Title
Adriaan Floriszoon, Pope Adrian VI
Caption
Adriaan Floriszoon, born in Utrecht in 1459, Pope from the 9th January 1522 until the 14th September 1523 under the name of Adrian VI (in latin Hadrianus VI, in italian Adriano VI), the only Pope to have come from the Netherlands originally (therefore coming from the germanic nation of the Holy Roman Empire), and the last non-Italian Pope four four and a half centuries. Besides this, the fact that he was not italian was taken very badly by the people of Rome, and he himself hesitated for more than six months before knowing whether or not he was going to accept the title. He was of humble origin, but did have the chance to undergo his studies, and to establish himself at the heart of the Church, to the point of being chosen to act as advisor to the future Charles Quint. The former inquisitor, he acted equally as intransigent on the dogma, as well as officially recognising, in front of the critics of Martin Luther, that the Church of Rome was responsable for abuse and was in need of reproach. He pledged to reform it, but he was hindered by the adoption of lutheranism in scandanavian countries during his rule. In any case, his rule was brief and he died suddenly of malaria after just one year atop Saint Peter's throne. On the announcement of his death, an unkown person delivered a bouquet of flowers to the door of his doctor. His personal documents dissapeared after his death, and no-one knows what became of them.
Date
16th century
Credit line
Photo12/Hachedé
Reference
HAC07249_2004_P1600028
Model release
No
License type
Rights managed
Available size
30,5Mb (1,1Mb) / 8,9in x 13,3in / 2669 x 3992 (300dpi)