Frangipani family
Encyclopedia
The Frangipani or Frangipane ("Breadbreakers", from Latin frangere panem) is a princely family with roots in Ancient Rome. The family was powerful as a Roma
n patrician clan in the Middle Ages
. The family was typically Guelff in sympathy and thus often bravely supported the papacy. During the twelfth century, the Frangipani were the chief adversaries of the Pierleoni family
in the baronial struggles in Rome.
The Frangipani first appear in a document of 1014. Their name is said to come from the Eucharist liturgy of the Mass when Host is consecrated as Christ broke the bread. Another legend claims that one of the early Frangipani ancestors distributed bread to the poor in Rome during a great famine. For this, the arms of the family was gules, two lions rampant opposed holding a loaf of bread in their paws. The first great member of their family known to us was one Leo.
In the early thirteenth century the Colosseum
was fortified by the Frangipani and the Annibaldi who used it as a fortress. One of the branch
es of the family gave rise to the Croatia
n family of the Frankopan
, of which several became Bans or Vice Roys. Another branch lived in Sicilia where Eraclea Frangipane married Luca Polara. Mario Frangipani (1506–1569) served as a conservatore of Rome several times, as well as a chancellor. Fabio Mirto Frangipani was papal nuncio in France (1568–72 and 1586–87), and Ottavio Mirto Frangipani was nuncio in Flanders (1596–1606). The Frangipani Chapel, frescoed by Taddeo Zuccari
, is in the church of San Marcello al Corso
. The family remained important and influential during several centuries and survives in the Frankopan family in England and France as the Princes Frankopan dei Frangipani, Counts Doimi de Lupis.
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...
n patrician clan in the Middle Ages
Middle Ages
The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...
. The family was typically Guelff in sympathy and thus often bravely supported the papacy. During the twelfth century, the Frangipani were the chief adversaries of the Pierleoni family
Pierleoni family
The family of the Pierleoni, meaning "sons of Peter Leo", was a great Roman patrician clan of the Middle Ages, headquartered in a tower house in the Jewish quarter, Trastevere. The heads of the family often bore the title consul Romanorum, or "Consul of the Romans," in the early days.The family's...
in the baronial struggles in Rome.
The Frangipani first appear in a document of 1014. Their name is said to come from the Eucharist liturgy of the Mass when Host is consecrated as Christ broke the bread. Another legend claims that one of the early Frangipani ancestors distributed bread to the poor in Rome during a great famine. For this, the arms of the family was gules, two lions rampant opposed holding a loaf of bread in their paws. The first great member of their family known to us was one Leo.
In the early thirteenth century the Colosseum
Colosseum
The Colosseum, or the Coliseum, originally the Flavian Amphitheatre , is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, Italy, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire...
was fortified by the Frangipani and the Annibaldi who used it as a fortress. One of the branch
Branch
A branch or tree branch is a woody structural member connected to but not part of the central trunk of a tree...
es of the family gave rise to the Croatia
Croatia
Croatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
n family of the Frankopan
Frankopan
The Frankopans are a Croatian noble family. Also called Frankapan, Frangepán in Hungarian, and Frangipani in Italian.The Frankopan family is the leading princely Croatian aristocratic family which dates back to the 12th Century and even earlier to Roman times...
, of which several became Bans or Vice Roys. Another branch lived in Sicilia where Eraclea Frangipane married Luca Polara. Mario Frangipani (1506–1569) served as a conservatore of Rome several times, as well as a chancellor. Fabio Mirto Frangipani was papal nuncio in France (1568–72 and 1586–87), and Ottavio Mirto Frangipani was nuncio in Flanders (1596–1606). The Frangipani Chapel, frescoed by Taddeo Zuccari
Taddeo Zuccari
Taddeo Zuccari was an Italian painter, one of the most popular members of the Roman mannerist school.-Biography:...
, is in the church of San Marcello al Corso
San Marcello al Corso
San Marcello al Corso is a church in Rome, Italy, devoted to Pope Marcellus I. It is located in via del Corso, the ancient via Lata, connecting Piazza Venezia to Piazza del Popolo....
. The family remained important and influential during several centuries and survives in the Frankopan family in England and France as the Princes Frankopan dei Frangipani, Counts Doimi de Lupis.
Sources
- Gregorovius, FerdinandFerdinand GregoroviusFerdinand Gregorovius was a German historian who specialized in the medieval history of Rome. He is best known for Wanderjahre in Italien, his account of the walks he took through Italy in the 1850s, and the monumental Die Geschichte der Stadt Rom im Mittelalter , a classic for Medieval and early...
. History of the City of Rome in the Middle Ages. Vol. VIII, (1003–1199).