Melchior von Meckau (1440–1509) (called the Cardinal of Brixen) was a

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cardinal and

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Life and church

Melchior von Meckau was born in Meissen in 1440, the son of Gaspar von Meckau, who later became a counselor of

Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor Maximilian I (22 March 1459 – 12 January 1519) was King of the Romans from 1486 and Holy Roman Emperor from 1508 until his death. He was never crowned by the pope, as the journey to Rome was blocked by the Venetians. He proclaimed himself E ...

.Biographical Dictionary of the Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church
/ref> He began his studies at

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

in 1458, and then enrolled at the

University of Bologna The University of Bologna ( it, Alma Mater Studiorum – Università di Bologna, UNIBO) is a public research university in Bologna, Italy. Founded in 1088 by an organised guild of students (''studiorum''), it is the oldest university in continu ...

in 1459. He ultimately received a

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from the University of Bologna. He became provost of the

Cathedral of Magdeburg Magdeburg Cathedral (german: Magdeburger Dom), officially called the Cathedral of Saints Maurice and Catherine (german: Dom zu Magdeburg St. Mauritius und Katharina), is a Protestant cathedral in Germany and the oldest Gothic cathedral in the cou ...

in 1470. He moved to

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and became a secretary in the Chancery of Apostolic Briefs. In 1473, Pope Sixtus IV nominated him to be

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of the cathedral chapter of

Meissen Cathedral Meissen Cathedral or the Church of St John and St Donatus (german: Meißner Dom) is a Gothic church in Meissen in Saxony. It is situated on the castle hill of Meissen, adjacent to the Albrechtsburg castle and forms a critical centrepiece of the i ...

. From 1473, he was also a counselor of

Sigismund, Archduke of Austria Sigismund (26 October 1427 – 4 March 1496), a member of the House of Habsburg, was List of rulers of Austria, Duke of Austria from 1439 (elevated to Archduke in 1477) until his death. As a scion of the Habsburg Leopoldian line, he ruled ov ...

, becoming his chancellor in 1481. He was also a

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Brixen Brixen (, ; it, Bressanone ; lld, Porsenù or ) is a town in South Tyrol, northern Italy, located about north of Bolzano. Geography First mentioned in 901, Brixen is the third largest city and oldest town in the province, and the artistic an ...

Cathedral. On April 20, 1482, he was named coadjutor bishop of Georg Gosler, Prince-Bishop of

. He spent most of his time with Archduke Sigismund in Innsbruck until 1488, when Bishop Gosler transferred administration of the prince-bishopric to him. When Bishop Gosler died on June 20, 1489, Bishop Meckau succeeded as Prince-Bishop of Brixen. He celebrated a diocesan synod in November 1489, where the major topic of discussion was the Breviary and the Missal used in Brixen. In 1490, he became a canon of

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. Upon the death of Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor, the new emperor, Maximilian I, left Bishop Meckau in charge of the territorial government of

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

. He was an active governor and supported the emperor financially during the

Swabian War The Swabian War of 1499 ( gsw, Schwoobechrieg (spelling depending on dialect), called or ("Swiss War") in Germany and ("War of the Engadin") in Austria) was the last major armed conflict between the Old Swiss Confederacy and the House of ...

. Bishop Meckau was a patron of the arts, architecture and literature, and has been called the first

humanist Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "human ...

bishop of Brixen. Pope Alexander VI made him a

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 ...

in the

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of May 31, 1503. He received the

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 des ...

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 bui ...

on June 12, 1503. He did not participate in the papal conclave of September 1503 that elected

Pope Pius III Pope Pius III ( it, Pio III; 9 May 1439 – 18 October 1503), born Francesco Todeschini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 22 September 1503 to his death. At just twenty-six days, he had one of the shortest ...

, but he did participate in the papal conclave of October 1503 that elected

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. Emperor Maximilian named Cardinal Meckau as his ambassador to arrange for the diplomacy necessary for his

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. Cardinal Meckau visited the pope in Rome on December 16, 1506 and then visited the

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, which was forbidding passage through its territory. On January 5, 1507, he opted for the titular church of

Santo Stefano Rotondo The Basilica of St. Stephen in the Round on the Celian Hill ( it, Basilica di Santo Stefano al Monte Celio, la, Basilica S. Stephani in Caelio Monte) is an ancient basilica and titular church in Rome, Italy. Commonly named Santo Stefano Rotondo, ...

. Because of the intransigence of the Republic of Vienna, Maximilian could not be crowned and traveled to Trent. (This was one of the grievances leading up to the

War of the League of Cambrai The War of the League of Cambrai, sometimes known as the War of the Holy League and several other names, was fought from February 1508 to December 1516 as part of the Italian Wars of 1494–1559. The main participants of the war, who fough ...

.) In February 1507, Maximilian declared that he was Holy Roman Emperor even though he had not been crowned; Cardinal Meckau conveyed this decision to the pope, who gave his assent. He died in Rome on March 3, 1509. He was buried in Santa Maria in Araceli.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Meckau, Melchior von 1440 births 1509 deaths 16th-century German cardinals Bishops of Brixen