563 
P I 
the unrelenting feverity of Philip II. who iffued orders 
to his viceroy to put all heretics to death without mercy. 
But the duke of Savoy, unwilling to deprive himfelf of 
fo great a number of ufeful fubje&s as had been con¬ 
verted to the proteftant faith, was inclined to attempt to 
enlighten and convert them; and with this view he de- 
fired the pope’s permilfion to hold a conference of the 
principal ecclefiaftics in his dominions, on the fubjedl of 
religion. Pius was at the fame time informed, that in 
France it had been determined to have recourfe to the 
fame expedient. Dreading left the example of France 
and Savoy fhould be followed by other countries, and the 
decrees of provincial fynods be fubftituted in the room 
of thofe of the holy fee, he was fenfible that it highly 
concerned him to prevent a meafure, fo pernicious to his 
authority, from taking place. He therefore promifed 
he would himfelf fummon a general council to fettle the 
affairs of the church. 
After many delays, the bull of convocation fum- 
moning the council to meet at Trent, was publifhed in 
the confiftory on the 29th of September, 15605 and in¬ 
timation of it was fent to all the Chriftian princes. 
This bull was drawn up in fuch equivocal expreflions, 
as might be interpreted to fignify either a new council, 
or a continuation of the former one at the fame place, 
which had been fufpended in the year 1552. The 
emperor, the French king, Philip, and the other Catholic 
princes, received the bull, and gave orders to the eccle¬ 
fiaftics in their dominions to repair to Trent at the time 
appointed. An invitation was alfo fent to the feveral 
Proteftant powers; but they refolved to give no en¬ 
couragement to a council which was called by one whofe 
authority they could not acknowledge, and in which 
only thofe were to have decifive votes who had fworn 
allegiance to the pope and the fee of Rome. The 
council opened in January 1562. Attempts were foon 
made to abridge the authority of the pope, which created 
in his holinefs perpetual anxiety; and he was on the 
point of fuddenly diffolving the aifembly; but he found 
it more expedient to flatter and cajole than to have 
recourfe to violent meafures. Thus, by threatening 
fome prelates with his difpleafure, and by flattering 
others with promifes of advancement in the church, he 
fecured, in every queftion, a majority of voices. Of this 
influence he availed himfelf, not only in preventing any 
decifion from being parted which might be detrimental to 
his authority, but in procuring the ratification of many 
of thofe ecclefiaftical ufurpations, which the princes 
who had been fo folicitous for the meeting of the council 
had expe£ted would have been abolilhed. Difappointed 
and mortified, they remonftrated to the pope again and 
again on this head, but without obtaining any fatisfa< 5 lion; 
and, when they complained that the council did not 
enjoy freedom in their deliberations, he infinuated, that 
the true fource of all their difcontent on this head was, 
that their ambaffadors had not the power of didfating the 
decrees. At length Pius, grown impatient under the 
perpetual attention and expenfe which the council re¬ 
quired from him, direfted his legates to bring it as foon 
as poflible to a conclufion. In conformity with his 
inftru&ions, they terminated it with the moft indecent 
precipitation, towards the end of the year 1563, without 
any confiderable oppofition from the princes, who had 
long defpaired of deriving from it any of thofe falutary 
effedls which had been expe&ed. 
When information of the dilfolution of the council 
was brought to Pius, he received it with great joy, and 
ordained a folemn thankfgiving on the occafion; and 
foon after he publiflied his bull of confirmation, re¬ 
quiring all prelates and princes to receive and enforce 
the decrees of the Council of Trent, prohibiting all 
perfons from writing any explication of them, and com¬ 
manding the Catholics every where to have recourfe, in 
all dubious cafes, to the apoftolic fee. By the republic 
of Venice, the feveral Italian princes, moft of the 
u s. 
Catholics in Germany, and the king of Spain, the autho¬ 
rity of the council was acknowledged, and the decrees 
received; in fome countries without limitation, but in 
Spain and all the Spanilh dominions with the claufe, 
“ Saving the rights of the crown and the privileges of the 
fubjedts.” Pius had the mortification, however, to find 
that they met with a different treatment in France. 
The court refufed to receive and publifti the decrees, as 
derogatory to the liberties of the Gallican church, and 
the rights of the crown. In the year 1564, at the preflirig ¥ 
inftance of the emperor Maximilian II. this pope granted 
the ufe of the cup to the laity of Auftria and Bohemia ; 
but he could by no means be prevailed upon to confent 
to the marriage of the priefts, though no lefs earneftly 
entreated by the emperor, and the other Catholic princes 
of Germany, who declared that they could no longer 
bear with the impure celibacy of the clergy. 
Pius’s death took place in 1565, when he was in the 
67th year of his age, and after a pontificate of nearly fix 
years. That event is faid to have been haftened by his 
apprehenfions for the lofs of the ifland of Malta, which 
was then befieged by the Turks. But, to whatever 
immediate caufe it was to be attributed, the news of it 
was joyfully received by the Roman people, who hated 
the pontiff on account of the feverity and oppreflion of 
his government. This hatred, united with enthufiafm, 
had given rife to a confpiracy againft him not long be¬ 
fore his death; but, before the parties could carry 
their defign into execution, their plot was difcovered, 
and they were executed, after having been put to the 
torture. Though Pius is praifed for the vaft fums which 
he expended on public works and buildings, for the con¬ 
venience or ornament of Rome, yet the confideration 
that by fo doing he impoveriftied the inhabitants, 
refleffs little honour on his memory. If we are to credit 
Onuphrius, who was intimately acquainted with him, 
and had the honour of being frequently admitted to his 
table, he was poffefled, or feemed to be poffefled, while 
cardinal, of every virtue that could render him worthy of 
the high ftation to which he was raifed 5 but no fooner 
had he attained the dignity of fovereign-pontiff, than he 
abandoned himfelf, without reftraint, to all the oppofite 
vices, hefitating at no means of accumulating wealth, 
that he might enrich and aggrandize his nephews and 
other relations. 
PIUS V. (Pope), whofe original name was Michael 
Ghijlieri, was defcended from an obfcure family, and born 
at Bofchi, a fmall town near Alexandria, in the north of 
Italy, in the year 1504. When he was fourteen years of 
age he embraced the monaftic life in a Dominican con¬ 
vent at Voghera, where he diftinguifhed himfelf by the 
ftriftnefs of his conformity to the rules of the order, and 
acquired a high character for piety and virtue. He was 
ordained prieft at Genoa, and became a very celebrated 
preacher, being mafter of a moft powerful and perfuafive 
eloquence. Afterwards he was elefted prior of the con- * 
vent of Vigevani, and nominated inquifitor by cardinal 
Caraffa, commiflary-general of the holy office, who had 
conceived a ftrong attachment to him. After that cardinal 
was elevated to the papal throne, under the name of Paul 
IV. he made Ghiflieri bilhop of Sutri; and when, in the 
year 1557, our prelate was preparing to refign his dignity 
and return to his monaftery, he was prevented by the 
interpofition of his holinefs, who promoted him to the 
purple, by the title of Cardinal de Sanffa Sabina, though 
he was moft commonly called Cardinal Alexandrini, 
from the country of which he was a native. The fame 
pontiff alfo appointed him to the port which he had him¬ 
felf formerly occupied, that of Commiflary-general to the 
Inquifition. This office he exercifed with fo much feve¬ 
rity in the Milanefe and Lombardy, that he was obliged 
to quit thole countries ; and his zeal was afterwards 
checked by the government, when he attempted to dis¬ 
charge the functions of inquifitor at Venice. Pius IV. 
translated him from Sutri to the fee of Mundovi; and 
upon 
