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Pope Julius II (5 December 1443 – 21 February 1513), born Giuliano della Rovere, was the pope and ruler of the Papal States from 1503 until his death. His papacy was dominated by conflict with the Republic of Venice, which had seized papal territory following the death of Julius's predecessor. This escalated into the War of the League of Cambrai. Julius was also a notable patron of arts and infrastructure. He commissioned the rebuilding of St. Peter's Basilica and Michelangelo's painting of the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel.
This oil painting, Portrait of Pope Julius II, was produced in 1511–12 by the Italian painter Raphael. There are several versions, one of which hangs in the Uffizi Gallery in Florence, Italy, and was believed for many years to be the original. However, research in 1970 indicated that a version owned by the National Gallery in London is likely the original.Painting: Raphael