Gesualdo was born in Naples in the later sixteenth century, the son of Michele Gesualdo and Maria Caracciolo. In 1609 he became a
referendary of the
Apostolic Signatura. On 1 July 1613, during the papacy of
Pope Paul V, he was appointed to the
Archdiocese of Bari-Canosa. On 17 June 1617, he was transferred to Prague as
Apostolic Nuncio to the Emperor. On 25 June 1618, he was appointed by Pope Paul V as
Titular Patriarch of Constantinople. On 17 April 1621, he resigned as imperial nuncio. He arrived in Bari on 19 March 1622 and dedicated himself full-time to his duties as Bishop of Bari. He held diocesan synods in 1624 and 1628. He remained Titular Patriarch of Constantinople until his death on 27 January 1638. He died in Bari, where he was buried in the cathedral. ==Episcopal succession==