| Benzoni | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Country | Italy |
| Place of origin | Crema |
| Founded | X century |
| Titles |
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The House of Benzoni (sometimes Venetianized as Benzon) was one of the most renowned patrician families of Crema, playing a leading role in Lombard political and military life from the Middle Ages through the modern era. [1] [2]
The origins of the family are disputed.
According to the most widespread tradition, the Benzoni descended from Benzone, son of Bonicio Serosato, lieutenant of Emperor Otto I in Milan in 938. [2]
Rachetti, a renowned historian from Crema, mentions that Benzone was also Duke and Royal Envoy in the city of Lodi, and that his descendants settled in the Crema area as early as the 10th century, coinciding with the destruction and reconstruction of Crema. The same document recalls that in 1102 a Benzone Benzoni signed a Concordia between the people of Piacenza, Parma, and Pontremoli; and in 1174 a Domerio Benzoni, consul of the city, signed the imperial act granting the Milanese the right to rebuild Crema. [3]
Another tradition, reported by Pietro Terni, claims that the Benzoni descended from the Greppi: in the 13th century, a Giovanni Greppi is said to have given rise to a branch called Benzoni. In 1163, a Benzone was appointed general by Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, and by 1196 the family owned houses in the contrada di Civerchi, near San Michele. [4]
Also mentioned is a Lantelmo Magro, or Benzone, who lived around 1150 and had children who branched into various lines.
Others claimed that the Benzoni had already been present in the Crema area since the early Middle Ages, possibly originating from the village of Parasso or from Palazzo Pignano, where a tradition records the presence of a Venturino Benzone of Parasso, listed among the 127 Christians martyred in Brescia in 120 AD for following Saints Faustino and Giovita. [2]
Between the 12th and 13th centuries, the Benzoni consolidated their power. They served as condottieri and as representatives of the people of Crema in relations with the Empire. The original branch was distinguished for its Guelph allegiance. In the 14th century, Venturino Benzoni the Elder was gonfaloniere of the Holy Church and Captain of the People in Milan. In 1315, Socino Benzoni expelled the Ghibellines and became the leading lord of Crema. [5]
On 12 November 1403, with the death of Gian Galeazzo Visconti, the brothers Paolo and Bartolomeo Benzoni were acclaimed Lords of Crema after defeating the Ghibellines. They strengthened their rule by extending control over Pandino and fortifying the city, but both died of plague in 1405.
The lordship then passed to their cousin Giorgio Benzoni, who sought alliance with the Republic of Venice and obtained the title of Venetian patrician on 23 October 1407. However, under Filippo Maria Visconti, Crema returned to the Milanese orbit. Giorgio was formally named Lord of Crema, Pandino, Misano, and Agnadello (1414), but was forced to flee to Mantua and later Venice, where he served militarily for the Republic alongside his son Venturino. [6]
After the Venetian conquest of the Crema territory, the Benzoni (or Benzon) moved to Venice, settling in the parish of Sant’Agostin in San Polo. The Venetian Senate confirmed their titles by ducal decrees of 10 March 1662 and 1 October 1784.
With the fall of the Republic, the Austrian government reaffirmed their nobility and comital title by Sovereign Resolutions of 1 December 1817, 13 December 1819, and 29 October 1822. [7]
The family line in Crema died out with Luigi Benzoni (1795). Some branches survived in Venice and Rome, retaining noble titles confirmed even during the Austrian era. [2]
The Benzoni further consolidated their status through marriages with other noble houses, including the Lords and Dukes Visconti, the Marquises Zurla, the Counts Vimercati and the Counts Benvenuti.
A notable union was that of Paola Benzoni and Giovanni Battista Visconti, from whom was born Francesco Bernardino Visconti, the inspiration for the character of the Innominato in Manzoni’s The Betrothed. [3]
Several members of the Benzoni family also held prominent ecclesiastical positions. Some were appointed bishops and abbots, thus increasing the family’s influence not only politically but also religiously. Their presence in Lombard ecclesiastical institutions was constant and significant, helping to consolidate their image as moral and spiritual authorities. [2]
Of the homes built and inhabited by the Benzoni family, the following are particularly memorable:
There also existed a second Benzoni family, which, however, had no kinship ties with the former. They were merchants from the Bergamasque valleys and acquired the title of patricians in 1685, by offering the customary one hundred thousand ducats to finance the War of Morea against the Ottomans. To distinguish themselves from the earlier family, they were called “of San Vidal”, since they had settled in the present-day Palazzo Benzon-Foscolo, near the Church of San Vidal (San Marco). The only notable member was Archbishop Giovanni Maria (1670–1757), and the line became extinct before the end of the Republic. [10]