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Saint Peter’s Cathedral Starting from 1546 Michelangelo began to work more and more as an architect, being the chief architect of the New St. Peter's. He reinstated the previous design, commissioning a now lost model and began planning the cupola. On 10 November 1549 Paul III died, being succeeded in February 1550 by Julius III. In 1554 he redesigned the Church of the Company of Jesus (the Jesuits), a project which had originally been commissioned personally by the founder of the Company, St Ignatius of Loyola from the Florentine Nanni di Baccio Biggio. The project encountered several problems, notably with neighbouring buildings, and was never carried out. On 23 March 1555 Julius II died of gout. In 1556 a new pope was elected , Paul IV. There were fears fresh troops, this time Spanish, might sack Rome also. Taking this into consideration, Michelangelo fled, arriving at Spoleto. As it became clear nothing would occur, he returned to Rome after little more than a month. On 8 May 1557 Cosimo I, the Ruler of Florence, wrote to Michelangelo, pressing him to return to the Duchy, one of many pleas that the sculpture abandon Rome and return home. Eventually Cosimo I went to Rome in 1560 to meet the sculptor. |