Francesco Vitelli
Encyclopedia
Francesco Vitelli was a Roman Catholic ecclesiastic in the papal service, made titular archbishop
of Thessalonica (16 August 1632), then successively transferred to Terni (1634) and to Urbino (1636) and appointed papal nuncio to the Republic of Venice
. In 1643 Pope Urban VIII
Barberini appointed him Governor of Rome, an honorary position that his absence as bishop of Urbino disabled him from taking up. He was a correspondent of the papal diplomat Guido Bentivoglio, who addressed to him his Relationi concerning Flanders, 1633.
Francesco Vitelli was of the line of Vitelli who had been rich merchants of Città di Castello
, who made themselves masters of the town in the early fourteenth century, after civic confrontations with the rival Guelfucci of Brancaleone, and henceforward wielded political and military influence disproportionate to their small territory.
Titular bishop
A titular bishop in various churches is a bishop who is not in charge of a diocese.By definition a bishop is an "overseer" of a community of the faithful, so when a priest is ordained a bishop the tradition of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches is that he be ordained for a specific place...
of Thessalonica (16 August 1632), then successively transferred to Terni (1634) and to Urbino (1636) and appointed papal nuncio to the Republic of Venice
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
. In 1643 Pope Urban VIII
Pope Urban VIII
Pope Urban VIII , born Maffeo Barberini, was pope from 1623 to 1644. He was the last pope to expand the papal territory by force of arms, and was a prominent patron of the arts and reformer of Church missions...
Barberini appointed him Governor of Rome, an honorary position that his absence as bishop of Urbino disabled him from taking up. He was a correspondent of the papal diplomat Guido Bentivoglio, who addressed to him his Relationi concerning Flanders, 1633.
Francesco Vitelli was of the line of Vitelli who had been rich merchants of Città di Castello
Città di Castello
Città di Castello is a city and comune in the province of Perugia, in the northern part of the Umbria region of Italy. It is situated on a slope of the Apennines, on the flood plain of the river Tiber. The city is north of Perugia and south of Cesena on the S3bis. It is connected to the A1...
, who made themselves masters of the town in the early fourteenth century, after civic confrontations with the rival Guelfucci of Brancaleone, and henceforward wielded political and military influence disproportionate to their small territory.