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Pope Benedict XIII
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
- For Pedro de Luna, the last of the Avignon popes, see Avignon Pope Benedict XIII.
| Benedict XIII[1] | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Birth name | Pietro Francesco Orsini |
| Papacy began | May 29, 1724 |
| Papacy ended | February 21, 1730 |
| Predecessor | Innocent XIII |
| Successor | Clement XII |
| Born | February 2, 1649 Gravina in Puglia, Italy |
| Died | February 21, 1730 (aged 81) Rome, Italy |
| Other popes named Benedict | |
Pope Benedict XIII (February 2, 1649 – February 21, 1730), born Pietro Francesco Orsini, later Vincenzo Maria Orsini, was pope from 1724 until his death. He succeeded Pope Innocent XIII (1721–1724).
He was born in Gravina in Puglia to Ferdinando III Orsini, duke of Gravina, and Giovanna Frangipani della tolfa, from Toritto. He was a member of the Orsini of Rome, the third and last member of that family to become Pope. He been named cardinal on February 22, 1672 (allegedly, against his will); later he was bishop of Manfredonia, bishop of Cesena and then archbishop of Benevento.
At first, he called himself Benedict XIV (due to the superstition alleging that the number thirteen brings bad luck), but afterwards altered the title to Benedict XIII. There is also the matter of the previous Benedict XIII having been considered an antipope.
He endeavoured to put a stop to the decadent lifestyles of the Italian priesthood and of the cardinalate. He also abolished the lottery in Rome. A man fond above all of asceticism and religious celebrations, according to Cardinal Lambertini (later Pope as Benedict XIV) he "did not have any idea about how to rule".[2] The government was effectively held in his lieu by Cardinal Niccolò Coscia, who had been Benedict's secretary when he was archbishop of Benevento, and who committed a long series of financial abuses at his own advantage, causing the ruin of the Papal treasure. According to Montesquieu, "All the money of Rome go to Benevento... as the Beneventani direct [Benedict's] weakness"[3].
In foreign politics, he struggled with John V of Portugal and the Jansenists
In 1727 he inaugurated the famous Spanish Steps and founded the University of Camerino.
Benedict died in 1730 and was buried in a tomb in Santa Maria sopra Minerva completed by Pietro Bracci and others. Coscia fled from the city in the circumstance, being excommunicated under the new Pope Clement XII. He was later restored and took part to the conclaves of 1730 and 1740.
The comment to Benedict's death by Pasquino, the popular satirist of Rome, was:
- "This tomb encloses
- the bones of a little friar:
- more than a saint's lover
- a protector of brigands"
"Pope Benedict XIII" in the 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia.- Rendina, Claudio (1993). I papi. Storia e segreti. Rome: Newton Compton.
- ^ Pope Benedict X is now considered an antipope. At the time, however, this status was not recognized and so the man the Roman Catholic church officially considers the tenth true Pope Benedict took the official number XI, rather than X. This has advanced the numbering of all subsequent Popes Benedict by one. Popes Benedict XI-XVI are, from an official point of view, the tenth through fifteenth popes by that name.
- ^ Rendina, p. 590
- ^ Rendina, p. 592
| Catholic Church titles | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Innocent XIII |
Bishop of Rome, Vicar of Peter (deprecated A.D. 495), Vicar of Christ, Successor of the Prince of the Apostles Supreme Pontiff (Pontifex Maximus) Patriarch of the West (deprecated 2006), Primate of Italy, Archbishop and Metropolitan of the Roman Province Servant of the Servants of God Pope 1724–30 |
Succeeded by Clement XII |