An Albergo (Alberghi in plural) was a term used during the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history The history of Europe is traditionally divided into four time periods: prehistoric Europe (prior to about 800 BC), classical antiquity (800 BC to AD ...

to indicate an organizational structure in which several families linked by blood or a common interest banded together. The different families derived economic, political, or military support from each other.Kirk (2005), pg. 24 They usually lived near each other and attended the same churches. Alberghi developed among noble families in

Genoa Genoa ( ; it, Genova ; lij, Zêna ). is the capital of the Italian region of Liguria and the sixth-largest city in Italy. In 2015, 594,733 people lived within the city's administrative limits. As of the 2011 Italian census, the Province of ...

during the 13th and 14th centuries in response to economic difficulty and financial strife.Neel, (2004), pg. 132 Alberghi are first mentioned in 1383 by Giorgio Stella and

Agostino Giustiniani Agostino Giustiniani (born Pantaleone Giustiniani; 1470 - 1536) was an Italian Catholic bishop, linguist and geographer. Biography Giustiniani was born at Genoa into a noble Giustiniani family. His father had been ambassador of the Republic of ...

on the occasion of the crowning of

John of Lusignan John of Lusignan (French: ''Jean de Lusignan''; c. 1329 or 1329/1330 – 1375) was a regent of the Kingdom of Cyprus and titular Prince of Antioch. He was son of King Hugh IV of Cyprus and his second wife Alix of Ibelin. He was a member of the Hous ...

as King of

Cyprus Cyprus ; tr, Kıbrıs (), officially the Republic of Cyprus,, , lit: Republic of Cyprus is an island country located south of the Anatolian Peninsula in the eastern Mediterranean Sea. Its continental position is disputed; while it is ge ...

by the

Doge A doge ( , ; plural dogi or doges) was an elected lord and head of state in several Italian city-states, notably Venice and Genoa, during the medieval and renaissance periods. Such states are referred to as " crowned republics". Etymology The ...

Leonardo Montaldo. Neither mentions the number of alberghi, though one 15th century source says there are 35 and a later source says there were 74 by the year 1414. The 28 alberghi that formed this new ruling class included the

Cybo The House of Cybo, Cibo or Cibei of Italy was the name of an old and influential aristocratic family from Genoa of Greek origin that ruled the Duchy of Massa and Carrara. History They came to the city in the 12th century. In 1528 the Cybos fo ...

Doria Doria or Dória may refer to: People Surname * Doria (family), a prominent Genoese family ** Andrea Doria (1466–1560), Genoese admiral ** Ansaldo Doria, 12th century Genoese statesman and commander ** Brancaleone Doria (died c. 1409?), husband ...

Fieschi The Fieschi were a noble merchant family from Genoa, Italy, from whom descend the Fieschi Ravaschieri Princes of Belmonte. Of ancient origin, they took their name from the progenitor ''Ugo Fliscus'', descendants of the counts of Lavagna. The fam ...

Giustiniani The House of Giustiniani is the name of a prominent Italian family which originally belonged to Venice, but also established itself in Genoa, and at various times had representatives in Naples, Corsica and in the islands of the Archipelago, where t ...

, Grimaldi, Imperiale,

Pallavicino The House of Pallavicini, also known as Pallavicino and formerly known as Pelavicino, is an ancient Italian noble family founded by Oberto II ''Pelavicino'' of the Frankish Obertenghi family. The Pallavicini of Genoa The first recorded member of ...

, and

Spinola Spinola is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * Agostino Spinola (d. 1537), Italian cardinal * Alberto Spinola (born 1943), Italian water polo player * Ambrogio Spinola, 1st Marquis of the Balbases (1569–1630), Genoese banker an ...

families. Alberghi mainly developed in

Piedmont it, Piemontese , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

and

Liguria it, Ligure , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

. Alberghi are also mentioned as having formed in

Chieri Chieri (; pms, Cher) is a town and ''comune'' in the Metropolitan City of Turin, Piedmont (Italy), located about southeast of Turin, by rail and by road. It borders the following municipalities: Baldissero Torinese, Pavarolo, Montaldo Torine ...

, Asti,

Savigliano Savigliano (Savijan in Piedmontese) is a ''comune'' of Piedmont, northern Italy, in the Province of Cuneo, about south of Turin by rail. It is home to ironworks, foundries, locomotive works (once owned by Fiat Ferroviaria, now by Alstom) and si ...

, and

Borgo San Sepolcro Sansepolcro, formerly Borgo Santo Sepolcro, is a town and ''comune'' founded in the 11th century, located in the Italian Province of Arezzo in the eastern part of the region of Tuscany. Situated on the upper reaches of the Tiber river, the town ...

; and to a lesser extent in

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

Torino Turin ( , Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. T ...

, and

Moncalieri Moncalieri (; pms, Moncalé ) is a town and ''comune'' of 56,134 inhabitants (31 January 2022) about directly south of downtown Turin (to whose Metropolitan City it belongs), in Piedmont, Italy. It is the most populous suburb of Turin and it is ...

. By the 15th century, merchants and artisans were also forming alberghi, but this only affected a few of the more powerful families.Neel (2004), pg. 135 Even freed slaves joined alberghi.Kirk (2005), pg. 25 Sometimes, these alberghi bonded together several branches of the same family. At other times, unrelated families with common interests banded together, typically taking a common surname. An example of the latter is the

, which was composed of shareholders of a company formed to colonize the Greek island of

Chios Chios (; el, Χίος, Chíos , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greek island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea. The island is separated from Turkey by the Chios Strait. Chios is notable for its exports of masti ...

. In 1528, after ousting the French and restoring Genoese independence,

Andrea Doria Andrea Doria, Prince of Melfi (; lij, Drîa Döia ; 30 November 146625 November 1560) was a Genoese statesman, ', and admiral, who played a key role in the Republic of Genoa during his lifetime. As the ruler of Genoa, Doria reformed the Re ...

reformed the constitution of the

Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( lij, Repúbrica de Zêna ; it, Repubblica di Genova; la, Res Publica Ianuensis) was a medieval and early modern maritime republic from the 11th century to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italian coast. During the La ...

, attempting to unite the ‘nobili’ and ‘popularii’ factions into a single ruling class as formally recognized alberghi. Before this, alberghi had been strictly private institutions. This plan provided more political stability than before, but the old divisions reappeared.Kirk (2005), pg. 27 The alberghi were abolished in 1576 and noble families assumed their original surnames. In Renaissance

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

, the term albergo originally referred to the building in which a Scuola Grande

confraternity A confraternity ( es, cofradía; pt, confraria) is generally a Christian voluntary association of laypeople created for the purpose of promoting special works of Christian charity or piety, and approved by the Church hierarchy. They are most c ...

met. The term later applied only to a small meeting room within the building. Today, ''albergo'' is the Italian word for a hotel. Both senses of the word are ultimately derived from a Germanic root, reconstructed as ''harjabergu'' meaning "barracks" or "lodging". The French word auberge shares the same origin.Orlandi, Giuseppe, "Il Piccolo Orlandi", Carlo Signorelli, Milano, 1964. p. 16.

References

Sources

*Kirk, Thomas Allison. ''Genoa and the sea : policy and power in an early modern maritime republic, 1559-1684''. Johns Hopkins University Press, 2005. *Neel, Carol. ''Medieval families: perspectives on marriage, household, and children''. The Medieval Academy of America, 2004, {{ISBN, 0-8020-3606-6 Italian noble families