Ferdinando (Ferrante) Sanseverino, Prince of
Salerno
Salerno (, ; ; ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Campania, southwestern Italy, and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after Naples. It is located ...
(18 January 1507 – 1568) was an Italian
condottiero
Condottieri (; singular: ''condottiero'' or ''condottiere'') were Italian military leaders active during the Middle Ages and the early modern period. The term originally referred specifically to commanders of mercenary companies, derived from the ...
with "Renaissance prince" ideals.
Ferrante Sanseverino biography (in italian)
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Biography
Born in Naples, he was the son of Roberto II Sanseverino ( :es:Roberto_II_Sanseverino, ''es'' ) and a noblewoman from a Salerno family. Fernando Sanseverino was the fourth and last of the Sanseverino Princes of Salerno.
He fought for Emperor Charles V in Germany and France. He took part to Charles' coronation in Bologna (1530), and was also present at the Conquest of Tunis (1535).
He was one of the imperial leaders in the fourth war against Francis I of France and fought at the battle of Ceresole (1544). Returning to Naples, he clashed with the Spanish viceroy Pedro Álvarez de Toledo, Marquis of Villafranca, Pedro de Toledo, due to his opposition to the institution of Holy Inquisition tribunals in the Kingdom of Naples. He therefore moved to France at the court of Henry II of France, King Henry II, embracing the Huguenot faith. His Italian fiefs were given to the House of Gonzaga, Gonzaga family.
Ferdinando Sanseverino died at Avignon, in France, in 1568.
Main accomplishments
He was a passionate supporter of contemporary theatre, and had one built within his palace in Naples.
His refusal to accept the Inquisition inside his possession in Salerno
Salerno (, ; ; ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Campania, southwestern Italy, and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after Naples. It is located ...
created a break between him and the Spanish government in southern Italy. Mainly as a consequence of this, Fernando Sanseverino was forced to exile in France.
There, he organized a naval attack of French ships against Naples and Salerno
Salerno (, ; ; ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Campania, southwestern Italy, and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after Naples. It is located ...
, but it failed because the allied Turkish fleet didn't show up.
His legacy in the Principality of Salerno was to bring to the southern Italian city (and the surrounding area) the ideas of the Italian Renaissance. He brought to Salerno Torquato Tasso for some years.
Notes
See also
* Salerno
Salerno (, ; ; ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Campania, southwestern Italy, and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after Naples. It is located ...
* Principality of Salerno
External links
Sanseverino
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sanseverino, Ferrante
1507 births
1572 deaths
16th-century Neapolitan people
16th-century condottieri
Military leaders of the Italian Wars
Princes of Salerno