Editing Pope Sixtus IV (section)

==Early life==
Francesco was a member of the [[Della Rovere]] family, a son of {{Ill|Leonardo Beltramo di Savona della Rovere|it|Leonardo Beltramo di Savona della Rovere}} and his first wife Luchina Monteleoni. He was born in [[Celle Ligure]], a town near [[Savona]].<ref name=Miranda>{{cite web| url = http://www2.fiu.edu/~mirandas/bios1467.htm| title = Miranda, Salvador. ''Cardinals of the Holy Roman Church''| access-date = 29 July 2014| archive-date = 13 January 2018| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180113130623/http://www2.fiu.edu/~mirandas/bios1467.htm| url-status = dead}}</ref>

As a young man, Della Rovere joined the [[Franciscans|Franciscan Order]], an unlikely choice for a political career, and his intellectual qualities were revealed while he was studying [[philosophy]] and [[theology]] at the [[University of Pavia]]. He went on to lecture at Padua and many other Italian universities.<ref name=Butler>{{cite web| url = http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/14032b.htm| title = Butler, Richard Urban. "Pope Sixtus IV." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 14. New York: Robert Appleton Co., 1912}}</ref>

In 1464, Della Rovere was elected [[Minister General of the Franciscan order]] at the age of 50. In 1467, he was appointed [[Cardinal (Catholicism)|Cardinal]] by [[Pope Paul&nbsp;II]] with the [[titular church]] being the [[Basilica of San Pietro in Vincoli]].

Before his papal election, Cardinal della Rovere was renowned for his unworldliness and had written learned treatises, including ''On the Blood of Christ'' and ''On the Power of God''.<ref>Martines, ''April Blood'', p. 159</ref>

His reputation for piety was one of the deciding factors that prompted the [[College of Cardinals]] to elect him Pope upon the unexpected death of Paul II at the age of fifty-four.<ref>Richard P. McBrien, ''Lives of the Popes'', New York: Harpers SanFrancisco, 1997, pp. 264–265.</ref>