Fulco VIII, Prince Ruffo di Calabria, 6th Duke of Guardia Lombarda (12 August 1884 – 23 August 1946) was an Italian

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

flying ace A flying ace, fighter ace or air ace is a military aviator credited with shooting down five or more enemy aircraft during aerial combat. The exact number of aerial victories required to officially qualify as an ace is varied, but is usually co ...

and senator of the Kingdom from 1934 until his death. He was the father of Paola, Queen of the Belgians (born Donna Paola Ruffo di Calabria).

Family history

Ademarus Rufus, who died in 1049, held the title of '' Comes'' in southern Italy. Siggerio Ruffo became Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II's

grand marshal Grand marshal is a ceremonial, military, or political office of very high rank. The term has its origins with the word "marshal" with the first usage of the term "grand marshal" as a ceremonial title for certain religious orders. The following ...

of the

Kingdom of Sicily The Kingdom of Sicily ( la, Regnum Siciliae; it, Regno di Sicilia; scn, Regnu di Sicilia) was a state that existed in the south of the Italian Peninsula and for a time the region of Ifriqiya from its founding by Roger II of Sicily in 1130 un ...

in 1235. After the 14th century, the family divided into two branches Ruffo di Scaletta and the Ruffo di Calabria, the latter to which Fulco belonged.Genealogisches Handbuch des Adels, Fürstliche Häuser XVI. "Ruffo". C.A. Starke Verlag, 2001, pp.522-529. . Fulco was the son of Fulco VII Beniamino Tristano

Ruffo di Calabria The House of Ruffo di Calabria is one of the longest-standing noble families in Italy. It was already one of the seven most important houses of the Kingdom of Naples;Jacques André Coghen, Belgium's second finance minister. Beniamino Ruffo di Calabria was the younger brother of the head of the House of Ruffo, Fulco Ruffo di Calabria-Santapau, 10th Principe di Scilla and 2nd Duca di Santa Cristina. Fulco was made, by decree of 15 March 1928, ''Prince Ruffo di Calabria'', in the

Kingdom of Italy The Kingdom of Italy ( it, Regno d'Italia) was a state that existed from 1861, when Victor Emmanuel II of Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinia was proclamation of the Kingdom of Italy, proclaimed King of Italy, until 1946, when civil discontent led to ...

. By inheritance he was also the 6th Duke of Guardia Lombarda and 17th Count of Sinopoli. The family Ruffo di Calabria represents one of the most ancient lineages of Italy and includes Cardinal

Fabrizio Ruffo Fabrizio Dionigi Ruffo (16 September 1744 – 13 December 1827) was an Italian cardinal and politician, who led the popular anti-republican '' Sanfedismo'' movement (whose members were known as the ''Sanfedisti''). Biography Ruffo was born at ...

. Fulco was related to historically eminent Roman and southern Italian noble families, including the

Colonna The House of Colonna, also known as ''Sciarrillo'' or ''Sciarra'', is an Italian noble family, forming part of the papal nobility. It was powerful in medieval and Renaissance Rome, supplying one pope (Martin V) and many other church and pol ...

, Orsini,

Pallavicini 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 o ...

Alliata ''Alliata'' or ''Agliata'' is an Italian noble family. History The Alliata or Agliata family is among Italy's oldest noble families. The family claims an ancestor mentioned in an Imperial decretus of 325 AD, during the reign of Roman Emperor ...

and Rospigliosi.

Early life and prewar military service

Fulco Ruffo di Calabria was born in

Naples Naples (; it, Napoli ; nap, Napule ), from grc, Νεάπολις, Neápolis, lit=new city. is the regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 909,048 within the city's adm ...

on 12 August 1884. He volunteered as a reserve officer's training with the 11th Foggia Light Cavalry Regiment on 22 November 1904. On 31 May 1905, he was promoted to Corporal; on 30 November, he was again promoted, to Sergente. On 20 February 1906, he was commissioned into officers' ranks as a Second lieutenant. Subsequently, he became deputy director of the Belgian Wegimont shipping company's African station. He returned from Africa as World War I broke out.Franks, Norman; Guest, Russell; Alegi, Gregory. Above the War Fronts: The British Two-seater Bomber Pilot and Observer Aces, the British Two-seater Fighter Observer Aces, and the Belgian, Italian, Austro-Hungarian and Russian Fighter Aces, 1914–1918: Volume 4 of Fighting Airmen of WWI Series: Volume 4 of Air Aces of WWI. Grub Street, 1997. . pp. 158–159.

World War I service

Ruffo di Calabria returned to military duty before Italy's entry into World War I, and was assigned to the ''Battaglione Aviatori'' (which later became the ''

Corpo Aeronautico Militare The Italian Corpo Aeronautico Militare (Military Aviation Corps) was formed as part of the Regio Esercito (Royal Army) on 7 January 1915, incorporating the Aviators Flights Battalion (airplanes), the Specialists Battalion (airships) and the Ballo ...

'') on 20 December 1914. After pilot's training, on 28 September 1915, he was posted to the ''4a Squadriglia Artiglia'', an artillery coordination unit that later morphed into ''44a Squadriglia''. On 26 January 1916, he moved to ''2a Squadriglia'' (later ''42a Squadriglia''). He won two Bronze awards of the Medal for Military Valor—in February and April 1916—while still a two-seater pilot with them. His personal emblem was a black skull and crossbones painted on the

fuselage The fuselage (; from the French ''fuselé'' "spindle-shaped") is an aircraft's main body section. It holds crew, passengers, or cargo. In single-engine aircraft, it will usually contain an engine as well, although in some amphibious aircraft t ...

of his plane, whether it was his original

Nieuport 11 The Nieuport 11 (or Nieuport XI C.1 in contemporary sources), nicknamed the ''Bébé'', was a French World War I single seat sesquiplane fighter aircraft, designed by Gustave Delage. It was the primary aircraft that ended the Fokker Scourge in ...

s, or his later

Nieuport 17 The Nieuport 17 C.1 (or Nieuport XVII C.1 in contemporary sources) was a French sesquiplane fighter designed and manufactured by the Nieuport company during World War I. An improvement over the Nieuport 11, it was a little larger than earlier ...

and

SPAD VII The SPAD S.VII was the first of a series of highly successful biplane fighter aircraft produced by ''Société Pour L'Aviation et ses Dérivés'' (SPAD) during the First World War. Like its successors, the S.VII was renowned as a sturdy and rug ...

airplanes. Ruffo di Calabria underwent further training on Nieuports at Cascina Costa in May 1916. On 26 June,Note: The text of ''Above the War Fronts'' gives this as the date he joined ''70a Squadriglia''; however, the victory list on the same page shows Ruffo di Calabria scoring his wins for ''1a Squadriglia'', as does ''Nieuport Aces''. he was assigned to ''1a Squadriglia'' as a

fighter pilot A fighter pilot is a military aviator trained to engage in air-to-air combat, air-to-ground combat and sometimes electronic warfare while in the cockpit of a fighter aircraft. Fighter pilots undergo specialized training in aerial warfare and ...

. He won his first victory there, shared with Francesco Baracca on 23 August 1916,Franks, Norman. Nieuport Aces of World War 1. Osprey Publishing, 2000. , . pp. 79-80. and had a second one go unconfirmed. His performance was good for a Silver Medal for Military Valor in August, followed by a Bronze in September 1916. By 16 September, when he shared a victory with Baracca and Luigi Olivari, he was scoring for his new unit, '' 70a Squadriglia''. He ran his score with them to four confirmed and four unconfirmed by 28 February 1917. In March 1917, he was transferred out of the reserves when he was promoted to '' Tenente''. In May he then switched to flying a

Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars. History Beginnings Originally formed as Nieuport-Duplex in ...

for '' 91a Squadriglia''. He was awarded both a Silver and a Bronze Medal for Military Valor that same month. His promotion to ''Capitano'' came through in August 1917. By that time, his confirmed victories totaled 13. He ended 1917 with his total victories at 16. Ruffo di Calabria's records for 1918 are incomplete, but credit him with four more victories. On 5 May 1918, he was granted the ultimate Medal of Military Valor, the Gold award. After Baracca's death on 19 June 1918, Fulco assumed command of the renowned "Squadron of Aces". He relinquished command of ''91a Squadriglia'' on 18 September to Ferruccio Ranza, after suffering a nervous breakdown. After recovery, he was handed command of ''10th Gruppo'', on 23 October 1918, but was shot down by artillery fire near Marano on 29 October 1918. In the end, he shot down 20 enemy airplanes in 53 combats, making him the fifth highest scoring Italian flying ace of World War I.Franks, Norman; Guest, Russell; Alegi, Gregory. Above the War Fronts: The British Two-seater Bomber Pilot and Observer Aces, the British Two-seater Fighter Observer Aces, and the Belgian, Italian, Austro-Hungarian and Russian Fighter Aces, 1914–1918: Volume 4 of Fighting Airmen of WWI Series: Volume 4 of Air Aces of WWI. Grub Street, 1997. . p. 167.

Post-World War I

On 1 February 1919, the Bongiovanni commission's

military intelligence Military intelligence is a military discipline that uses information collection and analysis approaches to provide guidance and direction to assist commanders in their decisions. This aim is achieved by providing an assessment of data from a ...

report verified all 20 of Ruffo di Calabria's confirmed victories, though still denying the five that were unconfirmed.The Aerodrome Forum lists him with 20 confirmed and 6 not confirmed "victory credits"
/ref> Di Calabria remained in the military, though without assignment. By 1925, his main activity was management of his family estates located near

Paliano Paliano is a town and '' comune'' in the province of Frosinone, in the Lazio region of central Italy. History Paliano was the seat of a branch of the powerful Colonna family whose head was Lord, then Duke, then Prince of Paliano. Their fortre ...

. In 1934, he was named

senator A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...

of the kingdom by King

Victor Emmanuel III The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

. He also continued in the military, eventually rising to the rank of '' Tenente Colonello'' in 1942. Ruffo di Calabria served in the Italian senate until 1944. During World War II, he was a supporter of the Italian fascist leader Mussolini. He was subsequently convicted postwar by an Italian court for complicity in the crimes of fascism, and that ruling was upheld on 10 January 1946 despite his appeal. Fulco Ruffo di Calabria died in Ronchi di Apuania, Italy on 23 August 1946.

Awards

Italian awards

* Knight of the Military Order of Savoy ‑ R.D. 10 September 1918 *

Gold Medal of Military Valor The Gold Medal of Military Valour ( it, Medaglia d'oro al valor militare) is an Italian medal established on 21 May 1793 by King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia for deeds of outstanding gallantry in war by junior officers and soldiers. The f ...

‑ D.L. 5 May 1918 *

Silver Medal of Military Valor The Silver Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia d'argento al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry. Italian medals for valor were first instituted by Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia on 21 May 1793, with a gold medal, and, below it, ...

‑ D.L. 15 March 1917 * Silver Medal of Military Valor (combat merit on the field) - D.L. 20 January 1918 *

Bronze Medal of Military Valor The Bronze Medal of Military Valor ( it, Medaglia di bronzo al valor militare) is an Italian medal for gallantry. It was established by Charles Albert of Sardinia on 26 March 1833, along with the higher ranking Gold and Silver Medals for Military ...

‑ D.L. 15 October 1916 * Bronze Medal of Military Valor ‑ D.L. 24 May 1917 * Bronze Medal of Military Valor - D.L. 10 June 1917. * Bronze Medal of Military Valor‑ D.L. 16 June 1917 *

War Merit Cross The War Merit Cross (german: Kriegsverdienstkreuz) was a state decoration of Nazi Germany during World War II. By the end of the conflict it was issued in four degrees and had an equivalent civil award. A " de-Nazified" version of the War Meri ...

- 1918 * Badge for the war effort (with four service stars) - R.D. 21 May 1916 * Commemorative medal of the Italian–Austrian war of 1915–1918 (with four service stars) - (R.D. 29 July 1920) * Italian World War I Victory Medal - (R.D. 29 July 1920) * Commemorative Medal for the Unification of Italy (R.D. 19 October 1922) *

Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( it, Ordine della Corona d'Italia, italic=no or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for civi ...

** Commander (30 November 1939) ** Officer (22 December 1938) ** Knight (29 January 1929)

International awards

* Knight of the Order of Leopold -

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to ...

Belgian Croix de guerre The ''Croix de guerre'' ( French) or ''Oorlogskruis'' (Dutch), both literally translating as "Cross of War", is a military decoration of the Kingdom of Belgium established by royal decree on 25 October 1915. It was primarily awarded for bravery o ...

- 10 March 1917

Personal life and descendants

On 30 June 1919, he married, in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, 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 ...

, Luisa Gazelli (1896–1989), daughter of Augusto Gazelli dei

Conti Conti is an Italian surname. Geographical distribution As of 2014, 63.5% of all known bearers of the surname ''Conti'' were residents of Italy (frequency 1:756), 11.8% of the United States (1:24,071), 9.2% of Brazil (1:17,439), 6.3% of Argenti ...

di Rossana, and of Maria Cristina dei Conti Rignon. Luisa served as a

lady-in-waiting A lady-in-waiting or court lady is a female personal assistant at a court, attending on a royal woman or a high-ranking noblewoman. Historically, in Europe, a lady-in-waiting was often a noblewoman but of lower rank than the woman to whom sh ...

to Queen Elena of Italy They had seven children: ** ''Maria Cristina Ruffo di Calabria (1920–2003);
''married Casimiro San Martino d´Aglie dei Marchesi di San Germano in 1940 :'' *** Emanuela San Martino d'Agliè;
''married 1962 Count Ernesto Rossi di Montelera (born 1938) :'' **** Lidia Rossi di Montelera (born 1963); married 1990 Count Alexander zu Trauttmansdorff-Weinsberg. **** Maria Cristina Rossi di Montelera (born 1965); married 1994 Baron Hans-Ulrich von Freyberg-Eisenberg-Allmendingen. **** Ginevra Rossi di Montelera (born 1967). **** Antonella Rossi di Montelera (born 1970); married 2003 Count Alois von

Waldburg-Zeil Waldburg-Zeil was a County and later Principality within Holy Roman Empire, ruled by the House of Waldburg, located in southeastern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, located around Schloss Zeil, near Leutkirch im Allgäu. History Waldburg-Zeil ...

. *** Antonella San Martino d'Agliè; married 1970 Count Ippolito Calvi di Bergolo Rocca Saporiti. *** Giovanna San Martino d'Aglie (born 10 April 1945, Campiglione); married 24 May 1974 Campiglione, Italy, Don Alvaro de Orléans-Borbón y Parodi Delfino (son of Infante Alvaro de Orléans-Borbón, Duke of Galliera), divorced with issue in ? *** Nicolo San Martino d'Aglie (born 3 July 1948, Campiglione); married 4 June 1974 Princess Catherine Napoléon (daughter of

Louis, Prince Napoléon Louis, Prince Napoléon (''Louis Jérôme Victor Emmanuel Léopold Marie''; 23 January 1914 – 3 May 1997) was a member of the Bonaparte dynasty. He was the pretender to the Imperial throne of France, as Napoléon VI, from 3 May 1926 until his ...

), divorced without issue in 1982. ***Filippo San Martino d'Agile di San Germano (born 24 Septembre 1953, Torino); married 16 November 1984 Cristina Maria Margherita Flesia. ** Laura Ruffo di Calabria (1921–1972);
''married Bettino, Baron Ricasoli Firidolfi (31st Baron of Brolio) in 1946: four children (Andrea . circa 1974 Luisa, Maria Teresa, Francesco, 32nd Baron of Brolio).'' ** Fabrizio, Prince Ruffo di Calabria-Santapau (1922–2005); head of the House of Ruffo from 1975:
13th Prince of Palazzolo, 14th Prince of Scilla, 7th Duke of Guardia Lombarda, 13th Marquis of Scilla and 18th Count of Sinopoli:
''his first marriage to Maria Vaciago, had :'' *** ''Don'' Fulco IX, Prince Ruffo di Calabria (born 29 July 1954); current head of the House of Ruffo di Calabria, married and divorced Melba Vincens Bello; married secondly, in 2005, Luisa Tricarico. *** Augusto Ruffo di Calabria (born 1 October 1955); married Princess Christiana zu

Windisch-Graetz The House of Windisch-Graetz, also spelled Windisch-Grätz, is an Austrian-Slovenian aristocratic family, descending from Windischgraz in Lower Styria (present-day Slovenj Gradec, Slovenia). The noble dynasty serving the House of Habsburg achieved ...

in 1980 with issue. *** Imara Ruffo di Calabria (born 7 July 1958); married firstly Uberto Imar Gashe (grandson of

Princess Yolanda of Savoy Princess Yolanda of Savoy (1 June 1901 – 16 October 1986) was the eldest daughter of King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy. Biography She was born Principessa Iolanda Margherita Milena Elisabetta Romana Maria di Savoia ( en, Princess Yolanda M ...

) in 1986; married secondly Baron Marco Tonci Ottieri della Ciaia in 1993. *** Umberto Ruffo di Calabria (born 23 October 1960); married Leontina, Marchesa

in 1987. ***Don Alessandro Ruffo di Calabria (born 4 November 1964); married Princess Mafalda of Savoy-Aosta in 1994, divorced without issue in 2000. ** Augusto Ruffo di Calabria (1925–1943); killed in battle at sea on 2 November 1943 near Pescara. ** Giovannella Ruffo di Calabria (1927–1941). ** Antonello Ruffo di Calabria (1930–2017);
''married Rosa Maria Mastrogiovanni Tasca in 1961.'' *** Covella Ruffo di Calabria (born 4 February 1962, Rome). *** Lucio Ruffo di Calabria (born 14 April 1964, Rome). *** Domitilla Ruffo di Calabria (born 9 May 1965, Rome); married 16 July 1990 Don Giovanni dei Baroni Porcari Li Destri. *** Claudia Ruffo di Calabria (born 30 August 1969, Rome); married 27 May 1989 Marcello Salom. ** Paola Ruffo di Calabria (born 1937); Queen consort of the Belgians:
''married to Albert II, King of the Belgians (then Prince of Liège) in 1959.'' *** Philippe, King of the Belgians;
''Married to Mathilde, Countess d'Udekem d'Acoz'', 4 children.

Ancestry

Footnotes

Sources

References

* de Badts de Cugnac, Chantal; Coutant de Saisseval, Guy. ''Le petit Gotha: Collection Le Petit Gotha.'' Le Petit Gotha, 2002. , 9782950797438. * Ehrenkrook, Hans Friedrich von; Hueck, Walter von; Franke, Christoph; Strachwitz von Groß-Zauche u. C. Moritz; editors. ''Genealogisches Handbuch der Fürstlichen Häuser. Band XVI (2001), Volume 124.'' Walter von Hueck, Christoph Franke, Moritz. Starke, 2001. , 9783798008243. * Norman Franks, Russell Guest, Gregory Alegi. ''Above the War Fronts: The British Two-seater Bomber Pilot and Observer Aces, the British Two-seater Fighter Observer Aces, and the Belgian, Italian, Austro-Hungarian and Russian Fighter Aces, 1914–1918: Volume 4 of Fighting Airmen of WWI Series: Volume 4 of Air Aces of WWI''. Grub Street, 1997. . * Franks, Norman. ''Nieuport Aces of World War 1.'' Osprey Publishing, 2000. , . * Guttman, Jon. ''SPAD XII/XIII Aces of World War I.'' Osprey Publishing, 2002. , 9781841763163.

External links

Photo of Ruffo di Calabria's restored Spad VII fighter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ruffo Di Calabria, Fulco 1884 births 1946 deaths Military personnel from Naples People of Calabrian descent Nobility from Naples Italian World War I flying aces Recipients of the Gold Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Bronze Medal of Military Valor Members of the Senate of the Kingdom of Italy 20th-century Italian politicians Guardia Lombardi Fulco