Luigi Nazari di Calabiana (1808 – 1893) was an Italian churchman and politician: a senator of the Kingdom of Sardinia and Archbishop of Milan.

Biography

He was born on 27 July 1808 in Savigliano to Filippo, count of Calabiana, and the noblewoman Sofia Toesca of the counts of Castezzo. On 18 March 1847 he was appointed

bishop of Casale Monferrato The Diocese of Casale Monferrato (Latin: ''Dioecesis Casalensis'') is a Roman Catholic diocese in northwest Italy, a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Vercelli which forms part of the ecclesiastical region of Piedmont.

Charles Albert of Sardinia Charles Albert (; 2 October 1798 – 28 July 1849) was the King of Sardinia from 27 April 1831 until 23 March 1849. His name is bound up with the first Italian constitution, the Albertine Statute, and with the First Italian War of Independence ...

and consecrated bishop on 6 June 1847 in Rome by Cardinal

Ugo Pietro Spinola Ugo Pietro Spinola (29 June 1791 – 21 January 1858) was a Catholic cardinal and was Apostolic Nuncio to Austria and camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals. Early life Spinola was born on 29 June 1791 in Genoa. He was educated at the '' ...

. As bishop of Casale he was involved in the successful campaign to save its ancient Romanesque cathedral from demolition. On 3 May 1848 he was nominated as

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 ...

by king Charles Albert, taking the oath on 22 May of that year. He unsuccessfully opposed Siccardi reforms of 1850, which were intended to revoke certain ancient privileges which the Catholic Church enjoyed in Piedmont, and he led the opposition to further reforms in 1855, intended to institute a "free church in a free state", provoking the ''Calabiana crisis'' which forced the resignation of Cavour, although again the legislation was passed into law. In 1867 he was named by

Pope Pius IX Pope Pius IX ( it, Pio IX, ''Pio Nono''; born Giovanni Maria Mastai Ferretti; 13 May 1792 – 7 February 1878) was head of the Catholic Church from 1846 to 1878, the longest verified papal reign. He was notable for convoking the First Vatican ...

archbishop of Milan, and his appointment solved the crisis in such important and large diocese. Actually the previous archbishop

Paolo Angelo Ballerini Paolo Angelo Ballerini (14 September 1814 – 27 March 1897) was an Italian prelate who was named by Pope Pius IX as the Archbishop of Milan. He also served as the Latin Patriarch of Alexandria. His cause of canonization has begun and he is now a ...

of Milan had been suggested by the Austrian emperor, but he was not allowed to enter in the town by the Kingdom of Sardinia that took possession of the

Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...

after the Second Italian War of Independence. So with the appointment of Nazari di Calabiana Milan again had a residence bishop. In the frame of the hostility between the Holy See and the kingdom of Sardinia (later Kingdom of Italy), Nazari di Calabiana was considered to be on conciliatory positions, while the previous archbishop Ballerini, who during Nazari's reign resided in

Seregno Seregno (; lmo, label= Brianzoeu, Seregn ) is a town and ''comune'' of the new Province of Monza and Brianza in the Italian region of Lombardy. Seregno received the honorary title of city with a presidential decree on 26 January 1979. It is ser ...

near Milan, remained a fierce opponent of the Reign. Nazari di Calabian was never created cardinal. As archbishop of Milan, Nazari di Calabiana is remembered for his social activity, for the erection of new churches in the suburbs of the town and for the discovery of the relics of Saint

Ambrose Ambrose of Milan ( la, Aurelius Ambrosius; ), venerated as Saint Ambrose, ; lmo, Sant Ambroeus . was a theologian and statesman who served as Bishop of Milan from 374 to 397. He expressed himself prominently as a public figure, fiercely promo ...

and Gervasius and Protasius founded in an old sarcophagus buried under the altar of Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio. At the

First Vatican Council The First Ecumenical Council of the Vatican, commonly known as the First Vatican Council or Vatican I was convoked by Pope Pius IX on 29 June 1868, after a period of planning and preparation that began on 6 December 1864. This, the twentieth ecu ...

he was the leader of the minority of Italian bishops who opposed the introduction of the doctrine of papal infallibility, but after the proclamation of the dogma he promptly undersigned it. In 2000 it was claimed by one scholar that he was one of the consecrators of Church of England episcopus vagans

Frederick George Lee Frederick George Lee (6 January 1832 in Thame, Oxfordshire – 22 January 1902 at Lambeth, London) was a priest of the Church of England and a religious author. He co-founded the Order of Corporate Reunion. Biography Lee was trained in Ripon Coll ...

in the

Order of Corporate Reunion The Order of Corporate Reunion (OCR), officially the Christian, Ecumenical, and Fraternal Order of Corporate Reunion, is an ecumenical association of clergy and laity of Anglican origin. The OCR was founded by Frederick George Lee, Thomas Wimberl ...

. Luigi Nazari di Calabiana died in Milan on 23 October 1893.

References

* Pierluigi Piano (ed.)
''Notizie Storiche della città di Casale Monferrato: un inedito dalla Biblioteca Ambrosiana di Milano''
Circolo Culturale “I Marchesi del Monferrato”, 2008.

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nazari di Calabiana, Luigi 1808 births 1893 deaths People from the Province of Cuneo 19th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops Archbishops of Milan Burials at Milan Cathedral Italian untitled nobility Members of the Senate of the Kingdom of Italy People from Casale Monferrato Members of the Senate of the Kingdom of Sardinia