Giovanni Orsini (died 1359)

Giovanni Orsini (died June 1359) was a Roman nobleman of the Orsini family who served as the bishop of Padua from 1353 until his death.^[1]

Orsini was a brother of Cardinal Rinaldo Orsini. He studied at the University of Bologna and the University of Padua, where he earned a doctorate.^[2] Prior to his election as bishop, he had been a canon of Reims, archdeacon of Brabant in the diocese of Liège and a canon of Padua Cathedral.^[3] He was also the honorary sacristan of Urgell^[4] and treasurer of Vercelli.^[5]

Orsini was appointed bishop on 14 January 1353 by Pope Innocent VI while only in minor orders.^[4]^[5] He was the last in a string of largely absentee bishops, succeeding Ildebrandino Conti. He continued to work for the papal court in Avignon throughout his episcopate.^[1] He may never have visited Padua after becoming bishop.^[6] At Avignon, he was a notary, while also being an archpriest of Saint Peter's Basilica in the Vatican.^[3] He appointed vicars general to govern his diocese in his absence, each usually serving for about one year.^[7] His first vicar was Nicolò Matafari, his brother's chaplain and the archbishop of Zadar.^[6]

Orsini died in Avignon in early June 1359.^[8] He was succeeded as bishop by Pileo da Prata.^[1]

Notes

^ ^a ^b ^c Kohl 1998, pp. 24–25.
^ Longo 2005, pp. 71, 73.
^ ^a ^b Longo 2005, p. 71.
^ ^a ^b Eubel 1913, p. 386.
^ ^a ^b Dondi 1815, p. 102.
^ ^a ^b Dondi 1815, pp. 102–103.
^ Longo 2005, p. 74.
^ Dondi 1815, pp. 105–106, says that his death was announced in a letter dated 16 June and that his successor was appointed in July, but Eubel 1913, p. 386, gives his successor's date of election as 12 June.

Carollo, F. (1970–1971). I vescovi di Padova Giovanni Orsini (1353–59) e Pileo da Prata (1359–70): Nuove ricerche d'archivio (Bachelor's thesis). University of Padua.
Dondi dall'Orologio, Francesco Scipione [in Italian] (1815). Dissertazioni sopra l'istoria ecclesiastica di Padova. Vol. 8. Tipografia del Seminario di Padova.
Eubel, Konrad, ed. (1913). Hierarchia catholica. Vol. 1 (2nd ed.). Libreria Regensbergiana.
Kohl, Benjamin G. (1998). Padua Under the Carrara, 1318–1405. Johns Hopkins University Press.
Longo, Oddone [in Italian] (2005). Padova carrarese. Il Poligrafo.