 Dismayed by his father's prohibition he ran away from home and went to Rome to become a priest.Little is known of his early ecclesiastic career but having served faithfully, he was elevated to cardinal on 16 December 1641 by Pope Urban VIII and was made Cardinal-priest of San Girolamo degli Schiavoni on 10 February 1642.He participated in the Papal conclave of 1644 which elected Pope Innocent X.