Pope Clement IX (Latin:Clemens IX;Italian:Clemente IX; 28 January 1600 – 9 December 1669), bornGiulio Rospigliosi, was head of theCatholic Church and ruler of thePapal States from 20 June 1667 to his death in December 1669.
Giulio Rospigliosi was born into the nobleRospigliosi family in 1600 and studied at theSeminario Romano and theUniversity of Pisa. He held various positions in the Church, including Titular Archbishop of Tarsus and ApostolicNuncio toSpain. As a man of letters, he wrote poetry, dramas, and libretti, and was a patron of the artistNicolas Poussin.
Appointed as a cardinal byPope Alexander VII, Rospigliosi was elected as Pope Clement IX in 1667. His pontificate was marked by mediation during European wars, and his popularity in Rome stemmed from his charity, humility, and refusal to advance his family's wealth. He beatifiedRose of Lima and canonizedMary Magdalene de' Pazzi andPeter of Alcántara, while also creating 12 new cardinals.
Clement IX was a patron of the arts, commissioning works fromGian Lorenzo Bernini and opening the first public opera house in Rome. He attempted to strengthen Venetian defenses against the Turks inCrete, but was unsuccessful in gaining wider support. In 1669, after learning about the Venetian fortress ofCandia surrendering to the Turks, Clement IX fell ill and died.
Giulio Rospigliosi was born in 1600 to theRospigliosi family, a noble family ofPistoia in theGrand Duchy of Tuscany to Giacomo and Caterina Rospigliosi. He studied at theSeminario Romano and later at theUniversity of Pisa as a pupil of theJesuits, receiving doctorates in theology, philosophy and both canon and civil law in 1623. After receiving his doctorates, he taught theology there as a professor from 1623 to 1625.
Later Rospigliosi worked closely withPope Urban VIII (1623–1644) where he worked in thediplomatic corps as the Referendary of theApostolic Signatura. He was appointed as the Titular Archbishop of Tarsus in 1644 and later receivedepiscopal consecration in the Vatican. Rospigliosi also served as theApostolic Nuncio to Spain from 1644 until 1653 when he decided to retire from that post. He lived in retirement throughout the pontificate ofPope Innocent X who disliked and distanced himself from those associated with his predecessor.[1] He was also made vicar ofSanta Maria Maggiore inRome.
Pope Alexander VII died in 1667 and a conclave to choose his successor was called. KingLouis XIV of France instructed the French faction to turn their support to Rospigliosi and believed also that he would appease the Spanish faction ofCharles II due to the fact that he had once been theApostolic Nuncio to Spain. On 20 June 1667, he was elected as pontiff and took the pontifical name of "Clement IX".
When asked about Rospigliosi becoming pope, CardinalFrancesco Albizzi said: "Urban turned the Holy See into a bank; Innocent into a brothel; Alexander into a tavern; this one will make a playhouse of it". Albizzi also alluded to Rospigliosi's passion for music and said, "He will emasculate the Sacred College by giving the hat to all the castrated singers in Europe!"[4] When elected, Rospigliosi received all but two votes since he voted for another while CardinalNeri Corsini voted for CardinalFlavio Chigi.
Nothing remarkable occurred under Clement IX's short administration beyond the temporary adjustment of the disputes between theHoly See and those prelates of theGallican Church who had refused to join in condemning the writings ofJansen. He wasmediator during the 1668peace of Aachen, in the wars betweenFrance,Spain,England and theNetherlands.
He was popular with the people of Rome, not so much for his erudition and application to business, as for his extreme charity and his affability towards great and small. He increased the goodwill of his subjects by buying off the monopolist who had secured the "macinato", or privilege of selling grain, and as his predecessor had collected the money for the purpose, Clement IX had the decree published in the name of Alexander VII. Two days each week he occupied a confessional inSt. Peter's Basilica and heard any one who wished to confess to him. He frequently visited the hospitals, and was lavish in his alms to the poor. In an age ofnepotism, he did little or nothing to advance or enrich his family. In his aversion to notoriety, he refused to permit his name to be placed on the buildings erected during his reign.[1]
As pope, Clement IX continued his interest in the arts. He embellished the city of Rome with famous works commissioned fromGian Lorenzo Bernini, including the angels ofPonte Sant'Angelo and thecolonnade ofSaint Peter's Basilica. Somewhat unusually for Popes of the era, Clement IX did not have his name displayed on monuments he built. For theCarnival celebrations of 1668, commissionedAntonio Maria Abbatini of theSistine Chapel Choir to set to music his freeItalian translation of aSpanish religious dramaLa Baltasara, the production had sets designed by Bernini.
Clement IX worked to strengthenVenetian defences against theTurks on the island ofCrete. However, he was unable to get wider support for this cause. At the end of October 1669, Clement IX fell ill after receiving news that the Venetian fortress ofCandia in Crete hadsurrendered to the Turks.
Clement IX died in Rome, allegedly of a broken heart, on 9 December 1669. His successor,Pope Clement X (r. 1670–1676), built him an ornate tomb in the basilica ofSanta Maria Maggiore.
Clement IX was seriously ill throughout theautumn in 1669 with ahernia andkidney stones. Despite his illness and his anxiety over the Turkish advances in Crete, he travelled on a pilgrimage to the seven Roman basilicas, however, that night, he had a severe apoplexy. On 29 November, just ten days before he died, he named seven new cardinals and announced one whom he had reserved "in pectore". However, the dying pope intended to create a "faction" for his nephew with which to use in the next conclave to defend his policies. Clement IX died of a stroke on 9 December, and it is believed this was perhaps brought on by learning of the defeat and expulsion of the Venetians from Crete.[5]
Following his death, the Florentine agent in Rome, writing to Grand DukeFerdinando II de' Medici a few days later, accuses the late Clement IX of having hidden the fact that he wasepileptic, which would have, according to the canon law in place at the time, disqualified him from exercising any ecclesiastical functions, however, this has never been proven.[4]
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