Pope Sixtus V, born Felice Piergentile and living from 13 December 1521 to 27 August 1590, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 1585 until his death. As a young man he joined the Franciscan order, where he became known as a scholar and preacher and won the patronage of Pope Pius V, who made him a cardinal; as a cardinal he was known as Cardinal Montalto. As pope he moved energetically against corruption and lawlessness in Rome and launched a far reaching rebuilding program that still provokes controversy, since it involved the destruction of ancient monuments, and he funded these works through heavy taxation that caused widespread suffering. His foreign policy was regarded as overambitious: he excommunicated King Henry IV of France and renewed the excommunication of Queen Elizabeth I of England. He is recognized as a major figure of the Counter Reformation, and remains the most recent pope to take the name Sixtus.
Facts
RolePope and head of the Catholic Church; ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 1585 until his death in August 1590. 1 BirthplaceGrottammare, Papal States 1 Role
Role (category) FAQs
How did Pope Sixtus V pay for his building program in Rome?
Through economy elsewhere, new taxes, the sale of public offices and public loans.
He paid for it through strict economy elsewhere, new taxes, the sale of public offices and public loans. The Catholic Encyclopedia says the papal treasury was empty when he took office, and that he economized everywhere except on architecture, increased the number of salable public offices, imposed more taxes and extended the monti, which were public loans first set up under Clement VII. The works he financed included the Lateran Palace, the completion of the cupola of Saint Peter's, the Vatican Library and a water supply for Rome, the Acqua Felice, brought in over about twenty miles. The same source adds that shortly before his death he had deposited three million scudi in gold and one million six hundred thousand in silver in the Castello di Sant'Angelo.
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Source Pope Sixtus V (Wikipedia)
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Source Wikidata: Pope Sixtus V
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WikipediaPope Sixtus V, lead paragraph (dates)
13 December 1521-27 August 1590
Pope Sixtus V infobox: birth_name
Felice Piergentile, then Felice Peretti
View the Source Wikidata: Pope Sixtus V
Wikidata Q133350, class allow-list match (w-wdresolver-0926)View the Source Pope Sixtus V (Wikipedia)
Lead section
He is the most recent pope to date to take on the pontifical name "Sixtus". == Early life == Felice Piergentile was born on 13 December 1521 at Grottammare, in the Papal States, to Francesco Piergentile (also known as Peretto di Montalto, from Montalto delle Marche), and Mariana da Frontillo.
Pope Sixtus V, lead paragraph
As a cardinal, he was known as Cardinal Montalto.
Pope Sixtus V, lead paragraph (papacy and rule)
was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 1585 to his death in August 1590.
In Era: The Early Modern Period, lead paragraph, lifespan
Pope Sixtus V (Italian: Sisto V; 13 December 1521 - 27 August 1590), born Felice Piergentile, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 24 April 1585 to his death in August 1590.
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