclopédie, ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers'' (English: ''Encyclopedia, or a Systematic Dictionary of the Sciences, Arts, and Crafts''), better known as ''Encyclopédie'', was a general encyclopedia publis ...
'' of D'Alembert
Jean-Baptiste le Rond d'Alembert (; ; 16 November 1717 – 29 October 1783) was a French mathematician, mechanician, physicist, philosopher, and music theorist. Until 1759 he was, together with Denis Diderot, a co-editor of the ''Encyclopédie ...
and Diderot
Denis Diderot (; ; 5 October 171331 July 1784) was a French philosopher, art critic, and writer, best known for serving as co-founder, chief editor, and contributor to the ''Encyclopédie'' along with Jean le Rond d'Alembert. He was a prominen ...
on the ''Index
Index (or its plural form indices) may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional entities
* Index (''A Certain Magical Index''), a character in the light novel series ''A Certain Magical Index''
* The Index, an item on a Halo megastru ...
,'' but this index was not as effective as it had been in the previous century. More unexpected resistance came from the less progressive courts of Spain, the Two Sicilies
The Kingdom of the Two Sicilies ( it, Regno delle Due Sicilie) was a kingdom in Southern Italy from 1816 to 1860. The kingdom was the largest sovereign state by population and size in Italy before Italian unification, comprising Sicily and a ...
, and Portugal. In 1758 the reforming minister of Joseph I of Portugal
Dom Joseph I ( pt, José Francisco António Inácio Norberto Agostinho, ; 6 June 1714 – 24 February 1777), known as the Reformer (Portuguese: ''o Reformador''), was King of Portugal from 31 July 1750 until his death in 1777. Among other activ ...
(1750–77), the Marquis of Pombal
Count of Oeiras () was a Portuguese title of nobility created by a royal decree, dated July 15, 1759, by King Joseph I of Portugal, and granted to Sebastião José de Carvalho e Melo, head of the Portuguese government.
Later, through another roy ...
, expelled the Jesuits from Portugal, and transported them all to Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia (; meaning "ancient town") is a city and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located west-north-west of Rome. The harbour is formed by two pier ...
, as a "gift for the Pope." In 1760, Pombal sent the papal 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 org ...
home and recalled the Portuguese ambassador from the Vatican. The pamphlet titled the ''Brief Relation,'' which claimed the Jesuits had created their own sovereign independent kingdom in South America and tyrannised the Native Americans, all in the interest of an insatiable ambition and avarice, did damage to the Jesuit cause as well.
On 8 November 1760, Clement XIII issued a papal bull ''Quantum ornamenti'', which approved the request of King Charles III of Spain
Charles III (born Charles Sebastian; es, Carlos Sebastián; 20 January 1716 – 14 December 1788) was King of Spain (1759–1788). He also was Duchy of Parma and Piacenza, Duke of Parma and Piacenza, as Charles I (1731–1735); Kingdom of Naples, ...
to invoke the Immaculate Conception
The Immaculate Conception is the belief that the Virgin Mary was free of original sin from the moment of her conception.
It is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church, meaning that it is held to be a divinely revealed truth w ...
as the Patroness
Patronage is the support, encouragement, privilege, or financial aid that an organization or individual bestows on another. In the history of art, arts patronage refers to the support that kings, popes, and the wealthy have provided to artists su ...
of Spain, along with its eastern and western territories, while continuing to recognize Saint James the Greater
James the Great, also known as James, son of Zebedee, Saint James the Great, Saint James the Greater, Saint James the Elder, or Saint Jacob (Aramaic ܝܥܩܘܒ ܒܪ ܙܒܕܝ, Arabic يعقوب, Hebrew בן זבדי , '' Yaʿăqōḇ'', Latin '' ...
as co-patron.
In France, the Parliament of Paris
The Parliament of Paris (french: Parlement de Paris) was the oldest ''parlement'' in the Kingdom of France, formed in the 14th century. It was fixed in Paris by Philip IV of France in 1302. The Parliament of Paris would hold sessions inside the ...
, with its strong upper bourgeois
The bourgeoisie ( , ) is a social class, equivalent to the middle or upper middle class. They are distinguished from, and traditionally contrasted with, the proletariat by their affluence, and their great cultural and financial capital. They ...
background and Jansenist
Jansenism was an early modern theological movement within Catholicism, primarily active in the Kingdom of France, that emphasized original sin, human depravity, the necessity of divine grace, and predestination. It was declared a heresy by th ...
sympathies, began its campaign to expel the Jesuits from France in the spring of 1761, and the published excerpts from Jesuit writings, the ''Extrait des assertions'', provided anti-Jesuit ammunition (though, arguably, many of the statements the ''Extrait'' contained were made to look worse than they were through judicious omission of context). Though a congregation of bishops assembled at Paris in December 1761 recommended no action, Louis XV of France
Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached ...
(1715–74) promulgated a royal order permitting the Society to remain in France, with the proviso that certain essentially liberalising changes in their institution satisfy the Parlement with a French Jesuit vicar-general who would be independent of the general in Rome. When the Parlement by the ''arrêt'' of 2 August 1762 suppressed the Jesuits in France and imposed untenable conditions on any who remained in the country, Clement XIII protested against this invasion of the Church's rights and annulled the ''arrêts''. Louis XV's ministers could not permit such an abrogation of French law, and the King finally expelled the Jesuits in November 1764.
Clement XIII warmly espoused the Jesuit order in a papal bull ''Apostolicum pascendi
''Apostolicum pascendi'' was a papal bull issued by Pope Clement XIII on 12 January 1765 in defense of the Society of Jesus.
It relates that both privately and publicly the Society was the object of much calumny. On the other hand, the Society wa ...
'', 7 January 1765, which dismissed criticisms of the Jesuits as calumnies and praised the order's usefulness; it was largely ignored: by 1768 the Jesuits had been expelled from France, the Two Sicilies and 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 ...
. In Spain, they appeared to be safe, but Charles III (1759–88), aware of the drawn-out contentions in Bourbon Bourbon may refer to:
Food and drink
* Bourbon whiskey, an American whiskey made using a corn-based mash
* Bourbon barrel aged beer, a type of beer aged in bourbon barrels
* Bourbon biscuit, a chocolate sandwich biscuit
* A beer produced by Bras ...
France, decided on a more peremptory efficiency. During the night of 2–3 April 1767, all the Jesuit houses of Spain were suddenly surrounded, the inhabitants arrested, shipped to the ports in the clothes they were wearing and bundled onto ships for Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia (; meaning "ancient town") is a city and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located west-north-west of Rome. The harbour is formed by two pier ...
. The King's letter to Clement XIII promised that his allowance of 100 ''piastres'' each year would be withdrawn for the whole order, should any one of them venture at any time to write anything in self-defence or in criticism of the motives for the expulsion, motives that he refused to discuss, then or in the future.
Much the same fate awaited them in the territories of the Bourbon Duke Philip of Parma and Piacenza, who was advised by the liberal minister Guillaume du Tillot
Léon Guillaume (du) Tillot (Bayonne, 22 May 1711 — Paris, 1774) was a French politician infused with liberal ideals of the Enlightenment, who from 1759 was the minister of the Duchy of Parma under Philip, Duke of Parma and his wife Princess Lou ...
. In 1768, Clement XIII issued a strong protest (''monitorium'') against the policy of the Parmese government. The question of the investiture
Investiture (from the Latin preposition ''in'' and verb ''vestire'', "dress" from ''vestis'' "robe") is a formal installation or ceremony that a person undergoes, often related to membership in Christian religious institutes as well as Christian k ...
of 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 ...
aggravated the Pope's troubles. The Bourbon Kings espoused their relative's quarrel, seized 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 ...
, Benevento
Benevento (, , ; la, Beneventum) is a city and ''comune'' of Campania, Italy, capital of the province of Benevento, northeast of Naples. It is situated on a hill above sea level at the confluence of the Calore Irpino (or Beneventano) and the ...
and Pontecorvo
Pontecorvo is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Frosinone, Lazio, Italy. Its population is c. 13,200.
History
The village lies under Rocca Guglielma, a medieval fortification perched on an inaccessible spur. Its name derives from the ''p ...
, and united in a peremptory demand for the total suppression of the Jesuits (January 1769).
Driven to extremes, Clement XIII consented to call a consistory
Consistory is the anglicized form of the consistorium, a council of the closest advisors of the Roman emperors. It can also refer to:
*A papal consistory, a formal meeting of the Sacred College of Cardinals of the Roman Catholic Church
*Consistory ...
to consider the step, but on the very eve of the day set for its meeting he died, not without suspicion of poison, of which, however, there appears to be no conclusive evidence.
Ecumenism
Clement XIII made attempts at engaging with Protestants
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
. This made little progress since Clement refused to compromise on doctrine with Protestants.
In support of this policy, he recognised the Hanoverians
The House of Hanover (german: Haus Hannover), whose members are known as Hanoverians, is a European royal house of German origin that ruled Hanover, Great Britain, and Ireland at various times during the 17th to 20th centuries. The house orig ...
as Kings of Great Britain despite the long-term residence in Rome of the Catholic House of Stuart
The House of Stuart, originally spelt Stewart, was a royal house of Scotland, England, Ireland and later Great Britain. The family name comes from the office of High Steward of Scotland, which had been held by the family progenitor Walter fi ...
. When James Francis Edward Stuart, aka James III died in 1766, Clement refused to recognise his son Charles Edward Stuart
Charles Edward Louis John Sylvester Maria Casimir Stuart (20 December 1720 – 30 January 1788) was the elder son of James Francis Edward Stuart, grandson of James II and VII, and the Stuart claimant to the thrones of England, Scotland and ...
as Charles III, despite the objections of his brother Cardinal Henry Benedict Stuart
Henry Benedict Thomas Edward Maria Clement Francis Xavier Stuart, Cardinal Duke of York (6 March 1725 – 13 July 1807) was a Roman Catholic cardinal, as well as the fourth and final Jacobite heir to publicly claim the thrones of Great Brit ...
.
Other activities
Clement XIII created 52 new cardinals in seven consistories in his pontificate. The pope created his nephew Carlo as a cardinal in his first consistory and later created Antonio Ganganelli—who would succeed him as Pope Clement XIV—as a cardinal.
The pope approved the cultus for several individuals: Andrew of Montereale
Andrew of Montereale (c. 1403 – 18 April 1479) was an Italian Roman Catholic priest and a professed member of the Order of Saint Augustine. His life was devoted to teaching and leading the Augustinians from several positions of leadership; he wa ...
and Vincent Kadlubek
Vincent ( la, Vincentius) is a male given name derived from the Roman name Vincentius, which is derived from the Latin word (''to conquer'').
People with the given name Artists
*Vincent Apap (1909–2003), Maltese sculptor
*Vincent van Gogh ...
on 18 February 1764, Angelus Agostini Mazzinghi on 7 March 1761, Antoine Neyrot on 22 February 1767, Augustine Novello in 1759, Elizabeth Achler on 19 July 1766, James Bertoni in 1766, Francesco Marinoni
Francesco Marinoni (25 December 1490 – 13 December 1562) was an Italian Roman Catholic priest who was a member of the Theatines. He assumed the name Giovanni upon his admittance into the order.
His cult was confirmed and acted as his formal bea ...
on 5 December 1764, Mattia de Nazarei on 27 July 1765, Sebastian Maggi
Sebastian Maggi (1414–1496) was an Italian Roman Catholic priest and a professed member of the Dominicans. Maggi also served as the confessor to both Girolamo Savonarola and Catherine of Genoa.[Angela Merici
Angela Merici or Angela de Merici ( , ; 21 March 1474 – 27 January 1540) was an Italian religious educator, who is honored as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church. She founded the Company of St. Ursula in 1535 in Brescia, in which women ded ...]
on 30 April 1768. He formally beatified Beatrix of Este the Elder on 19 November 1763, Bernard of Corleone on 15 May 1768 and Gregorio Barbarigo
Gregorio Giovanni Gaspare Barbarigo (16 September 1625 – 18 June 1697) was an Italian Roman Catholic cardinal who served as the Bishop of Bergamo and later as the Bishop of Padua. He was a frontrunner in both the 1689 and 1691 papal concla ...
on 6 July 1761.
Clement XIII canonized four saints in his pontificate: Jerome Emiliani
Gerolamo Emiliani, CRS ( it, Gerolamo Emiliani also Jerome Aemilian, Hiëronymus Emiliani) (1486 – 8 February 1537) was an Italian humanitarian, founder of the Somaschi Fathers, and is considered a saint by the Catholic Church.
Born in Veni ...
, Joseph Calasanz
Joseph Calasanz ( es, José de Calasanz; it, Giuseppe Calasanzio), (September 11, 1557 – August 25, 1648), also known as Joseph Calasanctius and Iosephus a Mater Dei, was a Spanish Catholic priest, educator and the founder of the Pious Schoo ...
, Joseph of Cupertino
Joseph of Cupertino, OFM Conv. ( it, Giuseppe da Copertino; 17 June 1603 – 18 September 1663) was an Italian Conventual Franciscan friar who is honored as a Christian mystic and saint. According to traditional Franciscan accounts, he was "rem ...
, and Serafino of Montegranaro on 16 July 1767.
Death
Clement XIII died during the night of 2 February 1769 in Rome. He had participated in the solemnities to mark the Feast of the Purification of Mary, and was noted to have participated with much fervor that would indicate good health. After lunch, he had a series of audiences, though did not leave the palace due to the exceptionally cold weather that had marred that week. He later received his nephew in an audience and then met with the 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 ...
before he would dine with his nephew, Abondio Rezzonico, the senator of Rome. However, as the pope was getting ready for bed after reciting the evening prayers with his aide drawing off his stockings, he suddenly collapsed on his bed, exclaiming, "O God, O God, what pain!" The doctor, immediately summoned, tried blood-letting, but Clement XIII died quickly with blood gurgling in his mouth at around 5:15pm. It is generally believed that the pope experienced an aneurism of a blood vessel
The blood vessels are the components of the circulatory system that transport blood throughout the human body. These vessels transport blood cells, nutrients, and oxygen to the tissues of the body. They also take waste and carbon dioxide away ...
near the heart.
He was laid to rest on 8 February 1769 in the Vatican but his remains were transferred on 27 September 1774 to a monument in the Vatican that had been sculpted by Antonio Canova
Antonio Canova (; 1 November 1757 – 13 October 1822) was an Italian Neoclassical sculptor, famous for his marble sculptures. Often regarded as the greatest of the Neoclassical artists,. his sculpture was inspired by the Baroque and the cl ...
at the request of Senator Abbondio Rezzonico, the nephew of the late pontiff.
He was described in the ''Annual Register
''The Annual Register'' (originally subtitled "A View of the History, Politicks and Literature of the Year ...") is a long-established reference work, written and published each year, which records and analyses the year's major events, developmen ...
'' for 1758 as "the honestest man in the world; a most exemplary ecclesiastic; of the purest morals; devout, steady, learned, diligent..."
See also
* Cardinals created by Clement XIII
Pope Clement XIII (r. 1758–1769) created 52 Cardinal (Catholicism), cardinals in seven College of Cardinals, consistories.
September 11, 1758
# Carlo Rezzonico (cardinal), Carlo Rezzonico
October 2, 1758
# Antonio Marino Priuli
# François-Jo ...
*List of popes
This chronological list of popes corresponds to that given in the ''Annuario Pontificio'' under the heading "I Sommi Pontefici Romani" (The Roman Supreme Pontiffs), excluding those that are explicitly indicated as antipopes. Published every ye ...
Notes
External links
Monument to Clement XIII in St Peter's Basilica by Canova
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clement 13
1693 births
1769 deaths
Bishops of Padua
Popes from Venice
18th-century Roman Catholic bishops in the Republic of Venice
Popes
18th-century popes
Burials at St. Peter's Basilica