In History of the Popes During the Last Four Centuries, Volume 1, renowned historian Leopold von Ranke offers a sweeping narrative of the 16th-century papacy, meticulously based on primary sources. Explore the tumultuous reigns of popes like Clement VII, whose French alliances led to the devastating sack of Rome, and Paul III, who was ultimately betrayed by his own grandsons. Witness the fierce inquisitor Gian Pietro Carafa, who became Pope Paul IV and, driven by his animosity toward Spain, sought alliances with Protestants and even the Turks. Ranke, who famously coined the term Counter-Reformation, intricately details the life of Ignatius Loyola and the Jesuit efforts to reclaim Protestant Europe for the Catholic Church. (Summary by Pamela Nagami, M.D.)