Pope Adrian VI
Pope Adrian VI (Latin: Hadrianus VI; Italian: Adriano VI; German: Hadrian VI.; Dutch: Adrianus/Adriaan VI), born Adriaan Florensz Boeyens[1] (2 March 1459 – 14 September 1523), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 9 January 1522 until his death on 14 September 1523. The only Dutchman to become pope, he was the last non-Italian pope until the Polish John Paul II 455 years later.
Adrian VI
9 January 1522
14 September 1523
30 June 1490
August 1516
by Diego Ribera de Toledo
1 July 1517
by Leo X
14 September 1523 (aged 64)
Rome, Papal States
Santa Maria dell'Anima, Rome
Dutch
- Bishop of Tortosa (1516–1522)
- Cardinal-Priest of Santi Giovanni e Paolo (1517–1522)
Patere et sustine ("Respect and wait")
Your Holiness
Holy Father
None
Born in the Episcopal principality of Utrecht of the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation, Adrian studied at the University of Leuven in the Low Countries, where he rose to the position of professor of theology, also serving as its rector (the equivalent of president or vice-chancellor). In 1507, he became the tutor of the future Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, who later trusted him as both his emissary and his regent.
In 1516, Charles, now King of Castile and Aragon, appointed Adrian bishop of Tortosa, Spain, and soon thereafter Grand Inquisitor of the kingdoms of Aragon and Castile. Pope Leo X made him a cardinal in 1517 and after Leo's death he was elected pope in 1522 as a compromise candidate.
Adrian came to the papacy in the midst of one of its greatest crises, threatened not only by Lutheranism to the north but also by the advance of the Ottoman Turks to the east. He refused to compromise with Lutheranism theologically, demanding Luther's condemnation as a heretic. However, he is noted for having attempted to reform the Catholic Church administration in response to the Protestant Reformation. Adrian's admission that the Roman Curia itself was at fault for the turmoil in the Church was read at the 1522–1523 Diet of Nuremberg.
His efforts at reform, however, proved fruitless, as they were resisted by most of his contemporaries, and he did not live long enough to see his efforts through to their conclusion. He was succeeded by the second Medici pope, Clement VII.
Adrian VI and Marcellus II are the only popes of the modern era to retain their baptismal names after their election. Adrian VI is the last pope to date to take on the pontifical name "Adrian".
Leuven[edit]
In June 1476, he started his studies at the University of Leuven,[7] where he pursued philosophy, theology and Canon Law, thanks to a scholarship granted by Margaret of York, Duchess of Burgundy. In 1478 he had the title of Primus Philosophiae, as well as that of Magister Artium (that is, he took his undergraduate degree). In 1488 he was chosen by the Faculty of Arts to be their representative on the Council of the University.[8]
On 30 June 1490, Adrian was ordained a priest.[9]
After the regular 12 years of study, Adrian became a Doctor of Theology in 1491. He had been a teacher at the University since 1490, was chosen vice-chancellor of the university in 1493, and Dean of St. Peter's in 1498. In the latter function he was permanent vice-chancellor of the University and de facto in charge of hiring. His lectures were published, as recreated from his students' notes; among those who attended was the young Erasmus. Adrian offered him a professorate in 1502, but Erasmus refused.[4]
In November 1506 Margaret of Austria, Duchess of Savoy, became Governor of the Habsburg Netherlands and chose Adrian as her advisor. The next year Emperor Maximilian I appointed him also tutor to his seven-year-old grandson, and Margaret's nephew, who in 1519 became Emperor Charles V. By 1512 Adrian was Charles's advisor, and his court obligations were so time-consuming that he quit his positions at the university.[4]
Death[edit]
Adrian VI died in Rome on 14 September 1523, after one year, eight months and six days as pope.[2] Most of his official papers were lost after his death. He published Quaestiones in quartum sententiarum praesertim circa sacramenta (Paris, 1512, 1516, 1518, 1537; Rome, 1522), and Quaestiones quodlibeticae XII. (1st ed., Leuven, 1515).[13] He is buried in the Santa Maria dell'Anima church in Rome.[2]
He bequeathed property in the Low Countries for the foundation of a college at the University of Leuven that became known as Pope's College.[24]