Giuseppe II Pozzobonelli (or ''Puteobonellus'', 1696–1783) 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 the

Archbishop of Milan The Archdiocese of Milan ( it, Arcidiocesi di Milano; la, Archidioecesis Mediolanensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has l ...

from 1743 to 1783.

Early life

Giuseppe Pozzobonelli was born on 11 August 1696 in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

, which at the time was part of

Duchy of Milan The Duchy of Milan ( it, Ducato di Milano; lmo, Ducaa de Milan) was a state in northern Italy, created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, then the lord of Milan, and a member of the important Visconti family, which had been ruling the city sin ...

. Pozzobonelli was the son of a noble family, and lost his mother during childhood. He was educated by the

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

s and on 5 January 1722 he earned a

doctorate in utroque iure 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 ...

at the

University of Pavia The University of Pavia ( it, Università degli Studi di Pavia, UNIPV or ''Università di Pavia''; la, Alma Ticinensis Universitas) is a university located in Pavia, Lombardy, Italy. There was evidence of teaching as early as 1361, making it one ...

. On 23 December 1730 Giuseppe Pozzobonelli was ordained

priest A priest is a religious leader authorized to perform the sacred rituals of a religion, especially as a mediatory agent between humans and one or more deities. They also have the authority or power to administer religious rites; in particu ...

for the Archdiocese of Milan by Cardinal Benedetto Erba Odescalchi, who was his

spiritual father Confessor is a title used within Christianity in several ways. Confessor of the Faith Its oldest use is to indicate a saint who has suffered persecution and torture for the faith but not to the point of death.seminary A seminary, school of theology, theological seminary, or divinity school is an educational institution for educating students (sometimes called ''seminarians'') in scripture, theology, generally to prepare them for ordination to serve as clergy, ...

of his archdiocese. In 1734 he was named conservator of the

Biblioteca Ambrosiana The Biblioteca Ambrosiana is a historic library in Milan, Italy, also housing the Pinacoteca Ambrosiana, the Ambrosian art gallery. Named after Ambrose, the patron saint of Milan, it was founded in 1609 by Cardinal Federico Borromeo, whose agen ...

. Later he was named vicar of the archbishop for the nuns of the town. At the death of Archbishop

Carlo Gaetano Stampa Carlo III Gaetano Stampa (1667–1742) was an Italian cardinal and Archbishop of Milan from 1737 to 1742. Early life Carlo Gaetano Stampa was born on 1 November 1667 in Milan to count Cristiano Stampa and Giustina of the House of Borromeo. H ...

on 23 December 1742 he was elected

vicar capitular :''See: Catholic Church hierarchy#Equivalents of diocesan bishops in law'' A diocesan administrator is a provisional ordinary of a Roman Catholic particular church. Diocesan administrators in canon law The college of consultors elects an admini ...

of the Archdiocese.

Archbishop of Milan

In July 1743, 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. Pope Be ...

named him archbishop of Milan, and on 21 July 1743 he was consecrated

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ca ...

by the pope himself in

San Carlo al Corso Sant'Ambrogio e Carlo al Corso (usually known simply as ''San Carlo al Corso'') is a basilica church in Rome, Italy, facing onto the central part of the Via del Corso. The apse of the church faces across the street, the Mausoleum of Augustus o ...

, Rome. However he could formally take possession of Milan's diocese only eleven months later, on 21 June 1744, due to the late assent from

Maria Theresa of Austria Maria Theresa Walburga Amalia Christina (german: Maria Theresia; 13 May 1717 – 29 November 1780) was ruler of the Habsburg monarchy, Habsburg dominions from 1740 until her death in 1780, and the only woman to hold the position ''suo jure'' ( ...

. In the meantime, on 9 September 1743, he was 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 ...

with the title of

Santa Maria in Via ::''This Church is not to be confused with the Church of Santa Maria in Via Lata, a Deaconry.'' Santa Maria in Via is a basilica church in Rome. The church or a chapel existed in the 9th century, but was rebuilt following reports of a miracle. I ...

. He kept such title until 2 August 1758 when he moved to the title of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, and again on 28 May 1770 he moved to the title of

San Lorenzo in Lucina The Minor Basilica of St. Lawrence in Lucina ( it, Basilica Minore di San Lorenzo in Lucina or simply it, San Lorenzo in Lucina; la, S. Laurentii in Lucina) is a Roman Catholic parish, titular church, and minor basilica in central Rome, Italy. ...

. Giuseppe Pozzobonelli took very seriously his service as bishop: he made pastoral visits to almost all areas of his large diocese, he often preached and personally conferred the

sacraments A sacrament is a Christian rite that is recognized as being particularly important and significant. There are various views on the existence and meaning of such rites. Many Christians consider the sacraments to be a visible symbol of the real ...

. He paid particular attention to the instruction and to the morality of the clergy. He celebrated a

Jubilee A jubilee is a particular anniversary of an event, usually denoting the 25th, 40th, 50th, 60th, and the 70th anniversary. The term is often now used to denote the celebrations associated with the reign of a monarch after a milestone number of y ...

in 1751 whose main event was the

translation Translation is the communication of the Meaning (linguistic), meaning of a #Source and target languages, source-language text by means of an Dynamic and formal equivalence, equivalent #Source and target languages, target-language text. The ...

of the body of

Saint Charles Borromeo Charles Borromeo ( it, Carlo Borromeo; la, Carolus Borromeus; 2 October 1538 – 3 November 1584) was the Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584 and a cardinal of the Catholic Church. He was a leading figure of the Counter-Reformation combat a ...

among the streets of the town. He supported the idea to place a statue of

Virgin Mary Mary; arc, ܡܪܝܡ, translit=Mariam; ar, مريم, translit=Maryam; grc, Μαρία, translit=María; la, Maria; cop, Ⲙⲁⲣⲓⲁ, translit=Maria was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Joseph and the mother o ...

atop

Milan Cathedral Milan Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Milano ; lmo, Domm de Milan ), or Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Nativity of Saint Mary ( it, Basilica cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria Nascente, links=no), is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombard ...

(now known as the '' Madonnina''), which was so erected in 1774 and became a reference point for the people of Milan. During his tenure as archbishop he kept good relations with the Habsburg authorities and he give his support to the former Jesuits after the Jesuit suppression. However starting from 1767 some contrasts arose with the Habsburgs due to some ecclesiastic reforms decided by the government. Due to these rifts and to his poor health on 19 March 1769 Pozzobonelli tendered his resignation, but Pope

Clement XIII 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 and ruler of the Papal States from 6 July 1758 to his death in February 1769. ...

refused to free him from his duties as archbishop of Milan. Pozzobonelli participated to the Conclave of 1758 and to the

Papal conclave, 1769 The 1769 papal conclave (15 February – 19 May), was convoked after the death of Pope Clement XIII. It elected as his successor Cardinal Lorenzo Ganganelli, who took the name Clement XIV. Death of Clement XIII Clement XIII died suddenly on 2 ...

where was believed to be a

papabile ''Papabile'' (, also , ; ; or "able to be pope") is an unofficial Italian term first coined by Vaticanologists and now used internationally in many languages to describe a Catholic man, in practice always a cardinal, who is thought a likely ...

. He didn't participated to the following conclave for health reasons. Giuseppe Pozzobonelli died in Milan on 27 April 1783, and his remains were buried in the North nave of the

Cathedral of Milan Milan Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Milano ; lmo, Domm de Milan ), or Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Nativity of Saint Mary ( it, Basilica cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria Nascente, links=no), is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombard ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Pozzobonelli, Giuseppe 1696 births 1783 deaths 18th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops Archbishops of Milan 18th-century Italian cardinals Burials at Milan Cathedral