'''Francesco Vitelli''' (August 30, 1582–1646) was a [[Roman Catholic]] ecclesiastic in the papal service. He performed a number of diplomatic functions. He was a learned man and generous patron.
==Life== Decio Francesco Vitelli was born August 30, 1582 in [[Città di Castello]]. Francesco Vitelli was of the line of [[Vitelli]] who had been rich merchants of [[Città di Castello]], who made themselves masters of the town in the early fourteenth century, after civic confrontations with the rival Guelfucci of Brancaleone, and henceforward wielded political and military influence disproportionate to their small territory.<ref>Cassagnes-Brouquet, Sophie and Doumerc, Bernard. "Les Vitelli de Città di Castello", ''Les Condottières, Capitaines, princes et mécènes en Italie, XIIIe-XVIe siècle'', Paris, Ellipses, 2011, p. 136 (ISBN 978-2-7298-6345-6)</ref>
He was the son of Vincenzo Vitelli (son of Alessandro Vitelli) and Faustina Vitelli (daughter of Chiappino); he thus belonged to the noble Vitelli family, both on his mother's and father's side: in fact, Vincenzo was Faustina's uncle. Francesco did not have the opportunity to meet his father, because Vincenzo was killed in 1583 in Rome, where he was general of the Pope's Infantry.
In 1612, Francesco was named [[referendary]] by [[Pope Paul V]] with the title [[Titular bishop|titular archbishop]] of Thessalonica. [[Pope Gregory XV]] appointed him governor of [[San Severino Marche]] before transferring him to [[Ancona]]. In 1624 he was sent to govern [[Ascoli Piceno]].<ref name=treccani>[https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/francesco-vitelli/ Vitelli, Francisco", Treccani]</ref>
He was in Rome in 1625, where he was appointed a member of the ''[[Sacra Consulta]]'', the Congregation of the Boundaries and a votary in the [[Apostolic Signatura|Supreme Tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura]]. Having thus attained a position of extreme importance, he was appointed commissioner several times: in 1630, to deal with the plague that threatened the Church State and in 1632 to act as diplomat between [[Ferrara]] and the [[Republic of Venice]]. In Venice itself he was apostolic nuncio for about 11 years, and it was thanks to his interventions that the Venetians did not declare war on the Pope several times.
On June 7, 1634, he was appointed apostolic administrator of [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Terni-Narni-Amelia|Terni]] by [[Pope Urban VIII]], a post he held until 1636, when he was appointed [[Bishop of Urbino|Archbishop of Urbino]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.arcidiocesiurbino.it/arcidiocesi/cennistorici.php |title=Archidiocesi di Urbino... |access-date=2008-06-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090116185106/http://www.arcidiocesiurbino.it/arcidiocesi/cennistorici.php |archive-date=2009-01-16 |url-status=dead }}</ref>
In 1643 [[Pope Urban VIII]] Barberini appointed him one of four ''prelati di fiocchetto'', with the right to ornament the harness of their horses with violet and peacock-coloured feathers, as honorary Governor of Rome.
He was a correspondent of the papal diplomat [[Guido Bentivoglio]], who addressed to him his ''Relationi'' concerning Flanders, 1633.<ref>''Relationi del cardinale Bentiuoglio all'ill[ustrissi]mo e r[everendissi]mo sig[no]r mio colendiss. monsig[nore] Francesco Vitelli arciuescouo di Thessalonica...'' (Venice, Marco Ginammi) 1633</ref> Vitelli was a man of great culture, authoring a number of political and historical treatises, also taking care of translating some works and protecting some writers. A lover of books, paintings and archaeological objects, he was a learned man and generous patron.<ref name=treccani/>
Francesco Vitelli died in Urbino in 1646 and was buried in Rome, in the Vitelli Chapel in the church of [[San Marcello al Corso]].
==Notes== {{Reflist|2}}
==External links and additional sources== *{{cite web|last=Cheney |first=David M.|title=Thessalonica (Titular See)|website=[[Catholic-Hierarchy.org]]|url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/d2t91.html|access-date=June 16, 2018}} (for Chronology of Bishops (for Chronology of Bishops) [[Wikipedia:SPS|{{sup|[''self-published'']}}]] *{{cite web|last=Chow |first=Gabriel|title=Titular Metropolitan See of Thessalonica (Greece)|website=GCatholic.org|url=http://www.gcatholic.org/dioceses/former/t1763.htm|access-date=June 16, 2018}} (for Chronology of Bishops (for Chronology of Bishops) [[Wikipedia:SPS|{{sup|[''self-published'']}}]] *{{cite web|last=Cheney |first=David M.|title=Archdiocese of Urbino-Urbania-Sant'Angelo in Vado |website=[[Catholic-Hierarchy.org]]|url=http://www.catholic-hierarchy.org/diocese/duusa.html|access-date=June 16, 2018}} (for Chronology of Bishops (for Chronology of Bishops) [[Wikipedia:SPS|{{sup|[''self-published'']}}]]
{{s-start}} {{s-rel|ca}} {{succession box | title = [[Apostolic Nuncio to Venice]] | years = 1632–1643 | before = [[Giovanni Battista Agucchia]] | after = [[Angelo Cesi (bishop of Rimini)|Angelo Cesi]]}} {{succession box | title = [[Titular Archbishop]] of ''Thessalonica'' | years = 1632–1643 | before = [[Giovanni Battista Maria Pallotta]] | after = [[Cristofor Segni]]}} {{succession box | title = [[Archbishop of Urbino]] | years = 1643–1646 | before = [[Antonio Santacroce]] | after = [[Ascanio Maffei]]}} {{s-end}} {{Authority control}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vitelli, Francesco}} [[Category:1586 births]] [[Category:1646 deaths]] [[Category:People from Città di Castello]] [[Category:17th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops]] [[Category:Vitelli family|Francesco]] [[Category:Apostolic nuncios to the Republic of Venice]]