GIOVANNI BATTISTA LAMBRUSCHINI. — Theologian and bishop, elder brother of Cardinal Luigi, born at Sestri Levante on 28 August 1755, died at Orvieto on 24 November 1827. Appointed professor at the Seminary of Genoa, he became known for his opposition to revolutionary ideas and in 1797 was imprisoned in the fortress of Savona; upon his release, he was forbidden to return to Genoa. When political conditions changed again in 1799, he returned and was appointed vicar general.
With the situation reversed once more, he took refuge in Rome, where the Pope first named him titular bishop of Azoto, then in 1805 administrator, and on 14 August 1807 bishop of Orvieto. There he welcomed Angelo Mai and several exiled Jesuits, including Fr Luigi Fortis, who later became Superior General of the Society. He refused to take the oath required by the French government, had to interrupt his pastoral visitation, and went into exile in 1809, first to Turin, then to Bourg-en-Bresse, and finally to Belley. In 1814, having returned to Orvieto, he devoted himself zealously to the moral restoration of his diocese.
Two summaries resulted from his teaching: one of the entire dogmatic theology, *Theologia dogmatica* (Genoa 1788), and the other on *De Gratia* (ibid. 1789). His name, however, is linked to a small devotional work entitled *Guida spirituale per la diocesi di Orvieto* (Rome 1823), which was published several times and translated into German.