Joachim-Jean-Xavier d'Isoard (23 October 1766 – 7 October 1839)''ISOARD (Joachim-Jean-Xavier D’)''
in ''Biographie universelle, ancienne et moderne''; Page 582-585, Paris 1840 was a French bishop and cardinal.

Biography

He was born in

Aix-en-Provence Aix-en-Provence (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Ais de Provença in classical norm, or in Mistralian norm, ; la, Aquae Sextiae), or simply Aix ( medieval Occitan: ''Aics''), is a city and commune in southern France, about north of Marseille. ...

to a noble family as the younger of two brothers. His father died early and he was sent to the minor seminary of Aix, where he became friends with Joseph Fesch, the uncle of

Napoleon Bonaparte Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...

, but did not finish his ecclesiastical studies.Salvador Miranda: Biographies of the cardinals created in the 1827 consistory
/ref> During the

Reign of Terror The Reign of Terror (french: link=no, la Terreur) was a period of the French Revolution when, following the creation of the First Republic, a series of massacres and numerous public executions took place in response to revolutionary fervour, ...

, he sought asylum in Italy at the court of future Louis XVIII of France in 1794, but returned to France in the same year. After the

coup of 18 Fructidor The Coup of 18 Fructidor, Year V (4 September 1797 in the French Republican Calendar), was a seizure of power in France by members of the Directory, the government of the French First Republic, with support from the French military. The coup wa ...

, he was again forced to flee to Italy. Returning after Napoleon established the Consulate, he accompanied Fesch, meanwhile French ambassador to the Pope, to Rome, and was appointed auditor of the Roman Rota at his instigation in 1803.Biographie universelle, p. 582 France occupied and annexed the Papal States in 1809 and took Pius VII as their prisoner, exiling him. D'Isoard followed the pope into French exile and refused several offices Napoleon offered him, including that of a

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

. The Pope was freed by the coalition towards the end of Napoleons' reign in 1814, and d'Isoard likewise returned to work at the Roman Rota. During the

Hundred Days The Hundred Days (french: les Cent-Jours ), also known as the War of the Seventh Coalition, marked the period between Napoleon's return from eleven months of exile on the island of Elba to Paris on20 March 1815 and the second restoration ...

, he briefly also was named French

chargé d'affaires A ''chargé d'affaires'' (), plural ''chargés d'affaires'', often shortened to ''chargé'' (French) and sometimes in colloquial English to ''charge-D'', is a diplomat who serves as an embassy's chief of mission in the absence of the ambassador ...

to the Holy See. The new French king Louis XVIII intended to get Louis-Siffren-Joseph de Salamon to be appointed as an auditor of the Rota, replacing d'Isoard, but the Curia rejected these attempts. In 1823, d'Isoard became Dean of the Roman Rota.This year is claimed by the ''Biographie universelle'' (p. 584), the biographical information by S. Miranda and the entry on GCatholic.org. Only the catholic-hierarchy.org entry claims 1824. He was created 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 ...

by Pope Leo XII in the consistory of June 25, 1827 and became cardinal-priest of S. Pietro in Vincoli. Later on, in 1833, he was transferred to the titular church of

SS. Trinità al Monte Pincio SS is an abbreviation for ''Schutzstaffel'', a paramilitary organisation in Nazi Germany. SS, Ss, or similar may also refer to: Places *Guangdong Experimental High School (''Sheng Shi'' or ''Saang Sat''), China *Province of Sassari, Italy (vehi ...

, which is typically given to a French cardinal.Biographie universelle, p. 584 He was chosen as

archbishop In Christian denominations, an archbishop is a bishop of higher rank or office. In most cases, such as the Catholic Church, there are many archbishops who either have jurisdiction over an ecclesiastical province in addition to their own archdi ...

of the archdiocese of Auch in south-western France in 1828, and ordained a bishop on January 11, 1829, in Paris by Cardinal

Jean-Baptiste de Latil Jean-Baptiste Marie Antoine de Latil, count then duke of Latil, Peer of France, French ecclesiastic. He is the last to have crowned a King of France in the person of Charles X in 1825. Biography Son of Antoine de Latil and Gabrielle Thérèse de ...

, archbishop of Reims.catholic-hierarchy.org entry
/ref> He was appointed

pair of France The Peerage of France (french: Pairie de France) was a hereditary distinction within the French nobility which appeared in 1180 in the Middle Ages. The prestigious title and position of Peer of France (french: Pair de France, links=no) was ...

by Charles X on 24 Jan 1829 and known to be a monarchist. During his time as archbishop of Auch, as a cardinal he participated in the conclaves that elected

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 Gregory XVI, being charged with possibly pronouncing a French veto in the latter. Having rejected the archepiscopal seat of Aix twice, and of Bordeaux, he eventually accepted to become archbishop of Lyon in 1839, as successor of Cardinal Fesch, mainly because the climate there was more favourable to his decreasing health.Biographie universelle, p. 585 He travelled to Paris prior to taking office in Lyon, and died there on 7 October 1839, of a thorax inflammation. He was buried in the cathedral of Auch.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Isoard, Joachim-Jean-Xavier d 1766 births 1839 deaths People from Aix-en-Provence 19th-century French cardinals Members of the Chamber of Peers of the Bourbon Restoration Archbishops of Lyon