Juan Carvajal
Encyclopedia
Juan Carvajal (c. 1400, Trujillo, Cáceres – 6 December 1469, Rome
) was a Spanish Cardinal
.
and civil law
, by 1440 he had attained distinction at Rome as auditor of the Rota and governor of the City. His life was to be spent mostly in the foreign service of the Holy See
; his contemporary, Cardinal Jacopo Ammanati, says (Comment., I, 2, 7) that he was sent twenty-two times as papal legate
to various rulers and countries.
Between 1441 and 1448 he spent much time in Germany and laboured, in union with Cardinal Nicholas of Cusa
, to placate the strong feelings of the German princes against Pope Eugene IV
, to overcome their "neutrality" in the last, and schismatic phase of the Council of Basel, and to bring about the treaties known as the Concordat of the Princes (1447) and the Concordat of Aschaffenburg (or Vienna) (1448). He was rewarded by Pope Eugene IV
,(1383 – February 23, 1447) on the December 14, 1446 with the Cardinal's hat and the title of St. Angelo in Foro Piscium or "in Pescheria". He had been promoted in Spain as a bishop of Plasencia
, an episcopal seat in Extremadura
since about 1189, to replace Bishop Gonzalo García de Santamaria, (Burgos, 1379 - Burgos, 12 December 1448), Bishop there from 2 July 1423 to 1446. (This Bishop Gonzalo García de Santamaria was from a family of Catholic bishops and archbishops representing Spanish Catholicism in the councils of the first half of the 15th century. They were originally converted in Burgos
in 1390 as a result of the attacks on Spanish Jews connected to the preaching of St. Vincent Ferrer
.)
In 1444 and again in 1448 Juan Carvajal was sent to Bohemia
to promote the cause of religious unity; but he failed both times, owing to the stubbornness of the Calixtines or Utraquists and the influence of John Rokyczana, Archbishop of Prague
, whose orthodoxy was suspected at Rome.
In 1455 Carvajal was sent by Pope Callistus III , "Alonso Borgia" , (* Canals, Valencia , Spain 31 de diciembre de 1378 - Pope in 1455 - † Rome, 6 de agosto de 1458 ) to Hungary
to preach a vigorous crusade against the Turks, and for six years was the soul of the first effectual resistance made by Christian Europe to the progress of the Ottoman conquerors of Constantinople
(1453). Aided by the famous Franciscan observant preacher, John Capistran, he gathered an army of about 40,000 men, effected a union with the troops of John Hunyadi
, and on 22 July 1456, the siege of Belgrade, the key of the Danube, was raised by a victory that inaugurated the century-long resistance of Christian Hungary to Islam.
He reconciled King Ladislaus the Posthumous (1457), with Emperor Frederick III
, and in 1458 made peace between the Magyar nobles in favour of Matthias Corvinus as successor of Ladislaus. He was still in Hungary when Pope Pius II
invited the princes of Christian Europe to meet him at Mantua
(1459) to confer on the common danger and the need of a general crusade. While Cardinal Bessarion sought in Germany something more than brilliant promises, Carvajal continued his labours in Hungary, which he left only in the autumn of 1461, "grown old and feeble", says Pastor (History of the Popes), "in that severe climate, amid the turmoils of the Court and the camp, and the fatigues of travel … [in] that bleak country of moorlands and marshes".
He was made Cardinal-Bishop of Porto and Santa Rufina on his return. He had long held the See of Plasencia in Spain, where a noble bridge across the Tagus
, built by him, is still known as "the cardinal's bridge". In spite of his age and feeble health, he was still willing to take a foremost part in the crusade that Pius II was preparing at Ancona
in 1464, when the death of that pope (August 14) put an end to the enterprise. His last legation was to Venice in 1466.
From all his journeys Carvajal brought back nothing but the reputation of an unspotted priesthood (Pastor, op. cit., IV, 131). "Such a legate", wrote the King of Hungary, "truly corresponds to the greatness of our need" (op. cit., II, 391). By his contemporaries he was considered the ornament of the Church, comparable to her ancient Fathers (Cardinal Ammanati) and the sole reminder of the heroic grandeur of Rome's earliest founders (Pomponius Laetus). Though genial in intercourse, there was something awe-inspiring about this saintly man whose ascetic life enabled him to provide liberally for the poor and for needy churches. Denifle mentions (Die Universitäten, I, 813) a college founded by him at Salamanca
. His discourse in the papal consistories, says Pastor, was brief, simple, clear, logical, and devoid of contemporary rhetoric; his legatine reports have the same "restrained and impersonal character".
Palacky
, the non-Catholic historian of Bohemia writes of Carvajal (Geschichte Böhmens, IV, ii, 372): "Not only in zeal for the Faith, in moral purity and strength of character, was he unsurpassed, but he was also unequalled in knowledge of the world, in experience of ecclesiastical affairs, and in the services which he rendered to the papal authority. It was chiefly due to his labours, prolonged during a period of twenty years, that Rome at last got the better of Constance and Basle, that the nations returned to their allegiance, and that her power and glory again shone before the world with a splendour that they had not seen since the time of Boniface VIII." Pastor says of him that he was absolutely free from the restless ambition and self-glorification so common among the men of the Renaissance, and seemed born for ecclesiastical diplomacy. His dominant idea was the consecration of his life to the Church and the promotion of the glory and power of Christ's Vicar. "Pars hæc vitæ ultima Christo neganda non est" (I must not refuse to Christ this last portion of my life) were the words in which he offered himself to Pius II as leader of a relief to the diminutive Christian Republic of Ragusa
hard pressed in 1464 by the Turks.
He left no printed works, though he heard from Pius II about the printing of the Gutenberg Bible
in a famous letter of 1455, and had an Aquinas edition posthumously dedicated to him by the first printers of Italy in 1469. Among his manuscript remains are a defence of the Holy See, reports of his legations, a volume of letters, and discourses sacred and profane. He was buried in San Marcello al Corso
. A monument erected to him there by Bessarion bears these words: Hic anima Petrus, pectore Cæsar erat (A Peter in spirit, a Cæsar in courage).
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
) was a Spanish Cardinal
Cardinal (Catholicism)
A cardinal is a senior ecclesiastical official, usually an ordained bishop, and ecclesiastical prince of the Catholic Church. They are collectively known as the College of Cardinals, which as a body elects a new pope. The duties of the cardinals include attending the meetings of the College and...
.
Life and work
Making much progress in canon lawCanon law
Canon law is the body of laws & regulations made or adopted by ecclesiastical authority, for the government of the Christian organization and its members. It is the internal ecclesiastical law governing the Catholic Church , the Eastern and Oriental Orthodox churches, and the Anglican Communion of...
and civil law
Civil law (legal system)
Civil law is a legal system inspired by Roman law and whose primary feature is that laws are codified into collections, as compared to common law systems that gives great precedential weight to common law on the principle that it is unfair to treat similar facts differently on different...
, by 1440 he had attained distinction at Rome as auditor of the Rota and governor of the City. His life was to be spent mostly in the foreign service of the Holy See
Holy See
The Holy See is the episcopal jurisdiction of the Catholic Church in Rome, in which its Bishop is commonly known as the Pope. It is the preeminent episcopal see of the Catholic Church, forming the central government of the Church. As such, diplomatically, and in other spheres the Holy See acts and...
; his contemporary, Cardinal Jacopo Ammanati, says (Comment., I, 2, 7) that he was sent twenty-two times as papal legate
Papal legate
A papal legate – from the Latin, authentic Roman title Legatus – is a personal representative of the pope to foreign nations, or to some part of the Catholic Church. He is empowered on matters of Catholic Faith and for the settlement of ecclesiastical matters....
to various rulers and countries.
Between 1441 and 1448 he spent much time in Germany and laboured, in union with Cardinal Nicholas of Cusa
Nicholas of Cusa
Nicholas of Kues , also referred to as Nicolaus Cusanus and Nicholas of Cusa, was a cardinal of the Catholic Church from Germany , a philosopher, theologian, jurist, mathematician, and an astronomer. He is widely considered one of the great geniuses and polymaths of the 15th century...
, to placate the strong feelings of the German princes against Pope Eugene IV
Pope Eugene IV
Pope Eugene IV , born Gabriele Condulmer, was pope from March 3, 1431, to his death.-Biography:He was born in Venice to a rich merchant family, a Correr on his mother's side. Condulmer entered the Order of Saint Augustine at the monastery of St. George in his native city...
, to overcome their "neutrality" in the last, and schismatic phase of the Council of Basel, and to bring about the treaties known as the Concordat of the Princes (1447) and the Concordat of Aschaffenburg (or Vienna) (1448). He was rewarded by Pope Eugene IV
Pope Eugene IV
Pope Eugene IV , born Gabriele Condulmer, was pope from March 3, 1431, to his death.-Biography:He was born in Venice to a rich merchant family, a Correr on his mother's side. Condulmer entered the Order of Saint Augustine at the monastery of St. George in his native city...
,(1383 – February 23, 1447) on the December 14, 1446 with the Cardinal's hat and the title of St. Angelo in Foro Piscium or "in Pescheria". He had been promoted in Spain as a bishop of Plasencia
Plasencia
Plasencia is a walled market city in the province of Cáceres, Extremadura, Western Spain. , it had a population of 41,447.Situated on the bank of the Jerte River, Plasencia has a historic quarter that is a consequence of the city's strategic location along the Silver Route, or Ruta de la Plata...
, an episcopal seat in Extremadura
Extremadura
Extremadura is an autonomous community of western Spain whose capital city is Mérida. Its component provinces are Cáceres and Badajoz. It is bordered by Portugal to the west...
since about 1189, to replace Bishop Gonzalo García de Santamaria, (Burgos, 1379 - Burgos, 12 December 1448), Bishop there from 2 July 1423 to 1446. (This Bishop Gonzalo García de Santamaria was from a family of Catholic bishops and archbishops representing Spanish Catholicism in the councils of the first half of the 15th century. They were originally converted in Burgos
Burgos
Burgos is a city of northern Spain, historic capital of Castile. It is situated at the edge of the central plateau, with about 178,966 inhabitants in the city proper and another 20,000 in its suburbs. It is the capital of the province of Burgos, in the autonomous community of Castile and León...
in 1390 as a result of the attacks on Spanish Jews connected to the preaching of St. Vincent Ferrer
Vincent Ferrer
Saint Vincent Ferrer was a Valencian Dominican missionary and logician.-Early life:Vincent was the fourth child of the Anglo-Scottish nobleman William Stewart Ferrer and his Spanish wife, Constantia Miguel. Legends surround his birth...
.)
In 1444 and again in 1448 Juan Carvajal was sent to Bohemia
Bohemia
Bohemia is a historical region in central Europe, occupying the western two-thirds of the traditional Czech Lands. It is located in the contemporary Czech Republic with its capital in Prague...
to promote the cause of religious unity; but he failed both times, owing to the stubbornness of the Calixtines or Utraquists and the influence of John Rokyczana, Archbishop of Prague
Archbishop of Prague
The following is a list of bishops and archbishops of Prague. The bishopric of Prague was established in 973, and elevated to an archbishopric on 30 April 1344. The today's Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Prague is the continual successor of the bishoprie established in 973...
, whose orthodoxy was suspected at Rome.
In 1455 Carvajal was sent by Pope Callistus III , "Alonso Borgia" , (* Canals, Valencia , Spain 31 de diciembre de 1378 - Pope in 1455 - † Rome, 6 de agosto de 1458 ) to Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
to preach a vigorous crusade against the Turks, and for six years was the soul of the first effectual resistance made by Christian Europe to the progress of the Ottoman conquerors of Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
(1453). Aided by the famous Franciscan observant preacher, John Capistran, he gathered an army of about 40,000 men, effected a union with the troops of John Hunyadi
John Hunyadi
John Hunyadi John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: Ioannes Corvinus or Ioannes de Hunyad, Romanian: Iancu (Ioan) de Hunedoara, Croatian: Janko Hunjadi, Serbian: Сибињанин Јанко / Sibinjanin Janko, Slovak: Ján Huňady) John Hunyadi (Hungarian: Hunyadi János , Medieval Latin: ...
, and on 22 July 1456, the siege of Belgrade, the key of the Danube, was raised by a victory that inaugurated the century-long resistance of Christian Hungary to Islam.
He reconciled King Ladislaus the Posthumous (1457), with Emperor Frederick III
Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor
Frederick the Peaceful KG was Duke of Austria as Frederick V from 1424, the successor of Albert II as German King as Frederick IV from 1440, and Holy Roman Emperor as Frederick III from 1452...
, and in 1458 made peace between the Magyar nobles in favour of Matthias Corvinus as successor of Ladislaus. He was still in Hungary when Pope Pius II
Pope Pius II
Pope Pius II, born Enea Silvio Piccolomini was Pope from August 19, 1458 until his death in 1464. Pius II was born at Corsignano in the Sienese territory of a noble but decayed family...
invited the princes of Christian Europe to meet him at Mantua
Mantua
Mantua is a city and comune in Lombardy, Italy and capital of the province of the same name. Mantua's historic power and influence under the Gonzaga family, made it one of the main artistic, cultural and notably musical hubs of Northern Italy and the country as a whole...
(1459) to confer on the common danger and the need of a general crusade. While Cardinal Bessarion sought in Germany something more than brilliant promises, Carvajal continued his labours in Hungary, which he left only in the autumn of 1461, "grown old and feeble", says Pastor (History of the Popes), "in that severe climate, amid the turmoils of the Court and the camp, and the fatigues of travel … [in] that bleak country of moorlands and marshes".
He was made Cardinal-Bishop of Porto and Santa Rufina on his return. He had long held the See of Plasencia in Spain, where a noble bridge across the Tagus
Tagus
The Tagus is the longest river on the Iberian Peninsula. It is long, in Spain, along the border between Portugal and Spain and in Portugal, where it empties into the Atlantic Ocean at Lisbon. It drains an area of . The Tagus is highly utilized for most of its course...
, built by him, is still known as "the cardinal's bridge". In spite of his age and feeble health, he was still willing to take a foremost part in the crusade that Pius II was preparing at Ancona
Ancona
Ancona is a city and a seaport in the Marche region, in central Italy, with a population of 101,909 . Ancona is the capital of the province of Ancona and of the region....
in 1464, when the death of that pope (August 14) put an end to the enterprise. His last legation was to Venice in 1466.
From all his journeys Carvajal brought back nothing but the reputation of an unspotted priesthood (Pastor, op. cit., IV, 131). "Such a legate", wrote the King of Hungary, "truly corresponds to the greatness of our need" (op. cit., II, 391). By his contemporaries he was considered the ornament of the Church, comparable to her ancient Fathers (Cardinal Ammanati) and the sole reminder of the heroic grandeur of Rome's earliest founders (Pomponius Laetus). Though genial in intercourse, there was something awe-inspiring about this saintly man whose ascetic life enabled him to provide liberally for the poor and for needy churches. Denifle mentions (Die Universitäten, I, 813) a college founded by him at Salamanca
Salamanca
Salamanca is a city in western Spain, in the community of Castile and León. Because it is known for its beautiful buildings and urban environment, the Old City was declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 1988. It is the most important university city in Spain and is known for its contributions to...
. His discourse in the papal consistories, says Pastor, was brief, simple, clear, logical, and devoid of contemporary rhetoric; his legatine reports have the same "restrained and impersonal character".
Palacky
Palacky
* František Palacký ** Jan Palacký , Bohemian geographer, politician, son of František* Gabriel Palacka , a Slovak politician* Marie Riegrová-Palacká...
, the non-Catholic historian of Bohemia writes of Carvajal (Geschichte Böhmens, IV, ii, 372): "Not only in zeal for the Faith, in moral purity and strength of character, was he unsurpassed, but he was also unequalled in knowledge of the world, in experience of ecclesiastical affairs, and in the services which he rendered to the papal authority. It was chiefly due to his labours, prolonged during a period of twenty years, that Rome at last got the better of Constance and Basle, that the nations returned to their allegiance, and that her power and glory again shone before the world with a splendour that they had not seen since the time of Boniface VIII." Pastor says of him that he was absolutely free from the restless ambition and self-glorification so common among the men of the Renaissance, and seemed born for ecclesiastical diplomacy. His dominant idea was the consecration of his life to the Church and the promotion of the glory and power of Christ's Vicar. "Pars hæc vitæ ultima Christo neganda non est" (I must not refuse to Christ this last portion of my life) were the words in which he offered himself to Pius II as leader of a relief to the diminutive Christian Republic of Ragusa
Republic of Ragusa
The Republic of Ragusa or Republic of Dubrovnik was a maritime republic centered on the city of Dubrovnik in Dalmatia , that existed from 1358 to 1808...
hard pressed in 1464 by the Turks.
He left no printed works, though he heard from Pius II about the printing of the Gutenberg Bible
Gutenberg Bible
The Gutenberg Bible was the first major book printed with a movable type printing press, and marked the start of the "Gutenberg Revolution" and the age of the printed book. Widely praised for its high aesthetic and artistic qualities, the book has an iconic status...
in a famous letter of 1455, and had an Aquinas edition posthumously dedicated to him by the first printers of Italy in 1469. Among his manuscript remains are a defence of the Holy See, reports of his legations, a volume of letters, and discourses sacred and profane. He was buried in San Marcello al Corso
San Marcello al Corso
San Marcello al Corso is a church in Rome, Italy, devoted to Pope Marcellus I. It is located in via del Corso, the ancient via Lata, connecting Piazza Venezia to Piazza del Popolo....
. A monument erected to him there by Bessarion bears these words: Hic anima Petrus, pectore Cæsar erat (A Peter in spirit, a Cæsar in courage).