What was Paul IV's role in the Catholic Church?

Paul IV served as the pope of the Catholic Church from 1555 to 1559. He was responsible for leading the Church during a period of religious and political turmoil, including the Protestant Reformation.

Where was Paul IV educated?

Paul IV was educated at the University of Naples Federico II, where he studied theology and other academic disciplines.

What were Paul IV's major achievements as pope?

Paul IV's major achievements include issuing the bull *Cum nimis absurdum* in 1557, which condemned the Protestant Reformation and reaffirmed Catholic doctrine. He also worked to strengthen the Church's position in Europe and addressed issues such as the Council of Trent and the relationship between the Church and secular authorities.

Paul IV

pope of catholic church 1555-1559

Person Human Q101430

Facts

29 properties

Instance of: human
Sex or gender: male^[25]
Date of birth: June 28, 1476
Date of death: August 18, 1559
Place of birth: Capriglia Irpina, Capriglio^[8]
Place of death: Rome
Country of citizenship: Vatican City^[12]
Occupation: Catholic priest, diplomat, Catholic bishop
Position held: Dean of the College of Cardinals, Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals, Cardinal-Bishop of Albano, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Naples, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Brindisi, Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chieti, Roman Catholic Bishop of Chieti, Pope, perpetual governor of the city of Velletri, Cardinal-Bishop of Frascati^[13]^[14]^[15]^[16]^[17]^[18]^[19]^[20]^[21]^[22]
Educated at: University of Naples Federico II^[23]
Religion or worldview: Catholic Church^[24]
Father: Giovanni Antonio Carafa, Conte di Montorio^[10]
Mother: Vittoria Camponeschi^[11]
Cause of death: dysentery^[27]
Work location: Rome, Papal States^[32]^[33]
Birth name: Gian Pietro Carafa^[46]
Consecrator: Oliviero Carafa^[48]
Depicted by: Portrait of Pope Paul IV Carafa^[35]
Described by source: Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, Small Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, Jewish Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron, Yuzhakov Big Encyclopedia, Otto's encyclopedia, The Nuttall Encyclopædia, Contemporaries of Erasmus (vol. 3)^[36]^[37]^[38]^[39]^[40]^[41]^[42]
Family: House of Carafa^[26]
Family name: Carafa^[29]
Given name: Paulus, Gian Pietro^[30]^[31]
Manner of death: natural causes^[34]
Name in native language: Paulus PP. IV^[47]

Show all 29 facts +5

Owner of: Diana of Versailles
Participant in: 1549–50 papal conclave, April 1555 papal conclave, May 1555 papal conclave^[43]^[44]^[45]
Place of burial: Santa Maria sopra Minerva^[9]
Religious order: Theatines^[28]
Significant person: Erasmus, Pietro Bembo

🏷️ Also known as

en Paulus IV en Pope Paul IV en Gian Pietro Carafa en Paul IV ar بولس الرابع cs Giampietro Carafa cs Pavel IV. cs Gian Pietro Carafa cs Giovanni Pietro Carafa cs Paolo da Pave Paul 4. de Paul IV. de Gian Pietro Carafa el Πάπας Παύλος Δ΄ es Papa Pablo IV es Papa Paulo IV es Gian Pietro Caraffa es Pablo IV es Juan Pedro Carafa es Giovanni Pietro Carafa

🔖 Identifiers · 109

ISNI: 0000000448838048
VIAF cluster ID: 88875623
Library of Congress Authorities ID: n85143642
GND ID: 118789899
American Academy in Rome ID: 12383443
Article ID in the Lithuanian Universal Encyclopedia Online: paulius-iv
BHCL UUID: 25548732-97ed-412e-935e-03c1aada6368
BIBSYS ID: 13039031
BVPB authority ID: 5655, 3915
BeWeb person ID: 43
Bibale ID: 89736
Biblioteca Iglesia Nacional Española en Roma ID: 30035

Show all 109 identifiers +97

Bibliothèque nationale de France ID: 123280218
Biblissima authority ID: sorbet
Bodleian Archives & Manuscripts person ID: 6653
British Museum person or institution ID: 41342
Brockhaus Enzyklopädie online ID: paul-paul-iv, carafa-gian-pietro-auch-giampietro
CANTIC ID: 981058521662206706
CERL Thesaurus ID: cnp02286956
Catholic Encyclopedia ID: 11581a
Catholic Hierarchy person ID: carafa
Cathopedia article ID: Papa_Paolo_IV
DBNL author ID: cara008
DDB person (GND) ID: 118789899
De Agostini ID: Pàolo+IV
Deutsche Biographie (GND) ID: 118789899
Digital Scriptorium Catalog item ID: .li
Digital portrait index person (GND) ID: 118789899
Documenta Catholica Omnia author ID: 01_01_1555-1559-_Paulus_IV
EDIT16 catalogue author ID: 3233
Early Modern Letters Online person ID: cc571f86-b185-4fc2-ab79-82113426dfc1
Enciclopedia Galega Universal ID: 164452
Enciclopedia di Roma person ID: 585
Encyclopædia Britannica Online ID: biography/Paul-IV
Encyclopædia Universalis ID: giovanni-pietro-paul-iv
Evene ID: paul-iv-19766
FAST ID: 168030
FES digital collections entity ID: 376257
FactGrid item ID: Najwa Karam
Find a Grave memorial ID: 8941564
FranceArchives agent ID: 606707021
Freebase ID: /m/0dy0m
Genealogics.org person ID: I00302293
Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana ID: pau-iv
Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana ID (former scheme): 0049465
Great Norwegian Encyclopedia ID: Paul_4.
Great Russian Encyclopedia Online ID (2017): 2311494
Hill Museum & Manuscript Library ID: person/472832449804
Hrvatska enciklopedija ID: 47086
IdRef ID: 058500693
IxTheo authority ID: 14736390X
J9U entity ID: 987007266336105171
Jewish Virtual Library ID: paul-iv-x00b0
KBR person ID: 14005426
KSW person ID: 86377
Kalliope-Verbund (GND) ID: 118789899
Larousse ID: personnage/wd/137277
Lex ID: Paul_4.
McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia ID: P/paul-iv
Mirabile author ID: 22943
Museo Galileo authority ID: 186862
Museum-digital person/organization ID: 25372
Münzkabinett ID: person/10763
NL CR AUT ID: jo2006325036
NLP ID: a0000001857793
NNDB people ID: 300/000095015
NUKAT ID: n2006033258
National Historical Museums of Sweden ID: person/3598B6E8-B6D5-4624-AD2C-42FACEAB8986
National Library of Greece ID: 162950
National Library of Ireland ID: vtls001159358
National Library of Poland MMS ID: 9810641540805606
National Library of Spain SpMaBN ID: XX876591
Nationale Thesaurus voor Auteursnamen ID: 070901260, 124235107
Numista ruling authority ID: 3519
Online PWN Encyclopedia ID: 3955166
Our Campaigns candidate ID: 106479
Oxford Reference overview ID: 20110803100311425
PMB – Personen der Moderne Basis person ID: 158596
Parsifal cluster ID: 44673
Personendatenbank Germania Sacra ID: 069-01785-001
Pontifical University of Salamanca ID: 22164
Proleksis enciklopedija ID: 40902
RAG ID - Repertorium Academicum Germanicum: ngPF5e476PH2belLjQYebNbG
RILM ID: 51001
Rai Teche person ID: papa-paolo-iv
Rodovid ID: 1165593
SBN author ID: BVEV040314
SNAC ARK ID: w6q82gjt
Sandrart.net person ID: 1269
Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts name ID: 4273
The Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church ID: 1536:Carafa
Topic's main category: Category:Pope Paul IV
Treccani ID: paolo-iv-papa
Treccani's Biographical Dictionary of Italian People ID: papa-paolo-iv
Treccani's Dizionario di Storia ID: paolo-iv
Treccani's Enciclopedia Italiana ID: paolo-iv-papa
Union List of Artist Names ID: 500373176
Unione Romana Biblioteche Scientifiche ID: 256300
University of Barcelona authority ID: 981058521662206706
University of Barcelona authority ID (former scheme): a1196676
V&A person ID: N7940
Vatican Library ID (former scheme): ADV12071737, ADV10160270
Vatican Library VcBA ID: 495/14970
Vikidia article ID: fr:Paul_IV
WikiKids ID: Paus_Paulus_IV
WikiTree person ID: Carafa-2
Wikitólica ID: p/papa-pablo-iv
WorldCat Entities ID: E39PBJvmMqkgYbKq7tPycCq84q
Yale LUX ID: person/8fc78096-5397-4a50-b760-78c3a60c9e66

Report an error or request removal Lineage (PROV-JSON)

🔗 Connections

← Consecrator 5

Marcellus II, Girolamo Aleandro, Benedetto Accolti the Younger, Gian Matteo Giberti, Luigi Lippomano

Described by source 3

Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, The Nuttall Encyclopædia, Jewish Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron

Occupation 3

diplomat, Catholic bishop, Catholic priest

Participant in 3

1549–50 papal conclave, April 1555 papal conclave, May 1555 papal conclave

Participated in 3

1549–50 papal conclave, April 1555 papal conclave, May 1555 papal conclave

Position held 3

Pope, Dean of the College of Cardinals, Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals

Significant person 2

Erasmus, Pietro Bembo

Work location 2

Rome, Papal States

Works by author 2

Cum nimis absurdum, Cum ex apostolatus officio

Belongs to 1

House of Carafa

Cause of death 1

dysentery

Consecrator 1

Oliviero Carafa

Country of citizenship 1

Vatican City

Digital Scriptorium Catalog item ID 1

.li

Educated at 1

University of Naples Federico II

FactGrid item ID 1

Najwa Karam

Family 1

House of Carafa

Founded entities 1

Theatines

Given name 1

Paulus

Instance of 1

human

Manner of death 1

natural causes

Owned entities 1

Diana of Versailles

Owner of 1

Diana of Versailles

Place of birth 1

Capriglia Irpina

Place of burial 1

Santa Maria sopra Minerva

Place of death 1

Rome

Religion or worldview 1

Catholic Church

Religious order 1

Theatines

Sex or gender 1

male

Topic's main category 1

Category:Pope Paul IV

← Category's main topic 1

Category:Pope Paul IV

← Successful candidate 1

May 1555 papal conclave

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Summary

Paul IV was born on June 28, 1476^[1], in Capriglia Irpina^[2]. He died on August 18, 1559^[3], in Rome^[4]. He worked as a Catholic priest^[5], diplomat^[6], and Catholic bishop^[7].

Why It Matters

Works attributed to Paul IV include Cum nimis absurdum^[49], a papal bull^[50] and Cum ex apostolatus officio^[51], a papal bull^[52].

FAQs

Where was Paul IV born?

Paul IV was born in Capriglia Irpina^[2].

Where did Paul IV die?

Paul IV died in Rome^[4].

Who were Paul IV's parents?

Paul IV's father was Giovanni Antonio Carafa, Conte di Montorio^[10]. Paul IV's mother was Vittoria Camponeschi^[11].

What did Paul IV do for work?

Paul IV worked as a Catholic priest^[5], diplomat^[6], and Catholic bishop^[7].

Where did Paul IV go to school?

Paul IV was educated at University of Naples Federico II^[23].

References

Programmatic citations — every numbered marker resolves to a verifiable graph row below.

Direct Wikidata claims

[2] ↑ Paul IV — place of birth (P19): Capriglia Irpina. OPAC SBN. Retrieved 2023-02-03. wikidata.org.
[8] ↑ Paul IV — place of birth (P19): Capriglio. wikidata.org.
[4] ↑ Paul IV — place of death (P20): Rome. OPAC SBN. Retrieved 2023-02-03. wikidata.org.
[25] ↑ Paul IV — sex or gender (P21): male. BeWeB. Retrieved 2021-02-12. wikidata.org.
[10] ↑ Paul IV — father (P22): Giovanni Antonio Carafa, Conte di Montorio. Genealogics. wikidata.org.
[11] ↑ Paul IV — mother (P25): Vittoria Camponeschi. Genealogics. wikidata.org.
[12] ↑ Paul IV — country of citizenship (P27): Vatican City. wikidata.org.
[13] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Dean of the College of Cardinals. wikidata.org.
[14] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardinals. wikidata.org.
[15] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Cardinal-Bishop of Albano. wikidata.org.
[16] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Roman Catholic Archbishop of Naples. wikidata.org.
[17] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Roman Catholic Archbishop of Brindisi. wikidata.org.
[18] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Roman Catholic Archbishop of Chieti. wikidata.org.
[19] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Roman Catholic Bishop of Chieti. wikidata.org.
[20] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Pope. The Catholic Encyclopedia. Retrieved 2021-02-12. wikidata.org.
[21] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): perpetual governor of the city of Velletri. wikidata.org.
[22] ↑ Paul IV — position held (P39): Cardinal-Bishop of Frascati. Retrieved 2023-05-14. wikidata.org.
[26] ↑ Paul IV — family (P53): House of Carafa. wikidata.org.
[23] ↑ Paul IV — educated at (P69): University of Naples Federico II. wikidata.org.
[5] ↑ Paul IV — occupation (P106): Catholic priest. wikidata.org.
[6] ↑ Paul IV — occupation (P106): diplomat. wikidata.org.
[7] ↑ Paul IV — occupation (P106): Catholic bishop. wikidata.org.
[9] ↑ Paul IV — place of burial (P119): Santa Maria sopra Minerva. wikidata.org.
[24] ↑ Paul IV — religion or worldview (P140): Catholic Church. Catholic-Hierarchy.org. Retrieved 2020-10-17. wikidata.org.
[27] ↑ Paul IV — cause of death (P509): dysentery. wikidata.org.
[1] ↑ Paul IV — date of birth (P569): June 28, 1476. BeWeB. Retrieved 2021-02-12. wikidata.org.
[3] ↑ Paul IV — date of death (P570): August 18, 1559. BeWeB. Retrieved 2021-02-12. wikidata.org.
[28] ↑ Paul IV — religious order (P611): Theatines. wikidata.org.
[29] ↑ Paul IV — family name (P734): Carafa. BeWeB. Retrieved 2021-02-12. wikidata.org.
[30] ↑ Paul IV — given name (P735): Paulus. wikidata.org.
[31] ↑ Paul IV — given name (P735): Gian Pietro. BeWeB. Retrieved 2021-02-12. wikidata.org.
[32] ↑ Paul IV — work location (P937): Rome. Integrated Authority File. Retrieved 2026-11-07. wikidata.org.
[33] ↑ Paul IV — work location (P937): Papal States. wikidata.org.
[34] ↑ Paul IV — manner of death (P1196): natural causes. wikidata.org.
[35] ↑ Paul IV — depicted by (P1299): Portrait of Pope Paul IV Carafa. wikidata.org.
[36] ↑ Paul IV — described by source (P1343): Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. wikidata.org.
[37] ↑ Paul IV — described by source (P1343): Small Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary. wikidata.org.
[38] ↑ Paul IV — described by source (P1343): Jewish Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron. wikidata.org.
[39] ↑ Paul IV — described by source (P1343): Yuzhakov Big Encyclopedia. wikidata.org.
[40] ↑ Paul IV — described by source (P1343): Otto's encyclopedia. wikidata.org.
[41] ↑ Paul IV — described by source (P1343): The Nuttall Encyclopædia. wikidata.org.
[42] ↑ Paul IV — described by source (P1343): Contemporaries of Erasmus (vol. 3). wikidata.org.
[43] ↑ Paul IV — participant in (P1344): 1549–50 papal conclave. wikidata.org.
[44] ↑ Paul IV — participant in (P1344): April 1555 papal conclave. wikidata.org.
[45] ↑ Paul IV — participant in (P1344): May 1555 papal conclave. wikidata.org.
[46] ↑ Paul IV — birth name (P1477): Gian Pietro Carafa. wikidata.org.
[47] ↑ Paul IV — name in native language (P1559): Paulus PP. IV. wikidata.org.
[48] ↑ Paul IV — consecrator (P1598): Oliviero Carafa. wikidata.org.

Inverse relationships (entities pointing at this one)

Inline context (facts about related entities)

[50] ↑ Cum nimis absurdum — P31: papal bull. Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
[52] ↑ Cum ex apostolatus officio — P31: papal bull. Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site

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APA 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph. (2026). Paul IV. Retrieved November 10, 2026, from https://4ort.xyz/entity/paul-iv

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BibTeX

@misc{4ortxyz_paul-iv_2026, author = {{4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph}}, title = {{Paul IV}}, year = {2026}, url = {https://4ort.xyz/entity/paul-iv}, note = {Accessed: 2026-11-10}}

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Edit History

Rolling log of changes to this entity's Wikidata record. Values shown reflect the current state of each edited property — follow the history link to see the precise diff for any edit.

7h ago · Printstream · 2026-11-10 view diff on Wikidata ↗

"Changed the item: QuickStatements 3.0 batch #65768: add GND as source to unsourced or imported places and occupations"
5d ago · Magnus Manske · 2026-11-04 view diff on Wikidata ↗

BVPB authority ID → 5655, 3915

"Created claim: BVPB authority ID: 3915, batch #293923"
5d ago · Magnus Manske · 2026-11-04 view diff on Wikidata ↗

BVPB authority ID → 5655, 3915

"Created claim: BVPB authority ID: 5655, batch #293923"
23d ago · OKA bot bot · 2026-10-18 view diff on Wikidata ↗

"source for place of death, source for date of birth, source for date of death from Store norske leksikon (…"
15w ago · Pierrotrgr · 2026-07-22 view diff on Wikidata ↗

Biblissima authority ID → sorbet

"Created claim: Biblissima authority ID: Q13302, Import ID Biblissima V2 (details)"
18w ago · Printstream · 2026-07-04 view diff on Wikidata ↗

Digital portrait index person (GND) ID → 118789899

"Created claim: Digital portrait index person (GND) ID: 118789899, #quickstatements; #temporary_batch_1783130387391"
18w ago · Printstream · 2026-07-01 view diff on Wikidata ↗

KSW person ID → 86377

"Created claim: KSW person ID: 86377, #quickstatements; #temporary_batch_1782930557898"
19w ago · Printstream · 2026-06-25 view diff on Wikidata ↗

FES digital collections entity ID → 376257

"Created claim: FES digital collections entity ID: 376257, #quickstatements; #temporary_batch_1782398664614"
21w ago · RVA2869 · 2026-06-10 view diff on Wikidata ↗

CERL Thesaurus ID → cnp02286956

"Changed labels, descriptions, aliases and claims: Cleanup: remove wikimedia+self_stated_in refs; add mul alias"
23w ago · Epìdosis · 2026-05-31 view diff on Wikidata ↗

Occupation → Catholic priest, diplomat, Catholic bishop

"Removed claim: Occupation: Pope, batch #259233"
23w ago · RVA2869 · 2026-05-29 view diff on Wikidata ↗

Described by source → Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, Small Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, Jewish Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron +1

"Changed the item: QuickStatements 3.0 batch #33786: Remove redundant described by source (P1343) - ID P14483 is present."
23w ago · XeNivalys · 2026-05-27 view diff on Wikidata ↗

Wikitólica ID → p/papa-pablo-iv

"Created claim: Wikitólica ID: p/papa-pablo-iv, #quickstatements; #temporary_batch_1779856745649"
25w ago · Epìdosis · 2026-05-15 view diff on Wikidata ↗

Occupation → Catholic priest, diplomat, Catholic bishop

"Changed the item: QuickStatements 3.0 batch #31699: import P21 and P106 from GND (1)"
26w ago · Epìdosis · 2026-05-11 view diff on Wikidata ↗

CERL Thesaurus ID → cnp02286956

"Changed the item: QuickStatements 3.0 batch #30842: match CERL IDs on the basis of GND (1)"

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