Stefano Colonna
Encyclopedia
Stefano Sciarr-illo byname of Colonna was the name of several members of the Italian family of Colonna
. The most important include:
Colonna family
The Colonna family is an Italian noble family; it was powerful in medieval and Renaissance Rome, supplying one Pope and many other Church and political leaders...
. The most important include:
- Stefano Colonna the Elder (1265 - c. 1348) was son of Giovanni ColonnaGiovanni ColonnaGiovanni Colonna is a contemporary Italian scholar of ancient Italy and, in particular, the Etruscan civilization.Colonna is a professor at the Sapienza University of Rome where he has taught since 1980. He took his first degree at Rome in 1957, studying under Massimo Pallottino...
and one of the most important political figures in Rome in the first half of the 14th century. He was heir of the PapalPapal StatesThe Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
fief of PalestrinaPalestrinaPalestrina is an ancient city and comune with a population of about 18,000, in Lazio, c. 35 km east of Rome...
. In 1290 he was named count of RomagnaRomagnaRomagna is an Italian historical region that approximately corresponds to the south-eastern portion of present-day Emilia-Romagna. Traditionally, it is limited by the Apennines to the south-west, the Adriatic to the east, and the rivers Reno and Sillaro to the north and west...
, and he was several times Senator of Rome and ImperialHoly Roman EmpireThe Holy Roman Empire was a realm that existed from 962 to 1806 in Central Europe.It was ruled by the Holy Roman Emperor. Its character changed during the Middle Ages and the Early Modern period, when the power of the emperor gradually weakened in favour of the princes...
vicar in ItalyItalyItaly , 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...
. A staunch Ghibelline, he struggled for large part of his life against the Guelph Orsini family. He was a protector of PetrarchPetrarchFrancesco Petrarca , known in English as Petrarch, was an Italian scholar, poet and one of the earliest humanists. Petrarch is often called the "Father of Humanism"...
, who dedicated two sonnets and other works to him. He was also a fierce opponent of Cola di RienzoCola di RienzoCola di Rienzo was an Italian medieval politician and popular leader, tribune of the Roman people in the mid-14th century.-Early career:Cola was born in Rome of humble origins...
, leader of the popular rebellion of Rome in 1347. He was brother to Sciarra ColonnaSciarra ColonnaSciarrillo Colonna, byname of Giacomo Colonna , was a member of the powerful Colonna family, and a strong enemy of Pope Boniface VIII. During the Outrage of Anagni, in September 1303, Sciarra reportedly slapped the pope in the face. He was brother to Stefano Colonna the Elder.The Colonna family was...
. - Stefano Colonna the Younger (died 1347), son of the former, was Senator of Rome in 1306 and 1330. He was killed (together with his sons Giovanni and Camillo) at the battle of Porta San Lorenzo (1347) against the troops of Cola di Rienzo.
- Stefanello (died c. 1368), son of the former, was the first of the Palestrina branch of the family.