Ferdinando Sanseverino
Encyclopedia
Ferdinando Sanseverino, Prince of Salerno
(January 18, 1507 – 1568) was an Italian condottiero.
, he was the son of Roberto Sanseverino
and a noble girl from a Salerno family. Fernando Sanseverino was the last of the Sanseverino Princes of Salerno.
He fought for Emperor Charles V in Germany and France. He took part to Charles' incoronation in Bologna
(1530), and was also present at the conquest of Tunis
in 1535.
He was one of the imperial leaders in the fourth war against Francis I of France
and fought at the battle of Ceresole
(1544). Returning to Naples, he went to short terms with the Spanish viceroy Pedro de Toledo
, due to his opposition to the institution of Holy Inquisition tribunals in the Kingdom of Naples
. He therefore moved to France
at the court of King Henry II
, embracing the Huguenot
creed. His Italian fiefs were given to the Gonzaga
.
Ferdinando Sanseverino died at Avignon
, in France, in 1568.
, but it failed due to the intervention of the Turk fleet.
He was an a passionate supporter of contemporary theatre, and had one built within his palace in Naples.
His refusal to accept the Inquisition
inside his possession in Salerno
created a break between him and the Spanish government in southern Italy. Mainly as a consequence of this, Fernando Sanseverino was forced to exile in France
. He died in Avignon
in 1568.
His legacy in the Principality of Salerno
was to bring to the southern italian city (and the surrounding area) the ideas of the Italian Renaissance
. He brought to Salerno Torquato Tasso
for some years.
Salerno
Salerno is a city and comune in Campania and is the capital of the province of the same name. It is located on the Gulf of Salerno on the Tyrrhenian Sea....
(January 18, 1507 – 1568) was an Italian condottiero.
Biography
Born in NaplesNaples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
, he was the son of Roberto Sanseverino
Roberto Sanseverino
Roberto Sanseverino was an Italian nobleman and admiral of the Kingdom of Naples. He was the first prince of Salerno from 1463, as well as the count of Marsica and Sanseverino, baron of Cilento and lord of Agropoli and Castellabate....
and a noble girl from a Salerno family. Fernando Sanseverino was the last of the Sanseverino Princes of Salerno.
He fought for Emperor Charles V in Germany and France. He took part to Charles' incoronation in Bologna
Bologna
Bologna is the capital city of Emilia-Romagna, in the Po Valley of Northern Italy. The city lies between the Po River and the Apennine Mountains, more specifically, between the Reno River and the Savena River. Bologna is a lively and cosmopolitan Italian college city, with spectacular history,...
(1530), and was also present at the conquest of Tunis
Tunis
Tunis is the capital of both the Tunisian Republic and the Tunis Governorate. It is Tunisia's largest city, with a population of 728,453 as of 2004; the greater metropolitan area holds some 2,412,500 inhabitants....
in 1535.
He was one of the imperial leaders in the fourth war against Francis I of France
Francis I of France
Francis I was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch...
and fought at the battle of Ceresole
Battle of Ceresole
The Battle of Ceresole was an encounter between a French army and the combined forces of Spain and the Holy Roman Empire during the Italian War of 1542–46...
(1544). Returning to Naples, he went to short terms with the Spanish viceroy Pedro de Toledo
Pedro de Toledo
Pedro de Toledo is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. The population in 2004 is 9,880, the density is 14.69/km² and the area is 672.62 km². The elevation is 45 m. The southern part of the municipality is heavily forested and is part of the Serra do Mar mountain range. In the rest...
, due to his opposition to the institution of Holy Inquisition tribunals in the Kingdom of Naples
Kingdom of Naples
The Kingdom of Naples, comprising the southern part of the Italian peninsula, was the remainder of the old Kingdom of Sicily after secession of the island of Sicily as a result of the Sicilian Vespers rebellion of 1282. Known to contemporaries as the Kingdom of Sicily, it is dubbed Kingdom of...
. He therefore moved to France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
at the court of King Henry II
Henry II of France
Henry II was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559.-Early years:Henry was born in the royal Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, near Paris, the son of Francis I and Claude, Duchess of Brittany .His father was captured at the Battle of Pavia in 1525 by his sworn enemy,...
, embracing the Huguenot
Huguenot
The Huguenots were members of the Protestant Reformed Church of France during the 16th and 17th centuries. Since the 17th century, people who formerly would have been called Huguenots have instead simply been called French Protestants, a title suggested by their German co-religionists, the...
creed. His Italian fiefs were given to the Gonzaga
House of Gonzaga
The Gonzaga family ruled Mantua in Northern Italy from 1328 to 1708.-History:In 1433, Gianfrancesco I assumed the title of Marquis of Mantua, and in 1530 Federico II received the title of Duke of Mantua. In 1531, the family acquired the Duchy of Monferrato through marriage...
.
Ferdinando Sanseverino died at Avignon
Avignon
Avignon is a French commune in southeastern France in the départment of the Vaucluse bordered by the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 94,787 inhabitants of the city on 1 January 2010, 12 000 live in the ancient town centre surrounded by its medieval ramparts.Often referred to as the...
, in France, in 1568.
Main accomplishments
He organized a naval attack of French ships against Naples and SalernoSalerno
Salerno is a city and comune in Campania and is the capital of the province of the same name. It is located on the Gulf of Salerno on the Tyrrhenian Sea....
, but it failed due to the intervention of the Turk fleet.
He was an a passionate supporter of contemporary theatre, and had one built within his palace in Naples.
His refusal to accept the Inquisition
Inquisition
The Inquisition, Inquisitio Haereticae Pravitatis , was the "fight against heretics" by several institutions within the justice-system of the Roman Catholic Church. It started in the 12th century, with the introduction of torture in the persecution of heresy...
inside his possession in Salerno
Salerno
Salerno is a city and comune in Campania and is the capital of the province of the same name. It is located on the Gulf of Salerno on the Tyrrhenian Sea....
created a break between him and the Spanish government in southern Italy. Mainly as a consequence of this, Fernando Sanseverino was forced to exile in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. He died in Avignon
Avignon
Avignon is a French commune in southeastern France in the départment of the Vaucluse bordered by the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 94,787 inhabitants of the city on 1 January 2010, 12 000 live in the ancient town centre surrounded by its medieval ramparts.Often referred to as the...
in 1568.
His legacy in the Principality of Salerno
Principality of Salerno
The Lombard Principality of Salerno was a South Italian state, centered on the port city of Salerno, formed in 851 out of the Principality of Benevento after a decade-long civil war....
was to bring to the southern italian city (and the surrounding area) the ideas of the Italian Renaissance
Renaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
. He brought to Salerno Torquato Tasso
Torquato Tasso
Torquato Tasso was an Italian poet of the 16th century, best known for his poem La Gerusalemme liberata , in which he depicts a highly imaginative version of the combats between Christians and Muslims at the end of the First Crusade, during the siege of Jerusalem...
for some years.