Alessandro Farnese was elected Pope in 1534, when he adopted the name of Paul III.
Due to the <em>Protestan Reformation, </em>an ideological movement started by Martin Luther, his pontificate was marked for uncertainties. Martin Luther criticized the way that indulgence was delivered by both the Pope and the Church (He believed that the faith in Jesus and not the good acts was the way for getting forgiveness and that the Pope had no authority over purgatory), the position of saints (whose merits weren't supported by the Bible).
He made use of nepotism to make his family wealthier and more socially relevant, naming his relatives as Dukes or Cardinals despite their lack of qualifications.
Nicolaus Copernicus dedicated his book "<em>De revolutionibus orbium coelestium" </em>(On the Revolutions of the heavenly spheres) to Pope Paul III. In this book, Copernicus offered a new model of the Universe where the centre of the Universe is the sun and the Earth is only a planet that, as the rest of the known planets orbits around the sun.
He's well known for his taste on art, reason from which he is considered to be a patron of arts. The most remarkable artwork under his pontificate is "<u><em>The Last Judgement" </em></u> by Michelangelo.
Pope Paul III is also known for being who excommunicated Henry VIII.
