Folco Scotti
The surname "Scotti" suggests that his origins are Scottish, although at that time it was the inhabitants of Ireland and not Scotland who were called that, a land evangelized by St. Patrick in the fifth century. From here missionaries, merchants and families went down to Europe reaching Italy. It is therefore likely that the family surname derives from this ancestry.
Around the age of twenty he joined the canons of St. Euphemia and, given his marked intelligence, he was sent to Paris to complete his studies. At the age of 30 (in 1194) he was prior of St. Euphemia in Piacenza and later archpriest of the Cathedral (around 1208).
Bishop of Piacenza and Pavia
On the death of the Bishop of Piacenza, Grimerio, which took place in 1210, Folco was elected successor bishop. Six years pass and Pavia, left without a Bishop, asks that Folco be the one to succeed that Chair.
The two cities, Piacenza and Pavia, were divided between them by strong hostilities, but Folco will be the great peacemaker between the two populations, first uniting the citizens within the individual cities, and then helping them to meet the others. A result obtained thanks to the witness and pastoral work of him who saw him committed to the service of the poor, establishing canteens for the needy, free schools, and even monasteries.