Antonio Leonardis (1756-1830) was a typical product of the ecclesiastical reforms of Maria Theresia and Emperor Joseph II. Born in a low-middle class family, his career led him to be appointed bishop of Trieste in 1820. Bishop Inzaghi's secretary, then rector of a parish for thirty years, he spanns the period of the Napoleonic wars, then the years of "good" Francis I, convinced and precise executor of the imperial directives in ecclesiastical matters. The years of his episcopate are those of the take-off of the port of Trieste, a period about which much remains to be studied.
