Cansignorio della Scala (5 March 1340 – 19 October 1375) was Lord of Verona from 1359 until 1375, initially together with his brother Paolo Alboino.

Biography

He inherited the lordship of Verona at the death of his father Mastino, together with his brothers Cangrande II and Paolo Alboino. However, Cangrande took the effective reins. Cansignorio plotted against his tyrannic rule and, after having him assassinated, could enter the city in 1359 with the help of the Carraresi of

Padua Padua ( ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Veneto, northern Italy, and the capital of the province of Padua. The city lies on the banks of the river Bacchiglione, west of Venice and southeast of Vicenza, and has a population of 20 ...

Legacy

Before his death in 1375 he had his brother Paolo Alboino (who had been in prison since 1365) assassinated to give the succession to his illegitimate sons Bartolomeo II and

Antonio Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan language, Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language–speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top ...

. The latter however were forced by the city's bankruptcy to accept the protectorate of

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. Despite his ruthless character, Cansignorio ruled Verona quite moderately and enriched it with numerous constructions, including the first masonry bridge over the

Adige The Adige is the second-longest river in Italy, after the Po. It rises near the Reschen Pass in the Vinschgau in the province of South Tyrol, near the Italian border with Austria and Switzerland, and flows through most of northeastern Italy ...

since the Ponte Pietra (Verona) and the first watchtower in Italy, the ''Gardello''. Cansignorio's tomb is one of the notable Gothic Scaliger tombs in the courtyard of Santa Maria Antica of Verona.

Marriage and children

Cansignorio married Agnes of Durazzo, second daughter of Charles, Duke of Durazzo and Maria of Calabria. Agnes was a younger sister of

Joanna, Duchess of Durazzo Joanna of Durazzo (1344 – 20 July 1387) was the eldest daughter and eldest surviving child of Charles, Duke of Durazzo, and his wife, Maria of Calabria. She succeeded as duchess on the death of her father in 1348 when she was only a child of f ...

and an older sister of Margherita of Durazzo, Queen consort of Charles III of Naples. Their marriage was childless. Cansignorio had three known children, all illegitimate. His daughter Lucia della Scala married first Cortesia Serego and then Bernardino da Polenta of the ruling family of

Ravenna Ravenna ( ; , also ; ) is the capital city of the Province of Ravenna, in the Emilia-Romagna region of Northern Italy. It was the capital city of the Western Roman Empire during the 5th century until its Fall of Rome, collapse in 476, after which ...

. His sons Bartolomeo II della Scala and Antonio I della Scala would succeed as Lords of Verona.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Scala, Cansignorio 1340 births 1375 deaths 14th-century murderers Lords of Verona Italian assassins Cansignorio Burials at Santa Maria Antica, Verona Assassins of heads of state 14th-century Italian nobility Medieval assassins