View source for Pope Paul IV

==Church career==

===Bishop===
He was mentored by Cardinal [[Oliviero Carafa]], his relative, who resigned the [[see of Chieti]] (Latin ''Theate'') in his favour. Under the direction of [[Pope Leo X]], he was ambassador to [[Kingdom of England|England]] and then papal [[nuncio]] in [[Habsburg Spain|Spain]], where he conceived a violent detestation of Spanish rule that affected the policies of his later papacy.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopaedia2"/>

In 1524, [[Pope Clement VII]] allowed Carafa to resign his [[benefice]]s and join the [[ascetic]] and newly founded Congregation of Clerks Regular, popularly called the [[Theatines]], after Carafa's [[Episcopal see|see]] of ''Theate.'' Following the [[Sack of Rome (1527)|sack of Rome]] in 1527, the order moved to [[Venice]]. There, he wrote in a memorandum in 1533 that reform of the Church and vigorous struggle against any deviations were interlinked.{{sfn|Raz-Krakotzkin|2007|p=34}} Carafa was recalled to [[Rome]] by the reform-minded [[Pope Paul III]] (1534–49), to sit on a committee of reform of the papal court, an appointment that forecasted an end to a [[Humanism|humanist]] papacy and a revival of [[scholasticism]], as Carafa was a disciple of [[Thomas Aquinas]].<ref name="Catholic Encyclopaedia2"/>

===Cardinal===
In December 1536 he was made [[Cardinal (Catholic Church)|Cardinal-Priest]] of ''[[S. Pancrazio]]'' and then [[Archbishop]] of [[Naples]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Paul-IV|title=Britannica|date=14 August 2023 }}</ref>

The [[Diet of Regensburg (1541)|Regensburg Colloquy]] in 1541 failed to achieve any measure of reconciliation between Catholics and Protestants in Europe, but instead saw a number of prominent Italians defect to the Protestant camp. In response, Carafa was able to persuade Pope Paul III to set up a [[Roman Inquisition]], modelled on the [[Spanish Inquisition]] with himself as one of the Inquisitors-General. The [[Papal Bull]] was promulgated in 1542.<ref>MacCulloch, Dairmaid. ''Reformation : Europe's house divided, 1490-1700'', London, 2003, page 224.</ref> Carafa demanded the surveillance of education, ordered the confiscation of many authors, such as [[Erasmus]], and inspired the warning of the Inquisition against printed books containing perceived threats against the Christianity.{{sfn|Raz-Krakotzkin|2007|p=34}} In this regard, he headed the commission that investigated the [[Bragadin-Giustiniani dispute]] and that recommended the burning of the [[Talmud]] in 1553.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Bo |first1=Federico Dal |title=Print, Power, and Cultural Hegemony: A Material History of Early Hebrew Prints |date=23 September 2024 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |isbn=978-3-11-139315-5 |pages=213–215, 225 |url=https://books.google.com/books?redir_esc=y&hl=es&id=UIYaEQAAQBAJ |access-date=8 October 2025 |language=en}}</ref>

===Election as pope===
{{main|May 1555 papal conclave}}
He was a surprise choice as pope to succeed [[Pope Marcellus II]] (1555); his severe and unbending character combined with his advanced age and Italian patriotism meant under normal circumstances he would have declined the honor. He accepted apparently because [[Emperor Charles V]] was opposed to his accession.<ref name="Catholic Encyclopaedia2"/>

Carafa, elected on 23 May 1555, took the name of "Paul IV" in honor of [[Pope Paul III]] who named him as a cardinal. He was [[Papal coronation|crowned]] as pope on 26 May 1555 by the [[protodeacon]]. He formally took possession of the [[Basilica of Saint John Lateran]] on 28 October 1555.