Silvio Valenti Gonzaga

His Eminence

Silvio Valenti Gonzaga
Cardinal Secretary of State
ChurchRoman Catholic
In office1740–1756
Other post(s)Cardinal-Bishop of Sabina
(1753–56)
Prefect of the Congregation for Propagation of the Faith (1747–56)
Orders
Ordination3 June 1731
Consecration22 July 1731
by Juan Álvaro Cienfuegos Villazón
Created cardinal19 December 1738
by Pope Clement XII
RankCardinal-Bishop
Personal details
Born1 March 1690
Mantua, Duchy of Mantua
Died28 August 1756 (aged 66)
Viterbo, Papal States
BuriedViterbo Cathedral

Silvio Valenti Gonzaga (1 March 1690 – 28 August 1756) was an Italian nobleman and Catholic cardinal.[1]

Biography

Gonzaga was born in Mantua. He served as papal nuncio to Flanders, 1731–1736, and was elevated to the rank of cardinal in 1738 by Pope Clement XII. On 15 May 1747 he was given the titular church of San Callisto.[2][3] He died in Viterbo.

He was known as a patron of arts and sciences, and his villa outside of Porta Pia had a botanical collection. He owned a large library, collected the latest instruments of measurement, and sponsored literary salons.[4] He owned a large collection of paintings (including the Portrait of Lorenzo Cybo), which, after his death, was sold on 18 May 1763 at Amsterdam and the paintings by Salvator Rosa and Francesco Solimena dispersed in several locations.

His nephew Luigi Valenti Gonzaga (1725 – 1808) also was named cardinal. Luigi's brother, Marquis Carlo Valenti Gonzaga (1718-1782), was a statesman and ambassador for the papal state; he also was a prominent patron in Mantua and amassed a large library.[5]

References

  1. ^ Florida International University, Biographical Dictionary section Pope Clement XII (1730-1740), Consistory of December 19, 1738 (XII)
  2. ^ Cardinal Title S. Callisto GCatholic.org
  3. ^ Cheney, David M. "Silvio Cardinal Valenti Gonzaga". Catholic-Hierarchy.org. Retrieved June 16, 2018.
  4. ^ Nuovo Dizionario Istorico, Va = Uz, Tomo XXI, translated from French, Remondini of Venice (1796); pages 17-18.
  5. ^ Nuovo Dizionario Istorico, Va = Uz, Tomo XXI, translated from French, Remondini of Venice (1796); pages 19.


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