The House of Pamphili (often with the final ''long i'' orthography, Pamphilj) was one of the

papal The pope ( la, papa, from el, πάππας, translit=pappas, 'father'), also known as supreme pontiff ( or ), Roman pontiff () or sovereign pontiff, is the bishop of Rome (or historically the patriarch of Rome), head of the worldwide Cathol ...

families deeply entrenched in Catholic Church, Roman and Italian politics of the 16th and 17th centuries. Later, the Pamphili family line merged with the Doria and

Landi family The Landi were a noble family from Piacenza, in northern Italy. From 1551 to 1582, they were princes of the Val di Taro, now in the province of Parma, at that time in papal territory. Their principality is sometimes called ''Lo Stato Landi'' ( ...

lines to form the

Doria-Pamphili-Landi The House of Doria Pamphilj Landi (also called simply Doria Pamphilj) was a princely Roman family of Genoese extraction. Legend has it that the origins of the Doria family date from the early 11th century, but the authentic pedigree is traced to ...

family line.

History

The Pamphili surname originated in Gubbio and went to Rome under the pontificate of

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 ...

(1484–1492). The peak of Pamphili power came with the election of Giovanni Battista Pamphili as Pope Innocent X, who reigned from 1644–1655. Like the reign of his predecessor

Pope Urban VIII Pope Urban VIII ( la, Urbanus VIII; it, Urbano VIII; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death in July 1644. As po ...

(of the equally papal Barberini family), Innocent X's rule was littered with examples of

nepotism Nepotism is an advantage, privilege, or position that is granted to relatives and friends in an occupation or field. These fields may include but are not limited to, business, politics, academia, entertainment, sports, fitness, religion, an ...

. Members of the Pamphili family did exceptionally well from the Innocent X papacy. The following family members were created cardinals: * Camillo Francesco Maria Pamphili (1644), the Pope's nephew and son of

Olimpia Maidalchini Olimpia Maidalchini Pamphilj (26 May 1591 – 27 September 1657), (also spelled Pamphili and known as Olimpia Pamphili), was the sister-in-law of Pope Innocent X (Pamphili). She was perceived by her contemporaries as having influence regarding pap ...

, the Pope's sister-in-law and close adviser. He later renounced his cardinalate to marry Olimpia Aldobrandini, widow of Paolo Borghese *Francesco Maidalchini (1647), nephew of Olimpia Maidalchini *

Camillo Astalli Camillo Astalli (21 October 1616 – 21 December 1663) was an Italian Catholic Cardinal and Cardinal-Nephew of Pope Innocent X who served as Cardinal Priest of San Pietro in Montorio (1653–1662), Camerlengo of the Sacred College of Cardina ...

(1650 as "Camillo Astalli-Pamphili"), a cousin of Olimpia Maidalchini whom the Pope had adopted as a Cardinal-Nephew; he was later deprived of this title for disloyalty to Innocent X *

Benedetto Pamphili Benedetto Pamphili (often with the final ''long i'' orthography, Pamphilj) (25 April 1653 – 22 March 1730) was an Italian cardinal, patron of the arts and librettist for many composers. Life Pamphili was born in Rome on 25 April 1653 int ...

, son of Camillo Pamphili and Olimpia Aldobrandini, created cardinal by Innocent XI in 1681 Like other Italian noble families, the Pamphili bought property (''palazzi'' or "palaces" and other estates) and created self-styled principalities. Family members regularly had princely titles bestowed upon them by family patriarchs or matriarchs. Olimpia Maidalchini received the honorific title of ''Princess of San Martino'', effectively turning the small enclave of San Martino into a principality in its own right. After he left the cardinalate to marry, Camillo Pamphili was given the titles of ''Prince of San Martino'' and ''Prince of Valmontone'' (he bought the Valmontone '' comune'' in 1634 from the Barberini family).

Family tree

Pamphili family tree from 1574 to 1760:This line of the Pamphili family ended in 1760 - no male heir of this generation had a male heir

Wars of Castro

Between 1639 and 1649, the Pamphili fought the

Wars of Castro The Wars of Castro were a series of conflicts during the mid-17th century revolving around the ancient city of Castro (located in present-day Lazio, Italy), which eventually resulted in the city's destruction on 2 September 1649. The conflict w ...

alongside the Barberini against the Farnese dukes of Parma who controlled

Castro Castro is a Romance language word that originally derived from Latin ''castrum'', a pre-Roman military camp or fortification (cf: Greek: ''kastron''; Proto-Celtic:''*Kassrik;'' br, kaer, *kastro). The English-language equivalent is '' chester''. ...

and its surrounding territories. The conflict raged first under Barberini

and later under Pamphili Pope Innocent X. Pope Urban VIII died in 1644 only two months after a peace accord was signed between the papal families and the dukes. Pope Innocent X was elected to replace him. Innocent set about investigating some of the finances related to the conflict which had been administered by the Barberini. A number of Barberini family members were forced into exile but were later reconciled with the papacy and the Pamphili through the marriage of

Maffeo Barberini Pope Urban VIII ( la, Urbanus VIII; it, Urbano VIII; baptised 5 April 1568 – 29 July 1644), born Maffeo Vincenzo Barberini, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 6 August 1623 to his death in July 1644. As po ...

(son of exiled

Taddeo Barberini Taddeo Barberini (1603–1647) was an Italian nobleman of the House of Barberini who became Prince of Palestrina and Gonfalonier of the Church; commander of the Papal Army. He was a nephew of Pope Urban VIII and brother of Cardinals Frances ...

) and

Olimpia Giustiniani Olimpia Giustiniani (18 May 1641 – 27 December 1729) was an Italian noblewoman of the houses of Giustiniani and Barberini. She was the granddaughter of Olimpia Maidalchini, grand-niece of Pope Innocent X and wife of Maffeo Barberini, Prince of ...

, a niece of Pope Innocent X. On the orders of Innocent X, Castro was razed on 2 September 1649 by troops of the

Papal Army The Papal States ( ; it, Stato Pontificio, ), officially the State of the Church ( it, Stato della Chiesa, ; la, Status Ecclesiasticus;), were a series of territories in the Italian Peninsula under the direct sovereign rule of the pope fro ...

and never rebuilt.

Family property

Palazzo Pamphilj, by the architects Girolamo Rainaldi and Francesco Borromini, is located in the heart of Rione Parione, south of the church of Sant'Agnese in Agone in Piazza Navona, the Pamphili neighborhood of Rome, named for this reason ''Isola de' Pamphili''. From 1652, on Saturdays and Sundays in August, the piazza was turned into a lake to celebrate the Pamphili family, a festival that was suppressed in 1866. Today, the palace functions as the Brazilian Embassy in Rome. The tomb of Innocent X is located in Sant'Agnese. In 1634 the Pamphilj bought the baronial palace in Valmontone, a town near Palestrina, outside ( Rome): Camillo Pamphili was determined to create a sort of new “ideal city”, so the palace and the main church were rebuilt and decorated by important

baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

artists, like the architect Mattia de Rossi (who rose to prominence under the mentorship of

Bernini Gian Lorenzo (or Gianlorenzo) Bernini (, , ; Italian Giovanni Lorenzo; 7 December 159828 November 1680) was an Italian sculptor and architect. While a major figure in the world of architecture, he was more prominently the leading sculptor of his ...

), and the painters

Pier Francesco Mola Pier Francesco Mola, called Il Ticinese (9 February 1612 – 13 May 1666) was an Italian painter of the High Baroque, mainly active around Rome. Biography Mola was born at Coldrerio (now in Ticino, Switzerland).''Ecstasy in the Wilderness: Pier ...

, Gaspard Dughet, Guglielmo Cortese, Francesco Cozza and Mattia Preti. Another building in central Rome is the

Palazzo Doria Pamphilj The Doria Pamphilj Gallery is a large art collection housed in the Palazzo Doria Pamphilj in Rome, Italy, between Via del Corso and Via della Gatta. The principal entrance is on the Via del Corso (until recently, the entrance to the gallery was fr ...

, which houses the gallery of the same name.

References and notes

{{Authority control Papal families Italian noble families Pope Innocent X