Who he was
Giuliano della Rovere followed his uncle Francesco, the future Sixtus IV, into the Franciscans, and was made a cardinal by him in 1471. He held many sees and benefices and served as legate in Umbria, France and the Netherlands, but his private life before he became pope was not free from fault, and he had a daughter. A powerful figure under Innocent VIII and an opponent of Alexander VI, he was elected in 1503 after the brief reign of Pius III. As pope he set out to recover the Papal States and then to free Italy from French rule through the Holy League of 1511.
What he is remembered for
He laid the foundation stone of the new St Peter's Basilica in 1506 and was the patron of Bramante, Raphael and Michelangelo, whose Sistine Chapel ceiling and Raphael's Stanze were painted for him. He called the Fifth Lateran Council, issued a bull against simony in papal elections, founded the Cappella Giulia choir, and set up dioceses in the newly discovered Caribbean islands. He did not favour his relatives and heard Mass almost daily.
Sources
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