Gabriele della Genga Sermattei (4 December 1801 – 10 February 1861) was a

Catholic Cardinal 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 ...

and

Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals The Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals was the treasurer of the College of Cardinals in the Catholic Church. The title is based on an Italian word for chamberlain, a word no longer used in secular contexts. The position existed from at ...

Early life and priesthood

Sermattei was born on 4 December 1801 in

Assisi Assisi (, also , ; from la, Asisium) is a town and ''comune'' of Italy in the Province of Perugia in the Umbria region, on the western flank of Monte Subasio. It is generally regarded as the birthplace of the Latin poet Propertius, born aroun ...

. He was the son of ''Count Filippo della Genga'' and nephew of ''Annibale della Genga'' (

Pope Leo XII Pope Leo XII ( it, Leone XII; born Annibale Francesco Clemente Melchiorre Girolamo Nicola della Genga (; 2 August 1760 – 10 February 1829), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 28 September 1823 to his death ...

). He was educated at the

Jesuit , image = Ihs-logo.svg , image_size = 175px , caption = ChristogramOfficial seal of the Jesuits , abbreviation = SJ , nickname = Jesuits , formation = , founders ...

College, in

Orvieto Orvieto () is a city and ''comune'' in the Province of Terni, southwestern Umbria, Italy, situated on the flat summit of a large butte of volcanic tuff. The city rises dramatically above the almost-vertical faces of tuff cliffs that are compl ...

where he received a doctorate in

utroque iuris A doctor of both laws, from the Latin ''doctor utriusque juris'', or ''juris utriusque doctor'', or ''doctor juris utriusque'' ("doctor of both laws") (abbreviations include: JUD, IUD, DUJ, JUDr., DUI, DJU, Dr.iur.utr., Dr.jur.utr., DIU, UJD a ...

, both civil and canon law. Sermattei was ordained on 26 September 1830 and was appointed

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 ...

Pope Pius VIII Pope Pius VIII ( it, Pio VIII; born Francesco Saverio Maria Felice Castiglioni; 20 November 1761 – 30 November 1830), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 31 March 1829 to his death in November 1830. Pius VIII's ...

and then

Pope Gregory XVI Pope Gregory XVI ( la, Gregorius XVI; it, Gregorio XVI; born Bartolomeo Alberto Cappellari; 18 September 1765 – 1 June 1846) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 2 February 1831 to his death in 1 June 1846. He h ...

. He was also named ''Relator of the S. Consulta. Canon'' of the patriarchal

Lateran basilica The Archbasilica Cathedral of the Most Holy Savior and of Saints John the Baptist and John the Evangelist in the Lateran ( it, Arcibasilica del Santissimo Salvatore e dei Santi Giovanni Battista ed Evangelista in Laterano), also known as the Papa ...

.Catholic Hierarchy - Sermattai
/ref> He was elected

titular archbishop A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese. By definition, a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop, the tradition of the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox an ...

of ''Berito'' in 1833 and was consecrated by Cardinal

Bartolomeo Pacca Bartolomeo Pacca (27 December 1756, Benevento – 19 April 1844) was an Italian cardinal, scholar, and statesman as Cardinal Secretary of State. Pacca served as apostolic nuncio to Cologne, and later to Lisbon. Biography Bartolomeo Pacca was ...

. He was promoted to the archiepiscopal see of

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 ...

the following year in 1834.

Cardinalate

Sermattei was elevated to cardinal and appointed

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 Giorlamo degli Schiavoni'' in 1836. He participated in the Papal Conclave of 1846 which elected

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

and was the head of the group of three cardinals that governed Rome during the pope's absence in

Gaeta Gaeta (; lat, Cāiēta; Southern Laziale: ''Gaieta'') is a city in the province of Latina, in Lazio, Southern Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is from Rome and from Naples. The town has played a consp ...

between 1849 and 1850, known as the

Red Triumvirate The Red Triumvirate ( it, Triumvirato rosso), formally the Governing Commission of the State ( it, Commissione governativa di Stato, label=none), was a group of three cardinals who governed the Papal States after the suppression of the revolution ...

. From 1858 to 1859 he held the position of

. He also held the following titles: *Prefect of the ''Sacred Consulta of Bishops and Religious'' (1852) *Prefect of the ''Sacred Consulta of Religious Discipline'' (1856) *Secretary of Apostolic Briefs (1860) *Grand chancellor of the Pontifical Equestrian Orders.

Death, burial and funeral

Sermattei died on 10 February 1861 in Rome. As per tradition, he was exposed and then buried, according to his will, in the church of S. Lorenzo in Lucina. His funeral was attended by

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sermattei, Gabriele della Genga 1801 births 1861 deaths 19th-century Italian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Gregory XVI Roman Catholic archbishops in Italy Bishops of Ferrara

Early life and priesthood

Cardinalate

Death, burial and funeral

See also

References