Pope Pius XI. In 1906, he reported receiving a blackmail letter threatening to publish compromising letters he was said to have written if the sender was not paid 1,000 lire. He notified the police, and a man was arrested. He succeeded his brother Serafino as Dean of the College of Cardinals in 1915. From this position, in 1923 he said of Mussolini that «for his energy and devotion to the country he was chosen to save the nation and restore her fortune»; these words caused stir in Italy, and were interpreted inside and outside the country as a Vatican approval of the Fascist Regime. He died in Rome on 9 July 1930. Honours 1878: Grand Cordon in the Order of Leopold Notes References External links Biography 1836 births 1930 deaths People from Genazzano Deans of the College of Cardinals 20th-century Italian cardinals Cardinals created by Pope Leo XIII Cardinal-bishops of Ostia Cardinal-bishops of Palestrina Apostolic Nuncios to Brazil Members of the Sacred Congregation of the Council Prefects of the Apostolic Signatura Pontifical Gregorian University alumni Almo Collegio Capranica alumni Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland)