money saved by Innocent XI was spent on enriching the Ottoboni family and to a cardinal he said: "I have no time to lose; for me the day is almost done!" Known to be an upright man who was generous and possessed a peaceful disposition, he held a profound compassion and attentiveness for the poor which was often squandered and abused by his nepotistic relatives whom he generously heaped riches that they, on their own behalf and to the discredit of his papacy, squandered for their own personal ends. Alexander VIII was almost an octogenarian when elected to the papacy, which lasted only sixteen months, during which time little of importance was done. Louis XIV, whose political situation was now critical, profited by the peaceful dispositions of the new pope, restored Avignon to him, and renounced the long-abused right of asylum for the French Embassy. Reforms On 29 November 1690, the pontiff established that no more than ten thousand ducats could be spent on the funeral of a pope. That same year, he also forbade that any furnishings of the conclave could not be stripped to be sold for profit. On 30 March 1690, the pope established and confirmed the rights of the neophytes in Southeast Asia in the papal brief Animarum salutes. Reversing the economic policies of his immediate predecessor, Alexander VIII attempted to reduce the tax burden on the populace as a means of providing financial assistance to the more disadvantaged peoples. However, this backfired due to the pope's focus on large-scale charity initiatives and his focus on the war against the Ottoman Empire, which quickly depleted papal funds which Innocent XI had been very careful to grow and safeguard. Financial controversies Charities on a large scale and unbounded nepotism exhausted the papal treasury, reversing the policies of his predecessor. Among the various nominations, his 22-year-old grandnephew Pietro was made cardinal and vice-chancellor of the Church, nephew Marco, son of his brother Agostino, was made inspector of naval fortifications and Duke of Fiano, and nephew Antonio, another of Agostino's children, was made general of the church. His nephew Giovanni Rubin was made secretary of state and bishop of Vicenza. Out of compassion for the poor of the impoverished Papal States, he sought to help them by reducing taxes. But this same generous nature led him to bestow on his relations the riches they were eager to accumulate; on