Innocent XI
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Blessed Pope Innocent XI |
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| Bishop of Rome | |
Portrait in 1787.
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| Papacy began | 21 September 1676 |
| Papacy ended | 12 August 1689 |
| Predecessor | Clement X |
| Successor | Alexander VIII |
| Orders | |
| Ordination | 20 November 1650 |
| Consecration | 29 January 1651 by Francesco Maria Macchiavelli |
| Created Cardinal | 6 March 1645 by Pope Innocent X |
| Personal details | |
| Birth name | Benedetto Odescalchi |
| Born |
16 May 1611 Como, Lombardy, Duchy of Milan |
| Died | 12 August 1689 (aged 78) Rome, Papal States |
| Previous post |
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| Motto | Avarus non implebitur ("The covetous man is not (never) satisfied [with money]") |
| Coat of arms |  |
| Sainthood | |
| Feast day |
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| Venerated in | Roman Catholic Church |
| Title as Saint | Blessed |
| Beatified | 7 October 1956 Saint Peter's Basilica, Vatican City by Pope Pius XII |
| Attributes |
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| Patronage | |
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Papal styles of Pope Innocent XI |
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| Reference style | His Holiness |
| Spoken style | Your Holiness |
| Religious style | Holy Father |
| Posthumous style | Blessed |
Pope Innocent XI (Latin: Innocentius XI; 16 May 1611 – 12 August 1689), born Benedetto Odescalchi, was Pope from 21 September 1676 to his death in 1689. He is known in Budapest as the "Saviour of Hungary".
Much of his reign was concerned with tension with Louis XIV of France. A conservative, he lowered taxes in the Papal States during his pontificate and he also produced a surplus in the papal budget. Because of this surplus he repudiated excessive nepotism within the Church. Innocent XI was frugal in matters of governing the Papal States, from dress to leading a life with Christian values. Once he was elected to the Papacy, he applied himself to moral and administrative reform of the Roman Curia. He abolished sinecures and pushed for greater simplicity in preaching as well as greater reverence in worship—requesting this of both the clergy and faithful.
After a difficult cause for canonization, starting in 1791, which caused considerable controversy over the years and stopping on several occasions, he was beatified with no opposition in 1956 by Pope Pius XII.
Benedetto Odescalchi was born at Como on 16 May 1611, the son of a Como nobleman, Livio Odescalchi, and Paola Castelli Giovanelli from Gandino. His siblings were Carlo, Lucrezia, Giulio Maria, Constantino, Nicola and Paolo. He also had several collateral descendants of note through his sister: her grandson Cardinal Baldassare Erba-Odescalchi, Cardinal Benedetto Erba Odescalchi, and Cardinal Carlo Odescalchi.
The Odescalchi, a family of minor nobility, were determined entrepreneurs. In 1619, Benedetto's brother founded a bank with his three uncles in Genoa which quickly grew into a successful money-lending business. After completing his studies in grammar and letters, the 15-year-old Benedetto moved to Genoa to take part in the family business as an apprentice. Lucrative economic transactions were established with clients in the major Italian and European cities, such as Nuremberg, Milan, Kraków, and Rome.
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