Raffaele Sansoni Galeoti Riario (3 May 1461 – 9 July 1521) 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 ...
Michelangelo
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...
Savona
Savona (; lij, Sann-a ) is a seaport and ''comune'' in the west part of the northern Italy, Italian region of Liguria, capital of the Province of Savona, in the Riviera di Ponente on the Mediterranean Sea.
Savona used to be one of the chie ...
, Riario was the son of Antonio Sansoni and Violante Riario, a niece of Francesco della Rovere, who became
Pope Sixtus IV
Pope Sixtus IV ( it, Sisto IV: 21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 to his death in August 1484. His accomplishments as pope include ...
in 1471.
Being the relative of a
Pope Sixtus IV
Pope Sixtus IV ( it, Sisto IV: 21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 to his death in August 1484. His accomplishments as pope include ...
, he was created Cardinal of San Giorgio in Velabro on 10 December 1477 and was named Administrator of several dioceses: (
diocese of Cuenca
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Cuenca ( la, Conchen(sis)) is a diocese located in the city of Cuenca in the Ecclesiastical province of Toledo in Spain.
,
diocese of Pisa
The Archdiocese of Pisa ( la, Archidioecesis Pisana) is a metropolitan see of the Catholic Church in Pisa, Italy.
,
diocese of Salamanca
The Roman Catholic Diocese of Salamanca ( la, Dioecesis Salmantina) is a diocese located in the city of Salamanca in the Ecclesiastical province of Valladolid in Spain.diocese of Treguier
In church governance, a diocese or bishopric is the ecclesiastical district under the jurisdiction of a bishop.
History
In the later organization of the Roman Empire, the increasingly subdivided provinces were administratively associat ...
, diocese of Osma). These gave him a handsome income, and no obligations except to appoint a vicar. He was then only sixteen years old and a student of canon law at the University of Pisa. While returning to Rome in the spring of 1478, Riario halted in Florence, where he became a witness to the Pazzi Conspiracy against the Medici. Despite his innocence, Raffaele was arrested by the Florentine authorities because he was a relation of the conspirators
Girolamo Riario
Girolamo Riario (1443 – 14 April 1488) was Lord of Imola (from 1473) and Forlì (from 1480). He served as Captain General of the Church under his uncle Pope Sixtus IV. He took part in the 1478 Pazzi conspiracy against the Medici, and was assas ...
, his mother's brother and the head of the plot, and the Archbishop
. His release a few weeks later was arranged by Lorenzo de' Medici. On 22 June 1478 he was received formally as a cardinal by the Pope in Siena and four days later he was sent as legate to Perugia.
It was not until 1480 that Raffaele was ordained priest and received the entitlement of San Lorenzo in Damaso.
Riario in the Papal Court
In 1484, Riario was engaged in the war which broke out between the Orsini and the
Colonna family
The House of Colonna, also known as ''Sciarrillo'' or ''Sciarra'', is an Italian noble family, forming part of the papal nobility. It was powerful in Middle Ages, medieval and Roman Renaissance, Renaissance Rome, supplying one pope (Pope Martin ...
, trying to secure in vain the life of his friend
Lorenzo Oddone Colonna
Lorenzo may refer to:
People
* Lorenzo (name)
Places Peru
* San Lorenzo Island (Peru), sometimes referred to as the island of Lorenzo
United States
* Lorenzo, Illinois
* Lorenzo, Texas
* San Lorenzo, California, formerly Lorenzo
* Lorenzo ...
, who was charged of having murdered an Orsini and was executed by
Sixtus IV
Pope Sixtus IV ( it, Sisto IV: 21 July 1414 – 12 August 1484), born Francesco della Rovere, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 August 1471 to his death in August 1484. His accomplishments as pope include ...
. In 1488,
Pope Innocent VIII
Pope Innocent VIII ( la, Innocentius VIII; it, Innocenzo VIII; 1432 – 25 July 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death in July 1492. Son of th ...
sent Cardinal Riario as a legate to his maternal uncle
Girolamo Riario
Girolamo Riario (1443 – 14 April 1488) was Lord of Imola (from 1473) and Forlì (from 1480). He served as Captain General of the Church under his uncle Pope Sixtus IV. He took part in the 1478 Pazzi conspiracy against the Medici, and was assas ...
, at the time governor of Forlì and Imola, who was revolting against the Holy See. Meanwhile, the Cardinal had already commissioned the erection of his palace beside the church of San Lorenzo in Damaso (1486).
It is said that
Franceschetto Cybo
Franceschetto Cybo (baptized Francesco) (c. 1450 – July 25, 1519) was an Italian nobleman, noteworthy for being the illegitimate son of Pope Innocent VIII (Giovanni Battista Cybo). Later naturalized by his father into becoming his legitimate he ...
, the infamous son of Innocent VIII, lost in one single night 15,000 ducats at a card game which took place in Raffaele's residence. When the Pope asked the Cardinal to return his son's money, the latter answered that he was sorry, but he had already used it to finance the construction of his palace.
As cardinal
Camerlengo
Camerlengo (plural: ''camerlenghi'', Italian for "chamberlain") is an Italian title of medieval origin. It derives from the late Latin ''camarlingus'', in turn coming through the Frankish ''kamerling'', from the Latin ''camerarius'' which meant "ch ...
, Riario is usually praised for ensuring order in Rome after the death of Innocent VIII. He was a candidate for the papal tiara in the
Conclave of 1492
The 1492 papal conclave (6–11 August) was convened after the death of Pope Innocent VIII (25 July 1492). It was the first papal conclave to be held in the Sistine Chapel.
Cardinal Roderic Borja was elected unanimously on the fourth ballot as ...
, but excluded from the first ballots due to his young age. He finally voted for Rodrigo Borgia (
Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI ( it, Alessandro VI, va, Alexandre VI, es, Alejandro VI; born Rodrigo de Borja; ca-valencia, Roderic Llançol i de Borja ; es, Rodrigo Lanzol y de Borja, lang ; 1431 – 18 August 1503) was head of the Catholic Churc ...
), receiving the lucrative
Bishopric of Cartagena
The Diocese of Cartagena ( la, Carthaginen(sis) in Hispania) is the diocese of the city of Cartagena in the Ecclesiastical province of Granada in Spain.Alexander VI’s reign (1492–1503), Riario gained distinction as diplomat and councillor of the papal throne. In 1493, he was sent as legate to Caterina Sforza, Girolamo Riario's widow, to prevent her from allowing the French troops to pass through Forlì and Imola. Pope Julius II (1503–1513), Riario's relative but not always his ally, raised him to the Bishopric of Ostia and Velletri, the first hierarchical see in the Papal States.
Engagement in the plot against Leo X and death
In June 1517, Cardinal Petrucci and others conspired against Pope Leo X (Giovanni dei Medici). Cardinal Riario refused to participate in the plot but was at least aware of Petrucci's intentions to murder the Pope and did nothing to prevent it. Leo was notified about the plot, arrested the conspirators and ordered their execution. Riario, whose entanglement in the Pazzi conspiracy had not been forgotten by the Medici Pope, secured his head only by surrendering his palace beside San Lorenzo in Damaso to the Pope. Leo transferred it to his cousin Giulio de' Medici, Vice-Chancellor of the Holy See, who rendered it the seat of the
Apostolic Chancery
The Apostolic ChanceryCanon 260, ''Code of Canon Law'' of 1917, translated by Edward N. Peters, Ignatius Press, 2001. ( la, Cancellaria Apostolica; also known as the "Papal" or "Roman Chanc(ell)ery") was a dicastery of the Roman Curia at the serv ...
fine arts
In European academic traditions, fine art is developed primarily for aesthetics or creative expression, distinguishing it from decorative art or applied art, which also has to serve some practical function, such as pottery or most metalwork ...
and especially sculpture, Cardinal Riario's artistic choices foreshadow the arrival of High Renaissance in Rome. His gigantic residence, influenced by Florentine architecture, is the first building of the new monumental style which prevailed in the Holy City under Julius II. Riario is also credited for noticing the talent of the young
Michelangelo
Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni (; 6 March 1475 – 18 February 1564), known as Michelangelo (), was an Italian sculptor, painter, architect, and poet of the High Renaissance. Born in the Republic of Florence, his work was insp ...
. In 1496, the Sleeping Cupid was treacherously sold to him as an ancient piece: the aesthetic prelate discovered the cheat, but was so impressed by the quality of the sculpture that he invited the artist to Rome, where Michelangelo worked on the three major commissions of his career.
Raffaele Riario is generally considered a prelate typical of his era: indifferent in religious matters, rather a statesman than a priest, rather a Maecenas than a theologian.
In popular culture
Raffaele Riario appears in seasons 2 and 3 of the 2016 '' Medici'' tv series.
He is played by Francesco di Raimondo in season 2 and Loris De Luna in season 3.