Girolamo Aleandro (also Hieronymus Aleander; 13 February 14801 February 1542) was an Italian
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 ...
, and .
Life
Aleandro was born on 13 February 1480 in
Motta di Livenza
Motta di Livenza (or di Ligenda/ Ligondo·la/ Livanda·la, later Ligondza, then Livenza) is a town in the province of Treviso, Veneto, Italy.
Twin towns
Motta di Livenza is twinned with:
* L'Isle-Jourdain, Gers, France
* Cres
Cres (; ...
, in the province of
Treviso
Treviso ( , ; vec, Trevixo) is a city and ''comune'' in the Veneto region of northern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Treviso and the municipality has 84,669 inhabitants (as of September 2017). Some 3,000 live within the Veneti ...
, part of the
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice ( vec, Repùblega de Venèsia) or Venetian Republic ( vec, Repùblega Vèneta, links=no), traditionally known as La Serenissima ( en, Most Serene Republic of Venice, italics=yes; vec, Serenìsima Repùblega de Venèsia, ...
. He studied in Venice, where he became acquainted with
Erasmus
Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' wa ...
and
Aldus Manutius
Aldus Pius Manutius (; it, Aldo Pio Manuzio; 6 February 1515) was an Italian printer and humanist who founded the Aldine Press. Manutius devoted the later part of his life to publishing and disseminating rare texts. His interest in and preserv ...
, and at an early age was reputed one of the most learned men of the time. In 1508 he went to
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. S ...
on the invitation of
Louis XII
Louis XII (27 June 14621 January 1515), was King of France from 1498 to 1515 and King of Naples from 1501 to 1504. The son of Charles, Duke of Orléans, and Maria of Cleves, he succeeded his 2nd cousin once removed and brother in law at the tim ...
as professor of ''belles lettres,'' and held for a time the position of
Rector of the University of Paris
This is a list of rectors of the University of Paris (the University of Paris, Sorbonne), a foundation of the middle of the twelfth century with a charter from 1200. The office of rector emerged in the middle of the thirteenth century. Since the ...
. He was an early teacher of
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
at the University and edited texts by
Isocrates and
Plutarch
Plutarch (; grc-gre, Πλούταρχος, ''Ploútarchos''; ; – after AD 119) was a Greek Middle Platonist philosopher, historian, biographer, essayist, and priest at the Temple of Apollo in Delphi. He is known primarily for his ''P ...
printed by
Gilles de Gourmont in 1509/1510. Entering the service of
Érard de La Marck,
prince-bishop of Liège, he was sent by that prelate on a mission to Rome, where
Pope Leo X
Pope Leo X ( it, Leone X; born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, 11 December 14751 December 1521) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1513 to his death in December 1521.
Born into the prominent political an ...
retained him, giving him (1519) the office of librarian of the Vatican. In the following year he went to
Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...
to be present as 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 or ...
at the coronation of Emperor
Charles V Charles V may refer to:
* Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558)
* Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain
* Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise
* Charles V, Duke of Lorraine (1643–1690)
* Infan ...
, and was also present at the
Diet of Worms, where he headed the opposition to
Martin Luther
Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Order of Saint Augustine, Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Reformation, Protestant Refo ...
, advocating the most extreme measures to repress the doctrines of the reformer. His conduct evoked the fiercest denunciations of Luther, but it also displeased more moderate men, especially Erasmus. The edict against the reformer, which was finally adopted by the emperor and the diet, was drawn up and proposed by Aleandro. After the close of the Diet, the papal nuncio went to the Netherlands, where he instigated the executions of two monks of
Antwerp
Antwerp (; nl, Antwerpen ; french: Anvers ; es, Amberes) is the largest city in Belgium by area at and the capital of Antwerp Province in the Flemish Region. With a population of 520,504, due to their embrace of the Reformation, resulting in their being burnt in
Brussels
Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
.
In August 1524
Pope Clement VII
Pope Clement VII ( la, Clemens VII; it, Clemente VII; born Giulio de' Medici; 26 May 1478 – 25 September 1534) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 November 1523 to his death on 25 September 1534. Deemed "the ...
appointed Aleandro the
Archbishop of Brindisi
The Italian Catholic Archdiocese of Brindisi-Ostium ( la, Archidioecesis Brundusina-Ostunensis) in Apulia, has carried its present name since 1986. It is a suffragan of the archdiocese of Lecce.[ordained
Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...]
to the
priesthood two months later. The pope then sent him as nuncio to the court of King
Francis I of France
Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...
. He was taken prisoner along with that monarch at the
Battle of Pavia
The Battle of Pavia, fought on the morning of 24 February 1525, was the decisive engagement of the Italian War of 1521–1526 between the Kingdom of France and the Habsburg empire of Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor as well as ruler of Spain, ...
in 1525, and was released only on payment of a heavy ransom. He was subsequently employed on various papal missions, especially to Germany, but was unsuccessful in preventing the German princes from making a truce with the reformers, or in checking to any extent the progress of the reformers' doctrines.
Aleandro was eventually
consecrated
Consecration is the solemn dedication to a special purpose or service. The word ''consecration'' literally means "association with the sacred". Persons, places, or things can be consecrated, and the term is used in various ways by different grou ...
a bishop on 28 February 1528 to fulfill the duties of his office. He was created a 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 ...
'' on 22 December 1536 by
Pope Paul III
Pope Paul III ( la, Paulus III; it, Paolo III; 29 February 1468 – 10 November 1549), born Alessandro Farnese, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 13 October 1534 to his death in November 1549.
He came to ...
(at the same time as
Reginald Pole
Reginald Pole (12 March 1500 – 17 November 1558) was an English cardinal of the Catholic Church and the last Catholic archbishop of Canterbury, holding the office from 1556 to 1558, during the Counter-Reformation.
Early life
Pole was bor ...
), which was published (i.e., publicly announced) only on 13 March 1538, at which time he was able to assume that office. He was given the rank of
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 ...
, with his
titular church
In the Catholic Church, a titular church is a church in Rome that is assigned to a member of the clergy who is created a cardinal. These are Catholic churches in the city, within the jurisdiction of the Diocese of Rome, that serve as honorary de ...
in Rome as
San Ciriaco alle Terme Diocleziane
San Ciriaco alle Terme Diocleziane was a church in the Baths of Diocletian in Rome. It was made a titulus by the Roman synod of 1 March 499. According to a list written by Pietro Mallio during the pontificate of pope Alexander III, it was linke ...
, which was changed a week later to the Church of
San Crisogono
San Crisogono is a church in Rome (rione Trastevere) dedicated to the martyr Saint Chrysogonus. It was one of the tituli, the first parish churches of Rome, and was probably built in the 4th century under Pope Sylvester I (314–335).
T ...
.
Aleandro resigned as Archbishop of Brindisi on 30 January 1541. He died at
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 ...
on 1 February 1542. His remains were initially buried in his titular church, but later were transferred to his hometown and re-buried there in the Church of San Niccolò.
Writings
Aleandro compiled a ''Lexicon Graeco-Latinum'' (1512), and wrote Latin verse of considerable merit inserted in the ''Carmina Illustrium Poetarum Italiorum'' of
Joannes Matthaeus Toscanus. The Vatican Library contains a volume of manuscript letters and other documents written by him in connection with his various missions against Luther. They were used by
Pallavicino
The House of Pallavicini, also known as Pallavicino and formerly known as Pelavicino, is an ancient Italian noble family founded by Oberto II ''Pelavicino'' of the Frankish Obertenghi family.
The Pallavicini of Genoa
The first recorded member of ...
in his ''Istoria del Concilio Tridentino'' (i. 23‑28), who gives a very partial account of the Worms conference.
In popular culture
Aleandro is depicted by
Jonathan Firth
Jonathan Stephen Firth (born 6 April 1967) is an English actor. He is best known for his roles in such noted British television productions as ''Middlemarch'', ''Far from the Madding Crowd'', and '' Victoria & Albert''. He lives in Islington, N ...
in the 2003 film ''
Luther
Luther may refer to:
People
* Martin Luther (1483–1546), German monk credited with initiating the Protestant Reformation
* Martin Luther King Jr. (1929-1968), American minister and leader in the American civil rights movement
* Luther (give ...
'' as the main antagonist. In the film, his name is seen as Girolamo Aleander.
See also
*
Hochstratus Ovans
''Hochstratus Ovans'' is a dialogue published in Cologne in 1520 referring to Jacob van Hoogstraten. In it, Johann Maier Eck and Girolamo Aleandro are reproached for burning Martin Luther's books.
Martin Bucer had read the pamphlet and suspected ...
References
;Additional sources
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Aleandro, Girolamo
1480 births
1542 deaths
People from Motta di Livenza
16th-century Italian cardinals
Roman Catholic archbishops of Brindisi
Venetian Renaissance humanists
16th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops
Apostolic Nuncios to the Holy Roman Empire
Burials at San Crisogono
Italian librarians
16th-century Latin-language writers