Pope Pius V (full name Antonio Ghislieri), who passed away on 1 May 1572, aged 68, was an Italian who rose from relatively humble origins in Lombardy to become pope in 1566 and ruled until his death in 1572.
Pius reacted against the previous excesses of earlier popes, condemning acts of
nepotism and getting rid of the papal jester. His own behaviour was strict and
he lived as an ascetic.
As Pope, Pius implemented the reforms of the Council of Trent, which over
the previous decades has been called to address and prevent the spread of
protestantism throughout Europe. Pius pursued heretics of the church
relentlessly throughout his reign and excommunicate Queen Elizabeth I of
England in 1570. He also oversaw the standardisation of the Roman Catholic mass
in 1570, that was to remain unchanged for 400 years.
In 1571 he formed the Holy League to fight the increasing dominance of the
Ottomans in the Mediterranean and its forces won the famous Battle of Lepanto
later the same year.
He was canonized as a saint by Pope Clement XI in 1712.
No comments:
Post a Comment