Cristoforo Madruzzo

[1] In December 1542, he was appointed administrator of the Bishopric of Brixen,[3] and shortly afterwards, during the same year, he was raised to the dignity of a cardinal by Pope Paul III.

Having resigned his bishopric at Trento in 1567 in favour of his nephew Ludovico, he spent the latter years of his life in Italy, and became Cardinal Bishop successively of Sabina, Palestrina, and Porto.

He took an active part in the imperial Diet of Ratisbon as representative of the emperor, and upheld strenuously the Catholic teaching against the heresy of Martin Luther.

[4] In addition to his two sees he received in 1546, by the favour of Charles V, a yearly allowance of 2,000 ducats from the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Santiago de Compostela in Spain.

It was largely due to his efforts that this subject was discussed and enactments of that character were passed in each session together with decisions on doctrinal matters.