At the Origins of the Counter-Reformation

Was he a heretic or the saviour of the early modern Catholic Church? In the second volume of At the Origins of the Counter-Reformation, Massimo Firpo and Germano Maifreda recount the extraordinary life of Giovanni Morone, a pivotal figure in 16th-century European political and religious history. Morone's story is a paradoxical one. He was a papal legate at both the first failed convocation of the Council of Trent in 1542–43 and the final one in 1562–63. Hubert Jedin, the leading modern historian of the Council, credited Morone with saving it from failure.However, during the period between these two convocations, he was the subject of serious heresy accusations, leading to an inquisitorial trial that had been in preparation for years. The paradox of this illustrious diplomat, whose historical and historiographical profile oscillates between the images of both a heretic and a 'bulwark of the Catholic faith', continued until his death.This book uses Morone's story as a lens through which to examine the history of the Church and of Europe during the 16th-century religious crisis and beyond.

Massimo Firpo is Professor Emeritus at the University of Turin and a member of the Accademia dei Lincei. He is the author of numerous essays and books on 16th-century religious history, including Juan de Valdés and the Italian Reformation (Routledge, 2014); Pontormo's Frescoes in San Lorenzo: Heresy, Politics, and Culture in the Florence of Cosimo I (Viella, 2021); and The Catholic Reformation and the Council of Trent: History or Historiographical Myth? (Viella, 2023). Germano Maifreda is Professor of Economic History at the University of Milan. He has published extensively on the economic and social history of Counter-Reformation Italy, including The Business of the Roman Inquisition (Routledge, 2017) and The Trial of Giordano Bruno (Routledge, 2022). He is co-editor of Cultures of Exchange: Mercantile Mentalities between Italy & the World (XII–XVI c.) (University of Toronto Press, 2026, with S. Barsella and W. Caferro).