Religion · 1835–1914
Born: 2 June 1835 · Died: 20 August 1914 · Age at death: 79
Pius X died aged 79. He was born on 2 June 1835 and died on 20 August 1914.
Italian pope who reformed church music and liturgy, opposed modernism and was declared a saint in 1954
Did you know?He was the first pope to be canonised as a saint in over three hundred years when he was elevated in the 1950s.
Pius X was a pope who never forgot his humble roots. The son of a village postman in northern Italy, he spent many years as a parish priest. He rose to become Bishop of Mantua and Patriarch of Venice. Elected pope in 1903, he took a firm line against "modernism" in theology. He encouraged children to receive Communion from the age of reason, around seven. He reformed church music and began a new code of canon law. He was canonised in 1954, the first pope made a saint in over 200 years.
Pope Pius X (Italian: Pio X; born Giuseppe Melchiorre Sarto; 2 June 1835 – 20 August 1914) was head of the Catholic Church from 4 August 1903 until his death in August 1914. He opposed modernist interpretations of Catholic doctrine, and promoted liturgical reforms and Thomist scholastic theology.
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Profile
Head of the Catholic Church, 1835–1914
Giuseppe Sarto was born in Riese on 2 June 1835.
He was Patriarch of Venice.
He was elected pope in 1903.
He was canonised in 1954.
Career highlights
Did you know?He was the first pope canonised since Pius V in 1712.
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