Conclave 1559

Written by Mary Hollingsworth

Narrated by Julie Maisey

Conspiracy, intrigue and faction fighting as the future of Europe hangs in the balance: Mary Hollingsworth tells the extraordinary story of the papal conclave in 1559 – the longest and bitterest of the sixteenth century.

Tasked with choosing a pontiff to replace a previous incumbent (Paul IV) whose reign was marked by repression and brutality, and faced with the growing challenge of the Protestant Reformation, the conclave faced a critically important decision for the future of the Roman Catholic Church, and was faction-ridden even by the standards of such polarised gatherings. France and Spain, both looking to extend their power in Italy and beyond, had very different ideas of who the new pope should be, as did the Italian cardinals.

Making meticulous use of the detailed accounts left by Ippolito d'Este, one of the participating cardinals (and the son of Lucrezia Borgia), Mary Hollingsworth relates the intrigue and double-dealing of the different parties trying to secure the required number of votes over the four months of this lengthiest of sixteenth-century papal elections.

• Language: English
• Publisher: W. F. Howes Ltd
• Release date: Sep 2, 2021
• ISBN: 9781800247864

Mary Hollingsworth

Mary Hollingsworth is a scholar of the Italian Renaissance and the author of The Medici, which was widely praised on its publication by Head of Zeus in 2017, Princes of the Renaissance, published in 2021 and Conclave 1559: The Story of a Papal Election (2021). Her other books include The Cardinal's Hat, The Borgias: History's Most Notorious Dynasty and Patronage in Renaissance Italy: From 1400 to the Early Sixteenth Century.

Reviews for Conclave 1559

[Mike Downing · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

Really very entertaining and interesting. A nice insiders look into the conclave. Highly recommend it

[atomic1964 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

This is an amazing account of the crazy conclave of 1559. It is based on authentic sources and this makes it all the more interesting and truly stranger than fiction. The downside of this audiobook is the reader who did not bother to learn the correct pronunciation of Italian, French and Spanish names and there are many of them. It is a shame - whoever is interested in this era or the Renaissance or the papacy has some idea of how to pronounce these names. Unfortunately this reader had none. Re-record this audiobook so that it can be perfectly enjoyable rather than wincingly enjoyable.