A native of Bologna and the third of seven children, Alessandro Ludovisi spent his learning years being educated by the Jesuits at both the Roman College and at the University of Bologna. He was a canon lawyer by trade, and eventually would serve as Auditor of the Roman Rota -- basically the Church’s Supreme Court. Alessandro was appointed Archbishop of Bologna in 1612 by Pope Paul V, and received his cardinal’s hat four years later.

Pope Gregory XV assumed the papacy on February 9, 1621 without much fanfare. Gregory’s ill health made him realize he needed an energetic presence to carry out his wishes as pope, so (at the risk of being dubbed a nepotist) he made his nephew, Ludovico, a cardinal and his personal advisor, while also elevating his brother, Orazio, to lead the papal armies. Both ended up being solid appointments, thank you very much.

Gregory XV was politically efficient, keeping his nose out of most business but making a big splash when he did. The pope helped reclaim a key German territory for Catholicism, and was gifted with a library of nearly 4,000 manuscripts by its new ruler as thanks. He also was able to cool everyone’s jets when a war between Spain and France seemed apparent, following an unfortunate massacre of Protestants in 1620. Gregory published the last papal bull on witchcraft, Omnipotentis Dei (“Almighty God...”), reserving the death penalty only to those who had made a pact with the devil and committed murder on his behalf. Gregory died on July 8, 1623 and, given his closeness with the Jesuits, was buried in the Church of St. Ignatius in Rome.

Gregory XV is best known for two savvy moves that have aided the Church ever since. The first was a tightening of papal conclave rules, which aimed to avoid intervention by secular powers. With the bulls Aeterni Patris Filius (“Son of the Eternal Father...”) and Decet Romanum (“A Roman...”), Gregory was basically saying, “Looking at you, Spain,” and laid down only three possible methods of electing a pope -- acclamation, secret scrutiny (which every papal election since 1623 has been), and reference to a committee. Gregory also created the Congregation for the Propagation of the Faith, the Church’s missionary arm, to ensure a united front in missionary work given how far the Church had spread in the past two centuries.

Fun Fact: Following the example of Pope Paul V, Gregory XV was also a saint-maker extraordinaire. He canonized St. Ignatius Loyola, St. Francis Xavier, St. Philip Neri, and St. Teresa of Avila. He also beatified the likes of Bl. Ambrose Sansedoni of Siena, St. Albert the Great (Thomas Aquinas’ mentor), St. Aloysius Gonzaga, St. Francis Borgia and St. Peter of Alcantara, O.F.M.