Can some of the major events of an era be traced through the life of a single Jesuit? This question animates Antonio Possevino’s biographer.

If the Jesuits were correctly described as for their “essential mobility” – as Luce Giard once put it –, epitomizes the politically mobile Jesuit, an envoyé whom the historian of the sixteenth century encounters at decisive moments and in crucial places across Europe. His life stretches from the still-debated origins of his family—between Mantua, his birthplace, and perhaps Piedmont—to his final days in the Jesuit college of Ferrara. Yet, more than a personal trajectory, Possevino’s life unfolds as a sequence of pivotal scenes, each marking not only significant moments in an individual’s journey but also critical turning points in the political and religious history of Christianity.

From Northern Italy to Lyon and Paris, from Germany and Sweden to Poland and Lithuania, from Transylvania to Bohemia, from Rome to northern Italy, Possevino was ever-present—whether in the wars of religion, the battle between Catholic and Protestant churches, or the intricate diplomacy of imperial succession, peacemaking, noble marriages, and the clash between Rome and Venice. Wherever the tides of history surged, Possevino stood at the center. His political missions were accompanied—and perhaps sustained—by a relentless literary production, a body of work that historians today recognize as his most potent weapon in the conflicts of his time.

The breathless succession of episodes in Possevino’s life might daunt even the most determined historiographer seeking to capture the depth of this indefatigable Jesuit’s impact. Yet, it did not deter Fr. John Patrick Donnelly, S.J., who pioneered extensive research and laid the foundation with groundbreaking studies on Possevino.

Building upon Fr. Donnelly’s masterful contributions, this chronological, collectively authored biography is conceived as a sequence of periods and scenes, each portraying Possevino at a defining moment of his journey. Through this collaborative effort, we hope to render his life in all its vibrant complexity, presenting not only an account but a full and dynamic portrait of a figure who shaped the course of early modern history.