St. Lawrence of Brindisi was born Caesare de Rossi on July 22nd, 1559, in Brandisi, Kingdom of Naples. His Italian name, Caesare, was given to him by his parents William and Elizabeth Russo. He was educated by the Conventual Franciscans there and later by his uncle at St. Mark's in Venice after the early death of his parents.

At the age of 16, he took the name Lawrence and joined the Capuchins in Verona. At the University of Padua, he studied higher education in theology, philosophy, the bible, Greek, Hebrew, and several other languages. He was ordained a priest at the age of 23.

He started preaching in Northern Italy, where he had remarkable success. In 1596, he was elected definitor general of his Order in Rome, a position he would hold five times. He was tasked with working with Jews to convert them, and he and Blessed Benedict of Urbino were sent to Germany to battle Lutheranism. In what would eventually become the provinces of Bohemia, Austria, and Styria, they established friaries in Prague, Vienna, and Gorizia.

When the Turks threatened to take over all of Hungary, Lawrence assisted Emperor Rudolf II in organizing an army of German emperors to battle them. He served as the army's chaplain and was one of the leaders at the Battle of Szekesfehervar in 1601; many people credit him with the victory that followed.

He was chosen as the Capuchins' Vicar General in 1602, but he declined to run for office again in 1605. In order to convince Philip III to join the Catholic League, the emperor dispatched him to Spain. While there, he established a Capuchin house in Madrid. He then worked as a mediator in various royal disputes after being appointed the papal nuncio to Maximillian of Bavaria's court, and in 1618, he retired from worldly responsibilities to the friary in Caserta.

The rulers of Naples requested his recall so that he may travel to Spain and appeal to King Philip on their behalf against the Duke of Osuna, the Spanish minister to Naples, in an effort to prevent a revolt. His exhaustion from the journey in the blazing summer heat claimed his life a few days after he met with the King in Lisbon on July 22, 1619.

The nine volumes of Lawrence's sermons comprise most of his publications, though he also authored a commentary on Genesis and various treatises in opposition to Luther. In 1881, he was canonized, and in 1959, Pope John XXIII named him a Doctor of the Church. He is the patron saint of Brindisi, and his feast day is July 21.

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