Overview
Drawing from new archival research, Pius IV and the Fall of the Carafa shows how the popes of the mid-sixteenth century sought to re-assert and project their authority over the Catholic Church during the first phase of the Counter-Reformation. Its narrative focus is the trial of cardinals Carlo and Alfonso Carafa, nephews of Paul IV (1555-1559), who, together with Carlo's brother Giovanni, were arrested and indicted by their uncle's successor Pius IV (1559-65) on charges of murder, theft, and corruption. Taking place from June 1560 to April 1561 as preparations were underway for a resumption of the Council of Trent, this was the only occasion in the early modern period in which a papal family were impeached for their actions in government. It provided a well-publicized forum in which questions about the nature and extent of the pope's authority were raised, contested, and answered by different groups within the Roman political and ecclesiastical elite. While the Carafa trial has previously been understood to have been primarily of importance only to the development of papal nepotism, Miles Pattenden now demonstrates how Pius used it as a vehicle by which to intimidate the College of Cardinals and to re-impose stricter hierarchical control over the institutions of the Catholic Church.
Full Product Details
Author: Miles Pattenden (Research Fellow at the Institute for Advanced Studies, University of Bologna; associate member of the History Faculty at the University of Oxford)
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Imprint: Oxford University Press
Dimensions:
Width: 14.40cm
, Height: 1.60cm
, Length: 22.20cm
Weight: 0.344kg
ISBN: 9780199670628
ISBN 10: 0199670625
Pages: 164
Publication Date: 14 March 2013
Audience:
College/higher education
,
Undergraduate
,
Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly
Format: Hardback
Publisher's Status: Active
Availability: To order
Stock availability from the supplier is unknown. We will order it for you and ship this item to you once it is received by us.
Reviews
As Pattenden admits, we can still only speculate on Pius IV's true motives, but as far as they go his arguments are persuasive. This gripping tale of duplicity, intrigue and ambition, moreover, is admirably and thrillingly told. Alastair Hamilton, The Times Literary Supplement
Pattenden's book is significant not only for its fine research and writing, but because of the thin historiography attached to Pius. Though he makes some demands, his narrative and conclusions are accessible to the informed if inexpert reader. * Joseph P. Byrne, Church History * As Pattenden admits, we can still only speculate on Pius IV's true motives, but as far as they go his arguments are persuasive. This gripping tale of duplicity, intrigue and ambition, moreover, is admirably and thrillingly told. * Alastair Hamilton, The Times Literary Supplement *
Author Information
Miles Pattenden obtained his doctorate from the University of Oxford in 2009 and was Tutorial Fellow in History at St Hugh's College, Oxford before moving to the University of Bologna in 2012.
