Romolo Carboni (9 May 1911 – 2 September 1999) was an Italian prelate of the Catholic Church who devoted his entire career to the diplomatic service of the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

. He became an archbishop in 1953 and served as an Apostolic Nuncio from 1953 to 1986, including 17 years as Apostolic Nuncio to Italy.

Biography

Romolo Carboni was born on 9 May 1911 in

Fano Fano is a town and ''comune'' of the province of Pesaro and Urbino in the Marche region of Italy. It is a beach resort southeast of Pesaro, located where the ''Via Flaminia'' reaches the Adriatic Sea. It is the third city in the region by popula ...

, Italy. He was ordained a priest on 31 March 1934. To prepare for a diplomatic career he entered the

Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy The Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy ( la, Pontificia Ecclesiastica Academia, it, Pontificia Accademia Ecclesiastica) is one of the Roman Colleges of the Catholic Church. The academy is dedicated to training priests to serve in the diplomatic c ...

in 1934. He joined the diplomatic service on 15 September 1937. His early assignments included postings in Haiti, the United States, and in Rome from 1945 to 1953. On 28 September 1953,

Pope Pius XII Pope Pius XII ( it, Pio XII), born Eugenio Maria Giuseppe Giovanni Pacelli (; 2 March 18769 October 1958), was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 2 March 1939 until his death in October 1958. Before his e ...

named him titular archbishop of

Sidon Sidon ( ; he, צִידוֹן, ''Ṣīḏōn'') known locally as Sayda or Saida ( ar, صيدا ''Ṣaydā''), is the third-largest city in Lebanon. It is located in the South Governorate, of which it is the capital, on the Mediterranean coast. ...

and

Apostolic Delegate 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 o ...

to Australia, New Zealand, and Oceania. He received his episcopal consecration on 25 October 1953 from Cardinal

Pietro Fumasoni Biondi Pietro Fumasoni Biondi (4 September 1872 – 12 July 1960) was an Italian people, Italian Cardinal (Catholicism), Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church who served as Prefect of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples, Sacred Cong ...

. In 1961, a collection of speeches he gave while in this post was published in English as ''An Apostolic Delegate Speaks'', with a book jacket that said "An alert, progressive Catholic archbishop speaks his mind". He was a forceful orator and fluent in English. In Australia he was a very public advocate for lay Catholic political organizations, a position opposed by the Australian bishops. One study draws a negative picture of Carboni's status: "It is not clear that Carboni was well regarded in the Vatican.... It seems that Carboni's apparent self-promotion upset some of his clerical colleagues.... Carboni was not a big hitter in Rome." The Vatican ultimately rejected his position. On 2 September 1959,

Pope John XXIII Pope John XXIII ( la, Ioannes XXIII; it, Giovanni XXIII; born Angelo Giuseppe Roncalli, ; 25 November 18813 June 1963) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 28 October 1958 until his death in June 19 ...

named him

Apostolic Nuncio to Peru The Apostolic Nunciature to the Republic of Peru is an ecclesiastical office of the Roman Catholic Church in Peru. It is a diplomatic post of the Holy See, whose representative is called the Apostolic Nuncio with the rank of an ambassador. Papal ...

. His support for political and Church conservatives proved controversial. On 23 April 1969,

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

appointed him Apostolic Nuncio to Italy. He retired upon the appointment of his successor,

Luigi Poggi is a fictional character featured in video games and related media released by Nintendo. Created by Japanese video game designer Shigeru Miyamoto, Luigi is portrayed as the younger fraternal twin brother and sidekick of Mario, Nintendo's ma ...

, on 19 April 1986. He died on 2 September 1999.

References

External links

Catholic Hierarchy: Archbishop Romolo Carboni
{{DEFAULTSORT:Carboni, Romolo 1911 births 1999 deaths People from Fano Apostolic Nuncios to Peru Apostolic Nuncios to Italy Apostolic Nuncios to Australia Apostolic Nuncios to New Zealand