Federico Visconti

Last updated • 2 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia


Federico Visconti
Cardinal, Archbishop of Milan
Blondeau, Jacques (1655-1698) - Il card. Federico Visconti, arcivescovo di Milano.jpg
Engraved portrait of Cardinal Federico Visconti, by Jacques Blondeau, 1681
Church Catholic Church
See Milan
Appointed23 June 1681
Term ended7 January 1693
Predecessor Alfonso Litta
Successor Federico Caccia
Other post(s) Cardinal Priest of Santi Bonifacio e Alessio
Orders
Consecration10 Aug 1681 (Bishop)
by  Gasparo di Carpegna
Created cardinal1 September 1681
Personal details
Born(1617-12-04)4 December 1617
Died7 January 1693(1693-01-07) (aged 75)
Milan
Buried Cathedral of Milan
Coat of arms CoA Card. Federico Visconti.svg

Federico Visconti (1617–1693) was an Italian Cardinal and Archbishop of Milan from 1681 to 1693.

Contents

Early life

Federico Visconti was born in Milan on 4 December 1617, to count Carlo of the House of Visconti, last of six brothers. He studied in the college of Brera in Milan and later he was admitted at the Collegio Borromeo in Pavia and graduated in law at the University of Bologna. Advised by his uncle Francesco Borromeo, bishop of Cremona, he entered in the clerical state and moved to Rome. However he soon returned to Milan, where he served as diocesan priest. In 1644 he became a lawyer, [1] from 1646 to 1662 he was primicerio (third position of the chapter of the Cathedral of Milan), [2] from 1651 to 1652 prefect of Biblioteca Ambrosiana.

In 1658 he was sent to Rome by the chapter of the cathedral, where Pope Alexander VII appointed him referendary of the Tribunals of the Apostolic Signature. Entered in the administration of the Papal States, he served as governor of Tivoli, Città di Castello and Montalto. Returned in 1667 to Rome, he became an auditor (judge) of the Roman Rota, an office he held until 1681. [3]

Archbishop of Milan

On 23 June 1681 Federico Visconti was appointed Archbishop of Milan. He was consecrated bishop on 10 August 1681 in Rome by the hands of Cardinal Gasparo di Carpegna. [1] On 1 September of the same year he was appointed Cardinal Priest of Santi Bonifacio e Alessio, [4] and he made his solemn entrance in Milan as Archbishop on next 11 January 1682. [3]

Federico Visconti was a typical bishop shaped by the Counter-Reformation. He took very seriously his service, condemned the licentious uses of the population and fought the Protestantism in Valtellina, erecting a sanctuary in Lezzeno and forbidding almost any contact of the population with the Protestant soldiers who passed throughout North Italy. Following the example of Saint Charles Borromeo, he visited, from 1682 to 1689, all the 67 pieves which composed the large diocese, [5] and in September 1687 he celebrated the 37th diocesan synod.

Federico Visconti maintained good relations with the Spanish government (who ruled the Duchy of Milan), and with this aim he waived the right of asylum in the churches for the deserters, and he asked the population to support with offerings the Battle of Vienna against the Ottoman Empire. [3]

He participated in the Conclaves of 1689 and 1691, but he was forced due to an illness to leave the Conclave before the election of the pope. [1] He died in Milan on 7 January 1693, and his remains were buried in the north nave of the Cathedral of Milan.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Charles Borromeo</span> Catholic prelate and saint (1538–1584)

Charles Borromeo was an Italian Catholic prelate who served as Archbishop of Milan from 1564 to 1584. He was made a cardinal in 1560.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milan</span> Major Latin Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Italy

The Archdiocese of Milan is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has long maintained its own Latin liturgical rite usage, the Ambrosian rite, which is still used in the greater part of the diocesan territory. Among its past archbishops, the better known are Ambrose, Charles Borromeo, Pope Pius XI and Pope Paul VI.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federico Borromeo</span> Italian cardinal

Federico Borromeo was an Italian cardinal and Archbishop of Milan, a prominent figure of Counter-Reformation in Italy. His acts of charity, particularly during the famine of 1627-8, and his devoted heroism in the plague of 1630 are well known from the account in Alessandro Manzoni's novel The Betrothed. He was a great patron of the arts and founded the Biblioteca Ambrosiana, one of the first free public libraries in Europe. In 1618 he added a picture gallery, donating his own considerable collection of paintings. His published works, mainly in Latin, number over 100. They show his interest in ecclesiastical archaeology, sacred painting, and collecting.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">House of Borromeo</span> Italian noble family

The aristocratic House of Borromeo were merchants in San Miniato around 1300 and became bankers in Milan after 1370. Vitaliano de' Vitaliani, who acquired the name of Borromeo from his uncle Giovanni, became the count of Arona in 1445. His descendants played important roles in the politics of the Duchy of Milan and as cardinals in the Catholic Reformation. In 1916, the head of the family was granted the title Prince of Angera by the King of Italy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roman Catholic Diocese of Novara</span> Roman Catholic diocese in Italy

The Diocese of Novara is a Latin Church diocese of the Catholic Church in the Piedmont region of northwest Italy. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Vercelli.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crown-cardinal</span> Title conferred upon a particular Cardinal by a Catholic monarch

A crown-cardinal was a cardinal protector of a Roman Catholic nation, nominated or funded by a Catholic monarch to serve as their representative within the College of Cardinals and, on occasion, to exercise the right claimed by some monarchs to veto a candidate for election to the papacy. More generally, the term may refer to any cardinal significant as a secular statesman or elevated at the request of a monarch.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carlo Gaetano Gaisruck</span> Austrian Cardinal and archbishop of Milan

Karl Kajetan von Gaisruck (1769–1846) was an Austrian Cardinal and the archbishop of Milan from 1816 to 1846. He also held the title of Graf or Count.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alfonso Litta</span> Cardinal Archbishop of Milan

Alfonso Michele Litta was an Italian nobleman who was a Cardinal and Archbishop of Milan from 1652 to 1679.

Visconti is a surname which may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cesare Monti</span> Italian cardinal

Cesare Monti was an Italian Cardinal who served as Latin Patriarch of Antioch and Archbishop of Milan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giuseppe Pozzobonelli</span> Archbishop of Milan (1696–1783)

Giuseppe II Pozzobonelli was an Italian Cardinal and the Archbishop of Milan from 1743 to 1783.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gaspare Visconti</span>

Gaspare Visconti was the Archbishop of Milan from 1584 to 1595.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Giuseppe Ripamonti</span> Italian historian (1573–1643)

Giuseppe Ripamonti was an Italian Catholic priest and historian. Ripamonti was a prolific writer, to the extent that he can be considered as the most important Milanese writer of the first half of the seventeenth century, alongside Federico Borromeo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Archiepiscopal seminary of Milan</span>

The archiepiscopal seminary of Milan is the Catholic seminary of the Archdiocese of Milan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John the Good (bishop of Milan)</span>

John the Good, also known as John Camillus, was Archbishop of Milan from c. 641 to 669. He is honoured as a saint in the Eastern Orthodox Church and Roman Catholic Church.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benedetto Erba Odescalchi</span> Italian Cardinal and Archbishop

Benedetto II Erba Odescalchi (1679–1740) was an Italian Cardinal and Archbishop of Milan from 1712 to 1736.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carlo Gaetano Stampa</span> Italian cardinal and archbishop

Carlo III Gaetano Stampa (1667–1742) was an Italian cardinal and Archbishop of Milan from 1737 to 1742.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Federico Caccia</span> Italian diplomat, Cardinal and Archbishop

Federico Caccia was an Italian diplomat, Cardinal, and Archbishop of Milan from 1693 to 1699.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Filippo Maria Visconti (bishop)</span>

Filippo Maria Visconti (1721–1801) was the Archbishop of Milan from 1784 to 1801.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Domenico Maria Corsi</span> Italian Catholic cardinal

Domenico Maria Corsi was a Catholic cardinal who served as Bishop of Rimini from 1687 to his death, and as Legate of Romagna from 1687 to 1693.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Salvador Miranda. "Visconti, Federico". Archived from the original on 13 February 2018. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  2. Monzio Compagnoni, Giordano (1992). "Primicerio". Dizionario della Chiesa Ambrosiana (in Italian). Vol. 5. Milano: NED. pp. 2954–7. ISBN   88-7023-102-X.
  3. 1 2 3 Cazzani, Eugenio (1996). Vescovi e arcivescovi di Milano (in Italian). Milano: Massimo. pp. 242–244. ISBN   88-7030-891-X.
  4. David Cheney. "Federico Cardinal Visconti". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. Retrieved 25 October 2012.
  5. Pagani, Fabrizio (2007). "Un episcopato poco conosciuto Federico Visconti arcivescovo di Milano" (PDF). Carlo Donato Cossoni nella Milano spagnola : atti del convegno internazionale di studi : Conservatorio di Como, 11-13 giugno 2004. Lucca: Libreria musicale italiana. pp. 67–82. ISBN   978-8870964851.