Filippo Buonaccorsi, called Callimachus, Callimico, Bonacurarius, Caeculus, Geminianensis (Latin: ''Philippus Callimachus Experiens'', ''Bonacursius''; , 2 May 1437 – 1 November 1496) was an Italian humanist, writer and diplomat active in

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...

Life

Filippo Buonaccorsi was born in

San Gimignano San Gimignano () is a small walled medieval hill town in the province of Siena, Tuscany, north-central Italy. Known as the Town of Fine Towers, San Gimignano is famous for its medieval architecture, unique in the preservation of about a dozen of ...

, in

Tuscany Tuscany ( ; it, Toscana ) is a Regions of Italy, region in central Italy with an area of about and a population of about 3.8 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence (''Firenze''). Tuscany is known for its landscapes, history, art ...

, in north-central Italy. He first appeared in

Venice Venice ( ; it, Venezia ; vec, Venesia or ) is a city in northeastern Italy and the capital of the Veneto Regions of Italy, region. It is built on a group of 118 small islands that are separated by canals and linked by over 400 ...

and Rome, where he was secretary to Bishop

Bartolomeo Roverella Bartolomeo Roverella (1406–1476) (called the Cardinal of Ravenna) was an Italian Roman Catholic bishop and cardinal. Biography Bartolomeo Roverella was born in Rovigo in 1406, the son of Palatine Count Giovanni Roverella ( camerlengo of Leo ...

. He moved to Rome in 1462 and became a member of the Rome Academy of

Julius Pomponius Laetus Julius Pomponius Laetus (1428 – 9 June 1498), also known as Giulio Pomponio Leto, was an Italian humanist. Background Laetus was born at Teggiano, near Salerno, the illegitimate scion of the princely house of Sanseverino, the German historian L ...

. In 1468 he took part in a supposed assassination attempt upon

Pope Paul II Pope Paul II ( la, Paulus II; it, Paolo II; 23 February 1417 – 26 July 1471), born Pietro Barbo, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 30 August 1464 to his death in July 1471. When his maternal uncle Eugene IV ...

and fled to

. In Poland he found work with the Bishop of Lwów, Gregory of Sanok. Pomponius implied he was

homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

and referred to his "perverted habits". The homo-erotic verses (including one addressed to the then Bishop of

Segni Segni (, ) is an Italian town and ''comune'' located in Lazio. The city is situated on a hilltop in the Lepini Mountains, and overlooks the valley of the Sacco River. History Early history According to ancient Roman sources, Lucius Tarquinius ...

, Lucio Fazini) which were found in his papers, while earning him a reputation as a sodomite, seem to have been restricted to his youth. This seems to have reflected the aims of the Rome Academy to revive the concept of homosexual love as the ideal, drawing on the precedents set by antiquity. But Buonaccorsi seems to have been particularly active within the group in writing about sexual infatuation between men. However, once in Poland, he seemed to have turned his attention to heterosexual love instead; perhaps a cautious reaction to the violent events in Rome. Buonaccorsi later became tutor to the sons of Polish King Casimir IV Jagiellon and took part in diplomatic missions. In 1474 he was named royal secretary, in 1476 he served as ambassador to

Constantinople la, Constantinopolis ota, قسطنطينيه , alternate_name = Byzantion (earlier Greek name), Nova Roma ("New Rome"), Miklagard/Miklagarth (Old Norse), Tsargrad ( Slavic), Qustantiniya (Arabic), Basileuousa ("Queen of Cities"), Megalopolis (" ...

, and in 1486 he became the King's representative in Venice. With the accession to the Polish throne of Buonaccorsi's former pupil as John I of Poland, his influence peaked. He is credited with the first Western use of the word “

Balkan The Balkans ( ), also known as the Balkan Peninsula, is a geographical area in southeastern Europe with various geographical and historical definitions. The region takes its name from the Balkan Mountains that stretch throughout the who ...

” (referring to the

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...

n mountain range), in a 1490 letter to

Pope Innocent VIII Pope Innocent VIII ( la, Innocentius VIII; it, Innocenzo VIII; 1432 – 25 July 1492), born Giovanni Battista Cybo (or Cibo), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 29 August 1484 to his death in July 1492. Son of th ...

, writing as Buonaccorsi Callimaco. In his writings, Buonaccorsi argued for the strengthening of the king's power at the expense of the aristocracy. In

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

he joined

Conrad Celtis Conrad Celtes (german: Konrad Celtes; la, Conradus Celtis (Protucius); 1 February 1459 – 4 February 1508) was a German Renaissance humanist scholar and poet of the German Renaissance born in Franconia (nowadays part of Bavaria). He led the ...

Sodalitas Vistuliana Sodalitas Litterarum Vistulana ("Literary Sodality of the Vistula") was an international academic society modelled after the Roman Academy, founded around 1488 in Cracow by Conrad Celtes, a German humanist scholar who in other areas founded several ...

. Callimachus wrote poems and prose in Latin, and is best remembered for his biographies of Bishop Zbigniew Oleśnicki, Bishop Gregory of Sanok, and King Władysław III of Poland. His tomb in

's Basilica of the Holy Trinity was created by Veit Stoss.

In popular culture

Callimaco Buonaccorsi is a recurring figure in Dorothy Dunnett's ''House of Niccolo'' series of historical novels, particularly in volume seven, ''Caprice and Rondo''.

References

External links

Filippo Buonaccorsi, ''Repertorium Pomponianum''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buonaccorsi, Filip 1437 births 1496 deaths People from San Gimignano Italian Renaissance humanists Italian people of Polish descent LGBT writers from Poland Polish Renaissance humanists Polish male writers Medieval Latin poets Medieval LGBT people Gay writers 15th-century Latin writers Italy–Poland relations Italian emigrants to Poland Italian male poets 15th-century Polish writers 15th-century Italian writers

Life

In popular culture

See also

References

External links