Ximenesde Cisneros

Ximenes de Cisneros, Francisco (1436-1517), Cardinal, was born at Torrelaguna, in Castile. In 1482 he entered the Franciscan order, but the fame of his sanctity and learning had spread throughout the land, and after ten years retirement he was induced by Queen Isabella to become her confessor. In 1495 he accepted, much against his will, the archbishopric of Toledo, which was forced on him by the Pope. He acted as regent after the death of Philip in 1506, and in the following year received a Cardinal's hat from Julius II. The death of Ferdinand in January, 1516, again placed him at the head of affairs, and, in spite of his great age and the opposition of the nobles, he maintained his authority unimpaired until the arrival of Charles V.