Pope Leo XI

Pope Leo XI
Bishop of Rome
Leo XI in a 1605 engraving
Church	Catholic Church
Papacy began	1 April 1605
Papacy ended	27 April 1605
Predecessor	Clement VIII
Successor	Paul V
Previous post(s)	Bishop of Pistoia (1573) Archbishop of Florence (1574–1596) Cardinal-Priest of Santi Quirico e Giulitta (1583–1591) Cardinal-Priest of Santi Giovanni e Paolo (1591–1592) Cardinal-Priest of Santa Prassede (1592–1594) Cardinal-Priest of San Pietro in Vincoli (1594–1600) Prefect of the Congregation of Bishops and Regulars (1598–1605) Cardinal-Priest of Santa Maria in Trastevere (1600) Cardinal-Bishop of Albano (1600–1602) Cardinal-Bishop of Palestrina (1602–1605)
Orders
Ordination	22 July 1567 by Antonio Altoviti
Consecration	March 1573 by Francisco Pacheco de Villena (Toledo)
Created cardinal	12 December 1583 by Gregory XIII
Personal details
Born	Alessandro Ottaviano de' Medici 2 June 1535 Florence, Duchy of Florence
Died	27 April 1605(1605-04-27) (aged 69) Rome, Papal States
Coat of arms
Other popes named Leo

Pope Leo XI (Italian: Leone XI; 2 June 1535 – 27 April 1605), born Alessandro Ottaviano de' Medici, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 1 April 1605 to his death, on 27 April 1605.^[1] His pontificate is one of the briefest in history, having lasted under a month. He was from the prominent House of Medici originating from Florence.^[2] Medici's mother opposed his entering the priesthood and sought to prevent it by having him given secular honours, but after her death he eventually was ordained a priest in 1567. In his career he served as Florence's ambassador to the pope, Bishop of Pistoia, Archbishop of Florence, Papal legate to France, and as the cardinal Prefect for the Congregation of Bishops and Regulars. He was elected to the papacy in the March 1605 papal conclave when he was almost seventy. He almost immediately suffered from fever and served as pope for 27 days.