Pius V, Saint (redirected from Antonio or Michele Ghislieri)

Pius V, Saint, 1504–72, pope (1566–72), an Italian named Michele Ghislieri, b. near Alessandria; successor of Pius IV. He was ordained in the Dominicans (1528) and became celebrated for his austerity. Paul IV made him cardinal (1557) and inquisitor general; under his direction the Roman Inquisition reached a new level of efficiency. On his election he set about putting the decrees of the Council of Trent (see Trent, Council of) into effect; he thus occupies a key position in the Counter Reformation, for his activity in those years just after the council insured the permanence of its work. He governed the Papal States with severity. St. Pius was the first pope after the Reformation to put Catholicism on the political offensive. He excommunicated (1570) Queen Elizabeth I of England and forbade English Roman Catholics to give her their allegiance, a serious political mistake on his part since it had the effect of rallying the English to Elizabeth. He united Venice and Spain with him against the Turks, an alliance that helped to bring the victory of Austria over the Turks at Lepanto (see Lepanto, battle of). He has been much attacked as a persecutor of heresy, but he was certainly not privy to the massacre of St. Bartholomew's Day in France. He was succeeded by Gregory XIII. Feast: May 6.

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Pius V, Saint

 orig. Antonio or Michele Ghislieri

(born Jan. 17, 1504, Bosco, duchy of Milan—died May 1, 1572, Rome, Papal States; canonized May 22, 1712; feast day April 30) Pope (1566–72). He joined the Dominican order at age 14 and was ordained in 1528. A relentless pursuer of heretics, he was named commissary general of the Inquisition in 1551. By 1556 he was a cardinal, and in 1566 he was elected pope. He zealously carried out church reforms and succeeded in keeping Protestantism out of Italy. In 1570 he excommunicated Elizabeth I, thus worsening the position of Catholics in England. He organized the campaign that led to the victory of the Spanish, Venetian, and papal fleets over the Turks in the Battle of Lepanto in 1571.