Niccolò Albergati (1373 – 9 May 1443) was an Italian

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

prelate A prelate () is a high-ranking member of the Christian clergy who is an ordinary or who ranks in precedence with ordinaries. The word derives from the Latin , the past participle of , which means 'carry before', 'be set above or over' or 'pref ...

and professed member from the

Carthusians The Carthusians, also known as the Order of Carthusians ( la, Ordo Cartusiensis), are a Latin enclosed religious order of the Catholic Church. The order was founded by Bruno of Cologne in 1084 and includes both monks and nuns. The order has its ...

. He became 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 ...

and had served as a

papal diplomat 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 org ...

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

and

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

(1422–23) in addition to serving as the

bishop of Bologna The Archdiocese of Bologna is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Northern Italy. The cathedra is in the cathedral church of San Pietro, Bologna. The current archbishop is Cardinal Matteo Zuppi, ...

from 1417 until his death. He accepted the position as bishop in obedience despite his extreme reluctance to accept the position but carried out his duties with care and attention to educational concerns. But two conflicts in his see caused him to depart and later return and he became known for being close to

Pope Martin V Pope Martin V ( la, Martinus V; it, Martino V; January/February 1369 – 20 February 1431), born Otto (or Oddone) Colonna, was the head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 11 November 1417 to his death in February 1431. Hi ...

and his successor

Pope Eugene IV Pope Eugene IV ( la, Eugenius IV; it, Eugenio IV; 1383 – 23 February 1447), born Gabriele Condulmer, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 3 March 1431 to his death in February 1447. Condulmer was a Venetian, and ...

. Both men held Albergati in high esteem and nominated him to crucial positions within the Roman Curia and the diplomatic service to oversee important missions. He had prominent roles in the Council of Basel-Ferrara-Florence and also attended the

Council of Florence The Council of Florence is the seventeenth ecumenical council recognized by the Catholic Church, held between 1431 and 1449. It was convoked as the Council of Basel by Pope Martin V shortly before his death in February 1431 and took place in ...

. His student Tommaso Parentucelli later became pontiff and assumed the

papal name A papal name or pontificial name is the regnal name taken by a pope. Both the head of the Catholic Church, usually known as the pope, and the pope of the Coptic Orthodox Church of Alexandria (Coptic pope) choose papal names. , Pope Francis is t ...

"Nicholas" in honor of his mentor and patron. His other noted student Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini also became pope sometime after Parentucelli. His beatification received confirmation from

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.Antipope ...

on 25 September 1744.

Life

Education and priesthood

Niccolò Albergati was born in 1373 in

Bologna Bologna (, , ; egl, label= Emilian, Bulåggna ; lat, Bononia) is the capital and largest city of the Emilia-Romagna region in Northern Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy with about 400,000 inhabitants and 150 different nat ...

to Pier Nicola Albergati who had a notable role in Bolognese communal life. He first studied

law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior,Robertson, ''Crimes against humanity'', 90. with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been vario ...

the college ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

in Bologna from 1386 before he commenced his ecclesial studies. He entered the

in 1394 and was later professed in the San Girolamo di Casara

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...

near

Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilancio demografico an ...

on 25 September 1396. He received the

minor orders Minor orders are ranks of church ministry. In the Catholic Church, the predominating Latin Church formerly distinguished between the major orders —priest (including bishop), deacon and subdeacon—and four minor orders—acolyte, exorcist, lecto ...

on 9 June 1403 and was made a

subdeacon Subdeacon (or sub-deacon) is a minor order or ministry for men in various branches of Christianity. The subdeacon has a specific liturgical role and is placed between the acolyte (or reader) and the deacon in the order of precedence. Subdeacons in ...

on 22 September 1403 prior to being made a

deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Churc ...

in 1404. Albergati received his

ordination Ordination is the process by which individuals are Consecration, consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorization, authorized (usually by the religious denomination, denominational ...

to the priesthood in June 1404. The order's General Chapter in 1407 saw him named as the prior for the San Girolamo di Casara house and in 1412 was made to supervise all Italian houses of the order.

Episcopate

The Consiglio dei Seicento made the unanimous decision to make him the next

on 4 January 1417. The cathedral chapter confirmed this on 5 January with the

canon Canon or Canons may refer to: Arts and entertainment * Canon (fiction), the conceptual material accepted as official in a fictional universe by its fan base * Literary canon, an accepted body of works considered as high culture ** Western can ...

(and president of the chapter) Pietro da Saliceto announcing the decision to him on 8 January. He did not wish to become a bishop but had accepted in obedience to his superiors and to the pope. On 24 February he accepted the nomination in obedience and on 8 March the cathedral chapter asked the metropolitan of

Ravenna Ravenna ( , , also ; rgn, Ravèna) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire from 408 until its collapse in 476. It then served as the cap ...

to confirm the appointment which that official ratified on 15 March. The

archbishop of Ravenna This page is a list of Roman Catholic bishops and archbishops of Ravenna and, from 1985, of the Archdiocese of Ravenna-Cervia.episcopal consecration A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or offic ...

upon him on 4 July with the

bishop of Imola The Roman Catholic Diocese of Imola ( la, Diocesis Imolensis) is a territory in Romagna, northern Italy. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Bologna.

, Pietro Ondedi, and the

bishop of Ferrara The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Ferrara-Comacchio ( la, Archidioecesis Ferrariensis-Comaclensis) has existed since 1986, when the Roman Catholic Diocese of Comacchio, diocese of Comacchio was combined with the historical archdiocese of Ferrara. ...

, Pietro Bolardi, acting as the

co-consecrators A consecrator is a bishop who ordains someone to the episcopacy. A co-consecrator is someone who assists the consecrator bishop in the act of ordaining a new bishop. The terms are used in the canon law of the Catholic Church, Lutheran Churches, ...

. He was enthroned in his see right after the consecration. He set about at once making his hometown and his episcopal see a center of learning and

humanism 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 "humani ...

confirmed his appointment to the see on 13 April 1418 in a papal bull. The pope later dispensed Albergati on 27 July 1418 from travelling to

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 ...

to make the ritual oath of obedience to the pope which allowed for Albergati to instead make it before the bishops of

Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...

and

Imola Imola (; rgn, Jômla or ) is a city and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Bologna, located on the river Santerno, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. The city is traditionally considered the western entrance to the historical re ...

. That 20 December - upon the pope's invitation - he went to

Mantua Mantua ( ; it, Mantova ; Lombard language, Lombard and la, Mantua) is a city and ''comune'' in Lombardy, Italy, and capital of the Province of Mantua, province of the same name. In 2016, Mantua was designated as the Italian Capital of Culture ...

to discuss the political position of Bologna concerning the

Papal States The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

and left Mantua on 18 January 1419 for Rome and back to Bologna on 27 January due to his father's death. On 6 February he departed for

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 ...

to meet the pope in order to validate the

concordat A concordat is a convention between the Holy See and a sovereign state that defines the relationship between the Catholic Church and the state in matters that concern both,René Metz, ''What is Canon Law?'' (New York: Hawthorn Books, 1960 st Ed ...

that was stipulated in Mantua which then allowed for him to return on 17 February to Bologna. But

Antongaleazzo Bentivoglio Antongaleazzo Bentivoglio (c. 1385–1435) was an Italian condottiero who was executed by the papacy for treason. Life The son of Giovanni I Bentivoglio, after the murder of his father, Antongaleazzo studied law and was a leader of the republi ...

's rebellion against the pope in his see forced him to flee on 26 March 1420; he returned on 24 July after the rebellion had been quelled. On 8 February 1422 he was appointed as the

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 ...

to both

and

in order to secure the reconciliation between both kingdoms; he returned from France on 9 August 1423. But crisis struck once again when Bentivoglio fermented another revolt in August 1428. This forced Albergati to flee to

but returned to his see under assurances that he would not be harmed. But the pope had enough of the revolt and placed Bologna under an

interdict In Catholic canon law, an interdict () is an ecclesiastical censure, or ban that prohibits persons, certain active Church individuals or groups from participating in certain rites, or that the rites and services of the church are banished from ...

which forced Albergati to leave for Imola. The indignant Consiglio dei Seicento decided to elect the

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the male head of a monastery in various Western religious traditions, including Christianity. The office may also be given as an honorary title to a clergyman who is not the head of a monastery. The fem ...

Bartolomeo Zambeccari as the new bishop for Bologna but soon recognized Albergati as the legitimate bishop after Zambeccari renounced his false position.

Cardinalate

His successes led to the pope naming him as a

on 24 May 1426 as the Cardinal-Priest of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme; he received that title on 27 May. Albergati participated in the 1431 papal conclave that selected

. The new pope named him as a

legate Legate may refer to: *Legatus, a higher ranking general officer of the Roman army drawn from among the senatorial class :*Legatus Augusti pro praetore, a provincial governor in the Roman Imperial period *A member of a legation *A representative, ...

to Florence in 1431 in addition to the cities of

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 ...

and

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

. In his role as a diplomat he helped to mediate between

Sigismund Sigismund (variants: Sigmund, Siegmund) is a German proper name, meaning "protection through victory", from Old High German ''sigu'' "victory" + ''munt'' "hand, protection". Tacitus latinises it ''Segimundus''. There appears to be an older form of ...

and Pope Martin V and later repeated this in similar circumstances between

King King is the title given to a male monarch in a variety of contexts. The female equivalent is queen, which title is also given to the consort of a king. *In the context of prehistory, antiquity and contemporary indigenous peoples, the tit ...

Charles VII and Pope Eugene IV. He represented Pope Eugene IV at the 1435

Congress of Arras The Congress of Arras was a diplomatic congregation established at Arras in the summer of 1435 during the Hundred Years' War, between representatives of England, France, and Burgundy. It was the first negotiation since the Treaty of Troyes and rep ...

with the aid of Cardinal

Hugues de Lusignan Hugh Lancelot of Lusignan or Hugues or Hughues Lancelot de Lusignan (died August 1442) was a Frankish Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal, often known as the Cardinal of Cyprus. He was Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem 1424, and Archbishop of Nicosia. He w ...

. The congress failed to make peace between England and France but did effect a reconciliation between

Philip the Good Philip III (french: Philippe le Bon; nl, Filips de Goede; 31 July 1396 – 15 June 1467) was Duke of Burgundy from 1419 until his death. He was a member of a cadet line of the Valois dynasty, to which all 15th-century kings of France belonge ...

and the French crown of King Charles VII. He had a role in the Council of Basel-Ferrara-Florence and opened the

which brought about a short-lived union of the Latin and Greek Churches. Eugene IV had sent him to preside over the Basel Council but the other cardinals refused to accept him. This prompted Albergati to go to Florence but later accompanied the pope to Ferrara to preside over the relocated council's first session on 8 January 1438. On 13 February 1439 he travelled to Florence to attend another session of the council but did not sign the document that would lead to Latin-Greek Church unification even though it was something he desired.

Mentorship

Under his tutelage were important figures such as Tommaso Parentucelli and Enea Silvio Bartolomeo Piccolomini who both became popes.

Francesco Filelfo Francesco Filelfo ( la, Franciscus Philelphus; 25 July 1398 – 31 July 1481) was an Italian Renaissance humanist. Biography Filelfo was born at Tolentino, in the March of Ancona. He is believed to be a third cousin of Leonardo da Vinci. At th ...

was another under his tutelage. He had ordained and consecrated Parentucelli and served as a great influence upon him to the point that Parentucelli chose the pontifical name "Nicholas" upon his ascension to the papal throne in honor of his mentor and patron. Albergati had also written several theological treatises and encouraged academics within his diocese.

Death

He died in

Siena Siena ( , ; lat, Sena Iulia) is a city in Tuscany, Italy. It is the capital of the province of Siena. The city is historically linked to commercial and banking activities, having been a major banking center until the 13th and 14th centuri ...

at an

Augustinian Augustinian may refer to: *Augustinians, members of religious orders following the Rule of St Augustine *Augustinianism, the teachings of Augustine of Hippo and his intellectual heirs *Someone who follows Augustine of Hippo * Canons Regular of Sain ...

convent on 9 May 1443 due to a severe case of

kidney stones Kidney stone disease, also known as nephrolithiasis or urolithiasis, is a crystallopathy where a solid piece of material (kidney stone) develops in the urinary tract. Kidney stones typically form in the kidney and leave the body in the urine s ...

resulting in

renal failure Kidney failure, also known as end-stage kidney disease, is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney failure is classified as eit ...

. He had been travelling with the pope and cardinalate to Rome from Florence but his failing health forced him to remain in Siena where he died after his condition worsened. Eugene IV presided over his

funeral A funeral is a ceremony connected with the final disposition of a corpse, such as a burial or cremation, with the attendant observances. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember and respect th ...

on 11 May and his remains were interred in the Monte Acuto convent of the Carthusians in Florence. His red

galero A (plural: ; from la, galērum, originally connotating a helmet made of skins; cf. '' galea'') is a broad-brimmed hat with tasselated strings which was worn by clergy in the Catholic Church. Over the centuries, the red ''galero'' was restricte ...

was suspended from the ceiling of the

Siena Cathedral Siena Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Siena) is a medieval church in Siena, Italy, dedicated from its earliest days as a Roman Catholic Marian church, and now dedicated to the Assumption of Mary. It was the episcopal seat of the Diocese of Siena, and ...

and another suspended above his heart deposited in the Augustinian convent's chapel next to the main altar.

Pope Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII ( la, Urbanus VIII; it, Urbano VIII; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death in July 1644. As po ...

in 1633 permitted his

exhumation Burial, also known as interment or inhumation, is a method of final disposition whereby a dead body is placed into the ground, sometimes with objects. This is usually accomplished by excavating a pit or trench, placing the deceased and objec ...

where it was discovered his

brain A brain is an organ that serves as the center of the nervous system in all vertebrate and most invertebrate animals. It is located in the head, usually close to the sensory organs for senses such as vision. It is the most complex organ in a v ...

was found intact; his brain was sent to Bologna.

Beatification

His beatification received official confirmation from

on 25 September 1744 in the papal bull ''Singulare Divinae Providentiae'' upon the recognition of the late cardinal's popular and longstanding "cultus" - or enduring veneration on the part of the faithful.

References

External links

Catholic Encyclopedia

Catholic Online

New Catholic Encyclopedia

{{DEFAULTSORT:Albergati, Niccolo 1373 births 1443 deaths 14th-century Italian Roman Catholic priests 15th-century Italian diplomats 15th-century Italian writers 15th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops Apostolic Nuncios to France Apostolic Nuncios to Great Britain Bishops of Bologna Carthusians Carthusian bishops Christian humanists Italian beatified people 15th-century Italian cardinals Italian male writers Italian Renaissance humanists Major Penitentiaries of the Apostolic Penitentiary Italian literature patrons Diplomats from Bologna University of Bologna alumni Venerated Catholics Beatifications by Pope Benedict XIV