Fernando Francesco d'Ávalos d'Aquino, 5th Marquess of

Pescara Pescara (; ; ) is the capital city of the province of Pescara, in the Abruzzo Regions of Italy, region of Italy. It is the most populated city in Abruzzo, with 118,657 (January 1, 2023) residents (and approximately 350,000 including the surround ...

(in Italian Ferrante Francesco d'Ávalos), (11 November 1489 – 3 December 1525), was an Italian (

Neapolitan Neapolitan means of or pertaining to Naples, a city in Italy; or to: Geography and history * Province of Naples, a province in the Campania region of southern Italy that includes the city * Duchy of Naples, in existence during the Early and High ...

) military leader and

nobleman Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally appointed by and ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. T ...

of Spanish ( Aragonese) origin. He was an important captain in the service of

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

and the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire, also known as the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation after 1512, was a polity in Central and Western Europe, usually headed by the Holy Roman Emperor. It developed in the Early Middle Ages, and lasted for a millennium ...

during the

Italian Wars The Italian Wars were a series of conflicts fought between 1494 and 1559, mostly in the Italian Peninsula, but later expanding into Flanders, the Rhineland and Mediterranean Sea. The primary belligerents were the House of Valois, Valois kings o ...

. In the Battle of Ravenna in 1512, he was taken prisoner by the French but was released at the conclusion of the

War of the League of Cambrai The War of the League of Cambrai, sometimes known as the War of the Holy League and several other names, was fought from February 1508 to December 1516 as part of the Italian Wars of 1494–1559. The main participants of the war, who fough ...

, after which he became a chief commander of the Habsburg armies of

Charles V Charles V may refer to: Kings and Emperors * Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558) * Charles V of Naples (1661–1700), better known as Charles II of Spain * Charles V of France (1338–1380), called the Wise Others * Charles V, Duke ...

in Italy during the Habsburg-Valois Wars. He was instrumental to the victories over the French at Bicocca and

Pavia Pavia ( , ; ; ; ; ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy, in Northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino (river), Ticino near its confluence with the Po (river), Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was a major polit ...

thanks to his ordered usage of

arquebusiers An arquebus ( ) is a form of long gun that appeared in Europe and the Ottoman Empire during the 15th century. An infantryman armed with an arquebus is called an arquebusier. The term ''arquebus'' was applied to many different forms of firearms ...

. He is proposed as an early innovator of

volley fire Volley fire, as a military tactics, military tactic, is (in its simplest form) the concept of having soldiers shoot in the same direction en masse. In practice, it often consists of having a line of soldiers all discharge their weapons simultane ...

early modern warfare Early modern warfare is the era of warfare during early modern period following medieval warfare. It is associated with the start of the widespread use of gunpowder and the development of suitable weapons to use the explosive, including art ...

, setting the base for the European reforms of the 16th century.

Biography

Fernando was born at

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, but his family was of

Aragon Aragon ( , ; Spanish and ; ) is an autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community in Spain, coextensive with the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. In northeastern Spain, the Aragonese autonomous community comprises three provinces of Spain, ...

ese origin, having arrived in southern Italy with

Alfonso V Alfonso V (Spanish), Afonso V (Portuguese), Alfons V (Catalan) or Alphonse V (French) may refer to: * Alfonso V of León (999–1028) * Alfonso V of Aragon (1416–1458), The Magnanimous * Afonso V of Portugal (), The African * Afonso V of Kongo Af ...

's general Íñigo Dávalos, his grandfather. Fernando's father was Alfonso d'Ávalos d'Aquino, 4th marquis of Pescara (not to be confused with Alfonso d'Ávalos, 6th marquess of Pescara and a cousin of Fernando).. During his life Fernando D'Ávalos was also known as "

", the city in the kingdom of Naples of which he was the Marquis. Proud of his Spanish origins and surrounded by Spaniards, he spoke Spanish at all times despite his Neapolitan extraction and

arranged marriage Arranged marriage is a type of Marriage, marital union where the bride and groom are primarily selected by individuals other than the couple themselves, particularly by family members such as the parents. In some cultures, a professional matchmaki ...

with a noblewoman from the Papal States. According to the Renaissance historian

Francesco Guicciardini Francesco Guicciardini (; 6 March 1483 – 22 May 1540) was an Italian historian and politician, statesman. A friend and critic of Niccolò Machiavelli, he is considered one of the major political writers of the Italian Renaissance. In his maste ...

, Fernando d'Ávalos considered himself more Spanish than Italian. Farnando's father was killed during a French invasion of Naples, while the boy was still a babe in arms. At the age of six the boy was betrothed to

Vittoria Colonna Vittoria Colonna (April 149225 February 1547), marchioness of Pescara, was an Italian noblewoman and poet. As an educated and married noblewoman whose husband was in captivity, Colonna was able to develop relationships within the intellectual ci ...

, daughter of the general

Fabrizio Colonna Fabrizio Colonna ( – 18 March 1520) was an Italian condottiero, a member of the powerful Colonna family. He was the son of Edoardo Colonna and Filippa Conti. Fabrizio was born sometime before 1452. He was married to Agnese di Montefeltro ...

, and the marriage was celebrated in 1509 on the island of

Ischia Ischia ( , , ) is a volcanic island in the Tyrrhenian Sea. It lies at the northern end of the Gulf of Naples, about from the city of Naples. It is the largest of the Phlegrean Islands. Although inhabited since the Bronze Age, as a Ancient G ...

. His position as a noble of the Aragonese party in Naples made it incumbent on him to support Ferdinand the Catholic in his Italian wars. In 1512, he commanded a body of light cavalry at the battle of Ravenna, where he was wounded and taken prisoner by the French. Thanks to the intervention of one of the foremost French generals, the Italian G. G. Trivulzio, who was his connection by marriage, he was allowed to ransom himself for 6,000 ''

ducat The ducat ( ) coin was used as a trade coin in Europe from the later Middle Ages to the 19th century. Its most familiar version, the gold ducat or sequin containing around of 98.6% fine gold, originated in Venice in 1284 and gained wide inter ...

s''. He commanded the Spanish infantry at the Battle of La Motta, or Vicenza, on October 7, 1513. It was on this occasion that he called his men before the charge to take care to step on him before the enemy did if he fell. From the battle of Vicenza in 1513, down to the

Battle of Bicocca The Battle of Bicocca or La Bicocca () was fought on 27 April 1522, during the Italian War of 1521–26. A combined French and Venetian force under Odet de Foix, Vicomte de Lautrec, was decisively defeated by an Imperial– Spanish and ...

on April 29, 1522, he continued to serve in command of the Spaniards and as the colleague rather than the subordinate of

Prospero Colonna Prospero Colonna (1452–1523), sometimes referred to as Prosper Colonna, was an Italian condottiero. He was active during the Italian wars and served France, Spain, the Holy Roman Empire and various Italian states. His military career spanned ...

. After the battle of Bicocca

appointed Colonna commander-in-chief. D'Ávalos, who considered himself aggrieved, made a journey to

Valladolid Valladolid ( ; ) is a Municipalities of Spain, municipality in Spain and the primary seat of government and ''de facto'' capital of the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Castile and León. It is also the capital of the pr ...

in Spain, where the emperor then was, to state his own claims. Charles V, with whom he had long and confidential interviews, persuaded him to submit for the time to the superiority of Colonna. But in these meetings, he gained the confidence of Charles V. His Spanish descent and sympathies marked him out as a safer commander of the imperial troops in Italy than a "full" Italian could have been. When Francis I invaded Italy in 1524 d'Ávalos was appointed as lieutenant of the emperor to repel the invasion. The difficulties of his position were very great, for there was much discontent in the army, which was very ill-paid. The tenacity, patience and tact of d'Ávalos triumphed over all obstacles. His influence over the veteran Spanish troops and the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...

mercenaries kept them loyal during the long siege of Pavia. On February 24, 1525, he defeated and took prisoner Francis I by a brilliant attack. D'Ávalos' plan was remarkable for its audacity and for the skill he showed in destroying the superior French heavy

cavalry Historically, cavalry (from the French word ''cavalerie'', itself derived from ''cheval'' meaning "horse") are groups of soldiers or warriors who Horses in warfare, fight mounted on horseback. Until the 20th century, cavalry were the most mob ...

by assailing them in the flank with a mixed force of

harquebusier The harquebusier was the most common form of cavalry found throughout Western Europe during the early to mid-17th century. Early harquebusiers were characterised by the use of a type of carbine called a "harquebus". In England, harquebusier was ...

s and light horse. It was believed that he was dissatisfied with the treatment he had received from the emperor, and Girolamo Morone, secretary to

Francesco II Sforza Francesco II Sforza (4 February 1495 – 1 November 1535) was Duke of Milan from 1521 until his death. He became duke of Milan after Emperor Charles V reconquered it from the French. He fought at Bicocca against the French, but in 1526 joine ...

, duke of

Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...

, approached him with a scheme for expelling French, Spaniards and Germans alike from Italy, and for gaining a throne for himself. D'Ávalos may have listened to the tempter, but in the act he was loyal. He reported the offer to Charles V and put Morone into prison. His health, however, had begun to give way under the strain of wounds and exposure, during late November, and he died at Milan on December 3, 1525.

Family

D'Ávalos married

in 1509 but had no children; his title descended to his cousin Alfonso d'Ávalos, Marques of

Vasto Vasto ( Abruzzese: '; , ) is a ''comune'' on the Adriatic coast of the Province of Chieti, in southern Abruzzo, Italy. During the Middle Ages it was called ''Guastaymonis'', '' Vasto d'Aimone'' or ''Waste d'Aimone''. Fascist Italy called the city ...

, also a distinguished imperial general (who in fact led the Imperial musketeers at Pavia).

In literature

The Italian historiographer

Paolo Giovio Paolo Giovio (also spelled ''Paulo Jovio''; Latin: ''Paulus Jovius''; 19 April 1483 – 11 December 1552) was an Italian physician, historian, biographer, and prelate. Early life Little is known about Giovio's youth. He was a native of Co ...

published a contemporary biography in Latin of Fernando Francesco which was included in his ''Vitae ''(''illustrium virorum''). It was subsequently translated by

Lodovico Domenichi Lodovico Domenichi (151529 August 1564) was an Italian translator. Biography Lodovico Domenichi was born in Piacenza (Italy) in 1515. After studying Law at the University of Padua, he pursued a literary career. He lived in Piacenza, Venice and F ...

and published in

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

in 1551. Giovio's biography was also translated into Spanish by Pedro de Vallés in 1553 as ''Historia del fortissimo y prudentissimo capitan Don Hernando de Ávalos''. The novel ''Die Versuchung des Pescara'' by

Conrad Ferdinand Meyer Conrad Ferdinand Meyer (11 October 1825 – 28 November 1898) was a Swiss poet and historical novelist, a master of literary realism who is mainly remembered for stirring narrative ballads like "Die Füße im Feuer" (The Feet in the Fire). Biog ...

is about him.

John Webster John Webster (c. 1578 – c. 1632) was an English Jacobean dramatist best known for his tragedies '' The White Devil'' and ''The Duchess of Malfi'', which are often seen as masterpieces of the early 17th-century English stage. His life and car ...

's ''

The Duchess of Malfi ''The Duchess of Malfi'' (originally published as ''The Tragedy of the Dutchesse of Malfy'') is a Jacobean revenge tragedy written by English dramatist John Webster in 1612–1613. It was first performed privately at the Blackfriars Theat ...

'', first performed in 1613–1614, makes numerous references to The Marquess.

References

* *

Sources

* Taylor, Frederick Lewis. ''The Art of War in Italy, 1494-1529''. Westport: Greenwood Press, 1973. . * {{DEFAULTSORT:Avalos, Fernando d 1489 births 1525 deaths

Fernando Fernando is a Spanish and Portuguese given name and a surname common in Spain, Portugal, Italy, France, Switzerland, and former Spanish or Portuguese colonies in Latin America, Africa and Asia (like the Philippines, India, and Sri Lanka). It is e ...

Nobility from Naples 16th-century condottieri Military leaders of the Italian Wars Spanish generals Italian people of Spanish descent Generals of the Imperial Army (Holy Roman Empire) Military personnel from Naples 16th-century Neapolitan people