Pope Urban VII

Urban VII (* August 4, 1521 in Rome, † September 27, 1590 ibid ), real name Giambattista (Giovanni Battista ) Castagna, was from 15 to 27 September 1590 Pope of the Catholic Church.

Life

Giovanni Battista Castagna was the son of the Genoese Cosimo Castagna and his wife, the Roman Costanza Ricci. He studied civil and canon law at various universities in Italy. He completed each of the two courses in Bologna from with a doctorate.

He subsequently went into the service of his uncle, the papal legate in France, Cardinal Girolamo Verallo. On March 1, 1553, he was named Pope Julius III. Archbishop of Rossano. Since he was not yet a priest, ordained priest and on April 4, 1553 was followed on March 30, 1553 then the episcopal ordination.

Pope Julius III. 1555 appointed him governor of Fano. Pope Paul IV appointed him soon afterwards still governor of Perugia and Umbria. In his capacity as Archbishop of Rossano, he took part in the Council of Trent.

In 1565 he was papal nuncio at the court of Philip II, on his return to Italy he put in January 1573 from his position as Archbishop of Rossano down. Pope Gregory XIII. sent him in the same year as papal nuncio to Venice.

1578 sent him to Pope Gregory XIII. as extraordinary legate to Cologne, after his return from Cologne, the pope appointed him to the consultant to the Holy Office. On December 12, 1583, he was named by Pope Gregory XIII. Finally, the Cardinal of San Marcello.

Under the pontificate of Pope Sixtus V. He won a lot of influence; on November 19, 1586, he was Grand Inquisitor of the Holy Office.

So it was that the Conclave elected him on 15 September 1590 the new Pope. For Pope names he deliberately chose a name that was out of use for long: Even St.. Urban I. was Romans. However, Urban VII already ill in the night after his election, probably from malaria, and died after a brief pontificate of only 12 days.