Born
22 April 1610
Birthplace
Venice, Italy
Pope from
6 October 1689
Pope until
1 February 1691
Died
1 February 1691
Who he was
The son of the chancellor of the Venetian Republic, he took a doctorate in both laws at Padua and served fourteen years as a judge of the Rota in Rome. Innocent X made him a cardinal, and he spent quiet years as Bishop of Brescia. He was nearly eighty when elected and reigned for only sixteen months.
What he is remembered for
Louis XIV handed Avignon back to him, yet he declared the Gallican Declaration of 1682 null and void. He bought Queen Christina of Sweden's books and manuscripts for the Vatican Library, cut taxes to help the poor, and sent aid to Venice against the Turks. He was generous to a fault with his own relatives.
Sources
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