COSIMO CORSI. — Cardinal, b. in Florence on 10 June 1798, d. at Agnano on 7 Oct. 1870. Page to Elisa Bonaparte, he later entered the clergy; appointed auditor of the Rota, he became its dean, until in 1842 he was created cardinal by Gregory XVI and bishop of Jesi (1845), from which see he was chosen in 1853 as archbishop of Pisa.
During the disturbances of April 1859 he maintained a resolute stance and led the resistance of the Tuscan episcopate against the provisional government. In 1860, on the occasion of Victor Emmanuel II’s visit to Pisa, he ordered the doors of the Duomo to be closed, and for this act of protest he was taken to Turin and kept under surveillance for two months in a religious institution. A convinced and ardent defender of ecclesiastical rights, he distinguished himself for his kind character and Christian piety. He died almost immediately after taking part in the First Vatican Council of 1870.