Giuseppe Zongo Ondedei

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Giuseppe Zongo Ondedei

Giuseppe Zongo Ondedei (* around 1600 in Pesaro , † July 24, 1674 in Fréjus ) was an Italian and French lawyer , diplomat and bishop .

Origin and advancement

Giuseppe Zongo Ondedei came from the aristocratic family Zongo Ondedei and was born in Pesaro in the Italian region of Marche . The information about the year of his birth vary between 1593 and 1608. He studied law in Bologna and in 1622 entered the service of the apostolic nuncio in Portugal, Antonio Albergati (1566–1634), from 1624 to 1626 in that of his successor, Giovanni Battista Maria Pallotta . Pope Urban VIII made him General Auditor (President of the Court) in the Avignon Legation , where he met Mazarin . Then he exercised a judge's office in Rome and became honorary chamberlain of the Pope. In 1636 he accompanied Cardinal Marzio Ginetti to the Cologne Peace Congress . Back in Italy, he became governor of Castro and Ronciglione . From there Mazarin brought him to France in 1643.

Close collaborator of Mazarin in France

From 1646 Ondedei was secretary, colleague and friend of Mazarin's diplomatic mission in France. In the correspondence he was mentioned as "enfant" (expression of Mazarin's affection) or as "enfant Ondedei". In 1649 he was appointed Commendatarabbot of Blanchelande Abbey in Neufmesnil (until 1651). 1651 he shared Mazarin Bruhler exile. In 1654 he was appointed bishop of Fréjus , but initially stayed in Paris. Not until October 20, 1658 was he ordained bishop in Paris and solemnly moved into Fréjus on February 2, 1659. Nevertheless, he spent most of the time in Paris until Mazarin's death.

The Bishop of Fréjus welcomes Louis XIV to his diocese

In the course of his more than one year trip to Saint-Jean-de-Luz to marry Maria Teresa of Spain , Louis XIV (together with his mother Anna of Austria ) made a detour via the sanctuary of Cotignac in the diocese of Fréjus as thanks for those there venerated Mother of God attributed the birth of the king after 20 years of sterility. Bishop Ondedei greeted the king on February 21, 1660 in Cotignac and then traveled with him to Saint-Jean-de-Luz.

Working in the diocese and death

When there was an apparition of Joseph on June 7, 1660 in Cotignac, Ondedei was staying in Paris and recognized the apparition from there. After Mazarin's death in 1661, Ondedei was one of the executors. It was not until 1662 that he stayed mainly in his diocese. There he quickly acquired the reputation of an energetic reformer who did not shy away from fines and excommunications to discipline the priests (especially the canons), but at the same time made considerable sums of money from his private assets available to support the poor and for the good of the diocese and personally lived a frugal lifestyle. Four times (1659, 1665, 1669 and 1672) he visited his diocese completely and also reached out to remote parishes (such as Les Adrets-de-l'Estérel ) that no bishop had yet entered. He died in 1674 at the age of 76 and was buried in the Cathedral of Fréjus .

literature

  • Louis Porte: Histoire du diocèse de Fréjus-Toulon . Editions du Lau 2017, pp. 73–74.
  • Hippolyte Espitalier (1844–1905): Les évêques de Fréjus du XIIIe à la fin du XVIIIe Siècle . Draguignan 1898, pp. 255-286. (on-line)

Web links
personal data
SURNAME Ondedei, Giuseppe Zongo
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Ondedei, Joseph Zongo
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Italian and French Roman Catholic clergyman and bishop
DATE OF BIRTH around 1600
PLACE OF BIRTH Pesaro
DATE OF DEATH July 24, 1674
Place of death Fréjus