- Johann Philipp von Schönborn
Johann Philipp von Schönborn (
6 August 1605 -12 February 1673 ) was the Archbishop of Mainz from 1647 until 1673, the Bishop of Würzburg from 1642 until 1673, and the Bishop of Worms from 1663 until 1673.His contemporaries gave him the honorable titles of "The Wise", "The German Solomon", and "The Cato of Germany".
Biography
Johann Philipp was born in
Laubuseschbach (modernHesse ) to George ofSchönborn . He was probably christened as a Protestant, but he was educated by theJesuit s inWeilburg ,Mainz ,Orléans andSiena . In 1621 he became a cleric (an expectant for a canonicate) at the cathedral ofWürzburg , and in 1626 he received one in Mainz as well. In 1626 he received consecrations in Mainz. He became a cathedral canon of Würzburg in 1629 and at Worms in 1630. He fled toCologne with most of the high clergy in 1631 from the advancing armies ofSweden during theThirty Years' War .Appointed the Bishop of Würzburg on
8 September 1642 , Johann Phillip quickly set to work restoring conditions in the prince-bishopric. He negotiated with the Holy Roman Emperor to reduce troop movement through the diocese, purchased peace from the Swedes and forced the advancing French to withdraw. In 1645 he began negotiations to end the war, and as his own position in the empire was weak he signed a treaty with the French cardinalJules Mazarin . In addition he wanted to force the right of vote at thePeace of Westphalia so sent delegates toMünster andOsnabrück , gaining both the attention of the Emperor and the French king. As the Swedish king resisted any compromise on the religious stalemate, Johann Phillip took a position of compromise which gained the mistrust ofPope Innocent X .Due to the attention and fame he won at the on-going peace negotiations, the cathedral chapter of Mainz elected Johann Philipp the Archbishop on
19 November 1647 . The Pope formally withheld giving him the pallium due to a money dispute (bishops had to pay a fee to the Pope to be confirmed during that era), however it was withheld more for his compromising position with the Protestant princes (Johann Philipp was not confirmed until 13 September 1649). Johann Phillipp used the offices which came with the Archbishopric of Mainz to advance the negotiations. The result of his and others long and hard labors was thePeace of Westphalia in 1648, which recognized the rights of the weaker rulers ofGermany , mediated between France and the Empire, and successfully resisted the efforts of Sweden to abolish several Catholic spiritual states including the Archbishopric of Mainz.The French continued to occupy several regions of Germany after the formal peace, including the city of Mainz and the archbishop's residence. When the policies of the Habsburgs began to waver from involvement and attention of Germany, Johann Philipp turned his attention to the French in 1655. In 1658 he tried to prevent Leopold I being elected the Holy Roman Emperor and to crown the French king Louis XIV. Leopold was nevertheless elected, and so Johann Philipp helped resurrect the
Rhenish League . As the French began to threaten theRhineland and peace across the empire, Johann Philipp turned to the side of Leopold and helped unite the German church behind him. He later regained the archbishopric's territories inHesse andErfurt .Also following the Thirty Years' War, Johann Philipp began widespread reforms and reconstruction throughout the archdiocese. He implemented all the reforms of the
Council of Trent , rebuilt all infrastructure, and resettled regions devastated by war and plague. He reestablished the choir of thecathedral of Mainz , and in 1656 introduced theGregorian chant s. He also printed and circulated new versions and translations of the bible. In 1660 he rebuilt orphanages and allowed priest seminars. In 1663 he was also elected the Bishop ofWorms and implemented reform there. Urged by the Jesuit Friedrich von Spee, he was also one of the first princes to outlawwitch-hunting , which had killed over 2,000 people during the past century in the archbishopric.Johann Phillip also took a tolerant policy towards Protestants, and allowed them to continue to live the archdiocese. He also bankrupted Mainz by increasing the fortifications of the city.
On 15 December 1570 John Philip appointed
Lothar Frederick of Metternich his coadjutor after he became ill with kidney disease.He died in Würzburg, his favorite city, in 1673 and was buried in the west choir of the Cathedral of Mainz.
References
This article incorporates material from [http://history.wikia.com/wiki/Lothar_Francis_of_Sch%C3%B6nborn history.wikia.com] , released as
GFDL .
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