Caetani
Encyclopedia
Caetani, or Gaetani, is the name of an Italian noble family princely family which played a great part in the history of Pisa and of Rome, principally via their close links to the papacy.
, from which the family gets its name. His successor was Constantine, who took the name Cagetanus and ruled in the latter half of the 10th century. In the late eleventh century, a descendant of his, Crescentius, was duke. This Crescentius was the father of two illustrious people: his successor, Marinus
, and his son John (called Gaetanus or Coniulo) from Pisa, who was Pope Gelasius II
. Marinus was succeeded by his son Crescentius, who defended his uncle the pope resolutely from imperialist attacks.
Nevertheless, the family had no more great importance in Rome until the election of Benedetto Caetani to the papacy as Pope Boniface VIII
in 1294, when they at once became the most notable in the city. The pope conferred on them the fiefs of Sermoneta
, Bassiano
, Ninfa and San Donato
(1297, 300), and the marquisate of Ancona in 1300, while Charles II of Anjou created the popes brother count of Caserta.
Giordano Loffredo Caetani by his marriage with Giovanna dell'Aquila, heiress of the counts of Fondi and Traetto, in 1297 added the name of Aquila to his own, and his grandson Giacomo acquired the lordships of Piedimonte and Gioia. The Caetani proved brave warriors and formed a bodyguard to protect Boniface VIII from his many foes. During the 14th and 15th centuries their feuds with the Colonna caused frequent disturbances in Rome
and the Campagna
, sometimes amounting to civil war. They also played an important role as Neapolitan nobles: in particular, Onorato I Caetani
was a powerful baron in what is now souther Lazio and one of the main supporters of Antipope
s Clement VII
and Benedict XIII
. In 1500 Pope Alexander VI
, in his attempt to crush the great Roman feudal nobility, confiscated the Caetani fiefs and gave them to his daughter Lucrezia Borgia
; but they afterwards regained them.
, founded by Giacobello Caetani, whose grandson, Guglielmo Caetani, was granted the duchy of Sermoneta by Pope Pius III
in 1503, the marquisate of Cisterna being conferred on the family by Sixtus V in 1585. In 1642, Francesco, the 7th duke of Sermoneta, acquired by marriage the county of Caserta, which was exchanged for the principality of Teano in 1750. The 19th century head of the house, Onorato Caetani, 14th duke of Sermoneta, 4th prince of Teano, duke of San Marco, marquis of Cisterna, etc, was a senator of the kingdom of Italy
, and was minister for foreign affairs for a short time.
The last male member of the family was the noted composer, Don Roffredo Caetani, 17th Duke of Sermoneta and 8th Prince of Teano (1871-1961). His niece Topazia married the composer Igor Markevitch
and was the mother of the conductor Oleg Caetani
, who uses his mother's surname without, however, being a member of the Italian noble family.
, founded by Onorato Gaetani dell'Aquila, count of Fondi, Traetto, Alife and Morcone, lord of Piedimonte and Gioia, in 1454. The additional surname of Aragona was assumed after the marriage of Onorato Gaetani, duke of Traetto (d. 1529), with Lucrezia of Aragon, natural daughter of King Ferdinand I of Naples. The duchy of Laurenzana, in the kingdom of Naples, was acquired by Alfonso Gaetani by his marriage in 1606 with Giulia di Ruggiero, duchess of Laurenzana. The lordship of Piedimonte was raised to a principality in 1715.
The family is currently represented by Don Ferdinando Gaetani Dell'Aquilla D'Aragona, Prince of Piedimonte and Duke of Laurenzana (b. 1924), whose heir is Don Bonifacio Gaetani Dell'Aquilla D'Aragona (b. 1950).
Origins
The founder of the house was Marinus I, Duke of Fondi, son of Docibilis II of GaetaDocibilis II of Gaeta
Docibilis II was the ruler of Gaeta, in one capacity or another, from 906 until his death. He was the son of the hypatus John I, who made him co-ruler in 906 or thereabouts....
, from which the family gets its name. His successor was Constantine, who took the name Cagetanus and ruled in the latter half of the 10th century. In the late eleventh century, a descendant of his, Crescentius, was duke. This Crescentius was the father of two illustrious people: his successor, Marinus
Marinus II, Duke of Fondi
Marinus II was the second dux of Fondi after his father, Marinus I. He is an ancestor of the Caetani....
, and his son John (called Gaetanus or Coniulo) from Pisa, who was Pope Gelasius II
Pope Gelasius II
Pope Gelasius II , born Giovanni Caetani , was pope from January 24, 1118 to January 29, 1119.-Biography:He was born between 1060 and 1064 at Gaeta into the Pisan branch of the Caetani family....
. Marinus was succeeded by his son Crescentius, who defended his uncle the pope resolutely from imperialist attacks.
Nevertheless, the family had no more great importance in Rome until the election of Benedetto Caetani to the papacy as Pope Boniface VIII
Pope Boniface VIII
Pope Boniface VIII , born Benedetto Gaetani, was Pope of the Catholic Church from 1294 to 1303. Today, Boniface VIII is probably best remembered for his feuds with Dante, who placed him in the Eighth circle of Hell in his Divina Commedia, among the Simonists.- Biography :Gaetani was born in 1235 in...
in 1294, when they at once became the most notable in the city. The pope conferred on them the fiefs of Sermoneta
Sermoneta
Sermoneta is a hill town and comune in the province of Latina , central Italy.It is a walled hill town, with a 13th-century Romanesque cathedral called Cathedral of S. Maria Assunta and a massive castle, built by the Caetani family. The Cistercian Valvisciolo Abbey is located nearby...
, Bassiano
Bassiano
Bassiano is a comune in the Province of Latina in the Italian region Lazio, located about 60 km southeast of Rome and about 14 km northeast of Latina. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,664 and an area of 31.6 km².Bassiano borders the following municipalities:...
, Ninfa and San Donato
San Donato
San Donato is the Spanish and Italian form of Saint Donatus. It can refer to:*Saint Donatus of Arezzo *Saint Donatus of Fiesole *Dukedom of San Donato, noble titleIt is also a place-name:*San Donato di Lecce*San Donato di Ninea...
(1297, 300), and the marquisate of Ancona in 1300, while Charles II of Anjou created the popes brother count of Caserta.
Giordano Loffredo Caetani by his marriage with Giovanna dell'Aquila, heiress of the counts of Fondi and Traetto, in 1297 added the name of Aquila to his own, and his grandson Giacomo acquired the lordships of Piedimonte and Gioia. The Caetani proved brave warriors and formed a bodyguard to protect Boniface VIII from his many foes. During the 14th and 15th centuries their feuds with the Colonna caused frequent disturbances in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
and the Campagna
Campagna
Campagna is a small town and comune of the province of Salerno, in the Campania region of Southern Italy.-History:The town, located in a mountainous district, gradually lost importance in the 20th century...
, sometimes amounting to civil war. They also played an important role as Neapolitan nobles: in particular, Onorato I Caetani
Onorato I Caetani
Onorato I Caetani was an Italian nobleman, who was the count of Fondi from 1348 and the Great Conestable of the Kingdom of Naples also from 1348...
was a powerful baron in what is now souther Lazio and one of the main supporters of Antipope
Antipope
An antipope is a person who opposes a legitimately elected or sitting Pope and makes a significantly accepted competing claim to be the Pope, the Bishop of Rome and leader of the Roman Catholic Church. At times between the 3rd and mid-15th century, antipopes were typically those supported by a...
s Clement VII
Antipope Clement VII
Robert of Geneva was elected to the papacy as Pope Clement VII by the French cardinals who opposed Urban VI, and was the first Avignon antipope of the Western Schism.-Biography:...
and Benedict XIII
Antipope Benedict XIII
Benedict XIII, born Pedro Martínez de Luna y Pérez de Gotor , known as in Spanish, was an Aragonese nobleman, who is officially considered by the Catholic Church to be an antipope....
. In 1500 Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI , born Roderic Llançol i Borja was Pope from 1492 until his death on 18 August 1503. He is one of the most controversial of the Renaissance popes, and his Italianized surname—Borgia—became a byword for the debased standards of the Papacy of that era, most notoriously the Banquet...
, in his attempt to crush the great Roman feudal nobility, confiscated the Caetani fiefs and gave them to his daughter Lucrezia Borgia
Lucrezia Borgia
Lucrezia Borgia [luˈkrɛtsia ˈbɔrʤa] was the illegitimate daughter of Rodrigo Borgia, the powerful Renaissance Valencian who later became Pope Alexander VI, and Vannozza dei Cattanei. Her brothers included Cesare Borgia, Giovanni Borgia, and Gioffre Borgia...
; but they afterwards regained them.
Lines
Until this century, there were two lines of the Caetani family - Caetani and Gaetani Dell'Aquila d'Aragona. The Caetani family has since died out:Caetani
Caetani, princes of Teano and dukes of SermonetaSermoneta
Sermoneta is a hill town and comune in the province of Latina , central Italy.It is a walled hill town, with a 13th-century Romanesque cathedral called Cathedral of S. Maria Assunta and a massive castle, built by the Caetani family. The Cistercian Valvisciolo Abbey is located nearby...
, founded by Giacobello Caetani, whose grandson, Guglielmo Caetani, was granted the duchy of Sermoneta by Pope Pius III
Pope Pius III
Pope Pius III , born Francesco Todeschini Piccolomini, was Pope from September 22 to October 18, 1503.-Career:...
in 1503, the marquisate of Cisterna being conferred on the family by Sixtus V in 1585. In 1642, Francesco, the 7th duke of Sermoneta, acquired by marriage the county of Caserta, which was exchanged for the principality of Teano in 1750. The 19th century head of the house, Onorato Caetani, 14th duke of Sermoneta, 4th prince of Teano, duke of San Marco, marquis of Cisterna, etc, was a senator of the kingdom of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, and was minister for foreign affairs for a short time.
The last male member of the family was the noted composer, Don Roffredo Caetani, 17th Duke of Sermoneta and 8th Prince of Teano (1871-1961). His niece Topazia married the composer Igor Markevitch
Igor Markevitch
Igor Markevitch was a Ukrainian, Italian, and French composer and conductor.- Origin :Igor Markevich was born in Kiev, to an old family of Ukrainian Cossack starshyna ennobled in the 18th century...
and was the mother of the conductor Oleg Caetani
Oleg Caetani
Oleg Caetani is a conductor of Ukrainian and Italian descent. He is the son of Igor Markevitch and Donna Topazia Caetani, Markevitch's second wife, who is descended from a Roman family that included the early 14th-century Pope Boniface VIII. Caetani has chosen to use his mother's family name to...
, who uses his mother's surname without, however, being a member of the Italian noble family.
Gaetani Dell'Aquila d'Aragona
Gaetani dell'Aquila d'Aragona, princes of Piedimonte, and dukes of LaurenzanaLaurenzana
Laurenzana is a town and comune in the province of Potenza, in the region of Basilicata . It rises on a spur between the torre Camastro and the wood surrounding the Serrapotamo valley.-History:...
, founded by Onorato Gaetani dell'Aquila, count of Fondi, Traetto, Alife and Morcone, lord of Piedimonte and Gioia, in 1454. The additional surname of Aragona was assumed after the marriage of Onorato Gaetani, duke of Traetto (d. 1529), with Lucrezia of Aragon, natural daughter of King Ferdinand I of Naples. The duchy of Laurenzana, in the kingdom of Naples, was acquired by Alfonso Gaetani by his marriage in 1606 with Giulia di Ruggiero, duchess of Laurenzana. The lordship of Piedimonte was raised to a principality in 1715.
The family is currently represented by Don Ferdinando Gaetani Dell'Aquilla D'Aragona, Prince of Piedimonte and Duke of Laurenzana (b. 1924), whose heir is Don Bonifacio Gaetani Dell'Aquilla D'Aragona (b. 1950).
Sources
- Original 1922 Almanach de Gotha (edited by Justice Perthes) entry for the Caetani family, link to the original universally-recognised genealogical reference document, with details of family honours