Oliviero Carafa

Oliviero Carafa (10 March 1430 – 20 January 1511), in Latin: Oliverius Carafa, was an Italian cardinal and diplomat of the Renaissance. Like the majority of his era's prelates, he displayed the lavish and conspicuous standard of living that was expected of a prince of the Church. In his career he set an example of conscientiousness for his contemporaries and mentored his relative, Giovanni Pietro Carafa, who became Pope Paul IV.

Early ecclesiastic career

He was born in Naples to an illustrious house, prominent in the military and administrative service of the House of Aragon. His father Francesco was lord of Torre del Greco, Portici and Resina. His mother, as contemporaries often pointed out, was distantly related to Thomas Aquinas. Though he was elevated to the Archbishopric of Naples (18 November 1458) at a young age, his career was mainly that of a statesman rather than an ecclesiastic. He retained the powerful and lucrative position until 20 September 1484, but kept control of the see at the heart of the Regno by ceding the position to his brother Alessandro, retaining his right to resume it should his brother die, by a papal brief. When that eventuality happened (July 1503), he was archbishop once more, ceding the title to his nephew Bernardino, who died within months, and then to Vincenzo. "What emerges clearly from this complicated pattern of exchanged titles is that Carafa was determined to retain the prestigious and wealthy title of Naples within his family's control."