mistress of the vatican.pdf - End Time Deception

Mistress of the Vatican
The funeral procession was led by cavalry officers in full armor, followed
by two cannon, each pulled by three horses. The pope’s grooms
and other servants followed carrying torches. Directly in front of the
hearse marched Camillo, Prince Ludovisi, and Prince Giustiniani. Next
came the open hearse surrounded by a choir chanting psalms. The
Swiss Guard, fully armed, marched just behind the hearse, followed by
light infantry and three more pieces of artillery.
As the torchlight procession wound its mournful way toward the
basilica, thunder rang out and it began to spit rain. Several minutes
later, lightning ripped across the sky and a deluge drenched the mourners.
They bolted for cover, every man for himself, leaving the dead pope
in the middle of the street. When the rain subsided, the procession
clumsily re-formed and brought the soaking-wet body to Saint Peter’s,
where it was placed on the high altar, under Gian Lorenzo Bernini’s
great baldachino, and over the tomb of the saint.
The morning of January 8 the pope’s body was exposed for the traditional
three-day viewing. On January 10 the funeral was held. Olimpia
is not mentioned in any reports of the funeral, and it seems that she
stayed home, locked up with her gold, fearful of being torn to bits by the
mob. Gregorio Leti assured his readers that she remained inside during
the entire vacant See. “One certainly feared that during the vacant See
the furor of the people would be carried to pillage her palace,” he explained,
“and to insult her person so that she did not appear in public.”
4
At the funeral the cardinals appeared in their traditional fuchsiacolored
mourning garb, with no lace rochets over their gowns. But
Cardinal Astalli, who had jumped onto his horse the moment he heard
of the pope’s death, appeared wearing bright red robes loaded with
lace. He had not forgiven Innocent for having disgraced and exiled
him. During the funeral Mass, he refused to kneel, cross himself, or
pray.
As shocking as Cardinal Astalli’s behavior was, there was a much
greater problem at hand. The cardinals did not know what to do with
the body after the funeral. It was customary for a pope’s family—who
always milked the Vatican treasury dry—to at least pay for his funeral.
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