Pope Urban VIII is mostly known today for "persecuting" Galileo and his rotating ball earth model. Spanish influence in Italy has been on the rise for a century, and the kingdom of Naples and Sicily, under Spanish rule, lay immediately to the South of the Papal State. Pope Urban was involved in Italian and European political disputes. Pope Urban VIII (Maffeo Barberini) was pope from 1623 to 1644. She tells us Urban VIII was a fervent patron of the arts during the Baroque period. Next most famous people born in 1568 Number of Famous People: The election of Urban VIII as pope in the year 1623 was the cause of fairly universal rejoicing in Catholic Europe. (He did, after all, force Galileo to recant). Urban VIII bestowed equal attention upon the young Pietro da Cortona. Roman Catholic Pope. Cortona, who was already known to the Barberini family as a result of his Portrait of Pope Urban VIII (1627, Capitoline Museums, Rome), was given the commission by Francesco Barberini, nephew of Urban VIII. Pope Urban VIII received Galileo for six long audiences. Their Zodiac sign is ♈ Aries. His time as the Pope came at an important time in European history. Urban VIII saw Bernini as useful in his fight against the Reformation which he saw as a great threat. So contentious was the conclave that once elected, Urban VIII as he chose to be called, distanced himself from the College of Cardinals and came to rely on himself and on members of his own family for advice. Urban VIII, original name Maffeo Barberini, (baptized April 5, 1568, Florence—died July 29, 1644, Rome), pope from 1623 to 1644. Back in 1633, famed scientist Galileo was condemned by the Vatican, which was then lead by Pope Urban VIII. Pope Urban VIII forbade Catholics from using the powdered form of tobacco known as snuff because of its tendency to cause sneezing, which … He was the last pope to expand the papal territories by force of arms, expending vast funds on military campaigns and patronage of arts. They are considered the most important person in history born in 1568. Galileo's advocacy of this theory incurred the wrath of Pope Urban VIII. Pope Urban VIII forbade Catholics from using the powdered form of tobacco known as snuff because of its tendency to cause sneezing, which he viewed as dangerously akin to … Their Zodiac sign is ♈Aries.They are considered the most important person in history born with the first name of Urban. (He did, after all, force Galileo to recant). 2: Pope Urban VIII – Maffeo Barberini (1623-1644) – The Bee Pope . They were born on a Friday. A: Urban VIII was pope from 1623 to 1644. Pope. The Folly of Pope Urban VIII and the Banning of Astrological Prophesies of Papal Fates. Galileo's advocacy of this theory incurred the wrath of Pope Urban VIII. The church took issue with Galileo's discovery that the sun is really at the center of the universe — not the earth. Galileo was a Jesuit, and his fellow Jesuits in China had trouble convincing the cerebral emperor of China that his kingdom was not the "middle kingdom," or center of the flat earth! Pope Urban VIII Maffeo Barberini (1568-1644) The Barberini were a powerful family, with branches in Rome and Florence, which had produced several cardinals up to that point. Since about 1200 BC the Bible has declared in its first sentence that the universe has a … As Pope, Urban VIII made it his goal to reinvigorate papal power. Related pages. List of popes The Folly of Pope Urban VIII and the Banning of Astrological Prophesies of Papal Fates. Pope Urban VIII is mostly known today for "persecuting" Galileo and his rotating ball earth model. The son of an aristocratic Florentine family, Barberini filled many distinguished church appointments. In the early days of his reign, Galileo had reason to believe Maffeo Barberini's elevation to Pope might lead to a loosening of the Church's opposition to Copernican thought. ! A former to Paris, he had been made a cardinal at the relatively young age of thirty-eight, and was known for his great knowledge and for his love of art and literature.