Alfonso Ceccarelli (1532-1583) was an Italian physician and genealogist. He authored many false genealogical studies. He was sued, arrested, tortured and beheaded for forging wills and other legal documents.
Early life
Alfonso Ceccarelli was born in 1532 in
Città di Castello
Città di Castello (); "Castle Town") is a city and ''comune'' in the province of Perugia, in the northern part of Umbria. It is situated on a slope of the Apennines, on the flood plain along the upper part of the river Tiber. The city is north of ...
, Italy.
His father was a
notary
A notary is a person authorised to perform acts in legal affairs, in particular witnessing signatures on documents. The form that the notarial profession takes varies with local legal systems.
A notary, while a legal professional, is disti ...
.
[
]
Career
Ceccarelli was a physician and genealogist.[ He started practising medicine in 1569.][ Meanwhile, he specialized in writing local histories, highlighting the prominence of whichever family hired him to do so.][ For example, when he was hired by the Podiani family, he wrote a study about prominent members of this family in the town of ]Rieti
Rieti (; lat, Reate, Sabino: ) is a town and ''comune'' in Lazio, central Italy, with a population of 47,700. It is the administrative seat of the province of Rieti and see of the diocese of Rieti, as well as the modern capital of the Sabina re ...
.[
Ceccarelli authored a false version of ''Chronicae Gualdenses'', a lost medieval text about ]Umbria
it, Umbro (man) it, Umbra (woman)
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, demographics_type1 =
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, ...
, and used it as a source for his own studies.[
Ceccarelli was the author of ''De familiis illustribus Italiæ ac de earum origine'' under the pseudonym of Fanusio Campano.]House of Grimaldi
The House of Grimaldi ( , also , , ) is the current reigning house of the Principality of Monaco. The house was founded in 1160 by Grimaldo Canella in Genoa and became the ruling house of Monaco when Francesco Grimaldi captured Monaco in 1297 ...
descended from Normandy
Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...
, which was false.[
Ceccarelli forged wills and other legal documents.][ He was sued, arrested and tortured.][
]
Death and legacy
Ceccarelli was beheaded for his crimes on July 9, 1583, in Rome
, established_title = Founded
, established_date = 753 BC
, founder = King Romulus (legendary)
, image_map = Map of comune of Rome (metropolitan city of Capital Rome, region Lazio, Italy).svg
, map_caption ...
, Italy.[
In the seventeenth century, Ceccarelli's research was used as a source by Charles de Venasque-Ferriol, a Monegasque courtier who authored ''Genealogica et Historica Grimaldœ Gentis arbor'' in 1647 with the aim of linking the House of Grimaldi to the French royal family.][
]
References
External links
*
1532 births
1583 deaths
People from Città di Castello
Italian genealogists
Executed Italian people
{{Italy-med-bio-stub