INNOCENT X, POPE

Pontificate: Sept. 15, 1644, to Jan. 1, 1655; b. Giovanni Battista Pamfili, Rome, March 7, 1572; d. Rome. His family, originally from Gubbio, had been settled in Rome from the fifteenth century. His uncle, Girolamo, helped him with his education, and he earned a doctorate in both civil and Canon Law at the University of Rome. In 1597 he was ordained. Entering the papal service, he became a consistorial advocate (1601); and on the elevation of his uncle to the cardinalate, he succeeded him as auditor of the rota. For 25 years Pamfili efficiently carried out his work at this court. He was made nuncio to Naples and then sent to France and Spain as assistant to Urban VIII 's nephew, Francesco. Urban then made Pamfili nuncio to Spain and titular patriarch of Antioch.

Although of 72 when elected, Innocent was in good health. He needed all his vigor because his pontificate was troubled by several crises. The dreary Thirty Years' War finally dragged to a conclusion in 1648, but the peace of Westphalia was far from pleasing to the Pope. Through his nuncio, Fabio Chigi (later alexander vii), Innocent protested against the injustices done to Catholics.

During the 1640s Ireland was engaged in a struggle for basic rights and Innocent sent help to the embattled Gaels. His nuncio, Battista Rinuccini, was a clearsighted statesman who did his best to unravel the tangled situation in Ireland and unite the Catholics against the common foe. That he ultimately failed was the fault of neither Pope nor nuncio.

Nearer home Innocent maintained a cautious attitude on the troubles caused by Massanielo's rebellion in Naples. He also showed prudence in the vexing problem of Portuguese independence. Innocent was generous to the Venetians, who were engaged in a desperate struggle to defend Crete from the Ottoman Turks.

Innocent had to face not only external enemies of Catholicism, like the English, the Swedes and the Turks, but also the recalcitrant Jansenists, who were even more vexing. In 1642 Urban VIII had condemned augustinus, the masterpiece of Cornelius Otto jansen, but the Jansenists ignored the condemnation and continued to make headway, especially in France. Cornet, a syndic of the University of Paris, extracted five propositions from the Augustinus and a number of French bishops sent them to Rome for condenmation. Since other French bishops pleaded against a condemnation, Innocent did not act hastily. He turned the matter over to a congregation of cardinals and gave this congregation a group of experts. This group included most of the best theologians available and represented quite diverse schools of theology and different religious orders. There was ample time and opportunity for study and for dialogue before this matter was settled. Indeed the Pope took a great deal of interest in the work of the congregation and urged it on. It is to Innocent's credit that at last, after two years, the congregation finished its work. The Pope then condemned the five propositions on June 9, 1653.

Innocent handled a dispute between Juan Palafox y Mendoza, Bishop of la Puebla de los Angeles in Mexico, and the Jesuits with his customary prudence. He suppressed a number of monasteries and religious communities in Italy that had so declined in numbers as to be unable to continue the work for which they had been founded. At the same time he strongly supported the missions in non-Christian countries and bolstered the Congregation of Propaganda. He proclaimed the jubilee of 1650 and had the satisfaction of seeing it to a successful conclusion.

Innocent was a man of piety, prudence, and moderation. But he was overly fond of his relatives. He raised two of his nephews to the purple and showered favors on other relatives. Of all his family members, the most dominant was a woman, Donna Olimpia, the wife of the Pope's deceased older brother, Pamfilio. Olimpia had great influence with the aged Pontiff. Aspirants for papal favors were quick to recognize this; and Olimpia, who was as greedy as she was powerful, exploited her position. Although she fell into eclipse in 1650, two years later she was back in favor and she continued to exercise undue influence over Innocent until his death. Innocent's nepotism did not interfere with his charity. He was good to his people and helped them, especially during the bad years (1646–47) when flood and famine afflicted the Papal States. He can be considered a pioneer in a movement toward a better prison system. He reorganized the prisons of the Papal States and for the first time installed the cell system. After his death Innocent's body was treated shabbily. Olimpia refused to pay for solemn obsequies, and the body was kept a few days in the sacristy of St. Peter's and then buried quite simply.

Bibliography: l. pastor, The History of the Popes from the Close of the Middle Ages, (London–St. Louis 1938–61) v. 30. n. j. abercrombie, The Origins of Jansenism (Oxford 1936). i. ciampi, Innocenzo X Pamfili e la sua corte (Rome 1878). h. coville, Étude sur Mazarin et ses démêlés avec le pape Innocent X, 1644–1648 (Paris 1914). j. orcibal, Les Origines du jansénisme, 5 v. (Louvain 1947–62). b. sutter, Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche, ed. j. hofer and k. rahner, 10 v. (2d, new ed. Freiburg 1957–65) 5:692–693. j. paquier, Dictionnaire de théologie catholique, ed. a. vacant et al., 15 v. (Paris 1903–50; Tables générales 1951–) 7.2:2005–06. f. mastroianni, Inchiesta di Innocenzo X sui conventi cappuccini italiani (Rome 1985). m. calvesi, et al. Innocenzo X. Arte e potere a Roma nell'eta barocca (Rome 1990).

[j. s. brusher]