Ettore Fieramosca (born Ferramosca) ( Capua, 1476 – Valladolid, 20 January 1515) was an Italian

condottiero ''Condottieri'' (; singular ''condottiero'' or ''condottiere'') were Italian captains in command of mercenary companies during the Middle Ages and of multinational armies during the early modern period. They notably served popes and other Europe ...

and nobleman during the Italian Wars. His father was Rainaldo, baron of Rocca d'Evandro, and it is thought that his mother was a noble woman from the Gaetani family. The family inherited and occupied the Castle of Mignano.

Biography

Ettore served as a page to

Ferdinand I of Naples Ferdinando Trastámara d'Aragona, of the Naples branch, universally known as Ferrante and also called by his contemporaries Don Ferrando and Don Ferrante (2 June 1424, in Valencia – 25 January 1494, in Kingdom of Naples, Naples), was the only so ...

and later became a ''condottiero'' for Ferdinand II. As such he fought against

Charles VIII of France Charles VIII, called the Affable (french: l'Affable; 30 June 1470 – 7 April 1498), was King of France from 1483 to his death in 1498. He succeeded his father Louis XI at the age of 13.Paul Murray Kendall, ''Louis XI: The Universal Spider'' (Ne ...

in 1493, during the French invasion of Italy. He continued to serve Frederick IV against the kings of France and Spain, but after Frederick's defeat in 1501, he turned to serve Prospero Colonna against France for Spain in the

Battle of Cerignola The Battle of Cerignola was fought on 28 April 1503 between Spanish and French armies outside the town of Cerignola, Apulia, Kingdom of Naples (now in modern-day Italy), approximately west of Bari. The Spanish force under the command of Gonz ...

. In 1503 he led thirteen Italian knights to victory over thirteen French in the Challenge of Barletta (''Disfida di Barletta''). Later he served Ferdinand the Catholic, king of Spain, who made him count of Miglionico. Because he was stripped of some of his fief, he fought once more against Spain and France under the Republic of Venice and Fabrizio Colonna. In 1512 he fought at the Battle of Ravenna. Reconciled with Ferdinand, he died in Spain in 1515.

Legacy

During the '' Risorgimento'' and the rise of Fascism, he was presented as a national hero and became the subject of national celebrations. Massimo D'Azeglio wrote an 1833 novel ''

Ettore Fieramosca Ettore Fieramosca (born Ferramosca) (Capua, 1476 – Valladolid, 20 January 1515) was an Italian condottiero and nobleman during the Italian Wars. His father was Rainaldo, baron of Rocca d'Evandro, and it is thought that his mother was a noble wo ...

'', in an effort to boost Italian patriotism. In 1909 and again in 1915 he was the main subject of two Italian silent films, both named ''Ettore Fieramosca''. In 1938, during the Fascist era,

Alessandro Blasetti Alessandro Blasetti (3 July 1900 – 1 February 1987) was an Italian film director and screenwriter who influenced Italian neorealism with the film ''Quattro passi fra le nuvole''. Blasetti was one of the leading figures in Italian cinema during ...

directed a sound film ''

''. A more comical depiction of Ettore was performed by Bud Spencer in the 1976 film ''Il Soldato di Ventura''. Two warships, the protected cruiser and the

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

, were named after him.

Genealogy

Ettore was born with the surname Ferramosca, inherited through his paternal line from his great-grandfather Russo Ferramosca, born before 1405. As the result of his defeat of the French at the Challenge of Barletta, the people referred to ("renamed") him as Fieramosca (fiera = proud) a term which became associated with him as his surname. His family tree is shown on the right. Between the early 15th century until the Council of Trent (1545-1563), Italians added surnames to record baptisms, marriages and deaths and to monitor marriages between blood relatives. Most surnames were adopted from a person's trade, profession, place of birth or that of a famous person. Some decided to take on the name of their hero, as "Ferramosca" or "Fieramosca". These families grew in the provinces of Potenza, Lecce, Pescara and Veneto, with Fieramosca predominant in Sicily.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Fieramosca, Ettore 1515 deaths 1476 births 15th-century Neapolitan people 15th-century condottieri 16th-century condottieri