Pietro Accolti (15 March 1455 – 11 December 1532), known as the "cardinal of

Ancona Ancona (, also , ) is a city and a seaport in the Marche region in central Italy, with a population of around 101,997 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region. The city is located northeast of Rome, on the Adriatic ...

", was an

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

Roman Catholic cardinal 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 ...

and judge of the Roman Rota.

Life

He was born in

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

on 15 March 1455, the son of the famous jurist

Benedetto Accolti the Elder Benedetto Accolti (1415 in Arezzo26 September 1464 in Florence) was an Italian jurist, humanist and historian. He was born at Arezzo in Tuscany, of a prominent family, several members of which were distinguished like himself for their attainments ...

and his wife Laura Federighi. He studied law at Pisa. In 1481, due to the influence of his uncle, Francesco Accolti, master of law, Pietro was appointed a reader of canon law. He moved to Rome sometime after 1485, and was appointed an auditor of the

Roman Rota The Roman Rota, formally the Apostolic Tribunal of the Roman Rota ( la, Tribunal Apostolicum Rotae Romanae), and anciently the Apostolic Court of Audience, is the highest appellate tribunal of the Catholic Church, with respect to both Latin-r ...

, that is, a judge who hears cases."Accolti, Pietro", ''Treccani''
/ref> In 1500, he became Dean of the Rota. He was made Bishop of Ancona in 1505, but continued sitting with the Rota. At a consistory on 10 March 1511,

Pope Julius II Pope Julius II ( la, Iulius II; it, Giulio II; born Giuliano della Rovere; 5 December 144321 February 1513) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 to his death in February 1513. Nicknamed the Warrior Pope or th ...

named him Cardinal-Priest with the title of

Sant'Eusebio Sant'Eusebio is a titular church in Rome, devoted to Saint Eusebius of Rome, a 4th-century martyr, and built in the Esquilino rione. One of the oldest churches in Rome, it is a titular church and the station church for the Friday after the fo ...

. That same year, he given the administration of the bishoprics of Cadiz and Maillezais. To these were added the dioceses of Arras in 1518, and Ancona in 1523. He also had, as cardinal-bishop, starting from 18 Dec. 1523, the suburbicarian dioceses of Albano (until May 20, 1524), of Palestrina (May 20-June 15, 1524), and, finally, of

Sabina Sabina may refer to: Places and jurisdictions * Sabina (region), region and place in Italy, and hence: * the now Suburbicarian Diocese of Sabina (-Poggio Mirteto), Italy * Magliano Sabina, city, Italy * Pozzaglia Sabina, city, Italy *Fara Sab ...

(from June 15). He was abbreviator under

Pope Leo X Pope Leo X ( it, Leone X; born Giovanni di Lorenzo de' Medici, 11 December 14751 December 1521) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 March 1513 to his death in December 1521. Born into the prominent political an ...

, and in that capacity drew up in 1520 the

bull A bull is an intact (i.e., not castrated) adult male of the species ''Bos taurus'' (cattle). More muscular and aggressive than the females of the same species (i.e., cows), bulls have long been an important symbol in many religions, includin ...

against

Martin Luther Martin Luther (; ; 10 November 1483 – 18 February 1546) was a German priest, theologian, author, hymnwriter, and professor, and Augustinian friar. He is the seminal figure of the Protestant Reformation and the namesake of Lutherani ...

. During the 1521–1522 papal conclave that followed the death of Leo, Cardinal Accolti was one of the Papabile who opposed the Emperor, receiving five votes on the first ballot. This prompted a satire on the part of

Pietro Aretino Pietro Aretino (, ; 19 or 20 April 1492 – 21 October 1556) was an Italian author, playwright, poet, satirist and blackmailer, who wielded influence on contemporary art and politics. He was one of the most influential writers of his time and a ...

, whose patron, Cardinal Giulio de' Medici, was also a contender. Aretino mocked Cardinal Accolti's not always impeccable morals, and the fact that he was rumored to have three illegitimate children. Mazzucchelli says Accolti had a daughter Caterina, who took the veil; a son Hadrian, alive in 1521; and a son Benedetto, supposedly hanged in Rome in 1564, for having taken part in a conspiracy against

Pope Pius V Pope Pius V ( it, Pio V; 17 January 1504 – 1 May 1572), born Antonio Ghislieri (from 1518 called Michele Ghislieri, O.P.), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 8 January 1566 to his death in May 1572. He is v ...

. However, the last was more likely the son of his nephew Benedetto. In 1524 he was made

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.Pope Clement VII Pope Clement VII ( la, Clemens VII; it, Clemente VII; born Giulio de' Medici; 26 May 1478 – 25 September 1534) was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 19 November 1523 to his death on 25 September 1534. Deemed "the ...

. Accolti was an active participant in the main political and ecclesiastical events of his era. French chancellor

Antoine Duprat Antoine Duprat (17 January 1463 – 1535) was a French Cardinal and politician, who was chancellor of France. Life Duprat was born in Issoire in Auvergne. Educated for the law, he won a high position in his profession and in 1507 became first ...

, considered Accolti the most cultured and literate member of the college of cardinals. Accolti died on 11 December 1532 in Rome and was buried in the church of

Santa Maria del Popolo it, Basilica Parrocchiale Santa Maria del Popolo , image = 20140803 Basilica of Santa Maria del Popolo Rome 0191.jpg , caption = The church from Piazza del Popolo , coordinates = , image_size ...

, without an inscription.Cardella, III, p. 352.

References

Sources

* W.W. (1842), "Accolti, Pietro," in: * * ;Attribution ::

External links

* David M. Cheney, ''Catholic-Hierarchy.org''
"Pietro Cardinal de Accolti de Aretio"
retrieved: 2017-05-27. {{DEFAULTSORT:Accolti, Pietro 1455 births 1532 deaths Clergy from Florence 16th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops Archbishops of Ravenna 15th-century Italian cardinals Cardinal-bishops of Albano Cardinal-bishops of Palestrina Cardinal-bishops of Porto Cardinal-bishops of Sabina Bishops of Arras Bishops of Maillezais 16th-century people of the Republic of Florence 16th-century Italian Roman Catholic bishops