This wizened figure looks like a saggy Santa Claus, but in fact was one of the most ambitious Popes in the history of the Catholic Church. And “ambitious” isn’t a good adjective for the religious leaders of Christendom. But this guy had an even more secular moniker: he was Julius II, the”warrior Pope”.
He picked Julius as his papal name (before he became Pope in 1503 he was known as Giuliano della Rovere) not for a religious association but because he admired Julius Caesar. He led battles, purchased numerous Church titles, and was the one who started revving up the sale of indulgences — in Julius’ case, he needed money to refurbish and redesign the Vatican Papal palace.
Julius was also an amazing patron of the arts, hiring Michelangelo to paint the Sistine Chapel.
What Julius II wasn’t, of course, was a spiritual leader, which was sort of the first line on the imaginary papal resume. Machiavelli considered him the ideal Renaissance Prince — which again, is quite a back-handed complement considering the source, the “ends justifies the means” orientation of Machiavelli’s _The Prince_.
By the time he died in 1513, Julius II had amassed a great deal of wealth and strengthened the Papal States so that they would be able to remain autonomous. But he also was a major contributor to the corruption of the Church that fed into the Protestant Reformation.
Sources: Portrait by Raphael, https://reformation500.csl.edu/bio/pope-julius-ii/
